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There are certain movies that, as you are witnessing them for the first time, feel like something of an event, and that is precisely my experience with Stephen King’s It, which first aired on ABC in November 1990. I can remember everything about watching both installments—how terrified I was of Tim Curry as Pennywise, how much I genuinely loved those kids and how awesome it was to see one of my favorite actors, John Ritter, show up in a horror movie (based on a Stephen King novel nonetheless). It was a landmark in many regards, but to me, as a fan, it's monumental because it truly was one of the first things I ever saw air on network television that genuinely scared the hell out of me.

And since we here at Daily Dead decided to celebrate the Halloween season by paying tribute to many of our favorite King...

Movies about young love are hard to pull off, and when they don't work, they can be cloying and obnoxious. Done right, though, there is something both lovely and piercing about them, and while I think "If I Stay" has to do a fair amount of juggling to get its premise to work, there is a cumulative power to it that I found undeniable and earned. "Earned" is a big word for me in films like this. One of the biggest problems when you're making a film about love between people of any age is showing how love sparks between people and how it flourishes and doing it without giving in to short-cuts or cliche. How many times have you seen a supposed romance and the meeting is completely ridiculous? How many movies have you seen where you're supposed to just accept that characters have fallen in love because that's...

Production is set to begin today on If I Stay for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures (MGM), starring Chloë Grace Moretz (“Carrie”) as Mia and Jamie Blackley (“Snow White and The Huntsmen”) as Adam, with R.J. Cutler (“Nashville”) directing.

The film follows Mia (Moretz), who at age 16 has everything: a loving family, an adoring boyfriend, and a bright future full of music. Suddenly, a family drive on a snowy day changes everything. In an instant, almost all of that is taken from her. Caught between life and death, Mia spends one critical day contemplating her destiny, which is now more unknowable than ever. Is her soul mate’s love enough to keep her here? Tragic but ultimately hopeful, this is a romantic, riveting and uplifting story about music, life and love.

The film also stars Mireille Enos (“The Killing”) as Mia’s mother Kat, Stacy Keach (“Nebraska”) as Gramps, Liana Liberato (“Trust”) as Kim,...

Another day, another schedule for the 2012 San Diego Comic-Con. Next up is Day 3 - Saturday, July 14th - which is just about as chock-full of events for the horror crowd as Friday the 13th!

As always, our focus is the horror panels, but included are a few others that we think will be of interest as well. Remember that times and participants are subject to change so keep your eyes on the official Sdcc site for updates. And hopefully they'll provide a fix soon for the Sdcc smartphone app - in years past it's been extremely helpful.

10:00-11:00 Comic-Con How-To: Anatomy of a Fight Scene, Part One— Stories are about conflict, and there is no purer form of conflict than a good ol' fisticuffs-style brawl-or sword fight, laser battle, western shootout, or even two chicks pulling each other's hair. How do you put that much action down on...

Just last month, we told you that Michael Ealy (FlashForward, Californication) had signed on to play the male lead in Underworld: New Dawn. Ealy is playing a police detective who hunts the vampires and ultimately joins forces with Kate Beckinsale‘s Selene in the Screen Gems and Lakeshore Entertainment film.

Now, production on the film is officially underway in Vancouver and according to the press release, India Eisley (The Secret Life of the American Teenager) has joined the cast. Though her role hasn’t been revealed, some are speculating that she may be portraying Selene’s daughter in the film.

Press Release:

Production is underway in Vancouver, British Columbia, on the 4th installment in the highly successful Screen Gems/Lakeshore Entertainment Underworld franchise. Underworld 4 brings a stunning new dimension to the epic battle between Vampires and Lycans, as the first film in the franchise to shoot in 3D.

Kate Beckinsale,...

The Underworld 4: New Dawn Official Plot Synopsis, Cast, and Crew Details for the upcoming vampire, werewolf horror movie has been released. The official plot synopsis, cast, and crew details for Underworld 4: New Dawn (2012) is below.

Underworld 4 brings a stunning new dimension to the epic battle between Vampires and Lycans, as the first film in the franchise to shoot in 3D. Kate Beckinsale, star of the first two films, returns in her lead role as the vampire warrioress Selene, who escapes imprisonment to find herself in a world where humans have discovered the existence of both Vampire and Lycan clans, and are conducting an all-out war to eradicate both immortal species.

Kate Beckinsale is revealing herself to be one of films’ most versatile and charismatic actresses. Beckinsale recently wrapped production on the thriller “Contraband” opposite Mark Wahlberg. She was last seen in the independent dramas “Snow Angels” opposite Sam Rockwell,...

Production is underway in Vancouver, British Columbia, on the 4th installment in the highly successful Screen Gems/Lakeshore Entertainment Underworld franchise. Underworld 4 brings a stunning new dimension to the epic battle between Vampires and Lycans, as the first film in the franchise to shoot in 3D.

Kate Beckinsale, star of the first two films, returns in her lead role as the vampire warrioress Selene, who escapes imprisonment to find herself in a world where humans have discovered the existence of both Vampire and Lycan clans, and are conducting an all-out war to eradicate both immortal species.

