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Chris Columbus plays Himself in the 2006 release Daddy's Girl Is a Bad Girl.
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http://www.boxofficeprophets.com/column/index.cfm?columnID=
Leftovers Rule Thanksgiving Weekend
Weekend Box Office Wrap-Up for November 25-27, 2005
By John Hamann
November 27, 2005
Top Ten for Weekend of November 25-27, 2005
Rank Film Number of Sites Percentage Drop Estimated 3-Day Gross ($)
Cumulative Gross ($)
1 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire 3,858 -47% $54.9 $201.1
2 Walk the Line 3,138 -12% $19.7 $54.7
3 Yours, Mine & Ours 3,206 New $17.5 $24.5
4 Chicken Little 3,475 -16% $12.4 $118.2
5 Rent 2,433 New $10.7 $18.1
6 Just Friends 2,505 New $9.3 $13.6
7 Pride and Prejudice 1,299 New $7.0 $15.9
8 Zathura 2,620 -5% $4.9 $26.0
9 Derailed 2,061 -28% $4.7 $29.4
10 In the Mix 1,608 New $4.5 $6.2
11 The Ice Harvest 1,550 New $3.7 $5.1
12 Jarhead 1,612 -40% $2.9 $59.4
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire put in another stellar weekend over the
Thanksgiving holiday, as did Walk the Line, but the box office was let down
by an inferior crop of new films. While there were few outright turkeys this
weekend, the overall box office could only pull a draw versus last year,
despite big totals from the top three films this weekend.
The number one film of the weekend is Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
(were you expecting In the Mix?), as again, the teen British wizard hit the
jackpot over the long weekend. The $150 million production with the $100
million plus opening weekend grossed $54.9 million in its second frame,
meeting expectations. Compared to its fabulous opening, that's a
decent-but-not-incredible drop of 47%, which compares somewhat favorably
with the 36% drop that Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone had over
Thanksgiving weekend in 2001. The true jaw-dropper, though, is its total. So
far, after only ten days of release, The Goblet of Fire has grossed an
amazing $201.1 million, keeping it well ahead of its predecessors. The
largest second weekend of all time still belongs to Shrek 2 at $72.2
million, followed by Spider-Man at $71.4 million, and Goblet of Fire could
not slide into third, failing to get ahead of Sorcerer's Stone's second
weekend at $57.5 million. Where does Goblet of Fire go from here? In terms
of weekend-to-weekend drops, expect Harry to plummet next weekend versus the
long weekend and ticket buyer fatigue. After that it will have a tough go of
it in the following frame versus the Chronicles of Narnia. While all of this
is true, Goblet of Fire will still have a chance to outgross The Sorcerer's
Stone, which is so far tops in the Harry Potter realm with a domestic total
of $317.6 million.
Second spot this weekend goes to Walk the Line, the Johnny Cash biopic
starring Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon. Walk the Line had another
absolutely stellar frame this weekend, earning a super solid $19.7 million
and dropping a slim 12%. Fox made a smart move in adding 177 venues to
Walk's venue count. It is now playing at 3,138 venues and had an average of
$6,277. With good Oscar buzz and superlative word-of-mouth, Walk the Line
could play for a long time, and will have absolutely no problem outgrossing
Ray's $75 million. Currently, Walk the Line has grossed $54.7 million, with
$100 million certainly not out of the question.
Third spot goes to Yours, Mine & Ours, the insipid looking comedy from
Paramount. Why this film grossed $17.5 million this weekend is beyond me, as
the trailer was painful to sit through, especially when combined with
Cheaper by the Dozen 2. The Dennis Quaid/Rene Russo flick was released to
3,206 venues, and had an average of $5,450. Since Wednesday, Yours, Mine &
Ours has grossed $24.5 million against a budget of about $40 million. For
Paramount, this is a nice change from the string of flops they have had
recently, save for Four Brothers. While no flop, this is one of the worst
reviewed flicks of the year, and brings back painful memories of Ice Cube's
Are We There Yet? At RottenTomatoes, 67 reviews were counted, and of those,
only four were positive. My heart goes out to unsuspecting parents who were
dragged to this one. Just think, next year we could have a movie with 20
kids, instead of the 18 seen here, and the dozen involved in Cheaper by the
Dozen. Yay.
Chicken Little manages to hold off most of the crop of weak openers this
weekend, despite the animated feature playing against Potter Mania. Chicken
Little grossed $12.4 million in its fourth weekend, and the sky didn't fall
on the little Chicken, as the drop this weekend was a kid-friendly 16%.
Currently the Disney flick has $118.2 million in the domestic kitty, but its
chances of reaching $200 million are pretty much zilch. I doubt the folks at
Disney care too much, as they are too busy prepping The Chronicles of Narnia
for world domination.
The list of sad sack openers begins in fifth with Rent from Sony and
Revolution Studios. What with its built-in audience and legions of fans, one
has to wonder where they all were beyond opening day. Over the three-day
portion of the weekend, Rent grossed $10.7 million from 2,433 venues, good
for a venue average of $4,397. Since its opening on Wednesday (when it
placed second) Rent has grossed $18.1 million. The $40 million production
failed to capture any buzz heading into opening weekend, and reviews didn't
help much either. Critics were almost evenly split, as only 57 reviewers out
of a possible 112 liked this one enough to recommend it. That's not enough
to cut it for a musical. Why Sony and Revolution chose Chris Columbus to
helm Rent is beyond me. Look for Rent to disappear quicker than I would have
ever expected.
