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By CHRISTY LEMIRE and DAVID GERMAIN, AP Movie Writers


BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) — Martin Scorsese's Paris adventure
"Hugo" leads the Academy Awards with 11 nominations, among them
best picture and the latest director honor for the Oscar-winning
filmmaker.

      Also nominated for best picture Tuesday: the silent film "The
Artist"; the family drama "The Descendants"; the Sept. 11 tale
"Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close"; the Deep South drama "The
Help"; the romantic fantasy "Midnight in Paris"; the sports tale
"Moneyball"; the family chronicle "The Tree of Life"; and the
World War I epic "War Horse."


      The nominations set up a best-picture showdown between the top
films at the Golden Globes: best musical or comedy recipient "The
Artist" and best drama winner "The Descendants."


      "The Artist" ran second with 10 nominations, among them
writing and directing nominations for French filmmaker Michel
Hazanavicius, a best-actor honor for Jean Dujardin and a
supporting-actress nod for Berenice Bejo.


      "I can't believe that a year ago I was learning how to tap
dance and today I am nominated for an Academy Award," said Bejo,
the romantic partner of Hazanavicius, who plays a rising big-screen
star of the sound era in "The Artist."


      Because of a rule change requiring films to receive a certain
number of first-place votes, the best-picture field has only nine
nominees rather than the 10 that were in the running the last two
years.


      Scorsese, who won the directing prize at the Globes for
"Hugo," picked up his seventh Oscar nomination in the category.
After decades of being overlooked for Hollywood's top filmmaking
award, Scorsese finally won the directing Oscar for 2006's "The
Departed," which also was named best picture.

      Dujardin, the Globe winner for best actor in a musical or comedy
as a silent-era star whose career goes kaput with the arrival of
talking pictures, will be up against Globe dramatic actor recipient
George Clooney for "The Descendants," in which the Oscar-winning
superstar plays a dad trying to hold his Hawaiian family together
after a boating accident puts his wife in a coma.

      Other best-actor contenders are: Demian Bichir as an immigrant
father in "A Better Life"; Gary Oldman as British spymaster
George Smiley in "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy"; and Brad Pitt as
Oakland A's general manager Billy Beane in "Moneyball."


      Pitt was preparing breakfast for his and Oscar winner Angelina
Jolie's six children when he learned of his latest nomination, his
third. He decided to make pancakes - and anything else the kids
were craving.


      "Whatever they want," Pitt said. "I don't care how sugared up
they get for school."


      Globe winners Meryl Streep (best dramatic actress as Margaret
Thatcher in "The Iron Lady") and Michelle Williams (best musical
or comedy actress as Marilyn Monroe in "My Week with Marilyn")
scored Oscar nominations for best actress.


      Two-time Oscar winner Streep padded her record as the
most-nominated actress, raising her total to 17 nominations, five
more than Katharine Hepburn and Jack Nicholson, who are tied for
second-place.


      Streep went two-for-four on her first nominations, winning
supporting actress for 1979's "Kramer vs. Kramer" and best
actress for 1982's "Sophie's Choice." But she has lost her last
12 times, and the Globe win for her spot-on personification of
Thatcher looks like her best chance yet to break that losing
streak.

      Along with Streep and Williams, best-actress nominees are: Glenn
Close as a 19th century Irishwoman masquerading as a male butler in
"Albert Nobbs"; Viola Davis as a black maid going public with
tales of white Southern employers in "The Help"; and Rooney Mara
as a traumatized, vengeful computer genius in "The Girl with the
Dragon Tattoo."


      "I am honored to be in company with such beautiful artists, and
touched deeply by my fellow actors for their generosity in giving
me this acknowledgment," Streep said.


      Octavia Spencer's win at the Globes as supporting-actress for
"The Help," in which she plays a fiery maid whose mouth
continually gets her in trouble, could give her front-runner status
for the same prize at the Oscars. The same may hold true for
supporting-actor nominee Christopher Plummer, who won a Globe for
his role as an elderly dad coming out as gay in "Beginners."


      An esteemed film and stage actor, Plummer went most of his
60-year career unacknowledged at the Oscars until earning a
supporting-actor nomination two years ago as Leo Tolstoy in "The
Last Station." If he wins this time, the 82-year-old Plummer would
become the oldest acting recipient ever; Jessica Tandy now holds
that position for her best-actress win in "Driving Miss Daisy" at
age 80.

      Also in contention for supporting actor: Kenneth Branagh as
Laurence Olivier in "My Week with Marilyn"; Jonah Hill as a
statistics whiz in "Moneyball"; Nick Nolte as a derelict dad
making amends in "Warrior"; and Max von Sydow as a mute mystery
man in "Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close."


      Also up for supporting actress are "The Help" co-star Jessica
Chastain as Spencer's lonely, needy boss; Melissa McCarthy as a
crude but caring member of the wedding in "Bridesmaids"; and
Janet McTeer as a woman posing as a male laborer in "Albert
Nobbs."


      McCarthy is a rare funny lady competing at the Oscars, which
seldom honor performances in mainstream comedies such as
"Bridesmaids."


      The nomination for McCarthy was a small surprise next to some
other startling turns among the nominations.


      Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock's "Extremely Loud & Incredibly
Close," which got mixed reviews and has not been much of a factor
at earlier Hollywood awards, was a very unexpected best-picture
nominee. There were gasps and cheers of surprise from the crowd of
publicists and Hollywood insiders at academy headquarters when the
film's nomination was announced. Von Sydow's supporting-actor
nomination also was a surprise.


      Terrence Malick's "The Tree of Life" also had been considered
a bit of a best-picture longshot. The movie, which won top honors
at last May's Cannes Film Festival but was a love-it-or-hate-it
drama among audiences, also picked up a directing nomination for
Malick.


