Trailer - Animated Oscar Nominee 'Secret of Kells'

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say you probably didn't have The Secret of Kells on your Oscar predictions list for Best Animated Feature. It more than likely supplanted the crowd-pleasing Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and also leapfrogged 9 and a very expensive Monsters vs. Aliens to wind up in the final five...but what the hell is it? The Secret of Kells is about The Book of Kells, one of the many treasures for which Western culture owes a huge debt of gratitude to 9th century Irish monks. The book is the four Gospels of the New Testament, which is richly illustrated and has been well-preserved for over a millennium. Aside from the religious aspect, Kells is one of the most important surviving pieces of art from the medieval period. Here's the trailer for the film, which doesn't have a great shot at winning Best Animated, since Up was also nominated for Best Picture. It just stands to reason that it takes the cartoon category hands down, right? Whether by design or just extremly good fortune, The Book of Kells will be released next month, around the time of the Oscars. It played just long enough to be considered for Academy Awards consideration in December but it should get a slightly larger opportunity in March.