Langley’s Lewis Carlino can’t say much right now about Hollywood’s big night.

Monday might be a different story, however.

Carlino, who wrote the screenplay for “The Great Santini,” a 1979 film starring Robert Duvall that earned two Academy Awards nominations, is a voting member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. He has already cast his ballot for this year’s Oscar nominees. But since the film organization discourages members giving out their vote prior to the ceremony, Carlino could only speak in general terms about the great work that made it on screen this year.

The race for Best Picture will be an interesting one to watch, he promised.

“The quality of the work done in all five films was outstanding this year,” he said. Carlino added that his criteria in judging is how deeply the film engages him, how well it casts a spell.

“I like all movies, but very often it’s the smaller ones that speak loudest,” he said.

Carlino will join millions across the world in watching Oscar night this weekend. Others on Whidbey with strong ties to Tinseltown will also tune in, though there won’t be a local boy to root for this year. One year ago, Langley resident Kirk Francis made his way to the podium to accept an Oscar for his work on “The Bourne Ultimatum.” Francis and co-winners Scott Millan and David Parker won for best sound mixing.

Jim Drake from Freeland has a long history behind the camera. He directed television comedies including “The Golden Girls” and “Coach.”

He’s not an academy member so felt free to speak his mind.

“I think ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ will take the prize with Danny Boyle as director,” he said.

“The biggest toss-up of the night is between Sean Penn and Mickey Rourke in ‘The Wrestler,’ with Penn the front-runner,” Boyle added.

Blake Willeford is owner of The Clyde Theater in Langley. He hasn’t seen all the films yet, but said “Slumdog Millionaire” has the all-important Hollywood buzz.

“It won at the Golden Globes and that’s often a clear indicator,” Willeford said.

This year, it’s anyone’s guess which film has a lock on the big prize.

Academy voting members in the past have been known to reward big budget movies like “Titanic” and “The Lord of the Rings.”

But blockbusters like “The Dark Knight” (closing in on a billion dollars in worldwide box office grosses), “Iron Man” and the fourth “Indiana Jones” flick have been all but shutout, though Heath Ledger will likely get a posthumous Best Supporting Actor nod as Batman’s latest nasty nemesis.

Instead, this year’s crop features a fantasy about a man who ages backwards, the televised skirmish between an ex-president and his British interviewer, a biopic about the first gay city councilman, a Holocaust drama and the story of a poor Indian boy in Mumbai who strikes it rich.

All of the nominated films are smaller in terms of both budget and return at the box office. Only one nominated film has crashed the $100 million barrier so far, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” and the studio hopes an Oscar will help it recover its $150 million marketing and production budget.

The big winner so far has to be “Slumdog Millionaire.” Made in India with a cast of unknowns for $15 million, it has brought in almost $90 million in the U.S. and is the current frontrunner for Best Picture.

Carlino enjoyed all the nominated films, some for their technical proficiency, others for the story or the acting.

“’Benjamin Button’ was quite a technical accomplishment and Brad Pitt certainly rose to the occasion,” he said.

Carlino said that Sean Penn surprised him playing the gay city councilman in “Milk.”

“He exceeded himself in a role far away from what Penn usually plays,” Carlino said. He also appreciated director Gus Van Sant’s disarming, almost docu-drama depiction of San Francisco during a turbulent time for that city.

Actor Frank Langella is an old friend of Carlino’s.

“He was amazing in ‘Frost/Nixon’ and I saw it twice,” Carlino said. “His depth of understanding into the soul of Richard Nixon was astonishing.”

He also was swept away by Kate Winslet’s role in “The Reader.”

“There were no easy answers to the questions raised in the narrative and I was impressed by the unselfconsciousness of the erotic scenes,” he said.

Finally, Carlino found “Slumdog Millionaire” engaging but glossy and a bit predictable.

“The editing was crisp and director Danny Boyle did a great job,” he said.

Carlino made note of a few movies he wish had been recognized, including “The Yellow Handkerchief,” the mafia film “Gomorrah” from Italy, and Kristin Scott Thomas in “I’ve Loved You So Long.”

Drake said he feels this is Winslet’s night — she’s had six nominations but no wins — for “The Reader.” Meryl Streep’s performance in “Doubt” is not far behind.

Carlino thinks Ledger is the man to beat for the male supporting role and felt Penelope Cruz gave the most “out there” performance of the year in “Vicky Christina Barcelona.”

Overall, Drake feels that “Slumdog Millionaire” could end up with Oscars for picture, director, screenplay, music and editing.

“It might be a sweep, but at the Oscars, anything can happen,” Drake added.

Willeford, however, hopes filmgoers won’t overlook special performances.

“One that resonated with me was Melissa Leo in “Frozen River and a lovely French film called ‘Tell No One’ was a favorite,” Willeford said.

He also thinks Penn is the man to beat for Best Actor, and for his money, “Iron Man” was the best action flick, Willeford said. The year in films provided a special memory, as well.

“One of the high points was the sing-along version of ‘Mamma Mia’ we had at the Clyde last year. That was really fun,” Willeford recalled.

Jeff VanDerford can be reached at 221-5300 or jvanderford@southwhidbeyrecord.com.