Sixth spot goes to Just Friends, Ryan Reynolds' latest attempt to dominate
movie theatres before his 15 minutes are up. Just Friends didn't do much
better than the last Reynolds/Anna Faris pairing, Waiting, which opened to
$6 million. Just Friends grossed $9.3 million over the three-day portion of
the weekend, and $13.6 million since opening on Wednesday. Released to 2,505
venues, the comedy had a three-day average of $3,702. This is another of the
Thanksgiving releases to review poorly, but at least with this one I
expected worse. It has a 41% fresh rating at RT.
Seventh goes to Pride and Prejudice, which in wide release failed to excel
like it did in limited venues. P&P grossed $7 million in its first wide
release weekend, albeit from only 1,299 venues. Its venue average of $5,409
was the fourth best in the top ten. From Focus Features, this version of P&P
features Keira Knightley as Elizabeth, and has a total so far of $15.9
million.
Eighth goes to Zathura, the other less popular kid title in the top ten. The
Sony feature grossed $4.9 million in its third weekend, dropping a slim 5%,
despite losing over 600 venues this weekend. Made for $80 million, this one
is going to hurt the parent company, as the gross so far sits at only $26
million.
Ninth goes to Derailed, one of the few hangers on from last weekend's top
ten. The Jennifer Aniston/Clive Owen thriller grossed $4.7 million in its
third weekend from 2,061 venues. It was down 28% compared to last weekend,
and the $20 million production has now grossed a decent $29.4 million.
Tenth goes to Usher's In the Mix, as this Lions Gate release failed to match
the pattern of its most recent films. Mix grossed an unexciting $4.5 million
this weekend from 1,608 venues. It has earned $6.2 million since opening on
Wednesday, and will be forgotten by next weekend.
Speaking of forgotten, The Ice Harvest failed to make the top ten, despite
starring Billy Bob Thornton and John Cusack. The comedy grossed $3.7 million
over the three-day portion of the weekend, and $5 million since opening on
Wednesday.
In limited release, The Polar Express did very well in 3-D at IMAX screens,
grossing $1.2 million from 66 venues. George Clooney's Syriana also did
extremely well, grossing $372,000 from 5 venues this weekend. That's an
exciting average of $74,400.
Overall, this year's Thanksgiving numbers put up a good fight against last
year, but came up just short for the zillionth time this year. Last year,
with the top ten led by National Treasure and The Incredibles, the top ten g
rossed about $146.5 million. This year, the top ten came in at about $145.5
million, leaving this year about $1 million short versus the same weekend in
2004.
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http://jam.canoe.ca/Television/TV_Shows/L/Law_Order/2005/11/16/1308954.html
'Law & Order' star sings for 'Rent'
By LOUIS B. HOBSON - Calgary Sun
NEW YORK -- Jesse L. Martin is no longer using Rent to pay his rent.
Ten years ago Martin, who plays Det. Ed Green on Law & Order, was a
struggling actor waiting tables in New York.
Then he saw a notice requesting actors for a workshop of a new rock musical
based on Puccini's opera La Boheme.
Its 34-year-old creator Jonathan Larson had set his version of La Boheme in
New York's East Village amongst a group of struggling artists, drug addicts,
transvestites and homeless people many of whom are HIV positive.
Martin, who learned to sing in his church choir, admits he didn't really
think of himself as a song-and-dance man but "the darkness of Jonathan's
vision really intrigued me."
There was also that niggling need to get an acting job that would help pay
the rent.
Martin proudly announces he is now a home owner. "I own this beautiful
apartment. I love to just sit in it, that's how beautiful it is."
Rent also kickstarted Martin's TV career.
Michelle Pfeiffer caught a performance of Rent and suggested to her producer
husband David E. Kelley he cast Martin as Calista Flockhart's love interest
in Ally McBeal.
A year later, when Benjamin Bratt announced he was leaving Law & Order,
producer Dick Wolf asked Martin to be Lenny Briscoe's new partner on Law &
Order.
Briscoe was played by the late Jerry Orbach, a revered Broadway
song-and-dance man.
"Jerry and I would sing show tunes all the time between takes on Law &
Order, so I felt ready vocally to go back to Rent when I got the call from
(director) Chris Columbus to revive my role for the movie," says Martin.
It wasn't his voice, but his age that had Martin a bit leery.
"I'm 35. Collins is in his early 20s, but Chris said they'd make me look
younger as long as I could act and sing younger.
"I was just so glad it was going to be my voice and not someone else's. When
Spike Lee was attached to direct the movie I kept hearing they were
considering Usher for my role," he says of the film which opens next
Wednesday.
Martin returns this year for his seventh season on Law & Order.
Trailers for Rent have been running during the commercial breaks for the hit
series.
"(Fans) stop me and say: 'Det. Green, I'm shocked. I didn't know you could
sing.'
"I love that they're shocked"
Martin knows his gay love scenes (with Wilson Jermaine Heredia) will also
shock some.
