Cover Story: Oscar nominees as reviewed in CL

In anticipation of Sunday’s Academy Award ceremonies, we thought we’d share with you a round-up of the nominees as seen through the eyes of film critics Felicia Feaster and Curt Holman. Click on the movie to see the reviews.</
Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role</
Leonardo DiCaprio in Blood Diamond (Warner Bros.)</
Ryan Gosling in Half Nelson (THINKFilm)
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?Peter O’Toole in Venus (Miramax, Filmfour and UK Council)
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?Will Smith in The Pursuit of Happyness (Sony Pictures Releasing)
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?Forest Whitaker in The Last King of Scotland (Fox Searchlight)</

?Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
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?Alan Arkin in Little Miss Sunshine (Fox Searchlight)
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?Jackie Earle Haley in Little Children (New Line)
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?Djimon Hounsou in Blood Diamond (Warner Bros.)
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?Eddie Murphy in Dreamgirls (DreamWorks and Paramount)
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?Mark Wahlberg in The Departed (Warner Bros.)</

?Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
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?Penélope Cruz in Volver (Sony Pictures Classics)
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?Judi Dench in Notes on a Scandal (Fox Searchlight)
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?Helen Mirren in The Queen (Miramax, Pathé and Granada)
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?Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada (20th Century Fox)
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?Kate Winslet in Little Children (New Line)
?</
Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
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?Adriana Barraza in Babel (Paramount and Paramount Vantage)
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?Cate Blanchett in Notes on a Scandal (Fox Searchlight)
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?Abigail Breslin in Little Miss Sunshine (Fox Searchlight)
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?Jennifer Hudson in Dreamgirls (DreamWorks and Paramount)</
Rinko Kikuchi in Babel (Paramount and Paramount Vantage)</

?Best Animated Feature Film of the Year
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?Cars (Buena Vista) John Lasseter
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?Happy Feet (Warner Bros.) George Miller
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?Monster House (Sony Pictures Releasing) Gil Kenan
?</
Achievement in Art Direction
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?Dreamgirls (DreamWorks and Paramount)
?Art Direction: John Myhre
?Set Decoration: Nancy Haigh
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?The Good Shepherd (Universal)
?Art Direction: Jeannine Oppewall
?Set Decoration: Gretchen Rau and Leslie E. Rollins
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?Pan’s Labyrinth (Picturehouse)
?Art Direction: Eugenio Caballero
?Set Decoration: Pilar Revuelta
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?Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (Buena Vista)
?Art Direction: Rick Heinrichs
?Set Decoration: Cheryl A. Carasik
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?The Prestige (Buena Vista)
?Art Direction: Nathan Crowley
?Set Decoration: Julie Ochipinti
?</
Achievement in Cinematography
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?The Black Dahlia (Universal) Vilmos Zsigmond
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?Children of Men (Universal) Emmanuel Lubezki
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?The Illusionist (Yari Film Group) Dick Pope
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?Pan’s Labyrinth (Picturehouse) Guillermo Navarro
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?The Prestige (Buena Vista) Wally Pfister
?</
Achievement in Costume Design
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?Curse of the Golden Flower (Sony Pictures Classics) Yee Chung Man
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?The Devil Wears Prada (20th Century Fox) Patricia Field
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?Dreamgirls (DreamWorks and Paramount) Sharen Davis
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?Marie Antoinette (Sony Pictures Releasing) Milena Canonero
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?The Queen (Miramax, Pathé and Granada) Consolata Boyle
?</
Achievement in Directing
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?Babel (Paramount and Paramount Vantage) Alejandro González Iñárritu
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?The Departed (Warner Bros.) Martin Scorsese
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?Letters From Iwo Jima (Warner Bros.) Clint Eastwood
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?The Queen (Miramax, Pathé and Granada) Stephen Frears
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?United 93 (Universal and StudioCanal) Paul Greengrass
?</
Best Documentary Feature
?
