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This looks like a great weekend for movies—lots of choices, from the low-brow (but explosion-filled!) 2012 to some under-the-radar, very intriguing indies. Let’s see what we have…
1. “Pirate Radio” - This is high on my must-see list. From Richard Curtis, the British rom-com wizard who gave us some of my favorite movies, including Notting Hill, Four Weddings and a Funeral, and Love Actually, comes this tribute to the rebellious and all-too-cool spirit of rock-and-roll in the late 60’s. Based on true events, this is the story of one American DJ (played by the great Philip Seymour Hoffman) and how he thwarted Britain’s ban on rock-and-roll by broadcasting from a ship just outside Britain’s jurisdiction lines. Thus, these guys were true pirates—colorful dudes who loved music, and embraced that spirit with a what-the-hell, screw-the-authorities attitude, and plenty of style. Check out the trailer below—it just looks like a great time. Curtis rarely fails in my book, and that cast is absolutely killer—joining Hoffman are a collection of loveable Brits, including the always-awesome Bill Nighy (back in rock-god territory after Love Actually), Nick Frost (Simon Pegg’s best friend in Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz), Rhys Ifans (Hugh Grant’s weirdo “flatmate” in Notting Hill), Emma Thompson, and Kenneth Branagh as the government official who wants to shut these guys down. I love movies like this, where a bunch of creative renegades face off against stuffy, boring rulemakers, and just the whole “stick it to the Man” mindset is infectious. Reviews are also good (if not necessarily strong), so I have a feeling it will be really enjoyable. If anything, the soundtrack should be sweet, and the nostalgic air for a crazy, beautiful musical generation might scratch a bit of Almost Famous territory (my pick for one of the best movies of all time, which starred, ironically enough, Philip Seymour Hoffman as a rock-music guru). If anyone sees this, let me know—I’m definitely catching it later, but I’m mighty curious to see how it all turns out.
2. “2012” - I can't wait to see this one. I spotlighted the trailer earlier, and while there are probably (scratch that…definitely!) better movies coming out this weekend, director Roland Emmerich’s (Independence Day, The Day After Tomorrow) brand of cheesy, ridiculously-over-the-top world destruction is right up my alley. I love the cast (including John Cusack, Amanda Peet, and Woody Harrelson), and the visuals are jaw-dropping. In fact, the reviews aren’t even that bad—my hero Roger Ebert actually gave it 3 ½ stars out of a possible four. And, you know what, I’m not terribly surprised—Emmerich, the German maestro of things that go boom, is not exactly a quality filmmaker, but his movies (even 10,000 BC and Godzilla, his only truly bad movies) are always entertaining, usually striking just the right big-dumb-disaster-movie sweet spot. The actors seem game, and the plot (revolving around the Mayan prophecy of the world expiring in the title year) gives Emmerich plenty of wiggle room to put on the biggest and most creative apocalypse he’s ever done (and demolish brand-new cities!). Should be fun, though I hear it gets a bit long, and that the human characters don’t register as much as they should. Then again, Emmerich is the guy who made me care about Jake Gyllenhaal’s corny quest to win Emmy Rossum (and totally overlook that the rest of the population died!)—great characters aren’t his thing, but this group should be likeable enough for us to want to see them live until the end.
3. “The Fantastic Mr. Fox” - It’s a lovely, very funny trailer, and the reviews (in total spirit of the movie), are just fantastic all-around. Based on the book by kid-lit master Roald Dahl, the crafty Mr. Fox (voiced by George Clooney) must outwit three evil real estate developers (all the nasty, stuffy British kind—not a good week for them, is it?). The voice cast is amazing (featuring Meryl Streep, and Wes Anderson regulars Bill Murray, Jason Schwartzman, and Owen Wilson), and it sounds like director Wes Anderson just hit it out of the park, with warmth and cleverness to spare. I like the stop-motion animation style (which seems purposefully rougher and less polished than what Tim Burton used in Corpse Bride), and this just strikes me as a good choice for either Anderson fans or those just wanting some good family entertainment. Hopefully, it won’t be appealing to just older audiences, and it will capture, much like Tim Burton’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the sharp, subtle humor and delightful imagination of Roald Dahl. It's in limited release for now, but, in case it's not playing near you, it will go wide next weekend.
