The Academy for Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the nominees for the 74th Annual Academy Awards Tuesday. As expected, A Beautiful Mind, The Lord of the Rings and Moulin Rouge received best picture nominations along with acting nominations for respective stars Russell Crowe, Ian McKellan and Nicole Kidman. At least the other two nominees were a bit more surprising (Gosford Park and In the Bedroom).
Aside from the Best Predictable category, there were a few welcome and downright-maddening surprises with this year's nominees. The best and worst of the nomination list:
Most Left-Field Nomination: Ethan Hawke, best supporting actor, Training Day. Hawke's lifeless heroic cop was carried in the film by fellow nominee Denzel Washington. Now, Washington has carried him all the way to the Academy Awards.
Best use of 20 lbs.: RenZ
Worst use of 20 lbs.: Jon Voight, a great actor who does little more than impersonation in his make-up heavy, barely a supporting character, Howard Cosell in Ali.
Best Omission: Props to the Academy for not nominating Baz Luhrmann for best director or screenplay honors for the loud but light Moulin Rouge. Directing is also about restraint; screenwriting's about more than "truth, beauty, freedom and love."
Worst Omission: Memento--in an almost prophetic way, the film about a man with no short term memory was largely forgotten by the Oscars--Guy Pearce and Joe Pantoliano were left off acting lists along with the film's director Christopher Nolan.
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