Mountain Peaks Early at Globe Nominations

Brokeback Mountain established itself as the frontrunner for this year's Academy Awards after leading the field at today's Golden Globe nominations. Ang Lee's acclaimed movie - which charts the closeted 20-year romance of two cowboys - picked up seven nominations, including best picture (drama), best director and a pair of acting nominations for Heath Ledger and Michelle Williams.

Other contenders in the best picture (drama) category were The Constant Gardener, George Clooney's Good Night and Good Luck, David Cronenberg's A History of Violence and Woody Allen's Match Point. The films nominated for the parallel best picture (musical or comedy) section were Mrs Henderson Presents, The Producers, Pride and Prejudice, The Squid and the Whale and the Johnny Cash biopic Walk the Line.

British talent enjoyed a strong showing in the acting categories, with nominations for Rachel Weisz (The Constant Gardener), Judi Dench (Mrs Henderson Presents), Bob Hoskins (Mrs Henderson Presents) and Keira Knightley (Pride and Prejudice).

Voted for by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the Globes are traditionally seen as the most reliable pointer to Oscar success. But the system is not foolproof. Last year's Globe for best dramatic picture went to Martin Scorsese's The Aviator. On Oscar night, the Scorsese/Di Caprio blockbuster surprisingly lost out to Clint Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby.

The 63rd annual Golden Globe awards will be announced on January 16th 2006.