Rocky Balboa, James Bond, Santa Claus and Van Wilder are back, whether we want them in our lives again or not.

But thankfully, so are the directors of "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind," "Amores Perros" "Memento" and "Requiem for a Dream."

And so, as summer fun fades, the movie industry turns serious and a little introspective. (Well, there will always be horror trash, no matter the season. We'll get the latest installments of "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre," "Saw" and "The Grudge.")

The usual big names and big budgets are positioning themselves for Oscar contention. Projects don't get any grander than "Flags of Our Fathers," which tackles the Greatest Generation's finest moment: Iwo Jima. It's directed by Clint "Crane Shot" Eastwood, is produced by Steven Spielberg and is written by the ultra-earnest Paul Haggis ("Crash," "Million Dollar Baby").

There's also Steven Soderbergh and George Clooney moping around in postwar Berlin. Martin Scorsese teams with Jack Nicholson. Ridley Scott ("Aliens") corrals Russell Crowe. Sofia Coppola snags Kirsten Dunst. And Emilio Estevez rustles up every other big name in Hollywood to give Bobby Kennedy the epic treatment.

And Jessica Simpson dined with Gov. Bill Richardson to give us "Employee of the Month," the pride of the New Mexico Film Office.

Some low-radar directors to look for: Tom Tykwer ("Run Lola Run") with "Perfume: The Story of a Murderer"; Bob Odenkirk ("Mr. Show") with "Let's Go to Prison"; Claude Chabrol with "The Bridesmaid"; and Darren Aronofsky ("Pi") with "The Fountain."

Before we settle in for a slew of synopses, let's try to pick out a few of the films we're pinning our hopes on:

"Marie Antoinette." Sofia Coppola is two-for-two - "The Virgin Suicides" and "Lost in Translation - and now she puts her head on the chopping block with this period-piece extravaganza. It stars the irresistible Dunst, throws in three generations of guy cool - Jason Schwartzman, Steve Coogan and Rip Torn - and has a typically hip soundtrack.

"The Science of Sleep." The director of "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" does that magical realism thing again, this time with Gael Garcia Bernal ("Y Tu Mam También"). Can our hearts take more of this dreamlike romance?

"Babel." Alejandro Gonzáez Iñárritu mesmerized us with "Amores Perros," and now he's got a huge travel budget (he shot on three continents), and he hit this trifecta: Brad Pitt, Bernal and Cate Blanchett. Do we care about the plot?

"49 Up." The Guild brings the seventh installment of the "7 Up" series to town in October. It updates the characters we first met when they were 7 - and we were but little chicks.

"Volver." Spanish master Pedro Almodovar and his women are back. He also gets a career retrospective next month courtesy of the CCA Cinematheque in Santa Fe.

Here's a look at what's coming our way in theaters the rest of the year. Capsules are written by J.A. Montalbano of The Tribune, Phil Villarreal of the Arizona Daily Star and Wesley Morris and Ty Burr of the Boston Globe.

September

"The Bridesmaid"

Director: Claude Chabrol

Cast: Laura Smet, Benont Magimel, Aurore Climent.

Plot: A dangerous woman seduces a handsome salesman who still lives with his mama.

Outlook: No one makes love seem more dangerous than the 76-year-old French master, Chabrol.

"Brothers of the Head"

Directors: Keith Fulton, Louie Pepe

Cast: Harry Treadaway, Luke Treadaway

Plot: Conjoined twins are discovered by a promoter and groomed for stardom.

Outlook: Suffice it to say, this could be pretty stupid.

"Feast"

Director: John Gulager

Cast: Navi Rawat, Krista Allen, Balthazar Getty

Plot: From the minds of Project Greenlight, flesh-eating creatures get past the bouncer and terrorize a tavern.

Outlook: Are we going to the well drinks once too often?

"The Ground Truth"

Director: Patricia Foulkrod

Plot: Documentary follows military personnel who went to Iraq, from recruitment to their return after service.

Outlook: This one got a rise out of the audiences at Sundance.