Kate Beckinsale is revealing herself to be one of films' most versatile and charismatic actresses. Beckinsale recently wrapped production on the thriller Contraband opposite Mark Wahlberg. She was last seen in the independent dramas Snow Angels opposite Sam Rockwell, and in the dark comedy Everybody's Fine opposite Robert De Niro and Drew Barrymore. That same year,...

Yesterday, the nominees for the 2010 Leo Awards were announced. The objective of this award is to celebrate all the things that have been done in the film and television industry of the Prairies and the province British Columbia along with people who are based in these regions. Furthermore, foreign TV series and films that are produced in Canada's West are also included in the party. Obviously, this is not the full list of nominees. In fact, this is the presentation of the nominees for dramatic TV series, feature films, comedy series and web series.

Feature Length Drama

Best Feature Length Drama:

* A Shine Of Rainbows

* Alice

* Cole

* Excited

* The Thaw

Best Direction in a Feature Length Drama:

* Vic Sarin - A Shine Of Rainbows

* Carl Bessai - Cole

* Bruce Sweeney - Excited

* Mark A. Lewis - The Thaw

Best Screenwriting in a Feature Length Drama:

* Vic Sarin, Chatherine Spear and...

With another year’s ceremony come and gone, the 2010 Academy Awards announced the big winners during a ceremony at Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles on Sunday night (March 7).

Taking home the top prize of Best Picture was “The Hurt Locker,” which ended up winning a total of six Oscar trophies.

As for the actor/actress categories, the Academy bestowed honors onto Jeff Bridges, Sandra Bullock, Mo’Nique and Christopher Waltz.

The complete list of 201o Oscar winners is as follows:

Actor in a Leading Role

Winner: Jeff Bridges in “Crazy Heart”

George Clooney in “Up in the Air”

Colin Firth in “A Single Man”

Morgan Freeman in “Invictus”

Jeremy Renner in “The Hurt Locker”

Actor in a Supporting Role

Matt Damon in “Invictus”

Woody Harrelson in “The Messenger”

Christopher Plummer in “The Last Station”

Stanley Tucci in “The Lovely Bones”

Winner: Christoph Waltz in “Inglourious Basterds”

Actress in a Leading...

It’s that time of year again, kids. Dread Central’s 2010 Horror at the Oscars coverage. Horror was indeed present this year and in black-tie. While Roger Corman and Lauren Bacall were honored a few months back at the Governor’s Award Ceremony, it was an unexpected delight to see Corman, recipient of the lifetime achievement Oscar, enjoy a standing ovation on national television.

I was, however, very disappointed that neither of them were allowed to speak. Roger Corman’s contributions to modern cinema are too vast for him to just stand up and wave. James Cameron was one of many Corman acolytes present, and his nomination speaks to Corman’s tremendous legacy. On the Terminator DVD Cameron mentions, "I trained at the Roger Corman Film School.” Jonathan Demme, Martin Scorsese, and Francis Ford Coppola, among many others, were also former students.

The terror continued with a spoof of Paranormal Activity...

We can finally close the book on 2009. The Oscars have come and gone and The Hurt Locker has triumphed, winning Best Picture and five more awards including Best Director and Original Screenplay. I started tracking this season's Oscar contenders way back in July of 2009 and it has been a long road and each year I'd like to think I learn a little something new about the process.

The first thing to realize is that the likelihood the film you believe to be the best of the year most likely will not win Best Picture and may not be recognized at all. What you have to hope for is that quality wins out over mediocrity in whatever category we are discussing. And for that matter I would say this year's Oscars were, for the most part, a triumph (a statement regarding the winners and not the show itself, which was sort...

I was thinking - life of a fashion icon would be a lock for the category, but corsets, multiple noms for The Young Victoria and previous wins for Sandy Powell always seems to be the go-to choice. - The Noms: “Bright Star” Janet Patterson “Coco before Chanel” Catherine Leterrier “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus” Monique Prudhomme “Nine” Colleen Atwood “The Young Victoria” Sandy Powell Who Will Win: “The Young Victoria” Sandy Powell Who Should Win: “Coco before Chanel” Catherine Leterrier Who Won: “The Young Victoria” Sandy Powell Commentary: I was thinking - life of a fashion icon would be a lock for the category, but corsets, multiple noms for The Young Victoria and previous wins for Sandy Powell always seems to be the go-to choice.

A couple of Academy crowd-favorites won the top acting awards, and The Hurt Locker got the biggest prize of the night!

Sandra Bullock won her first Best Actress award — and even she seemed surprised by the win. Jeff Bridges didn’t seem overly shocked to nab Best Actor, but he still gave a aww-inducing speech celebrating his eminent show-biz family. We particularly liked the dude with the crazy hair who won for Sound Editing and Sound Mixing (Paul Ottosson of The Hurt Locker) and yawn Sandy Powell won for the third time for costume design (The Young Victoria). And you’re probably looking for all the rest of the winners, neatly formatted …

Best picture “Avatar” “The Blind Side” “District 9″ “An Education” (Winner)”The Hurt Locker” “Inglourious Basterds” “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” “A Serious Man” “Up” “Up in the Air” Best actor (Winner) Jeff Bridges, “Crazy Heart” George Clooney,...