"Look, if they're not ready to acknowledge the existence of same-sex
relationships, they have to get ready and I'm happy ... to help them get
ready."
When Martin was hired for this film version of Rent he had to ask for a
sabbatical from Law & Order.
"Dick Wolf gave me his blessing. They wrote in a character arc where Det.
Green gets shot and has to recuperate."
Even if Rent gives Martin a higher profile with feature film directors, he's
not about to exit from his duties on Law & Order.
"I told Dick Wolf he'd have to have me shot for real before I'd quit the
show on my own."
-
"Thanatos" wrote in message
news:atropos-5602CE.21455318032008@news.giganews.com...
> In article
> ,
> TranslucentAmoebae wrote:
possession"http://www.tmz.com/2008/03/11/mary-ann-busted-with-mary-jane/
responsibility"http://www.tmz.com/2008/03/12/it-wasnt-mary-anns-mary-jane/
> difference?
He can't tell you...too drunk.
-
http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/story/338821p-289317c.html
This year's fall and winter movie season looks fantastic.
That doesn't mean it's going to be particularly good, just that there
are so many ... fantasies.
There are children's fantasies like "Zathura" and "The Chronicles of
Narnia"; gravity-defying fantasies like "The Legend of Zorro" and "Aeon
Flux"; the animated fantasies "Chicken Little," "Tim Burton's Corpse
Bride" and "Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-rabbit"; sci-fi
adventures "Serenity," "Doom" and "A Sound of Thunder"; the fourth
Harry Potter movie, and Peter Jackson's remake of the ultimate
fantasy-adventure, "King Kong."
We begin our preview at the end of August, but the string of fantasies
gets an early start on Friday with Terry Gilliam's galloping "The
Brothers Grimm," which has more references to classic fairy tale
characters than all the other coming fantasies combined.
Some analysts may attribute the rash of fantasy films to the escapism
that comes with war, and that may play a role. But it seems just as
likely that fantasy reigns because the ability to create incredible
images today makes the genre irresistible to storytellers.
The trailers for all of the above movies are linked on the Web sites
www.apple.com/trailers and www.imdb.com. Take a look and you'll agree:
They look fantastic.
Fall/winter is also Oscar season, and there are plenty of potential
contenders. The high-profile films with awards ambitions include Steven
Spielberg's "Munich," a drama based on the search for the planners of
the assault on Israeli athletes at the 1972 Olympic Games; Rob
Marshall's "Memoirs of a Geisha," based on Arthur Golden's acclaimed
novel about a woman who spends her life in the high art of pleasing,
and Terrence Malick's "The New World," an epic account of the first
Virginia colony and the meeting of John Smith and Pocahontas.
Recent Oscar-winning director Roman Polanski returns with a new version
of Charles Dickens' "Oliver Twist," and Marc Forster'>Marc Forster ("Finding
Neverland") turns to drama with "Stay," the story of a psychiatrist's
efforts to stop a patient from carrying out a suicide threat.
Two Broadway musicals make the transition to the screen. Susan Stroman,
who directed "The Producers" on stage, handles the film adaptation as
well, while Chris Columbus directs "Rent."
A few laughs
Comedies abound. Among them are: "Rumor Has It," starring Jennifer
Aniston as a female version of "The Graduate's" Benjamin Braddock; "The
Man," a buddy film featuring unlikely chemistry between Samuel L.
Jackson and Eugene Levy; "The Weather Man," starring Nicolas Cage'>Nicolas Cage'>Nicolas Cage'>Nicolas Cage as a
TV weather guy who wears his bad forecasts on his shoulders, and a pair
of old-fashioned family films about families that are too big - "Yours,
Mine, and Ours" and "Cheaper by the Dozen 2."
The following schedule may have changed by the time the ink was dry on
this newspaper. But the great majority of films listed are locked in to
those dates.
Every New Film
AUG. 31
The Constant Gardener Brazil's Fernando Meirelles ("City of God")
directs Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz in an adaptation of John
LeCarre's thriller about a British diplomat rousted from his Nairobi
garden to investigate the murder of his activist wife.
Games of Love and Chance Abdel Kechiche directs the Cesar-winning drama
about a group of French students coming of age in a political pressure
cooker of a French project.
William Eggleston in the Real World Director Michael Almereyada
followed the 65-year-old avant garde photographer, musician, draftsman
and videographer across country for this intimate documentary portrait.
SEPT. 2
The Underclassman Action-comedy starring Nick Cannon ("Drumline") as a
young L.A. detective who goes undercover at a posh prep school to break
up a stolen car ring. Directed by Marcos Siega ("Pretty Persuasion").
A Sound of Thunder Edward Burns, Ben Kingsley'>Ben Kingsley and Catherine McCormack
star in an adaptation of a Ray Bradbury story about a group of people
who travel back to the dinosaur era and cause a chain reaction that
alters the future to which they return. Directed by Peter Hyams
("Timecop").
The Transporter 2 Jason Statham returns as Frank Martin, a man who
delivers anonymous packages to anonymous clients, no questions asked.
Inevitably, the packages get him into trouble, this time with a
gun-toting blonde (Amber Valletta).