"The Guardian"

Director: Andrew Davis

Cast: Kevin Costner, Ashton Kutcher, Sela Ward

Plot: Costner and Kutcher play Coast Guardsmen in this "Top Gun" with boats.

Outlook: The feel-good movie of fall?

"Jet Li's Fearless"

Director: Ronny Yu

Cast: Jet Li, Nakamura Shidou, Sun Li

Plot: Li plays real-life legend Huo Yuanjia, who became the most famous fighter in all of China at the turn of the 20th century.

Outlook: This one's already a hit in Asia. Li says it will be his last martial arts film.

"Mutual Appreciation"

Director: Andrew Bujalski

Cast: Justin Rice, Rachel Clift

Plot: Black-and-white low-fi tale of a Boston rocker who runs into a wall of inertia when he journeys to Brooklyn.

Outlook: Sophomore effort of the man behind "Funny Ha Ha" is earning comparisons to Jarmusch, Cassavetes and Godard. Good luck with that, kid.

"Open Season"

Director: Roger Allers, Jill Culton

Cast: Voices of Martin Lawrence, Ashton Kutcher, Gary Sinise, Debra Messing

Plot: A grizzly bear low on instincts meets a fast-talking mule deer and rediscovers the great outdoors - just in time for hunting season.

Outlook: Sony's first attempt at full-length animation. Based on that "In the Bleachers" comic strip.

"The Queen"

Director: Stephen Frears

Cast: Helen Mirren, James Cromwell

Plot: A look at the British royal family in the wake of the death of Princess Diana.

Outlook: Frears ("Dirty Pretty Things," "My Beautiful Laundrette," "The Grifters") doesn't make bad movies.

"School for Scoundrels"

Director: Todd Phillipos

Cast: Billy Bob Thornton, Jon Heder, Jacinda Barrett, Michael Clarke Duncan, Sarah Silverman, David Cross

Plot: Heder ("Napoleon Dynamite") plays a student who takes a confidence-building class and develops a rivalry with the teacher (Thornton).

Outlook: "Old School" (which Phillipos directed) meets "The Breakfast Club."

"The Science of Sleep"

Director: Michel Gondry

Cast: Gael Garcia Bernal, Charlotte Gainsbourg

Plot: A Mexican artist in France dreams a little dream of a pretty gal.

Outlook: From the director of "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind." Let's not overwhelm it with expectations, but, dang, we can't wait for this one.

"Sleeping Dogs Lie"

Director: Bobcat Goldthwait

Cast: Melinda Page Hamilton, Bryce Johnson, Brian Posehn

Plot: A romantic comedy about a woman who ruins relationships whenever she opens up about a sexual indiscretion from her past.

Outlook: Goldthwait's "Shakes the Clown" was brilliant. No, seriously.

"This Film Is Not Yet Rated"

Director: Kirby Dick

Cast: Allison Anders, Darren Aronofsky, Atom Egoyan, Kevin Smith, Matt Stone, John Waters

Plot: Documentary looks into the movie rating system and its impact on American culture.

Outlook: An indie who's who bites the hand that won't feed it.

Oct. 4

"Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning"

Director: Jonathan Liebesman

Star: Jordana Brewster

Plot: This is a sequel. No, a prequel to a remake. Whatever. Texas cannibals kill, and nubile actors run screaming.

Outlook: You've already decided to either go to this one.

Oct. 6

"Alex Rider: Operation Stormbreaker"

Director: Geoffrey Sax

Cast: Alex Pettyfer, Sarah Bolger, Stephen Fry, Ewan McGregor, Bill Nighy, Mickey Rourke

Plot: A teenager is drawn into the spy world when he investigates the disappearance of his uncle.

Outlook: Sounds like pretty standard escapist fare.

"The Departed"

Director: Martin Scorsese

Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, Mark Wahlberg, Roy Winstone, Martin Sheen

Plot: In a remake of the Hong Kong drama "Infernal Affairs," the Boston mob and police squads infiltrate each other with double agents.