?Deliver Us From Evil (Lionsgate)
?A Disarming Films Production
?Amy Berg and Frank Donner
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?An Inconvenient Truth (Paramount Classics and Participant Productions)
?A Lawrence Bender/Laurie David Production
?Davis Guggenheim
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?Iraq in Fragments (Typecast Releasing)
?A Typecast Pictures/Daylight Factory Production
?James Longley and John Sinno
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?Jesus Camp (Magnolia Pictures)
?A Loki Films Production
?Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady
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?My Country, My Country (Zeitgeist Films)
?A Praxis Films Production
?Laura Poitras and Jocelyn Glatzer
?</
Best Documentary Short Subject
?
?The Blood of Yingzhou District
?A Thomas Lennon Films Production
?Ruby Yang and Thomas Lennon
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?Recycled Life
?An Iwerks/Glad Production
?Leslie Iwerks and Mike Glad
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?Rehearsing a Dream
?A Simon & Goodman Picture Company Production
?Karen Goodman and Kirk Simon
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?Two Hands
?A Crazy Boat Pictures Production
?Nathaniel Kahn and Susan Rose Behr
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Achievement in Film Editing
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?Babel (Paramount and Paramount Vantage)
?Stephen Mirrione and Douglas Crise
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?Blood Diamond (Warner Bros.)
?Steven Rosenblum
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?Children of Men (Universal)
?Alex Rodríguez and Alfonso Cuarón
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?The Departed (Warner Bros.)
?Thelma Schoonmaker
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?United 93 (Universal and StudioCanal)
?Clare Douglas, Christopher Rouse and Richard Pearson
?</
Best Foreign Language Film of the Year
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?After the Wedding A Zentropa Entertainments 16 Production
?Denmark
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?Days of Glory (Indigènes) A Tessalit Production
?Algeria
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?The Lives of Others A Wiedemann & Berg Production
?Germany
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?Pan’s Labyrinth A Tequila Gang/Esperanto Filmoj/Estudios Picasso Production
?Mexico
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?Water A Hamilton-Mehta Production
?Canada
?</
Achievement in Makeup
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?Apocalypto (Buena Vista) Aldo Signoretti and Vittorio Sodano
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?Click (Sony Pictures Releasing) Kazuhiro Tsuji and Bill Corso
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?Pan’s Labyrinth (Picturehouse) David Marti and Montse Ribe
?</
Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures (Original Score)
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?Babel (Paramount and Paramount Vantage) Gustavo Santaolalla
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?The Good German (Warner Bros.) Thomas Newman
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?Notes on a Scandal (Fox Searchlight) Philip Glass
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?Pan’s Labyrinth (Picturehouse) Javier Navarrete
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?The Queen (Miramax, Pathé and Granada) Alexandre Desplat
?</
Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures (Original Song)
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?“I Need to Wake Up” from An Inconvenient Truth
?(Paramount Classics and Participant Productions)
?Music and Lyric by Melissa Etheridge
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?“Listen” from Dreamgirls
?(DreamWorks and Paramount)
?Music by Henry Krieger and Scott Cutler
?Lyric by Anne Preven
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?“Love You I Do” from Dreamgirls
?(DreamWorks and Paramount)
?Music by Henry Krieger
?Lyric by Siedah Garrett
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?“Our Town” from Cars
?(Buena Vista)
?Music and Lyric by Randy Newman
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?“Patience” from Dreamgirls
?(DreamWorks and Paramount)
?Music by Henry Krieger
?Lyric by Willie Reale
?</
Best Motion Picture of the Year
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?Babel (Paramount and Paramount Vantage)
?An Anonymous Content/Zeta Film/Central Films Production
?Alejandro González Iñárritu, Jon Kilik and Steve Golin, Producers
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?The Departed (Warner Bros.)
?A Warner Bros. Pictures Production
?Nominees to be determined
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?Letters From Iwo Jima (Warner Bros.)
