Boring Oscar stuff

By Dennis Moore, USA TODAY
Oscar watchers can't be surprised by acting nominations announced Tuesday for Helen Mirren, Forest Whitaker and Jennifer Hudson — out of the gate all of them are considered likely winners. But few expected Dreamgirls to be left out of the best picture competition, although it received the most nominations of the day with eight.

That leaves a best picture race that's a tough bet to place, because no clear frontrunner has emerged.

Nominees include The Departed, a Boston crime saga; The Queen, about the British monarchy's response to Princess Diana's death; Babel, a drama telling intertwining stories playing out in several countries; Letters From Iwo Jima, a recounting of the WWII battle from the perspective of Japanese soldiers; and the comedic road picture Little Miss Sunshine.Sunshine's own travels from the Sundance Film Festival to the Academy Awards make it an unlikely Hollywood success story. Babel placed second in the total number of nominations with seven.

The nominees for best actor include Whitaker, as Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in The Last King of Scotland; Leonardo DiCaprio, a fortune seeker in Africa in Blood Diamond; Peter O'Toole, as an amorous old actor taken with a much younger woman in Venus; Will Smith, who works his way from homelessness to a millionaire's life in The Pursuit of Happyness; Ryan Gosling, a teacher struggling with a drug habit Half Nelson.

Mirren portrays Queen Elizabeth II in The Queen. Joining her in the best actress category are Meryl Streep, the imperious fashion magazine editor in The Devil Wears Prada; Penelope Cruz, dealing with relatives' death and possible resurrection in Volver; Judi Dench, a schoolteacher obsessed with a younger colleague in Notes on a Scandal; Kate Winslet, a disenchanted housewife who has an affair in Little Children.

Competing for best supporting actor: Eddie Murphy, a James Brown-style performer in Dreamgirls; Djimon Hounsou, a fisherman who tries to recover a rare jewel in Blood Diamond; Jackie Earle Haley, the paroled sex offender in Little Children; Alan Arkin, the crotchety grandfather in Little Miss Sunshine; Mark Wahlberg, a cop helping to direct an undercover operation in The Departed.

Best supporting actress: Hudson, a girl-group singer in Dreamgirls; Cate Blanchett, a teacher who has sexual encounters with one of her students in Notes on a Scandal; Adriana Barraza, a Mexican nanny caring for American children in Babel; Rinko Kikuchi, a mute Japanese schoolgirl in Babel; Abigail Breslin, the aspiring beauty pageant contender in Little Miss Sunshine.

Topping off the top-tier awards is best director. The nominees are Martin Scorsese, The Departed; Clint Eastwood, Letters From Iwo Jima; Stephen Frears, The Queen, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Babel; Paul Greengrass, United 93.

Mirren, Whitaker and Hudson have collected far more trophies than anyone else so far this awards season, including last week's Golden Globes.

However, a sentimental favorite in the actor category could cause an Oscar upset: the 74-year-old O'Toole, who had seven nominations before today without a win. O'Toole did receive an honorary Oscar four years ago for his career's work.

Sentiment certainly will play a part in the director's race. Scorsese, considered one of contemporary cinema's greatest directors, has been nominated five times before but never won. Helping his chances is The Departed's box office take of more than $120 million, the biggest of his career.

His competitor Clint Eastwood already has two Oscars for directing The Unforgiven and Million Dollar Baby.

The Oscar experience is old hat to some nominees, and acting itself is brand new to one other. Streep sets a record with 14 nominations, and Hudson nabs one for her first movie role.

The 79th Academy Awards, hosted by Ellen DeGeneres, will be broadcast live Feb. 25 at 8 p.m. ET/5 PT on ABC.