Hollywood is adding to its marketing vocabulary at a rapid clip. Here are some of the terms describing new concepts and technologies now used in the promotion of movies and TV shows.

ARG (alternate reality game): Players access them via multiple methods – including cell phones, email and websites — to interact with a storyline that’s influenced by their choices. Studios and TV networks have created them for movies and TV shows like ”The Dark Knight” and ”Lost.”

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But every year the people choose garbage, glamorously hosted by one of America’s finest thespians, Queen Latifah.  Last year the favorite movie was Pirates of the Caribbean 3.  This year, the winner doesn’t make me lose complete faith in humanity.  The Dark Knight won “Favorite Movie” as one of five awards it took home to decorate the bathroom.

My personal favorite categories are “Favorite Leading Man” and “Favorite Male Movie Star.”  Strangely enough, the same person didn’t win both awards.  Will Smith and Brad Pitt split the “oh, hey, I recognize that guy” votes.

In the female category, Reese Witherspoon enjoyed a repeat victory from last year’s “Favorite Female Movie Star.”  I doubt any one of the voters could tell me what Witherspoon starred in during 2007.  (It was called Rendition)  This year, however, she was more shrill than ever in Four Christmases, a role that is being considered for a Razzie or “Worst Actress in 2008.”  The logic is baffling.

Meanwhile, Kate Hudson won for the redundant “Leading Lady” and I can’t decide which awful movie she was worse in.  Fool’s Gold or My Best Friend’s Girl.  If you guessed the secret “it doesn’t matter” answer, you’re right!

Here are your winners, because after all you’re the people!

Movie: The Dark Knight

Family Movie: WALL-E

Action Movie: The Dark Knight

Movie Comedy: 27 Dresses

Movie Drama: The Secret Life of Bees

Independent Movie: The Secret Life of Bees

Favorite Movie Cast: The Dark Knight (Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart, Michael Caine, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman)

Male Movie Star: Will Smith

Leading Man: Brad Pitt

Male Action Star: Will Smith

Female Movie Star: Reese Witherspoon

Leading Lady: Kate Hudson

Female Action Star: Angelina Jolie

On-Screen Match Up: Christian Bale and Heath Ledger (The Dark Knight)

Superhero: Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne/Batman

The trophies covered favorite cast, favortie superhero, best action movie and most successful on-screen matchup that pitted Christian Bale’s Batman and the late Heath Ledger’s Joker in the what critics are calling the best hero/villain portrayal to ever hit the silver screen.

Upon excepting the crowning awared for Best Action Movie Bale held it high and shouted to the viewing audience — “On behalf of all of the cast from the movie, thank you very much to the fans….Here’s to Heath!”

Other award winners of the night included singer Carrie Underwood, actors Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, Adam Sandler, Kate Hudson, Robin Williams, Hugh Laurie, Reese Witherspoon and comedienne/TV host Ellen DeGeneres.

[AP Photo: Christian Bale accepts 1 of 5 awards for The Dark Knight]

“Thank you very, very much,” said Bale, flanked by Aaron Eckhart and director Christopher Nolan,  upon accepting the evening’s top award. “And on behalf of all of the cast from the movie, thank you very much to the fans. Here’s to Heath, thank you.”

This may be the first year in a long while (since Gladiator maybe?) that the People’s Choice and Oscar may have some crossover.  Of course, the fate of The Dark Knight is still up in the air, but the film went five for five at the People’s Choice awards.  It isn’t surprising, as the film made $530 million.  Thems a lot of fans.

"The Dark Knight" won Favorite Movie and Favorite Action Movie. The film's cast also won Favorite Cast, while Christian Bale and Heath Ledger were named Favorite Onscreen Match Up.

"27 Dresses" picked up the Favorite Comedy Movie (you're kidding, right?), while "The Secret Life of Bees" won Favorite Movie Drama and Favorite Independent Movie. "WALL-E" was named Favorite Family Movie.

Will Smith is the Favorite Male Movie Star, and Reese Witherspoon is the Favorite Female Movie Star. Also, Angelina Jolie is the Favorite Female Action Star, and Brad Pitt is the...zzzzzzzz....

This is making me sleepy. Just check out the rest of them here.

Mostly odd results I must say. Then again, why bother? These awards are not important anyway.

