Trendy Reel

 Now that the summer movie season is winding down, time to look forward to upcoming releases for the fall and winter.  The film releases for this part of the year have been changed numerous times over the past few months.  Burn After Reading staring George Clooney and Brad Pitt has been moved to Sept. 12^th. He’s Just Not That Into You staring a vary of stars like Ben Affleck and Scarlett Johansson has been changed twice already.  Originally scheduled for an August 1^st release, it was then changed to October 24^th.  Third times, the charm as it was again moved to February 6, 2009.  It will fair better there because the Dark Knight has been cancelling a lot of big budget movies out of the running and High School Musical: Senior Year set to hit theaters October 24^th wasn’t the best time either.  Jennifer Aniston and Steve Zahn’s Indie Management, has been removed from it’s September 19^th slot  to an unknown future date.  However, this film along with Burn After Reading may appear at the Toronto Film Festival in September.  The best selling vampire series Twilight is coming to the big screen December 12^th while the sixth installment of the wizard franchise, Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince can be seen on November 21^st. See below for the film releases you can look forward to in the upcoming months.  One more thing, no more zombie (Quarantine) or hacking movies (Saw V) please.

September 5th 2008

Bangkok Dangerous~Lionsgate

September 12th 2008

Burn After Reading~Focus Features

Righteous Kill~Overture Films

Tyler Perry’s The Family That Preys~Lionsgate

September 19th 2008

Ghost Town~Paramount Pictures

Igor~The Weinstein Company

September 26th 2008

Eagle Eye~Paramount Pictures

Miracle at St. Anna~Buena Vista Pictures

Blindness~Miramax Films

 October 3rd 2008

Beverly Hills Chihuahua~Touchstone Pictures

 The Express~Universal Pictures

 How to Lose Friends and Alienate People~MGM Pictures

October 10th 2008

Body of Lies~Warner Bros. Pictures

City of Ember~20th Century Fox

Quarantine~Screen Gems

October 17th 2008

Flash of Genius~Universal Pictures

Max Payne~20th Century Fox

The Secret Life of Bees~Fox Searchlight

Morning Light~Walt Disney Pictures,

October 24th 2008

Crossing Over~MGM Films

High School Musical 3: Senior Year~Buena Vista Pictures

Pride and Glory~New Line

Saw V~Lionsgate

Changeling~Warner Bros. Pictures

Passengers~Sony Pictures

Roadside Romeo~Walt Disney Pictures

October 31st 2008

Zack and Miri Make a Porno~MGM Films

November 7th 2008

Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa~Paramount Pictures

Quantum of Solace~Paramount Pictures

Repo! The Genetic Opera~Lionsgate,

November 14th 2008

Australia~20th Century Fox

Nothing Like the Holidays~Overture Films

Role Models~Universal Pictures

Soul Men~Dimension Films

The Road~The Weinstein Company

November 21st 2008

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince~Warner Bros. Pictures

The Soloist~DreamWorks Pictures

November 26th 2008

Bolt~Touchstone Pictures

Four Christmases~Warner Bros. Pictures

The Transporter 3~Lionsgate,

December 5th 2008

Punisher: War Zone~Lionsgate,

Frost/Nixon~Universal Pictures

December 12th 2008

The Day the Earth Stood Still~20th Century Fox

Seven Pounds~Sony Pictures

Twilight~Summit Entertainment,

Doubt~The Weinstein Company

December 19th 2008

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button~Paramount Pictures

The Tale of Desperaux~Universal Pictures

Yes Man~Warner Bros. Pictures

December 25th 2008

Bedtime Stories~Touchstone Pictures

Hurricane Season~Universal Pictures

Marley and Me~20th Century Fox

Revolutionary Road~Paramount Vantage

Oh Sex and the City. I have absolutely no intention of seeing this film. I was never into the show. Now that I got it out of my system, why is there this overload of crap for this film? People are making it seem like it’s the second coming, organisming their way to May 30^th. (Shouldn’t have put those two references in the same sentence.) Are people really that starved for it or just wanting to see a fashion show of clothes they can’t ever dream to afford? I am sick to death of reading and hearing about it. In case you feel like me and can live without you can go to see The Strangers staring Liv Tyler and Scoot Speedman. Both trailers are below.

