Here we go! The 2009 Academy Award Nominations were announced on Thursday 22nd January by Forest Whitaker at 5.30am PT (1.30pm for us in old Blighty) in the Academy's Samuel Goldwyn Theatre.

Annoyingly, Benjamin Button's Curious Case aroused the Academy's interest the most, with 13 nominations. Right behind it is Slumdog Millionaire (well done the Brits) with 10. The Dark Knight got 8, the same as Milk, but (perhaps unsurprisingly) Batman is up for neither Film or Director. Technical noms ahoy - along with Heath's obligatory nod. At the bottom of the pool sits Frost/Nixon, The Reader, WALL-E and Doubt. They all have 5.

Any surprises? Well, Melissa Leo is up for Best Actress in indie film Frozen River, which did nicely at last year's LFF. Frozen River also skates into the screenplay arena, where it faces off with WALL-E and (in a lovely turn) the wonderful In Bruges. Brilliant to see Robert Downey Jr. up for Tropic Thunder (an acting award? For Robert? In a comedy role? It's about time!) and Brolin down for the twinkie-guzzler Dan in Milk. The only real surprise is Richard Jenkins for Lead Actor in The Visitor - the second feature from The Station Agent's director, Thomas McCarthy. The Winslet twins are now separated, however, leaving Anne Hathaway, Meryl and oh my god WHO'S THE OTHER ONE with slightly better odds...

Here's what we got:

Actor In A Leading Role

The Visitor - Richard Jenkins
Frost/Nixon - Frank Langella
Milk - Sean Penn
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button -
Brad Pitt
The Wrestler - Mickey Rourke

Actor In A Supporting Role

Milk - Josh Brolin
Tropic Thunder - Robert Downey Jr.
Doubt - Philip Seymour Hoffman
The Dark Knight - Heath Ledger
Revolutionary Road - Michael Shannon

Actress In A Leading Role

Rachel Getting Married - Anne Hathaway
Changeling - Angelina Jolie
Frozen River - Melissa Leo
Doubt - Meryl Streep
The Reader - Kate Winslet

Actress In A Supporting Role

Doubt - Amy Adams
Vicky Cristina Barcelona - Penélope Cruz
Doubt - Viola Davis
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button - Taraji P. Henson
The Wrestler - Marisa Tomei

Director

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button - David Fincher
Frost/Nixon - Ron Howard
Milk - Gus Van Sant
The Reader - Stephen Daldry
Slumdog Millionaire - Danny Boyle

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
Milk
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire

The Baader Meinhof Complex
The Class
Departures
Austria
Waltz with Bashir

Animated Feature

Bolt
Kung Fu Panda
WALL-E

Editing

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Frost/Nixon
Milk
Slumdog Millionaire

Adapted Screenplay

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button - Eric Roth, Robin Swicord
Doubt - John Patrick Shanley
Frost/Nixon - Peter Morgan
The Reader - David Hare
Slumdog Millionaire - Simon Beaufoy

Original Screenplay

Frozen River - Courtney Hunt
Happy-Go-Lucky - Mike Leigh
In Bruges - Martin McDonagh
Milk - Dustin Lance Black
WALL-E - Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon, Pete Docter

Art Direction

Changeling
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
The Duchess
Revolutionary Road

Cinematography

Changeling
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire

Costume Design

Australia
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Duchess
Milk
Revolutionary Road

The Betrayal (Nerakhoon)
Encounters at the End of the World
The Garden
Man on Wire
Trouble the Water

Documentary Short

The Conscience of Nhem En
The Final Inch
Smile Pinki
The Witness - From the Balcony of Room 306

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Hellboy II: The Golden Army

Original Score

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button - Alexandre Desplat
Defiance - James Newton Howard
Milk - Danny Elfman
Slumdog Millionaire - A.R. Rahman
WALL-E - Thomas Newman

Original Song

WALL-E - "Down to Earth"
Slumdog Millionaire - "Jai Ho"
Slumdog Millionaire - "O Saya"

La Maison de Petits Cubes
Lavatory - Lovestory
Oktapodi
Presto
This Way Up

Live Action Short

Auf der Strecke (On the Line)
Manon on the Asphalt
New Boy
The Pig
Spielzeugland (Toyland)

Sound Editing

The Dark Knight
Iron Man
Slumdog Millionaire
WALL-E
Wanted

Sound Mixing

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Slumdog Millionaire
WALL-E
Wanted

Visual Effects

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Iron Man