Huge section on the awards section in the times today. Lots of interesting stuff on all our contenders, plus a few huge FYC's disguised as regular advertisements. (2 Page Color Pull Out for No Country)

Here's the "And the Nominees Should Be" section.

Best Picture
A.O. Scott:
1. Sweeney Todd
2. 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days
3. I'm Not There
4. Ratatouille
5. Into the Wild

Manohla Dargis
1. There Will Be Blood
2. The Bourne Ultimatum
3. 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days
4. I'm Not There
5. Zodiac

Stephen Holden
1. There Will Be Blood
2. The Diving Bell & the Butterfly
3. Starting Out The Evening
4. No Country For Old Men
5. Across the Universe

Best Director
AO Scott
1. PT Anderson - There Will Be Blood
2. Julian Schnabel - The Diving Bell & The Butterfly
3. Sean Penn - Into the Wild
4. Cristian Mungiu- 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days
5. Sidney Lumet - Before the Devil Knows You're Dead

Manohla Dargis
1. PT Anderson - There WIll Be Blood
2. David Cronenberg - Eastern Promises
3. David Fincher - Zodiac
4. Cristian Mungiu- 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days
5. Todd Haynes - I'm Not There

Stephen Holden
1. PT Anderson - There Will Be Blood
2. Julian Schnabel - The Diving Bell & The Butterfly
3. Joel & Ethan Coen - No Country For Old Men
4. Julie Taymor - Across the Universe
5. Andrew Wagner - Starting Out the Evening

Best Actor
AO Scott
1. DDL - There Will Be Blood
2. Emile Hirsch - Into the Wild
3. George Clooney - Michael Clayton
4. Frank Langella - Starting Out the Evening
5. Johnny Depp - Sweeney Todd

Manohla Dargis
1. DDL - There Will Be Blood
2. Philip Seymour Hoffman - Before the Devil Knows You're Dead
3. Viggo Mortensen - Eastern Promises
4. Tommy Lee Jones - In the Valley of Elah
5. Song Kang-ho - The Host

Stephen Holden
1. DDL - There Will Be Blood
2. Philip Seymour Hoffman - Before the Devil Knows You're Dead
3. Frank Langella - Starting Out the Evening
4. Tommy Lee Jones - No Country For Old Men
5. Chris Cooper - Breach

Best Actress
AO Scott
1. Julie Christie - Away From Her
2. Marina Hands - Lady Chatterly
3. Norma Aleandro - Live-in Maid
4. Anamaria Marinca - 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days
5. Ellen Page - Juno

Manohla Dargis
1. Cate Blanchett - I'm Not There
2. Marina Hands - Lady Chatterly
3. Jodie Foster - The Brave One
4. Anamaria Marinca - 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days
5. Ashley Judd - Bug

Stephen Holden
1. Julie Christie - Away From Her
2. Marion Cotillard - La Vie en Rose
3. Ellen Page - Juno
4. Angelina Jolie - A Mighty Heart
5. Laura Linney - The Savages

Best Supporting Actor
AO Scott - Michael Cera (Juno, Superbad)
Manohla Dargis - Michael Cera (Superbad)
Stephen Holden - Javier Bardem (No Country)

Best Supporting Actress
AO Scott - Charlotte Gainsbourg (I'm Not There)
Manohla Dargis - Charlotte Gainsbourg (I'm Not There)
Stephen Holden - Cate Blanchett (I'm Not There)

Best Original Screenplay
AO Scott - The Savages
Manohla Dargis - Michael Clayton
Stephen Holden - The Savages

Best Adapted Screenplay
AO Scott - Starting Out the Evening
Manohla Dargis - Gone Baby Gone
Stephen Holden - Starting Out the Evening
(There Will Be Blood was #2 for all three)

And the momentum for TWBB keeps on building:
- a near sweep for Best Picture
- full sweep for Best Director
-full sweep for Best Actor
-strong showing for Adapted Screenplay
-Paul Dano was mentioned by boh Scott and Holden for supporting actor


Also
-pretty strong showing for Schnabel
-Stephen Holden's Actress lineup looks like it could mirror the Academy's
-The Savages screenplay is gaining momentum...near sweep here, and a win at the National Society of Film Critics yesterday over even the adapted screenplays
-weak showings for Juno, No Country and Atonement

Some life is pumped into the corpse that is Sweeney Todd

oh, does their should win/will win/should've been a contender thing come out after the nominations? I thought that's what this was at first.

Even though this doesn't seem like it would have much relevance, I think it may have more weight than we think. Surely, lots of Academy voters read the Times. This whole thing reads like a giant FYC campaign, but with actual credibility behind it because it's being backed by one of the world's most respected sources (on everything) rather than studios that stand to profit.

Not sure. I remeber seeing that before, but I don't know if they plan on doing it for this year.

Great for TWBB. It's gaining alot of momentum.