Sex and the City

The Strangers

So that was the question I was posed the other day.  Honestly I think it’s a draw.  Neither was spectacular and neither was bad. I enjoyed The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian for what it was worth. You get to relive the days of yonder when those of yester year speakth Shakespearian.  There were also the great battles scenes.  My favorite was between throne stealer Telmarine king Miraz and King Philip.  I was really into it; so much that I wanted King Philip to finish him off but then came back to the reality I was watching a Disney film and not Gladiator or Mortal Kombat.   Ho hum.  Then there is the great Indian Jones; professor by day, adventurer by night.  Shia LaBeouf is determined he is going to be a star huh?  I knew from about 20 minutes in that little twist.  Anyway, Indian Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull offers everything a die hard Jones’ fan would love.  It also made me remember what is so lovable about the Indian series which is the humor brought forth in all the films.  If nothing it stayed true to that.  I will say things got weird at the end.  Maybe George and Stephen’s appetite for other worlds went a little overboard.  Maybe things do make more sense from their eyes;  explaining how really Niagara Falls and Earth’s other wonderments came to be…

Ah Speed Racer. The 60s cartoon has hit the big time. Well at least the big screen. Here is a very short, quick history lesson on Speed Racer. The cartoon original generated from Japan and was given the name Speed Racer for the American/English version. Speed Racer’s car is called the Mach 5. Can’t have a Speed Racer movie without Racer X and Trixie. Wow. How do I know these things? Now about the movie. It stars Into the Wild’s breakout lead actor Emile Hirsch as Speed Racer. Christina Ricci plays girlfriend Trixie with Matthew Fox as Racer X. The film was directed and written by the Wachowski Brothers and produced by Joel Sliver after the numerous changes of hands since 1992. Industry buzz was that Zac Efron and Shia Labeouf both auditioned for the role of Speed Racer and Vince Vaughn was rumored to be producing and staring as Racer X until the Wachowski Brothers picked it up. Ok now that all that technical stuff is out the way, I have to say I am not too excited about this. First I think the major reason it is just seeing the light of day after ten years of trying to get it to the cinemas is the fact that it’s hard to adapt such a cartoon to be portrayed by real , breathing people. I compare it a studio trying to bring Popeye and Olive to a theater near you. It necessarily can’t work. Speed Racer was shot completely in front of a green screen for that reason. I don’t know if this will work or not, but we all shall see. Trailers for the movie are not up to par in my book and movie goers might opt to go see Iron Man instead. Too bad as Warner Bros. has shelled out a lot of money for advertising. So in the next month or two expect an array of Speed Racer collectibles to hit the markets from toys to video games. This may or may not fair well opening weekend but I do not expect it to knock Iron Man from the number one spot. In conclusion, some things are better left to the drawing boards…

Check out the Speed Racer Trailer below. Go! Speed Racer Go!

There are several reasons why I am excited about this release that will kick off the summer film season. The trailer is enticing, there are some great actors involved, ( Robert Downey Jr., Terrance Howard, Samuel L. Jackson, Gwyneth Paltrow) it’s another well loved comic coming to the cinemas; but the real reason I am excited is because of the director, Jon Favreau. I could sit here and talk about Iron Man the comic or how great the stars will be in this, however that is not my focus for this release. Yeah he is probably more well known for being actor Vince Vaughn’s swinging buddy in a few films and are wondering how the hell did he get helm this one. This movie is a big deal for him, probably the biggest career boost he will have since Swingers. I am genuinely excited for him and can not wait to see the final product. Everything looks to be fantastic and I see a blockbuster hit. If you are not familiar with any of his work, I am not going to recommend going back and looking at films from 10 years ago, instead go hit up your local Blockbuster or Netflix cue and get Zathura, his 2005 film which I see as a nice directorial prequel to Iron Man. One last thing. Iron Man opens May 2, 2008. The trailer can be seen below. Goodluck Jon!

http://ironmanmovie.marvel.com/

It’s almost that time of year. SUMMER MOVIES! Seriously, looking at the impressive film role call, it’s non stop from May until the end of August. Hope you all have a nice savings going as this looks to a great season for big movies. I will from now until the start of the season in May with the release of Iron Man on May 2nd will do my own little pre-review of the films set to hit theaters this summer. I think there will be enough films for everyone’s taste. Below is a list of the big blockbusters for the summer/release dates. Highlighted are the ones I will without a doubt be plucking out $10 to see. Stay Tuned and Happy Easter!

