Fall movie preview: Big stars, Big action

LOS ANGELES • Harry Potter pulled a disappearing act from Hollywood's fall and holiday schedule, his sixth big-screen adventure bumped from November to next summer.

That leaves a little room to roam at the box office for the likes of James Bond, a vampire heartthrob, the "High School Musical" kids and all those talking cartoon critters studios are about to unleash.

The season offers action (Bond's latest, "Quantum of Solace"), family flicks (the animated sequel "Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa"), fantasy romance (the adaptation of the best-seller "Twilight"), and serious stuff lining up for the Academy A wards, including Nicole Kidman's epic "Australia" and Bond star Daniel Craig's war saga "Defiance."

Highlights of what Hollywood has in store:

The world at war

World War II is huge this season, with Tom Cruise, Craig and director Spike Lee offering dramas touching on little-known aspects of the conflict.

In director Bryan Singer's "Valkyrie," Cruise stars as German Col. Claus von Stauffenberg, who led a group of insiders in a failed attempt to assassinate Adolf Hitler with a briefcase bomb.

Key scenes were shot at places in Germany where events occurred, including Bendlerblock, where the anti-Nazi conspirators were executed.

Craig stars with Liev Schreiber and Jamie Bell in Edward Zwick's "Defiance," the story of Jewish brothers who escape the Nazis and set up a community of resistance fighters in Eastern Europe.

Spike Lee directs "Miracle at St. Anna," about the all-black "Buffalo Soldier" outfit fighting in Italy. The film dramatizes the valor of troops whose heroism amid bigotry on the home front is unknown to many Americans, Lee said.

License to avenge

"Quantum of Solace" picks up where "Casino Royale" left off, pitting James Bond against a phony environmentalist trying to monopolize the water supply.

Also on the action front: "Heat" co-stars Robert De Niro and Al Pacino reunite for "Righteous Kill," which opens today, playing cops tracking a vigilante serial killer; Mark Wahlberg stars as a cop out to avenge the deaths of his family and partner in the adaptation of the video game "Max Payne"; Ed Harris and Viggo Mortensen are hired lawmen in the Western "Appaloosa," directed by Harris and featuring Renee Zellweger; and Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe team for Ridley Scott's "Body of Lies," about a CIA hunt for a terrorist mastermind.

Supernatural love

"Twilight" is the good-girl, bad-boy romance based on the flrst book in Stephenie Meyer's series about an awkward teen (Kristen Stewart) who falls for a dazzling, eternally young stud (Robert Pattinson). OK, so he's a vampire, but a nice vampire.

Other odd romances include "Ghost Town," about a misanthropic dentist able to see ghosts who falls for the wife of one of the dead guys haunting him; and "Zack and Miri Make a Porno," a tale of destitute best pals who do a skin flick to raise cash.

Reunited

The stars of "Titanic," DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, share a far different love story in "Revolutionary Roa" playing a couple whose marriage comes undone as they seek meaning amid the stifling conformity of the 1950s.

Among other big screen reunions: Pitt reteams with "Ocean's Eleven" accomplice Clooney for the spy-game black comedy "Burn After Reading," from Joel and Ethan Coen, which opens today; Pitt rejoins "Babel" co-star Blanchett for David Fincher's "The Curious
Case of Benjamin Button," based on an F. Scott Fitzgerald story about a man who ages backward toward infancy; and Kidman is back with "Moulin Rouge" creator Baz Luhrmann, co-starring with Hugh Jackman in "Australia," a tale of a British aristocrat and a roughneck driving cattle across the continent amid a Japanese attack during World War II.

Double-barreled Eastwood

Perpetual Academy Award contender Eastwood cranks out two movies in short order. First, he directs Angelina Jolie in "Changeling," the story of a single mom coping with corrupt police who return the wrong child in place of her abducted son. Then, Eastwood directs himself in "Gran Torino," playing a veteran whose prejudices are challenged in encounters with his immigrant neighbors. Awards season is crowded with other serious fllms featuring past Oscar winners, among them "Milk," starring Sean Penn as slain, gay political pioneer Harvey Milk; "The Soloist," with Jamie Foxx as a schizophrenic music prodigy befriended by a journalist (Robert Downey Jr.); and "Doubt," with Meryl Streep as a nun who suspects a priest (Philip Seymour Hoffman) of abusing a boy.

