Academy Award nominations

The nominations were announced and the Oscar buzz started. I wonder ... have any of you seen all of the movies listed -- for best picture and also the movies related to the actresses and actors nominated for their work? Half on the list? None on the list? Will these nominations motivate you to see the films?
I looked at the list after being reminded the nominations were announced by Google News -- why do people watch the news when you can type google.com and click News and it's all there!?
Of the best pictures listed I've seen "True Grit" and "Inception." These days it takes a lot to get me to the movie theatre. With the high cost of tickets and food at the theatre and the influx of people -- both fellow moviegoers who respect the rules and movie-going tradition and those who text or chat on their phone during the feature film, talk loudly and are otherwise annoying -- it's not what it used to be and I'm hesitant to go even when it's a movie I want to see. I could wait until the movie becomes available to rent, pick it up on Netflix and enjoy it in the quiet and comfort of my living room where the popcorn doesn't cost $10 and I won't hear about Candi's weekend plans at the club during the best part of the film as she yaks excessively on her cell with her boo Chuckie Love. With the overabundance of technology it's funny I don't have the give it to me now mentality but use technology to wait until the movie is available for rent.
I liked "Inception." Yeah, during a bit of the film I was confused as to what was going on but I liked that ... it wasn't simple to grasp, you went to the movies and they also wanted you to think! How dare they! Although this is often the time people lose attention -- when they are confused or bored -- they worked it into the movie so it was interesting enough that I kept watching. Of course watching my dreamboat Leo on the big screen wasn't all painful either.
I enjoyed "True Grit" also, although the trailer was misleading. Not to sound like Mary Masochism but having a trailer with Rooster Cogburn (who was brilliantly played by my main man The Dude aka Jeff Bridges) talking about how he's not sure how many people he's killed as a U.S. Marshal makes me expect a certain amount of violence. I'm not expecting the body count of the most recent "Rambo" film, which reached past 100 and was almost laughable, but I was expecting more than what the film offered. However, I enjoyed the movie and its mix of humor and toughness.
As for the other movies on the Best Picture list, "Black Swan," "The Fighter," "The Kids Are Alright," "The King's Speech," "127 Hours," "The Social Network," "Toy Story 3" and "Winter's Bone," my feelings waver. Maybe it's the overload with new films but I get turned off easily.
For example, "The Social Network." I have heard so much about this film on TV and through news headlines and the more I hear, the more turned off I become. It's not what I hear in terms of plot content but the excessive praise and brown-nosing. When people say it's the must-see film of the year, that turns me off even more. Life changing. Epic. Turns me off even more. It's hard to watch a film for the first time without expectations. Can you block out all you've heard before making it to the theatre? Not just from media but also from friends.
Also, there are not a lot of new ideas out there for movies, if any. Most movies are takes off of older films, like a steaming stew of various films and ideas. Like after watching the "Twilight" films a friend suggested I check out the "Clan of the Cave Bear" books which offered a similar tale of love. These new films could be seen as a take on the current times, especially "The Social Network" (I guess we're in the technology age), but I'd rather try to see all the old films I haven't seen (my Netflix list is around 150). I pledged to watch the "100 Best Films" according to Time magazine but have not fulfilled my promise.
One of the best picture nominated films I am interested in is "Black Swan." Half for the mental anguish the characters go through and the lesbian angry love (sexy!) and half because I love Natalie Portman but having this list of best pictures doesn't make me want to run and see the films. It makes me think of what my dad told me last night after I told him I heard that when the original "True Grit" hit the Academy Awards in the '70s, the original Rooster Cogburn (played by John Wayne) won for Best Actor. I wondered if my dad thought Jeff Bridges was going to win.
"John Wayne won because he was popular. Don't know why. He played the same character in each movie he was in."
Maybe what the Academy Awards (and America) needs is brutal honesty!