TheWrap Picks the Oscar Contenders

Now he's got Javier Bardem playing a criminal whose life becomes complicated when he runs into an old friend, who happens to be a policeman. Sounds good.

AVATAR (Fox, Dec. 18)

James Cameron -- once the king of the world -- is back with what he promises will be a game-changing dive into 3-D and moviemaking in general. Nobody's seen anything, but the buzz, based only on bloggers and chat rooms, is deafening. It's amazing to think that "Titanic" was 12 years ago. Cameron has directed nothing since then. But that's exactly the point: No movie will get more of a free ride in the mass media and blogosphere based on the backstory alone. Now just think what will happen if it's as good as Cameron says it is.

UP (Disney-Pixar, already released)

The exact same discussion always bubbles up come Oscar time: Can an animated film get a Best Picture nomination -- the first since "Beauty and the Beast?" If it can, then any Pixar title is usually the one to go with. Problem is, "Wall-E," which many consider to be Pixar's finest, couldn't even land a spot, so while "Up" is certainly a B.O. fave and a major critics' darling, it will probably have a hard time getting into the top five.

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