Don't expect the Indie Spirit nominees unveiled Tuesday morning in L.A. (8 a.m. PT to resemble the contenders for the Gotham Awards, which will be bestowed to winners in New York on Wednesday night. The award groups are sister organizations allegedly hailing independent films, yes, but this year the Gothams let their nominees be determined by film critics who, frankly, went crackers and forgot their job. Surely, an "indie" is not a $90-million studio production like Gotham best picture nominee "The Departed," which, hallelujah, can't be nommed at by the Spirits where there's a $20 million cap on contenders' budgets.

Futhermore, Spirit contenders won't be chosen by film critics, but rather a committee of actual indie filmmakers.

Our forum posters cite these films as likely top contenders: "Bobby," "Borat," "For Your Consideration," "A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints," "Half Nelson," "The History Boys," "Infamous," "The Last King of Scotland," "Little Children," "Little Miss Sunshine," "The Notorious Bettie Page," "The Painted Veil," "Prairie Home Companion," "Running with Scissors," "Sherrybaby," "Thank You for Smoking" and "United 93."

Join the discussion in our message boards — CLICK HERE!

Photos: "Little Miss Sunshine" and "Thank You for Smoking" are likely nominees at the Indie Spirits, but will voters consider Abigail Breslin (left) in the lead or supporting acting race? Confusion may end up causing her not to be nommed at all. Aaron Eckhart is a strong contender for best lead actor.
(Fox Searchlights)

When "Flags of Our Fathers" star Adam Beach joined us for a chat session early last week, he told Envelope posters what it's like being talked about in Hollywood as a serious Oscar contender: "For me being considered for such an honor, will reflect not only with me, and for me, but really for all native Americans as they share my success as their success." What kind of response does he get from regular moviegoers? "They tend to give me a big hug, and say, 'Great performance!'" he notes. What can he reveal about the real Ira Hayes, the war-scarred survivor of Iwo Jima he portrays in "Flags"? "He wore his heart on his sleeve, but didn't want other people to bother with his personal life or glorify his situation in the war," Adam adds. "Afterward, he tried to live a normal life, working with his family, but buried his emotions with alcohol, which ultimately everyone talks about. However, thousands of veterans tried to escape the horrors of WWII with the bottle, too." (Special thanks to Chris "Boomer" Beachum for editing this transcript.)

Tom O'Neil: Hi ADAM! Welcome

Adam Beach: Thanks for having me, bro

Tom O'Neil: You're in NYC, right? Shooting a new pic? What can you tell us about it/

Adam Beach: Just wrapped shooting 'Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee' in Calgary, for HBO

Tom O'Neil: grrrrrrrrrrrreat. what's your role in it?

Adam Beach: I play Charles Eastman, a young Lakota doctor, the first Indian doctor. It was awesome working with Aida Quinn and Anna Paquin

K-Dogg: so, adam, i am quite fond of people like Chief Dan George and Graham Greene, have you seen any of their work? it's all really cool

Adam Beach: Graham Green is a good friend of mine who lives 5 hours away from me

Adam Beach: and Chief Dan Gorge is brilliant, I am a big fan

K-Dogg: hes such a great actor

Boomer: Hi, Adam. What was your experience like with Clint Eastwood? Did you ever get to have more than one take??

Adam Beach: Clint did give me a few chances, 3 takes on the scene in the hotel room. The scene were they want to send me back home

The following 56 movies have qualified to compete at the Golden Globes for the award for best foreign-language film:

"9th Company" (Russia/Ukraine/Finland)
"After The Wedding" (Denmark)
"Ahlaam" (Iraq)
"Alatriste" (Pain)
"Along The Ridge"" ("Anche Libero Va Bene") (Italy)
"Angel-A" (France)
"Apocalypto" (USA)
"Avenue Montaigne" (France)
"Black Book" ("Zwartboek") (Netherlands)
"Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros" (Philippines)
"Bosta" (Lebanon)
"Children of Glory" (Hungary)
"Chronicle of an Escape" (Argentina)
"Cinema, Aspirins & Vultures" (Brazil)
"Climates" ("Iklimler") (Turkey)
"Curse of the Golden Flower" (China)
"Days of Glory" ("El Benny") (Cuba)
"Family Friend" (Italy)
"Family Law" (Argentina)
"Frozen Days" (Israel)
"Golden Door" (Italy/France)
"Grbavica: The Land of My Dreams" (Bosnia-Herzegovina)
"Il Caimano" (Italy)
"Ice Cream I Scream" (Turkey)
"The Island" (Russia)
"The King and the Clown" (South Korea)
"Lage Raho Munnabhai" (India)
"La Mujer De Mi Hermano" (Mexico)
"The Last Train"" (Germany)
"Letters from Iwo Jima" (Japan)
"Libertas" (Croatia)
"Lives of Others" (Germany)
"Love for Share" (Indonesia)
"Mario's War" ("La Guerra Di Mario") (Italy)

