Eastwood nomination among Oscar surprises

LOS ANGELES - Clint Eastwood went to war twice last year, and moviegoers barely noticed.

But Oscar voters were more impressed by his fortitude. Eastwood, 76, who became the oldest director to win an Oscar two years ago for "Million Dollar Baby," was nominated on Tuesday for directing and producing "Letters from Iwo Jima," his second war-themed movie of 2006.

Eastwood's nomination was one of the surprises when the names were read out before dawn in Beverly Hills. Another was that leading nominee "Dreamgirls," which secured eight nods, was not nominated in the coveted best picture and directing races.

Officials at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said it was the first time in the event's 79-year history that the leading contender has not earned a best picture nomination.

As is usually the case, the films nominated for best picture and director did not match up. This year, the husband-and-wife directing team of Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris, were not nominated but their low-budget hit "Little Miss Sunshine" was nominated for best picture.

Hollywood heavyweights were also snubbed, including Jack Nicholson ("The Departed") and Brad Pitt ("Babel"). Longshots left out in the cold included Golden Globe winner Sacha Baron Cohen ("Borat") and Ken Watanabe ("Letters from Iwo Jima").

The portents were not promising for Eastwood's Japanese-language saga, which scored four nominations including best picture. It was not even intended to be released in 2006. But after his companion piece "Flags of Our Fathers" bombed, "Letters" was moved up. After five weeks in limited release, it has earned just $2.4 million at the North American box office.

The four-time Oscar winner failed to earn a nomination for the Directors Guild of America Awards, which will be handed out

on February 3. The DGA honored him in 1993 for "The Unforgiven" and in 2005 for "Million Dollar Baby." Both films went on to garner Oscars for best picture and director. The Producers Guild of America also overlooked "Letters," and last weekend gave its award to "Little Miss Sunshine."

Every year brings plenty of "important" movies that bill themselves as Oscar-worthy. The problem is that Oscar voters ignored the memos.

This year's crop included the ensemble drama "Bobby"; Oliver Stone's September 11 movie "World Trade Center" and the apartheid saga "Catch a Fire." Two similarly named spy movies with big stars, "The Good Shepherd" and "The Good German," were good for one nomination each.