Remi just tipped us off to this fantastic article…

Oscar Watch: ‘Dark Knight’ Makes Its Move

MSNBC - Oscar campaigns have always been akin to a marathon, not a sprint, and sometimes it pays to stay in the back of the pack for a while. So, while contenders such as “Doubt,” “Revolutionary Road,” “Slumdog Millionaire” and “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” slowly revealed their wares to press and Academy members during screenings, Q&As, and filmmaker receptions over the past two months, one legitimate candidate waited in the wings. Until this week, when Warner Bros.’ “The Dark Knight” brought out the big guns for its first celebratory “yes, we know we’re in the race” cocktail party.

This past Wednesday night, in the back courtyard of a packed Il Cielo restaurant, Christian Bale, Aaron Eckhart, Gary Oldman (stunning, as he has a reputation for looking down on such events), producer Chuck Roven, writers Jonathan Nolan and David S. Goyer, and director Christopher Nolan happily (emphasis on “happily”) worked the room of press and industry folk.

Now, some important context to consider. Every year there seems to be one or two films that everybody, including the filmmakers, knows doesn’t have a chance in hell of getting a Best Picture nom, but for some crazy reason the studio trots out everyone involved, with fake smiles in tow, pretending otherwise. “World Trade Center,” “Bobby” and “In the Valley of Elah” are a few recent examples that come to mind. “Dark Knight” is not in that category.

First off, Hollywood loves to reward a hit that also happens to be a good film. With strong reviews and a domestic box office haul of $530 million, second only to current record holder “Titanic,” “Knight” certainly qualifies. I spoke to both Roven and Goyer during my stop at the event (had to race to see “Seven Pounds“), and both men seemed grateful at the continued appreciation of the film. And while they take nothing for granted, I relayed a recent anecdote that might have reassured them of the chances for “Knight.”

While waiting for a screening of another contender to start a few weeks ago, I overheard two longtime members of a highly respected critics group chatting about their thoughts on their organization’s upcoming end-of-year awards.

The first critic said, “I still haven’t seen anything that tops it for me.”

The second critic responded, “Me either. It still has my vote.”

Interrupting, I asked what film the two gentleman were referring to. “Button”? “Slumdog”? “Milk”?

“Dark Knight, of course,” one of them replied.

And, let me tell you, these two men would hardly be described as part of the superhero-movie-geek contingent. More importantly, our conversation is only one example of a continuing drumbeat being heard across town: “‘Dark Knight’ is in.”

Oh, and for those wondering, Heath Ledger has been and still is a slam dunk in the Best Supporting Actor category. It would be stunning for him to lose it at this point.

So, have faith true believers. Your favorite Caped Crusader’s chances are looking good for an Oscar night appearance. Much to the joy of network executives at ABC who see ratings gold. As for whether it will win Best Picture? That’s another story entirely.

http://movies.msn.com/movies/hitlist/12-05-08_3/

That’s the buzz I’m starting to see in Hollywood blogs and film sites across the Internet this week.  It’s a slow and steady drum beat, but every day the odds look better and better.