Variety breaks it.  The British Academy of Film and Television’s long list — it seems like we used to really crunch the numbers with BAFTA but after a while it became clear that there wasn’t much of a similarity between the Oscars and the BAFTA — but it is fun anyway.  Here are the nominees on the long list:

In what promises to be a tight race for BAFTA gold this year, nine films boast 10 or more longlist noms. “Slumdog Millionaire,” “The Reader,” “Revolutionary Road,” “Changeling” and “The Dark Knight” boast 13 noms apiece and “Milk” and “Burn After Reading” sport 11. Last year, “Atonement” collected 17 longlist noms, four ahead of the next best contenders.

The BAFTA longlists include 15 contenders in each category, from which the five nominees will be chosen in the second round of voting. Once the nominees are finalized, the whole membership votes again to decide the best film, four acting prizes and film not in the English language.  In all remaining categories, the members of each chapter (or jury) determine the vote.

Longlist for the British Academy Film Awards:

BEST FILM
“The Boy in the Striped Pajamas”
“Burn After Reading”
“Changeling”
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
“The Dark Knight ”
“Doubt”
“Frost/Nixon”
“In Bruges”
“I’ve Loved You So Long”
“Milk”
“The Reader”
“Revolutionary Road”
“Slumdog Millionaire”
“Wall-E”
“The Wrestler”

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
“The Baader Meinhof Complex”
“The Boy in the Striped Pajamas”
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
“The Dark Knight ”
“Dean Spanley”
“Defiance”
“Doubt”
“The Duchess”
“Frost/Nixon ”
“Gomorrah”
“Mamma Mia!”
“Persepolis”
“The Reader”
“Revolutionary Road”
“Slumdog Millionaire”

DIRECTOR
“The Boy in the Striped Pajamas”
“Burn After Reading”
“Changeling”
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
“The Dark Knight ”
“Doubt”
“Frost/Nixon”
“Hunger”
“In Bruges”
“I’ve Loved You So Long”
“Milk”
“The Reader”
“Revolutionary Road”
“Slumdog Millionaire”
“The Wrestler”

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
“Burn After Reading”
“Changeling”
“Che Part One”
“Happy-Go-Lucky”
“Hunger”
“In Bruges”
“I’ve Loved You So Long”
“Milk”
“Rachel Getting Married”
“Vicky Cristina Barcelona”
“The Visitor”
“W.”
“Wall-E”
“Waltz With Bashir”
“The Wrestler”

MAKE UP & HAIR
“Australia”
“The Boy in the Striped Pajamas”
“Brideshead Revisited”
“Changeling”
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
“The Dark Knight”
“The Duchess”
“Frost/Nixon”
“Mamma Mia!”
“Milk”
“The Reader”
“Revolutionary Road”
“Slumdog Millionaire”
“Tropic Thunder”
“The Wrestler”

VISUAL EFFECTS
“Australia”
“Changeling”
“The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian”
“Cloverfield”
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
“The Dark Knight”
“Hancock”
“Hellboy II: The Golden Army”
“Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull”
“Iron Man”
“Quantum of Solace”
“Slumdog Millionaire”
“Tropic Thunder”
“Wall-E”
“Waltz With Bashir”

SOUND
“Australia”
“Burn After Reading”
“Changeling”
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
“The Dark Knight”
“Frost/Nixon”
“In Bruges”
“Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull”
“Iron Man”
“Mamma Mia!”
“Quantum of Solace”
“The Reader”
“Revolutionary Road”
“Slumdog Millionaire”
“Wall-E”

EDITING
“The Boy in the Striped Pajamas”
“Burn After Reading”
“Changeling”
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
“The Dark Knight”
“Doubt”
“Frost/Nixon”
“In Bruges”
“Man on Wire”
“Milk”
“Quantum of Solace”
“The Reader”
“Revolutionary Road”
“Slumdog Millionaire”
“The Wrestler”

COSTUME DESIGN
“Australia”
“The Boy in the Striped Pajamas”
“Brideshead Revisited”
“Changeling”
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
“The Dark Knight”
“The Duchess”
“Frost/Nixon”
“Mamma Mia!”
“Milk”
“The Reader”
“Revolutionary Road”
“Sex and the City”
“Slumdog Millionaire”
“The Wrestler”

PRODUCTION DESIGN
“Australia”
“The Boy in the Striped Pajamas”
“Brideshead Revisited”
“Changeling”
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
“The Dark Knight”
“The Duchess”
“Frost/Nixon”
“Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull”
“Mamma Mia!”
“Milk”
“Quantum of Solace”
“The Reader”
“Revolutionary Road”
“Slumdog Millionaire”

