Oscar Nominations

[ZeoBandit]

'Dreamgirls': Where did Oscar's love go?
POSTED: 2:12 p.m. EST, January 23, 2007
Story Highlights
• "Dreamgirls" nabs eight nominations but no best picture nod
• "Babel" grabs seven nominations
• Meryl Streep scores 14th nomination -- a record for an actor
• Director's race will pit Clint Eastwood, Martin Scorsese again

(CNN) -- Talk about musical chairs.

When the music stopped, it was the musical that was left out Tuesday morning at the nominations for the 79th annual Academy Awards.

"Dreamgirls," expected to be among the leading Oscar nominees, did rank first among nominated films, with eight nods. But the movie version of the 1981 Broadway musical was left out of two of the biggest categories -- best picture and best director -- a shock to its partisans, who had touted it as not only being best picture-worthy, but the movie to beat.

And three of its nominations are in the same category, best original song.

The film did receive nominations for two of its performers, Eddie Murphy and Jennifer Hudson, both in supporting categories. The two won Golden Globes for their performances and are considered Oscar front-runners. (Watch the nomination announcement )

Hudson, who not so long ago was an "American Idol" also-ran, was thrilled with her nomination.

"I am blown away by this honor. I feel like I have reached the impossible. This is proof that faith is powerful," she said in a statement.

Three of the other best picture favorites, "Babel," "The Queen" and "The Departed," all earned nominations. The fourth and fifth slots went to "Letters From Iwo Jima," Clint Eastwood's Japanese-language film about the famous World War II battle from the Japanese perspective, and "Little Miss Sunshine," an audience favorite about a dysfunctional family taking a road trip to a beauty pageant. (Gallery: Oscar nominees)

Besides "Dreamgirls," the Academy Award nominations generally followed the predicted script, but there were a number of notable exceptions. (Can you pick Oscar? Play our Inside the Envelope game.)

"Babel," Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu's ensemble cross-cultural tale of families in crisis, trailed behind "Dreamgirls" with seven nominations, though just two for its performers, both in the supporting actress category -- Adriana Barraza and Rinko Kikuchi. Neither of its major stars, Brad Pitt or Cate Blanchett, earned a nomination for the film -- but Blanchett did get a supporting nod for her work in "Notes on a Scandal."

And "The Departed," Martin Scorsese's tale of the mob and the cops in Boston, was nominated for best picture and best director, but none of its major stars -- Jack Nicholson, Matt Damon and Leonardo DiCaprio -- received acting nominations. Mark Wahlberg got the film's only performance nod, for supporting actor. (Blog: Talking with DiCaprio)

"I wasn't expecting it at all. I can't believe it. I was sound asleep. My agent called and was screaming," Wahlberg, who plays a caustic, wisecracking cop, told The Associated Press. "I thought the house was on fire or something."

The year's sleeper hit, "Little Miss Sunshine," also earned nominations for best supporting actor (Alan Arkin), best supporting actress (Abigail Breslin) and best original screenplay. Breslin, who's 10, is the fourth-youngest actress ever nominated, after Tatum O'Neal ("Paper Moon"), Mary Badham ("To Kill a Mockingbird") and Quinn Cummings ("The Goodbye Girl"). O'Neal won.

One dark horse that came out shining bright was "Iwo Jima," which was nominated for best director and best original screenplay in addition to best picture. The director nomination pits Scorsese against Eastwood for the second time in three years; Eastwood prevailed in 2004, when his "Million Dollar Baby" went up against Scorsese's "The Aviator."

And though "United 93" only earned one major nomination, it was a big one: a nod for its director, Paul Greengrass. The film also was nominated for its editing. (Complete list of nominees)

Oscar jockeying
"The Queen," starring Helen Mirren as British monarch Elizabeth II in the days after Princess Diana's death, earned nominations for the actress and best picture as well as best director (Stephen Frears) and best original screenplay.

"When the idea of making 'The Queen' was first mooted, we had no idea that the result would have quite the impact it has had. It is astounding the way that audiences have responded by taking the film to their hearts," Mirren said in a statement. "I hope that my performance has conveyed a sense of Elizabeth the woman as well as the queen."

Mirren already has won a Golden Globe and several critics' awards for her performance.

Among her competitors is another dame, Judi Dench, who was nominated for portraying a conniving schoolteacher in "Notes on a Scandal."

"It is very nice of 'The Queen' to allow me in for a minute," Dench said in a statement.

Forest Whitaker, who won the Golden Globe for his performance as Idi Amin in "The Last King of Scotland," was nominated for best actor. He's the category's likely front-runner, though he's up against 74-year-old Peter O'Toole -- an eight-time nominee who's never won an Oscar for a performance. (He has received an honorary Oscar.)

