This post-mortem Oscar week has been refreshingly low key, I have to say.  But then, maybe that's because I went and hid under a rock for a few days.  In any case, I'm back today because we're going out of business and it's time to wrap things up around these parts properly.  Let's start, naturally, with the year's final Oscarweb round-up:

•  Oscar nominated screenwriter Ronald Harwood ("The Diving Bell and the Butterfly") writes up his Oscar experience for the Times of London. [Times Online]

•  David Carr addresses the crystal clear disconnect between movie-going audiences and the annual Academy Awards ceremony in one of his final entries of the season. [The Carpetbagger]

•  Jeffrey Wells poo-poos the lack of prognosticating prowess of Movie City News' David Poland on the way to tooting his own horn (17 correct guesses, Wells made). [Hollywood Elsewhere]

•  Modest Millie over here seems to have had the better showing across the net, but who's counting? [In Contention]

•  Stu VanAirsdale continues his snooty perspective on the ceremony, this time going so far as to dryly mock Brad Renfro's death and exclusion from the In Memoriam montage. [Little Gold Men]

•  Accordingly, he's lept out of the (web) pages of Vanity Fair and into the arms of Defamer. [The Reeler]

•  New York Magazine wonders why Amy Adams got the original song performance shaft while Kristin Chenoweth was blessed with a lavish spectacle for her number. [Vulture]

•  Erik Davis asks the good people to suggest a new category to spice things up at the Oscars.  I still say Best Ensemble isn't asking too much. [Cinematical]

•  Lou Lumenick briefly tries his hand at reading the 2008 Oscar crystal ball. [New York Post]

•  And thanks to Ryan Adams, ou can give your own vote on the upcoming year's most likely candidates. [Awards Daily]

•  Reed Johnson digs into the heavy nature of the Coen brothers' Oscar winning work this year. [The Envelope]

•  Pete Hammond, meanwhile, closes down the season with a hint of perspective on the ratings of the Oscars.  He says the show pulls in viewers "that would be the envy of any other awards show."  Touché. [The Envelope]

•  Patrick Goldstein writes the easy column, that being a "let's give the Oscars a face lift because they're showing their age" spin on things that could have been applicable to any of the last dozen or so ceremonies. [Los Angeles Times]

•  Tom O'Neil writes up a response. [Gold Derby]

•  Anthony Breznican cranked out a delicious backstage account of the ceremony's goings-on that, I'm ashamed to say, I didn't see until today. [USA Today]

•  And in case you missed it, our own Brian Lowery writes up a review of the 3 hour, 21 minute ceremony here at home base. [Variety]

•  The final guild out of the gate, the Motion Picture Sound Editors, annouce nominees for the Golden Reel Awards. [Variety]

•  Sasha Stone cooks up one of her infmaous Oscar comparison charts.  This time: SAG vs. Oscar. [Awards Daily]

•  Jeff Anderson finds plenty of room to complain about this or that, re: the nominations.  He also reveals a profound ignorance for certain crafts categories. [Cinematical]

•  Tom O'Neil has a new theory in the books.  Somethign about multile nominated contenders yielding one win, I think.  I got lost in the data.  You give it a shot. [Gold Derby]

•  Daniel Day-Lewis hits the daily talk show circuit with the owner of the world. [Oprah.com]

•  Gerard Kennedy begins reacting to Oscar's tech nominations, some surprising, most expected. [In Contention]

•  The Gurus o' Gold chime in post-noms.  "No Country for Old Men" and "There Will Be Blood" take the #1 and #2 spots.  Scott Rudin does back-flips. [Movie City News]

•  Mike Russell sits down with "Persepolis" creator Marjane Satrapi in 2-D black and white. [Culture Pulp]

•  T.L. Stanley thinks there is no backlash in the cards for the most backlash-prone of the Best Picture contenders. [Gold Rush]

•  In a long interview never lacking the color of its subject, Mick Brown sits down with the Oscar-nominated Julian Schnabel to talk art, Schnabel, "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" and Schnabel.  Good times. [The Daily Telegraph]

•  After years of disavowing Oscar bloggers, Stu VanAirdale finds his new role as...Oscar blogger. [Little Gold Men]

•  He also agonizes over the glut of Oscar prognosticators.  I'm sure he still cashes the checks, though. [Little Gold Men]

1979-2008

•  Phil Gallo rounds up a list of 2008 Oscar factoids here at homebase. [Variety]

•  Calling from Rome regarding his Best Director nomiantion, Julian Schnabel has this bit of dry excitement for Paula Schwartz: "They're going to buy me a bottle of champagne and we're going to act like we're excited." [The Carpetbagger]

•  Another rudimentary list of nominee reactions, but with some fresh faces nonetheless: Scott Rudin and Andrzej Wajda among them. [Movie City News]

•  Nathaniel Rogers, thinking outside the box as always, ponders the Top 10 Oscar Talking Points of yesterday's goings on. [The Film Experience]

•  New York Magazine asks the brothers Coen about Oscar nominee "Roderick Jaynes." [Vulture]

•  Peter Martin thinks "There Will Be Blood" is one Oscar nomination short of its destiny, thank you very much. [Cinematical]

•  Boy, T.L. Stanley really hates "Juno." [Gold Rush]

•  No, she really hates "Juno." [Gold Rush]

•  Ramin Satoodeh, meanwhile, chalks Jason Reitman's Best Director nomination for "Juno" up as the morning's most surprising nominee. [The Gold Digger]

•  Pete Hammond has his own idea of the surprises, and calls the Best Makeup showing for "Norbit" his "favorite nom of the day."  Here's hoping Pete's winning sense of humor is shinging through there. [The Envelope]

•  Tom O'Neil pours over the various guild misteps this season, where Oscar prognostication is concerned. [Gold Derby]

•  Anthony Breznican and Susan Wloszczyna dig into "the long strange Oscar season" of 2007. [USA Today]

•  And Gary Strauss rounds up Oscar's snubs. [USA Today]

This is a guild that nominates 15 films in three categories, so it's a little difficult to judge how they may or may not translate in the actual Art Directio category (beyond knowing that contemporary films are almost always left out of the mix).  But it is certainly beneficial to see which films have clear insustry support.

