Hey, cheer up bankrupt, war-weary America! The nominees for the 81st Academy Awards were announced this very morning in Beverly Hills at 5:30 in the freaking morning—of course, everyone over there is always up at dawn doing yoga and colonics anyway. And it's a big day for local Off Broadway star and Red Hook denizen Michael Shannon, who was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Revolutionary Road. He'll no doubt lose to Heath "Know How I Got These Oscars?" Ledger, and rightfully so, but it's nice to see a local boy (yes, via Chicago) make good. (We most recently caught Shannon in Lady.)

A big fan boy campaign for The Dark Knight failed to secure that blockbuster a Best Picture nomination; the slot was presumably stolen by poorly-reviewed Kate Winslet weepie The Reader. (And Ricky Gervais's Extras quip about the Academy loving Holocaust flicks seems increasingly prescient.) Slumdog Millionaire, the Golden Globe winner, was showered with ten nominations including Best Picture and Best Director for Danny Boyle. And The Curious Case of Benjamin Button scored 13 nominations; we liked it enough, but after seeing this brilliant "Curious Case of Forrest Gump" video mash-up, it's hard to see it deserving the big win. Then again, the field is a bit lackluster this year, no? Nominees are all very solid, but is there anything really breathtaking in the crowd?

Other surprises include Richard Jenkins's nomination for The Visitor, an indie film set here in New York City. He'll lose to either Mickey Rourke or Sean Penn for Milk; both richly deserve it this year, though their elder Frank Langella could be a dark horse for his performance in Frost/Nixon (no way Brad Pitt wins). Winslet's the easy favorite for Best Actress—she's been nominated a billion times but never won—and we'll definitely be watching Angelina Jolie's face when Winslet's name is called; Jolie's Changeling was such an obvious Oscar vehicle that we fully expect a Zoolander "Model of the Year" moment to ensue. But kudos to the Academy's acting branch for recognizing Melissa Leo in Frozen River. Peruse the full list of celebrity back-slapping below.

Best Actress
Anne Hathaway "Rachel Getting Married"
Angelina Jolie "Changeling"
Melissa Leo, "Frozen River"
Meryl Streep "Doubt";
Kate Winslet "The Reader"

Best Actor
Richard Jenkins, "The Visitor"
Frank Langella, "Frost/Nixon"
Sean Penn for "Milk"
Brad Pitt "Benjamin Button"
Mickey Rourke for "The Wrestler"

Supporting Actor
Josh Brolin "Milk."
Robert Downey Jr.'s "Tropic Thunder"
Philip Seymour Hoffman "Doubt."
Heath Ledger "The Dark Knight"
Michael Shannon, "Revolutionary Road."

Supporting Actress
Marisa Tomei for "The Wrestler."
Amy Adams, "Doubt."
Penélope Cruz in "Vicky Cristina Barcelona."
Viola Davis, "Doubt."
Taraji P. Henson for "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button."

Best Picture
"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,"
"Frost/Nixon,"
"Milk"
"The Reader"
"Slumdog Millionaire"

Director
David Fincher "Benjamin Button,"
Ron Howard for "Frost/Nixon."
Gus Van Sant for "Milk."
Stephen Daldry "The Reader"
Danny Boyle "Slumdog Millionaire"

Animation
“Bolt” (Walt Disney), Chris Williams and Byron Howard
“Kung Fu Panda” (DreamWorks Animation, Distributed by Paramount), John Stevenson and Mark Osborne
“WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Andrew Stanto

Original Screenplay
“Frozen River” (Sony Pictures Classics), Written by Courtney Hunt
“Happy-Go-Lucky” (Miramax), Written by Mike Leigh
“In Bruges” (Focus Features), Written by Martin McDonagh
“Milk” (Focus Features), Written by Dustin Lance Black
“WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Screenplay by Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon, Original story by Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter

Adapted screenplay
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Screenplay by Eric Roth, Screen story by Eric Roth and Robin Swicord
“Doubt” (Miramax), Written by John Patrick Shanley
“Frost/Nixon” (Universal), Screenplay by Peter Morgan
“The Reader” (The Weinstein Company), Screenplay by David Hare
“Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Screenplay by Simon Beaufoy

Original Song
“Down to Earth” from “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Music by Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman, Lyric by Peter Gabriel
“Jai Ho” from “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Music by A.R. Rahman, Lyric by Gulzar
“O Saya” from “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Music and Lyric by A.R. Rahman andMaya Arulpragasam

Original Score
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.),Alexandre Desplat
“Defiance” (Paramount Vantage), James Newton Howard
“Milk” (Focus Features), Danny Elfman
“Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), A.R. Rahman
“WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Thomas Newman

Achievement in cinematography
“Changeling” (Universal), Tom Stern
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Claudio Miranda
“The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Wally Pfister
“The Reader” (The Weinstein Company), Chris Menges and Roger Deakins
“Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Anthony Dod Mantle