Hey, everyone! This looks like a pretty good weekend, with 7 new releases hitting theaters—we have some dud choices, but some potentially great ones as well. Let’s break down the new releases… [breakdown after the jump]
1. “Armored” - Yeah, I could totally live without seeing this. And, really, shouldn’t this come out in September? Some good actors and a ho-hum premise—September is chock-full of those types of films—quickly forgettable, but maybe good enough for a quick buck, since there’s not much else out in the doldrums of the first month of school. Sorry, it’s hard to muster up any enthusiasm for this—I like a lot of these actors (Laurence Fishburne, Matt Dillon, the great Frenchman, Jean Reno), but the whole plot—about an armored-truck heist-gone-wrong—looks lackluster at best from the trailer. This didn’t screen for critics (never a good sign)…although I suspect, when all is said and done, that this will be a middle-of-the-road kind of film—far from good, but passably entertaining. There are certainly worse choices out there, but I would go for something that looks more substantial than this.
2. “Up in the Air” - Now this just looks wonderful. I loved the teaser from a few months back, and the full-length trailer (see it below) is even better—more humor and a much greater dose of the plot. This comes from director Jason Reitman, whose first two films, Thank You For Smoking and Juno, comprise one of the best one-two punches I’ve seen in a while. Looks like this is another winner for him: the reviews are absolutely sensational, and the story, tracking George Clooney’s travel-loving expert firer (yep, the guy whose job it is to come over and personally fire workers) and his realization of his empty existence, is both topical, and with lots of potential for good, heartfelt drama. Clooney is slowly taking his place (if he’s not there already) among our best actors—his choices are savvy and always interesting, and I love how he uses his box office clout to keep making mature, personal films that actually have something to say (his Ocean’s buddies, Matt Damon and Brad Pitt, are pretty much in the same league). Same goes for Jason Reitman—he’s a young director, but he shows a confidence and understanding of the various material he tackles of someone who’s been doing this for years. He’s the real deal, and I think he’ll knock it out of the park with this film too. I have very high hopes for this one—I’m definitely checking it out in the next few weeks. Also, so far, it looks like a sure-bet Oscar frontrunner, so expect to hear lots of buzz on it in the months leading up to February’s ceremony.
3. “Brothers” - The trailer for this is actually kind of brilliant. Check it out below—the tonal shift near the end is completely unexpected, turning what looked like a heart-tugging drama of grief and forgiveness into a more psychological, intense experience. It could be interesting—it comes from award-winning director Jim Sheridan (In America, In the Name of the Father), and its trio of actors—Natalie Portman, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Tobey Maguire—is excellent all-around. The story, following one brother’s (Maguire) disappearance in Afghanistan, and his wife’s (Portman) growing relationship with his just-out-of-prison brother (Gyllenhaal), looks to hit the right emotional notes as well. My only bit of apprehension is screenwriter David Benioff—he’s a respected novelist, and one of the highest-paid scribes in Hollywood. But he’s also quite inconsistent—for every terrific, powerful script like The 25th Hour (based on his own novel), we get the underwhelming Troy or the stylish, but ultimately kind of pointless, Stay. I hope I’m wrong on this one—the many great reviews certainly indicate that. Plus, from the reviews, it looks like this is Tobey Maguire’s show, and he more than rises to the occasion. Portman and Gyllenhaal are already Oscar-nominees, so, all Star Wars prequels aside, we know to expect good things from them (and it helps that I’m completely in love with Natalie Portman—she’s like a Jewish goddess!). Maguire, on the other hand, has always been a good actor (see: Wonder Boys, The Cider House Rules, Pleasantville), but, post-Spider-Man, he rarely had a chance to display some range. Here (at least in the trailer), he shows an unhinged, go-for-broke energy, and I think he’ll turn a lot of heads—it’s about time Peter Parker gets back some credibility. All in all, it’s an interesting choice—I’ll definitely see this eventually, even if it’s not in theaters.Fun Fact: Casting Gyllenhaal and Maguire as brothers is pure genius—the two honestly look similar, and, even better, Gyllenhaal almost replaced Maguire as Peter Parker in Spider-Man 2, back when Maguire’s back injury might have prevented him from stepping back into his signature role.
