MOVIES
More franchises are rebooting
By Phil Villarreal
Pvillarreal@azstarnet.com
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 01.08.2009
Forget the Golden Globes, dependable predictor of Oscar success that they are.
It's time to pull out the crystal ball and see what patterns and prospects emerge amid the haze of the 2009 movie year:
β Look for more reboots of established franchises thanks to the successful overhauls of James Bond and Batman.
"Friday the 13th," "X-Men," "Star Trek," and "Underworld" are all going back to their beginnings, most with new casts, to retell the series' origins.
β Disney's slew of surefire blockbusters starts Feb. 27 with "The Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience." It's the continuation of the price-gouging model Disney launched last February with "Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour," charging $15 for tickets β twice the national average. There's no reason not to expect the tickets for the Jonas Brothers film to equal, if not surpass, the Hannah Montana film, which hauled in more than $65 million in the United States. Later in the year, Disney follows up with "The Hannah Montana Movie" and then a 3-D rendition of "Toy Story."
β At long last, you can catch a glimpse of Tucson on the big screen thanks to two films that were partially shot here last year. "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" was filmed in October at the Tucson International Airport and the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group, known as the Boneyard.
Also look out for "Away We Go," a travel comedy directed by Oscar-winner Sam Mendes and starring John Krasinski of "The Office," which filmed in June at the JW Marriott Starr Pass Resort & Spa.
Although the John Dillinger-focused "Public Enemies," with Johnny Depp as Dillinger and Christian Bale as Melvin Purvis, was filmed throughout the Midwest and in Florida, it should at least mention Tucson to acknowledge the bank robber's arrest here 75 years ago.
β The Loft will continue to bring in well-known actors to speak to audiences and keep local cinema interesting. Oscar nominee Chazz Palminteri, for example, is stopping by the theater Jan. 26 for a Q&A after a screening of "Yonkers Joe."
Coming soon
Release dates and titles are subject to change:
β’ Defiance (Jan. 16) β Set in conquered Poland during World War II, Daniel Craig and Liev Schreiber play brothers who oppose the occupation and try to rescue other Jews. Nechama Tec's book, "Defiance: The Bielski Partisans" which is based on the true story of the Bielski partisans, provides the history. Directed by Edward Zwick, director of "Blood Diamond" and "The Last Samurai."
β’ Hotel for Dogs (Jan. 16) β The title tells you all you need to know. Cute doggies doing cute things in a cute hotel. And as an added bonus, Don Cheadle.
β’ JCVD (Jan. 16) β Action stud Jean-Claude Van Damme has met the one opponent he could not defeat β public apathy. So he tries to get his career going again in this silly, self-parodying romp.
β’ My Bloody Valentine 3-D (Jan. 16) β Jaime King becomes a scream queen in this tale of a man who returns to his hometown and is accused of murdering several people. The New York Times said this may be the first 3-D live action horror film to be released in the U.S. in more than two decades.
β’ Notorious (Jan. 16) β A biopic on slain gangsta rapper Notorious B.I.G. (Jamal Woolard), from George Tillman Jr., producer of the "Barbershop" flicks and its spinoff "Beauty Shop."
β’ Paul Blart: Mall Cop (Jan. 16) β A meek security guard (Kevin James) tries to save the mall from being overtaken by gangsters. Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. Kidding.
β’ Revolutionary Road (Jan. 16) β The "Titanic" trio of Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet and Kathy Bates reunites for an adaptation of the Richard Yates novel about despair in a suburban household in the 1950s. Oscar nominations should flow.
β’ Inkheart (Jan. 23) β Cornelia Funke's novel inspires this family-friendly tale. A man (Brendan Fraser) with the power to bring storybook characters to life who must battle a villain from his library.
β’ Last Chance Harvey (Jan. 23) β Dustin Hoffman plays an out-of-work composer visiting London for his daughter's wedding who finds romance with an uptight woman played by Emma Thompson. Both actors are up for Golden Globes.
