Oscar Picks
With the studios rolling out their big holiday releases, ‘tis the season for Oscar talk. From shoo-ins to long shots, only "Extra" has your inside track on the top contenders for 2003.
Tom Cruise is up to win this year with "The Last Samurai." But first he will have to battle Captain Russell Crowe in "Master and Commander," a role Crowe revealed he almost passed on.
Crowe says, "I couldn’t understand why on the page the character was so simple, when I saw his job as being extremely complicated."
Jude Law is a contender with "Cold Mountain," and so is Bill Murray for "Lost in Translation." But Entertainment Weekly's Jill Bernstein says that Sean Penn may be the man to beat twice.
Bernstein says, "Sean Penn is almost a shoe-in contender for ‘Mystic River.’ There is a chance he will get nominated for ‘21 Grams.’ He just had a terrific year."
Nicole Kidman shines in "Cold Mountain," but Bernstein says this may be costar Renée Zellweger’s year. She says, "She is spunky and full of life, and she kind of sparkles on-screen."
But Oscar-winner Gwyneth Paltrow, who won for "Shakespeare in Love," may grab the gold a second time for her turn as a tormented poet in "Sylvia."
Call it the year of the epic. Bernstein says you will see nominations for "The Last Samurai," "Master and Commander," "Cold Mountain," and maybe "Seabiscuit." And this year, Bernstein believes that "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" may rule on Oscar night.
She says, "It will be recognized for all three films finally this year."
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