The Writers Guild of America bestows its top prizes on The Hurt Locker and Up in the Air...

...will the Academy follow suit? Here's the winners of the WGA Awards:

Original: Mark Boal for The Hurt Locker

Adapted: Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner for Up in the Air

Documentary: The Cove

-Thoughts?

Entertainment Weekly decides to feature Up in the Air on the cover of its first real "Oscar" issue...

...does it mean anything? I don't think so, but you never know. It certainly doesn't hurt visibility for the film, and it shows that it's an "Oscar" film, at least to EW.
-Do you think it means anything?

Behold our Early Reviews of Up in the Air, The Lovely Bones, and Everybody's Fine, along with a review of The Private Lives of Pippa Lee!

Yes, we have a trio of early reviews here at The Awards Circuit that aren't available in many other places. If you're curious about the Oscar chances for either Up in the Air, The Lovely Bones, or Everybody's Fine, you'd do well to read those reviews. Also, we have a new review up of the new release/Oscar hopeful indie flick The Private Lives of Pippa Lee. All these reviews can be found here, so be sure to read them and let us know what you think!
-Thoughts on the early reviews?

A couple of new clips from Up in the Air...

To get you through the week till the film actually comes out:



-I'm seeing the film on Wednesday and absolutely can't wait...thoughts?

Two new clips from 'Up in the Air'

Enjoy:





-I can't wait...

Up in the Air gets a new Trailer

Behold:

-This continues to show things that I loved from the script, making me more and more confident that this might be one of the best things we'll see come out all year...thoughts?

Behold this new clip from Up in the Air!

This second clip from 'Up in the Air' shows a bit of the rapport that George Clooney has with Anna Kendrick (the script is chock full of scenes like this, both with Kendrick and also with Vera Farmiga):

-Thoughts?

Let the Category Confusion Begin....

Over at The Envelope, the discussion has begun about the category placement of certain individuals through awards season. You can read it HERE.

The article speaks about Meryl Streep being possibly moved to Supporting for Julie & Julia, so that she doesn't split with It's Complicated. I think either way you slice it Streep gets nominated. Her star power is just way too strong. The Nine ladies are also in a bit of dilemma, with Marion Cotillard being pushed Lead with Penelope Cruz and Judi Dench in the supporting arena. It's a smart move since Cotillard has been one to watch for a nomination for her July release Public Enemies along with megastar Johnny Depp. Penelope Cruz also has the Pedro Almodovar film Broken Embraces in which she's been said to give an awards worthy performance.

The Last Station, a late entry into the Oscar race as of a few weeks ago, have had their strategy expressed on the web. Christopher Plummer, who plays "Tolstoy," will be campaigned supporting, which increases his chances immensely. This hurts James McAvoy, who has yet to be recognized by Oscar yet, since he's going Lead and unless it's a out-of-the-ballpark performance (which I'm hearing it isn't) that category is stacked. Co-star Helen Mirren is still said to be Lead.

A few things that weren't mentioned in the article is the placement of The Lovely Bones ladies. Is the lead in the story (Saoirse Ronan who plays "Susie Salmon") going Lead or Supporting? Susan Sarandon is definitely supporting at this point but Rachel Weisz is pretty much out of the game if she's campaigned in Lead Actress. People love citing the Steven Spielberg comment that Ronan will "win the Oscar for Supporting Actress." We'll see.

There has also been an interest to move Up in the Air star Vera Farmiga from supporting to Lead. This nearly destroys her chances unless critics really jump on board with the notion. Kendrick would be clear for Oscar if it did happen, however.

Other smart moves out there (not yet discussed but if you're reading Movie Studios, listen carefully) would be moving Natalie Portman supporting for Brothers, which would increase her chances. Not sure if Hollywood sees Portman as a Leading Lady yet. I'm on the fence about Peter Sarsgaard for An Education. It could go either way, but in supporting he competes against Alfred Molina who's said to stand out more than Sarsgaard. And there's always such a fear inside of me of Stanley Tucci missing out due to vote split with his performance in The Lovely Bones and Julie & Julia. Of all the acting players this year, I'm the most excited to see him nominated. We'll wait on the word...

Check out our Awards Profile on 'Up in the Air' and an article on actors and actresses who don't get their due!

Indeed, there are some updates on the Main Page today, highlighted by our Awards Profile of Jason Reitman's 'Up in the Air'. To check out how it might do come nomination time, go here.
We also have an article detailing a half dozen actors/actresses who are better than their recent reputation suggests. Go here to see the list and see if you agree or disagree.
-What do you think the chances of 'Up in the Air' are, as well as the selections for underrated actors and actresses?