Oscar winners 2010 list is here.

We already wrote about possible winners and competition between- James Cameron and Kathryn Bigelow, so we can say that we’re not at all surprised that this was Kathryn Bigelow’s night.

The Hurt Locker won 6 Oscars, including honour for Best Movie and Best Director.

So, Bigelow became the first woman to win an Oscar for Best Director.

On the other hand, the movie that still sits on the top of box office, James Cameron’s Avatar definetely had a bad luck. The movie won only 3 golden statues in technical categories – Art Direction, Cinematography and Visual Effects.

We can’t help but think that this show really seemed like Bigelow’s sweet revenge.

Sandra Bullock was named best actress for The Blind Side after she proudly attended Razzie 2010 event and took completely different award.

“Did I really earn this, or did I just wear you all down?...

Well, there weren't many major surprises nor many particularly memorable moments, but we still had a lot of fun watching the Oscars here tonight. Thanks to all of you who tuned in for the live podcast and joined us in the live chat over at Ustream [1]. As you may have heard, The Hurt Locker cleaned up, taking home a total of 6 Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Director, making Kathryn Bigelow the first female director to ever win the award. James Cameron's Avatar, on the other hand, won only for visual effects, art direction and cinematography. All of the acting categories went off as expected, with Jeff Bridges and Sandra Bullock winning Best Actor and Best Actress, while Christoph Waltz and Mo'Nique won the supporting trophies. If there was an upset at all, it was probably The Secret in Their Eyes (El Secreto de Sus Ojos), which beat...

The triumphant ones at the 82nd annual Academy Awards, in bold, alongside their fellow nominees

Actor in a supporting role

Christoph Waltz in Inglourious Basterds

Christopher Plummer in The Last Station

Matt Damon in Invictus

Stanley Tucci in The Lovely Bones

Woody Harrelson in The Messenger

Animated feature film

Up (Pete Docter and Bob Peterson)

The Princess and the Frog (Ron Clements and John Musker)

Coraline (Henry Selick)

Fantastic Mr Fox (Wes Anderson)

The Secret of Kells (Tomm Moore)

Music (original song)

Almost There, from The Princess and the Frog, by Randy Newman

Down in New Orleans, from The Princess and the Frog, by Randy Newman

Loin de Paname, from Paris 36, by Reinhardt Wagner and Frank Thomas

Take It All, from Nine, by Maury Yeston

The Weary Kind, from Crazy Heart, by Ryan Bingham and T Bone Burnett

Writing (original screenplay)

The Hurt Locker (Mark Boal)

Inglourious Basterds (Quentin Tarantino...

The 82nd Academy Awards are now over and "The Hurt Locker" beat out "Avatar" and eight other movies for Best Pictures. Meanwhile Kathryn Bigelow made history by becoming the first woman to win the Best Director Oscar for "Locker." The film ended up winning six out of its nine categories. His fifth nomination proved to be the charm for Jeff Bridges, who was hailed as Best Actor for his performance as a weary country singer in "Crazy Heart." Sandra Bullock scored on her first nomination, taking home the Best Actress award for "The Blind Side." And as predicted, both Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds) and Mo'Nique (Precious) won in the Best Supporting Actor/Actress categories. Check out the full list of winners below. Best Picture: * The Hurt Locker * Avatar * The Blind Side * District 9 * An Education * Inglourious Basterds * Precious * A Serious Man * Up * Up in the Air Directing: * Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker...

The biggest night in Hollywood is here and over the next few hours they’ll be tears, cheers and (hopefully) a few surprises as the 82nd Academy Awards are handed out.

The sordid trudge up the red carpet has finished and I’m going to be blogging live as the winners are announced, you can have a look at our Oscars predictions here and follow us on as the Twitter storm rages, or get all interactive with FilmXtra Tom who is video blogging the Oscars here.

My hopes are with Colin Firth and Carey Mulligan and I’m secretly hoping that Tarantino walks off with Best Picture for Inglourious Basterds and Coraline bests Up for Best Animated Feature.

Ok… the time is upon us. I’ll be updating the blog with the winners as I go, as well as providing as coherent a commentary as possible.

Remember to keep hitting...

"The Insider" has your complete list of winners from Sunday night's 82nd Academy Awards! Read on to see who took home an Oscar on film's biggest night (winners' names bolded below)! Best Picture Winner: “The Hurt Locker” Kathryn Bigelow, Mark Boal, Nicolas Chartier and Greg Shapiro “Avatar” James Cameron and Jon Landau, Producers “The Blind Side” Nominees to be determined “District 9” Peter Jackson and Carolynne Cunningham, Producers “An Education” Finola Dwyer and Amanda Posey, Producers “Inglourious Basterds” Lawrence Bender, Producer “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Lee Daniels, Sarah Siegel-Magness and Gary Magness, Producers “A Serious Man” Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, Producers “Up” Jonas Rivera, Producer “Up in the Air” Daniel Dubiecki, Ivan Reitman and Jason Reitman, Producers Directing Winner: “The Hurt Locker” Kathryn Bigelow “Avatar” James Cameron “Inglourious Basterds” Quentin Tarantino “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Lee Daniels “Up in the Air...

