Coming This Winter
King Kong
His first project after Lord of the Rings, Peter Jackson received a hefty $20 million in advance for this project, the highest pre-paid sum for a director. That’s funny, I thought this movie was about a large monkey. In other news, I am intrigued by the idea of Jack Black in ’30s period costumes. I bet he didn’t get paid as much for his role, even though he is playing a director.
Munich
As you may have noticed, Spielberg has a soft spot for filming dramatic Jewish tales. A story about a Mossad agent pursuing the Palestinian terrorists who killed the Israeli athletes in the ‘72 Munich Olympic Games seems to fit this motif. Of course, this is not just a story of a man of a particular ethnicity, but of that man’s struggle to maintain his beliefs while attempting to ensure the survival of an entire culture, two ideals that don’t always mix. Like my older brother, I have a soft spot for watching dramatic Jewish tales. It looks at least interesting.
Cheaper by the Dozen 2
I enjoyed the first movie more than I thought I would. Nevertheless, my rule on sequels still stands in this case. That is, it will probably be terrible, but there is a 60% chance I will see it just in case I am wrong. A point of interest here is that they managed to sign all 14 of the original actors on again for this go around.
Fun with Dick and Jane
Jim Carrey and Téa Leoni star as a married couple who turn to crime in order to “keep up with the Joneses.” The problem is that they are not criminals, just misguided suburbanites. I’m no fan of Leoni, but the scene of her wiping out while sliding over the counter of the coffee bar they are robbing is pretty funny.
V for Vendetta
A license of a series of short stories comes to us from the Wachowski brothers (The Matrix). I’m not sure how I feel about that, since they essentially sold out for The Matrix sequels (or if they didn’t, they sure lost their writing touch). The “1984″/Big Brother concept is intriguing, however. Hmmm… Seems I’ve mentioned that before.
Cars
The buzz is that this will be Pixar’s first ho-hum effort. Maybe the lackluster reaction is due to the lackluster trailer spots. In the past, Pixar’s story concepts tended to be fairly mature in concept, relying on excellent writing rather than gimmicks to appeal to an audience. Yet, this movie seems to be all gimmick, and a poorly done one at that. Hopefully, the car motif will just be a backdrop for a deeper narrative exploration, because the scenes of a goofy-looking pick-up voiced by NASCAR legend Richard Petty just ain’t making me feel the magic.
Date Movie
Knowing this movie is done by the same people who did Scary Movie, my immediate urge is to run away. What could be worse than a parody of all of the famous chick flicks? Although, when you think about it, what could be better?
Ice Age 2: The Meltdown
Speaking of gimmicks in animated films, the prehistoric squirrel, Scrat, was probably the best part of Ice Age. Judging by the trailers, we’ll see him again in his tireless pursuit of the acorn. As far as I’m concerned, the rest of the movie can stink and I will still enjoy it. Well, that’s not actually true, but Scrat sure was funny.