Outlook: The cool factor is high. If this were 1992. Previews look over-the-top.

"Employee of the Month"

Director: Greg Coolidge

Cast: Jessica Simpson, Dane Cook

Plot: Minimum-wage slaves at a Costco-like emporium slug it out to earn a frivolous honor bestowed by managers.

Outlook: Only New Mexicans who aren't offended by Gov. Bill Richardson's dinner itineraries might enjoy this curiosity.

"Little Children"

Director: Todd Field

Cast: Kate Winslet, Jennifer Connelly

Plot: The lives of young married couples intersect in their small community.

Outlook: Field directed "In the Bedroom," and he wrote this with Tom Perrotta, who wrote the novel that "Election" was based on.

"Seven Day Itch"

Directors: Bobby and Peter Farrelly

Cast: Ben Stiller

Plot: A guy's eye wanders while he's still on his honeymoon.

Outlook: Another tiptoe along the fine line between funny and stupid.

Oct. 11:

"Running With Scissors"

Director: Ryan Murphy

Cast: Annette Bening, Brian Cox, Joseph Fiennes, Evan Rachel Wood, Alec Baldwin, Jill Clayburgh

Plot: Growing up in the Õ70s with an alcoholic father and a bipolar mother - until they divorce and send you to live with her psychiatrist.

Outlook: From one of the minds behind the TV show "Nip/Tuck," this could be delightfully twisted.

Oct. 13

"49 Up"

Director: Michael Apted

Plot: Apted continues his documentary series looking in on British subjects every seven years since age 7, now at age 49.

Outlook: None of the first six was disappointing. This one gets a weeklong run at the Guild Cinema.

"Man of the Year"

Director: Barry Levinson

Cast: Robin Williams, Laura Linney, Christopher Walken, Jeff Goldblum, Lewis Black

Plot: A late-night political talk show host (Williams) decides to run for president.

Outlook: If Levinson's on his game, he's got some funny actors and material to work with.

"Shortbus"

Director: John Cameron Mitchell

Cast: Raphael Barker, Lindsay Beamish

Plot: Young adults in post-9/11 New York work out their emotional and physical kinks in a nightclub.

Outlook: Hardcore sex that reportedly tops Michael Winterbottom's "9 Songs." From the director of "Hedwig and the Angry Inch."

Oct. 20:

"Flags of Our Fathers"

Director: Clint Eastwood

Cast: Ryan Phillippe, Jesse Bradford, Adam Beach

Plot: The story of the men who planted the flag at Iwo Jima.

Outlook: Co-written by the heavy-handed Paul Haggis ("Crash," "Million Dollar Baby"). Produced by Steven Spielberg.

"Flicka"

Director: Michael Mayer

Cast: Alison Lohman, Tim McGraw, Maria Bello

Plot: The classic story of a girl and her best friend, Flicka.

Outlook: The only bond that's tighter between a girl and her horse is that between a movie studio and its money.

"The Grudge 2"

Director: Takashi Shimizu

Cast: Amber Tamblyn

Plot: Joan of Arcadia takes the gauntlet from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and battles demons spawned from a Tokyo curse.

Outlook: Someone tell the Japanese horror film community: The wet head is dead.

"Marie Antoinette"

Director: Sofia Coppola

Cast: Kirsten Dunst, Jason Schwartzman, Judy Davis, Rip Torn, Shirley Henderson, Steve Coogan

Plot: The story of the famously decadent queen of France.

Outlook: A lot of pressure on Coppola, whose first two films were perfect. The bet here is that she and an amazing cast pull this off.

"The Prestige"

Director: Christopher Nolan

Cast: Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Scarlett Johansson, Piper Perabo, David Bowie

Plot: Jackman and Bale are rival tricksters who try to outsmart and subvert each other. It's set in London around 1900.

Outlook: Can the "Memento" mastermind make this magician movie work where "The Illusionist" failed?

