The nominations are out...here's the story from Yahoo:
The Howard Hughes epic "The Aviator" led Academy Awards contenders with 11 nominations Tuesday, including best picture among them, plus acting honors for Leonardo DiCaprio, Cate Blanchett and Alan Alda and a directing slot for Martin Scorsese.
The boxing saga "Million Dollar Baby" and the J.M. Barrie tale "Finding Neverland" followed with seven nominations each, among best picture and acting nominations for Clint Eastwood, Morgan Freeman, Hilary Swank and Johnny Depp.
Eastwood also got a directing nomination for "Million Dollar Baby."
The other best-picture nominees were the Ray Charles portrait "Ray" and the buddy comedy "Sideways."
Along with Eastwood, Jamie Foxx also scored two nominations, as best actor for the title role in "Ray" and supporting actor as a taxi driver whose cab is hijacked by a hit man in "Collateral."
Foxx's dead-on emulation of Charles has made him the front-runner in the lead-actor category.
Starring as aviation trailblazer and Hollywood rebel Hughes, DiCaprio also was nominated for best actor. He and Foxx will compete against Depp as "Peter Pan" playwright Barrie in "Finding Neverland"; Eastwood as a cantankerous boxing trainer in "Million Dollar Baby"; and Don Cheadle for "Hotel Rwanda," starring as hotel manager Paul Rusesabagina, who sheltered refugees from the Rwandan genocide.
The best-actress category presents a rematch of the 1999 showdown, when underdog Swank won the Oscar for "Boys Don't Cry" over Annette Bening, who had been the front-runner for "American Beauty."
This time, Swank was nominated as a bullheaded boxing champ whose life takes a cruel twist in "Million Dollar Baby." Bening was chosen for "Being Julia," in which she plays an aging 1930s stage diva exacting wickedly comic revenge on the men in her life and a young rival.
Both actresses won Golden Globes for the roles, Swank for best dramatic actress, Bening for actress in a musical or comedy.
Also nominated for the best-actress Oscar were Catalina Sandino Moreno as a Colombian woman imperiled when she signs on to smuggle heroin in "Maria Full of Grace"; Imelda Staunton as a saintly housekeeper in 1950s Britain who performs illegal abortions on the side in "Vera Drake"; and Kate Winslet as a woman who has had memories of her ex-boyfriend erased in "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind."
Here's the full list of nominees: (I've bolded my personal picks for the major categories based on the GG and what I've seen)
Best Motion Picture of the Year
Nominees:
The Aviator (2004)
Finding Neverland (2004)
Million Dollar Baby (2004)
Ray (2004/I)
Sideways (2004)
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Nominees:
Don Cheadle for Hotel Rwanda (2004)
Johnny Depp for Finding Neverland (2004)
Leonardo DiCaprio for The Aviator (2004)
Clint Eastwood for Million Dollar Baby (2004)
Jamie Foxx for Ray (2004)
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
Nominees:
Annette Bening for Being Julia (2004)
Catalina Sandino Moreno for Maria Full of Grace (2004)
Imelda Staunton for Vera Drake (2004)
Hilary Swank for Million Dollar Baby (2004)
Kate Winslet for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Nominees:
Alan Alda for The Aviator (2004)
Thomas Haden Church for Sideways (2004)
Jamie Foxx for Collateral (2004)
Morgan Freeman for Million Dollar Baby (2004)
Clive Owen for Closer (2004)
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Nominees:
Cate Blanchett for The Aviator (2004)
Laura Linney for Kinsey (2004)
Virginia Madsen for Sideways (2004)
Sophie Okonedo for Hotel Rwanda (2004)
Natalie Portman for Closer (2004)
Best Achievement in Directing
Nominees:
Clint Eastwood for Million Dollar Baby (2004)
Taylor Hackford for Ray (2004/I)
Mike Leigh for Vera Drake (2004)
Alexander Payne for Sideways (2004)
Martin Scorsese for The Aviator (2004)
Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen
Nominees:
The Aviator (2004) - John Logan
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) - Charlie Kaufman, Michel Gondry, Pierre Bismuth
Hotel Rwanda (2004) - Terry George, Keir Pearson
The Incredibles (2004) - Brad Bird
Vera Drake (2004) - Mike Leigh
Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published
Nominees:
Before Sunset (2004) - Richard Linklater, Kim Krizan, Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke
Finding Neverland (2004) - David Magee
