So the Oscar Nominations were announced this morning at 5.30. The full list can be read here. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button leads the race this year with 13 nods, including best film, best director for David Fincher and best actor for Brad Pitt. This is all pretty predictable for the Academy who lap up glittering, nostalgic epics like there’s no tomorrow. This really infuriates me. I hate Button so much, but that’s for another post.
This year’s indie hit, Slumdog Millionaire follows close behind Button with 10 nominations. The sprawling drama about an impoverished Indian teen who ends up on a TV game show has garnered nods for best picture, best director for Danny Boyle and best adapted screenplay for Simon Beaufoy.
Close behind are Milk – about assassinated gay rights activist Harvey Milk – and comic book thriller The Dark Knight. Both films received eight nominations yesterday. The late Heath Ledger is amongst the nominees for best supporting actor. Rounding off the best picture nominees are Milk, Frost/Nixon and The Reader.
The biggest winner already has been independent cinema. Despite my disappointment at Benjamin Button’s success, it is one of only two studio release nominated for best picture this year (the other is Frost/Nixon). The rest have spawned from the indie world, along with many other films nominated in other categories. Michelle Leo is up for best actress for her tun as a struggling single mother in Frozen River. She competes against Anne Hathaway for Rachel Getting Married, Angelina Jolie for Changeling, Meryl Streep for Doubt and Kate Winslet for The Reader. Conincidentally, Winslet recently won to Golden Globe for her performance – but in the supporting actress category. Winslet has not been nominated for her performance in Revolutionary Road, which earned her the best actress Golden Globe two weeks ago.
The Pitt-Jolie household must be celebrating tonight. Brad is up for best actor along with Mickey Rourke, who picked up the Golden Globe, Sean Penn for Milk, Frank Langella for Frost/Nixon and Richard Jenkins for The Visitor.
So where are the snubs? In my opinion, the biggest travesty is the exclusion of Sally Hawkins. Her performance in Mike Leigh’s latest film Happy-Go-Lucky was superb; a much more accomplished turn than Angelina Jolie’s, whose messy hysterics in Changeling were almost embarrassing. I’m also suprised that Reovlutionary Road had such a bad run. I haven’t seen The Reader yet, but its critical reception has been tepid at best. Revolutionary Road showcases such magnificent talent and very little of it will be recognised at the Oscars this year. Also, Bruce Springsteen’s The Wrestler, which took home the Golden Globe for best original song this year, is sorely lacking from the nominee list at the Oscars.
In any case, Februrary 22 should be a remarkable night! I’ll post my picks at some stage over the next week. My head says Slumdog, my heart, Milk.
Roped 