?A DreamWorks Pictures/Warner Bros. Pictures Production
?Clint Eastwood, Steven Spielberg and Robert Lorenz, Producers
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?Little Miss Sunshine (Fox Searchlight)
?A Big Beach/Bona Fide Production
?Nominees to be determined
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?The Queen (Miramax, Pathé and Granada)
?A Granada Production
?Andy Harries, Christine Langan and Tracey Seaward, Producers
?</
Best Animated Short Film
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?The Danish Poet (National Film Board of Canada)
?A Mikrofilm and National Film Board of Canada Production
?Torill Kove
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?Lifted (Buena Vista)
?A Pixar Animation Studios Production
?Gary Rydstrom
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?The Little Matchgirl (Buena Vista)
?A Walt Disney Pictures Production
?Roger Allers and Don Hahn
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?Maestro (Szimplafilm)
?A Kedd Production
?Geza M. Toth
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?No Time for Nuts (20th Century Fox)
?A Blue Sky Studios Production
?Chris Renaud and Michael Thurmeier
?</
Best Live Action Short Film
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?Binta and the Great Idea (Binta Y La Gran Idea)
?A Peliculas Pendelton and Tus Ojos Production
?Javier Fesser and Luis Manso
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?Éramos Pocos (One Too Many) (Kimuak)
?An Altube Filmeak Production
?Borja Cobeaga
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?Helmer & Son
?A Nordisk Film Production
?Soren Pilmark and Kim Magnusson
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?The Saviour (Australian Film Television and Radio School)
?An Australian Film Television and Radio School Production
?Peter Templeman and Stuart Parkyn
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?West Bank Story
?An Ari Sandel, Pascal Vaguelsy, Amy Kim, Ravi Malhotra and Ashley Jordan Production
?Ari Sandel
?</
Achievement in Sound Editing
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?Apocalypto (Buena Vista)
?Sean McCormack and Kami Asgar
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?Blood Diamond (Warner Bros.)
?Lon Bender
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?Flags of Our Fathers (DreamWorks and Warner Bros., Distributed by Paramount)
?Alan Robert Murray and Bub Asman
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?Letters From Iwo Jima (Warner Bros.)
?Alan Robert Murray
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?Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (Buena Vista)
?Christopher Boyes and George Watters II
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Achievement in Sound Mixing
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?Apocalypto (Buena Vista)
?Kevin O’Connell, Greg P. Russell and Fernando Camara
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?Blood Diamond (Warner Bros.)
?Andy Nelson, Anna Behlmer and Ivan Sharrock
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?Dreamgirls (DreamWorks and Paramount)
?Michael Minkler, Bob Beemer and Willie Burton
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?Flags of Our Fathers (DreamWorks and Warner Bros., Distributed by Paramount)
?John Reitz, Dave Campbell, Gregg Rudloff and Walt Martin
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?Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (Buena Vista)
?Paul Massey, Christopher Boyes and Lee Orloff
?</
Achievement in Visual Effects
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?Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (Buena Vista)
?John Knoll, Hal Hickel, Charles Gibson and Allen Hall
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?Poseidon (Warner Bros.)
?Boyd Shermis, Kim Libreri, Chaz Jarrett and John Frazier
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?Superman Returns (Warner Bros.)
?Mark Stetson, Neil Corbould, Richard R. Hoover and Jon Thum
?</
Adapted Screenplay
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?Borat Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (20th Century Fox)
?Screenplay by Sacha Baron Cohen & Anthony Hines & Peter Baynham & Dan Mazer
?Story by Sacha Baron Cohen & Peter Baynham & Anthony Hines & Todd Phillips
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?Children of Men (Universal)
?Screenplay by Alfonso Cuarón & Timothy J. Sexton and David Arata and Mark Fergus & Hawk Ostby
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?The Departed (Warner Bros.)
?Screenplay by William Monahan
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?Little Children (New Line)
?Screenplay by Todd Field & Tom Perrotta
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?Notes on a Scandal (Fox Searchlight)
?Screenplay by Patrick Marber
?</
Original Screenplay
?
?Babel (Paramount and Paramount Vantage)
?Written by Guillermo Arriaga
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?Letters From Iwo Jima (Warner Bros.)
?Screenplay by Iris Yamashita
?Story by Iris Yamashita & Paul Haggis
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?Little Miss Sunshine (Fox Searchlight)
?Written by Michael Arndt
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?Pan’s Labyrinth (Picturehouse)
?Written by Guillermo del Toro
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?The Queen (Miramax, Pathé and Granada)
?Written by Peter Morgan