Times Infinity Plus One

Movies seen = bold
Favorite in a category = * (subject to change)

Best Picture:
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,”
“Frost/Nixon,”
“Milk”
“The Reader”
“Slumdog Millionaire”*
(although Milk and, surprisingly, Frost/Nixon came in very close 2nds)

Best Actress:
Anne Hathaway “Rachel Getting Married”*
Angelina Jolie “Changeling”
Melissa Leo, “Frozen River”
Meryl Streep “Doubt”;
Kate Winslet “The Reader”
(Of the two I saw, I definitely adored Anne’s emotionally charged performance)

Best Actor:
Richard Jenkins, “The Visitor”
Frank Langella, “Frost/Nixon”
Sean Penn for “Milk”*
Brad Pitt “Benjamin Button”
Mickey Rourke for “The Wrestler”*
(Mickey Rourke’s performance brought me to tears, but this truly is a tie for me.  Sean Penn’s portrayal of Harvey was so gentle & endearing.  And I wish I could have seen Richard’s performance as well.  Who doesn’t love the dad from 6 feet under?)

Supporting Actor:
Josh Brolin “Milk.”
Robert Downey Jr.’s “Tropic Thunder”
Philip Seymour Hoffman “Doubt.”
Heath Ledger “The Dark Knight”*
Michael Shannon, “Revolutionary Road.”
(No question.  I just watched the movie for the 3rd time last night & was riveted by his performance)

Supporting Actress:
Marisa Tomei for “The Wrestler.”
Amy Adams, “Doubt.”
Penélope Cruz in “Vicky Cristina Barcelona.”*
Viola Davis, “Doubt.”
Taraji P. Henson for “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.”
(Again, no question.  She is explosive on screen & makes that movie.)

Director:
David Fincher “Benjamin Button,”
Ron Howard for “Frost/Nixon.”
Gus Van Sant for “Milk.”
Stephen Daldry “The Reader”
Danny Boyle “Slumdog Millionaire”*


Animation:
“Bolt” (Walt Disney)
“Kung Fu Panda” (DreamWorks Animation, Distributed by Paramount)
“WALL-E”*
(Still a little upset that WALL-E isn’t nominated for Best Picture.)

Original Song:
“Down to Earth” from “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Music by Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman, Lyric by Peter Gabriel
“Jai Ho” from “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Music by A.R. Rahman, Lyric by Gulzar
“O Saya” from “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Music and Lyric by A.R. Rahman and Maya Arulpragasam*
(Although I adored the Slumdog songs, I was upset that Springstein wasn’t nominated.  And I’m usually not a fan of his!)

Original Score:
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.),Alexandre Desplat
“Defiance” (Paramount Vantage), James Newton Howard
“Milk” (Focus Features), Danny Elfman
“Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), A.R. Rahman*
“WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Thomas Newman