The usual suspects are here: "Michael Clayton," "No Country for Old Men," "There Will Be Blood."  No "Juno" or "Into the Wild," but neither film showcases this craft.  However, with that in mind, "The Bourne Ultimatum" continues a stealthy trek through the guild precursor circuit by showing up in the contemporary category today.

"Atonement" gets its first guild mentions since the ASC mention at the beginning of the week (and what a long week it must have seemed to the Focus camp in that regard).  "American Gangster" also found its first industry love since two SAG nominations last month.

Finally, it has to be encouraging for Miramax to have "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" surprisingly pop up in the contemporary field.  As it continues to make a case for a Best Picture nomination, these guild citations only fuel the cause.

Here are the nominees:

PERIOD FILM:

"American Gangster" (Arthur Max)
"Atonement" (Sarah Greenwood)
"Elizabeth: The Golden Age" (Guy Hendrix Dyas)
"Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" (Dante Ferretti)
"There Will Be Blood" (Jack Fisk)

FANTASY FILM:

"The Golden Compass" (Dennis Gassner)
"Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" (Stuart Craig)
"Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" (Rick Heinrichs)
"Ratatouille" (Harley Jessup)
"300" (James Bissell)

CONTEMPORARY FILM:

"The Bourne Ultimatum" (Peter Wenham)
"The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" (Michel Eric and Laurent Ott)
"The Kite Runner" (Carlos Conti)
"Michael Clayton" (Kevin Thompson)
"No Country for Old Men" (Jess Gonchor)

•  New York Magazine takes the horns to Miramax's campaign for "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" campaign... [Vulture]

•  ...and advocates Robert Downey, Jr.'s performance in "Zodiac." [Vulture]

•  Speaking of "Zodiac," Jeffrey Wells responds to yesterday's WGA awards announcement, which included James Vanderbuilt's adaptation. [Hollywood Elsewhere]

•  The WGA calls off its awards show, hours after rnominating screen contenders. [Variety]

•  Meanwhile, the Guild continues to make side deals with distributors. [New York Times]

•  Tom Hanks is kind of over it all. [The Envelope]

•  Oh, and the Beverly Hilton is in a pickle to say the least. [The Envelope]

•  Sasha Stone previews the ACE awards announcement. [Awards Daily]

•  Todd Martens ponders the Best Original Song race at the Golden Globes. [Extended Play]

•  Tom O'Neil tries his hand at hacking the WGA webmasters' intentions with the order in which yesterday's nominees were announced. [Gold Derby]

•  David Poland is on the same path, and also reports (sourceless, as usual) that many of the "snubbed" didn't send WGA screeners to members. [The Hot Blog]

•  He also inexplicably keeps "Into the Wild" out of his list of predicted Best Picture nominees. [Movie City News]

•  Lou Lumenick talks the Oscar season with O'Neil. [New York Post]

The only thing moderately surprising about today's WGA nominations is the inclusion of "Zodiac" in the field of adapted scripts.  Sure, the James Vanderbuilt adaptation of the Robert Graysmith novel received a nomination for the USC Scripter prize, but I felt that might have been more attributed to Graysmith than the actual script itself, which really has no structure to speak of and wouldn't seem the "typical" choice for this guild.  But, in any case, this reveals that industry support is indeed there.

The presence of "Knocked Up" in the original ranks should come as a shock to no one.  Judd Apatow was cited for his work two years ago on "The 40 Year Old Virgin" by the guild.  I don't expect this to translate to Oscar, however, given the WGA's penchant for recognizing comedies that AMPAS is fine with ignoring ("Stranger Than Fiction," "Thank You for Smoking," "Garden State," "Mean Girls,""Bend It Like Beckham," "The Station Agent," "Best in Show," "High Fidelity," the list goes on and on).

Otherwise, it was buisness as usual.  "Into the Wild" and "No Country for Old Men" remain the standouts during the precursor season that matters, as "There Will Be Blood" continues to make a case for itself as a Best Picture contender.  That, frankly, is shocking to me.  And the potential is all too possible for Scott Rudin to be his own worst enemy this season, because if both "No Country" and "Blood" make Oscar's final five, I could tell you a day-long story about how they will cancel each other out in the voting process.  Which means things ought to be looking even better for "Wild" -- but that's a whole other conversation.

"The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" is also still in the thick of the year's competition, grabbing two makjor guild mentions this week, while "Atonement" has officially sunk like the heaviest stone one could have imagined.  At this point, the only hope for Joe Wright's film is the entire BAFTA/AMPAS crossover contingent to stick it in the #1 spot on their ballots.  Then, and only then, does it seem to have a prayer of finding a Best Picture nomination.

Ah, the malleability of an Oscar season.

•  Alexandra Peers has the scoop on Julian Schnabel's latest art exhibit, "Navigations," amidst critical and industry kudos for "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly." [Vulture]

•  Dave Karger sits down with "In the Valley of Elah" and "No Country for Old Men" star Tommy Lee Jones. [Entertainment Weekly]

•  NBC is set to loose a bundle due to cancellation of the Golden Globes telecast. [Wall Street Journal]

•  The soundtrack to "Juno" lands at #8 on the Billboard charts. ("Sonic Youth sucks.  It's just noise.") [Extended Play]

•  The People's Choice Awards weren't much of a hit with the "people." [Variety]

•  "No Country" wins yet another Best Picture award, this time from the Online Film Critics Society. [Variety]

•  Jeffrey Wells is four-square behind "I drink your milkshake" as a marketing must for Paramount Vantage's "There Will Be Blood" Oscar campaign. [Hollywood Elsewhere]

•  David Poland talks to "Sweeney Todd" helmer Tim Burton. [The Hot Blog]

•  Nathaniel Rogers launches a new podcast series, beginning with the heart-stopping Marisa Tomei.  (Hey, she stops my heart.) [The Film Experience]

•  Oh yeah...Gurus 2.0. [Movie City News]

The American Society of Cinematographers has announced its list of nominees.  Here they are, with nary a surprise in sight:

"The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford" (Roger Deakins)
"Atonement" (Seamus McGarvey)
"The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" (Janusz Kaminski)
"No Country for Old Men" (Roger Deakins)
"There Will be Blood" (Robert Elswit)

I really thought the guild would go for Harris Savides' work in either "American Gangster" or "Zodiac," since, in talking to the majority of the big names in this field over the last few weeks for a separate piece, his is the most lauded lenser of the bunch from within their ranks.  Eric Gautier seemed a decent bet for capturing the American West so gorgeously in "Into the Wild," not to mention the paitnerly qualities of Dariusz Wolski's work in "Sweeney Todd."  But I can certainly live with this line-up.