4. “The Last Station” - I’m very intrigued by this film, tracing the last days of Russian literary giant, Lev Tolstoy (Anna Karenina and the huge, daunting War and Peace). I’ve been meaning to read Anna Karenina for ages—I have the huge, pretty, Oprah-approved edition lying on my shelf, and I’m promising myself that I will read it in the next few months—it’s too much of a classic for me to ignore anymore! I’m also crazy for biopics about writers—the peeks into the creative process, or really just the general lives of our great artists (Finding Neverland, especially, is one of my favorite films). Tolstoy was a fascinating figure—I wasn’t enthusiastic about his short stories in my Russian Lit class (although that might change when I finally check out Anna Karenina), but there’s no denying he led an interesting and very influential life. From what I gather, this film will cover his embrace of religion, and his wish to donate his land to the Russian people. Christopher Plummer is Tolstoy, Helen Mirren plays his wife, Sofya, and my favorite young actor right now, James McAvoy, stars as his advisor, Bulgakov (sadly not that Bulgakov, who wrote one of the most famous and amazing Russian novels, The Master and Margarita). I really want to see this—it’s playing in limited release in both New York and LA, but, as always, it should expand into more cities in the coming weeks. Reviews are also very strong and it’s picking up some Oscar buzz, especially for star (and Oscar-darling) Helen Mirren (here’s hoping McAvoy’s performance will gain some steam as well)—looks like a solid choice for those looking for a respectable historical drama.
5. “Everybody’s Fine” - I liked the trailer a lot, and the cast (featuring Robert De Niro, Kate Becksinale, Drew Barrymore, and the always-amazing Sam Rockwell) is fantastic. However, judging by the mixed reviews (with even the positive ones not that enthusiastic), I reckon this will turn out to be a decent, but pretty flawed film. The set-up—De Niro’s widower father tries to reconnect with his kids, all of whom were far closer to their mother—is good, but it needs a strong script to prevent it from falling into clichéd melodrama; sadly, it doesn’t sound like that happens here. Still, I see this as a good rental in the future—it’s great to see De Niro in what looks like a warm-spirited, layered performance (and not a gruff caricature, the kind he does so effortlessly) and I’m sure the rest of the cast deliver as well. These types of films, the family dramedies, are easy to watch, and I can overlook a lot flaws if the character work is believable and affecting—I hope that’s true of the final product here. It’s an awfully likeable group of people in front of the camera, so think of it as hesitant, maybe-worthwhile choice.
6. “Serious Moonlight” - I only know the very basic facts about this film: it was the last written script of the late Adrianne Shelley (the likeable writer/director/star of the indie, Waitress, who was tragically murdered shortly before that film came out). Cheryl Hines, a lovely comic actress and Shelley’s co-star in Waitress (she’s also Larry’s long-suffering love on Curb Your Enthusiasm) developed this feature, and this also marks her directorial debut. I’m not so sure about the concept—a wife (Meg Ryan) duct-tapes her divorce-seeking husband (Timothy Hutton) to the toilet to work out their problems, until complications (ie, burglars) ensue; it carries the risk of being too broad and uninvolving. Then again, if done in the right tone (and the characters are well-written), it could be funny, and the cast is very promising, rounded out by some of my favorite people, Kristen Bell and Justin Long. Plus, for a fun fact, Hutton and Meg Ryan last starred together (also as feuding lovers) in the very pleasant French Kiss, one of Ryan’s most enjoyable romantic comedies. Not a must-see for me, but, like a few other films this weekend, it could be a good rental in the future.
7. “Transylmania” - Don’t bother with this. A spoof of horror/monster movies, this is from the guys behind a few of the recent National Lampoon’s direct-to-DVD films. And if that’s not a ringing endorsement, these types of spoof films are rarely done well—in fact, the vast majority of them are downright awful. Date Movie, Epic Movie, Disaster Movie—it’s ridiculous that people were paid to write those strings-of-jokes (terrible ones at that!) disguised as movies. Sure, we have the likes of Hot Fuzz (which is probably more of an homage than a spoof) and, back in the day, stuff like Top Secret and The Naked Gun was very clever entertainment. This looks nowhere near those great films. Gone are the clever ways to make fun of popular films, as are the (very necessary) good characters that could zip through the jokes and still make us care. I think we could all easily skip this.And that’s it for this weekend. What do you guys think? Any of these new releases look worth checking out?
As for me, Up in the Air and The Last Station look like the best choices. I’ll definitely check those out in the next few weeks.
Next week sees the release of the Disney’s The Princess and The Frog (which I just saw at a special screening! It’s delightful, if not up in the ranks of Disney’s masterpieces. I’ll do my best to have a full review up before its Friday release date) and Peter Jackson’s amazing-looking The Lovely Bones. See you guys then!
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