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The year 2008 involved many major film events.The Dark Knight was the year's highest-grossing film, whileSlumdog Millionaire won theAcademy Award for Best Picture (out ofeight Academy Awards).
2008 has been widely considered to be a very significant year for cinema.
The entertainment agency websiteIGN described 2008 as "one of the biggest years ever for movies." It stated, "2008 was the year when the comic book movie genre not only hits its zenith, but also gained critical respectability thanks toThe Dark Knight. Animated films also proved a huge draw for filmgoers, with Pixar'sWALL-E becoming not only the highest grossing toon but also the most lauded. Things got off on the right foot with the monster movie madness ofCloverfield. Marvel got down to business laying the groundwork for their superhero team-upThe Avengers with the blockbuster hitIron Man and their respectable attempt at rebootingThe Incredible Hulk. The games-to-film genre took a hit this year, with onlyMax Payne proving to be a worthy adaptation of the source material. We also saw the highly anticipated big-screen returns of iconic characters likeBatman,James Bond, andIndiana Jones – some were more successful than others."[1]
The film industry and review websiteIndieWire described 2008 as "a stellar year for movies" that "gave us tons of unforgettable classics" such asThe Wrestler,4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days andChe.[2]
The top 10 films released in 2008 by worldwide gross are as follows:[3]
| Rank | Title | Distributor | Worldwide gross |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Dark Knight | Warner Bros. | $997,000,000[4][nb 1] |
| 2 | Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull | Paramount | $786,636,033 |
| 3 | Kung Fu Panda | $631,744,560 | |
| 4 | Hancock | Sony | $629,443,428 |
| 5 | Mamma Mia! | Universal | $609,841,637 |
| 6 | Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa | Paramount | $603,900,354 |
| 7 | Quantum of Solace | Sony | $589,580,482 |
| 8 | Iron Man | Paramount | $585,796,247 |
| 9 | WALL-E | Disney | $521,311,860 |
| 10 | The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian | $419,665,568 |
For 2008, the top ten films consisted of threesuperhero films, threeanimated films, threeaction films and onemusical film.
| Month | Day | Event |
| January | 7 | Due to the2007–2008 Writers Guild of America Strike,NBC and theHollywood Foreign Press Association scrap plans to hold its 65thGolden Globe Awards ceremony and instead hold a press conference announcing the winners |
| 13 | The65th Golden Globe Awards winners were announced. | |
| 16 | The 61stBAFTA Awards nominations were announced withAtonement the leading film with 14 nominations closely followed byNo Country for Old Men andThere Will Be Blood, both with 7 nominations | |
| 17 – 27 | The26th Sundance Film Festival is opened with the worldpremiere ofMartin McDonagh'sIn Bruges and screens over 120 films. TheGrand Jury andAudience Award prizes are awarded toFrozen River andThe Wackness, respectively. The festival is closed by the world premiere ofBernard Shakey'sCSNY/Déjà Vu | |
| 22 | The80thAcademy Awards nominations were announced withNo Country for Old Men andThere Will Be Blood the leading films with 8 nominations each, closely followed byAtonement andMichael Clayton, both with 7 | |
| The Oscar-nominated actorHeath Ledger, 28, is found dead at his home in Manhattan, New York City, from an accidental prescription pills overdose. | ||
