ROTTEN TOMATOES: Oscar Nominations Announced: Benjamin Button Leads With 13

Oscar Nominations Announced: Benjamin Button Leads With 13

The Dark Knight racks up eight.

by RT Staff | January 22, 2009

Nominations are in! First thing on everybody's mind: The Dark Knight's "snub." Fans were hopeful it'd get the Best Picture nomination (especially with its strong support in other awards ceremonies), though it did get seven technical awards and the requisite Heath Ledger Supporting Actor nom.

The nearly Rotten The Reader makes a surprisingly strong showing, with a Best Picture and Best Director nod, and a switcheroo for Kate Winslet to Best Actress from Best Supporting Actress, leaving that category open for this year's favorite, Penelope Cruz.

Further surprises include the absence of Sally Hawkins for Happy-Go-Lucky (who took home the Golden Globe weeks prior) and Bruce Springsteen for Best Original Song in The Wrestler. (In addition, there were plenty of hold-outs hoping for a Wrestler Best Picture and Best Director.) But no doubt Robert Downey Jr's Supporting Actor nom is a bright spot for eager comedy fans.

The best-reviewed movie of the year, WALL-E, was always a very long shot for Best Picture, and will settle for a virtual lock in the Best Animated Picture category. With its presence in other categories, WALL-E currently holds the highest number of nominations ever for a CGI film. In addition, the Best Screenplay nod for Andrew Stanton continues Pixar's quiet and impressive streak in that category.

Best Motion Picture of the Year

The Reader
60%

Slumdog Millionaire
94%

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
71%

Milk
93%

Frost/Nixon
91%

Original Screenplay	Adapted Screenplay
Frozen River (86%)	The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (71%)
Happy-Go-Lucky (93%)	Doubt (78%)
In Bruges (81%)	Frost/Nixon (91%)
Milk (93%)	The Reader (60%)
WALL-E (96%)	Slumdog Millionaire (94%)

Foreign Language Film	Documentary, Features
The Baader Meinhof Complex from Germany (82%)	The Betrayal (91%)
The Class from France (96%)	Encounters at the End of the World (93%)
Revanche from Austria	The Garden
Departures from Japan	Man on Wire (100%)
Waltz With Bashir from Israel (95%)	Trouble the Water (97%)

Animated Feature Film	Cinematography
Bolt (85%)	Changeling (59%)
Kung Fu Panda (88%)	The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (71%)
WALL-E (96%)	The Dark Knight (94%)
	The Reader (60%)
	Slumdog Millionaire (94%)

Art Direction	Costume Design
Changeling (59%)	Australia (53%)
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (71%)	The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (71%)
The Dark Knight (94%)	The Duchess (60%)
The Duchess (60%)	Milk (93%)
Revolutionary Road (68%)	Revolutionary Road (68%)

Editing	Sound
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (71%)	The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (71%)
The Dark Knight (94%)	The Dark Knight (94%)
Frost/Nixon (91%)	Slumdog Millionaire (94%)
Slumdog Millionaire (94%)	WALL-E (96%)
Milk (93%)	Wanted (73%)


Sound Editing	Visual Effects
The Dark Knight (94%)	The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (71%)
Iron Man (93%)	The Dark Knight (94%)
Slumdog Millionaire (94%)	Iron Man (93%)
WALL-E (96%)
Wanted (73%)

Makeup	Original Song
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (71%)	"Jai Ho": Slumdog Millionaire (94%)
The Dark Knight (94%)	"O Saya": Slumdog Millionaire (94%)
Hellboy II: The Golden Army (88%)	"Down to Earth": WALL-E (96%)

Original Score	Short Film, Animated
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (71%)	La Maison en Petits Cubes
Defiance (52%)	Lavatory - Lovestory
Milk (93%)	Oktapodi
Slumdog Millionaire (94%)	Presto
WALL-E (96%)	This Way Up

Short Film, Live Action	Documentary, Short Subject
On the Line	The Conscience of Nhem En
Manon on the Asphalt	The Final Inch
New Boy	Smile Pinki
The Pig	The Witness - From the Balcony of Room 306
Toyland

(1-20 of 338 posts) | Reply

P-Worm writes:
on Jan 22 2009 06:31 AM

I was really hoping that Cristopher Nolan would get nominated for best director. I have enjoyed every single movie he has put out and I'd like to see him get some oscar love.

With that said, The Dark Knight is up for a total of 8 Oscars. I'm rooting for you Batman!

P-Worm

(Reply to this)

Jen Yamato writes:
on Jan 22 2009 06:33 AM

I know - TDK snub AND Sally Hawkins snub. Hawkins poops on Angelina Jolie.

(Reply to this)

Icarus_Warrior writes:
on Jan 22 2009 06:38 AM

Well, I love The Dark Knight. Favourite movie of the year and I'm a fan of the comics. The constant pushing around the globe for the past 6 months have sort of lowered my care for the film though for some reason.

While it's disappointing it didn't get nominated for any major slots, it's not unexpected, and it's not bad seeing "Nominated for 8 Academy Awards" on your film.

(Reply to this)

P-Worm writes:
on Jan 22 2009 06:42 AM

Although Heath Ledger should take Best Supporting (as long as there is still an ounce of good in this world), I was glad to see a nomination for Robert Downey Jr. for Tropic Thunder. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN 'YOU PEOPLE?'"

P-Worm

(Reply to this)

EDmanwalking writes:
on Jan 22 2009 06:43 AM

Michael Shannon is nominated for Revolutionary Road, not Frost/Nixon.