β’ Underworld: Rise of the Lycans (Jan. 23) β The vampire-and-werewolf action series has tossed aside stars Kate Beckinsale and Scott Speedman in favor of B-listers Rhona Mitra and Michael Sheen in this prequel.
β’ The Wrestler (Jan. 23) β Mickey Rourke stages a comeback worthy of Rocky Balboa in this simultaneously laconic and inspiring tale of a down-and-out pro wrestler who plots a comeback. Marisa Tomei turns heads as a stripper who becomes the protagonist's unlikely best friend.
β’ Yonkers Joe (Jan. 23) β A con man (Chazz Palminteri) longs for the perfect scam in the R-rated drama. Former Tucsonans Trent and Matt Othick are producers.
β’ Azur and Asmar: The Princes' Quest (Jan. 30) β A French- and Arabic-language animated adventure fantasy about lifelong rivals who search for a fairy.
β’ New in Town (Jan. 30) β RenΓ©e Zellweger plays a Miami business exec who moves to not-so-sunny Minnesota and after some romantically comedic mishaps realizes she likes not only the weather but the scenery (Harry Connick Jr.).
β’ Taken (Jan. 30) β A retired spy (Liam Neeson) saves his estranged daughter, who has been sold into slavery. It's the first film from exciting French action maestro Pierre Morel since 2004's superb "District B13."
β’ The Uninvited (Jan. 30) β It is written that not a month shall pass without a new Elizabeth Banks ("Zack and Miri Make a Porno," "Role Models," "W.") movie. Here she stars in a remake of a Korean horror film.
β’ Fanboys (Feb. 6) β Four friends travel cross-country to watch the premiere of "Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace" in 1999. Fanboy fantasy Kristen Bell is among the stars.
β’ He's Just Not That Into You (Feb. 6) β A comedy set in Baltimore about relationship troubles that's based on the bestselling book. It's tough not to be into a cast that includes Jennifer Aniston, Scarlett Johansson, Ginnifer Goodwin, Drew Barrymore, Ben Affleck and Justin Long.
β’ The Pink Panther 2 (Feb. 6) β Steve Martin has nowhere to go but up after his 2006 remake of "The Pink Panther." He joins a band of equally inept inspectors to stop an international crime ring.
β’ Push (Feb. 6) β Teens and young adults with telekinetic abilities, played by Camilla Belle, Dakota Fanning, Chris Evans and others, try to escape the clutches of the government agency that controls them.
β’ Waltz with Bashir (Feb. 6) β A Hebrew and German-language animated film about a man traumatized by the Israel-Lebanon conflict. It's up for a Golden Globe for best foreign-language film and an Oscar nod may follow.
β’ Confessions of a Shopaholic (Feb. 13) β A shopping-addicted financial writer (Isla Fisher) falls for a rich businessman. Based on the Sophie Kinsella books.
β’ Friday the 13th (Feb. 13) β Going the "Halloween" route, this film ditches the umpteen sequels and starts over, when things were simpler: just a deranged killer, a hockey mask and a dream.
β’ Fired Up (Feb. 20) β High school guys ditch football camp to head to cheerleader camp instead to meet girls. The real comedy is that the filmmakers expect us to believe Eric Christian Olsen, 31, and Nicholas D'Agosto, 28, can play guys about half their age.
β’ Madea Goes to Jail (Feb. 20) β Oprah favorite Tyler Perry, a niche blockbuster machine, writes, stars and directs in this comedy about an eccentric grandma who is sent to jail. One to see if you loved "Madea's Family Reunion."
β’ The International (Feb. 20) β Clive Owen and Naomi Watts star in a thriller about an Interpol investigation of a financial institution in bed with arms dealers. Makes you wonder what's happening to the bailout money.
β’ Che (Feb. 27) β Benicio Del Toro stars as revolutionary Che GuΓ©vara in this mega-biopic, directed by Steven Soderbergh. At 257 minutes, the movie was originally conceived as two separate films but Soderbergh has combined them into this more-than-four-hour epic.