CINEMATOGRAPHY
“Australia”
“Changeling”
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
“The Dark Knight”
“Doubt”
“The Duchess”
“Frost/Nixon”
“In Bruges”
“Mamma Mia!”
“Milk”
“Quantum of Solace”
“The Reader”
“Revolutionary Road”
“Slumdog Millionaire”
“The Wrestler”

ANIMATED FILM
“Kung Fu Panda”
“Persepolis”
“The Tale of Despereaux”
“Wall-E”
“Waltz With Bashir”

MUSIC
“Australia”
“Burn After Reading”
“Changeling”
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
“The Dark Knight”
“The Duchess”
“Frost/Nixon”
“Mamma Mia!”
“Milk”
“Quantum of Solace”
“The Reader”
“Revolutionary Road”
“Slumdog Millionaire”
“The Visitor”
“Wall-E”

LEADING ACTOR
Benicio del Toro - “Che Part One”
Brad Pitt - “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
Christian Bale - “The Dark Knight”
Colin Farrell - “In Bruges”
Dev Patel - “Slumdog Millionaire”
Frank Langella - “Frost/Nixon”
George Clooney - “Burn After Reading”
Javier Bardem - “Vicky Cristina Barcelona”
Josh Brolin- “W.”
Leonardo DiCaprio - “Revolutionary Road”
Michael Fassbender — “Hunger”
Michael Sheen - “Frost/Nixon”
Mickey Rourke - “The Wrestler”
Richard Jenkins- “The Visitor”
Sean Penn - “Milk”

LEADING ACTRESS
Angelina Jolie - “Changeling”
Anne Hathaway - “Rachel Getting Married”
Cate Blanchett - “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
Frances McDormand - “Burn After Reading”
Kate Winslet - “Revolutionary Road”
Kate Winslet - “The Reader”
Keira Knightley - “The Duchess”
Kristen Scott Thomas - “I’ve Loved You So Long”
Meryl Streep - “Mamma Mia!”
Meryl Streep - “Doubt”
Nicole Kidman - “Australia”
Penelope Cruz - “Elegy”
Rebecca Hall - “Vicky Cristina Barcelona”
Sally Hawkins - “Happy-Go-Lucky”
Scarlett Johansson - “Vicky Cristina Barcelona”

SUPPORTING ACTOR
Brad Pitt - “Burn After Reading”
Brendan Gleeson - “In Bruges”
David Kross - “The Reader”
Eddie Marsan - “Happy-Go-Lucky”
Heath Ledger - “The Dark Knight”
John Malkovich - “Burn After Reading”
John Malkovich - “Changeling”
Josh Brolin - “Milk”
Kevin Bacon - “Frost/Nixon”
Peter O’Toole - “Dean Spanley”
Philip Seymour Hoffman - “Doubt”
Ralph Fiennes - “The Duchess”
Ralph Fiennes - “In Bruges”
Ralph Fiennes - “The Reader”
Robert Downey Jr. - “Tropic Thunder”

SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Adams - “Doubt”
Charlotte Rampling - “The Duchess”
Elsa Zylberstein - “I’ve Loved You So Long”
Emma Thompson- “Brideshead Revisited”
Freida Pinto - “Slumdog Millionaire”
Judi Dench - “Quantum of Solace”
Julie Walters - “Mamma Mia!”
Kathy Bates - “Revolutionary Road”
Marisa Tomei - “The Wrestler”
Penélope Cruz - “Vicky Cristina Barcelona”
Rebecca Hall - “Frost/Nixon”
Tilda Swinton - “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
Tilda Swinton - “Burn After Reading”
Vera Farmiga - “The Boy in the Striped Pajamas”
Viola Davis - “Doubt”

Below are some pictures of the Terminator action figures, courtesy of Slashfilm.  I can’t wait to make them have sex with my sister’s Barbies.  Warning: Action figures may contain minor spoilers if you haven’t seen the trailer.

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Here is a list of my most anticipated movies of 2009. Enjoy!

15. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

I have Harry Potter here at the last place, because I really wanted it on my list, but my expectations seem to be fading away with every new release. This time especially because Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince is directed by David Yates, who has also directed Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, which was definitely the worst of the series. I´m a huge fan of the films, but after Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban the movies just haven´t been evolving very much.

