by Gregg Kilday
LOS ANGELES (The Hollywood Reporter) --- As the awards bandwagon gathers speed, New Line Cinema's About Schmidt, which follows Jack Nicholson's travails as a senior citizen, and Columbia Pictures' Adaptation, which follows Nicolas Cage's travails as a blocked screenwriter, led the list of nominees for the eighth annual Critics' Choice Awards announced Tuesday by the Broadcast Film Critics Assn.
In addition to the usual acting awards, the BFCA -- which with 187 members bills itself as the largest film critics organization in the United States -- dispensed nominations for "best digital acting performance." That category's nominees include Dobby from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Gollum from The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers and Yoda from Star Wars: Episode II -- Attack of the Clones.
Schmidt and Adaptation garnered four nominations each, sharing the best picture nomination list with a crowded field that also includes DreamWorks' Catch Me If You Can and Road to Perdition; Miramax Films' Chicago and Gangs of New York; Focus Features' Far From Heaven and The Pianist; Paramount Pictures/Miramax's The Hours; and New Line's Two Towers.
Best actor nominations went to Daniel Day-Lewis (Gangs), Jack Nicholson (Schmidt) and Robin Williams (One Hour Photo).
The best actress lineup includes Salma Hayek (Frida), Nicole Kidman (Hours), Diane Lane (Unfaithful) and Julianne Moore (Heaven).
Chris Cooper (Adaptation), Alfred Molina (Frida) and Paul Newman (Perdition) will compete for best supporting actor, while Kathy Bates (Schmidt), Meryl Streep (Adaptation) and Catherine Zeta-Jones (Chicago) will vie for best supporting actress.
The best director award will be chosen from among Roman Polanski (The Pianist), Martin Scorsese (Gangs) and Steven Spielberg, nominated for both Catch and Minority Report.
Best writer noms went to Charlie Kaufman (Adaptation and Confessions of a Dangerous Mind), Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor (About Schmidt) and Nia Vardalos (My Big Fat Greek Wedding.)
The BFCA will announce its awards winners Jan. 17 at a gala at the Beverly Hills Hotel. In the competition among awards-granting groups, the BFCA claims that during the past two years, 78% of the nominees in its major categories became Oscar nominees, while only 62% of the Golden Globe nominees doubled as Oscar nominees.
Additional nominees include:
Best acting ensemble: Chicago, The Hours, My Big Fat Greek Wedding
Best young actor/actress: Kieran Culkin (Igby Goes Down), Tyler Hoechlin (Road to Perdition), Nicholas Hoult (About a Boy)
Best animated feature: Ice Age, Lilo & Stitch, Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron, Spirited Away
Best family film (live-action): Harry potter and the Chamber of Secrets, The Rookie, Tuck Everlasting
Best picture made for television: Door to Door, Live From Baghdad, Martin and Lewis
Best foreign-language film: Monsoon Wedding, Talk to Her, Y Tu Mama Tambien
Best documentary: Bowling for Columbine, The Kid Stays in the Picture, Standing in the Shadows of Motown
Best song: "Father and Daughter" (Paul Simon, The Wild Thornberrys Movie), "Hero" (Chad Kroeger, Spider-Man), "Lose Yourself" (Eminem, 8 Mile)
Best composer: Philip Glass (The Hours), Howard Shore (The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers), John Williams (Catch Me If You Can, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Minority Report)
© 2002 The Hollywood Reporter