Saturday, September 01, 2007

EW: 20 Fall Movies We Can't Wait to See


Screening on Saturday, September 01, 2007

1 Comments:

Blogger Fong Kok Hoong said...

20 FALL MOVIES WE CAN'T WAIT TO SEE

THE DARJEELING LIMITED (Sept. 29 [limited], Oct. 5 [expands])
I love Wes Anderson movies. I love Adrien Brody, Jason Schwartzman, and Owen Wilson. And I've always wanted to go to India. Why wouldn't I be dying to see this movie? With such talented people working together, I highly doubt I will be disappointed. —Samantha Harmon

THE KINGDOM (Sept. 28)
With its focus on an FBI investigation of a terrorist act in Saudi Arabia, The Kingdom looks topical, yet thoroughly exciting, and its trailer never succumbs to heavy-handed political-speak of certain other fall releases. (Cough, Lions for Lambs, cough.) Plus, the fact that it's got the stars of two of my all-time favorite TV series — Alias's Jennifer Garner and Arrested Development's Jason Bateman — elevates Peter Berg's big-budget thriller to must-see status. —Michael Slezak

AMERICAN GANGSTER (Nov. 2)
This Ridley Scott film about real-life drug kingpin Frank Lucas has an intriguing plotline — he's a black gangster who threatens the business of other drug dealers as much as he threatens the communities he ''serves.'' And the ensemble cast is just as alluring — Denzel Washington as Lucas, Russell Crowe as the detective determined to bring Lucas down, plus supporting roles by Cuba Gooding Jr., rising star Chiwetel Ejiofor, rappers Common and T.I., and Spike Lee favorite Ruby Dee. —Bethonie Butler

THE BRAVE ONE (Sept. 14)
I can count on one hand the number of actors guaranteed to get me to the theater for their movies' opening weekends, and the consistently enthralling Jodie Foster tops that list. By rushing to see her latest — a Neil Jordan-directed drama about a widow-turned-vigilante — I might just be getting an early start on my 2008 Oscar-nominees viewing schedule. —MS

FRED CLAUS (Nov. 9)
Break out the egg nog, because this is a Christmas movie I'm actually looking forward to. I'd watch Vince Vaughn do dinner theater in Timbuktu, so I was sold the minute I saw the trailer for Fred Claus. And with a cast that includes comic geniuses Kathy Bates and Kevin Spacey (and Ludacris?), it has to be better than those nausea-inducing Tim Allen movies. —Mark Luckie

RENDITION (Oct. 19)
If this political thriller's all-star cast (Reese Witherspoon, Jake Gyllenhaal, Peter Sarsgaard, Alan Arkin, and Meryl Streep) doesn't pull you in, perhaps knowing that Gavin Hood, director of the Academy Award-winning Tsotsi, is behind the lens will. Rendition draws on the ethical questions raised in a terrorist-weary world, making this October release chilling and relevant. —BB

ENCHANTED (Nov. 21)
Princess Giselle (Amy Adams) leads a fairytale existence in Andalasia, frolicking with animated creatures and preparing for her nuptials with Prince Edward (James Marsden). But when Queen Narissa (Susan Sarandon) throws her into a magic portal, Giselle finds herself cast out of Andalasia and into the real-life world of New York City divorce lawyer Robert (Patrick Dempsey). Disney's Enchanted puts a modern, tongue-in-cheek spin on the princess movie tradition, but I wonder if I'll be the only one wondering where Brendan Frasier is. After Monkeybone, you'd think he'd have the ''real human interacting with animation'' role nailed down. —Chris Schonberger

BEE MOVIE (Nov. 2)
Jerry Seinfeld's animated film about insects fleeing the hive (''Wish I Could Bee / Part of Your World''?) has drummed up significant, um...buzz with its whopping four trailers. The first two, which feature giant windshield wipers, Eddie Izzard, Chris Rock, and Steven Spielberg — who convinces Seinfeld in just a few seconds that the movie should be a cartoon instead of a live-action film — made me wish the whole thing could be a behind-the-scenes documentary of such a silly project. Still, I'll give it a shot. Penguins are so last season! —Annie Barrett

3:10 TO YUMA (Sept. 7)
How might the West be No. 1 at the box office in 2007? Saddle up two actors with range in Russell Crowe and Christian Bale, put the story in the hands of director James Mangold coming off the huge success of Walk the Line, and try to head off other contenders at the pass by opening the first weekend after Labor Day. I'm itching to see if these pardners can take the core material — the 1957 original was a tight battle of wills between captive outlaw (Glenn Ford) and principled citizen/lawman (Van Heflin) — and give it enough juice to make a character-driven western matter to moviegoers weaned on CGI flashiness. —Steve Korn

