Oscar, oscar

Film The Oscar nominations in full then.

Achievement in directing
Babel (Paramount and Paramount Vantage) Alejandro González Iñárritu
The Departed (Warner Bros.) Martin Scorsese
Letters from Iwo Jima (Warner Bros.) Clint Eastwood
The Queen (Miramax, Pathé and Granada) Stephen Frears
United 93 (Universal and StudioCanal) Paul Greengrass

Will it be Scorsese's year? Probably not. Eastwood'll beat him again.

Performance by an actor in a leading role
Leonardo DiCaprio in Blood Diamond
Ryan Gosling in Half Nelson (THINKFilm)
Peter O'Toole in Venus (Miramax, Filmfour and UK Council)
Will Smith in The Pursuit of Happyness (Sony Pictures Releasing)
Forest Whitaker in The Last King of Scotland (Fox Searchlight)

Bizarre that Michael Sheen didn't get a nod here for The Queen but given that I've failed to see any of the films in this list yet, I can't really decide although it would be good to see Ryan Gosling win it simply so that I can hear the hall collectively go 'Huh?' on awards night.

Performance by an actor in a supporting role
Alan Arkin in Little Miss Sunshine (Fox Searchlight)
Jackie Earle Haley in Little Children (New Line)
Djimon Hounsou in Blood Diamond (Warner Bros.)
Eddie Murphy in Dreamgirls (DreamWorks and Paramount)
Mark Wahlberg in The Departed (Warner Bros.)

I think Eddie Murphy will probably win this. I think that for him to even be here means that the academy are just pleased that they can finally toss him an award for his long service.

Performance by an actress in a leading role
Penélope Cruz in Volver (Sony Pictures Classics)
Judi Dench in Notes on a Scandal (Fox Searchlight)
Helen Mirren in The Queen (Miramax, Pathé and Granada)
Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada (20th Century Fox)
Kate Winslet in Little Children (New Line)

Remember that not too long ago this was the weakest category and yet here we are with five classic actresses. Will it be Mirren's year? Don't know - for all that it would be cool to see Penelope Cruz win something, especially since Volver failed to get a nomination in the Foreign Language Film category.

Performance by an actress in a supporting role
Adriana Barraza in Babel (Paramount and Paramount Vantage)
Cate Blanchett in Notes on a Scandal (Fox Searchlight)
Abigail Breslin in Little Miss Sunshine (Fox Searchlight)
Jennifer Hudson in Dreamgirls (DreamWorks and Paramount)
Rinko Kikuchi in Babel (Paramount and Paramount Vantage)

I think Cate Blanchett will win this, if only because she's been so visible in film in the past couple of years and it might be an award for her range of performances, if not simply this film. Or will Abigail Breslin be the new Anna Paquin?

Best animated feature film of the year
Cars (Buena Vista) John Lasseter
Happy Feet (Warner Bros.) George Miller
Monster House (Sony Pictures Releasing) Gil Kenan

Cars will win. I have heard though that Monster House does have some momentum.

Achievement in art direction
Dreamgirls (DreamWorks and Paramount)
The Good Shepherd (Universal)
Pan's Labyrinth (Picturehouse)
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (Buena Vista)
The Prestige (Buena Vista)

The Prestige or Pans Labarynth should win here - both beautiful films featuring a range of settings. Although if Dreamgirls gets a sweep everything else will fall by the wayside.

Achievement in cinematography
The Black Dahlia (Universal) Vilmos Zsigmond
Children of Men (Universal) Emmanuel Lubezki
The Illusionist (Yari Film Group) Dick Pope
Pan's Labyrinth (Picturehouse) Guillermo Navarro
The Prestige (Buena Vista) Wally Pfister

Battle of the magic films then - except I think Children of Men will be given the charity award here for the film everyone seemed to love but has been largely ignored.

Achievement in costume design
Curse of the Golden Flower (Sony Pictures Classics) Yee Chung Man
The Devil Wears Prada (20th Century Fox) Patricia Field
Dreamgirls (DreamWorks and Paramount) Sharen Davis
Marie Antoinette (Sony Pictures Releasing) Milena Canonero
The Queen (Miramax, Pathé and Granada) Consolata Boyle

The Devil Wears Prada will probably win the irony vote, but Marie Antoinette's costumes were spectacular even if the whole film wasn't.