There are some potentially good choices this weekend, from Clooney killing goats…with his mind (!) to Jim Carrey taking on eight roles in Victorian London. There’s also one festival darling that should shake up the upcoming Oscars. Let’s break down the new releases…
1. “The Men Who Stare at Goats” - I’m really looking forward to this. Clooney’s great fun when he cuts loose (ie, O Brother, Where Art Thou?) and the premise—that the U.S. government had a secret branch for psychic warriors (each loonier than the next)—is ripe for some clever entertainment. Based on a supposedly true story, Ewan McGregor’s journalist tracks George Clooney’s ace, “reactivated” soldier and his ragtag group of colleagues, including the great Kevin Spacey and a hippie-fied Jeff Bridges. The trailer (check it out below) has plenty of laughs, and it looks like the whole movie will be an enjoyable (and semi-true!) romp. Oh, and love that goat—one of my favorite sequences from any trailer this year…and an awesome bit of advertising.
2. “Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire” - This is riding mountains of buzz from the festival circuit, getting praise for its sensitive handling of the subject matter, and nothing but raves for star Mo’Nique’s role as a vicious monster of a mother. I don’t know much about the story, but in broad strokes, it looks like the journey of an overweight, barely schooled pregnant teen, and how she hopes to turn her life around (and escape the mental and physical abuse of her mother) with a new school. Then again, I hear that summary barely does the story justice—the beats may be familiar, but apparently the performances and writing are so strong, they lift this thing from after-school-special territory. The reviews are enthusiastic across the board, and this looks to be a powerful, moving portrait of abuse and coming-of-age in a fractured home. I can’t say this is the type of movie I’d rush out to see, but, if the word of mouth is any indication, it could be necessary viewing at some point. It’s already causing Oscar talk, so we might hear a lot more about this one as we move closer to the Academy Awards.
3. “The Fourth Kind” - On the heels of the smash Paranormal Activity (which is already one of the most—if not the most—profitable movies of all time), comes another chiller supposedly inspired by true events. Resident Evil leading lady (and fellow Ukranian!) Milla Jovovich stars as a psychologist investigating a series of disappearances in a small Alaskan town. According to the trailer, this town has seen more disappearances than any place in the world—could it be the work of alien abductions, the so-called Close Encounters of the Fourth Kind? I love alien movies, especially those wrapped around some sort of historical mysteries (like Roswell, New Mexico stories) or intelligent plotting (like Contact, one of my all-time favorites). However, I’m just not itching to see this one. I like Jovovich (who’s a much better actress than people give her credit for), and the trailer is actually pretty ingenious—Jovovich tells us point-blank that she’s an actress playing a real person, and we can see that the film will be a combination of re-enactments and actual case studies footage. Still, I have a feeling it will be disappointing and, most likely, a speculative, unexciting would-be horror film (the predominantly negative reviews don’t help either). It might be worth catching on DVD; for now, though, I can live without seeing it.
4. “A Christmas Carol” - I think director Robert Zemeckis, coming off the so-so reception of Beowulf (a decent movie, but one that should have been a lot better), has finally found a sure thing for his beloved motion-capture process (that hazy middle ground between computer animation and live-action, where actors don’t just voice, but act out the entire movie). Dickens’ novel was the story of Ebenezer Scrooge, a miserly, despicable, selfish old man who hates that disgusting, so-called warmth and good feelings of Christmas (his preferred way to spend the holiday: alone in his dark room…eating gruel—love that imagery!). But, of course, three spirits come along and take Scrooge on a reflective journey throughout his life, helping him understand why he turned out so hateful, and igniting his long-dormant sense of love. It’s a beautiful book, and from what I hear, Zemeckis’ version is among the most faithful to Dickens’ original work, going so far as to include dialogue verbatim from the text.
5. “The Box” - If anything, this film has a fantastic set-up. Based on a short story by sci-fi legend Richard Matheson (who also wrote I Am Legend), a couple (Enchanted's James Marsden and Cameron Diaz) receive the title box on their doorstep, a mysterious object with one big red button. Along comes the equally enigmatic Frank Langella (Nixon in last year’s excellent Frost/Nixon), a stranger who offers a tantalizing deal: if they push the button, they’ll receive $1 million. But here’s the catch: when they do, someone they don’t know will die. What do you think happens?
Source: MTV
Well, it could be…and the geek in me is dying for another trip to Toontown. So here’s what we know: original director Robert Zemeckis (Back to the Future trilogy, Cast Away, this weekend’s new A Christmas Carol) is developing it, and the original screenwriting team is already back to work hammering out the story. That’s a good sign all-around—it looks like they’re serious about making it good, and preserving the magic of the original in whatever way they can. Well, as they should—those are some might mighty big shoes to follow.