Milk and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Lead With Eight Nominations for the 14th Annual Critics' Choice Awards

THE DARK KNIGHT, DOUBT AND SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE GARNER SIX NODS

CLINT EASTWOOD RECEIVES TWO NOMINATIONS - BEST ACTOR (GRAN TORINO) AND BEST COMPOSER (CHANGELING)

VH1 TO BROADCAST THE AWARDS CEREMONY LIVE ON THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 AT 9:00 PM (ET/PT)

NEW YORK, Dec. 9 -- The Broadcast Film Critics Association (BFCA) has announced the nominees for the 14th annual Critics' Choice Awards. The winners will be announced at the Critics' Choice Awards gala on Thursday, January 8, 2009 at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. VH1 will again broadcast this year's ceremony Live at 9:00 PM (ET/PT).

Milk and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button lead the pack with eight nominations for the 14th Annual Critics' Choice Awards. Milk received nominations for Best Picture, a Best Actor nod for Sean Penn, two Best Supporting Actor nominations for James Franco and Josh Brolin, Best Director for Gus Van Sant, Best Writer for Dustin Lance Black, and Best Composer for Danny Elfman. The eight nominations for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button are for Best Picture, a Best Actor nomination for Brad Pitt, Best Actress for Cate Blanchett, Best Supporting Actress for Taraji P. Henson, Best Acting Ensemble, Best Director for David Fincher, Best Writer for Eric Roth, and Best Composer for Alexandre Desplat.

The Dark Knight, Doubt and Slumdog Millionaire all tied with six nominations, each including a Best Picture nod. (Listed below)

Clint Eastwood received a Best Actor nomination for Gran Torino and a Best Composer nomination for Changeling, which added two nominations for Best Picture and Best Actress (Angelina Jolie).

The BFCA, the largest film critics' organization with more than 200 members in the United States and Canada, representing television, radio and online critics, selected nominees in each of the 17 categories. The Critics' Choice Awards were created by the BFCA to recognize excellence in cinematic achievement. Eligible films were released in 2008. The accounting firm of Gregory A. Mogab tallied the written ballots. Historically, the Critics' Choice Awards are the most accurate predictor of the Academy Award nominations.

The nominees were announced this morning by Academy Award(R) nominated actress Rosie Perez, "At the Movies" hosts Ben Lyons (E! Entertainment) and Ben Mankiewicz (Turner Classic Movies) and VH1 President Tom Calderone in a press conference at the MTV Network studios in Times Square that aired live on VH1. To view or download broadcast quality file formats of today's nomination press conference please visit www.epk.tv.

A complete list of nominees is available at http://criticschoice.vh1.com. VH1's "Critics' Choice Awards" site, which launches today, will be home to detailed information about the awards and will provide a forum for both the Broadcast Film Critics Association (BFCA) critics and users to comment on this year's nominees. VH1 will expand elements of the show online at VH1.com. Exclusive video footage from the event will include celebrity interviews, red carpet footage and more. Additional multiplatform plans will be announced in the coming weeks.

Counting down to the LIVE premiere of the Critics' Choice Awards, VH1 will air the "14th Annual Critics' Choice Awards Red Carpet Premiere Featuring Maria Menounos" pre-show LIVE on Thursday, January 8 at 8pm (ET/PT) and will also stream it LIVE on VH1.com. Covering the excitement of the celebrity arrivals on the red carpet will be "KTLA Morning News" entertainment reporter Sam Rubin and No Good TV's Carrie Keagan. Interspersed throughout the red carpet arrivals will be pre-taped interviews with NBC and Access Hollywood'sMaria Menounos as she sits down and speaks with some of today's hottest stars.

The 14th Annual Critics' Choice Awards are sponsored by Walmart, AT&T and Crest Whitening Expressions.

The 14th Annual Critics' Choice Awards is executive produced by Bob Bain for Bob Bain Productions, Joey Berlin for Berlin Entertainment and Lee Rolontz for VH1.