SEPT. 7
Touch the Sound Documentary about symphony percussionist Evelyn
Glennie, a child prodigy from Scotland who lost her hearing at age 12
but didn't miss a beat. At 40, she's still performing.
SEPT. 9
The Exorcism of Emily Rose Laura Linney plays a lawyer defending a
priest (Tom Wilkinson) accused of murder after his exorcism of a
possessed woman leaves her dead. With Campbell Scott.
The Man Comedy of mistaken identity starring Samuel L. Jackson as a
special agent whose search for his partner's killer leads him to a
dorky salesman (Eugene Levy). Directed by Les Mayfield ("Encino Man").
Curandero "Sin City's" Robert Rodriguez wrote the for this
horror movie about a man caught up in black magic in Mexico City.
Director Eduardo Rodriguez is apparently no relation.
An Unfinished Life Lasse Hallstr=F6m's sentimental drama brings the
unlikely pairing of uptight rancher Robert Redford and emotional single
mom Jennifer Lopez. Don't expect sparks, though: he's a grieving
father, and she's the woman who married, and then accidentally killed,
his son. Can her preteen daughter unite them, or will she become just
another wedge in their long-simmering enmity? More important, will
Lopez benefit from a boost in her lukewarm screen career, or has the
shelf-life on this much delayed movie already expired?
Steal Me A 15-year-old boy abandoned by his mother befriends another
boy his age and moves in with his family, soon developing a crush on
both his friend's mother and the sexy older woman living next door.
Keane Lodge Kerrigan ("Claire Dolan") directs Damian Lewis
("Dreamcatcher") in a psychological drama about a man haunted by the
disappearance of his 6-year-old daughter at Manhattan's Port Authority
Bus Terminal - or was it all in his head?
The Outsiders - The Complete Novel Francis Coppola's elongated
version of his 1983 adaptation of the S.E. Hinton novel. The DVD goes
on sale immediately after the release.
Cote d'Azur French comedy about a family whose seaside vacation gets a
little foamy when the couple's daughter takes up with a biker and their
son drifts off with his best friend, who is secretly in love with him.
Walking on the Sky A group of six New York friends have to wrestle with
the new dynamics in their relationships when another member of their
circle kills himself and leaves behind a revealing diary. Directed by
and starring New York native Carl T. Evans.
Green Street Hooligans Elijah Wood plays a wrongly expelled Harvard
student who moves to London, where he is instantly drawn into the
violent subculture of soccer hooliganism. With Charlie Hunnam, Claire
Forlani.
Music From the Inside Out Daniel Anker documentary weaving together a
mosaic of the stories, ideas and experiences of the 105 members of the
Philadelphia Orchestra, a musical institution that hasn't participated
in a film since "Fantasia."
Answering the Call Documentary honoring the people who answered
emergency calls on 9/11.
SEPT. 14
The Future of Food Documentary about genetically engineered products
that have become part of the U.S. food chain - whether they're good
for us or not. Directed by Deborah Koons Garcia, widow of Jerry Garcia.
SEPT. 16
Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang Big-fee action screenwriter Shane Black ("Lethal
Weapon") makes his directing debut with his own about a New York
actor (Robert Downey, Jr.) who impersonates a detective and gets
himself in all sorts of trouble. With Val Kilmer, Michelle Monaghan.
Lord of War Nicolas Cage'>Nicolas Cage'>Nicolas Cage'>Nicolas Cage is an international gun dealer in Andrew
Niccol's topical black comedy, which co-stars Ethan Hawke as an
Interpol agent intent on bringing him down. With Donald Sutherland, Ian
Holm, Jared Leto.
Just Like Heaven "Mean Girls"' Mark Waters directs Mark Ruffalo and
Reese Witherspoon in a romantic fantasy about a young man and the
spirit of a comatose doctor who fall in love while sharing an
apartment. Once they're over their, uh, dimensional differences, the
race is on to keep her body from being taken off life support.
Proof Last time director John Madden and Gwyneth Paltrow worked
together, she landed herself an Oscar. Though more erudite and intimate
than "Shakespeare in Love," Madden's adaptation of David Auburn's
Pulitzer Prize-winning play might just catch the eyes of Academy's
voters, too. Reprising a role she has already tackled on the London
stage, Paltrow plays an overwhelmed young woman rapidly losing her grip
after the death of her father (Anthony Hopkins), a brilliant math
professor. Hovering around the edges are her concerned support system:
brainy admirer Jake Gyllenhaal'>Jake Gyllenhaal and coldly practical sister Hope Davis.
The Woods Psychological horror film about the students of an all-girl
boarding school who begin to go missing in the surrounding woods.
Patricia Clarkson is the headmistress and Agnes Bruckner'>Agnes Bruckner is the new
student caught up in the mystery.
Separate Lies It's been a while since we were faced with the sight of
middle-class Brits keeping a stiff upper lip while suppressing
dangerous secrets. Fortunately, Emily Watson and Tom Wilkinson are
always willing to suffer stoically for our entertainment. "Gosford
Park" screenwriter Julian Fellowes makes his directorial debut, while
Watson and Wilkinson play a long-married couple who are still quite
happy together (aside from the passionate affair and possible homicide
she's hiding).
