From DreamWorks, it was the top Oscar-winning film of its year (with eight significant nominations and five wins), including Best Picture, Best Director (Mendes), Best Actor (Kevin Spacey), Best Original Screenplay (Alan Ball), and Best Cinematography (Conrad L.It was heir last and best film with the studio.The film was directed by first-class veteran director Leo McCarey (who would go on to directThe Awful Truth (1937),Love Affair (1939),Going My Way (1944), andAn Affair to Remember (1957)- a remake of his 1939 film), and its screenplay was written by Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby (with additional dialogue by Arthur Sheekman and Nat Perrin).It was also the first ime thatX-Menwasn""t part of the film""s title.Director James Mangold stated that the film was a sequel toX-Men: The Last Stand (2006), with a few extended (dream) flashbacks.Through a hidden door in a paint and varnish store, Eddie and Panama enter into a smoky, back-room speakeasy.