...the soul of wit: Yes much ado this weekend.

Oscars - I like your turn-of-phrase for Mystic River. It was a bit in-your-face about the emotions it demanded you feel. Still, I think Penn was well-deserved. He is simply levels above the rest. The ending was screwball, but I'll forgive it. Robbins was creepy, which was the point, but hard to say whether it was a virtuoso acting job. Kind of like a "Rainman" deal there. Still Susan Sarandon is way hot. I'm in love ... again.

For LOTR, I disagree somewhat of your characterization that this film wins only in the post-Star Wars era. I think LOTR compares more accurately with Ben Hur in terms of spectacle. Yes, Ben Hur was more character-driven, and clearly focused more on a couple actors as opposed to the ensemble that was LOTR. Still, having read all the books and seen all the movies, it's hard to imagine a better telling of the story on the screen. Jackson simply nailed it. He gets all the Oscars this time because it was the last one. I don't think Return of the King was all that better than Fellowship (although it was better than Two Towers). This was the recognition for the whole kit and kaboodle. Too bad for the rest of the movies, really. Master and Commander was another incredibly well done adaptation of a series of books with a cult following.

Haiti - I guess it was something to be happy about for all those Haitians to see Aristide gone, but now what? In a few days the euphoria will wear off and it will be time again to focus on jobs, health, and safety. None of those things are likely to get better short-term -although the aid packages will likely start flowing in. I assume Aristide had his financial planner working on an exit strategy for some time and that the 1% skim off of GDP will keep him in good stead in whatever 3rd world country he ends up.