By Matt Richardson

Things just keep getting better for "Slumdog Millionaire!"  The Golden Globe winner for best picture of 2008 continued to rack up the accolades on Thursday morning when it was nominated for 10 Academy Awards including nominations for best picture and best director for Danny Boyle.  It also earned Oscar nominations for best adapted screenplay, cinematography, editing, original score, sound editing and sound mixing.  The movie also nabbed two out of the three nominations for best song for "Jai Ho" (A.R. Rahman) and "O Saya" (A.R. Rahman and M.I.A.). 

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," meanwhile, was also a big winner with 13 nominations including ones for Best Picture and Best Actor for Brad Pitt.  Only two films in the history of the Academy have got more nominations overall ("All about Eve" in 1950 and "Titanic" in 1997).  Both of those films won the award for best picture, likely making "Benjamin Button" an early favorite to take home gold.  "Slumdog" (starring Dev Patel and Freida Pinto) has upset the odds before though and can't be counted out from doing it again at the February 22nd ceremony.

"When we first began working on the film I don't think any of us ever imagined that we might end up attending the Oscars ceremony as a result," said Patel after hearing of the nominations. "I'm just so proud to be a part of this project and I have been overwhelmed by the positive reaction to the film," he said.  Rahman, the film's composer, also expressed his appreciation for the nominations.  "Slumdog Millionaire has paid magical dividends for so many people around the globe.  I am deeply honoured to be a part of a film that has inspired so many," he said.

In addition to Danny Boyle's nomination for best director, other nominees in the category included Stephen Daldry for "The Reader," David Fincher for "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," Ron Howard for "Frost/Nixon" and Gus Van Sant for "Milk."  "Milk" also has a likely winner in Sean Penn, who was nominated for best actor in the movie.  His closest competition, Mickey Rourke in "The Wrestler" also earned a nomination as did Pitt, Richard Jenkins for "The Visitor" and Frank Langella for "Frost/Nixon."  This is really a two-man race between the always incredible Sean Penn and the recently resurgent Mickey Rourke.  Penn won the Critics Choice Award while Rourke won the Golden Globe, upping the ante for the Oscar winner.

In the best actress department, Anne Hathaway earned a nomination for "Rachel Getting Married."  Pitt's wife, Angelina Jolie, scored a nod for her role in "Changeling" while Melissa Leo ("Frozen River")
Meryl Streep ( "Doubt") and Kate Winslet ("The Reader") also got nominated.  Winslet won Golden Globes for best actress and supporting actress earlier this month and has to be favored to win her first Oscar too.  Winslet was not nominated for supporting actress though as Taraji P. Henson took her slot for "The Curious Case on Benjamin Button."  Penelope Cruz was nominated for "Vicky Cristina Barcelona" while Marisa Tomei could win her second Oscar for her role in "The Wrestler."  Amy Adams of "Doubt" was also nominated as was her counterpart, Viola Davis.  There is no doubt about who will win this one, however: Davis will take home the gold.

Another no-brainer and guaranteed winner is the late great Heath Ledger who predictably scored a posthumous nomination exactly a year after he died for his role as The Joker in "The Dark Knight."  Ledger's competition (if you can call it that) includes former Oscar winner Phillip Seymour Hoffman ("Doubt"), Josh Brolin ("Milk"), Robert Downey Jr. ("Tropic Thunder") and Michael Shannon ("Revolutionary Road"). 

Hugh "Wolverine" Jackman will host the ceremony next month in L.A.