Subscribe | UPI Odd Newsletter Subscribe LOS ANGELES, Feb. 11 (UPI) -- The annual ritual of guessing which movies and filmmakers will snag Oscar nominations is about to come to a close, just in time for the beginning of the ritual of guessing which pictures and artists will win the Oscars. It wasn't very many weeks ago that no movie stood out as a clear favorite, and that this year's Oscar glory seemed bound to go to whichever studio, filmmaker or publicist -- take your pick -- had the ambition and energy to reach out and take it. Advertisement As wide open as the race seemed then, that's how much it now seems that some pictures -- "A Beautiful Mind," "The Lord of the Rings: the Fellowship of the Ring," "Moulin Rouge" and maybe "Gosford Park" -- have established themselves as front-runners around the final turn and into the home stretch. Advertisement "A Beautiful Mind," director Ron Howard's take on the life of schizophrenic Nobel Prize-winning mathematician John Nash, has become the stuff that dreams are made of in Hollywood -- a solid commercial hit that's also a prestige picture. It is a virtual lock for a best picture nomination, and its stars -- Russell Crowe and Jennifer Connelly -- are just about sure things for best actor and supporting actress. There is a chance that Connelly might be nominated for best actress, but the studio has been campaigning for a supporting nomination for her. Howard is a strong prospect for best director and Akiva Goldsman is just as strong a contender in the adapted screenplay category. Nominations for cinematography, original score (James Horner), costumes, makeup and film editing are also possible. Look for "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" to rack up nominations for best picture, director (Peter Jackson) and adapted screenplay, as well as a bunch of technical nominations -- cinematography, production design, visual effects, score, makeup, sound, sound editing and costume design. "Moulin Rouge" -- a fantasy about dance hall Paris at the dawn of the 20th century -- has a fiercely loyal following, but it has also developed a reputation as a movie that you either hate or love, and some analysts say that could hurt its chances for Oscar gold. But it is still a solid bet for a best picture nomination to go with best director for Baz Luhrmann and a cluster of technical nominations. Advertisement "Gosford Park" could get a best picture nomination, but its director -- Robert Altman -- is less likely to be nominated for best director, since the Directors Guild of America left him off the list of finalists for its top movie directing prize. The amusing whodunit set in a British country estate could produce supporting actress nominations for Helen Mirren or Maggie Smith -- or both -- and could well take home nominations for production design, costume design, original screenplay and film editing. "In the Bedroom" -- starring Sissy Spacek and Tom Wilkinson as a professional couple who find it nearly impossible to cope with the tragic death of their only child, a son -- is expected to earn a best actress nomination for Spacek and could easily garner nominations as well for Wilkinson, supporting actress Marisa Tomei, director Todd Field and his screenplay collaborator Rob Festinger. A best picture nomination may not be in the cards, but neither is it out of the question. Other possible best picture nominees include "Black Hawk Down," "Iris," "The Man Who Wasn't There," "Memento," "Mulholland Drive" and "Shrek" -- which is also one of the strongest contenders for the new Oscar category of best animated picture. Advertisement Oscar nominations are worth considerably more than bragging rights in Hollywood. A picture can get a tremendous amount of marketing mileage out of a significant number of nominations, with best picture nominees routinely adding tens of millions of dollars to their box-office numbers. Best actor and actress nominations also help sell a movie. Along with Crowe for "A Beautiful Mind" and Wilkinson for "In the Bedroom," some of the hotter prospects for best actor include Billy Bob Thornton for "The Man Who Wasn't There", Gene Hackman for "Tenenbaums" and Denzel Washington for "Training Day." Sissy Spacek has virtually run the table during the awards season so far, and is widely regarded as a shoo-in to win her second best actress Oscar, to go with the one she took home for "Coal Miner's Daughter" in 1980. Other possible nominees include Halle Berry for "Monster's Ball," Judi Dench for "Iris," Nicole Kidman for "Moulin Rouge," Tilda Swinton for "The Deep End" and Renée Zellweger for "Bridget Jones's Diary." In the new best animated picture category, "Shrek" and "Monsters, Inc." look like the major contenders. Advertisement The leading contenders for best foreign language film include "Amélie" (France), "Behind The Sun" (Brazil) and "No Man's Land" (Bosnia). The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will announce the nominations for the 74th Academy Awards on Tuesday morning.
