General membership of the Oscar academy received three new DVD screeners over the past two days: "Over the Hedge," "Pan's Labyrinth" and "Prairie Home Companion."

Hey, you academy members out there: don't skip "Pan's Labyrinth." Make a point of watching it this weekend and, go ahead, permit yourself the pleasure of getting all giddy-excited ahead of time about seeing a great movie. Pop the popcorn and fluff up the sofa pillows before settling down and hitting "play" on your DVD remote. That one's a gem. Beware: it's not the kind of mainstream stuff that you usually give Oscars to. You're being challenged here to make one of those big leaps you took a few years ago when you gave a screenplay Oscar to Pedro Almodovar's "Talk to Her" — even though it was in Spanish. So is "Pan's Labryinth," but it's worth enduring the subtitles to experience the joy of watching a magically crafted fairy tale of a movie, one of those perfect little, weird, enchanting, quirky things that remind you of why you're in the film biz.