β’ Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience (Feb. 27) β Disney's latest megahit boy band follows Hannah Montana into the realm of 3-D concert movies. Just hope that your kids are satisfied with one viewing.
β’ Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li (Feb. 27) β A female gladiator (Kristin Kreuk) seeks vengeance for the death of her father. Based on, I kid you not, one of the endings of the 1990s arcade game "Street Fighter II."
β’ Watchmen (March 6) β Comic-book geeks have had this date etched in their minds for nearly a year. It's an adaptation of the beloved Alan Moore graphic novel, which examines the psychological nature of heroism. Zack Snyder, who directed "300," is at the helm.
β’ Wendy and Lucy (March 6) β A woman (Michelle Williams) on her way to Alaska loses her dog and struggles to get her back. It's an under-the-radar indie gem, released in bigger cities in late 2008, that has some calling Williams a dark-horse Oscar candidate.
β’ The Class (March 13) β The Golden Palm winner at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival is a drama about a teacher making do in a tough French school. TrΓ¨s "Dangerous Minds."
β’ Race to Witch Mountain (March 13) β Everyone hoping Dwayne Johnson will become the next big action star can keep on waiting. The artist formerly known as The Rock is content making touchy-feely family flicks like this remake of a 1970s Disney standby about childlike aliens hunting for their spaceship.
β’ I Love You, Man (March 20) β A buddy-less groom-to-be (Paul Rudd) goes on a series of dates to find a best man. Oddly, even though Rudd and co-star Jason Segel are members of producer Judd Apatow's inner circle, Apatow isn't involved with the movie.
β’ Knowing (March 20) β A teacher (Nicolas Cage) discovers a time capsule that predicts he and his son will somehow be involved in a global disaster. Wonder if it also predicts this movie's opening weekend box office returns.
β’ Monsters vs. Aliens (March 27) β A comedic animated throwback to cornball 1950s monster movies. The monstrous voice cast includes Seth Rogen, Reese Witherspoon, Paul Rudd and Stephen Colbert.
β’ The Ugly Truth (April 3) β A morning show producer (Katherine Heigl) takes dating advice from her chauvinistic correspondent (Gerard Butler).
β’ The Wolf Man (April 3) β Benicio Del Toro transforms into a werewolf in this remake of the 1941 classic. Del Toro is a natural, with the growl, hair and musclebound stature. Anthony Hopkins plays his dad.
β’ Observe and Report (April 10) β Seth Rogen plays a mall security guard who tries to stop a flasher. He's joined by a hardened detective (Ray Liotta). Anna Faris also reports for duty.
β’ Crank 2: High Voltage (April 17) β Jason Statham, who is quickly becoming an action king in the Schwarzenegger-Stallone mold, sequelizes his kinetic 2006 action-comedy romp. In this go-round his character has had his heart replaced with an electric contraption that shocks him when he fails to do a mobster's bidding.
β’ 17 Again (April 17) β A man (Matthew Perry) wakes up as a 17-year-old (Zac Efron) and gets to re-do his life. Ideally Efron will learn from Perry's mistakes and never make movies as bad as "Serving Sara" and "The Whole Ten Yards."
β’ The Soloist (April 24) β A journalist (Robert Downey Jr.) befriends a homeless musician (Jamie Foxx) who's looking to make it big. This was slated to come out with the Oscar contenders late last year but given the boot. Never a good sign.
β’ The Hannah Montana Movie (May 1) β Miley Cyrus rules the world. We're all just extras. The Disney starlet continues her teen queen reign with a movie of her TV series, in which she plays a rock star with a secret identity. The plot has Hannah traveling down South to reconnect with her roots.
