SEAN PENN - PENN LEADS CRITICS' CHOICE NOMINEES

PENN LEADS CRITICS' CHOICE NOMINEES

Actor/director SEAN PENN's new film INTO THE WILD is leading the pack at the 13th annual Critics' Choice Awards, after picking up seven nominations. The adventure movie is up for awards including Best Picture, Best Actor for Emile Hirsche and Best Director for Penn. Black comedy Juno scored six nominations, including Best Picture and Best Actress for Ellen Page, while Atonement, Michael Clayton, No Country For Old Men, Sweeney Todd and Hairspray all received five nominations each. The winners will be revealed at a ceremony in California's Santa Monica Civic Auditorium on 7 January (08). Winners of the Critics Choice gongs, as selected by the Broadcast Film Critics Association, often go on to win Academy Awards later in the year.