New at Theaters (Friday): “The Hangover”, “Land of the Lost”, “My Life in Ruins”

Best Bet(s): Billed as three comedies… audiences are likely to enjoy these three movies in varying levels of satisfaction.  So far, I can tell you that “My Life in Ruins” (read my review) is not as good as you might hope in a romantic comedy.  The buzz on the other two movies is that some audiences will enjoy and others will be disappointed by either Will Ferrell’s “Land of the Lost” or “The Hangover” from the director of “Old School”.

New on DVD (Tuesday): “Defiance”, “He’s Just Not That Into You”, “Revolutionary Road”, “Spring Breakdown”

Best Bet(s): Three strong offerings on DVD came out on Tuesday: Oscar nominated drama “Revolutionary Road” (read my review) (Kate and Leo)…  Oscar nominated World War II drama “Defiance” (read my review) (Daniel Craig and Liev Schrieber)… and the very successful and enjoyable ensemble romantic comedy “He’s Just Not That Into You” (read my review).  I have no information about the Amy Poehler/Parkey Posey/Rachel Dracht comedy “Spring Breakdown”… you’re on your ownon that one… but here’s a red flag: straight to DVD!!!

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Next Week at Theaters: “Imagine That”, “The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3″, “The Brothers Bloom” (limited release at Celebration! North and Celebration! Cinema Crossroads in Grand Rapids and Cinema Carousel in Muskegon)

Next Week on DVD: “Crossing Over”, “Fired Up”, “Gran Torino”, “The International”, “Spinning Into Butter”

MY REVIEWS OF OTHER MOVIES CURRENTLY PLAYING IN THEATERS OR AVAILABLE TO RENT/BUY: 

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“Revolutionary Road” is a showcase of great acting, its a powderkeg of emotions that masterfully explodes on the screen, but the overall depressing story is a tough pill to swallow in these times.

I understand now the awards that this movie is being nominated for… and the ones it isn’t… except for one.  The acting awards for Kate Winslet as best actress and Michael Shannon for best supporting actor… but what about Leonardo DiCaprio for best actor?  Okay. Okay, I’m getting ahead of myself here…

A warning to parents… this movie has adult themes and would be totally boring for the younger audiences.
 

Imagine 10 years after the “Titanic”… if Jack had survived… and he and Rose got married, had kids and  moved to the suburbs… and Molly Brown (Kathy Bates) became their real estate agent.   There’s even talk about sailing the Atlantic in a big boat… sounds like a sequel right? 

Nope… instead, imagine Kate and Leo in the less romantic, less exciting everyday mundane life of an american couple stuck in jobs they don’t like… in a neighborhood they don’t really like either… in a life they feel trapped in and secretely blame each other for… and their love is a little shaky… and their characters are April and Frank… and you have “Revolutionary Road”.

Winslet is great in her role and well deserving of the Golden Globe and the other nominations her acting received… her character has so many layers… and she pulls it off with ease and class.

DiCaprio also shines in one of his more emotionally challenging roles… he brings realism and depth to the character… but in the end I have to agree that this role isn’t quite top five (only five spots for the Oscar for best actor) material – because you still see Leo.. or other characters he played coming through the role… like the the ladies man character of Frank in ”Catch Me If You Can” (2002) or the tough guy in “The Departed” (2006).

Kathy Bates is solid and sells her character of the nosy and obtrusive real estate agent.

In some ways it makes sense that supporting actor Michael Shannon gets the Oscar nomination for his performance as the mentally unstable son of Bates’ character.  He steals the few scenes he is in and is totally immersed in the character… you see him for the character he is, not who he is.   (If you want to see Shannon in some other good, but minor roles, check him out in Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead (2007) or “Bad Boys II” (2003).)

The sets and costumes are also well done, adding to the story in setting the time and place… and do deserve the award nominations.  The cinematography was well done too… with great use of close ups… or wide shots to convey different feelings and tones.

THE BOTTOM LINE:

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The new options at theaters (3 movies with Academy Award nominations) are clearly better than the options of movies coming out on DVD this week!   “The Dark Knight” is back in IMAX this Friday!!
You’ve also been warned: “Repo! The Genetic Opera” is considered by many to be the worst movie of the year – so don’t rent it!  

