Romance and Rom-Coms:
Summary:
Drew and Sherrie come to 1987 Los Angeles set on making their dreams a reality.
They meet. It is love-at-first-sight. But, love, as always, must overcome a
number of obstacles (and this time with singing). Filmmakers:
Choreographer-turned-director Adam Shankman is Hollywood’s go to director for
musicals, having made Hairspay
and a number of music videos. Justin
Theroux is scripting (his third produced screenplay after Tropic Thunder and Iron
Man 2), and Shankman is working with cinematographer Bojan Bazelli (Burlesque) and production
designer Jon Hutman (Coyote Ugly). Cast: Diego
Boneta and Julianne Hough
star, with a great ensemble supporting group featuring Tom Cruise, Malin Akerman, Bryan Cranston, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Alec Baldwin, Russell Brand, Paul Giamatti, Will Forte, and Mary J. Blige. Expectations: Being that Adam Shankman has never
made a truly great (or really even good) film, I am not overly enthusiastic for
this – though I do love 1980s nostalgic ridiculousness. Sure the supporting
cast is good, but when was the last time Hollywood made a good commercial
musical? 2002’s Chicago?
And, the leads are more singer/dancers than actors. Best case scenario, this
will be an entertaining rock musical with touchstone nostalgic songs and good
performances from Cruise (playing a sort of washed up rock god) and others.
Also, I would say that best case scenario achieved, this is still probably only
a rental, because it does not look too good. Trailer:
Here.
Summary:
Earth will be destroyed. It is a given as an asteroid approaches (seemingly Bruce Willis et al. have failed,
or was that Robert Duvall and
company). Dodge finds himself abandoned when his wife leaves in a panic. So, he
decides to take one final road trip in the final days to find his high school
sweetheart. Penny, his neighbor, decides to tag along. Filmmakers:
Writer-director Lorene Scafaria makes her directorial debut. She wrote Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist
(this is her second produced screenplay). She is working with composers Jonathan Sadoff (A Good Old Fashioned Orgy) and Rob Simonsen ([500] Days of Summer),
cinematographer Tim Orr (Your
Highness) and production designer Chris Spellman (Jeff,
Who Lives at Home). Cast: Steve Carell stars and Keira
Knightley co-stars, with a great supporting cast: Melanie Lynskey, Adam Brody, Gillian Jacobs, Connie Britton, Patton Oswalt, T.J. Miller, Derek Luke, William Petersen, Rob Corddry, and Rob Huebel. Expectations: Seeking a Friend for the End of the
World sounds like a very ambitious and potentially wonderful road trip film.
Will the world actually end when the film finishes? I like both Carell and
Knightley, and think they will make a compelling onscreen duo capable of comedy
and drama, but more so the eccentric mix of bit players should produce many
funny scenes. This is my dark horse for the second best film of the month
(because, honestly, is anything going to be even close to as good as Prometheus? Probably not). Trailer: Here. Review.
Serious Films:
Summary:
Mike is a male stripper who enjoys his lifestyle – dancing, partying and making
lots of easy cash. However, when he meets Paige, a girl he likes who is not
necessarily comfortable with Mike’s lifestyle, Mike begins to rethink his life.
Also, Paige pushes him to want more for himself. Filmmakers:
Steven Soderbergh is directing and shooting the film (something he commonly
does). Cast: It stars Channing Tatum (who is also a
producer on the film), with Alex
Pettyfer, Matt Bomer, Matthew McConaughey, and Cody Horn co-starring. Joe Manganiello, Olivia Munn, Riley Keough, and Wendi McLendon-Covey feature in
support. Expectations: Magic Mike is
essentially about Tatum’s own life prior to his film/commercial career, and
thus the realism should be apparent. Soderbergh is also a good choice to
direct; he both is very capable of making good films on a small budget and has
been on his game lately (I really liked his film Contagion
last year). The cast is also good; McConaughey is touted to have a comeback-like
performance in this. It definitely has the potential to be one of the better
films this month, looking like a good drama (and may even be a good character
drama – it is hard to tell how much it will delve into the character of Mike
from the trailer). Trailer: Here. Review.
Summary:
When Sam’s father dies, he is bequeathed his father’s shaving bag. In it he
finds $150,000 and a note requesting that Sam give the money to a child (a
sister to Sam never knew about) that his father had with another woman. Now,
Sam has a dilemma. He is broke and desperately needs the money, but his father
wanted him to give it to his half-sister (and meet her and her kid in the
process). Filmmakers: This seems like a
strange project for producers/writers Alex Kurtzman (also making his feature
directorial debut) and Robert
Orci, as they typically make/write action and sci-fi projects (Fringe, Transformers, Star Trek to name a few) not
family melodramas. They are working with good people in composer A.R. Rahman (127
Hours), cinematographer Salvatore
Totino (who shoots most of Ron
Howard’s stuff) and production designer Ida Random (No
Strings Attached). Cast: The film stars Chris Pine with Elizabeth Banks co-starring. Michelle Pfeiffer, Olivia Wilde, Jon Favreau, Mark Duplass, and Philip Baker Hall make up the
supporting players. Expectations: At first
glance, this seems very generic and a complete mismatching of material and director
(which is made stranger by the fact that the director co-wrote the script), but
upon a second glance there is some promise. Chiefly, the cast is good (though
not great), and this family drama should play as good counterprogramming to all
the blockbusters surrounding it. That said, this is probably still at best a
rental. Trailer: Here.