β’ X-Men Origins: Wolverine (May 1) β Isn't this always the way it goes with popular collaborative acts? Someone becomes a prima donna and goes off on a solo project. Wolverine (Hugh Jackman), the Justin Timberlake of the X-Men, shows us how he became Wolverine.
β’ Star Trek (May 8) β "Lost" maven J.J. Abrams goes where no director has gone before, telling the pre-TV series adventures of Kirk (Chris Pine), Spock (Zachary Quinto), Scotty (Simon Pegg) and crew.
β’ Angels & Demons (May 15) β Ron Howard and Tom Hanks scare up another Dan Brown adaptation. Symbol-loving professor Robert Langdon from "The Da Vince Code" is back (with better hair), investigating the threat of terrorism against the Vatican.
β’ BrΓΌno: Delicious Journeys Through America for the Purpose of Making Heterosexual Males Visibly Uncomfortable in the Presence of a Gay Foreigner in a Mesh T-Shirt (May 15) β Sacha Baron Cohen, who played Borat, plays a flamboyant fashion journalist who causes havoc in this mix of documentary and scripted comedy.
β’ Night at the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian (May 22) β Ben Stiller clocks in for another go-round with talking, living miniature museum displays. This time, he's tracking down pals who were accidentally shipped to the Smithsonian.
β’ Terminator: Salvation (May 22) β Led by John Connor (Christian Bale), the human resistance wars against an army of robots that have destroyed much of the world in a nuclear holocaust. A "Terminator" without Ah-nuld? A sign of the apocalypse indeed.
β’ Up (May 29) β Perennial box office and critical darling Pixar just keeps 'em coming. This animated outing is about an old man and a young boy who travel the world.
β’ Land of the Lost (June 5) β A campy remake of the 1970s TV show, which was remade in the 1990s. Will Ferrell plays a forest ranger who, with his two kids, winds up in a realm teeming with dinosaurs and bizarre humanoid creatures.
β’ Imagine That (June 12) β Behold a true rarity β Eddie Murphy doesn't play multiple characters in this comedy. He stars as a financial exec who finds solutions to his problems in his daughter's imaginary world.
β’ The Proposal (June 12) β Sandra Bullock plays a pushy boss who bullies her assistant (Ryan Reynolds) into marrying her so she can avoid deportation.
β’ The Year One (June 19) β Excellent casting here in this Judd Apatow-produced comedy β Cavemanlike Jack Black as, well, a caveman, banished from his village along with a pal played by Michael Cera. If there's ever a "Captain Caveman" movie, Black is a shoo-in.
β’ Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (June 26) β Robotic giants wage war in this action sequel shot partially in Tucson. All the stars from the first film return, including Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox and best-actor Oscar candidate Optimus Prime.
β’ Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (July 1) β Ray Romano, Queen Latifah, Denis Leary and John Leguizamo voice prehistoric animals in this threequel, bitter that they have to share dressing rooms with dinosaurs, who are always trouble on-set.
β’ Public Enemies (July 1) β Johnny Depp takes on the role of notorious criminal John Dillinger, who was captured in Tucson on Jan. 25, 1934. Billy Crudup is J. Edgar Hoover. Based on Bryan Burrough's book.
β’ 2012 (July 10) β Director Rolan Emmerich ("Independence Day," "The Day After Tomorrow"), who never met a disaster he couldn't replicate with sterling computer graphics, unleashes another apocalyptic tale. This one, about natural disasters predicted by the Mayan calendar, stars John Cusack, Amanda Peet and Danny Glover.
β’ Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (July 17) β Lord Voldemort and the boy wizard (Daniel Radcliffe) meet for round six.
β’ G-Force (July 24) β A band of elite guinea pigs β one of them voiced by Nicolas Cage β tries to stop an evil billionaire from taking over the world.
β’ Funny People (July 31) β Judd Apatow, directing his first film since "Knocked Up" (2007), makes a comedic drama about a terminally ill comic (Adam Sandler) who takes a young up-and-comer (Seth Rogen) under his wing.