Here it is at last! The 2010 Academy Awards! Who’s bringing home the Oscars? James Cameron or Kathryn Bigelow, or will Tarantino stage an upset? Will The Dude Lebowski have a best actor win under his belt? The stars are crossing the Red Carpet right now and in a few hours Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin will be hosting 82nd Academy Awards.

Prior the main event, you can check out the AP staff picks for all of the winners and check back often as I’ll be updating all the wins with my own commentary as the evening progresses. Feel free to drop your own guesses and thoughts on the evening as it progresses.

Me, I’m pulling for District 9 for best screenplay!

See you at the Oscars!

Updated! The entire list of winners with my thoughts and earlier predictions below:

— Motion Picture: “The Hurt Locker.”

— Actor: Jeff Bridges,...

Tonight is the night film fans! The 82nd Academy Awards is just hours away and this year the competition is steep! With 2009 being such a good year for film, and the ceremony itself already having it’s fair share of controversy (we’re looking at you, Nicolas Chartier) it promises to be one hell of a night!

Fortunately for our FilmShaft readers, you don’t need Sky in order to keep up with the latest goings on at the prestigious Kodak Theater in Hollywood, because we’ll be keeping you up to date right here! Below is a list of this year’s nominees, including the two heavyweight productions, Avatar and Hurt Locker. If you want to know who’s winning what, then check our list below for live updates throughout the night.

Also, I’ll be provided my own thoughts an insights on the event right here, and if...

It.s shaping up to be a battle between .The Hurt Locker. and .Avatar. at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards! Both films lead the pack with 9 nominations each including Best Picture, but only one will remain victorious.

From Best Short Film to Best Actor, here are my complete, humble but truly fearless Oscar predictions.

Best Picture

* .Avatar. James Cameron and Jon Landau, Producers

* .The Blind Side. Nominees to be determined

* .District 9. Peter Jackson and Carolynne Cunningham, Producers

* .An Education. Finola Dwyer and Amanda Posey, Producers

* .The Hurt Locker. Nominees to be determined

* .Inglourious Basterds. Lawrence Bender, Producer

* .Precious: Based on the Novel .Push. by Sapphire. Lee Daniels, Sarah Siegel-Magness and Gary Magness, Producers

* .A Serious Man. Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, Producers

* .Up. Jonas Rivera, Producer

* .Up in the Air. Daniel Dubiecki, Ivan Reitman and Jason Reitman, Producers

And The Oscar Will Go To:

.The Hurt Locker. . The thrilling Iraq...

It’s that time of the year again, folks. The eyes of the world will be focused on the biggest award-giving event in the film calendar on Sunday night. There’s nothing quite like the glitz and glamorama of the Academy Awards. Now in it’s 82nd year, this one’s extra special with James Cameron versus ex-wife, Kathryn Bigelow. There will be laughter, cheers, tears, cheesy moments, boring moments, “hurry up and get on with it” moments and by the end of it all – historic moments.

The award ceremony was dreamt up by Louis B. Mayer, ostensibly as an advertising and promotional tool for the industry. Only in time did it turn into the behemoth it is today. Whatever the criticisms levelled at the Academy Awards ceremony – and there are plenty – it doesn’t stop billions across the world tuning in. Not even the Cannes Film Festival can compete with the Oscars.

Los Angeles – Hollywood is in full-on Oscar mode.The red carpet has been laid out in front of the Kodak Theatre, topped with a plastic sheet in case of rain. Traffic is snarled. Tourists are flocking to Hollywood & Highland to see a bit of the Academy Awards preparations and snap photos of themselves with giant Oscar statues.The theater itself buzzes with activity, as rehearsals continue from morning until night, with the occasional celebrity quietly stepping in to practice presenting the coveted golden guy.It's Oscar week, and Tinseltown is all aflutter. Here's the latest:___NOT Yet Ready For Their Close-up: Oscar hosts Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin seemed relaxed as they stepped out together on the Kodak Theatre stage Thursday to run through their lines for the show.The two looked out into a sea of placards showing where the stars will sit on Sunday. They laughed with each...

Nominees and Winners

For The 12th Annual Costume Designers Guild Awards

(Winners were announced at the February 25, 2010 at the Awards Gala Event)

Excellence in Contemporary Film:

"(500) Days of Summer" . Hope Hanafin

"Brüno" . Jason Alper

"Crazy Heart" . Doug Hall *

"Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire" . Marina Draghici

"Up in the Air" . Danny Glicker

Excellence in Period Film:

"Coco Before Chanel" . Catherine Leterrier

"Julie & Julia" . Ann Roth

"Nine" . Colleen Atwood

"Sherlock Holmes" . Jenny Beavan

"The Young Victoria" . Sandy Powell*

Excellence in Fantasy Film:

"Avatar" . Mayes C. Rubeo & Deborah L. Scott

"The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus" . Monique Prudhomme *

"Star Trek" . Michael Kaplan

Outstanding Made for Television Movie or Miniseries:

"Georgia O'Keeffe" . Michael Dennison

"Grey Gardens" . Catherine Marie Thomas *

"Little Dorrit" . Barbara Kidd

Outstanding Contemporary Television Series:

"Big Love" . Chrisi Karvonides-Dushenko

"Glee" . Lou Eyrich *

"Dancing with the Stars" . Randall Christensen

"No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency" . Jo Katsaras

"Ugly Betty" . Patricia Field

Outstanding Period...