Best documentary feature
Deliver Us from Evil (Lionsgate)
An Inconvenient Truth (Paramount Classics and Participant Productions)
Iraq in Fragments (Typecast Releasing)
Jesus Camp (Magnolia Pictures)
My Country, My Country (Zeitgeist Films)

I think An Inconvenient Truth is bound to win this although it's great to see James Longley's Iraq in Fragments which you'll have heard first about on this very blog.

Best documentary short subject
The Blood of Yingzhou District
Recycled Life
Rehearsing a Dream
Two Hands

Either of the middle two on the basis of the title alone.

Achievement in film editing
Babel (Paramount and Paramount Vantage)
Blood Diamond (Warner Bros.)
Children of Men (Universal)
The Departed (Warner Bros.)
United 93 (Universal and StudioCanal)

If Paul Greengrass doesn't win Best Director (although the whole Director/Picture linkage is never certain anymore which might count in his favour) I think this will be sympathy award. Unless the academy are really impressed with the cutting between narratives in Babel.

Best foreign language film of the year
After the Wedding A Zentropa Entertainments 16 Production
Denmark
Days of Glory (Indigènes) A Tessalit Production
Algeria
The Lives of Others A Wiedemann & Berg Production
Germany
Pan's Labyrinth A Tequila Gang/Esperanto Filmoj/Estudios Picasso Production
Mexico
Water A Hamilton-Mehta Production Canada

No Volver? Good lord. And yet - look -- Water! I'll be very surprised if Pan's Labyrinth doesn't win though.

Achievement in makeup
Apocalypto (Buena Vista) Aldo Signoretti and Vittorio Sodano
Click (Sony Pictures Releasing) Kazuhiro Tsuji and Bill Corso
Pan's Labyrinth (Picturehouse) David Marti and Montse Ribe

Click? Pan's Labyrinth!

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score)
Babel (Paramount and Paramount Vantage) Gustavo Santaolalla
The Good German (Warner Bros.) Thomas Newman
Notes on a Scandal (Fox Searchlight) Philip Glass
Pan's Labyrinth (Picturehouse) Javier Navarrete
The Queen (Miramax, Pathé and Granada) Alexandre Desplat

The Good German's pastiche score might win (can't wait to see this).

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song)
I Need to Wake Up from An Inconvenient Truth
(Paramount Classics and Participant Productions)
Music and Lyric by Melissa Etheridge
Listen from Dreamgirls
(DreamWorks and Paramount)
Music by Henry Krieger and Scott Cutler
Lyric by Anne Preven
Love You I Do from Dreamgirls
(DreamWorks and Paramount)
Music by Henry Krieger
Lyric by Siedah Garrett
Our Town from Cars
(Buena Vista)
Music and Lyric by Randy Newman
Patience from Dreamgirls
(DreamWorks and Paramount)
Music by Henry Krieger
Lyric by Willie Reale

Since Dreamgirls is this year's musical ?

Best motion picture of the year
Babel (Paramount and Paramount Vantage)
An Anonymous Content/Zeta Film/Central Films Production
Alejandro González Iñárritu, Jon Kilik and Steve Golin, Producers
The Departed (Warner Bros.)
A Warner Bros. Pictures Production
Nominees to be determined
Letters from Iwo Jima (Warner Bros.)
A DreamWorks Pictures/Warner Bros. Pictures Production
Clint Eastwood, Steven Spielberg and Robert Lorenz, Producers
Little Miss Sunshine (Fox Searchlight)
A Big Beach/Bona Fide Production
Nominees to be determined
The Queen (Miramax, Pathé and Granada)
A Granada Production
Andy Harries, Christine Langan and Tracey Seaward, Producers

Which demonstrates how the indie sensibilities of yesteryear are now so mainstream. Of course my favourite film of last year The Russian Dolls isn't listed. Because it was released everywhere else the year before. Fingers crossed for The Queen though.

