Best of the Year Awards

Before I name my entire list, which might include a surprise here and there, I first want to make a special mention in the Best Actor category. This was one of those years where the race for Best Actor was extremely competitive, and I found myself with seven actors who all deserved to be nominated in my mind. Because of my insistance to only select five, they did not receive nods from me. However, I would emphasise that Brad Pitt in Benjamin Button and Frank Langella in Frost/Nixon were both great, but I ultimately decided they were just under the mark. But I do declare them both giving great performances in their films.

**winner**

Best Picture
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
In Bruges
**Milk**
Slumdog Millionaire

Best Director
Danny Boyle - Slumdog Millionaire
David Fincher - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
**Christopher Nolan - The Dark Knight**
Bryan Singer - Valkyrie
Gus Van Sant - Milk

Best Actor
Josh Brolin - W.
Colin Farrell - In Bruges
Brendan Gleeson - In Bruges
**Sean Penn - Milk**
Mickey Rourke - The Wrestler

Best Actress
Rebecca Hall - Vicky Cristina Barcelona
**Anne Hathaway - Rachel Getting Married**
Angelina Jolie - Changeling
Meryl Streep - Doubt
Kate Winslet - Revolutionary Road

Best Supporting Actor
Josh Brolin - Milk
Robert Downey Jr. - Tropic Thunder
Ralph Fiennes - In Bruges
James Franco - Milk
**Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight**

Best Supporting Actress
Penélope Cruz - Vicky Cristina Barcelona
**Rosemarie DeWitt - Rachel Getting Married**
Viola Davis - Doubt
Taraji P. Henson - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Kate Winslet - The Reader

Best Animated Feature
Kung Fu Panda
**WALL-E**
Waltz with Bashir

Best Original Screenplay
In Bruges
**Milk**
Rachel Getting Married
Tropic Thunder
WALL-E

Best Adapted Screenplay
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
**The Dark Knight**
Doubt
Slumdog Millionaire
Snow Angels

Best Art Direction
Australia
**The Curious Case of Benjamin Button**
The Duchess
Valkyrie
WALL-E

Best Costume Design
Australia
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
**The Duchess**
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day
Revolutionary Road

Best Cinematography
Australia
Blindness
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
**The Dark Knight**
Slumdog Millionaire

Best Film Editing
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Frost/Nixon
Milk
**Slumdog Millionaire**

Best Original Score
In Bruges
The Dark Knight
Milk
**Slumdog Millionaire**
WALL-E

Best Original Song
Forgetting Sarah Marshall - "Inside of You"
Gran Torino - "Gran Torino"
Slumdog Millionaire - "Jai Ho"
WALL-E - "Down to Earth"
**The Wrestler - "The Wrestler"**

Best Makeup
**The Curious Case of Benjamin Button**
The Dark Knight
Hellboy II: The Golden Army
The Reader
Tropic Thunder

Best Sound Mixing
Australia
The Incredible Hulk
Iron Man
Speed Racer
**WALL-E**

Best Sound Editing
Australia
The Dark Knight
Iron Man
Valkyrie
**WALL-E**

Best Visual Effects
Australia
**The Curious Case of Benjamin Button**
The Dark Knight
Iron Man
Speed Racer