The shine isn’t even off the 2008 Academy Awards yet, but I say on to 2009! What? No point dwelling in the past. While it’s still an entire year until the next set of statuettes gets handed out, it’s never too early to be totally wrong with your Academy Award predictions. Here’s a quick look at 10 upcoming projects that caught my eye and maybe, possibly, with any luck, might catch Oscar’s eye as well.

The Argentine/Guerilla: An ambitious two-film project by Steven Soderbergh about Latin American revolutionary Che Guevara, starring Benicio Del Toro, Franka Potente, Benjamin Bratt and Catalina Sandino Moreno. Viva la revolucion!

Australia: Moulin Rouge maestro Baz Luhrmann returns with an epic love story set during World War II, about an English aristocrat (Nicole Kidman) who teams with a ranch hand (Hugh Jackman) to herd cattle across the outback. Sounds like Far and Away meets City Slickers. I kid, I kid.

Burn After Reading: All you need to know is Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Tilda Swinton, Frances McDormand and John Malkovich in a political comedy-thriller about top-secret CIA information falling into the wrong hands — and it's directed by the Coen brothers. Yes, please.

The Changeling: Angelina Jolie may get her 2008 Oscar snub revenge with this Clint Eastwood–directed Prohibition-era thriller about a woman whose kidnapped son is returned, but he could be the wrong child. Clint has been money when it comes to Oscar nominations these past few years, so Angelina, start thinking up a snappy speech. … continue reading

It's movie poster time! (And you know what that really means: I'm too tired to actually write.)

First, Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day:

The linster blogged about this one a while ago. In the poster, Frances McDormand doesn't really look shocked — more like intrigued. That could be wishful thinking on my part.

Next, Nim's Island:

I love the trailer and am looking forward to the movie, but why does Jodie Foster look so weird in the poster? Her face has been softened or something. I don't like it.

Next, Mercedes, which I hadn't heard of before today. … continue reading

Some actresses — Meryl Streep, Susan Sarandon and Michelle Pfeiffer come to mind — have the power to get me to the movie theater just because they're in a film, regardless of its reviews. Frances McDormand is one of my favorites in that category.

Although McDormand has enjoyed a long career, I first noticed her — as did many people — when she played pregnant police chief Marge Gunderson in Fargo.

She is the quintessential character actress, whose talent for playing smart, tough women with dry wit and a very direct manner often lands her in strong supporting roles. (OK, she wasn't so smart in Blood Simple, but that was her first movie, so give her a break.) I loved her portrayal of Jane, who designed trendy and expensive clothing but couldn't be bothered with washing her hair, in Friends With Money.

But I'm always happy to see her take the lead, as she does in the upcoming Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day. … continue reading

I just read that Angela Bassett has joined the cast of Nothing but the Truth, a political drama loosely based on the Valerie Plame scandal.

Bassett is busy these days. According to IMDb.com, she has two movies (Gospel Hill and Of Boys and Men) in post-production, two (Truth and Meet the Browns) currently filming, and one (Toussaint) in pre-production. And I couldn't be happier. As Siege noted recently on the blog, smart women are hot — and Yalie Angela Bassett is both very smart and very hot. I first noticed her as Katherine Jackson in The Jacksons: An American Dream, which used to play on VH1 every 20 minutes or so. And I kept noticing her as her career took off. … continue reading

Nothing but the Truth sounds worth seeing even without Bassett — although it might feel a little too “ripped from the headlines.” Written and directed by Rod Lurie (The Contender), the movie focuses on a reporter (Kate Beckinsale) who is jailed for outing a CIA agent. In a nice bit of optimistic casting, Bassett plays the editor-in-chief of the Washington D.C. newspaper for which Beckinsale writes. How many real-life major-market newspapers are helmed by African-American women? And the ensemble cast is pretty impressive, as well.