The 2007 Oscars are here
The 79th Annual Academy Awards take place this Sunday (February 25th) at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood. First-time host Ellen DeGeneres presides over the star-studded event, which will present an honorary award to composer Ennio Morricone. A who's who of Hollywood celebrities, including Tom Hanks, Cate Blanchett, Tom Cruise, Jack Black, Nicole Kidman, Reese Witherspoon and Jennifer Lopez will be on hand as presenters, with Beyonce, Jennifer Hudson, Melissa Etheridge, Randy Newman, Keith Robinson, Anika Noni Rose, and James Taylor joining in to perform nominated songs.
Dreamgirls leads the charge with eight nominations but since it's not up for Best Picture or Best Director, it can't sweep the major categories. Babel and the Spanish-language Pan's Labyrinth have the second-most nominations this year but like Dreamgirls, they probably won't dominate the telecast, though Pan's Labyrinth has a good chance of winning Best Foreign Film and several technical categories. The Academy Awards will probably be spread among a variety of movies, and for the first time in some years, the Best Picture winner is anyone's guess.
The Academy Awards pre-show special will air on ABC at 8 p.m. ET and 5 p.m. PT, and the actual event will begin at 8:30 p.m. ET, and 5:30 p.m. PT.
BEST PICTURE NOMINEES
BABEL -- 7 Nominations
Best Picture
Director, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu
Supporting Actress, Adriana Barraza
Supporting Actress, Rinko Kikuchi
Editing
Original Score
Original Screenplay
Babel tells of the interconnected stories about communication gone wrong with an American family, their Mexican nanny, a Moroccan family, and a Japanese father and his deaf-mute daughter.
In this clip from Babel, the Border Patrol stops the nanny and her nephew: (Border patrol officer) "Are you drunk sir?" (Gael Garcia Bernal) "Me? (Officer) "Are you intoxicated?" (Bernal) "No." (Officer) "Sir, I'm going to ask you to step out the vehicle." (Bernal) "Why?" (Officer) "I need you to step out the vehicle. I need you to step out the vehicle now." (Bernal) "Sir, can I explain?" (Officer) "No, you cannot explain. I'm telling you, you will step out the vehicle."
THE DEPARTED -- 5 Nominations
Best Picture
Director, Martin Scorsese
Supporting Actor, Mark Wahlberg
Editing
Adapted Screenplay
Martin Scorsese will most likely win his elusive Best Director Oscar for The Departed, a violent, compelling picture about a gangster mole rising through the ranks of the Massachusetts State Police while an undercover State Trooper infiltrates the Irish mob.
In this clip from The Departed, undercover cop Costigan begins his undercover work by getting close to mob boss Costello: (Jack Nicholson) "I knew your father." (Leonardo DiCaprio) "Yeah? You know he's dead?" (Nicholson) "Oh, sorry. How'd he go?" (DiCaprio) "He didn't complain." (Nicholson) "Yeah. That was his problem. There's a man could have been anything." (DiCaprio) "Are you trying to say he was nothing?" (Nicholson) "I'm saying he worked at the airport."
LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA -- 4 Nominations
Best Picture
Director, Clint Eastwood
Sound Editing
Original Screenplay
Letters From Iwo Jima is Clint Eastwood's second World War II movie of 2006 and it focuses on the Japanese soldiers assigned to protect the island of Iwo Jima from American invaders.
In this clip from Letters From Iwo Jima, General Kuribayashi preps his troops for battle: Spoken entirely in Japanese
LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE -- 4 Nominations
Best Picture
Supporting Actor, Alan Arkin
Supporting Actress, Abigail Breslin
Original Screenplay
Little Miss Sunshine stars Greg Kinnear and Toni Collette as a couple trying to keep it together on the road with their glum teenage son, a suicidal brother, a drugged out dad, and a seven-year-old girl with big dreams.
In this clip from Little Miss Sunshine, young Olive asks her Uncle Frank why he tried killing himself: (Toni Collette) "Uncle Frank didn't really have an accident. What happened was he tried to kill himself." (Abigail Breslin) "You did? Why?" (Greg Kinnear) "Uh, I'm sorry. I don't think this is an appropriate conversation. Honey, let's let uncle Frank finish his dinner, okay?" (Breslin) "Why did you try to kill yourself?"
THE QUEEN -- 6 Nominations
Best Picture
Director, Stephen Frears
Actress In A Leading Role, Helen Mirren
Costume Design
Original Score
Original Screenplay
Costume Design
The Queen stars Helen Mirren as England's seemingly out-of-touch Queen Elizabeth II whose reaction to the death of Princess Diana puzzled friends and foes alike.
