411 Movies Roundtable: November 2006
Posted by Matthew Craggs on 11.01.2006
The 411 Movies staff look back at a ghoulish October and ahead to a November that brings us Bond, Borat, and animation overload.
Welcome to another edition of the 411 Movies roundtable. This month we look back at a ghoulish October and ahead to November.
The Month That Was
Scotty Flamingo
Biggest Winner of the Month: Scarlet Johannson. This chick is everywhere all of a sudden. Yeah, she's been famous for awhile, but it seems to really exploded of the past month. Speaking of explosions, I have to change my pants. Biggest Loser of the Month: Madonna. This woman is so desperate to create controversy, it is just sad. From doing crusifiction angles (or is it a symbol??) during her concert, to adopting African children in almost a slave trading fashion, this woman is begging for attention more than a 3 year old at the opera. Your Most Anticipated Movie of the Month: Borat. More on that later. DVD of the MonthGhostbusters. One of the best comedies ever made. One of the best DVD's ever made. Loaded with extras. Classic Movie of the Month: Plains, Trains, and Automobiles. Best Thanksgiving movie of all time. Movie Quote of the Month: "Want some cherries? Want some Coke? Mix 'em together and you got a cherry coke! Hahahahahaha!" -Harry Crumb from Who's Harry Crumb?
Bryan Kristopowitz
Biggest Winner of the Month: Martin Scorsesee. His new flick "The Departed" is getting both critical raves and excellent box office. And people are talking about a potential Oscar for him and the movie. Biggest Loser of the Month: It's a toss up between Clint Eastwood and Wesley Snipes. Eastwood's World War II movie "Flags of Our Fathers" opened to lukewarm box office, and it's highly doubtful it's going to do much better than it has. If there is still Oscar buzz early next year things may pick up for him and the movie. I also wonder what this does to the companion movie, "Letters from Iwo Jima," which is supposed to come out next year. And then there's poor Wesley Snipes. Indicted for tax fraud. Massive tax fraud. That sucks. Biggest Movie News of the Month: Fox and Universal decide to opt out of the "Halo" movie. Microsoft may go ahead and finance the flick by themselves, or maybe find another studio/studios willing to foot some of the bill. I have a feeling, though, that any new partners are going to want Peter Jackson to step into the director's chair, just so they have that "guarentee" in place. Your Most Anticipated Movie of the Month: There's lots to choose from this month. "Borat" looks great, as does "Stranger Than Fiction" and "Deja Vu." But the big movie for me is "Casino Royale." Is this "reinvention" of Agent 007 going to work or did the producers get rid of Pierce too soon? Recommended DVD Release of the Month: "Police Squad!" is going to be out on DVD. Finally. All six episodes. According to amazon.com there are going to be special features on the disc. That'll be cool, whatever they end up being. But, the most important thing is that this classic, six episode series is going to be available. I can't wait. "It was one of those all night wicker places." Oh yeah. Classic Movie of the Month: "The Principal" (1987): Jim Belushi, in probably his finest role, is Rick Latimer, the new principal of inner city hell hole high school Brandel. Rick's career is on the skids, his ex-wife is his, well, ex-wife, and he's a bit of a drunk. Not to mention he has to deal with school drug kingpin/crime lord Victor Duncan (Michael Wright). With the help of grizzled school security guard Jake Phillips (Lou Gossett, Jr) Rick tries to clean up the school and get rid of the punks. Rick's tough, rides a motorcycle through the school, tutors, forces punks to do push-ups as punishment, has a little thing for Rae Dawn Chong, loses his jelly bean jar, gets his butt kicked, breaks up a drug deal, almost gets shot and stabbed in the lockerroom, instigates a riot in the auditorium, and then gets to kick a punk in the gonads with his motorcycle boots. Oh, and he tries to mix chocolate cocoa and beer for breakfast. Not a good combo. And he gets to utter some of the finest lines in movie history: "No more!" "I'm the principal, man!" "You threatening me?" "My turn!" Classic flick. Movie Quote of the Month:
"Who is it, dear?"
"It's a Mr. Death or something. He's come about the reaping? I don't think we need any."