According to the ASC's press release (published below), Roger Deakins is the first lenser to grab two nominations in one year from the guild.  Each of his nods are well deserved to say the least, and it really does seem foregone that he's well on his way to his first Oscar next month.

In any case, this wouldn't be a shocking final five at the Oscars, with outside shots still possible for Gautier and Wolski.  Sasha Stone has an ASC/Oscar comparison chart up over at Awards Daily if you want to crunch the numbers.

Here's the full press release:

LOS ANGELES, January 7, 2008 — THE ASSASSINATION OF JESSE JAMES BY THE COWARD ROBERT FORD and NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN with cinematography by Roger Deakins, ASC, BSC; THERE WILL BE BLOOD by Robert Elswit, ASC; THE DIVING BELL AND THE BUTTERFLY by Janusz Kaminski; and ATONEMENT by Seamus McGarvey, BSC have been nominated in the Feature Film category of the 22nd Annual American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) Outstanding Achievement Awards competition. The winner will be announced here during the awards gala on January 26, at the Hollywood and Highland Grand Ballroom.

Deakins is the first cinematographer to claim two nominations in one year in the ASC Feature Film category. He was previously nominated five times and won twice (THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION, THE MAN WHO WASN’T THERE). This is the fourth ASC nomination for Kaminski, the second for Elswit, and the first for McGarvey.

“In the opinion of their peers, these four talented individuals have set the contemporary standard for artful cinematography in a very competitive field,” says Russ Alsobrook, ASC who chairs the organization’s Awards Committee. “They all succeeded in helping to create a sense of time and place while evoking emotional responses that were in tune with the intentions of the directors and actors.”

Deakins is from England, Kaminski is from Poland, McGarvey is from Ireland, and Elswit is a native of the United States.

“Artful cinematography is a global language, which frequently goes unnoticed by critics and the general public because it is usually designed to be unintrusive,” says ASC President Daryn Okada. “It requires innate talent, the ability to master a complex and constantly evolving craft, and a penchant for collaborating with many people for a common goal. Our purpose is to let our colleagues know we appreciate their artistry.”

Yes, the BFCA awards are tonight, but tomorrow brings the most anticipated announcement of the Oscar season: the Directors Guild of America's list of feature film nominees.  According to the DGA's official site, Guild president Michael Apted will make the announcement at 10:00 a.m. (PT).

The DGA has long been considered the best predictor of the eventual Best Picture outcome at the Academy.  Going back over the last 35 years, the Guild has picked 139 of 170 nominees for an accuracy rate of 80% or so.  That's better than any of us "pros" could ever hope to manage, that's for sure.  The Guild has displayed 100% accuracy on nine separate occassions, the four of the last five years being chief among them.  Prior to 1970, the DGA sported 10 nominees for feature films, which makes tallying those totals kind of pointless, but this sufficient chunk of data ought to be enough to persuade you that tomorrow's announcement is an important one.

Tom O'Neil has been collecting predictions from various Oscarweb prognosticators over at Gold Derby, yours truly included.  You can see my black and white take on tomorrow's likely five over there, but let's take a moment to dig into the hopefuls in this space as well.

No one but no one can be considered a shoo-in except for the Coen brothers, whose "No Country for Old Men" has shown up this naysayer by already displaying some grit last month, taking down two Screen Actors Guild nomiantions.  (Critics awards just don't compute for me as great indicator of an industry award.)  Beyond that, it's really a free-for-all.

Sean Penn has been getting stellar reactions at DGA screenings of "Into the Wild," a film already leading the way at the BFCA and SAG.  One would have to consider the actor/director to be on solid ground.

Ridley Scott is a helmer clearly revered by his guild, taking down nominations in some cases that didn't correspond to Best Picture nods ("Thelma & Louise," "Black Hawk Down").  "American Gangster" was the only film to be making any box office headway until "Juno" came around, and two SAG nominations (in surprising categories) indicate industry love for the product.

Speaking of "Juno," Jason Reitman's film has been unfairly relegated to consideration as "the 'Little Miss Sunshine' of 2007," when that's really not a computeable comparison.  Nevertheless, naysayers have been left mouth agape as the film has taken some major monetary strides on its way to potentially securing the light-hearted slot of the season with AMPAS.  Reitman's showing up here tomorrow should come as no surprise if it comes to pass, especially given all those TV directors in the guild with ties to actors like Allison Janney, Jason Bateman and Jennifer Garner.

There is a real opportunity for spoilerific things to happen, I think, outside of these strong potential candidates.  Tim Burton, for instance, has already nabbed a nomination from the BFCA and a win with the National Board of Review for helming the screen adaptation of "Sweeney Todd."

Denzel Washington, meanwhile, has seen his film, "The Great Debaters," met with standing ovations at DGA screenings.  But then, who wouldn't stand for Denzel?

Julian Schnabel's "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" has been a critical darling throughout the precursor season, but did his Los Angeles antics while promoting the film leave a bad taste in voters' mouths?

Any number of peripheral surprises could pop up, from James Mangold ("3:10 to Yuma"") to Tony Gilroy (one to really watch for "Michael Clayton"), even Sidney Lumet ("Before the Devil Knows You're Dead"), a nominee here even when ignored by the Acadey ("Serpico," "Murder on the Orient Express").  David Fincher could even make good on a year-end rally of support for "Zodiac."

