Part I of this series of Oscar articles discussed the promises and prospects of “Babel,” “Fur,” “Little Children,” and “Little Miss Sunshine.” Part II examines “The Hoax,” “Hollywoodland,” “Notes on a Scandal,” and “The Painted Veil.”

Part I of III: Genre, direction, acting, Oscar record and prospects in the case of Babel, Fur, Little Children, and Little Miss Sunshine, high-profile films with dark (or darkly humorous) overtones that reflect the zeitgeist in the post 9/11 era.

There were few great films in 2001, but enough good ones by new (Todd Field), developing (Peter Jackson, Baz Luhrmann), and veteran (Lynch, Altman) directors, to make the year more agreeable. With most studio releases slipshod and slapdash, the interesting films were easily evident on first viewing. Hence, choosing the best was not difficult, though for the first time in years, most of my personal choices are A-or B+ pictures.

In the Academy's entire history only a few foreign-language movies have been nominated for the Best Picture. Jean Renoir's anti-war masterpiece, Grand Illusion competed for the 1937 top award, but that was before the creation of a distinct category for foreign-language pictures.

Prior to the creation of a separate category for foreign-language films, the Academy recognized several foreign films with an Honorary Oscar, beginning with Vittorio De Sica's neorealistic movie “Shoeshine,” in 1947.