"Fantastic Mr. Fox" uses stop-motion animation and Disney returns to hand-drawn animation for "The Princess and the Frog," although its black princess is ground-breaking.

Everything old, part 2: Robert Downey Jr., with a little help from director Guy Ritchie and co-star Jude Law, will give new life to Sherlock Holmes, played in the past by the likes of Basil Rathbone, Christopher Plummer and Michael Caine.

The family hour: In addition to "Fantastic Mr. Fox" and "The Princess and the Frog," the boys are back with "Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel."

Timeliest remake: Robert De Niro steps into the "Everybody's Fine" role occupied in 1990 by Marcello Mastroianni. The story has been massaged and moved to Elmira, N.Y., where a widower decides to visit the adult children who canceled their trip to see him.

Is blue the new green? If "Avatar" scores with audiences, it will be. "Avatar" has been percolating for 15 years with James Cameron, who spent more than $200 million making the sci-fi feature. It will either revolutionize filmmaking or give Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin a target on Oscar night.

Grown-ups need apply: After feeling left out of the party much of the year, adults should feel welcome with such features as "It's Complicated," "Nine the Musical" and "The Lovely Bones," among others.

Movie that cannot miss: "Up in the Air," whose Pittsburgh date is just that. Still, it stars George Clooney, deals with downsizing and matters of the heart, and was one of my favorites at the Toronto International Film Festival.

Flashback: In case you cannot remember what you saw last Thanksgiving or Christmas, here's a recap. On the eve of Turkey Day 2008, "Four Christmases," "Australia" and "Transporter 3" joined newer releases "Twilight" (cue the screams) and "Bolt" in theaters.

On Dec. 25, 2008, eight movies opened: "Bedtime Stories," "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," "Doubt," "Frost/Nixon," "Marley & Me," "The Reader," "The Spirit" and "Valkyrie."

Looking for more from the Post-Gazette? Join PG+, our members-only web site. You'll get exclusive sports content, opinion, financial information, discounts from retailers and restaurants, and more. Our introduction to PG+ gives you all the details.