Oscars: November 2007 Archives

By STEPHEN GALLOWAY

A bleak, even nihilistic, worldview pervades many of the movies contending for the 80th Academy Awards, a direct reflection of the social and political turmoil roiling the United States.

‘‘A lot of filmmakers are gravitating toward a dark world these days because we are in a state of gravity in our lives,’’ says Craig Zadan, who, along with Neil Meron, produced one of the few upbeat awards season contenders in New Line’s musical ‘‘Hairspray.’’ ‘‘The war and everything connected to it has put everybody in a very sober mood, and in talking to filmmakers, I see that everybody is leaning toward being very serious.’’

No kidding...

By SANDY COHEN

LOS ANGELES — Without the quips between celebrity presenters, inside jokes about the entertainment industry and skits that poke fun at stars behaving badly, awards shows would be little more than shiny trophies and long lists of names.

That could be the case for some of the shows in Hollywood’s fabled awards season this year if the Writers Guild of America remains on strike for several months. ...

By STEVEN ZEITCHIK

NEW YORK — The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Thursday released a list of the 12 films that are eligible to compete for the best animated feature Oscar.