The real spoiler to watch, however, might just be Paul Thomas Anderson, whose "There Will Be Blood" has been the talk of the town, at least for the past two weeks.  A nomination tomorrow could be the first real step toward Best Picture aspirations, as an endorsement from the DGA has proven itself to be a telling seal of approval indeed.

But the safe bet always seems to surface, no?  Which leaves us with the very real possibility that Joe Wright could slide in for "Atonement," a film that lost steam after the festival circuit and a strong HFPA showing, but is still lingering in the mix nonetheless.

What do I know, right?  Whatever happens tomorrow, it still ain't the end of the road.  Crazy things happen, like Christopher Nolan grabbing a mention for "Memento" in 2000 or Robert Zemeckis sliding in for "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" in 1988.  You just never can be too sure, so we'll have to see what the directors have in store for us in the morning.

Took a few days off as I dealt with family, holiday nightmares and shopping fiasco, but I thought I'd pop in tody to see what's happening on the Oscarweb -- call it the Christmas edition.  I hope you and yours are enjoying a splendid holiday season.

•  Jeffrey Wells thinks Janusz Kaminski is an overrated lenser to say the least.  Yeah, I thought he was out of his skull when he posted that, too. [Hollywood Elsewhere]

•  But he at least has the guts to call the "Titanic" bashers of the world reactive to its pop culture phenomenon rather than the actual content: a sweeping epic that works quite well, especially in the finale. [Hollywood Elsewhere]

•  The top 10 lists keep on a'collectin' at MCN. [Movie City News]

•  A Merry Christmas from Tom O'Neil's family never hurt anyone! [Gold Derby]

•  The "Great Debaters" campaign kicks into high gear (try though they might) as Robert Welkos talks to actress Jurnee Smollett. [The Envelope]

•  Gerard Kennedy has a lot on his mind following the crush of Fall finals. [In Contention]
•  Nathaniel Rogers offers some thoughts on "The Ballad of Sweeney Todd" and tim burton's long-awaited screen adaptation of a Sondheim classic. [The Film Experience]
•  Claudia Puig loves, loves, loves her some "Persepolis"... [USA Today]

•  ...hates, hates, hates "The Bucket List"... [USA Today]..and is somewhere in the middle on "The Great Debaters." [USA Today]
•  The local paper also reviews all three this holiday week. [Los Angeles Times]

•  Rainn Wilson will be stepping in for Sarah Silverman as host of the IFP Awards. [Variety]

•  Following in the footsteps of Nathaniel Rogers, David Carr offers up a list of contingency plans for a non-telecast Oscar ceremony. [The Carpetbagger]

•  Tom O'Neil becomes Oscar blogger #603 to quote A.O. Scott's "Sweeney Todd" review for all it's worth. [Gold Derby]

•  Slow news week much?  The LA Times offers up a gallery of Oscar winners turned blockbuster performers... [The Envelope]

•  ...and one covering the goings-on of Hollywood couples this year, of all things. [The Envelope]

•  Jeffrey Wells gives year's worst honors to "Are We Done Yet?" [Hollywood Elsewhere]

•  Ryan Pearson profiles "The Bucket List" star Jack Nicholson. [Associated Press]

•  Sasha Stone surveys the Best Picture field one...more...time, and keeps the ball rolling on Jamie Lynn Spears/"Juno."  Personally, I think that whole idea is a media creation. [Awards Daily]

•  David Poland offers one more Oscar column for 2007, somehow thinks the SAG-ignored "Sweeney Todd" is ahead of the SAG-embraced "Into the Wild." [Movie City News]

•  But at least he has his head in the right place regarding the fact that the Oscar ceremony simply won't shut down due to the strike. [The Hot Blog]

•  After this week's Vulture commentary on male nudity in films this year, Ramin Setoodeh offers up his list of 2007's top 10 nude scenes. [The Gold Digger]

•  Geoff Boucher cataches up with the brilliant Marjane Satrapi. [Los Angeles Times]

•  And Paul Brownfield catches up with the eccentric Julian Schnabel. [Los Angeles Times]

We're anxiously awaiting the SAG announcement, but in the meantime...

•  Hilton Als calls "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" a "visual essay about physical and spiritual isolation," compares the film to Elaine Scarry's "The Body in Pain."  Heavy. [The New Yorker]

•  Golden Globe nominee Tom Hanks apparently tells unruly and disrespectful MySpacers to go f*** themselves. [Hollywood Elsewhere]

•  Todd Martens gets "Juno" composer Mateo Messina to answer a few queries about his experimental score and, of course, working in the shadow of Sonic Youth and the Kinks on the film's soundtrack. [Extended Play]

•  Sasha Stone thinks it might be time to take "Charlie Wilson's War" seriously again.  Eh. [Awards Daily]

•  Speaking of which, here's yet another pre-release piece on the film. [USA Today]

•  Ramin Satoodeh points us to David Ansen's mixed-bag top 10 list (and his own to boot). [The Gold Digger]

•  The strike gives David Cronenberg second thoughts about attending the Golden Globes -- he expects to be a no-show. [Gold Rush]

•  New York Magazine stretches for a story by indicating rash of recent pregnancies as perhaps detrimental to the awards success of "Juno." [Vulture]

•  BUT, they also start a cool "For Your Consideration" feature.  This week" McLovin' for Best Supporting Actor. [Vulture]

•  Ah, the great interview ops -- Scott Bowles corners Morgan Freeman on a schooner off of Marina Del Rey. [USA Today]

•  A bit of a stretch, but we come up with nine "scandals" this Oscar season nonetheless. [The Envelope]

•  James McAvoy talks to "Atonement" star James McAvoy. [The Envelope]

•  Creative Screenwriting's Jeff Goldsmith gets some quality time with "Lars and the Real Girl" scribe Nancy Oliver. [The Envelope]

•  Amy Adams, Jennifer Garner and "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" make some serious leaps at the Buzzmeter. [The Envelope]

