Academy Awards larceny is irritating

"Ghost World" was robbed. And so was "Amelie." And so was "The Royal Tenenbaums."

Trust me, this is about as measured as I'm going to get when it comes to discussing this year's crop of Academy Award nominees. In fact, I'm preparing to be irked severely when the Oscar winners are finally announced next weekend. (The 74th Academy Awards will be presented Sunday, March 24, in ceremonies to be broadcast starting at 6 p.m. locally on KTVX/Ch. 4.)

Like a lot of armchair quarterbacks (or Oscar voter wannabes, to be more accurate), I believe there were a whole bunch of movies and performances that were slighted — in particular, these three films.

Just look at the nominees for Best Picture — the love-it-or-hate-it musical/fantasy "Moulin Rouge," the well-acted but thinly plotted "In the Bedroom," and "A Beautiful Mind," director Ron Howard's highly fictionalized biography of mathematician John Forbes Nash Jr.

Can those who have seen those three movies, as well as my three "was-robbed" selections, say that Oscar's choices are actually better?

Meanwhile, here are some other "should-have-been-nominated-but-weren't" gripes:

BEST ACTOR

With all apologies to Will Smith, who did a fine Muhammad Ali impression, and the usually solid Sean Penn, neither deserved to be nominated over Gene Hackman, who was so funny in "The Royal Tenenbaums."

BEST ACTRESS

I'm a Nicole Kidman fan, but her understated work in "the Others" was better than her song-and-dance performance in "Moulin Rouge." And where were "Amelie's" Audrey Tatou, and Tilda Swinton from "The Deep End"?

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Steve Buscemi, as "Ghost World's" frighteningly obsessive collector, doesn't get nominated. But Ethan Hawke, simply reacting to Denzel Washington in "Training Day," does?

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

"In the Bedroom's" Marisa Tomei over movie-stealing Cameron Diaz from "Vanilla Sky"?

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE

The so-so "Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius" over Richard Linklater's innovative, thoughtful "Waking Life"?

BEST MAKEUP

"A Beautiful Mind" was nominated in this category over "Planet of the Apes"?

Argh! I repeat: Argh!