Graham Chapman "Monty Python's The Meaning of Life" (1983)
Arnold Furious
Biggest Winner of the Month: Martin Scorsese run close by Christopher Nolan. Both of whom turn up with classy films that make a tonne of money. Scorsese's The Departed could continue to be big news if popular opinion pushes him all the way to that Oscar he fully deserves. Biggest Loser of the Month: WWE films. Another weak outing from them although the idiom of "spend money to make money" very nearly paid off as it looks like they might get their $15M back. The simple fact of the matter is they're making films that are far too lowbrow even for the dumbasses out there. The WWE's own fanbase doesn't necessarily have the same taste in films as Vince McMahon. Or Jim Ross or anyone at Titan Towers. Hell, I think the 411 Movies section should be evidence of that by itself. A bunch of wrestling fans writing about movies and where's the praise for The Marine? Nowhere. Biggest Movie News of the Month: Jim Cameron has gotten around to casting Avatar bringing it one step closer to fruition. He hasn't made a film since Titanic, which is ridiculous for such a big directorial star. I'm guessing he needed a break. Whatever he came back with was always going to be huge but the rumoured budget and big ideas behind Avatar could make it one of those media events that are never forgotten. Your Most Anticipated Movie of the Month: It'll be the duel of two dumb but entertaining comedies. I think Borat will just about edge out Tenacious D. Both should quality as "laugh riots", hopefully, but Borat's trailer makes the film look so funny, such a work of art that I might even go to the cinema to see it. Big whoop, you might think? Well, the last time I went to the cinema was Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith. It takes something serious to get me off my ass and down the multiplex. I hate people. Recommended DVD Release of the Month: Not much doing on the DVD front because most folks hold off until closer to Christmas but Pirates of the Caribbean 2 is out. So yeah, that'll do. Classic Movie of the Month: The Killing. Kubrick's brilliant and often overlooked perfect heist movie. I'd not actually seen until a few weeks ago where I decided to tackle it as part of Furious on Film. As a Kubrick fan I certainly wasn't disappointed. If anything it's even more accessible than some of his more popular work. More mainstream if you will. Movie Quote of the Month: In honour of my James Cameron excitement here's one of my favourite lines from Aliens and Sarge Apone; "All right, sweethearts, what are you waiting for? Breakfast in bed? Another glorious day in the core! A day in the Marine Core is like a day on the farm. Every meal's a banquet! Every paycheck a fortune! Every formation a parade! I LOVE the core!" Yes, yes he does.
George H. Sirois
Biggest Winner of the Month: 1. Martin Scorsese. The Departed's cleaning up in both box office and critical acclaim. I'm still pissed at myself for not having seen it yet, but this is tops on my list to see next in theaters. 2. Bryan Singer. Thanks to Warner Bros. keeping Superman Returns out in theaters for as long as possible, the movie FINALLY hit the $200 million mark, which guarantees the green-lighting of the sequel. Biggest Loser of the Month: J.J. Abrams, Damon Lindelof and Jeffrey Lieber. The creators of Lost didn't do themselves any favors by pushing the focus of the third season on the Sawyer / Jack / Kate love-triangle, which is something that can be found on any other show. But the viewing public showed just how little they care about this love-triangle by making Criminal Minds more popular during the night than Lost. Biggest Movie News of the Month: Remember when everyone kept saying how DVD is "dead technology?" Thanks to this month's releases, the market is expected to set a record for October sales. Your Most Anticipated Movie of the Month: I'd have to pick Stranger Than Fiction. Recommended DVD Release of the Month: The Ultimate Superman Collection. 14 Discs! 4 discs for Superman. 3 for Superman II (including the Richard Donner Cut). 1 for Superman III. 1 for Superman IV. (Both have commentary tracks and deleted scenes.) 2 for Superman Returns. A making-of disc. The "Look! Up in the Sky!" documentary. Bryan Singer's production blogs.
And not only all that, but the George Reeves movie, Superman and the Mole Men, and some Fleischer cartoons. All for less than $100!!! I'm so looking forward to Christmas… Classic Movie of the Month: In honor of the 20th Anniversary Special Edition, I'm going with TransFormers: The Movie. I'm sure I mentioned this movie a few times before, but since it's coming out on November 7th, I might as well repeat it. This was one of my favorite films growing up and it still holds up today. Movie Quote of the Month: (in a sarcastic tone) "Ohhhhh, how it pains me to do this!" -- Starscream in TransFormers: The Movie, just before he tosses Megatron out into space.