"When I get passion, I just can't let go!" director/writer Darren Aronofsky admits, explaining how he persevered over six years to get "The Fountain" made despite cast upheavals and budget slashes (millions vanished when original stars Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett dropped out). Referring to his Oscar-winning wife, he adds, "Rachel (Weisz) describes me as a dog with a rag in its mouth. Just holding on! Refusing to let go!"

Listen to our full podcast chat — CLICK THE RIGHT-POINTING TRIANGLE BELOW. (You may need to hold down the Control key while clicking.)

"Weekend Warrior" columnist Edward Douglas of Comingsoon.net predicts "The Fountain" will earn $6 million this weekend ($9.2 million over five days) when it plays in 1,472 theaters, thus earning a respectable $4,076 per screen. To read his box-office column — CLICK HERE!

Edward adds in his review: "Avid movie buffs have been waiting a long time for Darren Aronofsky's 'The Fountain,' and the wait has been well worth it, as the visionary filmmaker has created an extravagant epic that mixes diverse ideas and genres to create something suitably unique. While it might not be for everyone, those with open minds and a desire for new experiences will certainly appreciate what is essentially an art film in every sense of the word."

A month or so ago Edward — one of our distinguished Buzzmeter Oscar panelists here at The Envelope — and I had a heated smackdown over this movie's awards prospects. He considers Hugh Jackman a viable best actor contender and I pooh-poohed that at first, suspecting that Edward might be pushing one of those secret film critics' agendas. You know how critics are always peddling bizarre, inaccessible pix we normal people can't appreciate (often for good reason — they're junk, just different and pretentious). Sure, academy members loved Aronofsky's last flick. "Requiem for a Dream" earned Ellen Burstyn a best-actress bid. But voters usually scorn sci-fi and "The Fountain" has other problems, too: it was boo-ed at the Venice Film Festival, let's not forget. Heck, even many film critics don't like it that much! "The Fountain" has a mere 51 score at Metacritic.com. Warner Bros. is giving it an Oscar campaign, but a modest one financially compared to "The Departed," "The Good German" and "Blood Diamond." And, besides, come on, it's Hugh Jackman — he's a heartthrob action hero who hoofs and sings valentines on Broadway. How seriously will Oscar voters consider him as a thespian? Will they even watch this DVD?

Jackman's odds sure look long. At least at first tally.

But over the past month I've come to change my mind about "The Fountain's" kudos prospects. Edward may be onto something. We won't know for several more weeks. I don't think it matters how "The Fountain" performs at the box office this weekend. Even if it bombs, that's unimportant. What matters is how it does three, four weeks from now when it may demonstrate amazing, gathering strength thanks to great word of mouth. I have a hunch that "The Fountain" may become a cult hit. It's rather convoluted, yes, the way Hugh zigzags through time while trying to save his wife's life, but it's fantastically romantic in that "Titanic"/ "Moulin Rouge!" kind of way. Many viewers don't just love it, they're over the moon about it! Like I am

That's why many film critics aren't giving it a high score — those cynical cads usually crucify schmaltz, even great schmaltz, because its uncool and they're nerdy social misfits without a heart. However, check the score "The Fountain" gets at Metacritic.com from regular film fans who post there: a whooping 81. Women and gay men especially love it. How rare it is that filmgoers get a sophisticated film depicting a gorgeous straight guy desperately — and I mean desperately — expressing his unhinged love? The female execs at Warner Bros. in charge of its PR are so hyped up about this pic that they're hustling us journos like relentless religious moonies, and not because they're being egged on by a stern boss. It's because they're head-over-heels in love with "The Fountain." Give it some time to find its audience in theaters and it could explode like a gusher.

And if academy voters watch its DVD screener, enough of them could get hooked, too, as we witnessed by the strong support they gave to "Moulin Rouge" and "Titanic." Hugh Jackman's knockout performance is certainly award-worthy. Not only is it the best of his career, but it's easily one of the five best performances by an actor this year. But will Oscar voters give it a chance?

By the way, in addition to getting booed at Venice, it also got a rousing standing ovation. And there was a nasty physical scuffle. That's what kind of divisive response it triggers. Listen to Darren describe what he encountered at Venice plus what he thinks about his six-year quest to get "The Fountain" made — click the audio bar further up in this post! Next week we will feature my video interviews with Darren Aronofsky and Hugh Jackman at The Envelope's video gallery where you can now see my chats with "Babel" director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, "Catch a Fire" star Derek Luke and other kudos contenders — CLICK HERE!

