The Academy Award nominations are out, and Oscar buzz is now in full swing.

In the last few days, we've seen the usual flood of conversation about the nominations: the contenders' reactions, talk show discussions of possible outcomes and the ever-amusing "if Academy Award movie posters told the truth" photo manipulations (always a laugh). But in a year of big, Oscar-bait movies, it's not surprising that the biggest topic on everyone's mind is not who's going to win, but who was snubbed. Conspicuously missing from the Best Picture category were We Need to Talk About Kevin and Beginners, both movies with brilliant acting and themes far more relevant to current events than, say, The Help. I'm sorry, but "white people fix racism"? Haven't we done that already?

The nominations for Best Actor in a Leading Role have also stirred up some mixed feelings with the absence of Leonardo Dicaprio (J. Edgar) and Michael Fassbender (Shame). Critics lauded both performances as Oscar-worthy, and, if Twitter is any indication, fans of both actors were disappointed to see them passed over. Ryan Gosling was blatantly missing from the Best Supporting Actor category—fans suspected he could have received nods for either Drive or The Ides of March.

On a positive note, Michelle Williams, Gosling's co-star in last year's Blue Valentine, picked up her second Best Actress nomination in two years for My Week with Marilyn. The Best Actress category also included Meryl Streep for The Iron Lady, swooping in with her 17th nomination—a record for any actor or actress in the history of the awards. Missing from the Best Actress category, however, was Tilda Swinton, who gave a brilliant and chilling performance in We Need to Talk about Kevin.

Still, despite the snubs, there were some happily surprising films and roles that made it onto the Academy's list, most notably Kristen Wiig's raunchy comedy Bridesmaids. Wiig and Bridesmaids co-writer Annie Mumolo were nominated for Best Screenplay, and Melissa McCarthy received a nomination for Best Supporting Actress. Considering how rare it is for the Academy to recognize comedies, this was a big win for funny ladies everywhere in a year already marked as "the rise of the comedienne."

Regardless of whether your favorites received nominations, one thing about this year's awards is clear: There's no obvious front-runner for any of the categories. It's going to be a close race.

And to all the Harry Potter fans on Tumblr disappointed that Deathly Hallows II didn't get a Best Picture nod, I have one comment: Really?