Award winners from the Cdg are in for a celebratory weekend. Monique Prudhomme’s sensational costumes for The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus won in the ‘Excellence in Fantasy Film’ category, once again leaving fellow nominee, and all round big hitter, Avatar, out in the cold.

Other recipients at the 12th Annual Costume Designers Guild Awards included Doug Hall for Crazy Heart in the ‘Contemporary’ section, eclipsing our prediction Marina Draghici for Precious, which is unfortunately off the Academy’s list on March 7th as well.

In television, Janie Bryant took the prize for her continually exciting work on Mad Men in ‘Period/Fantasy’. While ‘Mini-series’ saw Catherine Marie Thomas get the nod for Grey Gardens, an enthralling TV movie about the kooky aunt and first cousin of Jackie Onassis. Lou Eyrich for Glee received the Contemporary award, which is a real result as the costume character representation on that show is so precise.

The Costume Designers Guild (Cdg) weighed in with their winners last night awarding The Young Victoria (Sandy Powell) the award for Excellence in Period Film, Crazy Heart (Doug Hall) the award for Excellence in Contemporary Film and Terry Gilliam's The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (Monique Prudhomme) the award for Excellence in Fantasy Film.

Of the three winners, Young Victoria and Parnassus are also nominated for the Oscar in Best Costume Design along with Janet Patterson's work in Bright Star, Catherine Leterrier for Coco Before Chanel and Colleen Atwood for Nine. It should be mentioned that Coco Before Chanel and Nine were also nominated in the Cdg's Period Film category along with Young Victoria.

My current prediction to take home the Oscar is Sandy Powell for The Young Victoria whose work is prominently featured on the film's official site, which is where the sketch of Emily Blunt's costume...

She’s always up for a swanky evening, and last night (February 25) Anna Paquin was spotted at the Costume Designers Guild Awards.

Milling around backstage at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, the “True Blood” babe looked lovely in a multicolored minidress with black strappy heels.

The Costume Designers Guild Awards honored the hard-working people responsible for the amazing outfits of film and television.

The winners are as follows:

Contemporary Television Series - Lou Eyrich/"Glee"

Period/Fantasy Television Series - Janie Bryant/"Mad Men"

Made for Television Movie or Mini Series - Catherine Marie Thomas/"Grey Gardens."

Contemporary Film - Doug Hall/"Crazy Heart."

Period Film - Sandy Powell/"The Young Victorias"

Fantasy Film - Monique Prudhomme/"The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus"

Commercials - Casey Storm/Milk: "Milkquarious"...

Get gleeful for "Glee"! Those cute school and show choir outfits were honored Thursday night (Feb. 25) at the Costume Designers Guild Awards.

"Glee's" Lou Eyrich won for her contemporary costume design for a TV series, while AMC's "Mad Men" designer Janie Bryant took home the prize for period/fantasy TV series costuming.

The remaining Cdg awards follow:

TV movie or miniseries

"Grey Gardens" - Marie Thomas

Contemporary costuming in film

"Crazy Heart" - Doug Hall

Period costuming in film

"The Young Victoria" - Sandy Powell

Fantasy costuming in film

"Doctor Parnassus" - Monique Prudhomme

Commerical costume design

"Milkquarious" - Casey Storm

In addition, five honorary awards were handed out to "The Young Victoria" star Emily Blunt, director Rob Marshall, Sandy Powell and Michael Travis for career achievement and Robert Turturice for being inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Follow   Zap2it on Twitter and Facebook and Zap2itHanh on Twitter for the latest movies,...

LATimes: Sandy Powell won for excellence in period film for “The Young Victoria,” Doug Hall earned the honor in contemporary film for “Crazy Heart” and Monique Prudhomme took home the...

If there's one nominee that I'm really rooting for in the Best Costume Design category at the Academy Awards, it's Monique Prudhomme for The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus. It isn't simply that she managed to channel Terry Gilliam and make iconic ensembles that could withstand an onslaught of special effects and hastily subbed-in actors, it's that she was nominated for outfitting a film set in the present day, and that happens so rarely. Does she have a shot at a win? If history is any judge, the odds against her are steep.

It’s that time again. Puxatawney Phil has seen his shadow, Lost is back on the air, and the Oscar nominations have been announced. And, to be honest, there are very few surprises here.

Granted, I’m a little late in breaking the news here, but if anything, this list proves there was no news to break. The Hurt Locker and Avatar led the best picture category with 9 nominations each, with A Serious Man, Inglorious Basterds, Precious, The Blind Side, Up in the Air, District 9, An Education and Up also picking up nods. Sandra Bullock, Jeff Bridges and Christoph Waltz were among the acting nominations.

