Academy Awards: 2012 Oscar Nominations are Here

This morning at 5:30 AM PST the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the 2012 Oscar nominations and there were certainly some surprises to behold. I mean… just look at that… Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close got a nomination. I dropped it from my list of nominees, but I remember a while back when everyone kept harping on me for continuing to keep it among the favorites. Ugh, wish I had stuck with my gut, it’s a great film and well worthy of a nomination.

As for total number of nominations, here are your leaders, but there is so much more to talk about than this and I’m working as fast as I can.

1. Hugo – 11 nominations
2. The Artist – 10 nominations
3. Moneyball – 6 nominations
4. War Horse – 6 nominations
5. The Descendants – 5 nominations
6. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo – 5 nominations
7. The Help – 4 nominations
8. Midnight in Paris – 4 nominations

And now for the complete list of 2012 Oscar nominees:

• War Horse
• The Artist
• Moneyball
• The Descendants
• The Tree of Life
• Midnight in Paris
• The Help
• Hugo
• Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

• Demian Bichir (A Better Life)
• George Clooney (The Descendants)
• Jean Dujardin (The Artist)
• Gary Oldman (Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy)
• Brad Pitt (Moneyball)

• Glenn Close (Albert Nobbs)
• Viola Davis (The Help)
• Rooney Mara (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo)
• Meryl Streep (The Iron Lady)
• Michelle Williams (My Week with Marilyn)

• Kenneth Branagh (My Week with Marilyn)
• Jonah Hill (Moneyball)
• Nick Nolte (Warrior)
• Christopher Plummer (Beginners)
• Max von Sydow (Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close)

• Berenice Bejo (The Artist)
• Jessica Chastain (The Help)
• Melissa McCarthy (Bridesmaids)
• Janet McTeer (Albert Nobbs)
• Octavia Spencer (The Help)

• Michel Hazanavicius (The Artist)
• Alexander Payne (The Descendants)
• Martin Scorsese (Hugo)
• Woody Allen (Midnight in Paris)
• Terrence Malick (The Tree of Life)

• The Descendants (Screenplay by Alexander Payne and Nat Faxon and Jim Rash)
• Hugo (Screenplay by John Logan)
• The Ides of March (Screenplay by George Clooney and Grant Heslov and Beau Willimon)
• Moneyball (Screenplay by Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin Story by Stan Chervin)
• Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (Screenplay by Bridget O’Connor and Peter Straughan)

• The Artist (Written by Michel Hazanavicius)
• Bridesmaids (Written by Annie Mumolo and Kristen Wiig)
• Margin Call (Written by J.C. Chandor)
• Midnight in Paris (Written by Woody Allen)
• A Separation (Written by Asghar Farhadi)

• A Cat in Paris
• Chico & Rita
• Kung Fu Panda 2
• Puss in Boots
• Rango

• Hell and Back Again
• If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front
• Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory
• Pina
• Undefeated

• Bullhead (Belgium)
• Footnote (Israel)
• In Darkness (Poland)
• Monsieur Lazhar (Canada)
• A Separation (Iran)

• The Artist
• The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
• Hugo
• The Tree of Life
• War Horse

• The Artist
• The Descendants
• The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
• Hugo
• Moneyball

• The Adventures of Tintin (John Williams)
• The Artist (Ludovic Bource)
• Hugo (Howard Shore)
• Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (Alberto Iglesias)
• War Horse (John Williams)

• “Man or Muppet” from The Muppets
• “Real in Rio” from Rio

• The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
• Hugo
• Moneyball
• Transformers: Dark of the Moon
• War Horse

• Drive
• The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
• Hugo
• Transformers: Dark of the Moon
• War Horse

• The Artist
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
• Hugo
• Midnight in Paris
• War Horse

• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
• Hugo
• Real Steel
• Rise of the Planet of the Apes
• Transformers: Dark of the Moon

• Anonymous
• The Artist
• Hugo
• Jane Eyre
• W.E.

• Albert Nobbs
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
• The Iron Lady

• The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement
• God Is the Bigger Elvis
• Incident in New Baghdad
• Saving Face
• The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom

• Dimanche/Sunday (dir. Patrick Doyon)
• The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore (dir. William Joyce and Brandon Oldenburg)
• La Luna (dir. Enrico Casarosa)
• A Morning Stroll (dir. Grant Orchard and Sue Goffe)
• Wild Life (dir. Amanda Forbis and Wendy Tilby)

• Pentecost (dir. Peter McDonald and Eimear O’Kane)
• Raju (dir. Max Zähle and Stefan Gieren)
• The Shore (dir. Terry George and Oorlagh George)
• Time Freak (dir. Andrew Bowler and Gigi Causey)
• Tuba Atlantic (dir. Hallvar Witzo)

I will have my reaction piece written soon, but for now let your opinion known in the comments and in the poll below.

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The Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2011 will be presented on Sunday, February 26, 2011, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood and Highland Center, and televised live by the ABC Television Network. The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 200 countries worldwide.