Oct. 27

"Catch a Fire"

Director: Phillip Noyce

Cast: Tim Robbins, Derek Luke, Bonnie Henna

Plot: The story of the South African terror squads of the 1980s. Shot on location.

Outlook: Noyce did "Rabbit-Proof Fence" and "The Quiet American," so maybe he'll have a soft touch here.

"The Last King of Scotland"

Director: Kevin Macdonald

Cast: Forest Whitaker, James McAvoy.

Plot: The relationship between Uganda's murderous Idi Amin and his physician.

Outlook: Whitaker just doesn't make enough movies. From the director of "Touching the Void."

"Lucky You"

Director: Curtis Hanson

Cast: Eric Bana, Drew Barrymore, Robert Duvall, Debra Messing

Plot: When was the last time you turned on ESPN2 and didn't see a poker game? Here's the big-screen version of that.

Outlook: Is Hanson ("Wonder Boys" - but also "In Her Shoes") on a losing streak, or is he turning things around?

"Saw III"

Director: Darren Lynn Bousman

Cast: Tobin Bell, J. LaRose

Plot: What plot?

Outlook: We're guessing there will be some dismemberment and a whole lot of blood.

"Tenacious D in: The Pick of Destiny"

Director: Liam Lynch

Cast: Jack Black, Kyle Gass

Plot: Black shows off his rockin' stylings in this comedy as he tries to make his band the greatest on the planet.

Outlook: There are some people who can stand Jack Black for 90 minutes and some who can't.

Nov. 3

"Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan"

Director: Larry Charles

Cast: Sacha Baron Cohen, Pamela Anderson

Plot: Cohen does his Ali G shtick as a journalist from Kazakhstan visiting the United States.

Outlook: Beware of wacky films with long titles. Second red flag: Directed by "Seinfeld" veteran Charles, who used a pseudonym for his last film, just so you know.

"The Flock"

Director: Wai Keung Lau

Cast: Richard Gere, Claire Danes

Plot: An officer (Gere) hunts down a girl with a connection to a sex offender as he trains his replacement (Danes).

Outlook: This was shot in Albuquerque while Gere hung out at Los Poblanos and Danes did yoga at Betty's Bath and Day Spa.

"Flushed Away"

Directors: David Bowers, Sam Fell

Cast: Voices of Hugh Jackman, Kate Winslet, Ian McKellen, Bill Nighy, Jean Reno.

Plot: Set beneath London, rats fall in love in a mismatched romance in this computer-animated comedy.

Outlook: Slick product from the DreamWorks team behind "Shrek" and "Wallace and Gromit."

"The Santa Clause 3"

Director: Michael Lembeck

Cast: Tim Allen, Elizabeth Mitchell, Judge Reinhold, Alan Arkin, Martin Short

Plot: Santa (Allen) tries to keep Jack Frost from ruining Christmas.

Outlook: You'd know best if you saw or liked the first two in the series.

Nov. 10

"Babel"

Director: Alejandro Gonzalez Inorritu

Cast: Brad Pitt, Gael Garcia Bernal, Cate Blanchett

Plot: Tragedy strikes a couple on vacation as three stories intersect in Morocco, Tunisia, Mexico and Japan.

Outlook: A big budget for the hotshot behind "Amores Perros."

"Fur"

Director: Steven Shainberg

Cast: Nicole Kidman, Robert Downey Jr.

Plot: Three months in the life of photographer Diane Arbus as she prepares for a career of unnerving portraiture.

Outlook: Downey and the director of "Secretary"? Yum.

"A Good Year"

Director: Ridley Scott

Cast: Russell Crowe, Marion Cotillard, Albert Finney, Abbie Cornish

Plot: An Englishman inherits a vineyard in Provence and is confronted by a woman who claims it's hers.

Outlook: Based on the writings of Peter Mayle. Look for Cornish, who was great in "Somersault."

"Stranger Than Fiction"

Director: Marc Forster

Cast: Will Ferrell, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Dustin Hoffman, Queen Latifah, Emma Thompson

Plot: A novelist struggles to kill off her main character, who happens to be alive in the real world.