Million Dollar Baby (2004) - Paul Haggis
Diarios de motocicleta (2004) - Jose Rivera
Sideways (2004) - Alexander Payne, Jim Taylor
Best Achievement in Cinematography
Nominees:
The Aviator (2004) - Robert Richardson
Shi mian mai fu (2004) - Xiaoding Zhao
The Passion of the Christ (2004) - Caleb Deschanel
The Phantom of the Opera (2004) - John Mathieson
Un long dimanche de fiançailles (2004) - Bruno Delbonnel
Best Achievement in Editing
Nominees:
The Aviator (2004) - Thelma Schoonmaker
Collateral (2004) - Jim Miller, Paul Rubell
Finding Neverland (2004) - Matt Chesse
Million Dollar Baby (2004) - Joel Cox
Ray (2004/I) - Paul Hirsch
Best Achievement in Art Direction
Nominees:
The Aviator (2004) - Dante Ferretti
Finding Neverland (2004) - Gemma Jackson
Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004) - Rick Heinrichs
The Phantom of the Opera (2004) - Anthony Pratt
Un long dimanche de fiançailles (2004) - Aline Bonetto, Mathieu Junot, Delphine Mabed
Best Achievement in Costume Design
Nominees:
The Aviator (2004) - Sandy Powell
Finding Neverland (2004) - Alexandra Byrne, Mary Kelly
Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004) - Colleen Atwood, Donna O'Neal
Ray (2004/I) - Sharen Davis
Troy (2004) - Bob Ringwood
Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score
Nominees:
Finding Neverland (2004) - Jan A.P. Kaczmarek
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004) - John Williams
Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004) - Thomas Newman
The Passion of the Christ (2004) - John Debney
The Village (2004) - James Newton Howard
Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song
Nominees:
The Phantom of the Opera (2004) - Andrew Lloyd Webber, Charles Hart ("Learn To Be Lonely")
The Polar Express (2004) - Glen Ballard, Alan Silvestri ("Believe")
Shrek 2 (2004) - David Bryson, Adam Duritz, David Immerglück, Matthew Malley, Dan Vickrey ("Accidentally In Love")
Diarios de motocicleta (2004) - Jorge Drexler ("Al Otro Lado Del Río")
Choristes, Les (2004) - Bruno Coulais, Christophe Barratier ("Look To Your Path (Vois Sur Ton Chemin)")
Best Achievement in Makeup
Nominees:
Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004)
The Passion of the Christ (2004)
Mar adentro (2004/I)
Best Achievement in Sound
Nominees:
The Aviator (2004) - Tom Fleischman, Petur Hliddal
The Incredibles (2004) - Randy Thom, Gary Rizzo, Doc Kane, Vince Caro
The Polar Express (2004) - William B. Kaplan, Randy Thom, Tom Johnson, Dennis S. Sands
Ray (2004/I)
Spider-Man 2 (2004)
Best Achievement in Sound Editing
Nominees:
The Incredibles (2004) - Michael Silvers, Randy Thom
The Polar Express (2004) - Randy Thom, Dennis Leonard
Spider-Man 2 (2004)
Best Achievement in Visual Effects
Nominees:
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004) - Tim Burke, Roger Guyett, Bill George, John Richardson
I, Robot (2004) - John Nelson
Spider-Man 2 (2004) - John Dykstra, Scott Stokdyk, Anthony LaMolinara, John Frazier
Best Animated Feature Film of the Year
Nominees:
The Incredibles (2004)
Shark Tale (2004)
Shrek 2 (2004)
Best Foreign Language Film of the Year
Nominees:
Choristes, Les (2004) (France)
Untergang, Der (2004) (Germany)
Mar adentro (2004/I) (Spain)
Så som i himmelen (2004) (Sweden)
Yesterday (2004) (South Africa)
Best Documentary, Features
Nominees:
Born Into Brothels: Calcutta's Red Light Kids (2004) - Zana Briski, Ross Kauffman
Geschichte vom weinenden Kamel, Die (2003) - Tobias Siebert
Super Size Me (2004) - Morgan Spurlock
Tupac: Resurrection (2003) - Karolyn Ali, Preston L. Holmes, Lauren Lazin
Twist of Faith (2005) - Eddie Schmidt
Best Documentary, Short Subjects
Nominees:
Autism Is a World
The Children of Leningradsky
Hardwood
Mighty Times: The Children's March
Sister Rose's Passion (2004)
Best Short Film, Animated
Nominees:
Lorenzo (2004) - Mike Gabriel
Ryan (2004) - Chris Landreth
Birthday Boy (2004/II)
Gopher Broke (2004) - Jeff Fowler
Guard Dog (2004) - Bill Plympton
Best Short Film, Live Action
Nominees:
Everything In This Country Must
Little Terrorist (2004)
7:35 In the Morning
Two Cars, One Night (2003)
Wasp (2003)
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I find it very interesting that both Mel Gibson and Michael Moore, who were pushing for their films (Passion and Farenheit) for best picture both got snubbed....and Moore didn't even get a Best Documentary nom. I love it....haha :lol:
