2009 was a huge year for movies, so this year’s Academy Awards ceremony is sure to be an interesting event. The Best Picture category has been expanded to include ten nominations rather than the traditional five, either as a nod to the number of amazing films that we were graced with this year or in order to pad the show’s woefully diminutive running time.

The films nominated for Best Picture are Avatar,  An Education, The Hurt Locker, Inglorious Basterds, Precious, A Serious Man, Up, Up in the Air, and two surprises, The Blind Side and District 9. Both were awesome, but I have to admit I didn’t see those ones coming!

The Best Picture category includes some powerful contenders this year, so I think those last two nominations will function more as enormous compliments rather than possibilities for winning, considering the rest of the movies vying for the top prize. The only locks that I can think of this year are Up as Best Animated Feature, Christoph Waltz for Supporting Actor, and Avatar for Visual Effects. And with Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin hosting, you know it’s gonna be a good show this year!

You can see a complete list of this year’s nominations here.

And the Golden Globe winners are…….

MOTION PICTURES:

Drama: ”Avatar.”

Musical or Comedy: ”The Hangover.”

Actor, Drama: Jeff Bridges, ”Crazy Heart.”

Actress, Drama: Sandra Bullock, ”The Blind Side.”

Director: James Cameron, ”Avatar.”

Actor, Musical or Comedy: Robert Downey Jr. ”Sherlock Holmes.”

Actress, Musical or Comedy: Meryl Streep, ”Julie & Julia.”

Supporting Actor: Christoph Waltz, ”Inglourious Basterds.”

Supporting Actress: Mo’Nique, ”Precious: Based on the Novel `Push’ by Sapphire.”

Foreign Language: ”The White Ribbon.”

Animated Film: ”Up.”

Screenplay: Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner, ”Up in the Air.”

Original Score: Michael Giacchino, ”Up.”

Original Song: ”The Weary Kind” (theme from ”Crazy Heart”), (written by Ryan Bingham, T Bone Burnett).

TV

Series, Drama: ”Mad Men,” AMC.

Actor, Drama: Michael C. Hall, ”Dexter.”

Actress, Drama: Julianna Margulies, ”The Good Wife.”

Series, Musical or Comedy: ”Glee,” Fox.

Actor, Musical or Comedy: Alec Baldwin, ”30 Rock.”

Actress, Musical or Comedy: Toni Collette, ”United States of Tara.”

Miniseries or Movie: ”Grey Gardens,” HBO.

Actor, Miniseries or Movie: Kevin Bacon, ”Taking Chance.”

Actress, Miniseries or Movie: Drew Barrymore, ”Grey Gardens.”

Supporting Actor, Series, Miniseries or Movie: John Lithgow, ”Dexter.”

Supporting Actress, Series, Miniseries or Movie: Chloe Sevigny, ”Big Love.”
Were there any surprise winners?

Inglourious Basterds is a lot of things. People will love and hate this remarkable variety of different things, but first and foremost, it is a film that exists purely in the parallel universe created by it’s director. By now, Quentin Tarantino has been writing and directing films for two decades and he has developed one of the most recognizable and unique directing styles of any director working today. In his latest film, he has taken on a subject that doesn’t lend itself well to trailers, which is why I was pretty unsure about the movie from seeing the previews. I just didn’t know if the world really needed what looked like a big-budget Nazi-bashing orgy, but the movie is so much more than that, because it’s so much less.

In a technique that has utterly baffled some movie goers and film critics, he has taken the very real and very serious atmosphere of Nazi-occupied France during WWII and turned it into something that is entirely his own. By doing this, the movie goes back and forth between viscerally painful scenes – like the brilliantly crafted opening scene – with scenes of such bizarrely gleeful comedy that it almost feels that they don’t belong in the same movie. Even more, it’s hard to argue that the film doesn’t come off as something of a revenge fantasy against Nazi, and more personally against Hitler himself, but anyone who ever said that major historical events like WWII can’t be given alternate cinematic endings should watch Inglourious Basterds and see what a master director can create by doing it.

So here are the nuts and bolts of it all. A Nazi Colonel named Hans Landa (Christoph Waltz), nicknamed “The Hunter,” is going through Nazi-occupied France ferreting out hiding Jews, and finds and kills a whole family of Jews hiding out at a dairy farm. One daughter, Shosanna (Melanie Laurent), escapes her family’s massacre, and flees to Paris, where she opens her own movie theater. A young Nazi soldier named Fredrick Zoller, a national hero for single-handedly picking off hundreds of Jews from a watch tower, takes an interest in her. Because of his hero status, he convinces Joeseph Goebbels, the Nazi film and propaganda secretary, to move the premiere of the film adaptation of Zoller’s heroism to her theater. He just want to make her like him but by doing so, he is unknowingly arranging to bring the entirety of the Nazi high command into the theater owned by a young woman who’s family was brutally shot down by Nazi soldiers.

Meanwhile, a group of Jewish American soldiers led my Lieutenant Aldo Raine (Brad Pitt)has taken upon themselves the singular mission of making their way through Europe and exacting such vengeance upon any Nazi soldiers that they come across that their very existence will strike fear into the hearts of the Third Reich all the way up to the highest leaders. In this, they prove successful, but upon learning of the movie premiere at Shosanna’s theater, decide that they need to get into that premiere and do some damage, while Shosanna is plotting to burn the place down with all the Nazi high command inside. Neither side knows about the others’ plot.

All through the movie, you can sense Tarantino’s deep love of movies and it’s impossible not to have a good time along with him. He has taken a variety of different elements from many different films – from the very title, lifted from a 1978 film that has little other similarities, to the central location of a movie theater, which vividly calls to mind images of Cinema Paradiso – but nothing feels ripped off because the film is absolutely oozing with style, and the entertainment level is through the roof. True to his form, Tarantino gives us a small handful of characters and infuses them with such depth and personality that they leap off the screen at us, and he displays an enormous level of writing talent that calls to mind some of the best talky scenes from Pulp Fiction.

The casting is outstanding, particularly Christoph Waltz as the Jew Hunter, Hans Landa. He has wonderful charm and disarming charisma that transforms so suddenly and completely into a hard-focused, ruthless intensity that his performance overshadows all others in the movie, of which there are many noteworthy. Brad Pitt will put some people off because of his Southern yank accent, which he could not do in a movie that was meant to be taken more seriously, but his drawl fits in perfectly with the environment that Tarantino creates here. Eli Roth has never done anything for me in the directing department, but shows remarkable acting ability here. Diane Kruger, probably best known for her work in the National Treasure films, gives a great performance as a movie star named Bridget von Hammersmark, but the other show stealer is Til Schweiger as Sargeant Hugo Stiglitz. I’m not even going to say anything more about him, but many of the film’s best scenes, particularly in the first half, simply belong to him.

I have to say that I was genuinely surprised at a few totally negative reviews that I read after I saw the movie, because I walked out of the theater unable to think of a single negative thing that could be said about it. Tarantino’s fans are going to eat this thing up like starving hyenas, but I guess that there are plenty of things in the movie that could be construed into something bad by anyone that wants desperately enough to hate the film. I can’t really imagine why anyone would want to do that, because despite being based on some controversial subject matter, this is pure, cinematic entertainment at its best. I suggest, although not sure if I can predict, an acting nomination for Christopher Waltz and an original screenplay nomination for Tarantino, although too much recognition for a film like this has the potential to carry negative connotations about Hollywood to the rest of the world. I’m particularly curious to know how the movie was received in Germany, but regardless, make no mistake. This is the best movie in theaters right now, and one of the best of the year.

The Bean Meter

5 Beans out of 5.

10. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Personally I thought The Curious Case of Benjamin Button was a little boring (especially when Brad Pitt was old and wrinkly) however once Brad gets down to about his 20s, he becomes sexified!  Check him out in this flick rolling around in the sheets with Cate Blanchett, riding motorcycles, wearing badass leather jackets, and other sexy things!

9. Legends of the Fall

Brad Pitt.  Long Hair.  Beautiful Scenery.  Sexy.  Need I say more?

8. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford

For the record, this movie was a movie that would NOT end.  It kind of ended about three times and then, somehow kept going?!  That was really frustrating, but Brad’s sexiness got me through it.  The thing about Brad in this movie is that his character is a true force to be reckoned with, which is always sexy.  Plus, Brad dyed his light locks brown for the role and I think it brings out a whole new level of sexiness in Brad!  What do you think?

