Nine films have been shortlisted ahead of nominations for the best foreign film prize at this year's 79th edition of the Academy Awards. China's "Curse of the Golden Flower" is, surprisingly, not found on the list.

Pedro Almodovar's "Volver" was, on Tuesday, named among the nine films. The veteran Spanish director's movie is one of the favourites for the Oscar prize but will have to wait until the January 23 Academy Award nomination announcement to discover whether or not it will make the final five.

Other notable movies included on the shortlist released by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences are Mexico's entry "Pan's Labyrinth", a fantasy from Guillermo Del Toro and Germany's "The Lives of Others".

But a surprise omission was China's "Curse of the Golden Flower". The Zhang Yimou's epic had been tipped to vie for the top prize at the Oscars, which will take place in Hollywood on February 25.

The nine films are:
Algeria, "Days of Glory," Rachid Bouchareb, director;
Canada, "Water," Deepa Mehta, director;
Denmark, "After the Wedding," Susanne Bier, director;
France, "Avenue Montaigne," Daniele Thompson, director;
Germany, "The Lives of Others," Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, director;
Mexico, "Pan's Labyrinth," Guillermo del Toro, director;
The Netherlands, "Black Book," Paul Verhoeven, director;
Spain, "Volver," Pedro Almodovar, director;
Switzerland, "Vitus," Fredi M. Murer, director