O'Toole was nominated for "Venus." If the legendary Irish actor loses, he'll have set the record for most nominations without winning.

"If you fail the first time, try, try try, try, try, try, try again. Yoicks!" said an impish O'Toole in a statement.

Also in the record books is best actress nominee Meryl Streep, who notched her 14th nomination, this one for playing an imperious magazine editor in "The Devil Wears Prada." Streep has won twice: for supporting actress in 1979's "Kramer vs. Kramer" and best actress for 1982's "Sophie's Choice."

"It's extraordinary that anyone in the actor's branch is even speaking to me, never mind nominating me yet again," said Streep in a statement. "I'm very, very grateful."

Mixed blessings for critics' favorites
Sacha Baron Cohen, who alienated a number of co-stars in "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan," can't say the same thing. Though his Golden Globe win had some talking Oscar nomination, he didn't get an acting nod for his performance as the Kazakh interviewer Borat Sagdiyev.

The film was nominated for adapted screenplay, an odd designation for a largely improvised film, but perhaps the best the academy could come up with. (The film was "adapted" because Baron Cohen had played the character before, on his television show.)

On the other hand, critics' favorite Ryan Gosling was nominated for best actor for "Half Nelson," a little-seen independent work about a drug-addicted teacher.

"Little Children," another critics' favorite, received nominations for best actress (Kate Winslet), best supporting actor (Jackie Earle Haley, perhaps best known for his performances in the original 1976 version of "The Bad News Bears" and "Breaking Away") and best adapted screenplay. However, it didn't get nominated for best picture or best director.

"Pan's Labyrinth," though hailed by some critics as the best film of the year, was kept to the foreign-language film category. It also received a nomination for best original screenplay.

DiCaprio, who earned two best actor nominations from the Golden Globes, could receive only one in the category by Oscar rules. "The Departed" star was nominated for "Blood Diamond."

"An Inconvenient Truth" with Al Gore earned a nomination for best documentary feature and best original song, the latter a work by Melissa Etheridge. Other documentaries nominated in the strong category are "Jesus Camp," "Deliver Us From Evil," "Iraq in Fragments" and "My Country, My Country."

Only three animated features were nominated this year: "Cars," "Happy Feet" and "Monster House."

The year's top-grossing film, "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest," earned four nominations, all in technical categories.

ABC will broadcast the Oscars live February 25 from Hollywood's Kodak Theatre. Ellen DeGeneres is hosting the show.

[DreamIsOver]

I'll be rooting for Scorsese and The Departed.

[jimmy812]

I'll be rooting for Scorsese and The Departed.

Same here. It's a shame Scorsese doesn't have an Oscar yet (although he should have won twice already).

[MF5150]

Would have liked to have seen Jack get another Oscar nod. But this HAS TO BE Scorsese's year!

[jimmy812]

I just heard that Warner Bros. is planning on re-releasing The Departed this Friday (1/26--EVH's birthday!) to gain support for Oscar voting, and make a few extra bucks. However, the movie is also coming out on DVD Feb. 13th.

[lovemachine97(Version 2)]

My two favorite movies were probably The Departed and Little Miss Sunshine.............I'd like to see Scorsese get his statue, but LMS is my pick

[Rovus]

'The Departed' for me as well.

[jimmy812]

My two favorite movies were probably The Departed and Little Miss Sunshine.............I'd like to see Scorsese get his statue, but LMS is my pick

Yeah, I liked LMS too, but it's only going to get a statue for writing, IMO.
You know, I was thinking, this should be Scorsese's year, but he could possibly get upset for director. Paul Greengrass is up for "United 93" which came out in like April and then DVD, I think, in the early fall. For the Academy to remember him now says something.

Anyone know if there's any online pools for the Oscars?

[Raldo]

I was pleasantly surprised that Jackie Earle Haley was nominated.

After 'Bad News Bears', 'Breaking Away' and 'Losin It', I wondered whatever happened to him.

Congrats for the nomination!

[jimmy812]

Finally Scorsese has gotten his Oscar! And The Departed wins Best Picture as well.
Well that's a rarity: a movie that I actually liked won the big award!

[hatchetforce]

Finally Scorsese has gotten his Oscar! And The Departed wins Best Picture as well.
Well that's a rarity: a movie that I actually liked won the big award!

kudos to marty, long overdue

[eden]

yes- Scorsese finally won! And what a wonderful surprise that the movie won Best Picture. Seems like the Brit contenders always win that one.

The Departed and Stranger than Fiction are the only really good movies I've seen in the past year. Will Ferrell was outstanding in Stranger, can't believe he wasn't even nominated for Best Actor.