| 23 – 3 | The 37thRotterdam International Film Festival is opened with the world premiere of Lucía Cedrón's narrative feature-film debutLamb of God (Cordero de Dios). | |
| 26 | The 60thDirectors Guild of America Award dinner is held in the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza, Los Angeles. TheOutstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film prize is awarded toJoel and Ethan Coen | |
| 27 | The 14thScreen Actors Guild Awards ceremony is held in the Shrine Exposition Center, Los Angeles. | |
| February | 7 – 17 | The 58thBerlin International Film Festival is opened with the world premiere ofMartin Scorsese'sShine a Light and screens over 350 films. TheGolden Bear prize is awarded toElite Squad. TheSilver Bear prizes are awarded toPaul Thomas Anderson,Best Director,Reza Naji,Best Actor andSally Hawkins,Best Actress. The festival is closed by the international premiere ofMichel Gondry'sBe Kind Rewind |
| 8 | The35th Annie Awards ceremony is held in the UCLA's Royce Hall, Los Angeles. TheBest Animated Feature prize is awarded toRatatouille | |
| 9 | The 60thWriters Guild of America Awards are announced in a brief statement. TheBest Adapted Screenplay andBest Original Screenplay prizes are awarded toJoel and Ethan Coen (No Country for Old Men) andDiablo Cody (Juno), respectively | |
| 10 | The61st BAFTA Awards ceremony is held in the Royal Opera House, London.Anthony Hopkins is honoured with theAcademy Fellowship. | |
| 12 | The members of theWGA agree a three-year deal with theAMPTP and vote to end the 3-month2007–2008 Writers Guild of America Strike | |
| 23 | The28th Golden Raspberry Awards ceremony is held in Santa Monica, California. | |
| The 23rdIndependent Spirit Awards ceremony is broadcast. TheBest Film award is given toJuno. TheBest Actor andBest Actress awards are given toPhilip Seymour Hoffman andElliot Page respectively | ||
| 24 | The80th Academy Awards ceremony is held in the Kodak Theatre, Hollywood. | |
| March | 3 | The28th Genie Awards |
| 9 | The13th Empire Awards is held in theGrosvenor House Hotel in London, England. | |
| 13 – 21 | 7th Tiburon International Film Festival | |
| April | 4 – 13 | 10thSarasota Film Festival |
| 23 – 4 | 7thTribeca Film Festival
| |
| 24 – 8 | 51stSan Francisco International Film Festival | |
| May | ||
| 14 – 25 | Entre les murs wins thePalme d'Or whileGomorrah receives theGrand Prix at theCannes Film Festival. | |
| 22 – 15 | 34thSeattle International Film Festival | |
| 26 | Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull earns $126 million in the United States and Canada, becoming the highest-grossing debut of 2008 and the second-highest-grossing for a Memorial Day weekend debut behindPirates of the Caribbean: At World's End. | |
| June | 1 | The2008 MTV Movie Awards winners were announced |
| Amassive fire destroys portions of facilities atUniversal Studios inUniversal City near Los Angeles. | ||
| 14 – 22 | 11thShanghai International Film Festival | |
| 18 | Iron Man becomes the first movie of 2008 to earn $300 million in the United States and Canada. | |
| 18 – 29 | 62ndEdinburgh International Film Festival. The festival launches a new sidebar celebrating the spirit of discovery, including selectionsBigga than Ben,Blood Car,Crack Willow,Spike,Strange Girls, andThe Third Pint.[12] | |
| July | 17 – 26 | 8th EraNew Horizons Film Festival |
| August | 4 | The Dark Knight reached $400 million in record time at 18 days. The previous record was held byShrek 2, which reached it in 43 days.[5] |
