The awards-giving season in the U.S. has already started as various critics announced their best of the year, to culminate in the Oscar Awards in February.

Here are the choices of various critics that might as well influence the Academy when they vote for the choices in the 2009 Oscar Awards:

San Diego Critics Society

Best Director:
Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire)

Best Picture:
Slumdog Millionaire

Best Actor:
Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler)

Best Actress:
Kate Winslet (The Reader)

Southeastern Film Critics Association

Best Director:
Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire)

Best Actress:
Anne Hathaway (Rachel Getting Married)

Best Actor:
Sean Penn (Milk)

Best Picture:
Milk

Austin Film Critics Association

Best Director:
Christopher Nolan (Dark Knight)

Best Actress:
Anne Hathaway (Rachel Getting Married)

Best Actor:
Sean Penn (Milk)

Best Picture:
The Dark Knight

Phoenix Film Critics Society

Best Director:
Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire)

Best Actress:
Meryl Streep (Doubt)

Best Actor:
Sean Penn (Milk)

Best Picture:
Slumdog Millionaire

Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics

Best Director:
Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire)

Best Actress:
Anne Hathaway (Rachel Getting Married)

Best Actor:
Sean Penn (Milk)

Best Picture:
Slumdog Millionaire

Toronto Film Critics

Best Director:
Jonathan Demme (Rachel Getting Married)

Best Actress:
Michelle Williams (Wendy & Lucy)

Best Actor:
Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler)

Best Picture:
Wendy & Lucy

Washington DC Film Critics

Best Director:
Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire)

Best Actress:
Meryl Streep (Doubt)

Best Actor:
Mickey Rourke (Wrestler)

Best Picture:
Slumdog Millionaire

New York Films Critics

Best Director:
Mike Leigh (Happy Go Lucky)

Best Actress:
Sally Hawkins (Happy Go Lucky)

Best Actor:
Sean Penn (Milk)

Best Picture:
Milk

Los Angeles Film Critics

Best Director:
Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire)

Best Actress:
Sally Hawkins (Happy Go Lucky)

Best Actor:
Sean Penn (Milk)

Best Picture:
Disney Pixar’s “Wall-E”

National Board of Review

Best Director:
David Fincher (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button)

Best Actress: Anne Hathaway (Rachel Getting Married)

Best Actor:
Clint Eastwood (Gran Torino)

Best Picture:
Slumdog Millionaire

Although there is no consensus in the Best Picture category that even the animated film Wall-E and the superhero movie The Dark Knight each won a critic award for Best Picture, the critics seem to have been united in other categories.

As you can see, the ones with the most number of wins are Danny Boyle as Best Director for “Slumdog Millionaire,” Anne Hathaway as Best Actress in “Rachel Getting Married” (she plays Rachel’s drug addictred sister) and Sean Penn as Best Actor in “Milk” (he plays the first openly gay public official to be elected in California).

So mark those names (Danny Boyle, Anne Hattaway and Sean Penn) as they will be the front-runners in the 2009 Academy Awards.