'Brokeback Mountain' receives eight Oscar nominations

Brit thesps Keria Knightley, Rachel Weisz and Dame Judi Dench have all been nominated for Academy Awards.

Jan 31 2006

The 2006 Oscar nominations have been announced, and as expected, 'Brokeback Mountain' dominates proceedings with a total of eight nominations.

Ang Lee's touching western about a doomed love affair between two cowboys received nods for several of the major awards, including best picture, director (Ang Lee), actor (Heath Ledger), supporting actor (Jake Gyllenhaal), supporting actress (Michelle Williams) and adapted screenplay.

In the best picture category, 'Brokeback' lines up alongside four equally intelligent and thought-provoking pics in the shape of 'Capote', 'Crash', 'Good Night and Good Luck' and 'Munich'.

My pick of the bunch is 'Good Night, and Good Luck', George Clooney's subtle and understated account of events in Edward R Murrow's newsroom during the McCarthy witch-hunts, but the smart money is on 'Mountain' winning this one.

Whichever film is victorious however, it's nice to see the voters of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences nominating a group of small, challenging and political pics in many of the major categories – a decision that will hopefully have positive repocussions throughout the industry.

British hopes meanwhile will be pinned on three of our finest actresses. Keira Knightley and Dame Judi Dench go up against each other in the best actress category for 'Pride & Prejudice' and 'Mrs Henderson Presents' respectively, while Rachel Weisz's is up for best supporting actress for her touching turn in 'The Constant Gardener'.

The nominations in full:

Best Picture
'Brokeback Mountain'
'Capote'
'Crash'
'Good Night, and Good Luck'
'Munich'

Best Director
Ang Lee - 'Brokeback Mountain'
Bennet Miller - 'Capote'
Paul Haggis - 'Crash'
George Clooney - 'Good Night, and Good Luck'
Steven Spielberg - 'Munich'

Best Actor
Philip Symour Hoffman - 'Capote'
Terence Howard - 'Hustle and Flow'
Heath Ledger - 'Brokeback Mountain'
Joaquin Phoenix - 'Walk the Line'
David Strathairn - 'Good Night, and Good Luck'

Best Actress
Judi Dench - 'Mrs Henderson Presents'
Felicity Huffman - 'Transamerica'
Keira Knightley - 'Pride & Prejudice'
Charlize Theron - 'North Country'
Reese Witherspoon - 'Walk the Line'

Best Supporting Actor
George Clooney - 'Good Night, and Good Luck'
Matt Dillon - 'Crash'
Paul Giamatti - 'Cinderella Man'
Jake Gyllenhaal - 'Brokeback Mountain'
William Hurt - 'A History of Violence'

Best Supporting Actress
Amy Adams - 'Junebug'
Catherine Keener - 'Capote'
Frances McDormand - 'North Country'
Rachel Weisz - 'The Constant Gardener'
Michelle Williams - 'Brokeback Mountain'

Best Original Screenplay
'Crash'
'Goodnight, and Good Luck'
'Match Point'
'The Squid and the Whale'
'Syriana'

Best Adapted Screenplay
'Brokeback Mountain'
'Capote'
'The Constant Gardener'
'A History of Violence'
'Munich'

Best Animated Feature
'Howl's Moving Castle'
'Tim Burton's Corpse Bride'
'Wallace & Gromit in The Curse Of The Were-Rabbit'

Achievement In Art Direction
'Good Night, And Good Luck'
'Harry Potter and the Goblet Of Fire'
'King Kong'
'Memoirs of a Geisha'
'Pride & Prejudice'

Achievement In Cinematography
'Batman Begins'
'Brokeback Mountain'
'Good Night, and Good Luck'
'Memoirs of a Geisha'
'The New World'

Achievement In Costume Design
'Charlie and The Chocolate Factory'
'Memoirs of a Geisha'
'Mrs. Henderson Presents'
'Pride & Prejudice'
'Walk the Line'

Achievement In Film Editing
'Cinderella Man'
'The Constant Gardener'
'Crash'
'Munich'
'Walk the Line'

Best Foreign Language Film Of The Year
'Don't Tell'
'Joyeux Noèl'
'Paradise Now'
'Sophie Scholl - The Final Days'
'Tsotsi'

Achievement In Makeup
'The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe'
'Cinderella Man'
'Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge Of The Sith'

Achievement In Music Written For Motion Pictures (Score)
'Brokeback Mountain'
'The Constant Gardener'
'Memoirs of a Geisha'
'Munich'
'Pride & Prejudice'

Achievement In Music Written For Motion Pictures (Song)
'In The Deep' - Crash
'It's Hard Out Here For A Pimp' - Hustle & Flow
'Travelin' Thru' - Transamerica

 Achievement In Sound Editing
'King Kong'
'Memoirs of a Geisha'
'War of the Worlds'

Achievement In Sound Mixing
'The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe'
'King Kong'
'Memoirs of a Geisha'
'Walk the Line'
'War of the Worlds'

Achievement In Visual Effects
'The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe'
'King Kong'
'War of the Worlds'

Best Documentary Feature
'Darwin's Nightmare'
'Enron: The Smartest Guys In The Room'
'March Of The Penguins'
'Murderball'
'Street Fight'

Best Documentary Short Subject
'The Death Of Kevin Carter: Casualty Of The Bang Bang Club'
'God Sleeps In Rwanda'
'The Mushroom Club'
'A Note Of Triumph: The Golden Age Of Norman Corwin'

Best Animated Short Film
'Badgered'
'The Moon And The Son: An Imagined Conversation'
'The Mysterious Geographic Explorations Of Jasper Morello'
'9'
'One Man Band'

Best Live Action Short Film 
'Ausreisser (The Runaway)'
'Cashback'
'The Last Farm'
'Our Time Is Up'
Six Shooter

The Awards will be handed out on Sunday, March 5 at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood. And to compare this list with the BAFTAs, click here.

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