Benjamin Button Leads Oscar Nominees

Romantic fantasy "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" led the Oscar contenders announced today (Thursday, Jan 22, 2009) with 13 nominations, among them Best Picture and acting honours for Brad Pitt (pictured below) and Taraji P. Henson, and a directing slot for David Fincher.


"Slumdog Millionaire" lived up to its rags-to-riches theme, coming in second with 10 nominations, including a directing spot for Danny Boyle and two of the three song slots.

As expected, Heath Ledger received a Supporting Actor nomination for "The Dark Knight" on the one-year anniversary of his death but the Batman movie was shut out from other top categories such as Best Picture and Director.

NOMINEES for the 81st Academy Awards

1. Best Picture:
"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," "Frost/Nixon," "Milk," "The Reader," "Slumdog Millionaire."

2. Best Actor: Richard Jenkins ("The Visitor"); Frank Langella ("Frost/Nixon"); Sean Penn ("Milk"); Brad Pitt ("The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"); Mickey Rourke ("The Wrestler").

3. Best Actress: Anne Hathaway, pic, ("Rachel Getting Married"); Angelina Jolie ("Changeling"); Melissa Leo (" Frozen River"); Meryl Streep ("Doubt"); Kate Winslet ("The Reader")

4. Best Supporting Actor: Josh Brolin, "Milk"; Robert Downey Jr, "Tropic Thunder "; Philip Seymour Hoffman, "Doubt"; Heath Ledger, " The Dark Knight"; Michael Shannon, "Revolutionary Road."


5. Best Supporting Actress: Amy Adams, "Doubt"; Penelope Cruz, "Vicky Cristina Barcelona"; Viola Davis, "Doubt"; Taraji P. Henson, "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"; Marisa Tomei, "The Wrestler."

6. Best Director: David Fincher, "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"; Ron Howard, "Frost/Nixon"; Gus Van Sant, "Milk"; Stephen Daldry, "The Reader"; Danny Boyle, "Slumdog Millionaire. "

7. Best Foreign Film: "The Baader Meinhof Complex," Germany; "The Class," France; "Departures, " Japan; "Revanche," Austria; " Waltz With Bashir ," Israel.

8. Adapted Screenplay: Eric Roth and Robin Swicord, "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"; John Patrick Shanley , "Doubt"; Peter Morgan, "Frost/Nixon"; David Hare, "The Reader"; Simon Beaufoy, "Slumdog Millionaire."

9. Original Screenplay: Courtney Hunt, "Frozen River"; Mike Leigh , "Happy-Go-Lucky"; Martin McDonagh, "In Bruges"; Dustin Lance Black, "Milk"; Andrew Stanton , Jim Reardon and Pete Docter, "WALL-E."

10. Animated Feature Film: "Bolt"; " Kung Fu Panda "; "WALL-E."

11. Art Direction: "Changeling," "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," "The Dark Knight," "The Duchess," "Revolutionary Road."

12. Cinematography: "Changeling," "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," "The Dark Knight," "The Reader," "Slumdog Millionaire."

13. Sound Mixing: "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," "The Dark Knight," "Slumdog Millionaire, " "WALL-E," "Wanted."

14. Sound Editing: "The Dark Knight," "Iron Man," "Slumdog Millionaire, " "WALL-E," "Wanted."

15. Original Score: "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," Alexandre Desplat; "Defiance," James Newton Howard; "Milk," Danny Elfman; "Slumdog Millionaire", A.R. Rahman; "WALL-E," Thomas Newman.

16. Original Song: "Down to Earth" from "WALL-E," Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman; " Jai Ho " from "Slumdog Millionaire, " A.R. Rahman and Gulzar; "O Saya" from "Slumdog Millionaire, " A.R. Rahman and Maya Arulpragasam.

17. Costume: "Australia" (left), "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," "The Duchess," "Milk," "Revolutionary Road."

18. Documentary Feature: "The Betrayal (Nerakhoon)," "Encounters at the End of the World," "The Garden," "Man on Wire," " Trouble the Water ."

19. Documentary (Short Subject): "The Conscience of Nhem En," "The Final Inch," "Smile Pinki," "The Witness — From the Balcony of Room 306."

20. Film Editing: "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," "The Dark Knight," "Frost/Nixon, " "Milk," "Slumdog Millionaire. "

21. Make-up: "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," "The Dark Knight," "Hellboy II: The Golden Army."

22. Animated Short Film: "La Maison en Petits Cubes," "Lavatory — Lovestory," "Oktapodi," "Presto," "This Way Up."

23. Live Action Short Film: "Auf der Strecke (On the Line)," "Manon on the Asphalt," "New Boy," "The Pig," "Spielzeugland (Toyland)."

24. Visual Effects: "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," "The Dark Knight," "Iron Man."