"Slumdog Millionaire" extended its run of international acclaim as it won seven top awards on Sunday from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, including best film.
Danny Boyle took top directing honors for “Slumdog.” The film also won awards for adapted screenplay, music, cinematography, editing and sound. In January “Slumdog,” about an orphan raised in poverty in Mumbai who appears on the Indian version of “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire,” won outstanding performance by a cast at the Screen Actors Guild. The modestly budgeted film also won the Golden Globe award for best drama. The film has been nominated for 10 Oscars, including for best picture. U.S. actor Mickey Rourke was named leading actor for his role in “The Wrestler,” beating Dev Patel for “Slumdog,” Brad Pitt for “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” Sean Penn for “Milk” and Frank Langella for “Frost/Nixon.”
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British actor Kate Winslet won top prize for leading actress for her role as a Nazi concentration camp guard in “The Reader.” Winslet was a two-time nominee in the category, also nominated for her role as a suburban housewife in “Revolutionary Road.” She beat Angeline Jolie for “Changeling,” Kristin Scott Thomas for “I’ve Loved You So Long,” Meryl Streep for “Doubt.”
“These are dreams that as a child I wouldn’t even dare to dream,” Winslet said in a report from the UK’s Press Association. The late Heath Ledger of Australia won supporting actor honors for his role as the Joker in “The Dark Knight,” while Spain’s Penelope Cruz won the supporting actress prize for her role in the Woody Allen film “Vicky Cristina Barcelona.”