New this week at Theaters (Friday): “Revolutionary Road” (wide release), ”The Wrestler” (wide release), “Inkheart”, “Possession”, “Underworld: Rise of the Lycans”, “The Dark Knight” (IMAX re-issue)

New this week on DVD (Tuesday): “City of Ember”, “The Express”, “Henry Poole is Here”, “Igor”, “Max Payne”, “Repo! The Genetic Opera”, “Saw V”, “Amusement”

MY REVIEWS OF OTHER MOVIES CURRENTLY PLAYING IN THEATERS OR AVAILABLE TO RENT: 

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I had to add a correction and a clarification…

For some reason (lack of sleep?) I left “The Unborn” off the new in theaters list… and “Revolutionary Road” is still in limited release and not coming to the Grand Rapids market January 23rd…. sorry !!! 
I also received word that “The Reader” is moving from Celebration! Woodland to Celebration! Rivertown this weekend.

New this week in Theaters (Friday): “Bridewars”, “Not Easily Broken”, “Gran Torino” (Grand Rapids), “The Unborn”

New this week on DVD (Tuesday): “Pineapple Express”, “Righteous Kill”, “Babylon A.D.”, “Bangkok Dangerous”, “Disaster Movie”, “The Wackness”

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MY TAKE ON WHAT’S NEW ON DVD: Okay, I know I’m one of the few people who actually liked the Pacino/DeNiro movie “Righteous Kill”, but if you listened to most critics and waited to rent it, now’s the time to see it.  

The other five movies I haven’t seen but have varying levels of concern: “Pineapple Express” is a stoner/action/comedy that was well received by some audiences and critics, “Disaster Movie” is another farce by the producers of all those other recent spoof movies, “The Wackness” got some good reviews by the limited audiences that saw it… it also has a *pot* plot.

And then there are the box office stinkers “Babylon A.D.” and “Bangkok Dangerous”, yes the second was #1 the week it opened, but there was nothing else in wide release that week, audiences for both movies dropped signigicantly the 2nd week at the theater and by the way scored very low on most reviews.

Looking for other rentals?   Check out these movies:
“The Dark Knight” (9.5 / 10)
“Eagle Eye” (8.5 / 10)
“Wanted” (8.0 / 10)
“Burn After Reading” (8.5 / 10)
“Traitor” (7.5 / 10)
“The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian”

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MY TAKE ON WHAT’S NEW IN THEATERS: 1 Oscar contender, a romantic comedy aimed at the ladies, a romantic drama, and a horror movie.  “Gran Torino” was filmed in Detroit and Clint Eastwood has said its his last acting appearance, although he plans to keep directing, Eastwood has received several nominations for his acting in “Gran Torino”.   “Bridewars” is the light-hearted “date” movie of the bunch about two friends Kate Hudson and Anne Hathaway who dream of having their weddings at the same hard-to-book location.     “Not Easily Broken” is a movie I haven’t heard much about, but its about a couple and how a life-changing event tests their relationship.   “The Unborn” is another seemingly formulaic, yet unique horror flick about a girl who discovers her unborn twin is haunting her.

MY REVIEWS OF MOVIES CURRENTLY PLAYING IN THEATERS: 

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Well, Merry Christmas… there are a sleigh load of options at theaters this week and one very good option out on DVD…. but if you’re like me and the weather has you behind the times, then there are a ton of options out there!!! 

If you can’t get to the theaters during this week, there’s always next week, so with no new movies in wide release, we can all try to catch up…

New on DVD: “Burn After Reading” (Sunday), “Savage Grace”, “Pulse 3″, “Beethoven’s Big Break”

MY TAKE ON WHAT’S NEW ON DVD: There’s only one movie to recommend here, UNLESS your rental audience includes kids, then “Burn After Reading” - one of my favorite comedies of the year – is NOT for you, otherwise, I highly recommend this quirky Comedy/Drama from the Coen Brothers with a great cast of characters.

There are nearly a dozen movies out new in theaters this week, including 3 with possible Academy Award chances for Best Picture, so be sure to read the releases for both Thursday (12/25) and Friday (12/26)…

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UPDATED September 24, 2008 at 1:00pm:

“Release Dates Are Subject to Change” … glad I added that to this list… because one date change pushed a movie completely out of the Fall/Winter season… “Taken” moves from September 19th to January 23rd !!!  Also moving: “Crossing Over” moves from October 24th to December 3rd and “Blindness” moves from September 26th to October 3rd.