Action/Adventure:
Summary:
We all know this story more or less – there is an Evil Queen who is the most
beautiful woman in the kingdom (and she eats the hearts of young women to stay
that way), but one day there is a young girl, Snow White, who is destined to
become even more beautiful than the Queen. Thus, in a rage, the Queen orders a
huntsman to find and kill Snow White, but the huntsman falls for her (how could
he not) and joins her rebellion against the Queen. Filmmakers:
Director Rupert Saunders makes his debut on this very ambitious film,
but he is working with wonderful people including: composer James Newton Howard (The
Hunger Games), cinematographer Greig
Fraser (Let
Me In) and production designer Dominic
Watkins (Green
Zone). Cast: Kristen Stewart, Chris Hemsworth and Charlize Theron star, with Ray Winstone, Ian McShane, Sam Claflin, Toby Jones, Nick Frost, Lily Cole, Eddie Marsan, and Bob Hoskins in support. Expectations: Going into 2012, we knew there would
be two Snow White films released during the year – this and Mirror Mirror – the latter
looked terrible, and was, but Snow White and the Huntsman surprisingly looked
interesting. First, the cast is fantastic (especially the supporting players),
with dwarves being played by the awesomeness of Ian McShane and Bob Hoskins
among others. Second, this looked to be a much different take on the story we
all already knew from Disney’s Snow
White and the Seven Dwarfs – Snow White is wielding a sword and wearing
armor in this one. And third, the trailer dropped, confirming our highest
aspirations for what the film could be, and reminding us that Charlize Theron
is a perfect casting decision for the Queen. I am almost shocked how good it
looks, and how much I am looking forward to seeing it. However, there is still
the consideration that Rupert Saunders has never made a film before, and thus
we have nothing to base his skill behind the camera and with the actors on.
True, the trailer is great, but I am still hesitant to call this a surefire
great film because of Saunders lack of experience. What we do know is that if
nothing else, this is going to be visually astounding. Trailer:
Here. Review.
Comedy:
Summary:
When Donny was a teen he fathered Todd, and then carelessly raised him
as a single dad. Donny was a terrible father and Todd bolted on his 18th
birthday to forge a new life on his own. Years later, Donny is broke. Todd,
however, is about to marry into a wealthy family. Donny sees this as a great
opportunity to reinsert himself into Todd’s life. Filmmakers:
That’s My Boy is the next in the ever-worsening line of Adam Sandler’s Happy Madison Productions.
This time around, director Sean Anders (who wrote and directed Sex Drive) is helming and
working with composer Rupert
Gregson-Williams (Jack and
Jill), cinematographer Brandon
Trost (Ghost Rider: Spirit
of Vengeance) and production designer Aaron Osborne (Wanderlust).
Cast: Sandler stars with Andy Samberg, while Leighton Meester co-stars. Vanilla Ice, James Caan, Milo Ventimiglia, Will Forte, Rachel Dratch, Nick Swardson, Ciara, Ana Gasteyer, Eva Amurri Martino, Susan Sarandon, Dan Patrick, and Rex Ryan feature in support. Expectations: There is not much to say really. We
all know what to expect from an Adam Sandler film. Only, for those that grew up
with Billy Madison and Happy Gilmore, his Happy Madison
comedies since Little Nicky
(other than 50 First Dates,
maybe Click, and You Don’t Mess with the Zohan
cracks me up) have been bad, and seemingly getting worse (for those who saw
Jack and Jill), which is disappointing because we loved those comedies when we
were in middle school and high school (though, I have a theory that the quality
never really changed much, we just grew up). That’s My Boy does not look much
better than his usual fare, but Andy Samberg is funny. Trailer:
Here.
Summary:
When John was a child he wished that his teddy bear would come to life and it
did. Now as a middle-aged man, he is starting to regret it a little. Filmmakers: Ted is Family Guy, American Dad! and The Cleveland Show’s creator
Seth MacFarlane’s feature debut, both as a writer and director. He is working
with a comedy oriented group featuring composer Walter Murphy (who works on
MacFarlane’s TV shows), cinematographer Michael Barrett (Kiss Kiss
Bang Bang) and production designer Stephen Linewaver (Role Models). Cast: It stars Mark Wahlberg and Seth
MacFarlane (voicing the teddy bear) and co-stars Mila Kunis. Giovanni Ribisi, Patrick Warburton, Joel McHale, Jessica Stroup, and Laura Vandervoort have
supporting roles. Expectations: The film
looks hilarious, basically like Peter from Family Guy as a teddy bear. However,
will MacFarlane’s brand of humor play in a feature format and is Ted too
similar to Peter? I am inclined to think that this will be a very funny R-rated
comedy, and probably among the best of the year. Or, is that just me hoping it
is (as a big fan of Family Guy – at least the first few seasons)? Trailer: Here. Review.
Horror:
Summary:
We all know the story of the 16th President of the United
States – honest Abe freed the slaves – but did you know he also hunted and
killed vampires? He did. Filmmakers:
Director Timur Bekmambetov has made a few good horror films, but is best known
for Wanted, making him a
good fit for this project. He is working with producer Tim Burton, composer Henry Jackman (also scoring this
month’s G.I. Joe: Retaliation),
cinematographer Caleb Deschanel
(National Treasure), and
production designer Francois
Audouy, making his debut (though he was the art director on Transformers). Cast: It stars Broadway star Benjamin Walker (a star
to watch this summer) with Mary
Elizabeth Winstead, Dominic
Cooper, Alan Tudyk, Anthony Mackie, Rufus Sewell, Jimmi Simpson, and Marton Csokas in support. Expectations: It is hard to predict whether or not
this will be good. On one hand, the concept is so out there that it sounds
great just on a ‘what!?!?!’ level, plus Bekmambetov is well regarded among many
action fans for Wanted, but on the other hand the last Civil War era horror
action fantasy was Jonah Hex,
and we know how that turned out. It looks like a good action film, and I like
the cast. Not sure if I will be seeing it in theatres, but I am certainly
renting it. Trailer: Here.
No comments:
Post a Comment