Coming Attractions
The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause
Family/ Comedy
Opening: November 3
Cast: Tim Allen, Martin Short
Director: Michael Lembeck
Plot: Santa (Allen), aka Scott Calvin, is faced with
double-duty: how to keep his new family happy, and
how to stop Jack Frost (Short) from taking over Christmas.
Flamingo: God help us. Even the original is one of the worst movies I've ever seen. And has Martin Short ever been funny in anything other than SCTV??
Kristopowitz: I'm actually kind of looking forward to this movie. I didn't like the first movie, but the second one was pretty nifty. And I'm a bit of a sucker for Tim Allen "family comedies" ever since "Galaxy Quest." I think the guy is very funny, very talented, and doesn't get the respect he deserves. The real, big potential problem for this movie is Martin Short. Is he going to overact? And if he does, how bad is it going to be?
Furious: Martin Short? AWWW. I quite liked the first two movies, which is kind of odd because I'm not a big Tim Allen or Christmas movies fan. Sometimes you just see films at the right time. This could well be the movie too far for the franchise and could well be quite bad. Hopefully I'm wrong and in a few Christmas' time I'll settle down to watch it with various parts of my family. Hopefully I won't end up hurling eggnog over Martin Short's face. Again.
Sirois: Never saw either of the other two Santa Clause movies, but I got a kick out of both of their plots. This one seems like it's falling into the "third film trap," where there's too much plot and not enough character. But it looks like a good time for kids.
Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit
Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
Comedy
Opening: November 3
Cast: Sacha Baron Cohen, Ken Davitian, Pamela Anderson
Director: Larry Charles
Plot: Kazakhstani TV personality Borat (Cohen) is dispatched
by his country's Ministry of Information to make a documentary
about the greatest country in the world, the "U S and A."
Flamingo: This will rule. I love Sacha Baron Cohen even if I can't spell his name right. The guy is a damn chameleon when it comes to playing totally different characters. He also has more balls than anyone I've ever seen. From calling Andy Rooney a "racialist" to trying to sell Donald Trump his invention of the Ice Cream Glove, to dancing in a cheerleader skirt at a University of Alabama (the biggest rednecks on planet Earth) football game; the guy just has no fear.
Kristopowitz: This movie looks hysterical. I just wonder exactly what it is. I guess it's like a fake documentary. Whatever it really is, if the whole movie is as good as the previews, we could have a gem on our hands. A real freaking gem. And now I just read that Fox is going to slash the initial release down to 800 screens, hoping that good word of mouth allows other theatres in other regions to get it. That should happen. No one should be deprived of this movie.
Furious: I've been looking forward to this for some time. I'm a big fan of the character and some of the wonderful skits he's been involved in. Especially the "Throw the Jew down the well" song. So catchy. His various TV spots and interviews around the release have hyped it even more. Conan was hilarious and his recent interviews after the big UK premiere where he told of Uzbekistan's propaganda regarding the actual advert placed by the actual Kazakhstan government in a major newspaper.
Sirois: If this film is as funny as its MySpace page, I'm there. And if you're not as familiar with the character, going to that page is a great way to acquaint yourself with him. Now that I've seen it, I'm ready to take the risk.
Flushed Away
Animation/Family
Opening: November 3
Cast: Hugh Jackman, Kate Winslet, Ian McKellen
Director: David Bowers Sam Fell
Plot: A tony rat (Jackman) is flushed down the toilet of his
penthouse apartment and winds up in the sewers of London, where
he has to learn a whole new way of life.
Flamingo: This movie looks unbelievably awful. It looks like claymation from the UK, but of course it's done with computers because all children's movies must be CGI. It's the law. Stop with the damn talking animal CGI movies!
Kristopowitz: This looks like a decent enough family animated movie thing. But what the heck were they thinking opening it against "Santa Clause 3"? No matter how good it may be, I think it's going to get lost in the shuffle and it's going to have to be "discovered" on DVD.
Furious: Another kiddies animated film. It seems these show up every month or so. It's getting hard to care about any of them. The only positive thing about this is the director worked on a few Nick Park features including Chicken Run & Curse of the Wererabbits. So it might be ok but I was past caring about kids animated films again a while ago. The Toy Story/Shrek buzz has officially died down.
Sirois: Animation Overload, Part 1 of 2.
Stranger Than Fiction
Comedy
Opening: November 10
Cast: Will Ferrell, Emma Thompson, Dustin Hoffman
Director: Marc Forster
Plot: IRS auditor Harold Crick (Ferrell) suddenly finds his
every thought and action narrated by a voice in his head. He
comes to realize the voice belongs to a famous author (Thompson)
who decides to deal with her writer's block by setting into motion
events which will cause the death of her character ... who's also
named Harold Crick.
