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NUTSHELL: With the first benchmark of Cannes behind us, not much has necessitated a drastic overhaul. Some films seemed to slide off the landscape somewhat with weak reactions here and there (“Blindness,” “Che” — save, of course, for Mr. Del Toro), while others made their move on unsuspecting categories that seem wide open at this point, following largely positive notices (“Vicky Cristina Barcelona,” “Changeling”). A few new films have suddenly joined the company of 2009 and are represented this month, while trailers have revealed the potential for greatness (or mediocrity) for a few other efforts.
(NOTE: I’m sticking with the title “Che” in the charts rather than splitting the effort in two. The Contenders section, however, still lists the separate films per category and studio.)
Sort charts by: Main Categories/Technical Categories
| BEST PICTURE | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1 | “The Soloist” DreamWorks SKG |
 |
| 2 | “Frost/Nixon” Universal Pictures |
 |
| 3 | “Doubt” Miramax Films |
|
| 4 | “Revolutionary Road” Paramount Vantage |
|
| 5 | “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” Paramount Pictures |
— |
| 6 | “Changeling” Universal Pictures |
NEW |
| 7 | “Milk” Focus Features |
|
| 8 | “The Reader” The Weinstein Company |
|
| 9 | “Australia” 20th Century Fox |
|
| 10 | “Body of Lies” Warner Bros. Pictures |
|
| DIRECTING | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joe Wright “The Soloist” |
|
| 2 | David Fincher “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” |
|
| 3 | Ron Howard “Frost/Nixon” |
|
| 4 | Sam Mendes “Revolutionary Road” |
— |
| 5 | Gus Van Sant “Milk” |
— |
| 6 | John Patrick Shanley “Doubt” |
— |
| 7 | Clint Eastwood “Changeling” |
NEW |
| 8 | Steven Soderbergh “Che” |
|
| 9 | Stephen Daldry “The Reader” |
|
| 10 | Baz Luhrmann “Australia” |
|
| ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Frank Langella “Frost/Nixon” |
— |
| 2 | Benicio Del Toro “Che” |
|
| 3 | Jamie Foxx “The Soloist” |
|
| 4 | Sean Penn “Milk” |
— |
| 5 | Brad Pitt “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (or “Burn After Reading”) |
— |
| 6 | Leonardo DiCaprio “Revolutionary Road” (or “Body of Lies”) |
— |
| 6 | Michael Sheen “Frost/Nixon” |
NEW |
| 7 | Phillip Seymour Hoffman “Doubt” (or “Synecdoche, New York”) |
— |
| 8 | Josh Brolin “W” |
— |
| 9 | Viggo Mortensen “The Road” (or “Appaloosa”) |
NEW |
| 10 | Will Smith “Seven Pounds” |
— |
| ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Angelina Jolie “Changling” |
|
| 2 | Meryl Streep “Doubt” (or “Mamma Mia!”) |
|
| 3 | Kate Winslet “Revolutionary Road” (or “The Reader”) |
— |
| 4 | Cate Blanchett “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” |
NEW |
| 5 | Michelle Pfeiffer “Chéri” |
NEW |
| 6 | Sally Hawkins “Happy-Go-Lucky” |
— |
| 7 | Emily Blunt “The Young Victoria” |
NEW |
| 8 | Nicole Kidman “Australia” |
|
| 9 | Kate Beckinsale “Nothing But the Truth” |
|
| 10 | Julianne Moore “Blindness” (or “Savage Grace”) |
|
| ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heath Ledger “The Dark Knight” |
— |
| 2 | Robert Downey Jr. “The Soloist” (or “Tropic Thunder”) |
|
| 3 | Josh Brolin “Milk” |
— |
| 4 | Russell Crowe “Body of Lies” |
|
| 5 | Michael Shannon “Revolutionary Road” |
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| 6 | James Franco “Pineapple Express” (or “Milk”) |
— |
| 7 | Tobey Maguire “Brothers” |
NEW |
| 8 | Liev Schreiber “Defiance” |
NEW |
| 9 | Alan Alda “Nothing But the Truth” |
— |
| 10 | Kodi Smit-McPhee “The Road” |
NEW |
| ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Penélope Cruz “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” |
NEW |
| 2 | Kathy Bates “Revolutionary Road” |
— |
| 3 | Taraji P. Henson “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” |
— |
| 4 | Catherine Keener “The Soloist” (or “Synecdoche, New York”) |
|
| 5 | Viola Davis “Doubt” |
|
| 6 | Amy Adams “Doubt” |
|
| 7 | Vera Farmiga “Nothing But the Truth” |
NEW |
| 8 | Rachel Weisz “The Brothers Bloom” |
|
| 9 | Rosario Dawson “Seven Pounds” |
|
| 10 | Carice van Houten “Body of Lies” |
|
| WRITING (ADAPTED SCREENPLAY) | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1 | “Frost/Nixon” Written by Peter Morgan Based on his play |
— |
| 2 | “Revolutionary Road” Written by Justin Haythe Based on the novel by Richard Yates |
— |
| 3 | “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Written by Eric roth Based on the short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald |
— |
| 4 | “Doubt” Written by John Patrick Shanley Based on his play |
— |
| 5 | “Body of Lies” Written by William Monahan, Steven Zaillian Based on the book by David Ignatius |
— |
| 6 | “Chéri” Written by Christopher Hampton Based on the novel by Colette |
NEW |
| 7 | “The Road” Written by Joe Penhall Based on the novel by Cormac McCarthy |
NEW |
| 8 | “The Reader” Written by David Hare Based on the novel by Bernhard Schlink |
|
| 9 | “Defiance” Written by Clay Frohman, Edward Zwick Based on the book by Nechama Tec |
|
| 10 | “Miracle at St. Anna” Written by James McBride Based on his novel |
— |
| WRITING (ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY) | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1 | “The Soloist” Written by Susannah Grant |
— |
| 2 | “Changeling” Written by J. Michael Straczynski |
|
| 3 | “Synecdoche, New York” Written by Charlie Kaufman |
|
| 4 | “Happy-Go-Lucky” Written by Mike Leigh |
|
| 5 | “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” Written by Woody Allen |
NEW |
| 6 | “Milk” Written by Dustin Lance Black |
|
| 7 | “Seven Pounds” Written by Grant Nieporte |
|
| 8 | “WALL-E” Written by Andrew Stanton |
|
| 9 | “Hamlet 2” Written by Pam Brady, Andrew Fleming |
|
| 10 | “Australia” Written by Stuart Bettie, Ronald Harwood, Baz Luhrmann |
|
| ANIMATED FEATURE FILM | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1 | “WALL-E” Walt Disney Pictures |
— |
| 2 | “Waltz with Bashir” Sony Pictures Classics |
NEW |
| 3 | “Kung Fu Panda” DreamWorks SKG |
|
| 4 | “Coraline” Focus Features |
— |
| 5 | “Igor” The Weinstein Company |
— |
| 6 | “Horton Hears a Who!” 20th Century Fox |
— |
| 7 | “Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa” DreamWorks SKG |
— |
| 8 | “Space Chimps” 20th Century Fox |
— |
| 9 | “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” Warner Bros. Pictures |
— |
| 10 | “The Tale of Despereaux” Universal Pictures |
— |
