2009 Academy Awards (Airs Feb 22, 2009)

[NotaGeek]

And the nominees are...

BEST PICTURE
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
Milk
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire

BEST DIRECTOR
Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire
David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Ron Howard, Frost/Nixon
Stephen Daldry, The Reader
Gus Van Sant, Milk

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

BEST ACTRESS
Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married
Angelina Jolie, Changeling
Melissa Leo, Frozen River
Meryl Streep, Doubt
Kate Winslet, The Reader

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Josh Brolin, Milk
Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight
Robert Downey Jr., Tropic Thunder
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt
Michael Shannon, Revolutionary Road

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

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Frozen River , Courtney Hunt
Happy-Go-Lucky, Mike Leigh
In Bruges, Martin McDonagh
Milk, Dustin Lance Black
WALL-E, Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon, Pete Docter

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Eric Roth
Doubt, John Patrick Shanley
Frost/Nixon, Peter Morgan
The Reader, David Hare
Slumdog Millionaire, Simon Beaufoy

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Bolt
Kung Fu Panda
WALL-E

BEST ART DIRECTION
Changeling
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
The Duchess
Revolutionary Road

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Changeling
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Australia
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Duchess
Milk
Revolutionary Road

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
The Betrayal (Nerakhoon)
Encounters at the End of the World
The Garden
Man on Wire
Trouble the Water

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT
The Conscience of Nhem En
The Final Inch
Smile Pinki
The Witness — From the Balcony of Room 306

BEST EDITING
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Frost/Nixon
Milk
Slumdog Millionaire

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
The Baader Meinhof Complex (Germany)
The Class (France)
Departures (Japan)
Revanche (Austria)
Waltz with Bashir (Israel)

BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT
Auf der Strecke (On the Line)
Manon on the Asphalt
New Boy
The Pig
Spielzeugland (Toyland)

BEST MAKEUP
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Hellboy II: The Golden Army

BEST 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

BEST ORIGINAL SONG
''Down to Earth,'' (WALL-E)
''Jai Ho,'' (Slumdog Millionaire)
''O Saya,'' (Slumdog Millionaire)

BEST SOUND EDITING
The Dark Knight
Iron Man
Slumdog Millionaire
WALL-E
Wanted

BEST SOUND MIXING
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Slumdog Millionaire
WALL-E
Wanted

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Iron Man

[NotaGeek]

So ... Disney got nominated for BOTH Bolt and WallE! AWESOME ... strange that The Dark Knight didn't get nominated for Best Picture OR Best Director! :huh:

AND ... a Best Supporting ACtor nomination for Robert Downy, Jr. in Tropical Thunder? Uh, WHAT?

[SBETigg]

I was surprised at the Downey Jr. nom because I didn't think the Academy would go there considering the black face makeup. I was surprised at a few nominations and omissions. Not really surprised at the Dark Knight Best Picture slight because the Academy usually doesn't recognize such heavily commercial films. Unfortunately. And it could have been Kevin O'Connell's (the uncle of a friend of mine) 20th nomination for Sound Editing, but he was shut out this year.

[NotaGeek]

Best picture
"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
"Frost/Nixon"
"Milk"
"The Reader"
WINNER: "Slumdog Millionaire"


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

Actor
Richard Jenkins, "The Visitor"
Frank Langella, "Frost/Nixon"
WINNER: Sean Penn, "Milk"
Brad Pitt, "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
Mickey Rourke, "The Wrestler"

Actress
Anne Hathaway, "Rachel Getting Married"
Angelina Jolie, "Changeling"
Melissa Leo, "Frozen River"
Meryl Streep, "Doubt"
WINNER: Kate Winslet, "The Reader"

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

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

Animated feature
"Bolt"
"Kung Fu Panda"
WINNER: "WALL-E"

Adapted screenplay
"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," screenplay by Eric Roth, screen story by Eric Roth and Robin Swicord
"Doubt," written by John Patrick Shanley
"Frost/Nixon," screenplay by Peter Morgan
"The Reader," screenplay by David Hare
WINNER: "Slumdog Millionaire," screenplay by Simon Beaufoy

Original screenplay
"Frozen River," written by Courtney Hunt
"Happy-Go-Lucky," written by Mike Leigh
"In Bruges," written by Martin McDonagh
WINNER: "Milk," written by Dustin Lance Black
"WALL-E," screenplay by Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon; original story by Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter

Art direction
"Changeling," James J. Murakami; set decoration: Gary Fettis
WINNER: "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," Donald Graham Burt; set decoration: Victor J. Zolfo
"The Dark Knight," Nathan Crowley; set decoration: Peter Lando
"The Duchess," Michael Carlin; set decoration: Rebecca Alleway
"Revolutionary Road," Kristi Zea; set decoration: Debra Schutt

Cinematography
"Changeling," Tom Stern
"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," Claudio Miranda
"The Dark Knight," Wally Pfister
"The Reader," Chris Menges and Roger Deakins
WINNER: "Slumdog Millionaire," Anthony Dod Mantle

Costume design
"Australia," Catherine Martin
"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," Jacqueline West
WINNER: "The Duchess," Michael O'Connor
"Milk," Danny Glicker
"Revolutionary Road," Albert Wolsky

Documentary feature
"The Betrayal (Nerakhoon)"
"Encounters at the End of the World"
"The Garden"
WINNER: "Man on Wire"
"Trouble the Water"

Documentary short
"The Conscience of Nhem En"
"The Final Inch"
WINNER: "Smile Pinki"
"The Witness -- From the Balcony of Room 306"

Film editing
"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall
"The Dark Knight," Lee Smith
"Frost/Nixon," Mike Hill and Dan Hanley
"Milk," Elliot Graham
WINNER: "Slumdog Millionaire," Chris Dickens

Foreign language film
"The Baader Meinhof Complex," Germany
"The Class," France
WINNER: "Departures," Japan
"Revanche," Austria
"Waltz with Bashir," Israel

Makeup
WINNER: "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," Greg Cannom
"The Dark Knight," John Caglione Jr. and Conor O'Sullivan
"Hellboy II: The Golden Army," Mike Elizalde and Thom Floutz

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

Original song
"Down to Earth" from "WALL-E," music by Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman, lyrics by Peter Gabriel
WINNER: "Jai Ho" from "Slumdog Millionaire," music by A.R. Rahman, lyrics by Gulzar
"O Saya" from "Slumdog Millionaire," music and lyrics by A.R. Rahman and Maya Arulpragasam

Animated short
WINNER: "La Maison en Petits Cubes"
"Lavatory -- Lovestory"
"Oktapodi"
"Presto"
"This Way Up"

Live-action short
"Auf der Strecke (On the Line)"
"Manon on the Asphalt"
"New Boy"
"The Pig"
WINNER: "Spielzeugland"

Sound editing
WINNER: "The Dark Knight," Richard King
"Iron Man," Frank Eulner and Christopher Boyes
"Slumdog Millionaire," Glenn Freemantle and Tom Sayers
"WALL-E," Ben Burtt and Matthew Wood
"Wanted," Wylie Stateman

Sound mixing
"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," David Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce and Mark Weingarten
"The Dark Knight," Lora Hirschberg, Gary Rizzo and Ed Novick
WINNER: "Slumdog Millionaire," Ian Tapp, Richard Pryke and Resul Pookutty
"WALL-E," Tom Myers, Michael Semanick and Ben Burtt
"Wanted," Chris Jenkins, Frank A. Montaño and Petr Forejt

Visual effects
WINNER: "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," Eric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton and Craig Barron
"The Dark Knight," Nick Davis, Chris Corbould, Tim Webber and Paul Franklin
"Iron Man," John Nelson, Ben Snow, Dan Sudick and Shane Mahan

[RAIDER]

I am just glad Heath Ledger won :beer::thumbsup:
If it had gone to anyone else i would have been seething
His portrial of a baddie has set the standard

[Pagan]

Nonsense as always.

"The Dark Knight" AND "Iron Man" got ROBBED on "Best Visual Effects".

Someone please tell me, what were the AMAZING visual effects on "Benjamin Button"?

As usual, Hollywood grabs one or two "Too cool for the room" movies and heaps FAR too much praise on each one.

Happy the Heath won for his portrayal of the Joker. So far in the entire history of Batman on screen or TV, he's the ONLY one to get it right.

[SBETigg]

Most of Brad Pitt's aging process was apparently done CGI. In that case, the Visual Effects award was warranted, but perhaps not the Makeup award. I think the Makeup award should have gone to Hellboy II.

I loved the show this year. I thought Hugh Jackman was wonderful and the classic styled set was lovely. I loved how the five past winners presented to new ones and said such nice things to them individually. And I love that Kate Winslet won. Sean Penn was only a small surprise, because both Penn and Rourke did amazing jobs, along with the other nominees. Nice tribute to Heath Leger. And I loved Slumdog Millionaire, wonderful film, very moving and accessible.