| 6 – 16 | 61stLocarno International Film Festival | |
| 21 – 1 | 32ndMontreal World Film Festival | |
| 27 – 6 | 65thVenice International Film Festival | |
| September | 4 – 13 | 33rdToronto International Film Festival |
| 15 – 20 | 33rd Polish Film Festival inGdynia | |
| 18 – 27 | 56thSan Sebastián International Film Festival | |
| 23 – 30 | 6thBangkok International Film Festival | |
| October | 1 – 12 | 16thRaindance Film Festival |
| 15 – 30 | 52ndLondon Film Festival | |
| 18 – 26 | 21stTokyo International Film Festival | |
| November | 18 – 28 | 32ndCairo International Film Festival |
| December | 5 – 14 | 10thJakarta International Film Festival |
| 4 – 14 | 23rdMar del Plata International Film Festival |
Palme d'Or (61st Cannes Film Festival):
Golden Lion (65th Venice International Film Festival):
Golden Bear (58th Berlin International Film Festival):
| Month | Date | Name | Age | Country | Profession | Notable films |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 1 | Peter Caffrey | 58 | Ireland | Actor | |
| 2 | George MacDonald Fraser | 82 | UK | Screenwriter | ||
| 2 | Brice Mack | 90 | US | Background Artist | ||
| 5 | Edward Kłosiński | 65 | Poland | Cinematographer | ||
| 10 | Maila "Vampira" Nurmi | 86 | US | Actress | ||
| 15 | Brad Renfro | 25 | US | Actor | ||
| 18 | Lois Nettleton | 80 | US | Actress | ||
| 19 | Suzanne Pleshette | 70 | US | Actress | ||
| 21 | Russell Lloyd | 92 | UK | Film Editor | ||
| 22 | Kenneth Higgins | 88 | UK | Cinematographer | ||
| 22 | Heath Ledger | 28 | Australia | Actor | ||
| 22 | Kevin Stoney | 87 | UK | Actor | ||
| 25 | Christopher Allport | 60 | US | Actor | ||
| 25 | Louisa Horton | 87 | US | Actress | ||
| February | 2 | Barry Morse | 89 | UK | Actor | |
| 3 | Charles Fawcett | 92 | US | Actor | ||
| 4 | Augusta Dabney | 89 | US | Actress | ||
| 6 | John Alvin | 59 | US | Poster Artist | ||
| 7 | Tamara Desni | 94 | Germany | Actress | ||
| 8 | Eva Dahlbeck | 87 | Sweden | Actress | ||
| 9 | Robert DoQui | 73 | US | Actor | ||
| 10 | Roy Scheider | 75 | US | Actor | ||
| 11 | James Quinn | 88 | UK | Producer | ||
| 12 | Oscar Brodney | 100 | US | Screenwriter | ||
| 12 | David Groh | 68 | US | Actor | ||
| 13 | Kon Ichikawa | 92 | Japan | Director | ||
| 13 | Lionel Mark Smith | 62 | US | Actor | ||
| 14 | Perry Lopez | 76 | US | Actor | ||
| 14 | Trevor Williams | 76 | UK | Production Designer | ||
| 18 | Alain Robbe-Grillet | 85 | France | Screenwriter, Director | ||
| 19 | Mary Barclay | 91 | UK | Actress | ||
| 19 | David Hildyard | 91 | UK | Sound Engineer | ||
| 19 | David Watkin | 82 | UK | Cinematographer | ||
| 22 | Dennis Letts | 73 | US | Actor | ||
| 23 | Carl Pingitore | 84 | US | Film Editor | ||
| 25 | Sidney Beckerman | 87 | US | Producer | ||
| 28 | John Bliss | 77 | US | Actor | ||
| 29 | Gayne Rescher | 83 | US | Cinematographer | ||
| March | 4 | Leonard Rosenman | 83 | US | Composer | |
| 5 | Ronald Pierce | 98 | US | Sound Engineer | ||
| 6 | Alex Sharp | 86 | US | Stuntman, Actor | ||
| 6 | Malvin Wald | 90 | US | Screenwriter | ||
| 7 | Kay Callard | 84 | Canada | Actress | ||
| 7 | George Tyne | 91 | US | Actor | ||
| 16 | Ivan Dixon | 76 | US | Actor, Director | ||
| 18 | Anthony Minghella | 54 | UK | Director, Screenwriter, Producer | ||
| 19 | Arthur C. Clarke | 90 | UK | Screenwriter | ||
| 19 | Paul Scofield | 86 | UK | Actor | ||
| 24 | Rafael Azcona | 81 | Spain | Screenwriter | ||
| 24 | Richard Widmark | 93 | US | Actor | ||
| 25 | Art Aragon | 80 | US | Actor | ||
| 25 | Abby Mann | 80 | US | Screenwriter | ||