Top photo: Hugh Jackman makes a big splash dramatically in "The Fountain" while desperately striving to save his wife who's dying of a brain tumor (Rachel Weisz, wife of director/writer Darren Aronofsky). Bottom photo: Last March Aronofsky and Weisz posed for paparazzi at the Oscars where Weisz won best supporting actress (as a dying wife again) in "The Constant Gardener." This time her role is less flamboyant emotionally, but it's possible she could be nommed again.
(Warner Bros./ L.A. Times)

It's illegal to buy or sell an Oscar statuette bestowed after 1950, but not earlier. However, there's no restriction on the sale of nomination certificates. That's probably because the certificates can be easily forged, so collectors are foolish to purchase them willy-nilly. Only rarely do good ones come up for sale at reputable auction houses, but a few will be offered by Bonham's on Dec. 17.

John Ford's nom for producing 1952 best pic nominee "The Quiet Man" (lot 1039) is expected to fetch between $1,000 and $1,500. Of course, he won best director (one of his record four victories in that category) that year, but "The Greatest Show on Earth" pulled off a jaw-dropping upset in the top race. Prior to Oscar night, Variety predicted, "'High Noon' is a cinch to win the trophy as best picture of the year and gain added glory through the victories of Gary Cooper as best actor, the title tune as best song and the script by Carl Foreman as the best screenplay." Cooper and the song ("High Noon — Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darlin'") prevailed as forecast, but Variety was also wrong about the screenplay race where another upset occurred. Charles Schnee ("The Bad and the Beautiful") beat blacklisted scribe Foreman ("High Noon") and Frank S. Nugent ("The Quiet Man").

Bonham's is also selling Nugent's screenplay nom (lot 1040), which has the same estimate ($1,000 to $1,500). Both Ford's and Nugent's certificates are mounted on presentation board, unlike the John Ford nom in my personal collection. I own his certificate for directing "How Green Was My Valley" (1942), another one of his four wins. The other two were "The Grapes of Wrath" (1940) and "The Informer" (1935). It was sometime in between 1942 and 1952 that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences started mounting the parchments for nominees.

Also up for auction:

Screen Writers Guild award presented to Frank S. Nugent for "Mr. Roberts" (best written comedy, 1955). Lot 1041. Estimate: $300-$500.

Emmy Award statuette presented to Raymond Katz, producer of "The Miracle Worker" (best drama or comedy special of 1979 — the equivalent to best TV movie today). The NBC telefilm cast Patty Duke as Anne Sullivan 17 years after she won an Oscar for portraying Helen Keller in the feature film. Keller was played by Melissa Gilbert in the TV remake. Lot 1096. Estimate: $3,000 - $5,000.

Nine award items bestowed to producer Raymond Katz, including his Golden Globe nominations for producing "The Miracle Worker" (it lost to director Delbert Mann's "All Quiet on the Western Front" starring Richard Thomas and Ernest Borgnine) and 1980 telefilm "The Diary of Anne Frank" (directed by Boris Sagal, starring Melissa Gilbert and Maximilian Schell — it lost to director Paul Newman's "The Shadow Box" starring Joanne Woodward and Christopher Plummer). Lot 1097. Estimate: $200 - $300.

To learn more about the auction, go to Bonhams.com. To see items in this sale, click on the link that reads "Full Sales Schedule" along the left column of the home page, then scroll through the pages till you reach the Dec. 17 auction for "Entertainment Memorabilia Including Animation Art." Or use the drop-down calendar menus to input Dec. 17 on the first sked page.

By the way, if you intend to bid on any of these items, don't worry: I won't be bidding against you. i own plenty of Oscar nom certificates, including two of Katharine Hepburn's, plus Emmy, Golden Globe, Grammy and Oscar statuettes. If you'd like to read more about my personal collection — CLICK HERE!

(Photos: Bonham's Auction House)

The Golden Globes just tripped up the major acting races big time.

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association has revealed to The Envelope exclusively the final verdicts of its eligibility committee determining category placement of top award contenders. The biggest surprise: Leo DiCaprio's and Matt Damon's roles in "The Departed" are lead even though Warner Bros. bills them as supporting in "For Your Consideration" ads appearing in industry tradepapers.

Kudos campaigners don't want Leo to compete against his obvious lead part in "Blood Diamond" and Matt to clash with his starring role in "The Good Shepherd," but now a Leo vs. Leo vs. Matt vs. Matt smackdown is inevitable. Meantime, "Departed" costar Jack Nicholson has been placed in the supporting race.

