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Oscars’ best makeup nominees: Why so few?

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There are a whopping 10 best picture nominees up for this year’s Academy Awards -- and five nominees for every other major category, including best costume.

So why are there only three paltry nominees up for the best makeup title?

The contenders, ‘The Young Victoria,’ ‘Star Trek,’ and ‘Il Divo,’ are all worthy candidates. But clearly Oscar’s overlooking some impressive cosmetic achievements.

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It’s true that lipstick didn’t command a starring role in gritty movies like ‘The Soloist’ or ‘Precious.’ And ‘Avatar‘s’ blue people were created with mouses, not makeup.

But how great was Sandra Bullock‘s frosted, Texas-style makeover in ‘The Blind Side?’ Or Melanie Laurent‘s and Diane Kruger‘s flawless ‘40s makeup in ‘Inglorious Basterds?’ Not to mention Stanley Tucci‘s sweaty creepiness in ‘The Lovely Bones’ and the retro glamour girls of ‘Nine.’

Perhaps it’s the shortage of prosthetics-based makeup jobs. Past winners in the category have almost always boasted masterfully executed aging, as in ‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,’ which took the prize last year, or feats of fantastical monstrosities, as in the case of ‘Pan’s Labyrinth’ in 2007.

But even facing a shortage of sci-fi and fantasy flicks, surely Oscar could round out a quintet of deserving nominees.

Who do you think deserves to be included in the best makeup category?

-- Emili Vesilind

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Top photo: Melanie Laurent in ‘Inglorious Basterds.’ Photo credit: Francois Duhamel / The Weinstein Co. Bottom photo: Sandra Bullock and Tim McGraw in ‘The Blind Side.’ Photo credit: Ralph Nelson / Warner Bros.

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