| 31 | Jules Dassin | 96 | US | Director | ||
| April | 1 | Mosko Alkalai | 77 | Israel | Actor | |
| 1 | Floyd Simmons | 84 | US | Actor | ||
| 1 | Maury Winetrobe | 85 | US | Film Editor | ||
| 2 | Guy McElwaine | 71 | US | Producer, Executive | ||
| 5 | Charlton Heston | 84 | US | Actor | ||
| 8 | Stanley Kamel | 65 | US | Actor | ||
| 11 | Willoughby Goddard | 81 | UK | Actor | ||
| 14 | Ollie Johnston | 95 | US | Animator | ||
| 14 | June Travis | 93 | US | Actress | ||
| 15 | Hazel Court | 93 | UK | Actress | ||
| 18 | Kay Linaker | 94 | US | Actress, Screenwriter | ||
| 18 | Joy Page | 83 | US | Actress | ||
| 23 | Dave Atkins | 67 | UK | Actor | ||
| 24 | Tristram Cary | 82 | UK | Composer | ||
| 28 | Alan Jaggs | 90 | UK | Film Editor | ||
| 29 | Julie Ege | 64 | Norway | Actress | ||
| May | 1 | Bernard Archard | 91 | UK | Actor | |
| 1 | Terry Duggan | 76 | UK | Actor | ||
| 2 | Beverlee McKinsey | 72 | US | Actress | ||
| 4 | Fred Haines | 72 | US | Screenwriter, Director | ||
| 8 | Dorothy Green | 88 | US | Actress | ||
| 12 | Robert Russell | 71 | UK | Actor | ||
| 12 | Claudio Undari | 73 | Italy | Actor | ||
| 13 | Jill Adams | 77 | UK | Actress | ||
| 13 | John Phillip Law | 70 | US | Actor | ||
| 14 | John Forbes-Robertson | 80 | UK | Actor | ||
| 15 | Alexander Courage | 88 | US | Orchestrator, Composer | ||
| 15 | Hanna Hertelendy | 88 | Hungary | Actress | ||
| 16 | Sandy Howard | 80 | US | Director, Producer | ||
| 18 | Joseph Pevney | 96 | US | Director | ||
| 22 | Harry Lange | 77 | Germany | Production Designer | ||
| 24 | Dick Martin | 86 | US | Actor | ||
| 26 | Sydney Pollack | 73 | US | Director, Producer, Actor | ||
| 28 | Earle Hagen | 88 | US | Composer, Orchestrator | ||
| 29 | Harvey Korman | 81 | US | Actor | ||
| June | 2 | Bo Diddley | 79 | US | Actor, Musician | |
| 2 | Mel Ferrer | 90 | US | Actor, Director | ||
| 7 | Dino Risi | 91 | Italy | Director, Screenwriter | ||
| 11 | Jean Desailly | 87 | France | Actor | ||
| 15 | Sydney J. Bartholomew Jr. | 54 | US | Production Designer | ||
| 15 | Stan Winston | 62 | US | Makeup Artist | ||
| 17 | Henry Beckman | 86 | Canada | Actor | ||
| 17 | Cyd Charisse | 86 | US | Actress, Dancer | ||
| 18 | Jean Delannoy | 100 | France | Director | ||
| 22 | George Carlin | 71 | US | Actor, Comedian | ||
| 22 | Dody Goodman | 93 | US | Actress | ||
| 23 | John Furlong | 75 | US | Actor | ||
| 24 | William Vince | 45 | Canada | Producer | ||
| 26 | Lilyan Chauvin | 82 | France | Actress | ||
| 29 | Don S. Davis | 67 | US | Actor | ||
| July | 1 | Adele Palmer | 92 | US | Costume Designer | |
| 2 | Elizabeth Spriggs | 78 | UK | Actress | ||
| 4 | Evelyn Keyes | 91 | US | Actress | ||
| 6 | Nonna Mordyukova | 82 | Russia | Actress | ||
| 7 | Bruce Conner | 74 | US | Director | ||
| 8 | Harry Spalding | 95 | Canada | Screenwriter | ||
| 9 | Charles H. Joffe | 78 | US | Producer | ||
| 17 | Larry Haines | 89 | US | Actor | ||
| 22 | Greg Burson | 59 | US | Voice Actor | ||
| 22 | Patrick Connor | 81 | UK | Actor | ||
| 22 | Estelle Getty | 84 | US | Actress | ||
| 27 | Youssef Chahine | 82 | Egypt | Director | ||
| 27 | Marisa Merlini | 84 | Italy | Actress | ||
| 29 | Luther Davis | 91 | US | Screenwriter | ||
| August | 1 | Gertan Klauber | 76 | UK | Actor | |
| 7 | Bernie Brillstein | 77 | US | Producer | ||
| 9 | Bernie Mac | 50 | US | Actor, Comedian | ||
| 10 | Isaac Hayes | 65 | US | Actor, Singer, Songwriter | ||
| 11 | George Furth | 75 | US | Actor | ||
| 11 | Terence Rigby | 71 | UK | Actor | ||