NOMINEES FOR THE 14th ANNUAL CRITICS' CHOICE AWARDS

Top Nods Go to:

Milk (Eight Nominations)

Best Picture, Best Actor, Two Best Supporting Actor Nominations, Best Acting Ensemble, Best Director, Best Writer, and Best Composer

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (Eight Nominations)

Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress, Best Acting Ensemble, Best Director, Best Writer, and Best Composer

The Dark Knight (Six Nominations)

Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor, Best Acting Ensemble, Best Director, Best Action Movie, and Best Composer

Doubt (Six Nominations)

Best Picture, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Acting Ensemble and Best Writer

Slumdog Millionaire (Six Nominations)

Best Picture, Best Director, Best Writer, Best Young Actor/Actress, Best Song, and Best Composer

BEST PICTURE Changeling The Curious Case of Benjamin Button The Dark Knight Doubt Frost/Nixon Milk The Reader Slumdog Millionaire Wall-E The Wrestler

BEST ACTOR Clint Eastwood - Gran Torino Richard Jenkins - The Visitor Frank Langella - Frost/Nixon Sean Penn - Milk Brad Pitt - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Mickey Rourke - The Wrestler

BEST ACTRESS Kate Beckinsale - Nothing But the Truth Cate Blanchett - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Anne Hathaway - Rachel Getting Married Angelina Jolie - Changeling Melissa Leo - Frozen River Meryl Streep - Doubt

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR Josh Brolin - Milk Robert Downey, Jr. - Tropic Thunder Philip Seymour Hoffman - Doubt Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight James Franco - Milk

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS Penelope Cruz - Vicky Cristina Barcelona Viola Davis - Doubt Vera Farmiga - Nothing But the Truth Taraji P. Henson - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Marisa Tomei - The Wrestler Kate Winslet - The Reader

BEST ACTING ENSEMBLE The Curious Case of Benjamin Button The Dark Knight Doubt Milk Rachel Getting Married

BEST DIRECTOR Danny Boyle - Slumdog Millionaire David Fincher - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Ron Howard - Frost/Nixon Christopher Nolan - The Dark Knight Gus Van Sant - Milk

BEST WRITER (Original or Adapted Screenplay) Simon Beaufoy - Slumdog Millionaire Dustin Lance Black - Milk Peter Morgan - Frost/Nixon Eric Roth - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button John Patrick Shanley - Doubt

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE Bolt Kung Fu Panda Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa Wall-E Waltz With Bashir

BEST YOUNG ACTOR/ACTRESS (Under 21) Dakota Fanning - The Secret Life of Bees David Kross - The Reader Dev Patel - Slumdog Millionaire Brandon Walters - Australia

BEST ACTION MOVIE The Dark Knight Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull Iron Man Quantum of Solace Wanted

BEST COMEDY Burn After Reading Forgetting Sarah Marshall Role Models Tropic Thunder Vicky Cristina Barcelona

BEST PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION "John Adams" "Recount" "Coco Chanel"

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM A Christmas Tale Gomorrah I've Loved You So Long Let the Right One In Mongol Waltz With Bashir

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE I.O.U.S.A. Man On Wire Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired Standard Operating Procedure Young At Heart

BEST SONG "Another Way to Die" - Jack White and Alicia Keys/Jack White - Quantum of Solace "Down to Earth" - Peter Gabriel/Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman - Wall-E "I Thought I Lost You" - Miley Cyrus and John Travolta/Miley Cyrus and Jeffrey Steele - Bolt "Jaiho" - Sukhwinder Singh/A.R. Rahman and Gulzar - Slumdog Millionaire "The Wrestler" - Bruce Springsteen/Bruce Springsteen - The Wrestler

BEST COMPOSER Alexandre Desplat - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Clint Eastwood - Changeling Danny Elfman - Milk Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard - The Dark Knight A.R. Rahman - Slumdog Millionaire