[RedSoxFan]

I enjoyed watching the Oscars very much. So glad that Heath Ledger won. Hugh Jackman was great.

[2Epcot]

The process of Benjamin Button was a combination of visual effects and makeup. Many of the shots with Brad at different ages used another actor ... Brad's face was later inserted on the body of that actor. His face still need to be made up to match the appropriate age of the storyline. As far as Dark Knight they did a lot of practical special effects as opposed to visual effects. I went to a panel Saturday with all the Oscar nominated film editors. Lee Smith, A.C.E, editor of the DARK KNIGHT, talked about the model work and "real" effects that were used.

Overall I was happy with the awards show and who got the awards. I was editing Oscar stuff the whole time I was watching the show. I was worried about the format changes, but it seemed to work. I thought the show was funny. I liked Tina Fey and Steve Martin. I thought Ben Stiller was great. My favorite line was from Jack Black saying he does a movie for DreamWorks every year then takes the money and bets it on Pixar winning. They took a shot of Katzenberg laughing.

The only award I wished went different was Best Actor. I really wanted to see Mickey Rourke win. I thought Hugh Jackman did a great job as host as well.

[Pagan]

The process of Benjamin Button was a combination of visual effects and makeup. Many of the shots with Brad at different ages used another actor ... Brad's face was later inserted on the body of that actor. His face still need to be made up to match the appropriate age of the storyline. As far as Dark Knight they did a lot of practical special effects as opposed to visual effects. I went to a panel Saturday with all the Oscar nominated film editors. Lee Smith, A.C.E, editor of the DARK KNIGHT, talked about the model work and "real" effects that were used.
For the most part you are correct. However, for the scene in Tokyo when Bale jumps off the building, the entire city was created with CGI. That sequence alone deserved the award, IMO...especially when you see the IMAX version.

[SBETigg]

The process of Benjamin Button was a combination of visual effects and makeup. Many of the shots with Brad at different ages used another actor ... Brad's face was later inserted on the body of that actor. His face still need to be made up to match the appropriate age of the storyline.

Thanks for the explanation. I guess it deserved both awards, then. It helps to know the technical side.

[pianobabe]

I think this is the first year I have actually sat down and watched the entire show. The only time I turned the channel was during the acceptance speeches. Although I did watch the one by Heath Ledger's family, Kate Winslet and Sean Penn. I thought Hugh Jackman did a wonderful job.
The only thing I didn't like were the memorials. I felt it was very touching and I enjoyed Queen Latifah singing. What I didn't like was it was hard to tell who some of the people were because the shots were too far back and you couldn't see the names well.

[SBETigg]

What I didn't like was it was hard to tell who some of the people were because the shots were too far back and you couldn't see the names well.

Yes! I've heard that same criticism from quite a few friends now. The funky camera angles really did a disservice to those being remembered. What a shame.

[Jared]

Perfect explanation, Chris. "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" is a deeply flawed movie and deserved to be shut out of the major categories. If I had a vote, it would not have been nominated for Best Picture at all. Kudos to the Academy for recognizing film's shortcomings and limiting David Fincher's epic to just a few technical Oscars.

That said, I agreed it warranted the award for visual effects and makeup. The way the filmmakers created the character of Benjamin Button using a combination of live actors and CGI was quite astounding.

I'll be back later today or tomorrow with more opinions on the winners and the entire evening.

[pink]

I really enjoyed this show. Viewership was up 10% this year. I think it was a great idea to keep the presenters a secret, it more it more exciting. I thought Hugh Jackman did an amazing job. I was also glad that Rob Pattinson showed up. :blush:


:mickey:

[PirateLover]

I felt it was very touching and I enjoyed Queen Latifah singing. What I didn't like was it was hard to tell who some of the people were because the shots were too far back and you couldn't see the names well.
I was saying the same thing. Such a touching tribute as you said, and they loused it up. That song (I'll Be Seeing You) always gets me a bit choked up... but it made me laugh at the Oscars because two nights before I was listening to a Big Band Era internet radio station and a version of that song came on and it had been a long and tiresome day and I started thinking about my grandparents and I just started bawling my eyes out. Then, I was singing it to myself the whole next day, so when Queen Latifah broke out into that song I had to laugh a bit.