And for best supporting actress: Jennifer Hudson (Dreamgirls), Cate Blanchett (Notes on a Scandal), Adriana Barraza (Babel), Rinko Kikuchi (Babel) and Abigail Breslin (Little Miss Sunshine), whose lovable turn must have Dakota Fanning seething with jealousy.

BBC: NEWS | Entertainment | Oscars panel: Scott Williams

With Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett as a couple that gets in trouble in Morocco, Adriana Barraza as their housekeeper and nanny back home with the kids in San Diego, and Rinko Kikuchi as a teen-age girl in Tokyo desperate for the embrace of a man.

NEWYORKER: Babel