•  Speaking of Adams, David Poland makes mention of the current media "crush" on the actress. [The Hot Blog]

•  Tom O'Neil thinks the Alliance of Film Journalists' decision to go with the macho-heavy "No Country for Old Men" is unexpected to say the least. [Gold Derby]

•  Jeffrey Wells takes in a Denzel Washington event at Harvard. [Hollywood Elsewhere]

•  Nathaniel Rogers sits down with "Margot at the Wedding" star Jennifer Jason Leigh. [The Film Experience]

•  New York Magazine closes up the year by giving Judd Apatow more publicity. [Vulture]

•  T.L. Stanley responds to Patrick Goldstein's latest blind swing at the "evil" Oscar bloggers -- more on that later. [Gold Rush]

•  Michael Wood talks to Golden Globe nominee John C. Reilly about "Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story." [Los Angeles Times]

•  Anne Thompson talks up the new trailer for "Miss Petigrew Lives for a Day" starring Frances McDormand and Amy Adams. [Thompson on Hollywood]

•  The WGA picks and chooses yet again, denies awards shows waivers for its members to write on telecasts. [Variety]

•  Meanwhile, sources tell Tom O'Neil that the Golden Globes may go on without a telecast at all. [Gold Derby]

•  Adam Baer claims that Tim Burton has "re-invented the movie musical" with "Sweeney Todd."  Really? [Los Angeles Times]

•  Jeffrey Wells is not-so-stealthily anticipating the release of "The Dark Knight" and Heath Ledger's maniacal portrayal of the Joker. [Hollywood Elsewhere]

•  Speaking of Batsy, Matthew Dessem decides to smack Warner Bros. down for the exhaustive PR campaign behind the film. [Vulture]

•  "Live Free or Die Hard" actually makes a top 10 list. [Gold Rush]

•  As expected, "No Country for Old Men" is walking away with the title "critics' favorite" this year. [Movie City News]

•  Speaking of top 10 lists, "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" tops David Edelstein's at New York Magazine. [The Projectionist]

Zzzzzzzzzzzzz......

"Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead"
"The Diving Bell and the Butterfly"
"Into the Wild"
"Juno"
"Knocked Up"
"Michael Clayton"
"No Country for Old Men"
"Ratatouille"
"The Savages"
"There Will Be Blood" 

Variety has the story.

Sean Penn's "Into the Wild" led the BFCA nominations tally today with seven tips of the hat, including nods for Best Director, Best Actor, Best Adapted Screenplay and, of course, a spot in the group's top ten list.

Jason Reitman's "Juno" wasn't far behind with six nods, while "Atonement," "Michael Clayton," "No Country for Old Men" and "Sweeney Todd" each managed five.

The morning's announcement was a huge boost -- nay, a shot in the arm for "Wild," one of a trio of Paramount Vantage hopefuls in this year's race.  Combined with a number of key mentions in yesterday's Chicago Film Critics nominations and the fact that, as far as I can tell, no film has ever solely led the BFCA field and missed out on a Best Picture nomination with the Academy, I'd say the Sean Penn effort is looking better than ever for a slot in the big five come January.

"Juno"'s tally of six was also exactly what Fox Searchlight's comedy hopeful needed to silence nay-sayers regarding its Academy potential.  It's clearly a formiddable contender.

Surprises included Best Actor mentions for Ryan Gosling ("Lars and the Real Girl") and Viggo Mortensen ("Eastern Promises"), as well as supporting actress berths for Catherine Keener in "Into the Wild" (a quiet contender this season) and Vanessa Redgrave in "Atonement" (for all of five minutes of screentime).

Casey Affleck, meanwhile, grabbed some more steam for his supporting portrayal in "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford," perhaps on his way to securing the same nod with the Academy.  And Amy Adams finally makes a significant appearance this awards season for her performance in "Enchanted."

A definite nod of note is Cate Blanchett's citation for Best Actress in "Elizabeth: The Golden Age."  It might perhaps be read as Oscar tea leaf reading on the BFCA's part more than anything, given how critically reviled the film was, yet how undeniably Academy friendly the performance might still be perceived.

Finally, six composers were allowed room to wiggle in that category, including the first notices of the season for Marco Beltrami ("3:10 to Yuma"), Clint Eastwood ("Grace is Gone") and Alan Menken ("Enchanted").

The BFCA tends to be the best precursor for predicting the eventual Oscar turn-out, mostly due to a list of ten Best Picture contenders and a willingness to nominate across a wide spectrum of categories.  This year they seem to have spread the wealth evenly enough to have a decent prediction percentage yet again.

The BFCA's ten Best Picture nominees (with vote totals):

"American Gangster" (2)
"Atonement" (5)
"The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" (4)
"Into the Wild" (7)
"Juno" (6)
"The Kite Runner" (2)
"Michael Clayton" (5)
"No Country for Old Men" (5)
"Sweeney Todd" (5)
"There Will Be Blood" (3)

The full list of nominees can be found on the BFCA website.  The awards will be broadcast live on VH1 on Monday, January 7, 2008, LIVE at 9:00 p/m. (e.s.t.).

Erik Childress' "Oscar Eye" column has the full list of Chicago Film Critics nominations mixed in with his tally of who's won what.  You have to kind of pick things out, but the full list is there.

"No Country for Old Men" and "There Will Be Blood" continue to show up, but the group went out of its way to personally champion "Once" in more than a few areas, including Best Picture.

Casey Affleck popped up again for his supporting turn in "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford," while Viggo Mortensen found some Best Actor love for his work in David Cronenberg's "Eastern Promises."  Frank Langella also made another appearance in the lead field for "Starting Out in the Evening."

Another key contender showing up in the nominations is "Zodiac," which managed citations for Best Director (david Fincher) and Best Adapted Screenplay.

"Michael Clayton" led the way with seven nominations.  "Blood" wasn't far behind with six.  Nothing for "The Kite Runner" or "Sweeney Todd."