Venom Jim Gillespie ("I Know What You Did Last Summer") directs another
teens-in-trouble horror picture, this one involving voodoo in the
bayous of Louisiana. With Agnes Bruckner'>Agnes Bruckner (poor thing), Bijou Phillips.
The Libertine Johnny Depp takes on the role of notorious 17th-century
poet, derelict and debaucher John Wilmot, the Earl of Rochester and
grand embarrassment of Charles II (John Malkovich). Samantha Morton is
the actress who comes under Wilmot's shaky tutelage.
Adapted from his play by Stephen Jeffreys and directed by first-timer
Laurence Dunmore.
Tim Burton's Corpse Bride Another day, another Johnny Depp-Tim Burton
collaboration. Not that we're feeling cavalier about it: These two have
given us some of the most unusual movies in recent years. Since
Burton's "The Nightmare Before Christmas" and "James and the Giant
Peach" are among them, we have high hopes for this latest stop-motion
animated fantasy, which is based on an old Russian folk tale about a
young groom (voiced by Depp) who inadvertently finds himself with two
wives (he could do worse than Helena Bonham Carter'>Helena Bonham Carter and Emily Watson).
Thumbsucker Offbeat comedy about a 17-year-old boy whose infantile
habit of sucking his thumb makes him the subject of ridicule and
isolation even in his own home. But the people trying to help him kick
the habit are even stranger. With Tilda Swinton, Vincent D'Onofrio,
Keanu Reeves, Vince Vaughn. It's the first feature directed by Mike
Mills, maker of the well-received short "Paperboys."
Everything Is Illuminated Actor Liev Schreiber makes his writing and
directing debut with his adaptation of Jonathan Safran Foer's darkly
comic best seller about a young American Jew who travels to Russia to
find the woman who saved his grandfather from the Nazis. With Elijah
Wood.
One Bright Shining Moment: The Forgotten Summer of George McGovern
Documentary about the 1972 presidential campaign and political
humiliation of the idealistic former South Dakota senator.
Cry Wolf A high-school prank turns lethal when classmates listed on a
joke Web site as the next victims of a serial killer start turning up
dead. With Julian Morris, Lindy Booth, Jon Bon Jovi.
Hard Goodbyes: My Father Greek drama about a lonely boy who has to rely
on his imagination when the father with whom he'd shared a passion for
outer space does not come home.
The Thing About My Folks Paul Reiser wrote this film and co-stars in it
with Peter Falk as a son and father rediscovering the bond between them
on a cross-country trip in a restored '36 Ford. Directed by Raymond De
Felitta ("Two Family House").
The Weeping Meadow The first film in a planned trilogy by Greek master
Theo Angelopoulos follows a pair of refugee children as they come of
age in the small Greek village they are brought to after the Russian
Revolution.
SEPT. 23
A History of Violence With echoes of Alfred Hitchcock's "wrong man"
theme and Sam Peckinpah's "Straw Dogs," David Cronenberg's latest film
stars Viggo Mortensen as a small-town family man whose celebrated
heroism in thwarting and killing two thugs in his diner draws gangsters
to town. The one with the deformed face (Ed Harris) claims he knew the
hero years before and he has come for some payback. Despite his
denials, Mortensen's character ends up having to fight violence with
violence. With Maria Bello, William Hurt.
Oliver Twist If ever there were a story that suited Roman Polanski's
dark sensibilities, it's Charles Dickens' classic saga of an orphan
whose fate falls and rises at the mercy of others. The screenplay was
written by Ronald Harwood, Polanski's partner on their Oscar-winning
"Pianist," so it is always possible that this artistically acclaimed
pair aims to entertain adults and youngsters alike, while
simultaneously approaching the Academy with a respectful request: "May
we have some more?" With Barney Clark as Oliver, Ben Kingsley'>Ben Kingsley as Fagin
and Jamie Foreman as Bill Sykes.
Flightplan In her first starring role in three years, Jodie Foster
plays a recently widowed woman whose 6-year-old daughter disappears in
the middle of a trans-continental flight from Berlin to New York. Since
no one else on the plane remembers seeing the girl, they question
whether she was there only in her mother's mind.
Daltry Calhoun Johnny Knoxville returns to his hometown as a roustabout
and would-be golf magnate whose ex-wife (Elizabeth Banks) throws a
twist into his life by dropping their 14-year-old daughter at his door.
Roll Bounce Nick Cannon, Bow Wow and Mike Epps star for "The Best Man"
director Malcolm D. Lee in this comedy-drama about a group of hip-hop
roller skaters preparing for a competition on the other side of 1970s
Chicago.
Dear Wendy Lars von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg, two of the founders of
the Danish film collective Dogme 95, team up as writer (von Trier) and
director (Vinterberg) of this parable about America's contradictory gun
culture. It follows a group of teenage outcasts in a fictional mining
town who form a secret club known as "The Dandies." Their purpose -
to love and admire guns but never use them on anybody - soon goes out
the window.
Magnificent Desolation: Walking on the Moon 3D Tom Hanks produced and
narrates this 3-D IMAX film that re-creates for the audience what the
12 astronauts who have walked on the moon experienced.
