Serious Films:
Plot
Summary: Adam Cassidy is an entry-level employee at a powerful
corporation, looking to rise quickly through the ranks. To do so, he takes on
the dangerous job of corporate espionage, spying on his boss’s former mentor in
order to steal secrets. Filmmakers: Director
Robert Luketic is not really known for making thrillers, working mostly in the
rom-com genre (Legally Blonde,
The Ugly Truth, and Killers). However, he did make
the pseudo-thriller 21,
which is probably his best film to date (unless you really like Legally
Blonde). He is working with composer Junkie XL, cinematographer David Tattersall (Gulliver’s Travels), and
production designer David Brisbin
(Sinister). Cast: The film stars Liam Hemsworth and co-stars Amber Heard, Harrison Ford, and Gary
Oldman. Josh Holloway, Embeth Davidtz, Lucas Till, Julian McMahon, and Richard Dreyfuss feature in
support. Expectations: Paranoia looks like a
decent thriller. It has a great supporting cast (Ford and Oldman as competing
titans of industry!), but Liam Hemsworth still needs to prove that he can carry
a movie. My main concern, however, is that director Robert Luketic has a fairly
mediocre track record – thus its potential for being great is almost
nonexistent (despite the solid supporting cast). It is probably not worth
shelling out theater money for this, but maybe it is worth checking out as a
rental (assuming the reviews are not too terribly awful). Trailer: Here.
Plot
Summary: After carrying out an attack, a despised terrorist is put on
trial in Brittan. Lawyers Martin and Claudia (who are also former lovers)
decide to take on the terrorist’s defense, only to find themselves thrust into
danger as they uncover secrets the British Government would rather remain
hidden. Filmmakers: Director John Crowley is
back with his fourth feature. Of his first three, two are decent and one is
quite good – the drama Boy A.
He is working with Joby Talbot
(Son of Rambow),
cinematographer Adriano Goldman
(Jane
Eyre), and production designer Jim
Clay (Children
of Men). Cast: The film stars Eric Bana and Rebecca Hall. Julia Stiles, Isaac Hempstead Wright, Ciaran Hinds, Jim Broadbent, and Riz Ahmed feature in support. Expectations: Closed Circuit looks like a good
British mystery/thriller and features a great cast. This has the potential to
be one of the better thrillers of the summer. I, for one, am looking forward to
renting it (I may even catch it in theaters). Trailer:
Here.
Action/Adventure:
Plot
Summary: DEA agent Bobby and Naval Intelligence officer Stig are tasked
with investigating one another, only to realize they have been both set up by
the men each believed the other was stealing money from. Now in the know, they
decide to team up to take these men down. Filmmakers:
Baltasar Kormakur is carving out a nice niche for himself as a Hollywood action
movie director with Contraband
and now this (let us just hope that this is better than Contraband). He is
working with composer Clinton
Shorter (worked on Contraband as well), cinematographer Oliver Wood (Safe House), and production
designer Beth Mickle (Drive).
Cast: The film stars Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg, while featuring Paula Patton, James Marsden, Bill Paxton, Edward James Olmos, and Fred Ward in support. Expectations: 2 Guns looks like an entertaining
action crime thriller with strong genre leads, but I do not expect it to be
much more than throwaway escapist fun. Kormakur’s Contraband was not
particularly impressive as either an action film or thriller, but as a somewhat
entertaining rental it was fine – and that is what I expect from this, though
the combination of Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg (assuming their
chemistry meshes onscreen) might elevate it a bit. Trailer:
Here.