Outlook: This one is pushing our cute meter into the red zone.

"Volver"

Director: Pedro Almodovar

Cast: Penelope Cruz, Carmen Maura

Plot: A Madrid housewife comes apart at the seams in the Spanish maestro's latest ode to mothers and melodrama.

Outlook: Why is Cruz so good in Spanish films and so terrible in Hollywood movies?

Nov. 17

"Candy"

Director: Neil Armfield

Cast: Heath Ledger, Abbie Cornish

Plot: A poet and his art student girlfriend battle heroin addiction.

Outlook: Another Abbie Cornish alert (see "A Good Year" above).

"Casino Royale"

Director: Martin Campbell

Cast: Daniel Craig, Eva Green, Mads Mikkelsen

Plot: Terrorists and poker - which make up 90 percent of the programming on cable TV - are the latest challenge for Agent 007.

Outlook: Daniel Craig tries on the James Bond outfit. Get ready for all the inevitable comparisons to George Lazenby.

"For Your Consideration"

Director: Christopher Guest

Cast: Catherine O'Hara, Fred Willard, Parker Posey, Bob Balaban, Jane Lynch, Eugene Levy

Plot: The mockumentary master ("Waiting for Guffman," et al.) takes on Hollywood's awards season.

Outlook: Will this be best in show or just another mighty wind?

"Happy Feet"

Director: George Miller

Cast: Voices of Elijah Wood, Robin Williams, Brittany Murphy, Hugh Jackman, Nicole Kidman

Plot: Singing emperor penguins perk up this animated comedy.

Outlook: Also features the sounds of Savion Glover's feet.

"The Return"

Director: Asif Kapadia

Cast: Sarah Michelle Gellar, Peter O'Brien, Sam Shepard

Plot: A tough Midwestern woman has nightmares that could solve a murder mystery.

Outlook: Gellar has dark hair in this one, so she looks nothing like Buffy.

Nov. 22

"The Hoax"

Director: Lasse Hallstrom

Cast: Richard Gere, Alfred Molina, Marcia Gay Harden, Hope Davis

Plot: The tale of author Clifford Irving's sham biography of Howard Hughes in the 1970s.

Outlook: We have a soft spot for Gere and for real-life Õ70s stories.

"Deck the Halls"

Director: John Whitesell

Cast: Matthew Broderick, Danny DeVito, Kristin Davis

Plot: Neighbors engage in a holiday lighting competition in this comedy.

Outlook: This one sells itself.

"Deja Vu"

Director: Tony Scott

Cast: Denzel Washington, Val Kilmer, Paula Patton, Bruce Greenwood, Adam Goldberg, Jim Caviezel

Plot: An FBI agent goes back in time to stop a murder.

Outlook: A big-deal action thriller from the Jerry Bruckheimer factory.

"Fast Food Nation"

Director: Richard Linklater

Cast: Greg Kinnear, Patricia Arquette, Paul Dano, Kris Kristofferson, Luis Guzman, Ethan Hawke, Avril Lavigne

Plot: Based on the Eric Schlosser book, which puts the junk food industry through the meat grinder.

Outlook: Despite Linklater's pedigree, we have a bad feeling about this one.

"The Fountain"

Director: Darren Aronofsky

Cast: Hugh Jackman, Rachel Weisz

Plot: What if you could live forever? Yes, that fountain. To save the woman he loves, a man travels through time in search of the Tree of Life.

Outlook: A "Love Story" for the new millennium? From the hugely talented director of "Pi" and "Requiem for a Dream."

"Let's Go to Prison"

Director: Bob Odenkirk

Cast: Dax Shepard, Will Arnett, Chi McBride, Dylan Baker

Plot: A felon gets back at a judge by returning to jail to bunk with the judge's son.

Outlook: "Mr. Show" veteran Odenkirk scored with his debut film "Melvin Comes to Dinner," so this might be a sleeper. From the writers of TV's "Reno 911."