Into the Fire Drama about a troubled NYPD harbor cop who freezes during
a rescue attempt of a drowning woman and tries to make peace with his
conscience and the victim's identical twin. With Sean Patrick Flanery
and Melina Kanakaredes from TV's "Providence."
Dorian Blues Coming-out story about a young man who, on the cusp of
moving to New York, begins showing his preference for men, much to the
dismay of his right-wing father and his jock brother.
7 Dias Mexican film about a U2 super fan determined to raise the
half-million dollars it would cost to bring the band to his country.
Dirty Love Jenny McCarthy wrote this comedy and co-stars in it with
Carmen Electra. It's about a jilted woman who sees a psychic to find
out where she should search for true love.
Occupation: Dreamland Documentary focusing on the men of the 82nd
Airborne in Iraq and on the Army's recruitment tactics.
SEPT. 28
Forty Shades of Blue Rip Torn plays a legendary (and doesn't he know
it) Memphis music producer whose comfy existence is shaken when his
young Russian trophy wife (Dina Korzun) falls in love with his
estranged son.
SEPT. 30
Capote The estimable Philip Seymour Hoffman plays the late novelist and
social gadfly Truman Capote. It's not a conventional biopic, but an
account of the writer's research for "In Cold Blood," his classic
"nonfiction novel" about the murders of a Kansas farm family and the
subsequent trials and executions of their killers. Catherine Keener is
Harper Lee, Capote's young associate (and future author of "To Kill a
Mockingbird") and Clifton Collins Jr. plays the killer Perry Smith,
with whom Capote developed a strong relationship. Bennett Miller is the
first-time director.
The Greatest Game Ever Played Shia LaBeouf ("Holes") stars for director
Bill Paxton in the dramatization of 20-year-old American amateur golfer
Francis Ouimet's legendary victory at the 1913 U.S. Open in Brookline,
Mass. Stephen Dillane plays Harry Vardon, the cocky British champion
who was humbled before the golfing world.
Into the Blue "Blue Crush" director John Stockwell goes back to the
water for this thriller about a group of buff young divers who find a
fortune in the cargo bay of a sunken airplane and make the mistake of
keeping it. With Paul Walker and Jessica Alba.
MirrorMask British fantasy about a 15-year-old circus entertainer whose
guilt over her mother's illness sends her into an alternative universe
of contrasting light and dark kingdoms.
Serenity Feature-length finale to Joss Whedon's 13-episode sci-fi TV
series "Firefly," about a group of adventurers aboard a space
transporter 500 years in the future. Here, Capt. Mal Reynolds (Nathan
Fillion) and his crew are being chased by the galaxy-ruling Alliance,
which wants to reclaim the telepathic fugitive River (Summer Glau)
traveling with them.
Little Manhattan Mark Levin, a story editor for "The Wonder Years,"
makes his directing debut with this tale of first love between two
12-year-olds.
The War Within Drama about a Pakistani engineering student who is
mistaken for a terrorist and placed in confinement.
The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio Julianne Moore is a mother of 10
helping her luckless husband (Woody Harrelson) make ends meet by
entering - and winning - jingles contests in the 1950s. Adapted
from the memoir of Terry Ryan, whose mother did such things.
Going Shopping Henry Jaglom directs his wife, Victoria Foyt, in a story
about a clothing boutique owner's wild experiences during a Mother's
Day weekend sale.
OCT. 5
The Squid and the Whale Noah Baumbach, son of former Village Voice film
critic Georgia Brown, wrote and directs a loosely autobiographical
drama about two brothers dealing with their parents' divorce in 1980s
Brooklyn. With Jeff Daniels, Laura Linney.
OCT. 7
Goodnight, and Good Luck This drama, directed by George Clooney, is
built around the public fight between legendary broadcast journalist
Edward R. Murrow (David Strathairn) and Sen. Joseph McCarthy. In the
1950s, McCarthy was the most visible member of the witch-hunting House
UnAmerican Activities Committee, which destroyed the careers of
innocent people from all walks of life by associating them with
Communists. Murrow led the reaction to McCarthy and got labeled a
Communist for his trouble. CBS News stuck with Murrow despite the
pressure, and McCarthy's power began to fade. Clooney co-stars as CBS
news producer Fred Friendly and Frank Langella plays the corporation's
chief, William Paley.
In Her Shoes Curtis Hanson ("L.A. Confidential") goes all soft on us
with this story about two estranged sisters (Cameron Diaz and Toni
Collette) who are reconciled by the grandmother (Shirley MacLaine) they
never knew they had.
Two for the Money Matthew McConaughey is a former college football star
whose track record for handicapping sporting events draws him into the
world of high stakes gambling, where nothing short of his life will be
at stake. With Al Pacino as the betting agency mogul who comes to rely
on and dominate him. Directed by D.J. Caruso ("The Salton Sea").
The Gospel An R&B star (Clifton Powell) faces a spiritual crisis when
he returns home on learning of the illness of his father, a church
bishop, and his boyhood rival's plans to take over the church. With
Omar Gooding.
Before the Fall German drama about a young boxing prospect whose
repulsion over Nazi atrocities sets him against the biggest opponent of
all.
