Babel led this year's nominees with 7 nods, including 3 in supporting acting categories. The Departed got 6 nominations and Dreamgirls came in with 5, both of which got 3 acting nods. The Queen received 4. Here are the nominees with my observations; I bolded ones I didn't predict from yesterday.
Best Picture (Drama)
Babel
Bobby
The Departed
Little Children
The Queen
Babel, The Departed, and The Queen were the three obvious nominees, so I'm glad they all got it. Little Children is a pleasant surprise, as I loved that film. Bobby is just plain a surprise. Bobby?! Really?! It's gotten mixed reviews. It's the only one I haven't seen here, but based on what I've read, I think there were more deserving films, most notably Flags of Our Fathers, which I'm disappointed and surprised didn't get it, particularly since Clint Eastwood was nominated for it for director (see below). Interesting that United 93 isn't in there. It's been getting a lot of critics list buzz, much more than I remember it getting critical buzz at the time it was released.
Best Picture (Comedy/Musical)
Borat
The Devil Wears Prada
Dreamgirls
Little Miss Sunshine
Thank You For Smoking
That fifth slot was the toughie here, and I'm pleasantly surprised to see the inventive Thank You For Smoking get it. Dreamgirls is the obvious frontrunner here, since it's the most talked about for getting a Best Picture Oscar nomination, which usually go to dramas. The only other one that may have a shot is Little Miss Sunshine.
Best Picture (Foreign Language)
Apocalypto
Letters from Iwo Jima
The Lives of Others
Pan's Labyrinth
Volver
I didn't predcit Apolcalypto because I wasn't sure how the Globes would react to it, being as it is controversial, but there it is. No other surprises. Letters from Iwo Jima is the clear frontrunnter, as it is quickly emerging as a strong Oscar contender, stronger even than Eastwood's other film, Flags of Our Fathers. Interestingly, Letters won't get a foreign film Oscar nomination, since, as an American film, it doesn't qualify. For the Globes, a film has to be a in a foreign language; for the Oscars, a film has to be produced in a foreign country and submitted by some official entity in that country to be considered.
Best Actor (Drama)
Leonardo DiCaprio, Blood Diamond
Leonardo DiCaprio, The Departed
Peter O'Tool, Venus
Will Smith, Pursuit of Happyness
Forest Whitaker, Last King of Scotland
Forest Whitaker is the frontrunner to win, but look at Leo go with two lead nominations, something else that won't happen at the Oscars, as it's not allowed. Peter O'Tool seems like a really out there nomination to me, as I only vaguely remember Venus coming out. Too bad Ryan Gosling from Half Nelson didn't make the list, I still think he'll be an Oscar contender, given that only 4 of these nominations are.
Best Actor (Comedy/Musical)
Sacha Baron Cohen, Borat
Johnny Depp, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
Aaron Eckhart, Thank You For Smoking
Chiwetel Ejiofor, Kinky Boots
Will Ferrell, Stranger Than Fiction
The comedy acting categories can be tough to predict, as awards always focus more on dramas. Chiwetel Ejiofor is an interesting choice. I honestly haven't even heard of Kinky Boots, but he was great in 2002's Dirty Pretty Things. Johnny Depp for Pirates is a lame nomination though. Sure he got an Oscar nomination for playing this role two years ago, but this is the big-budget, less-regarded sequel. Come on.
Best Actress (Drama)
Penelope Cruz, Volver
Judi Dench, Notes on a Scandal
Maggie Gyllenhaal, Sherrybaby
Helen Mirren, The Queen
Kate Winslet, Little Children
I was 5 for 5 here; glad I went on a limb for Maggie Gyllenhaal. Although, sadly, I can think of few other performances worth highlighting. Maybe Cate Blanchett in The Good German? Helen Mirren has it in the bad though, she's been voted best actress among all of the critics groups so far, not even sharing the honors with anyone. The nice part is that she completely deserves it too.
Best Actress (Comedy/Musical)
Annette Bening, Running With Scissors
Toni Collette, Little Miss Sunshine
Beyonce Knowles, Dreamgirls
Meryl Streep, The Devil Wears Prada
Renee Zellweger, Miss Potter
Again, I nailed it 5 for 5. I must know my actresses. Or again, who else would you put up? Hollywood's sexism for lack of good female parts is really showing this year. My money's on Streep as the frontrunner here--she'll probably take Gyllenhaal's spot among the Best Actress nominees come Oscar time.
Best Supporting Actor
Ben Affleck, Hollywoodland
Eddie Murphy, Dreamgirls
Jack Nicholson, The Departed
Brad Pitt, Babel
Mark Wahlberg, The Departed
This is a really tight race. With all these ensemble pictures this year (Babel, Departed, Little Miss Sunshine, Flags of Our Fathers) there's lots of smaller roles with actors that really shine. Ben Affleck is a surprise, but I didn't see Hollywoodland, so I can't judge if it's fair. Mark Wahlberg is a surprise too, although he did get at least one critics' group nod. Although I'm upset not to see the other three I predicted here, particularly Michael Sheen for The Queen, I can't really complain, as there are so many performances worth recognizing here. Djimon Hounsou in Blood Diamond is supposed to be fantastic, and he's been getting critics nods, so I expect he'll still get an Oscar nod. Jackie Earle Haley was fantastically creepy and complex in Little Children. Steve Carell was amazing against type in Little Miss Sunshine. Adam Beach was phenominal as an honored yet disenfranchised American Indian soldier in Flags of Our Fathers. Tough tough category.
Best Supporting Actress
Adriana Barraza, Babel
Cate Blanchett, Notes on a Scandal
Emily Blunt, The Devil Wears Prada
Jennifer Hudson, Dreamgirls
Rinko Kikuchi, Babel
Again, like the supporting actors, there's a lot of good performances that could have been recognized, so it's a tough call. I'm really glad Adriana Barraza got it for Babel. She was so good in that movie, and I felt that her performance was the most moving of any in the film. Emily Blunt is a nice surprise. I'd forgotten about her, and she was a lot of fun as a catty assistant in The Devil Wears Prada. I must say though that Anne Hathaway is probably tired of starring in films where all the other main players get awards recognition but her. Rinko Kikuchi is a nice surprise for Babel, who's character was probably the most unusual of any in that movie. Too bad that little Abigail Breslin from Little Miss Sunshine didn't make the cut. Her scene-stealing performance near the end of the film (you know what I'm talking about if you've seen it) is the funniest thing ever in a movie.
Best Director
Clint Eastwood, Letters from Iwo Jima
Clint Eastwood, Flags of Our Fathers
Stephen Frears, The Queen
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Babel
Martin Scorsese, The Departed
Martin Scorsese is probably the frontrunner, as he is getting his due this year for The Departed, having played bridesmaid the last few years despite some amazing films (Gangs of New York, The Aviator). The double nomination for Eastwood is awesome. At age 76 he's become a directing powerhouse, making consistently honest, thought-provoking films. His two this year join the ranks of Million Dollar Baby, Mystic River, and Unforgiven as some of the best films of the last 20 years. I'm glad Inarritu made it here too. No love for the comedies directors, but oh well, they know they're playing second fiddle to the dramas anyway. And of course there's always that question mark when a movie gets nominated for best picture, but it's director doesn't get recognized, in this case Bobby's Emilio Estevez. To me, it looks like the snub is Eastwood's lack of Best Picture recognition for Flags of Our Fathers.
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