Presidential treatment

Three decades ago, Richard Nixon faced the scrutiny of David Frost in what became a television event for the ages as the British TV personality delivered a remarkably candid interview with the fallen president. "This was two lone wolves. It's a duel. Two complicated, fascinating, really brilliant people," said Ron Howard, who directs "Frost/Nixon," adapted from the play about the TV showdown. Reprising their stage roles, Frank Langella stars as Nixon opposite Michael Sheen as Frost. President George W. Bush comes under the scrutiny of director Stone, who previously took on White House matters with "Nixon" and "JFK." Stone's "W." - due out right before the November election - chronicles Bush's life from his Yale days through the Iraq War. "The Bush family is a political dynasty. In America, it's the closest thing we have to a political dynasty," said Elizabeth Banks, who plays Laura Bush.

For teens and tweens

"High School Musical 3: Senior Year" takes the Disney Channel sensation to the big screen, reuniting jock Troy (Zac Efron) and brainiac Gabriella (Vanessa Hudgens) as singing partners, along with stage rivals Sharpay (Ashley Tisdale) and Ryan (Lucas Grabeel). Another Disney Channel star, Miley Cyrus, lends her voice to the animated adventure "Bolt," the story of a canine TV star (voiced by John Travolta) on a cross-country trek to get home to his human co-star (Cyrus). Other family ffiicks include "Beverly Hills Chihuahua," the liveaction tale of a pampered dog (voiced by Drew Barrymore) lost in Mexico; and "Igor," a cartoon comedy about a humpbacked lab assistant (voiced by John Cusack) who tries playing mad scientist. "Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa," reunites voice stars Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, Jada Pinkett Smith and David Schwimmer as zoo animals in the wild. The sequel sets up one of the season's weirdest love stories, between Schwimmer's giraffe and Pinkett Smith's hippopotamus.

HIGHLIGHTS

Highlights of the September-December film slate (release dates are subject to change, and some films will play in limited release):

September:

"APPALOOSA": A Western about hired lawmen who take on a tough rancher.
"BATTLE IN SEATTLE": Stuart Townsend directs girlfriend Charlize Theron in a drama about the 1999 protests of the World Trade Organization.
"BLINDNESS": A plague of sightlessness strikes humanity. With Julianne Moore, Danny Glover, Mark Ruffalo and Gael Garcia Bernal.
"BURN AFTER READING": CIA secrets fall into the hands of fitness-club employees.
"CHOKE": A scam artist with a demented mother pursues the truth about the identity of his father. Sam Rockwell and Angelica Huston star.
"THE DUCHESS": Keira Knightley stars as an 18th century ancestor of Princess Diana who becomes a major political player.
"EAGLE EYE": Strangers (Shia LaBeouf and Michelle Monaghan) are cast together as fugitives by a phone call from a mystery woman.
"FOREVER STRONG": A jailed rugby star (Sean Faris) gets a second chance with a rival team.
"GHOST TOWN": A man revived after a near-death experience finds that he can see ghosts.
"HOUNDDOG": After she's raped, a girl (Dakota Fanning) in rural 1950s Alabama struggles to find solace in blues music.
"HUMBOLDT COUNTY": A failing medical student finds refuge among a family of marijuana farmers.
"IGOR": A mad scientist's lab flunky tries to create his own monster in this animated comedy.
"LAKEVIEW TERRACE": A Los Angeles cop (Samuel L. Jackson) harasses his new neighbors because of their interracial relationship.
"THE LUCKY ONES": Iraq War vets adjust to changes on the home front during an impromptu road trip. With Tim Robbins and Rachel McAdams.
"MIRACLE AT ST. ANNA": An all-black Army unit is trapped behind enemy lines during World War II.
"MISTER FOE": A runaway Scottish teen plays Peeping Tom, obsessing on a young woman who resembles his dead mother.
"MY BEST FRIEND'S GIRL": Kate Hudson becomes the object of a love triangle between her ex (Jason Biggs) and his best buddy (Dane Cook).
"NIGHTS IN RODANTHE": Strangers (Diane Lane and Richard Gere) with personal crises bond during a major storm at a coastal inn.
"PING PONG PLAYA": An Asian-American youth who has shunned his family's table tennis livelihood must step up and compete in a national tournament.
"RIGHTEOUS KILL": Police detectives pursue a serial killer. Opens today.
"SUKIYAKI WESTERN DJANGO": A gunman is caught in a battle between two clans in this Japanese take on spaghetti Westerns. With Quentin Tarantino.
"SURFER, DUDE": A surfer (Matthew McConaughey) rides a wave of chaos in his life. With Woody Harrelson and Willie Nelson.
"A THOUSAND YEARS OF GOOD PRAYERS": A Chinese widower comes to America to help his daughter through her divorce.
"TOWELHEAD": An Arab-American girl copes with love, sex and acceptance amid the Gulf War.
"TYLER PERRY'S THE FAMILY THAT PREYS": Writer-director Perry spins a tale of secrets and shady dealings among two clans. Kathy Bates and Alfre Woodard star. Opens today.
"THE WOMEN": Meg Ryan, Annette Bening and Debra Messing lead the cast in an update of the 1939 classic about a woman with a cheating hubby and a circle of gossipy friends. Opens today.

