The usual suspects and a few interesting surprises marked the announcement of this year's Golden Globe nominations, as the Hollywood Foreign Press Association gave five nominations to Frost/Nixon, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Doubt. Film festival darling Slumdog Millionaire was nominated four times.

Domestic partners Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt had reason to celebrate: Jolie was nominated for for best actress in a drama for her role as a desperate mother trying to find her missing son in Changeling, while Pitt was nominated in the category of best actor in a drama for his portrayal of a man who ages backwards, in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Benjamin Button also received nominations for best film drama, best director for David Fincher, best screenplay for Eric Roth, and best score for Alexandre Desplat.

But the happy couple made up of Sam Mendes and Kate Winslet did even better. The husband received a directing nominee for Revolutionary Road and the wife was nominated twice, for Revolutionary Road and The Reader. 

Joining Winslet and Jolie for best performance by an actress in a motion picture, drama, are Anne Hathaway for Rachel Getting Married, Meryl Streep for Doubt and Kristin Scott Thomas for I've Loved You So Long. Streep was also was nominated for best actress in a motion picture, comedy or musical, for her role in Mamma Mia! In addition to Pitt in the best actor category are Sean Penn for Milk, Leonardo DiCaprio for Revolutionary Road, Frank Langella for Frost/Nixon and Mickey Rourke for The Wrestler.

Other nominees for best dramatic picture include Frost/Nixon, The Reader and Revolutionary Road. Best motion picture, comedy or musical, nominations went to the Coen brothers' Burn After Reading; Mike Leigh's Happy-Go-Lucky; Colin Farrell's dark comedic thriller In Bruges; the Abba musical Mamma Mia!; and Woody Allen's romantic farce, Vicky Cristina Barcelona.

Some amusing surprises included 16-year-old Miley Cyrus earning a nod for best original song,"I Thought I Lost You" from Bolt, and James Franco, who was snubbed for his dramatic supporting role in Milk, but nominated for best actor in a motion picture, comedy or musical, for Pineapple Express. Then there was Tom Cruise, who was overlooked for his lead in Vakyrie, but nominated for best supporting actor as a foul-mouthed movie producer in Tropic Thunder. Robert Downey Jr. was also nominated in the same category for the same film.

Unhappy surprises went to Christopher Nolan's box office smash, The Dark Knight, one of the biggest box-office hits of the decade, that only received on Globe nomination for the late Heath Ledger's performance as the Joker. Clint Eastwood was overlooked for a best actor nod for Gran Torino, but earned two nominations, as composer for co-writing the best song, "Gran Torino," from the movie and for scoring Changling. 

Bolt, Kung-Fu Panda and Wall-E are nominated for best animated feature.

 —LJM