Flamingo: I like Ferral, this looks fun.
Kristopowitz: Is this going to be Will Ferrell's hip and edgy break out sort of serious movie? I mean, in the various previews I've seen we see Ferrell's Harold Crick running, laughing at something, and playing the guitar, all in a wave and rush of life affirmation. That's seriously serious. Very heartfelt. I just wonder how "wacky" this movie is. Just how subdued is Ferrell going to be?
Furious: Good cast, potentially great. Marc Foster also directed Monster's Ball and Finding Neverland. I liked both of those. The thought of Will Ferrell doing something potentially sentimental is somewhat worrying but the plot is just about quirky enough for it to be a potential breakout roll for him. Then again it might fall flat on its face. I'm confident this could actually play out quite well for all involved. Probably won't make much money but could well be quite the entertaining little film.
Sirois: I'm a huge fan of movies about writing, and this looks like it could be one of the better ones. Plus, Will always makes me laugh, so yes I'm looking forward to seeing this one.
The Return
Horror
Opening: November 10
Cast: Sarah Michelle Gellar, Sam Shepard
Director: Asif Kapadia
Plot: A young businesswoman's complicated personal life is further
troubled by her vivid nightmares about a murder of a woman she's
never met. The dreams propel her to investigate the crime, and what
she discovers begins to threaten her own life.
Flamingo: A horror movie that the producers didn't have enough faith in to release during Halloween season. Doesn't bode well.
Kristopowitz: I have no real opinion about this movie. I suppose it could be good. But then again, I'm not going to rush out and see it.
Furious: Another horror movie starring Sarah Michelle Gellar? Wow, she's really diversifying her talents. This would be a pass for me.
Sirois: Not only does this have one of the laziest titles I've ever seen, but it also sounds like one of the laziest premises I've ever read. This sounds like almost every modern-day PG-13 horror flick that's been out there. Not interested.
A Good Year
Drama
Opening: November 10
Cast: Russell Crowe, Abbie Cornish, Albert Finney
Director: Ridley Scott
Plot: Englishman Max Skinner (Crowe) inherits Le Griffon, a crumbling
Provençal vineyard owned by his Uncle Henry (Finney). Settling into the
property, Max's prospects are shaken up by the arrival of Henry's
long-lost daughter, Christie Roberts (Cornish), a wine brat from
California with a surprise or two tucked away.
Kristopowitz: A romantic drama from Ridley Scott? Even with the Russell Crowe/Ridley Scott reteaming, I can't say I'm enthused about this movie. It just doesn't hit me as a "must see." It'll probably be excellent, sure, but like "The Return," I'm not going to rush out and see this.
Furious: This seems to be one of those little offshoot projects that a couple of important people take an interest in but no one else cares about. Sure it's got Ridley Scott but he's best off with action and adventure. All of his best films are in that genre – Gladiator, Alien, Blade Runner, Black Hawk Down, Thelma and Louise and even Black Rain. His only offbeat movie to date was Matchstick Men, which didn't do anything box office wise. Along the same lines although Crowe is a great actor he tends to work better with gritty scripts. This seems a little offbeat. It could well be a disaster all round with the only potential saviour being Albert Finney.
Harsh Times
Drama
Opening: November 10
Cast: Christian Bale, Freddy Rodríguez, Eva Longoria
Director: David Ayer
Plot: When he's turned down for a job with the LAPD, Gulf War vet
Jim Davis (Bale) recruits his childhood pal (Rodriguez) for a
joyride through the city. The two old friends drink, get high, and
court danger as they plan their futures together -- until Jim's
delusions reshape each man's fate.
Kristopowitz: This sounds like an Oscar conetender, or at least one of those movies that could theoretically be a contender. Bale should do fine, as should Rodriguez. The big question, though, is Longoria. Is she going to be able to deliver a strong character performance to help along her potential movie career or are people going to wonder why Gabbie isn't hobnobbing with Bree, Susan, Lynette, and Edie, and why she isn't driving around going shopping.