| 14 | Robert Jessup | 78 | US | Cinematographer | ||
| 15 | Molly McClure | 89 | US | Actress | ||
| 16 | Roberta Collins | 63 | US | Actress | ||
| 19 | Julius Carry | 56 | US | Actor | ||
| 24 | Morris Sullivan | 91 | US | Producer | ||
| 24 | Peter Sutton | 65 | UK | Sound Engineer | ||
| 25 | Marpessa Dawn | 74 | US | Actor | ||
| 25 | Rita Quigley | 85 | US | Actress | ||
| 31 | Ken Campbell | 66 | UK | Actor | ||
| 31 | Jerry Reed | 71 | US | Actor, Singer | ||
| September | 1 | Michael Pate | 88 | Australia | Actor, Director | |
| 2 | Bill Melendez | 91 | Mexico | Animator, Director, Producer | ||
| 6 | Anita Page | 98 | US | Actress | ||
| 8 | Celia Gregory | 58 | UK | Actress | ||
| 18 | Florestano Vancini | 82 | Italy | Director, Screenwriter | ||
| 19 | David Jones | 74 | UK | Director | ||
| 20 | William Fox | 97 | UK | Actor | ||
| 24 | Irene Dailey | 88 | US | Actress | ||
| 26 | Paul Newman | 83 | US | Actor, Director | ||
| 29 | Louis Guss | 90 | US | Actor | ||
| October | 1 | Robert Arthur | 87 | US | Actor | |
| 5 | Kim Chan | 90 | China | Actor | ||
| 5 | Ken Ogata | 71 | Japan | Actor | ||
| 7 | Peter Copley | 93 | UK | Actor | ||
| 8 | Eileen Herlie | 90 | UK | Actress | ||
| 11 | Vija Artmane | 79 | Latvia | Actress | ||
| 11 | Neal Hefti | 85 | US | Composer | ||
| 11 | Mark Shivas | 70 | UK | Producer | ||
| 11 | Gil Stratton | 86 | US | Actor | ||
| 13 | Guillaume Depardieu | 37 | France | Actor | ||
| 15 | Edie Adams | 81 | US | Actress | ||
| 15 | Nathan Davis | 91 | US | Actor | ||
| 15 | Vicki Graef | 58 | US | Costume Designer | ||
| 18 | Xie Jin | 84 | China | Director | ||
| 19 | Rudy Ray Moore | 81 | US | Actor | ||
| 23 | Gianluigi Braschi | 45 | Italy | Producer | ||
| 24 | Milton Katselas | 75 | US | Director | ||
| 27 | Roy Stewart | 83 | Jamaica | Actor | ||
| 31 | Jonathan Bates | 68 | UK | Sound Engineer | ||
| 31 | John Daly | 71 | UK | Producer | ||
| November | 1 | Yma Sumac | 85 | Peru | Singer, Actress | |
| 5 | B. R. Chopra | 94 | India | Director, Producer | ||
| 5 | Michael Crichton | 66 | US | Screenwriter, Director | ||
| 5 | Michael Higgins | 88 | US | Actor | ||
| 8 | Arthur A. Ross | 88 | US | Screenwriter | ||
| 11 | María Elena Marqués | 81 | Mexico | Actress, Singer | ||
| 17 | Irving Brecher | 94 | US | Screenwriter, Director | ||
| 17 | Ennio De Concini | 84 | Italy | Screenwriter | ||
| 19 | John Michael Hayes | 89 | US | Screenwriter | ||
| 20 | June Vincent | 89 | US | Actress | ||
| 26 | De'Angelo Wilson | 29 | US | Actor | ||
| December | 1 | Paul Benedict | 70 | US | Actor | |
| 2 | Malcolm Cooke | 79 | UK | Film Editor | ||
| 5 | Nina Foch | 84 | Netherlands | Actress | ||
| 5 | Beverly Garland | 82 | US | Actress | ||
| 8 | Robert Prosky | 77 | US | Actor | ||
| 8 | Bob Spiers | 63 | UK | Director | ||
| 12 | Van Johnson | 92 | US | Actor | ||
| 13 | Christine Carère | 78 | France | Actress | ||
| 16 | Sam Bottoms | 53 | US | Actor | ||
| 16 | Richard Coleman | 78 | UK | Actor | ||
| 17 | Paul Greco | 53 | US | Actor | ||
| 18 | John Costelloe | 47 | US | Actor | ||
| 18 | Jack Douglas | 81 | UK | Actor | ||
| 20 | Robert Mulligan | 83 | US | Director | ||
| 21 | Dale Wasserman | 94 | US | Screenwriter | ||
| 24 | Harold Pinter | 78 | UK | Screenwriter, Actor, Director | ||
| 25 | Eartha Kitt | 81 | US | Actress, Singer | ||
| 25 | Ann Savage | 87 | US | Actress | ||
| 30 | Bernie Hamilton | 80 | US | Actor | ||
| 31 | Brad Sullivan | 77 | US | Actor | ||
| 31 | Donald E. Westlake | 75 | Mexico | Screenwriter |