7. Meet Joe Black

When it comes to Brad Pitt in Meet Joe Black, I have two words for you: SEX SCENE.

The sex scene in Meet Joe Black is so intense, you have to see it for yourself.  Brad Pitt is supposed to be playing Death…therefore in this scene he has never had sex before.  So let me reiterate: Brad Pitt, pretending to have sex, for the first time.  Click HERE to watch the scene!

6. Interview With the Vampire

What’s sexy about Brad Pitt in Interview With the Vampire? DUH!  Vampires are IN!  Brad was the original Robert Pattinson ladies, and don’t you ever forget it!

5. Thelma and Louise

Although he ultimately plays a thief, Brad is so sexy playing a young, southern, SHIRTLESS gentleman in this movie that it doesn’t really matter what his character does to Thelma or Louise.  YUM.

4. Mr. & Mrs. Smith

Brad Pitt’s role in Mr. and Mrs. Smith caused quite a stir with the media, not only because of Brad’s sexiness, but because of the extreme sexiness of his co-star Angelina Jolie.  Brad met Angelina on the set of this film and later famously left Jennifer Aniston (his wife at the time) to be with Angelina.  Brangelina now have 6 children together and Brad is by far the sexiest dad in Hollywood!

3. Troy

Brad’s sexy body in this film made him almost unrecognizable.  He had to put on over 20 lbs of muscle for his role as Achilles, and we got to see his god-like body in his sex scene with actress Rose Byrne.  Check out Troy to see Brad’s glistening biceps and lots of swordplay!

2. Fight Club

I’ll admit, Brad’s role in Fight Club is number 2 because it’s my own personal favorite.  I am absolutely in love with Brad’s portrayal of Tyler Durden in this film because he is the epitome of sexy: attractive, lives life haphazardly, and is just an all around rockstar.

This scene in the photo above shows badass Brad beating the living daylights out of another fight club member (is it bad that I find that extremely hot?) and there is also a sex scene involving a rubber glove that showcases Brad’s body very nicely in the film.

1. Inglourious Basterds

Brad Pitt is the leader of a group of “inglourious basterds”….Gotta be sexy!

Inglourious Basterds is out in theaters this Friday, August 21st!

Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt looked glorious in black at the ‘Inglorious Basterds’ premiere last night in Hollywood.

The happy couple put rumors of a separation to rest as they clung closely to each other on the red carpet at The Grauman Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles.  You could tell they are still madly in love.

The WWII drama written and directed byQuentin Tarantino, and co-starring Diane Kruger and Eli Roth hits theaters August 21.

Here are some other pics I thought I’d throw in of some other celebs that made it to the I.B. premiere

Quentin Tarantino was on Jimmy Kimmel Live! last night promoting his new movie Inglorious Bastards opening August 21st.  They talked about a lot of things, but most interesting was how Tarantino secured Brad Pitt for the lead role.   He started off by just making a broad sweep, saying that he went to France and met with Brad in his home.  But when Jimmy Kimmel prodded further and offered up the details he had heard about their meeting, Tarantino set him straight and let him know just what went down.  The rumor was that Quentin had gotten Brad drunk, but really it was the other way around!  Quentin pointed out that Pitt lives on a vineyard, and when you go to Brad Pitt’s vineyard, you are going to get drunk…Among other things!  Tarantino alluded to the fact that there was a smoking device being used as well!  Brad is known to be a stoner and is also featured on our celebrity stoner countdown, and it looks like we could add Quentin to that list!

You can watch the whole hi-larious interview by going to Jimmy Kimmel’s website and watch free episodes.

The ‘Today Show’s’ Ann Curry caught up with the beautiful Brad Pitt at the Cannes Film Festival to talk about his new movie ‘Inglorious Basterds,’ which is premiering tonight at the festival.

‘Inglorious Bastards,’ written and directed by Quentin Tarintino,  takes place in Nazi-occupied France during World War II, and follows a group of Jewish-American soldiers known as “The Basterds” who spread fear throughout the Third Reich by scalping and brutally killing Nazis.

Brad talks candid about the movie and his role but gets skirmish when Ann brings up that he was recently named one of Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People and becomes even more uncomfortable when she asks him about his personal life.

When asked if this is one of the happiest times of his life, Pitt responds “one of the most on track, I would say.”