That means “Blindness” moves into to my “15 to See”:

“Blindness” (October 3rd) – everyone is going blind.. except for Julianne Moore… sounds crazy!

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And that means “The Lucky Ones” (September 26-limited release) moves on to my “Honorable Mentions” list…

Rachel McAdams, Tim Robbins, and Michael Peña star as three soldiers that meet one another as they have all returned from Iraq, and circumstance unites them for a road trip across the country.

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Originally Published: September 5, 2008 at 10:48am:

The first week of September… its a signal of back to school and the end of the summer movie season… and I’ve got 15 movies for you to look forward to during the Fall/Holiday Movie Season…

Laff’s Fall/Holiday Movie Preview – 15 to see

15 is a bonus… some people give you a Top 10… but I’m giving you 15…  15 movies over the next 4 months that are likely to be big at the box office and/or fill out the ballots for Academy Award consideration !!!!

(release dates are subject to change)

“Burn After Reading” (September 12th)

New comedy-drama from Ethan and Joel Cohen… with a great cast and cool trailer!!!

Watch the “Burn After Reading” trailer at trailerspy.com

Starring: Brad Pitt, Frances McDormand, George Clooney, John Malkovich, Tilda Swinton, J.K. Simmons

Plot: A disk containing the memoirs of a CIA agent ends up in the hands of two unscrupulous gym employees who attempt to sell it.

Early look at “Burn After Reading”

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“Righteous Kill” (September 12th)

I was ready for this one as soon as they announced Robert DeNiro and Al Pacino would be in the movie together … and they are both police officers.. and the trailer solidified it for me!

“Righteous Kill” trailer at trailerpsy.com

Starring: Robert DeNiro, Al Pacino, 50 Cent, Carla Gugino, John Leguizamo, Donnie Wahlberg, Brian Dennehy

Plot: Two veteran New York City detectives (De Niro and Pacino) work to identify the possible connection between a recent murder and a case they believe they solved years ago; is there a serial killer on the loose, and did they perhaps put the wrong person behind bars?

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“Taken” (now January 23rd )

I can’t wait to see Liam Neeson back in a leading role kicking some butt !!

Watch the ”Taken” trailer at trailerspy.com

Starring: Liam Neeson, Maggie Grace, Famke Janssen, (more…)

The first week of September… its a signal of back to school and the end of the summer movie season… and I’ve got 15 movies for you to look forward to during the Fall/Holiday Movie Season…

Laff’s Fall/Holiday Movie Preview – 15 to see

15 is a bonus… some people give you a Top 10… but I’m giving you 15…  15 movies over the next 4 months that are likely to be big at the box office and/or fill out the ballots for Academy Award consideration !!!!

(release dates are subject to change)

“Burn After Reading” (September 12th)

New comedy-drama from Ethan and Joel Cohen… with a great cast and cool trailer!!!

Watch the “Burn After Reading” trailer at trailerspy.com

Starring: Brad Pitt, Frances McDormand, George Clooney, John Malkovich, Tilda Swinton, J.K. Simmons

Plot: A disk containing the memoirs of a CIA agent ends up in the hands of two unscrupulous gym employees who attempt to sell it.

Early look at “Burn After Reading”

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“Righteous Kill” (September 12th)

I was ready for this one as soon as they announced Robert DeNiro and Al Pacino would be in the movie together … and they are both police officers.. and the trailer solidified it for me!

“Righteous Kill” trailer at trailerpsy.com

Starring: Robert DeNiro, Al Pacino, 50 Cent, Carla Gugino, John Leguizamo, Donnie Wahlberg, Brian Dennehy

Plot: Two veteran New York City detectives (De Niro and Pacino) work to identify the possible connection between a recent murder and a case they believe they solved years ago; is there a serial killer on the loose, and did they perhaps put the wrong person behind bars?

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“Taken” (September 19th)

I can’t wait to see Liam Neeson back in a leading role kicking some butt !!

Watch the ”Taken” trailer at trailerspy.com

Starring: Liam Neeson, Maggie Grace, Famke Janssen, (more…)