I was going to start this column with a "What do you get when you cross a gay cowboy, a terrorist and Johnny Cash" joke, but I decided that both you and I are too mature for that.

In something of an off year for the movie industry, it was feared that this year's Oscar nominations would celebrate the Academy's usual suspects, even if their work was less than stellar, or is never stellar (see one Crowe, Russell).

However, Hollywood took the high road for once, deciding it was time to approach some cogent and important issues. But the industry was pretty careful about just which cogent and important issues they would pick.

As the nominations were announced, it became apparent that a few films, and the social problems they addressed would be the hot topics come Oscar night. Brokeback Mountain's eight nominations would ensure that romance on film was now gender neutral. Nods for Mountain's Heath Ledger, Transamerica's Felicity Huffman and Capote's Philip Seymour Hoffman moved to erase any remaining mainstream stigma against gay characters in lead roles. Crash's six nominations brought our attention to the more difficult and complex nuances of modern race relations.

And then came George Clooney. Not Ocean's Eleven George Clooney, mind you. Not E.R. George Clooney, and not even O Brother, Where Art Thou? George Clooney. No, this year, we have a new George Clooney. The omnipresent political, multitasking version.

Clooney received three nominations: One for best supporting actor in the geopolitical thriller Syriana and two more for the McCarthyism drama Good Night, and Good Luck, which he wrote and directed. However, while both are commendable films, they're not that different. Both explore political corruption and its effects, both large and small. Both show what happens when an individual tries to throw a monkey wrench into the machinations of the status quo. Both cry for a knowledgeable populace. And both received a few nominations.

One received quite a few more, though. Syriana's highest-profile nomination was Clooney's nod for Best Supporting Actor (also its best bet for a win). It also received a Best Original Screenplay nomination but it doesn't have a chance for a win.

Good Night, however, is up for Best Picture, Best Direction, Best Original Screenplay, Best Actor (David Strathairn as Edward R. Murrow), Best Cinematography and Best Art Direction.

So why so much more attention for Good Night? Well, why do some films receive more praise than others?

Because they are just better films? Well, Good Night certainly isn't. Be-cause they're more successful? Nope. Because they're flashier? Uh-uh. Because they're in black and white? Well Good Night is, but that rule really only applies to one film, Schindler's List.

Good Night was the favorite of the two political dramas because it's the easier one to take. There are very few pro-McCarthy factions out there who are going to be infuriated by another film debunking the anti-Communist witch hunts. Conservative, liberal, left, right, whatever side you're on, you probably support the right to a fair trial.

But there are plenty of people who will be enraged by Syriana's politics. To buy into what Syriana is selling, you have to accept that the U.S. government throws out the rulebook when it comes to oil. You have to believe they're perfectly willing to clandestinely kill foreign dignitaries to ensure that more favorable individuals reach office. And you have to watch a movie where the most morally pure, sympathetic characters are the teenage terrorists who bomb the high holy hell out of an American oil rig.

That's a much harder message to swallow than "McCarthy was a jerk."

Overall, it was a good year for the Academy. It dealt maturely with racial and gay issues, history and politics. But it is still afraid of making certain statements. Despite the fact that it calls to mind injustices the world should face, Syriana is not the kind of film that the Oscar voters want to call one of the top five films of the year. If your name is George Clooney, there's no doubt it'll be a good night. But if you're trying to get people to think differently about U.S. behavior in the Middle East, good luck.