Some other eligibility decrees were also surprising. As is awards protocol with children regardless of the size of their role, Fox Searchlight is campaigning 10-year-old Abigail Breslin ("Little Miss Sunshine") in the supporting slot, but HFPA put her in lead.

"Flags of Our Fathers" FYC ads cite Ryan Phillippe as lead actor and costars Adam Beach and Jesse Bradford as supporting, but the Globes salute all three soldiers as lead.

Award-watchers have been buzzing about what HFPA will do with Jennifer Hudson, who's considered to be the early Oscar frontrunner for supporting actress for her bravura diva turn in "Dreamgirls." But her role is such a standout that it might be classified as lead. Kudos seers don't believe she has much of a chance to prevail there, though, so Hudson fans feared HFPA might unintentionally derail her Oscar hopes by causing category confusion. However, the Globes have agreed with DreamWorks/Paramount's recommendation that Hudson should be placed in supporting and costar Beyonce Knowles in lead.

Peter O'Toole looks like the early fave to win the Oscar best-actor race, but he may need to demonstrate that he's a real winner at the Globes first. Initially, his handlers planned to enter him in the comedy/musical lineup, but switched him to drama when "Borat" became a breakout smash. Kudos campaigners for "Venus" were nervous about HFPA rubber-stamping the decision, but the org did so.

Other notable category classifications:

"Miss Potter" has been deemed a comedy despite early reports that it may be labeled drama.

"Babel" — Brad Pitt has been placed in the supporting slot even though he's the film's top-billed star.

"Hollywodland" — Diane Lane is campaigning for lead and Ben Affleck was voted best actor at the Venice film fest, but they're both supporting stars, according to HFPA.

Among the TV races:

"Brothers and Sisters" — Sally Field, Rachel Griffiths, Calista Flockhart all classified as lead.

"Ugly Betty" — comedy series.

"Studio 60" — drama series. Stars Matthew Perry, Bradley Whitford and Amanda Peet are all lead performers.

"30 Rock" — Alec Baldwin is lead actor in the comedy series.

See blog item below for more category news. Or CLICK HERE TO READ MORE!

Photo: Leo and Matt are not only battling themselves, but each other!
(warner Bros.)

No more squabbling over category placement at the Golden Globes! Over the past week or so prelim rulings were made, then appeals heard. Now HFPA has made final decisions, which have not yet been revealed publicly. However, I've confirmed lots of info with studio sources who've received official word from HFPA.

An attempt to push Cate Blanchett into the lead drama race for "Notes from a Scandal" has been thwarted — she'll now stay in supporting.

Abigail Breslin ("Little Miss Sunshine") will compete in lead, as we reported yesterday. She will not run up against Emma Thompson ("Stranger Than Fiction"), who's in supporting despite widespread speculation that she might be boosted.

"Venus" and "History Boys" were deemed to be dramas, so Peter O'Toole and Richard Griffiths will both compete in the lead race. At first Griffiths declared for the supporting race, but recently switched to lead, as GoldDerby revealed, and now the Globes have given their approval. Even though Michael Sheen is really the male lead of "The Queen," he's in supporting.

"Dreamgirls" scene-stealer Jennifer Hudson will remain in supporting, Beyonce in lead.

Efforts to place "Volver" in the comedy lineup failed. Penelope Cruz will remain in the lead drama contest while the movie will jockey for best foreign-language film along with — get ready for a howler — Mel Gibson's "Apocalypto," which is in Mayan.

According to unconfirmed reports, "Miss Potter" was initially defined as a drama by HFPA, not comedy as expected, but the prelim decision has been appealed by studio chief Harvey Weinstein.

The appeal process is not formal, by the way. As one top Oscar campaigner puts it, "If you don't like what the qualification committee decides, you just get on the phone and drive everybody crazy until you wear them down. That usually works, but not always."

Harvey has a rep for knowing how to work the phone, of course. But drive anybody crazy? Oh, please! Rumors! Vicious rumors!

More details coming soon, including what will happen to "The Departed" boys Leo DiCaprio and Jack Nicholson : lead or supporting? They're both aiming for supporting, but some Globe-watchers predicted that Leo would lobby for a late switch to lead if HFPA members didn't like "Blood Diamond," which they saw last week. But I hear that they liked it.

Over the past few days, the general membership of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences received DVD screeners of "The Queen," "Babel," "A Prairie Home Companion" and "An Inconvenient Truth."