Ten nominees for the coveted slot of Best picture didn’t do anything else really than allow a few more pics to get an ‘honorable mention’ for their efforts. Don’t get me wrong, it’s nice to see Up on the Best pic...

The movie's star Jeremy Renner is up for the Best Actor in a Leading Role Oscar, competing against George Clooney ("Up in the Air"), Morgan Freeman ("Invictus"), Jeff Bridges ("Crazy Heart") and Colin Firth ("A Single Man").

In the Best Director category, Bigelow will fight it out with her ex-husband James Cameron, who is praised for his sci-fi epic "Avatar", along with Quentin Tarantino ("Inglourious Basterds"), Lee Daniels ("Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire") and Jason Reitman ("Up in the Air").

"The Hurt Locker" is also in the running for Best Picture - the film is among 10 nominees for the prestigious accolade, including "Avatar", "Up in the Air", "The Blind Side" and "Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire".

Meanwhile, Sandra Bullock has landed her first Oscar nomination for her role in "The Blind Side" - the star will go up against Meryl Streep ("Julie & Julia"), Helen Mirren...

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has on Tuesday morning, February 2 announced the nominees of the 82nd Annual Academy Awards. The unraveling of the nominees affirmed that there will indeed be a head-to-head battle between Sandra Bullock and Meryl Streep as the two are vying for Best Actress.

45-year-old Bullock was listed for the title for her role as Leigh Anne Tuohy in "The Blind Side". It is the first Academy Award gong the star of "The Proposal" collected. Meanwhile, 60-year-old Streep was nominated for her Julia Child portrayal in "Julie & Julia". With this nom, the "Doubt" leading lady has extended her reign as the most nominated performer in Academy history by collecting her 16th.

Also collecting her first Oscar nomination was "Up in the Air" young star, Anna Kendrick. The 24-year-old who is also known for her Jessica Stanley role in the "Twilight Saga" series earned a Best Supporting Actress nomination.

• Avatar and The Hurt Locker lead with nine each; Inglourious Basterds has eight

• Meryl Streep gains record-breaking 16th nomination

• British acting nods for Helen Mirren, Carey Mulligan, Colin Firth

Blog: Xan Brooks on why The Hurt Locker should win

Actress in a supporting role

Mo'Nique in Precious

Vera Farmiga in Up in the Air

Penélope Cruz in Nine

Anna Kendrick in Up in the Air

Maggie Gyllenhaal in Crazy Heart

Actor in a supporting role

Christoph Waltz in Inglourious Basterds

Christopher Plummer in The Last Station

Matt Damon in Invictus

Stanley Tucci in The Lovely Bones

Woody Harrelson in The Messenger

Actress in a leading role

Meryl Streep in Julie & Julia

Sandra Bullock in The Blind Side

Helen Mirren in The Last Station

Gabourey Sidibe in Precious

Carey Mulligan in An Education

Actor in a leading role

Morgan Freeman in Invictus

Jeff Bridges in Crazy Heart

George Clooney in Up in the Air...

Every year at about this time, the Academy of Arts and Sciences announces their nominations for the Oscars. This is a troubling time for film fans, as they see that their favorite movies may not get the big nod, or the best performances do not get put forward for lack of Academic backbone.

For this year, of course, the Academy accidentally looked over Nicolas Cage’s performance in Bad Lieutenant. No big deal. It was only one of the greatest performance in the past 100 years. I’m sure that the announcers this morning simply forget to read off his name. Right?

Anyway, we’ll make the best with what we have. And the nominees this year are pretty good. A lot of the nominated films are still playing in our theatres. Of the nominees, we’ve still got:

9 for Avatar

6 for Up in the Air

3 for Crazy Heart

2 for Sherlock Holmes...

Nominations for Colin Firth, Carey Mulligan and Helen Mirren but The Hurt Locker and Avatar dominate

It will be an Oscar night with some of the most interesting showdowns in years: the low budget arthouse versus the insanely over the top sci-fi; the ex-husband versus the ex-wife; and the upstart newcomer versus an actor who has had more nominations than any before her. Throw in an unpredictable maverick and it could be quite a party.

The nominations for the 82nd annual Academy Awards were revealed yesterday in Los Angeles at 5.38am local time precisely, and were monopolised by two very different films – the $237m (£150m) Avatar from James Cameron and the $11m Iraq drama The Hurt Locker, from his ex-spouse Kathryn Bigelow. Both gathered nine nominations, but sneaking along behind them was Quentin Tarantino's unique take on the second world war, Inglourious Basterds, with eight.

While not a vintage year for the Brits,...

Complete list of 82nd Annual Academy Award nominations announced.

Anne Hathaway announced the nominees this morning at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills.

As expected, there was lots of love for “Avatar” — the film is up in a total of nine categories, as is “The Hurt Locker,” including Best Picture and Best Director nominations for both James Cameron and Kathryn Bigelow.

The academy’s announcement marked the first time in 66 years that there were 10 nominees in this marquee category, instead of the traditional five. The last time the academy went this route, “Casablanca” took home Oscar gold as the best picture of 1943. “The Blind Side” scored a spot next to films like “Up“, “Inglourious Basterds,” and “District 9.”

