Column:

An Oscar-worthy guide to fall films

By Thomas Leonard

Published Oct. 13, 2009

Ah, fall. The only thing better than the arrival of sweater weather is the onslaught of fabulous films vying for Oscar buzz or holiday box office sales. This coming season is no exception and with a milieu of Academy-worthy film events, the coming months are sure to have something for everyone at the art house or the megaplex. We've put together a fall movie survival guide with the top three reasons why you should be excited about movies this autumn.

Rising Teen Stars

The leading ladies everyone's talking about this year are not Meryl Streep or Kate Winslet but two teen gals sure to dazzle. The first is the gorgeous Carey Mulligan, charming audiences abroad with her role as Oxford-bound go-getter gone gaga for a dashing middle-aged dandy (Peter Sarsgaard) in the Nick Hornby ("High Fidelity," "About a Boy") penned "An Education."

Gabourey Sidibe might give Mulligan a run for her money with her powerhouse performance in "Precious," in which she digs deep into the role of Precious, an overweight and illiterate teen mother living in Harlem with her abusive mother (an impressive Mo'Nique). The intense subject matter and knock-out performances, not to mention backing from producer Oprah, have catapulted "Precious" to the top of the must-see list. Both films will be in Columbia this November.

The Star-Studded Musical

Director Rob Marshall revived the musical genre in 2003 with "Chicago," and won big at the Oscars. He's doing it again, but this time it's even bigger, brighter and with more names. Daniel Day Lewis stars as Fredrico Fellini in "Nine," the film adaptation of a Broadway hit show loosely based on legendary Italian filmmaker Fellini's midlife crisis and iconic movie "8 1/2."

If this doesn't already have the Academy drooling, a slew of women from Judi Dench to Penelope Cruz show up for this big budget song and dance explosion. Boys can ogle at Kate Hudson's scantily clad body during a dance routine; film buffs can debate Fellini's controversial body of work and drunk Aunt Cathy will be belting the songs the rest of the holiday weekend. "Nine" will surely be a must-see flick this Thanksgiving.

The Clooney Factor

No one is getting more screen time this season than George Clooney. Playing everyone from a jet-setting consultant to an animated fox, real-life fox George Clooney is poised to be competing with himself this awards season. First up, Clooney plays schmoozing businessman Ryan Bingham as he grapples with isolation and loneliness in "Up in the Air" (filmed in St. Louis).

In November, Clooney gets comedic, heading a top-secret military unit attempting to harness psychic powers in "The Men Who Stare at Goats."

Later that month, Clooney gets animated for indie-hero Wes Anderson's ("The Royal Tenenbaums") foray into stop-motion with an adaptation of Roald Dahl's "The Fantastic Mr. Fox."

Whether swooning over foxy George Clooney or tearing up at "Precious," there's no reason not to be excited about movies this fall. And with the Academy expanding the best picture race to 10 nominations, the competition is heated and award season is promising to be anything but boring.