A-List Ryan Gosling and Denis Villeneuve Lead List of Canada’s Oscar Nominees

Canadian Oscar nominees Denis Villeneuve and Ryan Gosling pulled away from their jam-packed schedules Tuesday morning to marvel over their Academy Award kudos.

They chatted by phone soon after Villeneuve learned he’d snagged his first directing nomination for the aliens-have-landed thriller Arrival, and Gosling picked up a best acting nod, one of a leading 14 nominations for La La Land.

“We are both proud of each other and happy for each other. It’s quite a nice ride for both of us and I’m very, very happy for what he did,” Villeneuve said from Los Angeles.

“Ryan is a kind of comical genius. He has that sense. He’s a very, very strong actor and I’m very proud of what he did in La La Land.”

Arrival is also up for best picture and six other awards, with several Canadian nominees in categories including production design and sound.

Photo: Lady Police Officer in Philippines Shows Ceremonial Taped Muzzle Of Guns

Lady officers of the Philippine National Police force show the taped muzzle of their guns at a police camp in Taguig City, south of Manila, Philippines, 22 December 2014. Law enforcement units all over the country held a ceremonial taping of firearms as a counter measure against cases of indiscriminate firing and illegal discharge of service weapons during the upcoming Christmas and New Year celebrations.  EPA/FRANCIS R. MALASIG

United Church Minister Ruin Wedding Ceremony In Ontario

Newlyweds Casey and Jessica O'Donnell 

Rosa Marchitelli, CBC News
An investigation by CBC News's Go Public has revealed that ministers from a group called the United National Church  have been performing marriages that aren't necessarily recognized in some Canadian provinces.

Newlyweds Casey and Jessica O'Donnell at first thought they just had a terrible wedding ceremony with awkward pauses and errors. But upon learning more about the man who officiated their ceremony, they're wondering if it was all a bad joke.

"It was brutal. The ceremony anyways. It was painful," said O'Donnell, who lives with his wife in a community just north of Peterborough, Ont..

After setting their wedding date, they were having trouble finding a minister who wasn't already booked for the busy August weekend this year.