'Up in the Air,' 'Avatar,' 'Basterds,' 'Nine' & 'Hurt Locker' dominate Golden Globe nominations

Widely regarded within the film industry as a harbinger of things to come in terms of the Oscars, this morning's lively announcement of the Golden Globes nominations again offered a blend of industry leaders and newcomers vying for the prestigious prize.

Running the spectrum of box office success and acclaim, Jason Reitman's "Up in the Air"  led the pack with six nominations, including best picture (drama), best actor (George Clooney) and best supporting actresses Vera Farmiga and Anna Kendrick. Reitman earned a nod for best director and a shared screenplay nomination with Sheldon Turner.

Leading the comedy/musical category was Rob Marshall's "Nine," which earned five nominations that included best picture, best actor (Daniel Day-Lewis), best actress (Marion Cotillard) and best supporting actress (Penelope Cruz).

Multiple nominees incuded James Cameron's "Avatar" with four nominations, including a crucial nomination for best picture, as well as one for Cameron as best director. Kathryn Bigelow's powerful examination of the Iraq War in "The Hurt Locker" validated its sweep of several key critics associations prizes with three major nods, including best picture (drama) and best director. And, Quentin Tarantino's revisionist history epic "Inglourious Basterds" was tapped for four nominations, including best picture, best supporting actor (Christoph Waltz) and two for Tarantino for best director and best screenplay.

In the acting categories, Meryl Streep earned her 24th and 25th nominations, competing against herself for best actress in a comedy/musical for "It's Complicated" and "Julie & Julia."  Also garnering a twofer were Sandra Bullock's performances in the "The Blind Side" (Drama) and "The Proposal" (Comedy/Musical). Matt Damon also found himself in two catergories, tapped for best supporting actor in "Invictus" and best actor (comedy/musical) for "The Informant!"

Independent faves "500 Days of Summer" and "Precious" landed best picture nods in comedy/musical and drama.  Each film's leads, "Summer's" Joseph Gordon-Levitt earned a best actor nomination, while  Gabourey Sidibe and Mo'Nique of "Precious" were tapped for best actress and supporting actress.

Among the surprises, Clint Eastwood's "Invictus" landed in major categories, but was not nominated for best picture. Also snubbed from most categories was Peter Jackson's highly touted "The Lovely Bones," which only saw Stanley Tucci's harrowing performance lauded for best supporting actor. However, two of the summer's most notable hits did land in key categories. "The Hangover" was named best picture (comedy/musical) while the dramatic sci-fi epic "District 9" earned a best screenplay nod for Neill Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell.

For a complete list of film and television nominees, click on Golden Globes now.

Hosted by Ricky Gervais, the 67th Annual Golden Globe Awards will be broadcast live coast to coast Sunday, January 17 on NBC (5 to 8 pm PT, 8 to 11 pm ET) from the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

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