Nov. 23

"Bobby"

Director: Emilio Estevez

Cast: Anthony Hopkins, Demi Moore, Sharon Stone, Lindsay Lohan, Elijah Wood, William H. Macy, Helen Hunt, Christian Slater, Heather Graham, Laurence Fishburne, Harry Belafonte

Plot: A fictionalized account of the assassination of Robert Kennedy.

Outlook: Whoa. Check out that cast.

Nov. 24

"The History Boys"

Director: Nicholas Hytner

Cast: Richard Griffiths, Clive Merrison, Frances de la Tour

Plot: The Tony-winning play has unruly kids and coming-of-age tales.

Outlook: A "Dead Poets Society" for the 21st century.

Dec. 1:

"The Nativity Story"

Director: Catherine Hardwicke

Cast: Keisha Castle-Hughes, Oscar Isaac, Hiam Abbass, Shaun Toub

Plot: Yep, that story. The one about Joseph and Mary, who is played by the girl from "Whale Rider."

Outlook: The feel-good movie of winter!

"Van Wilder 2: Rise of the Taj"

Director: Mort Nathan

Cast: Val Penn, Glen Barry, Lauren Cohan

Plot: Taj takes over and heads to Oxford.

Outlook: How do they make a sequel to Van Wilder without Van Wilder (Ryan Reynolds)?

Dec. 8

"Apocalypto"

Director: Mel Gibson

Cast: Rudy Youngblood

Plot: Gibson goes "Passion" on the Mayans with the story of the Spanish invasion.

Outlook: Tabloid distractions aside, the previews of this one look pretty cool.

"The Good German"

Director: Steven Soderbergh

Cast: George Clooney, Cate Blanchett, Tobey Maguire

Plot: An American war correspondent falls for a woman running from her past in post-World War II Berlin.

Outlook: Based on the novel by Joseph Kanon. Written by Paul Attanasio ("Donnie Brasco," "Quiz Show"). And there's, you know, Soderbergh.

"The Holiday"

Director: Nancy Meyers

Cast: Cameron Diaz, Kate Winslet, Jude Law, Jack Black

Plot: Women on opposite sides of the globe switch places to spice up their lives. Do you think they learn a lesson about who they are?

Outlook: This takes "precious" to a whole new dimension.

"Perfume: The Story of a Murderer"

Director: Tom Tykwer

Cast: Dustin Hoffman, Ben Whishaw, Alan Rickman

Plot: In 18th-century France, a smell-obsessed perfume-maker murders innocents in order to find the perfect scent.

Outlook: From the talented director of "Run Lola Run" and "Heaven." Will the New York Times have this reviewed by a film critic or its new perfume critic?

"Unaccompanied Minors"

Director: Paul Feig

Stars: Lewis Black, Wilmer Valderrama

Plot: Five kids get snowed in at the airport on Christmas Eve, and their parents are nowhere to be found.

Outlook: Let's hope Black doesn't get typecast as the tightly wound middle manager, or what we used to call a ketchup bottle.

Dec. 15

"Blood Diamond"

Director: Edward Zwick

Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Connelly, Djimon Hounsou

Plot: A South African mercenary (DiCaprio) and a fisherman (Hounsou) are in pursuit of a rare diamond.

Outlook: Mix TV melodrama aficionado Zwick with the sincerity of Connelly and this could be off-the-charts sappy,

"Eragon"

Director: Stefan Fangmeier

Cast: John Malkovich, Jeremy Irons, Edward Speleers

Plot: A farm boy defends his kingdom after he discovers a dragon's egg.

Outlook: Directing debut from a longtime visual-effects guy ("Dreamcatcher," "Lemony Snickett").

"Home of the Brave"

Director: Irwin Winkler

Stars: Samuel L. Jackson, Jessica Biel, Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson, Christina Ricci

Plot: Soldiers return home from Iraq with both physical and psychological wounds.

Outlook: The director of "Goodfellas" serves up a meaty drama.

