VIGGO MORTENSEN - MORTENSEN BAFFLED BY CRONENBERG'S DGA SNUB

Actor VIGGO MORTENSEN is outraged filmmaker DAVID CRONENBERG's name didn't appear on the nominations list for the 2008 Directors Guild Of America (DGA) Awards. Mortensen has blasted awards officials for ruthlessly discriminating against the oddball director, insisting his latest movie Eastern Promises - which has earned the star a Best Supporting Actor nod at this year's (08) Oscars - is a far more masterful piece of filmmaking than the directors competing for the DGA prize. And the Hollywood star was equally baffled when his previous collaboration with Cronenberg - 2005's A History Of Violence - was similarly ignored. He tells British film magazine Empire, "He once again was left off the Directors Guild nominations list, ridiculously, and I knew that would happen. "For A History Of Violence he was totally invisible, as the movie generally was. "I know that Eastern Promises and A History Of Violence will be studied in film schools much more than - I don't want to name names - some other directors and movies that are quite mediocre and on these top lists." The prestigious Best Director gong went to Ethan and Joel Cohen for their critically-acclaimed movie No Country For Old Men at the Los Angeles ceremony last month (Jan08).