The five movies in the Best Picture race, with their box office numbers (thus far) and other achievements.
Little Miss Sunshine
The story of a little girl and her family's cross-country journey to a beauty pageant, Little Miss Sunshine manages to combine road-trip adventure and quirky comedy with darker notions of suicide, death and family dysfunction. This first-time feature effort by co-directors Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris has won a loyal following since its Sundance Festival debut and warm reviews by critics and award shows alike.
Total Oscar nominations: 4
Release date: July
Box office earnings (as of nomination date): US$59.6 million.
Other major awards/nominations:
Directors Guild of America - Nominated: Outstanding Directorial Achievement
SAG - Won: Best ensemble cast,
Nominated: Best Supporting actor: Alan Arkin
Producers Guild of America - Won: Best Theatrical Picture
Golden Globe Awards - Nominated: Best Picture, Musical or Comedy;
Best Actress: Toni Collette
BAFTA - Best Film,
Achievement in Direction,
Best Supporting Actor (Alan Arkin),
Best Supporting Actress (Toni Colette),
Best Supporting Actress (Abigail Breslin)
Babel
Completing a trilogy that began with Amores Perros and 21 Grams, director and screenwriter Alejandro Gonz锟絣ez I锟斤拷rritu weaves together four stories set in Morocco, Mexico, the U.S. and Japan using a disjointed narrative framework. With a title that alludes to the Biblical story of the Tower of Babel, the film seeks to explore humanity's need for dialogue in an ever divisive world. Critics have called this a startling and harrowing portrait of humanity from an ambitious director concerned with the cruel nature of fate.
Total Oscar nominations: 7
Release date: October
Box office earnings (as of nomination date): US$23.7 million.
Other major awards/ nominations:
Golden Globe Awards - Winner: Best Picture, Drama;
Nominated: Best Director: Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu
Best Supporting Actress: Rinko Kikuchi, Adriana Barraza;
Best Supporting Actor Brad Pitt;
Best Screenplay
Directors Guild of America- Nominated: Outstanding Directorial Achievement
SAG - Nominated: Best ensemble cast
Producers Guild of America - Nominated: Best theatrical picture
BAFTA - Best Film, Achievement in Direction
The Departed
A remake of the Hong Kong hit, "Infernal Affairs," "The Departed" is a fast-paced drama about two Boston cops on the opposite sides of the law caught in the web of the city's Irish mafia. Featuring a first-rate cast, a script crackling with wicked wit, and plenty of Martin Scorsese's trademark bloodshed, many have called this a return to greatness for a director who never really ever fell from grace.
Total Oscar nominations: 5
Release date: October
Box office earnings (as of nomination date): US$121.7 million.
Other major awards/nominations:
Directors Guild of America - Won: Outstanding Directorial Achievement
SAG - Nominated: Best ensemble cast,
Nominated: Best Actor Leonardo DiCaprio;
Nominated: Best supporting actor: Leonardo DiCaprio
Producers Guild of America - Nominated: Best theatrical picture
Golden Globe Awards - Won: Best Director: Martin Scorsese;
Nominated: Best Picture, Drama;
Best Supporting Actor: Jack Nicholson, Mark Wahlberg;
Best Screenplay
BAFTA - Best Film,
Achievement in Direction,
Best Actor (Leonardo Dicaprio),
Best Supporting Actor
The Queen
"The Queen" takes a story that we all remember well - the startling death of Princess Diana - and imagines what transpired behind closed doors at Buckingham Palace in the aftermath. The film portrays the struggle between the tradition-minded Queen Elizabeth, who wants nothing to do with the public frenzy of her former daughter-in-law's death, and freshly minted British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who insists that the monarch needs to show leadership in the matter for the sake of the monarchy's future.
While Helen Mirren's turn as the Queen has received much of the attention, many critics say the understated script and deft direction propel this film into greatness.
Total Oscar nominations: 6
Release date: September
Box office earnings (as of nomination date): US$35.6 million.
Other major awards/nominations:
Directors Guild of America - Nominated: Outstanding Directorial Achievement
SAG - Won: Best Actress: Helen Mirren
Producers Guild of America - Nominated: Best theatrical picture
Golden Globe Awards - Won: Best Actress (Helen Mirren),
Won: Best Screenplay;
Nominated: Best Picture, Drama;
Best Director: Steven Frears
BAFTA - Best Film, Achievement in Direction
Letters from Iwo Jima
Director Clint Eastwood filmed "Letters from Iwo Jima" back-to-back with his other release this year "Flags of Our Fathers". This film also tells the story of the 1945 battle for the island of Iwo Jima but turns it around by offering a glimpse into the perspective of the Japanese soldiers. Shot completely in Japanese with a US $20-million budget and a 32-day shooting schedule, critics has raved about the film's striking and mesmerizing simplicity and for Eastwood's deft hand at empathy.
Total Oscar nominations: four
Release date: December
Box office earnings (as of nomination date): Less than US$1 million.
Other major awards/nominations:
Golden Globe Awards: Winner - Best Foreign Language Film;
Nominated - Best Director, Clint Eastwood
