Nielsen is reporting that the 80th annual Academy Awards telecast was the least watched in history (or at least since 1974 when they started tracking the event). (…)

The 2008 Academy Awards was a damn long show (but aren’t they always?) Mahalo Daily edited the three hour show telecast down to just 60 seconds. (…)

One of the true Oscar moments this year happened when host Jon Stewert ushered Best Song co-winner Marketa Irglova back onto the stage after she had been cut off by the music before the commercial break. (…)

Here is a listing of the 2008 Academy Award winners, followed by some commentary. Tell me what you think of the winners and losers in the comments below. (…)

“Anton who?”
When it comes to the showdown, Peter and I will both be there with news on which film wins Best Picture this Sunday evening. (…)

David Spade impersonates Daniel Day-Lewis as Daniel Plainview in this hilarious There Will Be Blood parody video titled “There Will Be Oscars” over at FunnyorDie.com. (…)

As much as people like to complain about AMC, but every year they run the Best Picture showcase. What is the AMC 2008 Best Picture Showcase? (…)

Recently while on Google Chat with Peter, I predicted that Paul Thomas Anderson would follow-up There Will Be Blood with an intensely signature sci-fi undertaking. (…)

Before we dive into today’s non-Oscar-related news, this is a forum to express your thoughts on the nominations for the 80th Academy Awards. (…)

Here are the nominations for the 80th Academy Awards:
Best Picture
Atonement
Juno
Michael Clayton
No Country For Old Men
There Will Be Blood
 
Best Director
Julian Schnabel - The Diving Bell And The Butterfly
Jason Reitman - Juno
Tony Gilroy - Michael Clayton
Joel & Ethan Coen - No Country For Old Men
Paul Thomas Anderson - There Will Be Blood
 
Best Actress
Cate Blanchett - Elizabeth: The Golden Age
Julie Christie - Away From Her
Marion Cotillard - La Vie En Rose
Laura Linney - The Savages
Ellen Page - Juno
 
Best Supporting Actress
Cate Blanchett - I’m Not There
Rudy Dee - American Gangster
Saoirse Ronan - Atonement
Amy Ryan - Gone Baby Gone
Tilda Swinton - Michael Clayton
 
Best Actor
George Clooney - Michael Clayton
Viggo Mortensen - Eastern Promises
Daniel Day-Lewis - There Will Be Blood
Johnny Depp - Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Tommy Lee Jones - In The Valley Of Elah
 
Best Supporting Actor
Casey Affleck - The Assassination of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford
Javier Bardem - No Country For Old Men
Philip Seymour Hoffman - Charlie Wilson’s War
Hal Holbrook - Into The Wild
Tom Wilkinson - Michael Clayton
 
Best Animated Feature
Persepolis
Ratatouille
Surf’s Up
 
Best Documentary Feature
No End In Sight
Operation Homecoming: Writing The Wartime Experience
Sicko
Taxi To The Dark Side
War/Dance
 
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 Editing
The Bourne Ultimatum
The Diving Bell And The Butterfly
Into The Wild
No Country For Old Men
There Will Be Blood
 
Best Foreign Language Film
Beaufort
The Counterfeiters
Katyn
Mongol
12
 
Best Original Screenplay
Juno
Lars and the Real Girl
Michael Clayton
Ratatouille
The Savages
 
Best Adapted Screenplay
Atonement
Away From Her
The Diving Bell And The Butterfly
No Country For Old Men
There Will Be Blood
 

Best Music Original Score
Atonement
The Kite Runner
Michael Clayton
Ratatouille
3:10 To Yuma
 
Best Music - Original Song
August Rush
Once
Enchanted
Enchanted
Enchanted
 
Best Makeup
La Vie En Rose
Norbit
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End
 
Best Animated Short Film
I Met The Walrus
Madame Tutli-Putli
Même Les Pigeons vont Au Paradis (Even Pigeons Go to Heaven)
My Love (Moya Lyubov)
Peter & The Wolf
 
Best Documentary Short Subject
Freeheld
La Corona (The Crown)
Salim Baba
Sari’s Mother
 
Best Live Action Short Film
At Night
Il Supplente (The Substitute)
Le Mozart Des Pickpokets
Tanghi Argentini
The Tonto Woman
 
Best Art Direction
American Gangster
Atonement
The Golden Compass
Sweeney Todd
There Will Be Blood
 
Best Costume Design
Across The Universe
Atonement
Elizabeth: The Golden Age
La Vie En Rose
Sweeney Todd
 
Best Sound Editing
The Bourne Ultimatum
No Country For Old Men
Ratatouille
There Will Be Blood
Transformers
 
Best Sound Mixing
No Country For Old Men
Ratatouille
3:10 To Yuma
Transformers
The Bourne Ultimatum
 
Best Visual Effects
The Golden Compass
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End
Transformers

The Academy announced the nominations, and BoDog has now announced the first day odds for the 80th Annual Academy Awards:

Best Picture:
No Country For Old Men 10/11
Atonement 3/1
Michael Clayton 3/1
Juno 7/2
There Will Be Blood 4/1

Best Director:
Paul Thomas Anderson - There Will Be Blood 3/1
Ethan Coen & Joel Coen - No Country for Old Men 3/1
Tony Gilroy - Michael Clayton 11/4
Jason Reitman - Juno 5/2
Julian Schnabel - The Diving Bell and the Butterfly 9/4

Best Actor:
George Clooney - Michael Clayton 7/2
Daniel Day-Lewis - There Will Be Blood 1/4
Johnny Depp - Sweeney Todd 15/4
Tommy Lee Jones - In the Valley of Elah 17/4
Viggo Mortensen - Eastern Promises 6/1

Best Actress:
Cate Blanchett - Elizabeth: The Golden Age - 9/4
Julie Christie - Away from Her 2/1
Marion Cotillard - La vie en Rose 7/2
Laura Linney - Savages - 4/1
Ellen Page - Juno 5/2

Best Supporting Actor:
Casey Affleck - The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford 3/1
Javier Bardem - No Country for Old Men 1/2
Philip Seymour Hoffman - Charlie Wilson’s War 11/4
Hal Holbrook - Into the Wild 6/1
Tom Wilkinson - Michael Clayton 9/2
Best Supporting Actress:
Cate Blanchett - I’m Not There 10/11
Ruby Dee - American Gangster 5/1
Saoirse Ronan - Atonement 13/4
Amy Ryan - Gone Baby Gone 11/4
Tilda Swinton - Michael Clayton 5/2

“Damn.”
Let’s hope this isn’t a sign of things to come in regards to the Academy Awards for Paul Thomas Anderson’s There Will Be Blood: Jonny Greenwood’s feted instrumental soundtrack for the film, seen as a shoe-in for Best Original Score, has been officially disqualified. (…)

Disney/Pixar are contemplating pushing Ratatouille for the Best Picture Oscar at the Academy Awards, but the Mouse House is worried that such a push, might diminish their chances of winning the Best Animated Feature Oscar. (…)

 
Academy Award nominated actor Ryan Gosling (Half Nelson) has signed on to star opposite Rachel Weisz in Peter Jackson’s big screen adaptation of Alice Sebold’s bestselling book The Lovely Bones. (…)

Random Notes from the Editor:
Errol Morris’ short film which opened the Academy Awards show was fantastic. If you didn’t see it, you can check out the video at Oscar.com. (…)