The summer blockbuster movie season has come to a close, and cultural heavies like Spider-Man, Harry Potter, Jack Sparrow, Optimus Prime and Homer Simpson helped Hollywood earn some serious dough (or in Homer's case, d'oh!).

To be sure, there are a fair share of comedies and other popcorn movies on the slate, but more importantly to Hollywood studios, the time has come to let loose some of their potential Oscar contenders, as awards season looms right around the corner. And while there won't be as many riches to seize in the coming months in terms of box office dollars, there will be plenty of contenders for awards season gold.

Slideshow: Fall Movies | Must-See September Movie? | Must-See October Movie?

Here's a look at the some of the films on tap for September and October:

Oscar Fare

Hollywood isn't waiting long to trot out its first awards contender with "3:10 to Yuma" (Sept. 7), the first of two Westerns slated for September. Russell Crowe stars as a captured outlaw who is under the watch of a small-time rancher (Christian Bale) as he awaits a train that will take him trial. Peter Fonda co-stars.

"The Brave One" (Sept. 14) stars Jodie Foster as Erica Bain, the survivor of a vicious attack in New York's Central Park that left her husband dead. She was once a mild-mannered radio talk show host, but the aftermath of the beatings leads Bain on a dark path of vengeance -- and only a sharp-eyed New York City detective (Terrence Howard) may be able to stop her. Directed by Neil Jordan ("The Crying Game"), "The Brave One" is naturally pre-loaded with twists and is sure to stir up debate over the film's hot-button theme of vigilante justice.

Also sure to spark some controversy is "In the Valley of Elah" (Sept. 14). Tommy Lee Jones, Charlize Theron and director Paul Haggis team up for the drama, which finds a career military officer probing the death of his son during his tour of duty in Iraq.

The Iraq war will return to the marquees again in October, where "Grace is Gone" (Oct. 5) finds John Cusack as a father struggling to tell his girls that their mother is not coming home from the war.

"Yuma's" counterpart, "The Assassination of Jesse James According to the Coward Robert Ford" (the title makes the plot self-explanatory) arrives Sept. 21 with a solid cast, including Brad Pitt (as Jesse James), Casey Affleck (Robert Ford) and Sam Shepard.

"Lord of the Rings" hero Viggo Mortensen turns bad for "Eastern Promises" (Sept. 14), a crime thriller about a ruthless European mobster. Naomi Watts co-stars.

"Across the Universe" (Sept. 14), director Julie Taymor's Beatles-esque musical that follows the romance between a British boy named Jude (Jim Sturgess) and an American girl (Evan Rachel Wood).

"Into the Wild" (Sept. 14) finds actor Sean Penn back in the director's chair to tell the true story of Christopher McCandless' (Emile Hirsch) fateful trek into the Alaskan Wilderness.

Ang Lee turns to directing a period political drama "Lust, Caution" (Sept. 28), his first film following the award-winning "Brokeback Mountain."

In October, Oscar hopefuls include "Elizabeth: The Golden Age" (Oct. 12), the sequel to the 1999 Best Picture Oscar nominee "Elizabeth," in which Cate Blanchett reprises her role of Queen Elizabeth.

Joaquin Phoenix and Mark Wahlberg team up for "We Own the Night" (Oct. 12), about a pair of estranged brothers on the opposite side of the law who reunite to confront a group of mobsters.

George Clooney stars in the title role of "Michael Clayton" (Oct. 12), a legal thriller co-starring Tilda Swinton and Tom Wilkinson.

Also in the Oscar race is the CIA thriller "Rendition" (Oct. 19), starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Reese Witherspoon.

Halle Berry and Benicio Del Toro team for "Things We Lost in the Fire" (Oct. 26) which finds a devastated woman (Berry) turning to her late husband's troubled best friend (Del Toro) to help pick up the pieces after the tragedy.

Action-Adventure

"Sin City" star Clive Owen is packing heat again in "Shoot 'Em Up" (Sept. 7) as a loner protecting an infant from a maniacal criminal (Paul Giamatti).

Oscar winners Jamie Foxx and Chris Cooper, along with "Alias" star Jennifer Garner star and "Arrested Development" star Jason Bateman perform in "The Kingdom" (Sept. 28), which finds an elite team of FBI agents in a quandary in the Middle East when their efforts to find a terrorist in Saudi Arabia are met with resistance.

Drama

Daniel Radcliffe turns in his wizard's wand and rounded glass for "December Boys" (Sept. 14), a coming-of-age tale set in Australia.

The stars of classic "Alfie" and its remake, Michael Caine and Jude Law, team together for Kenneth Branagh's remake of the suspense thriller "Sleuth" (Oct. 12), where Law plays the role originated by Caine in 1972.

Ben Affleck assumes the director's chair for "Gone, Baby Gone" (Oct. 19), about a pair of detectives (Morgan Freeman and Ed Harris) on the kidnapping case of a young girl.

Comedy

"Blades of Glory" bad guy Will Arnett and "Saturday Night Live" cast member Will Forte star as "The Brothers Solomon" (Sept. 7), a pair of loser siblings trying fulfill their father's dying wish of having a grandchild.

"Bad Santa" star Billy Bob Thornton is back in his mischievous mode, starring in the title role in "Mr. Woodcock" (Sept. 14) about a man (Seann William Scott) who attempts to thwart his mother's (Susan Sarandon) plans to marry a gym teacher (Thornton) that agonized him in high school.

Comedian Dane Cook and "Fantastic Four" star Jessica Alba star in "Good Luck Chuck" (Sept. 21), about a ladies man trying to break an unusual curse to keep his true love from marrying somebody else.

Wrestler-turned-action-star The Rock gets in the family film huddle with "The Game Plan," about a self-centered pro football quarterback who's thrown for a loss when a daughter he never knew (Madison Pettis) turns up on his doorstep.

October brings a remake of Neil Simon and Elaine May's 1972 comedy "The Heartbreak Kid" (Oct. 5), reuniting Ben Stiller with "There's Something About Mary" filmmakers Peter and Bobby Farrelly. Stiller stars as a newlywed in a pickle when he meets the love of his life on his honeymoon with his wife.

"The Office" star Steve Carell is "Dan in Real Life" (Oct. 26), a romantic dramedy about a widower (Carell) who falls for his brother's (Dane Cook) girlfriend (Juliette Binoche).

Horror

Kane Hodder, who is used to playing the hockey-masked menace Jason in the "Friday the 13th" movies, turns in his machete for an axe in "Hatchet" (Sept. 7) about a disfigured man who makes life hell for tourists of a haunted swamp in New Orleans.

"Resident Evil: Apocalypse" (Sept. 21), the third in the zombie video-game-turned-film-series rolls the dice this time in Las Vegas, bringing "Heroes" star Ali Larter along for the ride. Milla Jovovich, the star of the first two "Evil" films, is back as Alice.

Josh Hartnett finds himself among a pack of vampires in Alaska in "30 Days of Night" (Oct. 19), produced by "Evil Dead" and "Spider-Man" trilogy director Sam Raimi.

Finally, while details remain sketchy, "Saw" bad guy Tobin Bell and his Jigsaw character will be back for the fourth year in a row with the release of "Saw IV" (Oct. 26), timed for release again just before Halloween.