Previously, they'd received: "Volver," "Pan's Labyrinth," "Marie-Antoinette," "Running with Scissors," "The Da Vinci Code," "Little Children," "Little Miss Sunshine," "World Trade Center," "United 93," "The Last King of Scotland," "Half Nelson," "Friends with Money," "Thank You for Smoking," "Over the Hedge," and "Inside Man."

Have you heard? The Man of Steel wants a Golden Boy! If you're not a regular reader of the trades, you may not know that Warner Bros. is running For Your Consideration ads touting Brandon Routh for best actor.

But, hey, wait a minute! If Routh is really Superman, why doesn't he just seize an Oscar statuette out of academy storage, eh? (Oh, that's right, he's a niceypooh hero.)

Our forums moderator Chris "Boomer" Beachum has done a superb job compiling a list of FYC campaigns. CLICK HERE to his rundown of other best-actor campaigns, for example. Sure, there's Peter O'Toole ("Venus") and Will Smith ("The Pursuit of Happyness"), but also — surprise! — Daniel Craig for "Casino Royale" and Tim Guinee for "Sweet Land" (who?).

In a heated slugfest, who do you think would prevail: Superman or James Bond? (Or Tim Guinee?)

One very touching entry on the directors' list pops out: how nice to see that Picturehouse has been investing this year in a drive to get Robert Altman the Oscar in a competitive category that eluded him while alive. Hmmmm. "A Prairie Home Companion" got a good score at RottenTomatoes.com (80%). And received a rave from Robert Ebert: "What a lovely film this is, so gentle and whimsical, so simple and profound." Could Oscar voters respond posthumously? They've never done so in the directors' race and only once in the actors' categories (Peter Finch, "Network").

Photos: I don't care what you 007 fans say. In an Oscar best-actor battle, Superman gets my vote over Bond. Personally, I think "Superman Returns" was one of the best films of 2006. Apparently, Warner Bros. does, too — it's been running FYC campaign ads for the top Oscar race.
(MGM-UA/ Warner Bros.)

Mary Pickford's Oscar victory in 1929 was historic for two good reasons. It was only the second statuette bestowed for best actress and the very first one — Harvey Weinstein, please take note — that was properly bought and paid for via an aggressive campaign to win.

For two decades earlier, Pickford had been the biggest female star in America, but her fan base was dwindling as of 1929 and she was having trouble crossing over to talkies. Her first sound movie, "Coquette," was lambasted by film critics and would've been dismissed as an embarrassing dud if Pickford's bobbed hairdo hadn't sparked a national craze. Desperate to have her breakthrough film be regarded positively for artistic reasons, too, she shamelessly lobbied Oscar voters to give her their new best actress award.

That was easy to do back then because there were only 5 voters (a politboro of studio honchos) and Mary invited them all over for tea one day so she could subject them to her campaign pitch. It was a command performance that the judges couldn't refuse. Pickford was married to the president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences — Douglas Fairbanks.

She won, of course, but in subsequent years she lost her fans, split with Fairbanks, married Buddy Rogers and spent her final days as an alcoholic shut-in at Pickfair. The academy couldn't even get her out of the house to accept an honorary award in 1976. Telecast producers had to install a satellite hookup in her home so the 83-year-old recluse could accept it on the show. That moment turned out to be a fiasco. TV viewers could easily see how disconnected and disoriented she appeared. No doubt they attributed that to her age, not knowing about the booze.

After Pickford died, Buddy Rogers sold Pickfair and remarried, eventually dying in 1999. Next month, on Dec. 11, his widow Beverly will auction off much of Pickford's estate.

Included was supposed to be her Oscar statuette for "Coquette." That was the original plan anyway. But it's not included in the catalog — CLICK HERE TO SEE!!

What happened? Where is that Academy Award? Will it ever be sold? Oscar statuettes bestowed prior to 1950 belong to the recipients, who usually have the right to sell them. After 1950, winners signed affidavits promising they won't.

Initially, auctioneer Darren Julien planned to put it on the block, but then he discovered a glitch.

He tells GoldDerby: "Unfortunately, we could not sell Mary’s Academy Award because she had signed a document in the 1970s after she won her honorary Oscar stating that she would never sell it or her original Academy Award." For now they remain in custody of Beverly Rogers.

Photo: Stubborn Mary Pickford fought the arrival of talking pictures in the late 1920s, insisting, "Adding sound to movies would be like putting lipstick on the Venus de Milo!" But once talking pictures were an accepted reality, she needed to demonstrate that she'd made the transition successfully. Her first sound film, "Coquette" was ridiculed by film critics, so she plotted to win an Academy Award to rescue its reputation.
(Pickford Estate)