Furious: Christian Bale sure is making movies at quite the rate since his weight gain/weight loss move from the Machinist to Batman Begins. This has real potential btw. Bale has great intensity and this has the potential to be a really gritty role for him. He's good in practically everything so he's not the concern. Elsewhere you've got Freddy Rodriguez and Eva Longoria who are both waiting for the chance to break out. The script could well work for Bale because it'll give him the chance to really throw a lot of wacky behaviour onto the screen. When he does that he's a scene stealing maniac. See, American Psycho for previous work. I'll be watching this.
Casino Royale
Action
Opening: November 17
Cast: Daniel Craig, Eva Green, Judi Dench
Director: Martin Campbell
Plot: After earning his license to kill, MI6 dispatches James
Bond (Craig) to Madagascar to track a terrorist. The spy soon expands
his search to include an entire terrorist cell, tipping off an adventure
that leads him into a Montenegro casino, where his organization backs
him in a marathon game against Le Chiffre (Mads Mikkelsen), a banker
to international terrorist organizations.
Flamingo: I have never seen a James Bond movie all the way through, and I ain't starting now.
Kristopowitz: The biggest movie of the month. The return of Bond, James Bond, but this time as a younger Bond. Will Daniel Craig pull off Bond? Do people still care about Bond? Again, are people upset that Brosnan wasn't given more of a "proper" send off? Personally, I really didn't see the need to "change" Bond and make him more hip and edgy like Matt Damon's "Jason Bourne" movies or, good God, "more relevant." From watching the new TV commercials and the new trailers, it doesn't look like the "Bond formula" has changed all that much. But, then, too, those are just TV commercials. I just wonder who exactly the Bond producers are trying to impress with this "reinvention." As long as everyone understands that the James Bond franchise is an action movie franchise and the movie delivers on that, everyone will be okay. Let's hope for the best.
Furious: I actually think that Pierce Brosnan's run was finished. He's just too old to be Bond these days. I know he has a big fanbase but apart from Goldeneye most of his work as Bond was pretty mediocre. Well, Tomorrow Never Dies was good in places. The point being the last film was awful and it seemed clear that Bond needed a new direction. Brosnan's freshness was gone from the product and it needed updating again. Daniel Craig is an interesting choice. He certainly has the credentials for strong acting scenes but whether he has it as an action hero will be put to the test here. Regurgitating Casino Royale might leave a sour taste in some mouths. I'm sure many of us haven't forgotten Woody Allen and David Niven. If Craig turns in a solid performance here then I'm sure all will be forgotten and he'll be a popular Bond. If not he's headed the way of Tim Dalton because they're pretty similar as actors.
Sirois: Martin Campbell made a solid Bond debut with Goldeneye (although Tomorrow Never Dies was still my favorite from the Pierce Brosnan era), and judging by the way this looks, he's gonna start up the Daniel Craig era on a good note as well.
Fast Food Nation
Comedy
Opening: November 17
Cast: Greg Kinnear, Bruce Willis, Catalina Sandino Moreno
Director: Richard Linklater
Plot: A marketing executive (Kinnear) for a fast food giant travels
to the Colorado town that's home to feedlots and packing plant that
fuels his business. His goal: to quietly investigate whether cow manure
has found its way into his product.
Kristopowitz: I'm intrigued by the mere premise of this movie. It's based on a sort of expose of the fast food industry. It's serious business. So how do you turn that into a comedy?
Furious: One of my favourite directors and a vastly under rated guy Richard Linklater behind the camera here. I've been fond of his work since Slacker and Dazed and Confused is one of my favourite movies, even it if just an American Graffiti knock off. The cast here is solid with Bruce Willis stepping down from his string of recent action flicks. He's been very hit or miss in that department for quite some time. Greg Kinnear can usually bring the laughs if the script is good enough and I can't imagine Linklater going forward on such a major picture if it wasn't. So this could be good.
Sirois: We've all seen enough movies based on novels to make our heads spin, but it's a rarity to see someone make a movie based on a non-fiction book (not counting a biography). I'm interested to see how this one plays out.
Happy Feet
Family
Opening: November 17
Cast: Elijah Wood, Brittany Murphy, Hugh Jackman
Director: George Miller
Plot: Into the world of the Emperor Penguins, who find their soul mates
through song, a penguin named Mumble (Wood) is ashamed by the fact that
he cannot sing. However, he can tap dance something fierce, but how does
this fit into his society?
Flamingo: See what I said about Flushed Away? This looks even worse. Robin Williams should be shot. Is he still on cocaine? Because that's the only way he can still make me laugh.
