Pixar's WALL-E was named best film of the year by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association yesterday, a decision which could see the animated tale about the last robot on Earth break new ground come Oscars time.

According to Variety, it's the first time in the association's 33-year history that an animated film has taken the top prize. The awards are seen as a useful indicator of Oscar success, even though the critics have been out of sync with the Academy in recent years - There Will Be Blood (2007), American Splendor (2003) and About Schmidt (2002) were all named best film by the LA critics but failed to go on to take the Oscar.

Britain's Danny Boyle took best director for Slumdog Millionaire, his tale of a poor teenager from the slums of Mumbai who finds himself one question away from winning the Indian version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? The film has already picked up awards from the National Board of Review and Washington DC critics, suggesting it will be another competitor for honours in February.

In the acting categories, Heath Ledger, widely tipped for a posthumous Oscar for his turn as the Joker in The Dark Knight, took best supporting actor, while Penelope Cruz was named best supporting actress for her portrayal of a Spanish artist caught up in a love triangle in Woody Allen's Vicky Cristina Barcelona. She was also honoured for her work opposite a possessive Ben Kingsley in Elegy, Isabel Coixet's adaptation of a Philip Roth story.

Sally Hawkins won best actress for her performance as an irrepressible primary school teacher in Mike Leigh's Happy-Go-Lucky, while Sean Penn took home best actor for his portrayal of the US's first openly gay elected politician, Harvey Milk, in Gus Van Sant's Milk.

The critics handed their best documentary prize to the Sundance favourite Man On Wire, James Marsh's account of Philippe Petit's audacious 1974 high-wire walk between the World Trade Centre's twin towers, while best foreign language picture went to China's Still Life, Jia Zhangke's record of the struggle of those living along the Yangtze river during the building of the giant Three Gorges dam. The latter also won best cinematographer for Yu Lik-wai's high-definition work.

The 2009 Academy Awards will take place on February 22.