The best actor nominations went to Jeff Bridges for “Crazy Heart,” George Clooney for “Up in the Air,” Colin Firth for “A Single Man,...

Don your gown, charter your car and call the paps - it's Oscar time. Yes, the nominations have been announced and so we now have until March 6th to bemoan that absence of The Road, Star Trek and The Prophet from the Best Picture Category, to make snide remarks about Meryl being up for yet another statue and to get all hot and bothered about the prospect of  Clooney V Firth stand off in the Best Actor category. Which does all sound like a rather delicious way to spend the next month. Now, not that The Sharpener is one to broadcast it's unsolicited opinions to all and sundry, but we really do think that if there is any justice in the world, if we can hold in faith in the future of the film industry and if there Is a God out there looking after us in this foresaken world.

Its that time of year again and the old saying “and the award goes too…” will be ringing throughout Hollywood and the movie blogs. Its Oscar time and The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences revealed the official nominees this morning live from the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills. This is the first year the Oscars will feature an expanded field of 10 nominees for the coveted Best Picture category making for a very interesting race to see what the industry thinks is the best film of the year. I think its exciting and for the first time ever I am looking forward to the Oscars because of that. Films like Up and District 9 made the list, which weren’t surprises, but one that I am glad also made it was Inglourious Basterds, a worthy contender in my mind.

Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin will host the awards show on Sunday,...

Groundbreaking, first-time nominee Kathryn Bigelow was prepping for an appearance on the "Today Show" with two of her "Hurt Locker" actors Tuesday morning when the best director noms were announced. "These situations get framed as a competition," she said. "I don't see it that way. I see it as being honored in this incredible mix of filmmakers with these incredible films, and it's a great compliment to the entire 'Hurt Locker' cast and crew. We shot this movie under very difficult conditions in the summer in the Middle East -- windstorms, sandstorms -- using a crew from Lebanon and Israel, so it was no small feat. It's pretty heady stuff, let's put it that way, to be in the same conversation with these other films." Although she's aware of the magnitude of her nomination, the fourth for a female director, Bigelow is focused more on the potential impact on aspiring filmmakers.

<b>Best Motion Picture of the Year</b>•

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Total Images: (52)');">Avatar: James Cameron, Jon Landau•

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Total Images: (4)');">The Blind Side: Nominees to be determined•

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Total Images: (20)');">District 9: Peter Jackson, Carolynne Cunningham•

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Total Images: (27)');">An Education: Finola Dwyer, Amanda Posey•

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Total Images: (13)');">The Hurt Locker: Nominees to be determined•

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Total Images: (28)');">Inglourious Basterds: Lawrence Bender•

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Total Images: (4)');">Precious: Lee Daniels, Sarah Siegel-Magness, Gary Magness•

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Total Images: (2)');">A Serious Man: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen•

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Total Images: (9)');">Up: Jonas Rivera•

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Total Images: (18)');">Up in the Air: Daniel Dubiecki, Ivan Reitman, Jason Reitman<b>Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role</b>• Jeff Bridges for

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Total Images: (1)');">Crazy Heart• George Clooney for...

Early this morning Tom Sherak and Anne Hathaway announced the nominations for the 82nd Annual Academy Awards. The ceremonial event will be aired on March 7th on ABC and will be co-hosted by Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin. Check out the complete list of nominations below: Best Picture * “Avatar” James Cameron and Jon Landau, Producers * “The Blind Side” Nominees to be determined * “District 9” Peter Jackson and Carolynne Cunningham, Producers * “An Education” Finola Dwyer and Amanda Posey, Producers * “The Hurt Locker” Nominees to be determined * “Inglourious Basterds” Lawrence Bender, Producer * “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Lee Daniels, Sarah Siegel-Magness and Gary Magness, Producers * “A Serious Man” Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, Producers * “Up” Jonas Rivera, Producer * “Up in the Air” Daniel Dubiecki, Ivan Reitman and Jason Reitman, Producers Actor in a Leading Role * Jeff Bridges in “Crazy Heart” * George Clooney in “Up in the Air” * Colin Firth...

Fuller commentary coming this evening. For now, just the list. The extra long wait this year... did it pay off for you with exciting reveals or only delay the inevitable disappointment? All reactions are welcome...

Best Picture

“Avatar” James Cameron and Jon Landau, Producers

“The Blind Side” Nominees to be determined

“District 9” Peter Jackson and Carolynne Cunningham, Producers

“An Education” Finola Dwyer and Amanda Posey, Producers

“The Hurt Locker” Nominees to be determined

“Inglourious Basterds” Lawrence Bender, Producer

“Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Lee Daniels, Sarah Siegel-Magness and Gary Magness, Producers

“A Serious Man” Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, Producers

“Up” Jonas Rivera, Producer

“Up in the Air” Daniel Dubiecki, Ivan Reitman and Jason Reitman, Producers

Best Director“Avatar” James Cameron

“The Hurt Locker” Kathryn Bigelow

“Inglourious Basterds” Quentin Tarantino

“Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Lee Daniels

“Up in the Air” Jason Reitman...