Kristopowitz: The previews for this animated flick have been outstanding. It looks like a gentle, fun movie. I wonder, though, if Bond is going to be able to beat back these penguins.
Furious: Tap dancing penguins? And Jackman in his second animated release this month? It looks pretty bland much like Flushed Away and it seems that the animation people are skipping from one animal to the next with kid's toy sales in mind. I know that's quite cynical but come on, penguins? They're begging for cereal tie in's and plush toy contracts. Tag on the guy that directed Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome (two men enter etc) and this quickly becomes a pass.
Sirois: Animation Overload, Part 2 of 2. For my friend's sake, I hope this movie doesn't push studios into dropping all future movies about penguins.
Tenacious D in 'The Pick of Destiny'
Comedy
Opening: November 17
Cast: Jack Black, Kyle Gass
Director: Liam Lynch
Plot: In Venice Beach, naive Midwesterner JB (Black) bonds with local
slacker KG (Glass) and they form the rock band Tenacious D. Trying to
become the world's greatest band is no easy feat, so they scheme to
steal what could be the answer to their prayers -- a magical guitar pick
housed in a rock-and-roll museum some 300 miles away.
Flamingo: I dunno. I love me some D, but the previews for this just don't look good. I'm hoping it is a case of all the good gags being saved for the movie. I know that it has some brilliant casting with Meatloaf as Jables' father and a cameo by Ronnie James Dio, and that is reason enough for me to give it a chance.
Kristopowitz: This looks beyond bizarre. It looks funny, sure, but bizarre and expensive. I don't know much about Black and Glass as "Tenacious D," but when I first heard about the movie I thought it was going to be small in scope, sort of like one of the "American Pie" movies. It looks to be bigger, more expensive, more elaborate than those movies. Hopefully it all works out for Black. He's not rich enough.
Furious: I'm a total mark for the D. I routinely sing D songs when I'm drunk. Fuck Her Gently is actually sung as a rousing chorus around closing time at my local. The one time there must have been 40 people singing along on a bank holiday. So I really hope this is a good flick. Having Liam Lynch direct is a huge bonus because he'll make sure to channel Jack Black's energy into some meaningful direction. The trailer doesn't fill me with hope but there are enough funny people involved in this to make at least worthwhile, maybe even great.
Sirois: I wish they kept the original title to the film, "The Greatest Movie Ever Made." I'm a fan of the band, but this one just feels like they're trying too hard to be funny.
Déjà Vu
Drama
Opening: November 22
Cast: Denzel Washington, Paula Patton, James Caviezel
Director: Tony Scott
Plot: ATF agent Doug Carlin (Washington) is introduced to a secret
government agency in order to prevent the crime he's working on - an
explosion aboard a New Orleans ferry - from ever happening.
Flamingo: This looks ok.
Kristopowitz: It's "Man on Fire" meets "Enemy of the State" meets "Timecop." The last few Denzel Washington movies have been decent, and Tony Scott, even after "Domino" tanking, is likely to put out a good flick. I'm intrigued, though, by the whole "time travel" thing. Is there going to be a big butt explanation of how it's done, or are they just going to gloss over the details (knowing full well that time travel is just nonsense anyway) and get on with the story?
Furious: Scott & Denzel team up again after success with Man on Fire. Scott has improved dramatically since the days of no brainer action movies like Top Gun. If anything he's gone too far and now his films could use a dose of action. I'll probably check this one out though because generally I like Denzel in anything and if anyone can perk up a slower Tony Scott film it'd be him. This has a slower vibe to it. The decent cast should elevate it into something worthwhile.
The Fountain
Drama
Opening: November 22
Cast: Hugh Jackman, Rachel Weisz, Sean Patrick Thomas
Director: Darren Aronofsky
Plot: As a 16th-century conquistador, Tom (Jackman) discovers the Tree
of Life. He spends the next 1,000 years searching for a way to save his
love, Izzi (Weisz), as he begins to develop an understanding of the
mysteries that have plagued him for centuries.
Flamingo: This reminds me of Solaris for some reason, and I think it'll make just as much money.
Kristopowitz: This flick is getting some good internet nerd buzz, which is good, but I also remember seeing that at some of the bigger festivals where it premiered it got booed or wasn't, shall we say, warmly received. Aronofsky hasn't made a bad movie yet, so we'll see how he does here with this. And how many movies is Hugh Jackman in this year? He's like the white Samuel L. Jackson here.