Best animated short film
The Danish Poet (National Film Board of Canada)
A Mikrofilm and National Film Board of Canada Production
Torill Kove
Lifted (Buena Vista)
A Pixar Animation Studios Production
Gary Rydstrom
The Little Matchgirl (Buena Vista)
A Walt Disney Pictures Production
Roger Allers and Don Hahn
Maestro (Szimplafilm)
A Kedd Production
Geza M. Toth
No Time for Nuts (20th Century Fox)
A Blue Sky Studios Production
Chris Renaud and Michael Thurmeier

The Danish Poet because it was the only one without the backing of a major studio.

Best live action short film
Binta and the Great Idea (Binta Y La Gran Idea)
A Peliculas Pendelton and Tus Ojos Production
Javier Fesser and Luis Manso
Éramos Pocos (One Too Many) (Kimuak)
An Altube Filmeak Production
Borja Cobeaga
Helmer & Son
A Nordisk Film Production
Soren Pilmark and Kim Magnusson
The Saviour (Australian Film Television and Radio School)
An Australian Film Television and Radio School Production
Peter Templeman and Stuart Parkyn
West Bank Story
An Ari Sandel, Pascal Vaguelsy, Amy Kim, Ravi Malhotra and Ashley Jordan Production
Ari Sandel

(?) And again I say (?)

Achievement in sound editing
Apocalypto (Buena Vista)
Sean McCormack and Kami Asgar
Blood Diamond (Warner Bros.)
Lon Bender
Flags of Our Fathers (DreamWorks and Warner Bros., Distributed by Paramount)
Alan Robert Murray and Bub Asman
Letters from Iwo Jima (Warner Bros.)
Alan Robert Murray
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (Buena Vista)
Christopher Boyes and George Watters II

It'll probably be Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest which seems to the vogue summer blockbuster of this list.

Achievement in sound mixing
Apocalypto (Buena Vista)
Kevin O'Connell, Greg P. Russell and Fernando Camara
Blood Diamond (Warner Bros.)
Andy Nelson, Anna Behlmer and Ivan Sharrock
Dreamgirls (DreamWorks and Paramount)
Michael Minkler, Bob Beemer and Willie Burton
Flags of Our Fathers (DreamWorks and Warner Bros., Distributed by Paramount)
John Reitz, Dave Campbell, Gregg Rudloff and Walt Martin
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (Buena Vista)
Paul Massey, Christopher Boyes and Lee Orloff

Again might fall during the mighty Dreamgirls sweep.

Achievement in visual effects
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (Buena Vista)
John Knoll, Hal Hickel, Charles Gibson and Allen Hall
Poseidon (Warner Bros.)
Boyd Shermis, Kim Libreri, Chaz Jarrett and John Frazier
Superman Returns (Warner Bros.)
Mark Stetson, Neil Corbould, Richard R. Hoover and Jon Thum

Superman Returns, since it hasn't been nominated for anything else which is really, really bizarre.

Adapted screenplay
Borat Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (20th Century Fox)
Screenplay by Sacha Baron Cohen & Anthony Hines & Peter Baynham & Dan Mazer
Story by Sacha Baron Cohen & Peter Baynham & Anthony Hines & Todd Phillips
Children of Men (Universal)
Screenplay by Alfonso Cuarón & Timothy J. Sexton and David Arata and Mark Fergus & Hawk Ostby
The Departed (Warner Bros.)
Screenplay by William Monahan
Little Children (New Line)
Screenplay by Todd Field & Tom Perrotta
Notes on a Scandal (Fox Searchlight)
Screenplay by Patrick Marber

Which sort of demonstrates that Borat was scripted. A lot.

Original screenplay
Babel (Paramount and Paramount Vantage)
Written by Guillermo Arriaga
Letters from Iwo Jima (Warner Bros.)
Screenplay by Iris Yamashita
Story by Iris Yamashita & Paul Haggis
Little Miss Sunshine (Fox Searchlight)
Written by Michael Arndt
Pan's Labyrinth (Picturehouse)
Written by Guillermo del Toro
The Queen (Miramax, Pathé and Granada)
Written by Peter Morgan

Wow - wide open. Probably Babel because it was bit complicated. Hyperlink films ahoy.