Actress Elizabeth Banks announces nominations for 66th Annual Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, California, 11 Dec 2008

The Hollywood award season is under way with the announcement of nominees for the annual Golden Globes in Los Angeles.  This year's top films include the Brad Pitt tale of a man who ages backwards and a drama based on interviews with former U.S. President Richard Nixon.

Frost/Nixon earned five nominations.  The drama centers on the 1977 interviews between British journalist David Frost and the former president forced to resign his office because of the Watergate scandal.  Frank Langella earned an acting nomination for his role as Mr. Nixon. 

Hollywood actor Frank Langella in 'Frost/Nixon'

Frost/Nixon is a contender for best drama.  So is The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, a tale of a man who lives his life backwards, beginning with his birth as an old man.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button also earned five nominations.

So did the drama Doubt, a story about the abuse of children by clergy in the Catholic church.  The film did not make the best drama category, but brought acting nods for Philip Seymour Hoffman, who plays an accused priest, and Meryl Streep, who plays his accuser.

Dev Patel and Freida Pinto in scene from 'Slumdog Millionaire'

Other nominees for best drama are Revolutionary Road, The Reader, and Slumdog Millionaire, the story of young Indian man who hopes to make a fortune on a television game show.

In the musical and comedy category, nominees include Mamma Mia!, a film based on a Broadway show, and director Woody Allen's Vicky Cristina Barcelona.

Several films expected to make a strong showing this year had few nominations.  The Batman blockbuster The Dark Knight earned only one for supporting actor Heath Ledger, who died of a drug overdose in January after filming was finished.  Milk, the story of the slain San Francisco gay rights and civic leader Harvey Milk, earned a single nomination for star Sean Penn.

The Golden Globes are presented by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, a group of entertainment reporters.  Winners will be announced January 11.  The ceremony is a prelude to the more prestigious Oscars, which will be given February 22.