(Reply to this)

Alex Vo writes:
on Jan 22 2009 06:45 AM

Hey, thanks for the Rev. Road spot. It's been corrected.

(Reply to this)

Robert O. writes:
on Jan 22 2009 06:46 AM

Who the hell in Hollywood saw "The Reader" anyway...??? And why is Kate Winselt nominated for Best Actress when the awards she has won for "The Reader" have all been for Supporting Actress...???

(Reply to this)

David r. writes:
on Jan 22 2009 06:46 AM

Jen, I couldn't agree with you more. Hawkins is instantly lovable and exactly what everyone needs right now. I'm more upset with Ben Buttons getting 13 nominations! What the hell?!? TDK should've had their best pic spot.

(Reply to this)

Jordan K. writes:
on Jan 22 2009 06:52 AM

I doubt anyone is as pissed off about this as I am, but where the hell is the song The Wrestler by Bruce Springsteen for best original song. And Benjamin Button getting this many nominations is disgraceful. The Wrestler should of gotten more. Although kudos to them for giving a nomination to Robert Downey Jr. I thought he would get snubbed.

(Reply to this)

Jason B. writes:
on Jan 22 2009 06:53 AM

I am SO happy that Michael Shannon was nominated for Revolutionary Road! But no nominations for Leo or Kate?!?!? I'm glad she was nominated for The Reader even though I didn't like the film that much. So my only real gripe with the noms is the lack of love for Revolutionary Road, and the best picture nom for The Reader...Doubt and Revolutionary Road were much better films.

(Reply to this)

Geoff O. writes:
on Jan 22 2009 06:54 AM

'The Reader' over 'TDK' or 'Wall-E' for Best Picture? Come on... I admit the buzz around the brilliance of TDK has died down a bit, especially as the awards contenders engage in their onslaught come November, but Best Picture doesn't just constitute how good the movie is; it's also a matter of how the entire production was put together - editing, directing, conception, innovation, etc. Obviously, the end product has to be a solid film, as most Best Picture nominees tend to be, but we often forget that the award symbolizes the entire process.

Nice that Wall-E got Best Original Screenplay nods, though. I'm not quite sure how 45 mins of "Wall-E!" and "Eeeeeeva" constitute a screenplay, but there is substance in so few words. That movie deserves every award for which it has been nominated. Just imagine the blowback if "Bolt" were to take Best Animated Feature. Ha!

(Reply to this)

willywonkanobi writes:
on Jan 22 2009 06:57 AM

this list was pretty much what I expected, aside from Winslet being "Best Actress" rather than "Best Supporting Actress"

but whatever...

(Reply to this)

Jordan K. writes:
on Jan 22 2009 06:58 AM

No love for Gran Torino :(

(Reply to this)

Cory C. writes:
on Jan 22 2009 07:00 AM

13 noms for Ben Button?! Well I suppose on a technical level it was very well done... I think a lot of these will be close calls, but I'd say Heath has the award already

(Reply to this)

Cory C. writes:
on Jan 22 2009 07:03 AM

13 noms for Ben Button?! Well I suppose on a technical level it was very well done... I think a lot of these will be close calls, but I'd say Heath has the award already

(Reply to this)

Atticus is HIGHLY TENSE writes:
on Jan 22 2009 07:05 AM

The Oscars can go to hell. See all those nominations? Notice how pretty much all of them are period films? Yeah..... YAWN. Way to show your lack of Balls Academy.

The Reader? Barely fresh? Nominated over a beloved, critically acclaimed blockbuster Dark Knight? Mm hmm... The judges are clearly not jewish. *eyeroll*

(Reply to this)

Cory C. writes:
on Jan 22 2009 07:06 AM

I finally saw the wrestler... I agree it deserved a bit more love here... what about Syndecoche New York? (sp) I had heard buzz about it but haven't seen it

(Reply to this)

chosenone2oo5 writes:
on Jan 22 2009 07:06 AM

In reply to this comment (#2272726)
Dude, No one saw the Reader. That's the Dark Knight's slot! Same with Clint Eastwood's directing nom; that's Christopher Nolan's spot! Everyone knows that Changling was critically panned! Idk how that got anything but a Best Actress nom for Angelina. And Sally Hawkins totally got snubbed! These Oscars are so much more controversial than previous years...but by snubbing the Dark Knight like they did I think they're guaranteed less viewers on television again. When Titanic took the nation by storm commercially, it got 12 Oscar nominations. It's not right that Dark Knight got less than 10.

(Reply to this)

Alex Vo writes:
on Jan 22 2009 07:07 AM

THE READER??!?!?! BARRRRRRRRFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF

(Reply to this)

Confounded writes:
on Jan 22 2009 07:08 AM

Dark Knight got what I expected. And I'm fine with that. A little bummed it didn't get a nom for score, but oh well. If it doesn't win cinematography after all the effort they put into doing as much as they possibly can without the use of CGI, then I'll be annoyed.

I'm also a little surprised Changeling got more attention than Gran Torino. Other than having a hot lead actress to look at, Changeling was an inferior film in every aspect (in my opinion anyways).

And yes Jordan, I agree with you. The song "The Wrestler" should have gotten some love. Maybe I haven't been paying attention, but when did they move the noms down to 3 in that category?

To me, best supporting actor is the crux. I want so badly for Heath Ledger to have it, but at the same time I loved Robert Downey Jr. and Josh Brolin.

(Reply to this)

Best Motion Picture of the Year

Best Achievement in Directing

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role

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