Plot
Summary: In the wake of Kick-Ass murdering his father, Red Mist forms a
posse of masked criminals to rain terror upon the city, ultimately hopefully allowing
Red Mist to take his revenge on Kick-Ass and Hit Girl as they put their costumes
back on to try and stop him. Meanwhile, Kick-Ass and Hit Girl settle into their
ordinary lives as high school students, but crave action. They form a group of
costumed normal citizens to help them fight crime and stop Red Mist. Filmmakers: Taking over for Matthew
Vaughn (who directed Kick-Ass
and is staying on as the sequel’s producer), writer-director Jeff Wadlow finds
himself behind the camera. Wadlow made the decent mixed martial-arts B-movie Never Back Down, but this will
be his first mainstream release. That said, apparently Kick-Ass creator and
Fox’s comic-book property consultant Mark Millar thinks highly enough
of his work on this to task him with writing Fox’s upcoming X-Force film. Wadlow is working
with composers Henry Jackman
and Matthew Margeson (both of
who worked on Kick-Ass), cinematographer Tim Maurice-Jones (The Woman in Black), and
production designer Russell De
Rozario (who also worked on Kick-Ass). Cast:
Returning to the series is: Aaron
Taylor-Johnson, Chloe Grace
Moretz, Christopher
Mintz-Plasse, Lyndsy Fonseca,
Morris Chestnut, and Clarke Duke. New to the cast is:
Jim Carrey, Iain Glen, John Leguizamo, Donald Faison, and Ella Purnell. Expectations: Kick-Ass was one of the most
entertaining films of 2009, and is still one of the better comic-book films to
date. Accordingly, I was very much looking forward to Kick-Ass 2 – that is
until Matthew Vaughn dropped out of directing and was replaced by Jeff Wadlow
(who has up until this point made B-movies). However, my fears have somewhat
been quelled by the funny and entertaining footage I have seen from the movie
(but still, I doubt Wadlow will bring the same cinematic style that made
Kick-Ass special). I am looking forward to seeing Kick-Ass 2, but I do not
expect too much going in. Trailer: Here. Review: Here.
Comedy:
Plot
Summary: Dusty is a cropdusting plane with big dreams. He wants to
compete in a famous aerial race. The only problem is – he is afraid of heights.
However, with the help of his mentor Skipper, Dusty hopes to overcome his fears
and make his dreams a reality. Filmmakers: Director
Klay Hall makes his major feature debut with Planes, but his second animated
feature overall – his first being the straight-to-DVD Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure.
He also worked on many episodes of King of the Hill. Hall is
working with composer Mark
Mancina (Tarzan) and
production designer Ryan Carlson
(Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil).
Head of Disney’s Animation Studio John
Lasseter (who is also one of the founders of Pixar) is overseeing the
project. Cast: The voice-cast includes: Dane Cook as Dusty and Stacy Keach as Skipper, while Val Kilmer, Anthony Edwards, Teri Hatcher, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, John Cleese, Brad Garrett, Larry the Cable Guy (voicing his
Cars’s character Mater), Cedric the Entertainer, and Sinbad feature in support. Expectations: Planes looks like it was meant as a
straight-to-DVD spin-off of Cars (as it takes place in the same universe) that
Disney decided was good enough to merit a theatrical release. I am somewhat
surprised that Pixar would allow Disney to take one their properties and put
out their own animated film (but of course this is the new Pixar that made Cars 2 solely to make lots of
money and not because it was going to be a good film). It looks like a decent
family film, but nothing special from Disney. Trailer:
Here.
We’re
the Millers (Rawson
Marshall Thurber) – Comedy – Aug 9
Plot
Summary: David Burke is a loser. He has nothing going for him. One day,
however, he is given a big opportunity – to import a massive shipment of
marijuana over the border from Mexico for the fee of $100,000. The only
question is how. And then he thinks over it – he will just pose as the typical
American family coming back from vacation. To do this, he hires a fake family
made up of local misfits he knows. What could go wrong? Filmmakers: This is director Rawson Marshall Thurber’s third
feature. He is best known for the comedy Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story.
We’re the Millers returns him to more straightforward comedy (after the misstep
that was The Mysteries of
Pittsburg). He is working with composers Ludwig Goransson (Community), Theodore Shapiro (The Big Year), cinematographer Barry Peterson (21
Jump Street), and production designer Clayton Hartley (Step Brothers). Cast: Jason
Sudeikis stars with co-stars Jennifer
Aniston, Emma Roberts,
and Will Poulter. Molly C. Quinn, Nick Offerman, Ed Helms, Kathryn Hahn, Ken Marino, and Thomas Lennon feature in
support. Expectations: We’re the Millers
looks potentially very funny. Plus, it has a good comedic cast. For fans of R-rated
comedies, this is probably a worthwhile rental. Trailer:
Here.
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