October:

"AN AMERICAN CAROL": This twist on Charles Dickens features three spirits that give an anti-American filmmaker a lesson in U.S. values.
"BALLAST": A single mom on the Mississippi Delta copes with a man from her past while struggling to raise her son.
"BEVERLY HILLS CHIHUAHUA": A pampered pooch gets stranded in Mexico.
"BODY OF LIES": A CIA man goes after a terrorist kingpin while a crafty colleague runs interference.
"BREAKFAST WITH SCOT": A gay hockey-playerturned-sports-commentator and his lover become guardians to a flamboyant boy.
"THE BROTHERS BLOOM": Con artist siblings (Adrien Brody and Mark Ruffalo) take an heiress (Rachel Weisz) on a globe-trotting quest for valuables.
"CHANGELING": A mom fights corrupt police trying to cover their tracks in the abduction of her son.
"CITY OF EMBER": Tim Robbins and Bill Murray star in a fantasy about an underground city coping with an energy crisis.
"THE EXPRESS": Ernie Davis (Rob Brown), the first black Heisman Trophy winner, faces his greatest challenge after he's diagnosed with leukemia.
"FILTH AND WISDOM": Madonna's directing debut centers on a Ukrainian cross-dressing punkrocker and his roommates - a ballerina-turnedstripper and a humanitarian pharmacist.
"FLASH OF GENIUS": The engineer (Greg Kinnear) who invented intermittent windshield wipers obsesses on lawsuits after automakers swipe his idea.
"HAPPY-GO-LUCKY": An eternal optimist (Sally Hawkins) finds her upbeat attitude severely challenged by the people in her life.
"THE HAUNTING OF MOLLY HARTLEY": A teen faces unseen horror at a private school for girls.
"HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL 3: SENIOR YEAR": Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale and the other kids sing and dance through their final school year.
"HOW TO LOSE FRIENDS AND ALIENATE PEOPLE": An inept British journalist wreaks havoc among the celebrities he covers. With Simon Pegg and Kirsten Dunst.
"I'VE LOVED YOU SO LONG": A woman (Kristen Scott-Thomas) long estranged from her kin reconnects when she moves in with her younger sister's family.
"MAX PAYNE": A cop tracks the killer of his family and partner.
"MORNING LIGHT": Roy E. Disney, a veteran sailor in the Transpac ocean competition, produces this documentary about a team training for the 2,300-mile race.
"NICK & NORA'S INFINITE PLAYLIST": A Manhattan all-nighter holds the promise of romance for two teens (Michael Cera and Kat Dennings).
"NOAH'S ARC: JUMPING THE BROOM": A gay man heads cross-country for his same-sex wedding in this big screen take on the TV series.
"PRIDE AND GLORY": A New York City family of cops is shaken when a son is forced to investigate his brother. With Edward Norton and Colin Farrell.
"QUARANTINE": A news crew's video holds the key to the truth about a mysterious infection that strikes an apartment building in this horror tale.
"RACHEL GETTING MARRIED": An addict (Anne Hathaway) rekindles tension and tragic family memories at her sister's wedding.
"RELIGULOUS": Bill Maher travels the world to talk God and religion with the faithful in this documentary from "Borat" director Larry Charles.
"ROCKNROLLA": London crooks scramble for a piece of the action in a land scheme. With Thandie Newton and Ludacris. Guy Ritchie directs.
"SAW V": If it's Halloween season, it must be time for another torture tale about diabolical Jigsaw.
"THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES": A troubled teen (Dakota Fanning) finds respite in the beekeeping world of three sisters. With Queen Latifah, Jennifer Hudson, Alicia Keys and Sophie Okonedo.
"SEX DRIVE": A teen sets out with two pals on a cross-country trip to lose his virginity.
"SYNEDOCHE, NEW YORK": Philip Seymour Hoffman plays a theater director trying to re-create New York City. Screenwriter Charlie Kaufman ("Being John Malkovich") directs.
"W.": Oliver Stone chronicles the life of party-boyturned-president George W. Bush.
"WHAT JUST HAPPENED": A producer (Robert De Niro) juggles family and film pressures in Barry Levinson's Hollywood satire.
"ZACK AND MIRI MAKE A PORNO": Destitute roommies (Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks) try to make a skin flick to raise cash. Directed by Kevin Smith.