"The Pursuit of Happyness"

Director: Gabriele Muccino

Cast: Will Smith, Thankdie Newton, Jaden Christopher Syre Smith

Plot: A struggling salesman father (Smith) becomes a stockbroker in this inspirational drama.

Outlook: Keep your home movies to yourself, Will.

"Venus"

Director: Roger Michell

Cast: Peter O'Toole, Leslie Philips, Richard Griffiths, Vanessa Redgrave, Jodie Whittaker

Plot: O'Toole is a has-been actor who falls for the grandniece of his best friend and fellow actor.

Outlook: From the makers of another unsettling love story, 2003's "Mother."

Dec. 20

"Charlotte's Web"

Director: Gary Winick

Cast: Dakota Fanning, Julia Roberts, Steve Buscemi, John Cleese, Oprah Winfrey, Kathy Bates, Robert Redford

Plot: A live-action adaptation of the classic children's novel, about the barnyard relationship between a spider and a pig.

Outlook: This looks like a winner for the family.

Dec. 21

"Dreamgirls"

Director: Bill Condon

Cast: Jamie Foxx, Beyoncé‚ Knowles, Danny Glover, Anika Noni Rose, Eddie Murphy

Plot: The classic '60s story of three young women who form the girl group the Dreamettes.

Outlook: It's been 25 years since the Broadway debut of this Tony-winning story.

Dec. 22

"The Good Shepherd"

Director: Robert De Niro

Stars: Matt Damon, Angelina Jolie, Alec Baldwin, Billy Crudup, William Hurt, Timothy Hutton, John Turturro

Plot: The early days of the CIA and the Cold War as viewed through the eyes of a young idealist (Damon) who helped found the spy agency.

Outlook: Is this dream team too good to be true?

"Night at the Museum"

Director: Shawn Levy

Cast: Robin Williams, Owen Wilson, Dick Van Dyke, Ben Stiller, Steve Coogan, Ricky Gervais

Plot: A security guard lets a curse loose in a museum, bringing the animals and insects to life.

Outlook: This one looks funny on paper.

"Rocky Balboa"

Director: Sylvester Stallone

Stars: Stallone, Burt Young, Milo Ventimiglia

Plot: The sixth entry in the "Rocky" series has the AARP member climbing into the ring with Antonio Tarver, believe it or not.

Outlook: Do you believe America is the land of opportunists?

"We Are Marshall"

Director: McG

Stars: Matthew McConaughey, Matthew Fox, Ian McShane, David Strathairn

Plot: After a college football team is decimated in a plane crash, people at the college pull together. Based on a true story.

Outlook: The feel-good movie of the - oh, never mind.

Dec. 25

"Black Christmas"

Director: James Wong, Glen Morgan

Stars: Marc Butan, Michelle Trachtenberg, Oliver Hudson

Plot: A killer rampages through a sorority house during holiday break.

Outlook: Merry Christmas!

"Children of Men"

Director: Alfonso Cuaron

Stars: Clive Owen, Julianne Moore, Gary Oldman

Plot: Mankind faces extinction when an infertility defect spreads through the population.

Outlook: The end is near! Merry Christmas!

Dec. 29:

"Breaking and Entering"

Director: Anthony Minghella

Stars: Jude Law, Juliette Binoche, Robin Wright Penn

Plot: Billed as "a story about theft, both criminal and emotional," this one has lives intersecting.

Outlook: "The English Patient" director in his first original script since his 1991 debut, "Truly Madly Deeply."

"Miss Potter"

Director: Chris Noonan

Stars: Renee Zellweger, Ewan McGregor, Emily Watson

Plot: Zellweger plays the famous Victorian-era children's book author who struggles with love and celebrity.

Outlook: This has cute written all over it. From the director of "Babe."

"Pan's Labyrinth"

Director: Guillermo del Toro

Cast: Ivana Baquero, Doug Jones, Sergi Lopez

Plot: A girl in post-World War II Spain deals with her father's fascist past by fleeing into a fantasy world.

Outlook: Remember "The Devil's Backbone"? A little too real this time.