β’ G.I. Joe: Rise of the Cobra (Aug. 7) β Dennis Quaid and Brendan Fraser lead a global strike force to neutralize the evil Cobra army. They also sell a lot of new toys to kids as well as their parents, who played with the action figures and watched the cartoon in the 1980s.
β’ Dance Flick (Aug. 14) β The Wayans brothers skewer the likes of "Step Up," "Footloose" and "Center Stage" in yet another spoof. The idea is so well-worn that it's time for a "Spoof Flick" to spoof the spoofs.
β’ Inglourious Basterds (Aug. 21) β Quentin Tarantino launches his latest pop culture-collage opus. This is a World War II drama about Jewish American soldiers who scalp Nazis. Brad Pitt headlines the cast.
β’ Crossing Over (Aug. 28) β Immigrants in Los Angeles strive for legal status in a drama reminiscent of "Traffic" and "Crash." Harrison Ford, Sean Penn, Ray Liotta and Ashley Judd make up the constellationlike cast.
β’ The Informant (Sept. 18) β Based on a true story about the highest-ranked U.S. executive to turn whistleblower. Matt Damon plays the agri-business vice president. Steven Soderbergh directs this film, which is based on Kurt Eichenwald's book.
β’ Surrogates (Sept. 25) β Bruce Willis, recalling his "The Fifth Element" excellence, beams back to the sci-fi action realm. Willis plays the one guy who wants to bust heads the old-fashioned way in a world where humans interact with robots.
β’ Shutter Island (Oct. 2) β The formidable Martin Scorsese-Leonardo DiCaprio partnership continues, with Leo playing a U.S. marshal in the 1950s, searching for an escaped murderess who may be hiding on an island. The story is an adaptation of Dennis Lehane's novel.
β’ Toy Story in 3-D (Oct. 2) β The Pixar classic about toys that spring to life when people aren't watching gets a revamped 3-D treatment. Buzz and Woody have already taken us to infinity, now it's time to go beyond.
β’ Where the Wild Things Are (Oct. 16) β Spike Jonze ("Being John Malkovich") directs an adaptation of Maurice Sendak's beloved kids' book, about a boy who dreams up a fantasy world inhabited by deadly creatures. Forest Whitaker and James Gandolfini provide voices in the mostly animated film.
β’ The Box (Nov. 6) β "Donnie Darko" maestro Richard Kelly's drama based on the "The Twilight Zone" story about a couple (Cameron Diaz and James Marsden) who receive a box that makes them wealthy, with the caveat that someone they don't know will die if they accept the gift.
β’ Sherlock Holmes (Nov. 20) β Robert Downey Jr., who will be overdue for another Oscar nomination by this time, goes for the gold as the famous sleuth, in this drama directed by Madonna-ex Guy Ritchie. Jude Law appears as trusty sidekick Watson, helping Sherlock tangle with a mysterious enemy who has dire plans for London.
β’ Nine (Dec. 9) β The Tony-winning Broadway musical about a film director struggling with his career and love life tries to pull a "Chicago," with that Oscar-adorned film's director Rob Marshall. Daniel Day-Lewis, Nicole Kidman, Judi Dench, PenΓ©lope Cruz and Kate Hudson star.
β’ The Lovely Bones (Dec. 11) β After "The Lord of the Rings" and "Donkey Kong" epics, Peter Jackson shifts to a more intimate story. Based on the Alice Sebold novel about a girl who watches over her family from the afterlife after she is raped and murdered. Rachel Weisz and Mark Wahlberg star.
β’ Avatar (Dec. 18) β Director James Cameron's first narrative feature since "Titanic" in 1997. His long-awaited sci-fi opus stars Michelle Rodriguez and Sigourney Weaver in a tale of humanity's battle for survival.
β’ Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakuel (Dec. 25) β Jason Lee re-ups as the harried manager of the famed chipmunk band. The follow-up introduces the friendly rivals the Chipettes.
1 Comments on this story