November:

"AUSTRALIA": The story of a noblewoman on a cattle drive in Australia during World War II.
"BOLT": A canine TV star hits the streets to reunite with his human co-star in this animated comedy.
"THE BOY IN THE STRIPED PAJAMAS": A Jewish boy forges a friendship with the son of a Nazi concentration camp commandant. With Vera Farmiga and David Thewlis.
"FOUR CHRISTMASES": A couple (Reese Witherspoon and Vince Vaughn) with a large extended family endure four holiday gatherings with kin.
"LAKE CITY": A son on the run returns home to a hard reunion with his mother. Sissy Spacek and Troy Garity star.
"MADAGASCAR: ESCAPE 2 AFRICA": Zoo animals are stranded again in this animated sequel.
"MILK": Sean Penn stars as slain gay political pioneer Harvey Milk.
"NOBEL SON": A doctoral candidate's dad wins a Nobel Prize, leading to a kidnapping and ransom demand for the award money.
"NOTHING LIKE THE HOLIDAYS": A sack full of surprises awaits a family during its Christmas reunion. With Debra Messing, John Leguizamo and Alfred Molina.
"QUANTUM OF SOLACE": James Bond, vengeful over the death of his love, takes on a phony environmentalist trying to control water supplies.
"REPO! THE GENETIC OPERA": Organ-donor recipients who can't make their payments face repossession in this horror-musical that features Paris Hilton.
"THE ROAD": A man and his son trek across a desolate land after a global catastrophe has destroyed most life on Earth. With Viggo Mortensen and Charlize Theron.
"ROLE MODELS": Two childish adults (Paul Rudd and Seann William Scott) are sentenced to community service as youth mentors.
"THE SOLOIST": A music prodigy now living on the streets is befriended by a journalist.
"SOUL MEN": Samuel L. Jackson and the late Bernie Mac are an estranged singing duo reunited for a tribute concert. The late Isaac Hayes co-stars.
"TRANSPORTER 3": Jason Statham is back on the job as the ex-special ops guy who's now the world's most-dangerous delivery man.
"TWILIGHT": The tale of an eternally young vampire and his teen soul mate.

December:

"BEDTIME STORIES": Adam Sandler's a handyman whose drab life changes after the tall tales he tells his niece and nephew start to come true.
"THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL": Keanu Reeves stars as an alien on a portentous visit to Earth in this remake of the 1950s sci-fi classic.
"THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON": Brad Pitt stars as a man aging backward from his 80s to infancy.
"DEFIANCE": Jewish brothers evade the Nazis and form a community to protect others.
"DOUBT": A drama about a nun who accuses a priest of abusing a student.
"FROST/NIXON": The adaptation of the play about the soul-baring 1977 interview between Richard Nixon and David Frost.
"GRAN TORINO": A veteran's prejudices are challenged by his immigrant neighbors.
"HURRICANE SEASON": In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, a coach (Forest Whitaker) leads a ragtag basketball team to the Louisiana state championships.
"MARLEY & ME": A kooky dog winds up teaching valuable life lessons to his two-legged friends. With Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson.
"PUNISHER: WAR ZONE": The Marvel Comics vigilante is a target for vengeance by a crime boss.
"REVOLUTIONARY ROAD": A couple struggle to break out of the boredom of 1950s suburbia.
"SEVEN POUNDS": Will Smith's an IRS agent making amends for past wrongs by helping seven strangers.
"THE SPIRIT": Graphic novelist Frank Miller ("300") directs the tale of a resurrected crimefighter (Gabriel Macht). With Samuel L. Jackson and Scarlett Johansson.
"THE TALE OF DESPEREAUX": Matthew Broderick provides the voice of a mouse who sets out to rescue a princess in this animated adventure.
"VALKYRIE": A German colonel attempts to assassinate Adolf Hitler.
"WALTZ WITH BASHIR": An Israeli Army veteran struggles with cloudy memories of the war in Lebanon in the early 1980s in this animated documentary.
"WENDY AND LUCY": Michelle Williams stars as a woman whose dream of a new life for her and her dog in Alaska hits a road block.
"YES MAN": A guy (Jim Carrey) whose life has stagnated turns it around with a just-say-yes policy about everything.