In this clip from The Queen, the Queen tells Prime Minister Tony Blair that she trusts the British people's mourning for Princess Diana: "I doubt there is anyone who knows the British people more than I do, Mr. Blair, nor who has greater faith in their wisdom and judgment. And it is my belief that they will any moment reject this, this mood, which is being stirred up by the press, in favor of restrained grief and sober, private mourning."
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Dreamgirls leads the charge with eight nominations but since it's not up for Best Picture or Best Director, it can't sweep the major categories. Babel and the Spanish-language Pan's Labyrinth have the second-most nominations this year but like Dreamgirls, they probably won't dominate the telecast, though Pan's Labyrinth has a good chance of winning Best Foreign Film and several technical categories. The Academy Awards will probably be spread among a variety of movies, and for the first time in some years, the Best Picture winner is anyone's guess.
The Academy Awards pre-show special will air on ABC at 8 p.m. ET and 5 p.m. PT, and the actual event will begin at 8:30 p.m. ET, and 5:30 p.m. PT.
BEST PICTURE NOMINEES
BABEL -- 7 Nominations
Best Picture
Director, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu
Supporting Actress, Adriana Barraza
Supporting Actress, Rinko Kikuchi
Editing
Original Score
Original Screenplay
Babel tells of the interconnected stories about communication gone wrong with an American family, their Mexican nanny, a Moroccan family, and a Japanese father and his deaf-mute daughter.
In this clip from Babel, the Border Patrol stops the nanny and her nephew: (Border patrol officer) "Are you drunk sir?" (Gael Garcia Bernal) "Me? (Officer) "Are you intoxicated?" (Bernal) "No." (Officer) "Sir, I'm going to ask you to step out the vehicle." (Bernal) "Why?" (Officer) "I need you to step out the vehicle. I need you to step out the vehicle now." (Bernal) "Sir, can I explain?" (Officer) "No, you cannot explain. I'm telling you, you will step out the vehicle."
THE DEPARTED -- 5 Nominations
Best Picture
Director, Martin Scorsese
Supporting Actor, Mark Wahlberg
Editing
Adapted Screenplay
Martin Scorsese will most likely win his elusive Best Director Oscar for The Departed, a violent, compelling picture about a gangster mole rising through the ranks of the Massachusetts State Police while an undercover State Trooper infiltrates the Irish mob.
In this clip from The Departed, undercover cop Costigan begins his undercover work by getting close to mob boss Costello: (Jack Nicholson) "I knew your father." (Leonardo DiCaprio) "Yeah? You know he's dead?" (Nicholson) "Oh, sorry. How'd he go?" (DiCaprio) "He didn't complain." (Nicholson) "Yeah. That was his problem. There's a man could have been anything." (DiCaprio) "Are you trying to say he was nothing?" (Nicholson) "I'm saying he worked at the airport."
LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA -- 4 Nominations
Best Picture
Director, Clint Eastwood
Sound Editing
Original Screenplay
Letters From Iwo Jima is Clint Eastwood's second World War II movie of 2006 and it focuses on the Japanese soldiers assigned to protect the island of Iwo Jima from American invaders.
In this clip from Letters From Iwo Jima, General Kuribayashi preps his troops for battle: Spoken entirely in Japanese
LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE -- 4 Nominations
Best Picture
Supporting Actor, Alan Arkin
Supporting Actress, Abigail Breslin
Original Screenplay
Little Miss Sunshine stars Greg Kinnear and Toni Collette as a couple trying to keep it together on the road with their glum teenage son, a suicidal brother, a drugged out dad, and a seven-year-old girl with big dreams.
In this clip from Little Miss Sunshine, young Olive asks her Uncle Frank why he tried killing himself: (Toni Collette) "Uncle Frank didn't really have an accident. What happened was he tried to kill himself." (Abigail Breslin) "You did? Why?" (Greg Kinnear) "Uh, I'm sorry. I don't think this is an appropriate conversation. Honey, let's let uncle Frank finish his dinner, okay?" (Breslin) "Why did you try to kill yourself?"
THE QUEEN -- 6 Nominations
Best Picture
Director, Stephen Frears
Actress In A Leading Role, Helen Mirren
Costume Design
Original Score
Original Screenplay
Costume Design
The Queen stars Helen Mirren as England's seemingly out-of-touch Queen Elizabeth II whose reaction to the death of Princess Diana puzzled friends and foes alike.
In this clip from The Queen, the Queen tells Prime Minister Tony Blair that she trusts the British people's mourning for Princess Diana: "I doubt there is anyone who knows the British people more than I do, Mr. Blair, nor who has greater faith in their wisdom and judgment. And it is my belief that they will any moment reject this, this mood, which is being stirred up by the press, in favor of restrained grief and sober, private mourning."
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