Furious: 3rd Hugh Jackman movie of the month then. I'm quite fond of Darren Aronofsky. Mainly because of how exceptional Requiem for a Dream is. This film seems to be fairly wide in terms of its scope, which could be tricky to realise visually. Especially as Jackman seems better off with action genre stuff. Rachel Weisz won't help matters because she's a terrible actress but then Jared Leto isn't great but he was great in Aronofsky's Requiem for a Dream. Hell, Marlon Wayans was great in Requiem for a Dream. Of course this would be where we find out if it's Aronofsky that's great or whether the Hubert Selby script was just SO good that he couldn't fuck it up. Reviews so far have been patchy, which is why I'm not getting excited yet, with comparisons to Zardoz of all things.
Let's Go to Prison
Comedy
Opening; November 22
Cast: Dax Shepard, Will Arnett, Chi McBride
Director: Bob Odenkirk
Plot: A career criminal (Shepard) and a rich snob (Arnett) are brought
together in a cell in a maximum-security prison.
Flamingo: Meh.
Kristopowitz: This looks like the "Frank Drebin undercover in prison" section of "Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult" extended to a full 90 minutes. And less funny. Odenkirk is a funny guy and a talented director, and Chi McBride is always a welcome sight, but I just don't see this movie making much of a dent. But who knows, it may end up being something special.
Furious: Although I like Will Arnett's act on Arrested Development, I really can't see it translating well to the big screen. Especially when on AD he's more of a supporting character. Here he'll be one of the two main guys. That really concerns me. I think he'll probably irritate the hell out of me by the end of the film. I can't place Dax Shepard at all, which could be a good or bad thing depending on how funny he is. Which he'll have to be because he'll probably end up saving this. Or making sure it makes no money at all. No pressure!
Sirois: The people involved have me curious, and if this could be almost as funny as the Arrested Development episode where GOB plotted to break out of prison as a magic trick, then they could have something here.
Bobby
Drama
Opening: November 22
Cast: Anthony Hopkins, Demi Moore, Sharon Stone
Director: Emilio Estevez
Plot: Part fact and part fiction, the story of U.S. Senator Robert F.
Kennedy's assassination is told via the intertwining lives of people
who were present at Los Angeles' Ambassador Hotel in the hours leading
up to the event.
Kristopowitz: This movie has Oscar buzz around it. But then it's an Emilio Estevez movie. Can you imagine him up on stage accepting the Oscar for best director or something? Emilio freaking Estevez? I just wonder if this movie is too ambitious in exploring all facets of the assassination and just not focussing on Kennedy and only Kennedy.
Furious: This could go either way. It could be brilliant because it's a complex plot and there are a lot of different ways to approach it and create those wonderful mark out moments. We know what's coming but they don't. But then the other way it could go is horribly because it's directed by Emilio Estevez. "Men at Work" Emilio Estevez. Trying to tackle some pretty serious stuff. Or maybe it'll make his directorial career, who knows? I'm interested though because I'm a big fan of historical pieces. If it's anything like as good as JFK then it'll be well worth a look.
Sirois: Could enough people take Emilio seriously to make this his comeback film? I hate to be a pessimist but I doubt it.
Deck the Halls
Cast: Matthew Broderick, Danny DeVito, Kristin Chenoweth
Director: John Whitesell
Plot: Near Christmas, a friendly neighborhood dad (Broderick) goes
beserk after the new guy on the block (DeVito) decorates his family's
house so outrageously that it can be seen from space.
Kristopowitz: Where the heck did this thing come from? This isn't a particularly original idea, as it's been a standard sitcom plot for the last twenty years or so. The Broderick/DeVito combination is interesting. If they don't hit it off, no matter how good the other performances end up being, the movie is going to tank. But, again, where the heck did this movie come from? How come no one has talked about it?
Furious: This looks pretty derivative. I can't say I really care. I'm sure it'll end up with a nice fluffy happy message somewhere along the line but it won't be as good as any of the Christmas movies I really enjoy and therefore will get seen once, probably on Christmas Day, probably years from now, probably when I'm very hungover. And I might even enjoy it but it'll be instantly forgettable. There you go kids, there's the future.
Sirois: Ehh. This one looks like it's falling into the Surviving Christmas pile of holiday-themed dreck. It's a shame, since I'm a fan of both Broderick and DeVito.
