(dpa) - With critics talking of a renaissance in US film and reaching for new hyperbolic heights to describe this year's Oscar nominations, 2008 is set to be the year that the academy honours a range of heavyweight, highly-acclaimed, hard-hitting films.
In a special package The Oscars 2008, scheduled for Tuesday February 19, the dpa International Service in English will take a look at such films as Paul Thomas Anderton's epic There Will be Blood and examine the significance of the fact that most of the major contenders for Oscar glory are bleak, violent and profoundly serious.
We will also take a look at the importance of winning Oscars. Does the prize translate into money or just film-world bragging rights?
Bragging is not a quality associated with British cinematic legend Julie Christie, nominated for best actress for her role as an Alzheimer's sufferer in Away from Her.
At a different phase in her career, but set to be an equally iconic cinematic figure, is Australia's Cate Blanchett, twice nominated for an Oscar for her portrayal of Britain's Queen Elizabeth I in feature films a remarkable nine years apart.
Also nominated for best actress is France's Marion Cotillard for what has been described as her "extraordinary immersion" in the life of Edith Piaf in La Vie en Rose.
Oscar night could give larger-than-life US filmmaker Michael Moore, nominated for documentary film Sicko, a platform to launch a renewed attack on the US health service against the backdrop of the US presidential campaign.
Equally controversial is Israeli director Joseph Cedar's anti-war drama Beaufort, nominated for best foreign film, on the nation's 2000 withdrawal from southern Lebanon.
Also in the running for best foreign film, are Russian director Nikita Mikhalkov's film 12 and in the first Academy Award nomination for Kazakhstan, the film Mongol, set in 12th-century Mongolia.
In an nominations list characterized by violence, darkness and despair, the musical film Once, nominated for best song and featuring an Irish busker and a Czech flower seller looking for love and a record deal, brings a welcome touch of lightness, romance and not least low-budget charm to the proceedings.
The Oscars 2008 package will include the following items:
Los Angeles - FEATURE: Bleak year in the United States, bleak movies at the Oscars. By Andy Goldberg (670 words, US-Cinema/Oscars)
London - FEATURE: Crowning Oscar beckons for Britain's divine Miss Julie. By Anna Tomforde (530 words/US-Cinema/Oscars/Britain)
Berlin - FEATURE: Anti-war Beaufort confronts Israeli ghosts about Lebanon. By Andrew McCathie (680 words/US-Cinema/Oscars/Israel)
Sydney - PROFILE: Our can-do Cate honoured again By Sid Astbury (580 words/US-Cinema/Oscars/Australia)
Dublin - FEATURE: Ireland Falling Slowly for Oscar-nominated modern musical. By Fiona Smith (750 words/US-Cinema/Oscars/Ireland)
Berlin - FEATURE: Oscars could allow Moore to renew US healthcare attack. By Andrew McCathie (600 words/US-Cinema/Oscars)
Moscow - FEATURE: Two Russian directors compete in Oscar final five. By Alissa de Carbonnel (680 words/US-Cinema/Oscars/Russia)
Berlin - FEATURE: Berlin gives boost to Oscar-nominated There Will Be Blood. By Andrew McCathie (730 words/US-Cinema/Oscars)
Paris - FEATURE: Marion Cotillard - from Piaf to star. By Siegfried Mortkowitz (775 words/Cinema-Oscars/France)
Berlin - FEATURE: Story of Polish massacre up for Oscar honours. By Mike Swanson (700 words/US-Cinema/Oscars/Poland)
Los Angeles - FEATURE: Oscars mean cash and kudos to some lucky winners. By Andy Goldberg (450 words/US-Cinema/Oscars)
Los Angeles - BACKGROUND: List of nominees for Oscars 2008 (580 words/US-Cinema/Oscars)