"Up in the Air" Gets A New Trailer! It Still Looks Really Good.

-What do you guys think? Is this the contender to beat? Give us your thoughts.

Today's News: 'Up in the Air' changes its release date, Nolan's 'Inception' to play on Imax screens, and more...

In the news:

Look for 'Up in the Air' to now be released in a limited run on December 4th, with the film expanding over the rest of the month.

Christopher Nolan's next film 'Inception' will be on Imax screens as well as traditional ones when the movie hits in 2010.

The movie that Sean Penn dropped out of for personal reasons (Cartel) now has Josh Brolin in the lead role for the project.

The next directorial project for Emilio Estevez gets some new cast members to go along with his father, who was already cast.

Hugh Jackman will be boxing robots in his next flick, a futuristic 'Rocky'-like film to be directed by Shawn Levy.

Roger Avary has been sentenced to a year in jail for his role in a fatal car crash, after he plead guilty on Tuesday.

-Thoughts?

The Rome Film Festival announces its lineup with 'Up in the Air' as the big film there...

Variety has the complete rundown of what the fest will have:

The Rome Film Festival on Friday unveiled a leaner lineup graced with a high-profile competition that includes Jason Reitman's "Up in the Air," with star George Clooney expected on the red carpet, and a mixed bag of works by international directors.

Fourteen entries are vying for the event's Marcus Aurelius nod, as opposed to 20 last year.

Fest opens Oct. 15 with "Triage," a wartime drama toplining Colin Farrell and helmed by Bosnia's Danis Tanovic, and closes Oct. 23 with "Julie and Julia," screening out of competition and coinciding with the fest's lifetime achievement nod to Meryl Streep.

Michael Hoffman's Leo Tolstoy biopic "The Last Station," starring Helen Mirren and Christopher Plummer, is also in competition along with German helmer Margarethe von Trotta's "Vision," toplining Barbara Sukowa as a 12th century protofeminist Benedictine nun.

"We tried to create a competition that mixed things up a bit," said artistic director Piera Detassis, who is overseeing the entire selection for the first time.

For its fourth edition, Rome has done away with its gala section that relegated star-studded titles to a red carpet ghetto.

While a half dozen titles in Rome are European launches segueing from Toronto world preems, the Eternal City has secured several world preems of its own, including "Brotherhood," about a same-sex affair between two members of a gay-bashing neo-Nazi group; "The City of Your Final Destination," helmer James Ivory's first pic after the death of producing partner Ismail Merchant, which was made in 2007 and is yet to be released; "Le Concert" by Romanian helmer Radu Mihaileanu; and a sneak peek of vampire tale "The Twilight Saga: New Moon," which was partly shot in Italy.

Besides "Up in the Air," U.S. fare will include Joel and Ethan Coen's "A Serious Man," screening out of competition, and the European bow of "Astro Boy" in the Alice in the City kiddie section.

American indie directorial duo Alexei Kaleina and Craig Macneill will bow their first feature, "The Afterlight," in the Extra section dedicated to more cutting-edge works.

Extra will pay homage to Heath Ledger with what is being touted as the first fest screening of several videos Ledger shot with L.A. art collective the Masses, whose members will be on hand. Terry Gilliam will also make the trek with Ledger's last movie "The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus."

As for Rome's Business Street market, topper Roberto Cicutto said industry attendance is up 16% compared with last year. Some 600 companies are booked for the informal Oct. 15-19 mart that has added an Italian screenings section and secured use of the 16th-century Villa Medici above the Spanish Steps for evening bashes.

-Thoughts on the lineup?

Up in the Air Images

More images from Up in the Air. The buzz builds for the Reitman directed picture. Paramount is pushing hard, it could pay off.

Our seemingly non-stop coverage of Up in the Air continues with our exclusive Script Review on the Main Page!

Yes, since everyone seems to be going nuts over Jason Reitman's 'Up in the Air', it's the perfect time for a Script Review of it to hit and see if the movie really is as potential-laden as the teaser makes it out to be. Read the Script Review here and let us know what you think.
-Does this make you more excited to see the film, less excited, or just as excited?

Up in the Air gets a Release Date that's one to be thankful for...

Yes, we've got an official release date for Jason Reitman's 'Up in the Air' (it was originally just scheduled for sometime in December). Look for it to open in limited release on November 13th, with full expansion on November 25th.
-The Thanksgiving period is turning into a great time for films, and this one is at the top of my list of things to see around then...what about you?

Here's a second attempt at the teaser for Up in the Air!

We'll keep trying to find a permanent embed that works, but for now, try this one:

-While some of the images give away a little bit to people who've read the script, as a true teaser to this film, I think it's excellent...thoughts?