The 82nd annual Academy Award nominations were announced Tuesday morning. Below is the complete list of nominations along with links to exclusive MakingOf content.

Actor in a Leading Role

Jeff Bridges in “Crazy Heart”

George Clooney in “Up in the Air”

Colin Firth in “A Single Man”

Morgan Freeman in “Invictus”

Jeremy Renner in “The Hurt Locker”

Actor in a Supporting Role

Matt Damon in “Invictus”

Woody Harrelson in “The Messenger”

Christopher Plummer in “The Last Station”

Stanley Tucci in “The Lovely Bones”

Christoph Waltz in “Inglourious Basterds”

Actress in a Leading Role

Sandra Bullock in “The Blind Side”

Helen Mirren in “The Last Station”

Carey Mulligan in “An Education”

Gabourey Sidibe in “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire”

Meryl Streep in “Julie & Julia”

Actress in a Supporting Role

Penélope Cruz in “Nine”

Vera Farmiga in “Up in the Air”

Maggie Gyllenhaal in “Crazy Heart”

Anna Kendrick in...

The wait is over, folks... the nominees for the 82nd Annual Academy Awards were announced this morning by Academy president Tom Sherak and Anne Hathaway. And guess what? There weren't many surprises. Almost every category seemed to parallel the previous winners that we've seen already at earlier award ceremonies. It was cool to see some of the additional films up for Best Picture this year, including District 9 and Up (yes, Pixar finally got their Best Picture nod). I guess it was a bit of a surprise that Jeremy Renner got nominated for The Hurt Locker, and Maggie Gyllenhaal for Crazy Heart. The Secret of Kells was a dark horse nominee for the Best Animated Feature category, and I know some people will be excited to see In The Loop in there for Best Adapted Screenplay. Plus, just to spite Reed Farrington, Star Trek was nominated for Best Make-Up.

As expected, the Oscar nominations were virtually surprise-free as they were announced this morning by Academy President Tom Sherak and Oscar-nominated actress Anne Hathaway. If you count "The Blind Side's" nomination for Best Picture as a surprise, that's the most gripping moment during the announcement (you could hear the audience clap with excitement when the film was announced).

But I'm more ecstatic with the inclusion of "District 9" for Best Picture, and sadden with the snub of "(500) Days of Summer."

"Avatar" and "The Hurt Locker" led the pack with 9 nominations each. James Cameron's sci-fi flick scored noms including Best Picture, Director, Art Direction, Cinematography, Film Editing, Music (Original Score), Sound Editing, Sound Mixing, and Visual Effects. Although the biggest blockbuster in the world failed to get a Best Original Screenplay nomination.

"The Hurt Locker," Kathryn Bigelow's masterpiece (and my pick to win the top awards) scored nominations for Best Picture and Director,...

Normally these things never suit UK time as they’re in the middle of the night but, as we eat our Tuesday lunch, the 82nd Annual Academy Awards Nominations (or the Oscars as they’re more affectionately known) will be revealed live by Anne Hathaway from an La hotel at 5am local time in the Us!

We’ve got the stream ready, we’ve got our sandwich in hand and we’re ready to be either jaw droppingly shocked or smiling with pleasure as the nominations are brought to us. Will James Cameron’s Avatar be in every category? Will Sam Rockwell even get nominated for Moon (No here wont! )? I guess we’ll wait to see.

Once they’re complete, we’ll be bringing you the full list of nominations right here. We’ll also be live twittering so make sure you follow us here. The event stars at...

Photo: AMPAS This morning at 5:38 Am the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences President Tom Sherak and Oscar-nominated actress and Academy member Anne Hathaway announced the nominations for 10 of the 24 categories for the 2010 Oscars, followed by a press release with the other 14 category nominees.

The complete list of nominees can be found directly below with Avatar and The Hurt Locker leading the pack with nine nominations each. Inglourious Basterds pulled in eight and Precious and Up In the Air earned six each. I will be posting a reaction piece very shortly, but in all honesty there is only one nomination that surprises me and I think proves the ten nominees for Best Picture are just silly.

If you are interested in my last batch of nomination predictions you can click here to view those or read the write-up here.

Best motion picture of the year Avatar The Blind Side...

Jose here bringing you some more award news.

The Costume Designers Guild announced their nominees for 2009.

In what's becoming a ridiculous set of snubs, Jane Campion's Bright Star was once again ignored for much less remarkable achievements (odd considering how much the costumes are actual part of the movie's plot). After the egregious snub by the Cinematographers Guild it's been clear how much people have decided to just pretend the movie doesn't exist.

You didn't have to like the film to see how great the cinematography and costumes were, right?

Now on to the nominees,

Fantasy

Avatar (Mayes C. Rubeo, Deborah Lynn Scott) The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (Monique Prudhomme) Star Trek (Michael Kaplan)The fact the CGI loincloths from Avatar were nominated in this category is a reminder of how much people are dying to reward this film.

Contemporary

(500) Days of Summer (Hope Hanafin) Bruno (Jason Alper) Crazy Heart...