And the Oscar goes to ….
Slumdog Millionaire! Danny Boyle’s movie had won 8 Academy Awards on Sunday night, including for Best Picture and Director.
Kate Winslet took home the Best Actress award for the Holocaust themed drama “The Reader” while Sean Penn won Best Actor for his title role of “Milk” – he plays a gay senator who fights for the rights of homosexuals.
The Best Supporting Actor award was given, posthumously, to Heath Ledger for his extraordinary role of the Joker in “The Dark Knight”.
Best Supporting Actress award was given to Penelope Cruz for her “Vicky Cristina Barcelona”.
The epic love story “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” which led with 13 nominations, had three wins, for visual effects, art direction and makeup.
After last year’s Oscars delivered their worst TV ratings ever, producers this time aimed to liven up the show with some surprises and new ways of presenting awards. Rather than hiring a comedian such as past hosts Jon Stewart or Chris Rock, the producers went with actor and song-and-dance man Hugh Jackman, who has been host of Broadway’s Tony Awards.
Instead of the usual standup routine, Jackman did an engaging musical number to open the show, saluting nominated films with a clever tribute. Yahoo news.
The Winners list:
BEST PICTURE
* Slumdog Millionaire
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
Milk
The Reader
BEST ACTOR
* Sean Penn, Milk
Richard Jenkins, The Visitor
Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon
Brad Pitt, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
* Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight
Josh Brolin, Milk
Robert Downey Jr., Tropic Thunder
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt
Michael Shannon, Revolutionary Road
BEST ACTRESS
* Kate Winslet, The Reader
Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married
Angelina Jolie, Changeling
Melissa Leo, Frozen River
Meryl Streep, Doubt
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
* Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Amy Adams, Doubt
Viola Davis, Doubt
Taraji P. Henson, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler
BEST DIRECTOR
* Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire
David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Ron Howard, Frost/Nixon
Gus Van Sant, Milk
Stephen Daldry, The Reader
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
* Milk
Frozen
Happy-Go-Lucky
In Bruges
Wall-E
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
* Simon Beaufoy, Slumdog Millionaire
Eric Roth, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
John Patrick Shanley, Doubt
Peter Morgan, Frost/Nixon
David Hare, The Reader
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
* Wall-E
Bolt
Kung Fu Panda
BEST ART DIRECTION
* The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Changeling
The Dark Knight
The Duchess
Revolutionary Road
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
* Slumdog Millionaire
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Changeling
The Dark Knight
The Reader
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
* The Duchess
Australia
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Milk
Revolutionary Road
BEST DOCUMENTARY
* Man on Wire
The Betrayal
Encounters at the End of the World
The Garden
Trouble the Water
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT
* Smile Pinki
The Conscience of Nhem En
The Final Inch
The Witness – From the Balcony of Room 306
BEST FILM EDITING
* Slumdog Millionaire
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Frost/Nixon
Milk
BEST FOREIGN FILM
* Departures, Japan
The Baader Meinhof Complex, Germany
The Class, France
Revanche, Austria
Waltz with Bashir, Israel
ACHIEVEMENT IN MAKEUP
* The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Hellboy II: The Golden Army
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
* Slumdog Millionaire
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Defiance
Milk
WALL-E
BEST SONG
* Jai Ho, Slumdog Millionaire
Down to Earth, WALL-E
O Saya, Slumdog Millionaire
BEST ANIMATED SHORT
* La Maison en Petits Cubes
Lavatory – Lovestory
Oktapodi
Presto
This Way Up
BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT
* Spielzeugland (Toyland)
Auf der Strecke (On the Line)
Manon on the Asphalt
New Boy
The Pig
BEST SOUND EDITING
* The Dark Knight
Iron Man
Slumdog Millionaire
WALL-E
Wanted
BEST SOUND MIXING
* Slumdog Millionaire
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
WALL-E
Wanted
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
* The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Iron Man
