2012 Oscars Predictions, Pre-Globes Edition

Thursday the Golden Globe nominations will be announced, further clarifying a rapidly focusing Oscar picture. Critics awards are coming in almost every day, giving a boost mostly to Kathryn Bigelow's Zero Dark Thirty. Also, all films that are on the release calendar have been seen by at least some critics, giving them either negative or positive buzz. Here is breakdown of the likely nominees:

Best Picture

Locks: Argo, Les Miserables, Lincoln, Zero Dark Thirty

Safe Bets: Silver Linings Playbook, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Life of Pi

In the Mix: Django Unchained, Flight, The Master

Best Director

Locks: Steven Spielberg, Lincoln, Kathryn Bigelow, Zero Dark Thirty, Tom Hooper, Les Miserables

Safe Bets: Ben Affleck, Argo, David O. Russell, Silver Linings Playbook

In the Mix: Michael Haneke, Amour, Benn Zeitlin, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Paul Thomas Anderson, The Master

Best Actor

Locks: Daniel Day-Lewis, Lincoln, John Hawkes, The Sessions

Safe Bets: Bradley Cooper, Silver Linings Playbook, Hugh Jackman, Les Miserables, Denzel Washington, Flight

In the Mix: Jamie Foxx, Django Unchained, Anthony Hopkins, Hitchcock

Best Actress

Locks: Jessica Chastain, Zero Dark Thirty, Jennifer Lawrence, Silver Linings Playbook

Safe Bets: Marion Cotillard, Rust and Bone, Quvenzhane Wallis, Beasts of the Southern Wild

In the Mix: Emmanuelle Riva, Amour, Naomi Watts, The Impossible

Best Supporting Actor

Locks: Tommie Lee Jones, Lincoln, Robert DeNiro, Silver Linings Playbook

Safe Bets: Philip Seymour Hoffman, The Master, Leonardo DiCaprio, Django Unchained

In the Mix: Alan Arkin, Argo, Matthew McConnaughey, Magic Mike

Best Supporting Actress

Locks: Anne Hathaway, Les Miserables, Sally Field, Lincoln

Safe Bets: Amy Adams, The Master, Helen Hunt, The Sessions

In the Mix: Jacki Weaver, Silver Linings Playbook, Kelly Reilly, Flight