May

Iron Man - 5/2

Speed Racer -5/9

What Happens in Vegas - 5/9

Chronicles of Narnia Prince Caspian -5/16

Indian Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull - 5/22

Sex and the City - 5/30

June

Don’t Mess with Zohan -6/6

Kung Fu Panda - 6/6

Mongol - 6/6

Incredibale Hulk - 6/13

The Happening - 6/13

Get Smart - 6/20

The Love Guru - 6/20

Wanted - 6/27

Wall-E 6/27

July

Hancock - 7/2

Meet Dave - 7/2

Hellboy II: The Golden Army - 7/11

Journey to the Center of the Earth 3D - 7/11

The Dark Knight - 7/18

Mamma Mia! - 7/18

X-Files II - 7/25

Step Brother - 7/25

August

The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor - 8/1

He’s Just Not That Into You - 8/1

Pineapple Express - 8/8

Hell Ride - 8/8

Star Wars: The Clone Wars - 8/15

Tropic Thunder - 8/15

The Accidental Husband - 8/22

Bangkok Dangerous - 8/22

Babylon A.D. - 8/29

When I originally heard of this film back in 2004 to star Jennifer Aniston, Colin Firth, Ben Kingsley and still rumored Lisa Bonet; I will admit I was a little skeptical on whether this works or not. Four years later and with the this film still floating around I had to take a step back and revisit this. In the past four years Coen Brothers have had some major success so Gambit might work after all… if it ever gets to the filming stage. The brothers are having a great ride with their film No Country For Old Men, which just won a SAG award last night( Also Oscar nominated) and they are a few upcoming films that are not to be overlooked like Burn After Reading staring George Clooney, Brad Pitt and Tilda Switon. Also in the pipeline is for 2009 is Hail Ceasar which they will also write and direct.

Synopsis for Gambit:

Harry Dean’s plan to steal a statue from one of the world’s richest men is missing one final component — the participation of a beautiful woman to act as his gambit. In Nicole, he meets someone who appears to be the perfect candidate, but Harry himself becomes enraptured with her, causing his plan to take a series of wrong turns.

Read the rest of this entry »

Yes its that time where the major next works announce which shows will and will not be coming back. ABC this morning released there line up. Sad to say that a good show is over and done but more about that in another post. Yesterday was NBC and tomorrow will bring CBS’s announcement. Good luck to the rest of the shows out there. They shows in bold are new. Cashmere Mafia, Notes from the Underbelly and October Road will premiere after Dancing with the Stars and The Bachelor conclude their fall seasons. You can go to TV Guide.com for descriptions of the new shows.

MONDAY:
8:00 pm Dancing with the Stars
9:30 pm Sam I Am (new comedy series)
10:00 pm The Bachelor

TUESDAY:
8:00 pm Cavemen (new comedy series)
8:30 pm Carpoolers (new comedy series)
9:00 pm Dancing with the Stars the Results Show
10:00 pm Boston Legal

WEDNESDAY:
8:00 pm Pushing Daisies (new drama series)
9:00 pm Private Practice (new drama series)
10:00 pm “Dirty Sexy Money (new drama series)

THURSDAY:
8:00 pm Ugly Betty
9:00 pm Grey’s Anatomy
10:00 pm Big Shots (new drama series)

FRIDAY:
8:00 pm Men in Trees
9:00 pm Women’s Murder Club (new drama series)
10:00 pm 20/20

SATURDAY:
8:00 pm Saturday Night College Football

SUNDAY:
7:00 pm America’s Funniest Home Videos
8:00 pm Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
9:00 pm Desperate Housewives
10:00 pm Brothers & Sisters

Chris Cabin of Filmcritic.com posted his review of the movie. You can read the review here. The movie stars brothers Luke and Owen Wilson and directed by brother Andrew Wilson. Also in the movie are Eddie Griffin and Eva Mendes. The movie opens Friday May 18th.

Here is the trailer:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/v/tAz15twe3eQ]