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14. Nine
There are two reasons why this film is on my list; first of all, it is inspired by one of my all time favorite films, Fellini’s 8½, and secondly because it stars my favorite actor Daniel Day-Lewis, who plays a world famous film director Guido Contini as he prepares his latest picture, and balances the numerous women in his life. It is on 14th place because I don´t completely trust the director Rob Marshall…

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13. Coraline

Coraline is an animated film directed by Henry Selick, produced by Tim Burton. These are the same guys who made The Nightmare Before Christmas, so it is obvious that the film will look awesome! And if that’s enough, it is based on a great horror novella by Neil Gaiman. I´m sold!

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12. The Informant

To be honest, I don´t know that much about this film, other than it is directed by Steven Soderbergh, described as a dark comedy thriller and Matt Damon gained alot of weight for the leading role. Sounds good to me.

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11. Monster vs. Aliens
The year 2009 will definitely be a great year for animation features, and this one takes the lead as the most unique and interesting animated movie of the year. It has a satire quality about it and will definitely be enjoyable, not only to kids but to the adults as well. Or at least to the adults.

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10. Terminator Salvation

I really like the trailer and the fact that Christian Bale is playing John Connor, but I´m terrified by the fact that it is directed by McG, which usually doesn´t mean good things… Anyway, it’s on 10th place, because the trailer gave me the chills.

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9. The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

This is a really interesting one - an upcoming fantasy film directed by Terry Gilliam. Heath Ledger starred in the film, though Ledger’s death halfway through the filming caused production to be temporarily suspended. Ledger’s role was recast with Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell portraying transformations of Ledger’s character Tony as he travels through a dream world. The movie tells a story about a travelling theater company that gives its audience much more than they were expecting for. Weird stuff, I love it!

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8. Sherlock Holmes

Let´s face it, Guy Ritchie has done only two good movies in his career, and it was about time that he tried something new. Not only did he decide to do something new, he went all the way and surprised us all with a period piece of one of the most known charecters in the world. I also want to give Guy Ritchie credit for casting Robert Downey Jr. for the role of Sherlock Holmes. I can´t wait to see this one!

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7. The Fighter

Unfortunately I haven´t seen Darren Aronofsky´s The Wrestler yet, but I´m super psyched about it and since these two films are a pair, I´m also psyched about The Fighter. The first one is about Randy “The Ram” Robinson and stars Mickey Rourke. The second one is about “Irish” Micky Ward and stars Mark Wahlberg. Let´s get ready to rumble!

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6. Avatar
This is the film that everyone is waiting for! Why? It´s directed by James Cameron and… Well who cares! The hype is on!

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5. Watchmen

I have mixed feelings about this one, I´m sort of expecting the worst. I love the comic, but I´m not totally convicsed of the director Zack Snyder. His previous film, 300, was only “ok”, so let´s hope for the best. The new trailer looks pretty good though.

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4. Star Trek

Well… It´s Star Trek.

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3. Public Enemies

Public Enemies is a gangster period movie directed by Michael Mann and starring Christian Bale and Johnny Depp as FBI agent Melvin Purvis and gangster John Dillinger. Sounds awesome!!!

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2. Shutter Island

Shutter Island (also known as Ashecliffe) is a new thriller from the director Martin Scorsese, and the leading role is once again played by Leonardo DiCaprio. That´s all I need, I´m totally sold. The film is based on the 2003 novel Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane. In the story two U.S. marshals investigate the disappearance of a patient from a hospital for the criminally insane, on an island in Massachusetts.

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1. Inglourious Basterds

And finally, the first place goes to Quentin Tarantino’s World War 2 epic. It was only a matter of time when Tarantino made his own “spaghetti-western” - and here it is. Inglourious Basterds has a huge ensemble cast, including Brad Pitt, and music by Ennio Morricone. The release date in the U.S is set to be 21st of August, hopefully it will be available to the rest of the world as soon as possible.

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Movies that didn´t make the list (but are still very interesting)

The Lovely Bones, directed by Peter Jackson

Black Dynamite, directed by Scott Sanders

The Road, directed by John Hillcoat

Up, directed by Pete Docter & Bob Peterson

X-Men Origins: Wolverine, directed by Gavin Hood

Green Zone, directed by Paul Greengrass

9, directed by Shane Acker

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Do you think something is missing from these films? Drop a comment below and share your views!

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