Waiting An "American Pie"-style comedy about the crude and rude
employees of a restaurant whose name - Shenanigans - describes
their behavior. With Ryan Reynolds, Anna Faris, Justin Long.
Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-rabbit What are the odds we'd
have two stop-motion movies to look forward to this season? (Strangely
enough, Helena Bonham Carter'>Helena Bonham Carter lends her voice to both.) Already the
subject of three Oscar-nominated shorts, inventor Wallace and his dog
Gromit make their feature debut in a comedy about a mysterious monster
who's destroying the garden plots of an English village. Naturally,
it's up to our intrepid heroes to stop him. "Chicken Run," the last
import from the inspired minds at Aardman Animation, was a surprise
smash. Wallace and Gromit deserve nothing less.
Dandelion A coming of age story about a 16-year-old boy and how his
search for his identity is connected with the various forms of love
that are missing from his life.
OCT. 12
Henri Langlois: Phantom of the Cinematheque Documentary about the film
archivist who inspired French New Wave directors Godard, Truffaut,
Rohmer and Chabrol.
OCT. 14
Nine Lives Rodrigo Garcia directs a series of nine vignettes about
women getting on with their lives in Los Angeles. Each segment is done
as a single 10-minute take. With Sissy Spacek, Robin Wright Penn, Glenn
Close and Holly Hunter.
Elizabethtown Orlando Bloom is an industrial designer hit with three
pieces of devastating news: his girlfriend (Jessica Biel) is breaking
up with him; he has lost his job because of a disastrous mistake, and
his father has died. On the plus side, he meets an irrepressible flight
attendant (Kirsten Dunst) traveling to his father's funeral in Kentucky
and realizes that his life may get better - if it doesn't get worse.
Written and directed by Cameron Crowe ("Almost Famous").
North Country Oscar-winner Charlize Theron'>Charlize Theron ("Monster") stars in a
fictionalized account of the landmark 1984 sexual harassment case
involving a woman working in the Minnesota mining industry and her male
co-workers. With Frances McDormand, Woody Harrelson. Directed by Niki
Caro ("Whale Rider").
Domino Keira Knightley'>Keira Knightley assumes the title role in Tony Scott's highly
exaggerated account of the adventures of British actor Laurence
Harvey's daughter, who turned her back on a modeling and potential
acting career to become a bounty hunter; she died at age 35 in June.
With Mena Suvari, Mickey Rourke.
Where the Truth Lies Atom Egoyan ("The Sweet Hereafter") adapts Rupert
Holmes' novel about a young journalist (Alison Lohman) probing for the
truth of a 15-year-old scandal that destroyed the careers of a revered
showbiz duo (Kevin Bacon, Colin Firth).
The Fog Rupert Wainwright ("Stigmata") directs the remake of John
Carpenter's 1980 horror film about the ghosts of long-buried lepers who
rise on a dense fog surrounding a coastal California town. Selma Blair
and Maggie Grace are among the terrorized.
Loggerheads Three interwoven stories about a young gay man (Kip
Pardue), his biological mother (Bonnie Hunt) and his adoptive parents
(Chris Sarandon and Tess Harper).
Innocent Voices Based on screenwriter Oscar Torres' childhood
experience, this is the story of a 12-year-old boy who is automatically
enlisted in the army in 1980s El Salvador. Directed by Luis Mandoki
("Message in a Bottle").
OCT. 19
Ushpizin Drama about the daily lives of ultra-Orthodox Jews learning,
living and loving in modern-day Israel.
OCT. 21
Shopgirl Steve Martin'>Steve Martin adapted his slight novella and co-stars with
Claire Danes in a story about a salesclerk at a Beverly Hills
department store who gets involved with a middle-age sugar daddy.
Barely Legal Three high-school sophomores try to make a porno movie in
their basement while their parents are at work. The results are
disastrous, especially when a school bully wants to participate in the
film.
Stay Marc Forster'>Marc Forster ("Finding Neverland," "Monster's Ball") directs Ewan
McGregor and Naomi Watts'>Naomi Watts in a thriller about a psychiatrist's
nightmarish effort to prevent a patient from carrying out his threat to
kill himself in three days.
Kids in America At fictional Booker High in Brooklyn, a group of
politically active students joins forces with a fired teacher on a film
documenting their campaign against the repressive school principal.
Dreamer A "Seabiscuit"-like "underhorse" story about a filly who breaks
her leg and is nursed back to health by her trainer (Kurt Russell) at
the insistence of his daughter (Dakota Fanning). The horse then returns
to the track to try and win the Breeder's Cup.
After Innocence Documentary about the reentry into society of seven men
released from prison after DNA evidence proved they were innocent of
the crimes for which they were sent away for decades.
Protocols of Zion Documentary filmmaker Marc Levin takes his camera to
the streets of New York to learn from passing anti-Semites why they
hate Jews.
Doom The Rock stars in Andrzej Bartkowiak's feature version of the
super-hot '90s video game about Marines taking on invading monsters on
their base on a moon of Mars in the year 2145.
Innocence This Belgian-French film is based on an 1888 Gothic novella
about young girls growing up in a subterranean boarding school beneath
an isolated wood.
The Ordeal Belgian psychological drama about a singer who ends up in a
creepy, out-of-the-way motel after his car breaks down in the night.
