The Oscars: Money lessons from the movies

Nomination: Actor in a leading role

Starring: Colin Firth, Julianne Moore

Synopsis: A gay college professor in the early 1960s must hide his grief over the death of his lover in this drama directed by fashion designer Tom Ford.

Best actor nominee Colin Firth portrays an English professor. "While he's got this fantastic house in this suburban neighborhood, in real life, professors don't make that much money," Martin says. "So he's got this fantastic life going on, and at least it's not (implied) that he's an author and does speaking or consulting or anything other than teaching. It's left to (infer) that a professor makes millions."

This is similar to other movies, such as "It's Complicated" and "Sex and the City," that portray unrealistic residences and lifestyles of the lead characters, based on their salaries and professions. Viewers need to resist trying to live the same type of lifestyle, without the availability of Hollywood sets and budgets, and if not, it could lead to overspending and undersaving.