• Perpetuating the false myth that this is a weak year for leading ladies.  Not everything should be viewed through the prism of Oscar… [Awards Campaign]

• Following up on our Oscar Talk discussion, Anne Thompson considers the awards prospects of Oren Moverman’s “The Messenger.” [Thompson on Hollywood]

• Amidst his fully-in-the-tank review of “Where the Wild Things Are,” David Poland calls for Oscar to take note of James Gandolfini’s vocal performance. [The Hot Blog]

• The first reviews of “Amelia” land, with Justin Chang taking a big ole’ swipe… [Variety]

• …and Ray Bennett offering up a rave. [The Hollywood Reporter]

• David Carr, meanwhile, chimes in on the fascination with biopics aviatrix. [New York Times]

• More on the foreign film race from Pete Hammond. [Notes on a Season]

• Susan Wloszczyna sits down with Willem Dafoe to talk “Fantastic Mr. Fox” and “Antichrist.” [USA Today]