Best Picture
"Into the Wild"
"Michael Clayton"
"No Country for Old Men"
"Once"
"There Will Be Blood"

Best Director
Paul Thomas Anderson, "There Will Be Blood"
Ethan Coen, Joel Coen, "No Country for Old Men"
Tony Gilroy, "Michael Clayton"
David Fincher, "Zodiac"
Jason Reitman, "Juno"

Best Actor
George Clooney, "Michael Clayton"
Daniel Day-Lewis, "There Will Be Blood"
Ryan Gosling, "Lars and the Real Girl"
Frank Langella, "Starting Out in the Evening"
Viggo Mortensen, "Eastern Promises"

Best Actress
Julie Christie, "Away from Her"
Marion Cotillard, "La Vie en Rose"
Angelina Jolie, "A Mighty Heart"
Laura Linney, "The Savages"
Ellen Page, "Juno"

Best Supporting Actor
Casey Affleck, "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford"
Javier Bardem, "No Country for Old Men"
Phillip Seymour Hoffman, "Charlie Wilson's War"
Hal Holbrook, "Into the Wild"
Tom Wilkinson, "Michael Clayton"

Best Supporting Actress
Cate Blanchet, "I'm Not There"
Jennifer Jason Leigh, "Margot at the Wedding"
Leslie Mann, "Knocked Up"
Amy Ryan, "Gone Baby Gone"
Tilda Swinton, "Michael Clayton"

Best Adapted Screenplay
"Atonement"
"Into the Wild"
"No Country for Old Men"
"There Will Be Blood"
"Zodiac"

Best Original Screenplay
"Before the Devil Knows You're Dead"
"Juno"
"Michael Clayton"
"Ratatouille"
"The Savages"

Best Cinematography
"The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford"
"Atonement"
"The Diving Bell and the Butterfly"
"No Country for Old Men"
"There Will Be Blood"

Best Score
"The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford"
"Atonement"
"Lust, Caution"
"Once"
"There Will Be Blood"

Best Animated Feature
"Beowulf"
"Meet the Robinsons"
"Persepolis"
"Ratatouille"
"The Simpsons Movie"

Best Foreign Film
"4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days"
"The Diving Bell and the Butterfly"
"La Vie en Rose"
"Lust, Caution"
"The Orphanage"

Best Documentary
"Darfur Now"
"The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters"
"Lake of Fire"
"No End in Sight"
"Sicko"

Promising Director
Ben Affleck, "Gone Baby Gone"
John Carney, "Once"
Craig Gillespie, "Lars and the Real Girl"
Tony Gilroy, "Michael Clayton"
Sarah Polley, "Away from Her"

Promising Performer
Nikki Blonsky, "Hairspray"
Michael Cera, "Juno"/"Superbad"
Glen Hansard, "Once"
Carice van Houten, "Black Book"
Tang Wei, "Lust, Caution"

The New York Film Critics Circle had absolutely no surprises in store today, handing "No Country for Old Men" four awards, including one for Best Pic.

Daniel Day-Lewis and Robert Elswit represented Paul Thomas Anderson's "There Will Be Blood," which swept the LA critics' awards yesterday, while Julie Christie positioned herself again as the competition for Marion Cotillard in the Best Actress race (where's Ellen Page been this whole time?).  Amy Ryan also continues to scorch the earth as THE supporting actress frontrunner of the year.

"The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" was surprisingly snubbed throughout.  Nothing, also, for Sidney Lumet's "Before the Devil Knows You're Dead," a Gotham film if there ever was one.  The director did, however, pick up a lifetime achievement award.

This weekend's activity and today's awards have put "No Country' and "Blood" at the top of everyone's rontrunner lists for Oscar, two brutal, cold films that are not the Academy pedigree at all.  But perhaps the critics will muscle them into the dance if this continues to be the case, each of them constantly duking it out.  Tomorrow, the Broadcast Film Critics Association announces its list of nominees, always a pretty good indication of where the Academy will ultimately go.

The full list of NYFCC winners:

Best Picture: "No Country for Old Men"
Best Director: Ethan Coen, Joel Coen, "No Country for Old Men"
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis, "There Will Be Blood"
Best Actress: Julie Christie, "Away from Her"
Best Supporting Actor: Javier Bardem, "No Country for Old Men"
Best Supporting Actress: Amy Ryan, "Gone Baby Gone"
Best Screenplay: "No Country for Old Men"
Best Cinematographer: Robert Elswit, "There Will Be Blood"
Best Documentary: "No End in Sight"
Best First Film: Sarah Polley, "Away from Her"
Best Animated Film: "Persepolis"
Best Foreign Film: "The Lives of Others"
Lifetime Achievement Award: Sidney Lumet
Special Critics' Award: Charles Burnett, "Killer of Sheep"

More of these!

The Washington, D.C. critics voted today, giving their Best Picture honors to "No Country for Old Men."  So in one day, it's the Coens vs. P.T.A across four awards-giving bodies.  INTERESTING.

Here's the full list of D.C. winners

Best Film: "No Country for Old Men"
Best Director: Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, "No Country for Old Men"
Best Actor: George Clooney, "Michael Clayton"
Best Actress: Julie Christie, "Away From Her"
Best Ensemble: "No Country for Old Men"
Best Supporting Actor: Javier Bardem, "No Country for Old Men"
Best Supporting Actress: Amy Ryan, "Gone Baby Gone"
Best Breakthrough Performance: Ellen Page, "Juno"
Best Adapted Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin, "Charlie Wilson's War"
Best Original Screenplay: Diablo Cody, "Juno"
Best Animated Feature: "Ratatouille"
Best Foreign Language Film: "The Diving Bell and The Butterfly"
Best Documentary: "Sicko"
Best Art Direction: "Sweeney Todd:The Demon Barber of Fleet Street"

So that's 3 for 4 for Amy Ryan today.  I didn't see that coming, I have to say.  Aaron Sorkin's win for "Charlie Wilson's War" is a bit out of left field, given that "No Country for Old Men" racked up three other wins (including a second score for ensemble acting).

No precursor love so far for "Atonement" and "American Gangster."