      Oscar heavyweight Clint Eastwood's "J. Edgar" was shut out
entirely, including for best actor, where Leonardo DiCaprio had
been a strong prospect as FBI boss J. Edgar Hoover.


      Other surprises included best-actor contender Bichir, who gave a
terrific performance in "A Better Life," a film few people have
seen.


      Bichir beat out not only DiCaprio but also such actors as Ryan
Gosling for two films, "Drive" and "The Ides of March," and
Michael Fassbender for "Shame," who both had been high on Oscar
forecasters' lists.


      Also missing out on nominations were Tilda Swinton for "We Need
to Talk About Kevin," Albert Brooks for "Drive" and Shailene
Woodley for "The Descendants."


      Along with Mara for best actress, "The Girl with the Dragon
Tattoo" had five other nominations but missed out on best picture
and director for David Fincher, who had been among the favorites a
year earlier with "The Social Network."


      The best-director roster is loaded with past winners and
nominees, including Scorsese for "Hugo," Malick for "The Tree of
Life," Woody Allen for "Midnight in Paris" and Alexander Payne
for "The Descendants."


      "Midnight in Paris," Allen's biggest hit in decades, was the
filmmaker's first best-picture nominee since 1986's "Hannah and
Her Sisters" and first directing nomination since 1994's "Bullets
Over Broadway." With his 15th honor for original screenplay, Allen
also extended his lead as record-holder for most writing
nominations (Billy Wilder is second with 12).


      The lone newcomer is Hazanavicius for "The Artist," a critical
darling that has stacked up an impressive list of honors and
nominations at earlier awards since its debut last year at Cannes.


      While Steven Spielberg's best-picture contender "War Horse"
picked up six nominations, the Oscar-winning filmmaker missed out
in the directing category, a prize he has won twice. His first
cartoon feature, the Golden Globe-winning "The Adventures of
Tintin," also did not make the list for best animated film.


      Another animated snub was "Cars 2," the first feature-length
cartoon from Disney's Pixar Animation that failed to earn a
nomination since the category was added in 2001. Pixar films
including "Toy Story 3," "Up" and "WALL-E" had won the last
four animation Oscars.


      This time, the animated nominees are "A Cat in Paris," "Chico
& Rita," Kung Fu Panda 2," "Puss in Boots" and "Rango."


      Winners at the 84th annual Oscars will be announced at a Feb. 26
ceremony aired live on ABC from Hollywood's Kodak Theatre, with
Billy Crystal returning as host for the first time in eight years.


      The most-beloved Oscar host of the last two decades, Crystal
agreed to lead the show for the ninth time after Eddie Murphy bowed
out in support of his pal, filmmaker Brett Ratner, who quit as
Oscar producer amid the uproar over a gay slur he uttered in front
of an audience at a screening of his and Murphy's comedy "Tower
Heist."


      Crystal's return could bump up the TV ratings for the show,
which have been on a general decline over the last few decades.


      What usually results in big TV ratings, though, is a blockbuster
such as eventual Oscar champs "Titanic" or "The Lord of the
Rings: The Return of the King" in the thick of the best-picture
contest. More fans tune in because they have a stake in the
outcome.


      There are no colossal films such as that in the mix this time.
"The Help" is a solid hit, taking in $169 million domestically.
So far, other best-picture nominees are well under that level,
ranging from $75 million for "Moneyball" to $12 million for "The
Artist."

 "The Artist," "The Descendants,"
"Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close," "The Help," "Hugo,"
"Midnight in Paris," "Moneyball," "The Tree of Life," "War
Horse."

 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 &
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."

 "Bullhead," Belgium; "Footnote,"
Israel; "In Darkness," Poland; "Monsieur Lazhar," Canada; "A
Separation," Iran.

 Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon and Jim Rash,
"The Descendants"; John Logan, "Hugo"; George Clooney, Grant
Heslov and Beau Willimon, "The Ides of March"; Steven Zaillian,
Aaron Sorkin and Stan Chervin, "Moneyball"; Bridget O'Connor and
Peter Straughan, "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy."

 Michel Hazanavicius, "The Artist";
Annie Mumolo and Kristen Wiig, "Bridesmaids"; J.C. Chandor,
"Margin Call"; Woody Allen, "Midnight in Paris"; Asghar
Farhadi, "A Separation."

 "A Cat in Paris"; "Chico & Rita";
"Kung Fu Panda 2"; "Puss in Boots"; "Rango."

 "The Artist," "Harry Potter and the
Deathly Hallows Part 2," "Hugo," "Midnight in Paris," "War
Horse."

 "The Artist," "The Girl With the Dragon
Tattoo," "Hugo," "The Tree of Life," "War Horse."

 "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 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," Bret
McKenzie; "Real in Rio" from "Rio," Sergio Mendes, Carlinhos
Brown and Siedah Garrett.

 "Anonymous," "The Artist," "Hugo," "Jane
Eyre," "W.E."

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

 "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."

 "The Artist," "The Descendants," "The
Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," "Hugo," "Moneyball."

 "Albert Nobbs," "Harry Potter and the Deathly
Hallows Part 2," "The Iron Lady."

 "Dimanche/Sunday," "The Fantastic
Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore," "La Luna," "A Morning
Stroll," "Wild Life."

 "Pentecost," "Raju," "The
Shore," "Time Freak," "Tuba Atlantic."

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

Gallery

Arts and Culture

Martin Scorsese's Paris adventure "Hugo" leads the Academy Awards with 11 nominations, among them best picture and the latest director slot for the Oscar-winning filmmaker.

Scorsese cleans up Oscar nominations with 'Hugo'

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