THE KITE RUNNER (Nov. 2)
A touching story about friendship, forgiveness, and kites. And for those of us without time to read the book, a virtual cinematic CliffsNotes! No need to imagine the beauty and culture of Afghanistan in the 1970s before it became a war-torn, Taliban-inhabited country. But despite the detailed descriptions in the book, I still can't figure out how they wove glass into the kite strings. —Connie Yu

MR. MAGORIUM'S WONDER EMPORIUM (Nov. 16)
Ever since Meet the Fockers, I've appreciated Dustin Hoffman's funny side. Add in a Willy Wonka-esque toy shop, and Mr. Magorium's Magical Emporium has the makings of a classic family movie. I'll probably be the only adult in the theater, but I'll gladly trade my dignity to see Natalie Portman forego her ''serious actor face'' for a wide grin and a pixie haircut. —ML

ACROSS THE UNIVERSE (Sept. 14)
Anyone who has had the good fortune to see the Cirque du Soleil Love show in Las Vegas — in which the troupe's high-flying acrobatics are set to remixed and remastered Beatles songs — knows that Beatles + stunning visuals = entertainment gold. This musical film follows two lovers, Jude and Lucy, in an expansive journey across the treacherous political landscape of the 1960s — all set, of course, to the sounds of Lennon and Co . Watch the trailer and try to not get at least a little bit excited. —CS

INTO THE WILD (Sept. 21)
Sean Penn is one of those people in Hollywood who has always grabbed my attention. When I heard he was directing a movie based on the 1996 non-fiction book by Jon Krakauer about a young man who abandons his all-American lifestyle for a new life in the wild, I became very intrigued. —SH

RESIDENT EVIL: EXTINCTION (Sept. 21)
Shivers went down my spine the first time I saw the teaser trailer for Resident Evil: Extinction. Then my arm smacked my friend squarely in the chest. (I couldn't contain my excitement; I had to hit someone!) Alice (Milla Jovovich) is gonna whip some ass again...in Vegas! —Marc Vera

NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN (Nov. 9)
A bloody chase picture set in Texas, the Coen Brothers' latest stars Tommy Lee Jones as a sheriff, Javier Bardem as a killer named Chigurh, and Josh Brolin as a guy who finds a suitcase with $2 million in it. Full disclosure: I've already seen it. And it's totally awesome. —Gregory Kirschling

CASSANDRA'S DREAM (Nov. 30)
I always hate it when people try to tell me that Woody Allen's ''done.'' Lay off — he's my favorite filmmaker since Hitchcock! Some of his recent movies are bad, yeah, but did you see Match Point? Woody'll never be ''done.'' And Cassandra's Dream, his new one, sounds like it's firmly in Match Point territory: Set in London, it's about two brothers (Colin Farrell and Ewan McGregor) and a femme fatale (newcomer Hayley Atwell) who comes between them. —GK

THE JANE AUSTEN BOOK CLUB (Sept. 21)
I would never join a book club myself, but I am sort of excited to watch a movie in which six women in California sit around talking about Jane Austen novels and find that their own lives begin to resemble modern-day versions of Austen's world. I'm hoping it will offer some insight into why my mom is the way she is, but I think the real question for college students will be whether or not the points that they bring up about Pride and Prejudice are good enough deploy in class without actually reading the book. —CS

THE ASSASSINATION OF JESSE JAMES BY THE COWARD ROBERT FORD (Sept. 21)
Originally set for release last fall, TAOJJBTCRF was hobbled due to artistic differences between director (Andrew Dominik) and studio (Warner Bros.), and finally slated to open this September. But none of that really matters, because my developing taste for westerns (whetted by none other than Sam Peckinpah's The Wild Bunch and, I'm not ashamed to admit, Mel Brooks' brilliant parody Blazing Saddles), and this trailer, give me reason to celebrate the outlaw's larger-than-life legacy. —Adrienne Day

30 DAYS OF NIGHT (Oct. 19)
I never thought I'd be excited for a film about snow and vampires (two things I usually love separately, not together). But if 30 Days of Night is half as good as the graphic novel upon which it's based, I'll have nothing to worry about. Something tells me I'll be okay. —MV

MARTIAN CHILD (Oct. 26)
The trailer for this film — about a science-fiction writer who adopts a self-described Martian/orphan who lives in a box — almost brought me to tears. John Cusack is exactly the type of actor who can pull off the sensitivity required for this kind of role, and that's why I've got Oct. 26 highligh

Saturday, September 01, 2007 11:38:00 PM

 

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