Awards Daily has the list of winners for the New York Film Critics Online, which includes a tie for Best Pic between "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" and "There Will Be Blood" (which won four other awards) and a screenplay win for "The Darjeeling Unlimited," of all things.  Javier Bardem won Best Supporting Actor for "No Country for Old Men," though the film didn't turn up anywhere else.

Check out the list here.

The Boston Society of Film Critics voted on their list of winners this afternoon.  Beginning what is likely to be a critics' group stampede, the Coen brothers' "No Country for Old Men" won Best Picture of the year.  It was one of two wins for the film.  Julian Schnabel's "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" won three, including Best Director.

Frank Langella picked up some needed steam as the group's Best Actor choice.  Every lead actor winner from the group has gone on to an Oscar nomination since 2000's choice of Colin Farrell in "Tigerland" (unless you count Brian Cox for "L.I.E." in 2001, though he tied with Denzel Washington in "Training Day."

Marion Cotillard grabbed her first significant lead actress win of the season.  The last winner in that category to miss with Oscar was Scarlett Johansson for Sofia Coppola's "Lost in Translation" four years ago.

Ultimately this isn't a necessarily great predictive precursor across the board unless a consensus has formed (like with last year's lead races).  They're Best Picture winners over the last couple of years have gone on to notices at the Academy, but there was also a stretch where "Trainspotting," "Out of Sight," "Almost Famous" and "Mulholland Dr." took down the big win.  None of them managed Best Picture nominations with the Academy.

Basically...perspective is key.  Nothing will truly be of consequence until the guilds start to speak up.  But this is no doubt the beginning of an impressive run of precursor awards for the Coen brothers film.

Variety has a BSFC write-up.  Stay tuned later today for the LAFCA announcement.

BSFC Winners:

Best Picture: "No Country for Old Men"
Best Director: Julian Schnabel, "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly"
Best Actor: Frank Langella, "Starting Out in the Evening"
Best Actress: Marion Cotillard, "La Vie en Rose"
Best Supporting Actor: Javier Bardem, "No Country for Old Men"
Best Supporting Actress: Amy Ryan, "Gone Baby Gone"
Best Screenplay: "Ratatouille"
Best Cinematography: Janusz Kaminski, "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly"
Best Documentary: "Crazy Love"
Best Foereign-Language Film: "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly"
Best New Filmmaker: Ben Affleck, "Gone Baby Gone"
Best Ensemble Cast: "Before the Devil Knows You're Dead"

The New York-based National Board of Review has announced its list of award winners for the year, kick-starting the precursor circuit on the march through the 2007 film awards season.

The Coen brothers' "No Country for Old Men" took the Best Picture prize, leading a top ten list that included somewhat surprising mentions for "The Bourne Ultimatum" and "The Bucket List."

George Clooney won the Best Actor award for his performance in Tony Gilroy's "Michael Clayton," while Julie Christie took down Best Actress for her portrayal in Sarah Polley's "Away from Her."

Casey Affleck ("The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford") and Amy Ryan ("Gone Baby Gone") won in the supporting categories, while Tim Burton was named Best Director for "Sweeney Todd."

The last NBR Best Picture winner to miss a nomination from the Academy was "Quills" in 2000, and "Gods and Monsters" before that in 1998.  With "Charlie Wilson's War" coming up short (though some would argue this point), the film looks better for placement with AMPAS now than it did when it only had critics championing the cause.  Oh the give and take of Oscar season.

Winners from the press release:

Best Film: "No Country for Old Men"
Best Director: Tim Burton, "Sweeney Todd"
Best Actor: George Clooney, "Michael Clayton"
Best Actress: Julie Christie, "Away from Her"
Best Supporting Actor: Casey Affleck, "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford"
Best Supporting Actress: Amy Ryan, "Gone Baby Gone"
Best Foreign Film: "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly"
Best Documentary: "Body of War"
Best Animated Feature: "Ratatouille"
Best Ensemble Cast: "No Country for Old Men"
Breakthrough Performance by an Actor: Emile Hirsch, "Into the Wild"
Breakthrough Performance by an Actress: Ellen Page, "Juno"
Best Directorial Debut: Ben Affleck, "Gone Baby Gone"
Best Original Screenplay (tie): Diablo Cody, "Juno" and Nancy Oliver, "Lars and the Real Girl"
Best Adapted Screenplay: Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, "No Country for Old Men"

The top ten (in alphabetical order):
"The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford"
"Atonement"
"The Bourne Ultimatum"
"The Bucket List"
"Into the Wild"
"Juno"
"The Kite Runner"
"Lars and the Real Girl"
"Michael Clayton"
"Sweeney Todd"

Top five foreign films (in alphabetical order):
"4 Months, 3 Weeks & 2 Days"
"The Band's Visit"
"The Counterfeiters"
"La Vie en Rose"
"Lust, Caution"

Top five documentary films (in alphabetical order):
"Darfur Now"
"In the Shadow of the Moon"
"Nanking"
"Taxi to the Darkside"
"Toots"

Top independent films (in alphabetical order):
"Away from Her"
"Great World of Sound"
"Honeydripper"
"In the Valley of Elah"
"A Mighty Heart"
"The Namesake"
"Once"
"The Savages"
"Starting Out in the Evening"
"Waitress"

Career Achievement: Michael Douglas
William K. Everson Film History Award: Robert Osbourne
Career Achievement in Cinematography: Roger Deakins
The BVLGARI Award for NPR Freedom of Expression: "The Great Debaters" and "Persepolis"

•  Gregg Kilday catches up with the notion that voters might cling to something up-beat in the midst of 2007's downer slate.  Ya think? [The Hollywood Reporter]

•  Anthony Breznican talks to Best Actor hopeful John Cusack about the failure of war films this year and his role in the upcoming "Grace is Gone." [USA Today]

•  David Halbfinger reports that "'The Kite Runner' boys are safely out of Kabul." [New York Times]

•  Who says the "Atonement" campaign is quiet?  Mark Salisbury talks to star James McAvoy. [Los Angeles Times]

