THE dark comedies “About Schmidt” and “Adaptation” led the field with four nominations each for the Broadcast Film Critics Association’s annual Critics’ Choice Awards.
Confirming the perception of an extremely wide-open Oscar race, seven other films racked up three nods apiece:
Steven Spielberg’s biopic “Catch Me If You Can”; the musical “Chicago”; Martin Scorsese’s historical epic “Gangs of New York”; the literary drama “The Hours”; the gangster drama “Road to Perdition”; and two big-budget fantasies, “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers” and “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.”
All – except “Harry Potter” – were nominated for best picture, along with the ’50s soap-opera homage “Far From Heaven” and Roman Polanski’s “The Pianist.”
In the biggest surprise, the critics snubbed Michael Caine for “The Quiet American,” nominating instead Robin Williams (“One Hour Photo”) along with Daniel Day-Lewis (“Gangs of New York”) and Jack Nicholson (“About Schmidt”).
Competing for best actress are Salma Hayek (“Frida”), Nicole Kidman (“The Hours”), Diane Lane (“Unfaithful”) and Julianne Moore (“Far From Heaven”).
The BFCA’s awards ceremony, held on Jan. 17, will air on E! on Jan. 18.