This is shaping up to be a great weekend for movies. I could personally recommend two of the films coming out (like I could ever say "no" to a hand-drawn Disney fairy tale...), and most of the other new releases look like solid, interesting choices as well. Let’s see what we have… [breakdown of new releases after the jump]
1. “The Princess and the Frog” - I caught this one last week—check out my review here. All in all, minus its flaws, Disney’s first hand-drawn-animated feature in years is a delight. From Ron Clemens and John Musker, the talented duo behind Aladdin (my personal favorite Disney cartoon), The Great Mouse Detective (forgot how much I loved that Holmes-ian Basil of Baker Street!), The Little Mermaid, Mulan, and the underrated Hercules and Treasure Planet, this film recaptures some of the storytelling magic that Disney perfected in the 90’s. Following Tiana and Prince Naveen, two lively, very enjoyable characters in 1920’s New Orleans, this twist on the “The Frog Prince” fairy tale is full of charm and warm-hearted spirit—a perfect treat for the holidays. It’s not necessarily a great film, but it’s an easy recommend, especially if you love (and, like me, missed) the glory of Disney’s 2-D animated films.
2. “The Lovely Bones” - I just saw this last night (we’ll have a full review up next week), and, while far from perfect, this is an interesting, quite powerful film, and a highly recommended watch. Based on Alice Sebold’s beloved book (which I’m finishing up right now), The Lovely Bones tells the story of Susie Salmon (the amazing, young Saoirse Ronan, an Oscar-nominee from Atonement), a bright, lovely girl in 1970’s suburbia, and one who was savagely murdered on her way home from school. Thus, Susie narrates the proceedings from her own personal Heaven, a gorgeous, endless “perfect world,” something that the film dubs the In-Between. Throughout the film, her surviving family (featuring Mark Whalberg and Rachel Weisz as Susie's parents, both terrific) grieves and tries to rediscover the love that held them together, her killer, Mr. Harvey (the great character actor, Stanley Tucci) attempts to cover his tracks, and Susie, ever lonely and away from her loved ones, tries to make peace with her own death and finally move on to a better place. As you could tell, there are a lot of elements at play here (much like the book)—bits of family drama, supernatural visuals, and even suspense and thrills—they don’t always mix, but when the different pieces click, the film ranks among the best I’ve seen this year. I imagine the book, spanning years of time and lacking any straightforward narrative, was incredibly hard to adapt, so kudos to the filmmakers for capturing some of its ultimately hopeful and loving spirit.This comes to us from Lord of the Rings/King Kong super-director Peter Jackson (and produced by some little, unheard-of guy named Steven Spielberg), and it’s a beautiful film, all emotionally anchored by Ronan, easily one of our best young actresses. The reviews are very mixed, with many claiming that the special effects distract from the emotional pull of the story. Honestly, I couldn’t disagree more—the film does run into some narrative stumbles in the second act, as Jackson obviously struggles to do justice to Susie’s family's story in under 3 hours, but the few visual sequences always felt right for the surreal state of Susie’s Heaven. It’s certainly not for everyone—its subject matter (though handled sensitively) doesn’t make it easy to watch, but this is very strong work on display, and further proof that Jackson remains on the most important and gifted directors working in Hollywood.
3. “Invictus” - Check out the trailer below. Can’t you just taste the Oscar nominations? Following the story of Nelson Mandela’s first year in office (played by the perfectly-cast Morgan Freeman, our go-to guy for wise, inspirational people), and his plan to unite the post-Apartheid South African people with a World Cup Rugby victory, this looks like intelligent, uplifting entertainment. Plus, it’s packed with the kind of things Oscar voters love: we have an inspirational true story, an important historical figure (who surprisingly does not have his own movie yet), a top-notch cast (including the always-good Matt Damon as South African Rugby star, Francois Pienaar, whose relationship with Mandela jump-starts the plot), and all delivered with a touch of class from director and living legend Clint Eastwood. Honestly, it looks like a very good film. On a simple level, I know only the general facts about Mandela and his presidency, so I’d love to learn more, especially since the events depicted here hold a special place in South African history. And, of course, Eastwood knows how to make a strong picture—it might hit those “hopeful” notes a little too hard (as the still very good reviews point out), but I think the whole picture is worth catching in theaters. Mandela, himself a symbol of hope, democratic reform, and perseverance, deserves to have his story told, even if it’s just a fraction of his whole life experience. I’m definitely watching this soon, and expect this to be a major contender once the Academy Awards season starts full swing.
4. “A Single Man” - If I needed only one reason to check this out, it’s for Colin Firth, the great British actor who’s earning endless raves for his turn here—here’s hoping he will get his first-ever Oscar nomination as a result. Firth has been so good for so many years (ie, Love Actually, Girl with a Pearl Earring, Shakespeare in Love, and, of course, his iconic Mr. Darcy in the 1995 Pride & Prejudice mini-series), that it’s about time he gets his time to shine. If you guys get the chance, also check out his recent film, Easy Virtue, with Jessica Biel—it’s one of his strongest performances, and the whole film is just a witty (and surprisingly dark) trip into the heart of the British upper class.The Oscar buzz on Colin Firth is my driving factor to see this, but, actually, the rest of the story—about a middle-aged gay college professor (Firth) trying to move on after the loss of his lover (Watchmen’s Matthew Goode)—sounds equally compelling. This could be powerful (and topical) material, and, according to the excellent all-around reviews, Julianne Moore is phenomenal in a supporting part (like always), and newbie director Tom Ford makes it all something truly special. I really want to see this—it looks like a fine choice for anyone seeking intelligent drama, and, like Invictus, I hope to catch it sometime in the next few weeks.
5. “The Slammin’ Salmon” - This is from Broken Lizard, the comedy guys behind Beerfest, Super Troopers, and (unofficially) The Dukes of Hazard. I’m not a fan of them, but I know Super Troopers and Beerfest have their followings (I want to guess a very specific, herbal-substance-involving target audience, but you could probably say the same thing about the Harold & Kumar movies, which I unashamedly love). The trailer below wasn’t all that funny to me, though I'm a big fan Michael Clarke Duncan, who broke through amazingly with The Green Mile and The Whole Nine Yards, then kind of remained on the sidelines for years. He should have been a much bigger star, and while I love his occasional TV gigs (like Chuck!), here’s hoping this will be a nice showcase for his leading-man quality and underseen comic chops. The reviews are mostly negative, as expected. I doubt it will be worthwhile, but you never know. By all means, it could be a silly, stupid-good time at the movies, which is sometimes just the thing we need.And that’s it for this weekend. Are you guys excited to see any of these films?
Of the ones I haven’t seen, I think A Single Man and Invictus look equally good, both bona-fide awards contenders featuring some of our best off- and on-screen talent.
Next week looks pretty great too—we’ll have the release of the star-studded musical, Nine, a new Hugh Grant romantic comedy (always a nice option in my book), and James Cameron’s 3-D epic, Avatar, which, yeah, we might be a tiny bit excited to see.
Have a good weekend, everyone, and see you next week!
Clips courtesy of Trailer Addict.
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