•  So does Tom O'Neil. [Gold Derby]

•  Ramin Setoodeh, meanwhile, chats with Keira Knightly. [The Gold Digger]

•  And Sasha Stone counts herself a fan, says the tables are finally turned with a man being "the object of lust and desire."  Easy, now... [Awards Daily]

•  David Carr attends the New York premiere of "The Golden Compass." [The Carpetbagger]

•  David Poland reviews "Sweeney Todd" again. [Movie City News]

•  Nathaniel Rogers sits down with the great Max von Sydow, who's working it hard for "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly." [The Film Experience]

•  New York Magazine points out dire box office potential found in Variety's recent revelations. [Vulture]

•  Peter Knegt smacks down a recent Hollywood Reporter story announcing the year of the independents. [indieWIRE]

•  Lou Lumenick rocks out a list of the year's 25 best.  Whatever happened to top TEN lists? [New York Post]

•  Scott Feinberg talks to "La Vie en Rose" star Marion Cotillard. [And the Winner Is...]

•  Jeffrey Wells draws a rather...definitive line between this year's Best Picture contending product. [Hollywood Elsewhere]

•  Anne Thompson offers some thoughts on the supposed non-campaign campaign for "Atonement." [Thompson on Hollywood]

•  David Poland flails about wildly and takes Thompson's comparisons to other Oscar epics WAY too seriously on his way to being "a dick about it." (his words, not mine) [The Hot Blog]

•  Susan King talks method and "Blood" with Best Actor hopeful (frontrunner?) Daniel Day-Lewis. [The Envelope]

•  Romanian Oscar entry "4 Months, 3 Weeks & 2 Days" wins big at the European Film Awards. [Variety]

•  Tom O'Neil responds... [Gold Derby]

•  ...then he chats it up with "Lust, Caution" helmer Ang Lee... [Gold Derby]

•  ...and Best Supporting Actress hopeful Amy Ryan ("Gone Baby Gone"). [Gold Derby]

•  Ramin Setoodeh responds to "Sweeney Todd," calls it "good, not great." [The Gold Digger]

•  Sasha Stone thinks "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" is a formiddable contender in the Oscar race.  Duh! [Awards Daily]

•  Rebecca Ascher-Walsh forecasts indie Oscar hopefuls. [The Hollywood Reporter]

•  Variety has a SAG Awards preview, including Zachary Pincus-Roth's chat with casting directors about finding the right balance in front of the camera. [Variety]

•  According to Tom O'Neil, Russell Crowe will be competing against himself in the lead category at the Golden Globes. [Gold Derby]

•  Sasha Stone catches up to "Charlie Wilson's War." [Awards Daily]

•  Pete Hammond scopes out the screening and Q&A scene, including a "rare" appearance by Jack Nicholson in front of the SAG earlier in the week. [The Envelope]

•  Gerard Kennedy surveys the Best Film Editing landscape. [In Contention]

•  Brian Kinsley makes some Golden Globe comedy/musical predictions. [In Contention]

•  Todd McCarthy digs into "The Golden Compass." [Variety]

•  So does David Poland. [The Hot Blog]

•  Poland also has lunch with the stars of "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly." [The Hot Blog]

•  Martin Grove, meanwhile, talks to director Julian Schnabel. [The Hollywood Reporter]

•  The Gurus o' Gold make acting category calls. [Movie City News]

•  The year's first top 10 list surfaces...well, top 50.  [Paste Magazine]

•  Lou Lumenick calls "Atonement" the "most achingly romantic movie since 'Titanic.'" [New York Post]

•  Peter Knegt makes another set of predictions. [indieWIRE]

•  Oh yeah, and non-review reactions to "Sweeney Todd," from Tom O'Neil... [Gold Derby]

•  ...and yours truly. [In Contention]

Anne Thompson has a glimpse of Entertainment Weekly's "Smart List" up.  Judd Apatow leads the charge in what has to be construed as typical flavor of the month list-mania.

I laughed at "Knocked Up."  I thought "The 40 Year Old Virgin" was a high mark for comedy.  Going way back, I thought "The Cable Guy" was dark comedy hilarity.  But with "Superbad" and the upcoming "Walk Hard," it seems like he's willing to tread similar creative territory rather than "push the industry forward" as the list apparently proclaims to advocate.

I get it, of course.  Right now, this moment in time, Apatow makes sense as a #1 choice.  But these lists really irritate me when they fail to see the big picture.  Tell me why Ben Stiller deserves a slot in the top 20 when a producer as creatively diverse as Kathleen Kennedy is down at #31.  Call me crazy, but to go from "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" and "Persepolis" this year to "Indiana Jones" and "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" next year, seemingly without missing a beat, speaks more to "smart" than does "Night at the Museum."

The Smart List is supposed to "rejuvenate" the "tired old EW Power 100," according to Anne Thompson, but it reads like old hat to me.

•  David Poland reports Cate Blanchett's lead actress push for "I'm Not There." [The Hot Blog]

•  Jeffrey Wells thinks the idea stinks. [Hollywood Elsewhere]

•  Tom O'Neil reports that Miramax studio executives are trying "to get to the bottom of the rumor." [Gold Derby]

•  Nathaniel Rogers writes up the effect Golden Globe placement has on actor/actress campaigns. [The Film Experience]

•  Anne Thompson, meanwhile, offers perspective on the typical jockeying for position. [Thompson on Hollywood]

•  Back to Wells, he's got a chat with "4 months, 3 weeks & 2 Days" director Christian Mungiu... [Hollywood Elsewhere]

•  ...offers some not-so-kind thoughts on Amy Adams and here Best Actress-aiming performcnace in "Enchanted"... [Hollywood Elsewhere]

•  ...and ponders 2007 as 1999-ish in its broad swoop of quality cinema -- all in a slew of updates over the weekend.  Sleep, Jeffrey.  Sleep. [Hollywood Elsewhere]

•  Brian Kinsley caught Peter Jackson snoozing in "Beowulf." [In Contention]

•  Susan King talks to Janusz Kaminski about his innovative lensi