Do all those movie ads overstuffed with critics’ praise (we’re talking to you, Queen Elizabeth) make you rush to the theater, only to feel a wee bit underwhelmed by what you see? Should studios be worrying that all their “For Your Consideration” notices could backfire? (Might “For Your Reconsideration” do the trick?) Just two weeks before the Oscar nominations are announced, the rave-backlash-reappraisal cycle has sped up to the point of inducing whiplash. So if you haven’t seen Letters From Iwo Jima yet, don’t be surprised if it’s not in fact the war movie to end all war movies. Also, Babel’s Golden Globes love-in has sparked a new wave of “Aw, c’mon” eye-rolling. And I am telling you that Dreamgirls is not winning—at least not right now (because in a top-ten world, eleventh best is nothing). Which means you just might enjoy it.

Related:

• Archive: “Movies”
• Articles by Logan Hill
• Table of Contents: January 15, 2007 issue of New York | Subscribe!