Haven’t done one of these for a long time, but I defend myself on the grounds that there hasn’t been hardly anything released yet this year worth watching. And Debbie, I promise I will write about American Idol tomorrow.
Baby Mama
Apparently this is the response to all of last year’s unplanned pregnancy movies. Don’t ask me to explain why I guiltily want to see this. Probably something to do with my untold love for 30 Rock. Opens April 25th.
Son of Rambow
This has been knocking around festivals for a year or so, and just because it has a release date now doesn’t mean I’m overly optimistic about it coming near where I am. Ah well. The festival reviews have been glowing, and it looks as endearing as anything. Opens May 2 in limited release.
Speed Racer
So when I first heard about this movie, I wrote it off as another stupid kids-TV-series-to-kids-movie thing. But then I saw the trailer. And remembered that it’s the Wachowski brothers making it. And it looks so totally awesome that it’s pretty much my most highly-anticipated movie right now. Look at it! It looks so gorgeous, like a futuristic 1950s. Opens May 9th.
Haven’t done a trailer watch for a while. Most of the things I’m most interested in, especially this time of the year, are limited release films, and it feels weird to plug them when they come out when I know that I and most everyone I know won’t be able to see them for at least a few weeks, if then. So it’s sort of weird. But there are some things coming out that I’m super-excited about. Most of these are coming out in the next couple of months.
Juno
opens December 5th, limited
CURRENT MOST ANTICIPATED. I want to see it two months ago. Except if I had I couldn’t be enjoying the anticipation so much right now. Ellen Page is one of the best young actresses in Hollywood right now hands down, Michael Cera is adorable, plus Jason Bateman and Jennifer Garner. And it’s a total festival darling of exactly the type that I always love. I’m also pleased that screenwriter Diablo Cody is getting as much attention as she is; screenwriters don’t get noticed as much as they should, and she was getting noticed even before the strike. Ooh, and I forgot until I just watched the trailer again–Thank You For Smoking was one of my favorite films last year, so I’m a fan of the director, too.
Atonement
opens December 7th
After I see Juno, Atonement will become my CURRENT MOST ANTICIPATED. Of course, that won’t last long, since it comes out two days later. Ah well. The book is one of the best I’ve read all year, the cast is great, it’s the same guy that directed Pride and Prejudice a couple of years ago (which quickly became one of my favorite Austen adaptations), and pretty much every review I’ve seen from the festival circuit has been nothing short of glowing. Read the book, folks, then go see the movie. Simple as that.
I’ve stopped doing the trailers for opening movies every week. It just entailed far too much time thinking about films I don’t want to see and finding trailers for obscure films that may or may not ever come anywhere near me or anyone I know. So I’m going to do trailers on a much more haphazard, as-I-see-them basis. Here’s one I ran across via Anne Thompson and Karina Longworth. It’s Nicole Kidman, Jennifer Jason Leigh, and Jack Black in Margot at the Wedding, from Noah Baumbach, who directed the well-received-but-as-yet-unseen-by-me The Squid and the Whale. It looks good. And it looks like it’s the good side of Nicole Kidman, who I swear has schizophrenic acting tendencies (i.e., the dumb, annoying one from Bewitched and The Stepford Wives and the actual good one from The Hours and Dogville), which makes me happy because I always want to love her, and then she does stupid roles and disappoints me.
(It hurts my soul a little to use anything associated with AOL, but the player is actually pretty nice…and at least they have embeddable media–I’m looking at you, Yahoo!Movies.)
This sequel to 28 Days Later is not actually directed by Danny Boyle, but it looks like the director he chose to take his place is keeping a similar feel. I really liked the atmospheric quality of the first one, and I actually didn’t mind the zombie elements as much as usual. I thought it lost itself when the military part came in, though, and it looks like this one is mostly military part. Still, my guess is that if you liked 28 Days Later, you will also like 28 Weeks Later, since it does look quite good. Best Bet
One review I read (I don’t remember which one, maybe on Cinematical; no, it was Anne Thompson on her Variety blog) indicated that this film straddles the line between mainstream and indie a little too precariously…that it would have better as an even smaller film. I can believe that from the trailer. Family ties-oriented mainstream films tend to get cloying and sentimentalized mighty quick, but I can feel a better film here underneath that tendency. Especially with Felicity Huffman, who goes a long way toward making me want to at least give it a chance. But probably on DVD rather than in theatres.
Uh, negatory. On the good side, this trailer looks marginally more inventive than the one for Larry the Cable Guy’s last movie Health Inspector, but that is saying not a lot.
I’m torn between my love for Zach Braff and Jason Bateman and a good bit of like for Amanda Peet and my intense sense of dread that this is going to a) suck and b) be rather offensive. Limited.
Eh. I tend to like war movies even though I think they tend to be manipulative. I was also reading something about Jessica Biel (who I often avoid) and her acting ability that encourages me to give her another chance…maybe this is the film to do it with. Beyond that, I’m neither enthused nor unenthused. I’m disenthused. I like that! I’m using it. Limited.
You can’t tell the story from the trailer, but basically the girl has agreed to be a suicide bomber in Times Square. The film appears to be experimental in a way–newcomer Luisa Williams is the only credited cast member, and the story plays out almost completely through focusing on her face. I’m actually quite intrigued by this, but it certainly won’t be a film for all tastes. NY/LA. Best Offbeat Bet
