The just-wrapped Summer movie season wasn’t one for the ages.
It was one to say, “hey, give me back my money, Hollywood.”
The Fall should be a different story. The remaining 2010 film lineup is rather strong, featuring both crowd-pleasing entertainment as well as the standard Oscar-bait pictures.
And, best of all, we don’t have to struggle through another limp September to get there. September and January are typically the worst months of the year for movies, the time when films with little or no chance of wowing us get dumped into theaters.
Not this September, especially with films like “The Town,” “Devil” and “Never Let Me Go” hitting theaters within the next 30 days.
Part one of WWTW’s Fall Movie Preview looks at the movies which should deliver the most bang for our buck this Fall. Tomorrow, we’ll investigate the Oscar hopeful list while the final installment checks out the horror, the horror that awaits us.
- “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I” (Nov. 19) Yes, it’s likely due to crass commercialism that they’re extending the story’s final chapter into two movies, and they’ll be shown in 3-D, to boot. But the “Potter” films remain the most consistent of movie franchises, filmed with whimsical flourishes, great character actors and a trio of young performers who get better with every film. What the series has lacked of late has been a killer villain, and the final showdown with Lord Voldemort should fix that issue.
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“Faster” (Nov. 24) Dwayne Johnson rips off those “Tooth Fairy” wings to do what he does best – bust skulls on screen. He plays a man looking to avenge the death of his brother after a heist they tried pulling off went awry. The film co-stars Billy Bob Thornton and Carla Gugino, but it’ll be a real test whether audiences are ready to embrace Johnson once more as an action hero.
- “Little Fockers” (Dec. 22) Yes, it’s time to squeeze even more laughs out of that infamous last name. It’s also a chance to re-team Ben Stiller and Robert De Niro, one of the better comic duos in recent memory. This time around, Stiller has to juggle not just his in-laws but a baby Focker. It’s as can’t miss as they come this Winter, given the return of Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand, plus new cast additions like Laura Dern and Jessica Alba.
- “Due Date” (Nov. 5) Take this generation’s most dynamic actor – Robert Downey, Jr. – and pair him up with the comic cutup of the moment – Zach Galifiankis – and you’ve got a comedy classic waiting to be born. Add in “The Hangover” director Todd Phillips and it only gets better. The road trip movie gets another workout, but it’s impossible to resist the notion with these two actors on board.
- “Red” (Oct. 15) Another graphic novel interpretation – yawn. But this one boasts Helen Mirren, Morgan Freeman, Bruce Willis and John Malkovich, hardly actors who eagerly embrace a lesser brand of pulp fiction. And the success of “The Expendables” showed audiences don’t mind if their action heroes are battling crow’s feet as well as the bad guys. The trailer shows a cheeky sense of humor, which can only help.
- “Tron: Legacy” (Dec. 17) The original “Tron” was a dud, both creatively and commercially. And yet … something happened over the 20-plus years since its release. Video games and movies grew closer and people started remembering the original more fondly. Now, the sequel is here and Jeff Bridges is back for another round of computer mayhem. The quantum leap in technology sure will help, and it’s hard not to think it’s the rare case where a sequel can beat the original.
(Photo: Oscar winner Helen Mirren is retired and extremely dangerous in the new comic-style thriller “Red.” Summit Entertainment.)
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
“The original “Tron” was a dud, both creatively and commercially. ”
Commercially, yes. But creatively? I beg to differ.
I remember seeing Tron in the theater when it was first released and I’ve probably seen it at least 184 times since then (in fact, viewing No. 184 was just a couple of nights ago on HDnet Movies in glorious 1080i). I still think it has a very inventive and creative story line and it created a huge spark in me to pursue my current interest in technology and my subsequent (and happy) career. I have to think that I was not the only one affected and afflicted with this nerd disease (I’m also please to report that I never lived in my mom’s basement and have married…so I have kissed a girl before).
Anyway, I respected disagreemon the creativeness of Tron. I typically abhor the idea of a sequel (an opinion I have expressed vociferously on a number of occassions on my go to blog site here), but I have to say the trailers so far and leaked storylines have my curiosity piqued. Will it beat the original? That’s only happened twice and I don’t think it will happen here with Tron: Legacy.
Thanks for the great preview write up, Mr. Toto!
By “horror”, I’m assuming you meant not horror films (like Saw # whatever) but the likes of Yogi Bear and Life as We Know It (thought come to think of it, Saw could be in THAT category as well)…
Ah…Tron…the first password I used on a computer I got from that film, still one of the best computer passwords ever.
“Reindeer Floatilla”
As far as design goes Tron was wonderful, story wise though it was a cold fish.
Not to mention the 3d animated “Alpha and Omega” and then Disney’s “Secretariat” opening early October.
I saw the trailers for these tonight and there was such concentrated “Gurrl Power” that for a moment I thought they were promos for Hillary 2012.