Derailed Adapted from James Siegel's heralded first novel, this
thriller stars Clive Owen and Jennifer Aniston as illicit Manhattan
lovers trying to outwit a violent blackmailer who is much smarter than
they are. With Vincent Cassel, Melissa George, RZA, Tom Conti, Xzibit,
Giancarlo Esposito.
White King, Red Rubber, Black Death Documentary about the brutality of
a jungle gulag created by Belgium's King Leopold II in the colonial
Congo in 1885.
OCT. 26
Ballets Russes Documentary about the famed ballet company, which is
about to celebrate its 100th anniversary.
OCT. 28
The Legend of Zorro The sequel to the 1998 "Mask of Zorro" traces how
Antonio Banderas' Don Alejandro is forced to put on the mask and take
up the sword several years after marrying the lovely Elena (Catherine
Zeta-Jones) and having a son. The boy is now 10 and unaware of dad's
outlaw fame, but he will soon learn as the mark of Zorro begins
appearing anew on the landscape and on the bodies of baddies in Old
California. Returning director is Martin Campbell.
Prime What's a girl (Uma Thurman) to do when she learns that the
psychotherapist to whom she's told the most intimate details of her sex
life is her boyfriend's mother? For that matter, what's the shrink to
do? A comedy by writer-director Ben Younger.
Three ... Extremes A pan-Asian sampler of 30-minute horror shorts from
China's Fruit Chan, Japan's Takashi Miike and South Korea's Chan-wook
Park.
The Dying Gaul A grieving gay screenwriter (Peter Sarsgaard) has a shot
at selling his about his relationship with his late lover and
agent, but there's a Faustian catch: He has to change it to a
heterosexual relationship. With Patricia Clarkson, Campbell Scott.
Craig Lucas (writer of "Long Time Companion") directs his own .
Saw II The serial killer known as Jigsaw returns to terrorize eight
more strangers with his murderous game playing in the sequel to last
year's Halloween hit.
Paradise Now A drama about two Palestinian boyhood friends spending
their last day together before going off on suicide bombing missions in
Tel Aviv.
The Weather Man Nicolas Cage'>Nicolas Cage'>Nicolas Cage'>Nicolas Cage is a Chicago TV weatherman, family man and
neurotic whose decision to take a job in New York puts all of his roles
at risk in this offbeat comedy. With Hope Davis, Michael Caine.
Directed by Gore Verbinski ("Pirates of the Caribbean").
Blackmail Boy A blackmail scheme leads to murder in a small Greek town.
NOV. 4
Jarhead Jake Gyllenhaal'>Jake Gyllenhaal is a young Marine forced to grow up fast during
Desert Storm. Based on former Marine Anthony Swofford's 2003
best-seller. With Jamie Foxx, Lucas Black. Directed by Sam Mendes
("American Beauty").
NY Doll This documentary about the late Arthur Kane, bassist with the
New York Dolls, centers on the notorious glam-punk band's 2004 reunion.
The Matador In writer-director Richard Shepard's black comedy, Pierce
Brosnan plays an international hit man who, on assignment in Mexico
City, befriends, then enlists, a woebegone businessman (Greg Kinnear)
as a partner in crime. With Hope Davis, Philip Baker Hall.
Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story British comedy actor Steve
Coogan ("24 Hour Party People") plays the title character in Michael
Winterbottom's audacious adaptation of Laurence Sterne's 1759 novel
"Tristram Shandy," about an egocentric country gentleman sharing his
views with readers, when not digressing about his family.
Chicken Little This non-Pixar CGI cartoon from Disney stars Zach Braff
as the voice of Chicken Little, a vigilant sky watcher who proves he
isn't always wrong when he says "the sky is falling." Joan Cusack, Don
Knotts, Fred Willard and Amy Sedaris also lend their voices.
The Family Stone A romantic comedy about a family that circles the
wagons when Ben Stone (Luke Wilson) brings home an uptight woman
(Claire Danes) he intends to marry. Facing a cold reception, she calls
in her sister (Sarah Jessica Parker) for support, then things get
really bad.
Summer Storm German coming-out story about a camping trip during which
one of two best friends discovers he wants more than friendship.
NOV. 9
The New World Terrence Malick ("The Thin Red Line") wrote and directed
this historical epic about the arrival of British colonists on the
coast of North America and their conflicts with the natives they found
there. It's the story of John Smith, Pocahontas and John Rolfe, and of
the teenage Pocahontas' role in saving the white colonists from her
tribe's warriors, and of her subsequent trip to England. Colin Farrell
plays Smith, Christian Bale is Rolfe and 15-year-old German-born
Q'Orianka Kilcher, partly descended from native South Americans, is
Pocahontas.
Pulse Remake of a Japanese horror film about a computer virus or
supernatural force that turns viewers into suicidal depressives. With
Kristen Bell (from TV's "Veronica Mars").
The Swenkas In South Africa, flamboyant, stylish - and straight -
blue-collar Zulu men replace their overalls with colorful designer
suits to compete in fashion shows of their own making, in a ritual
called "swanking."
NOV. 11
Bee Season Fans of Myla Goldberg's best seller ought to be happy with
the team behind this adaptation: Directors Scott McGehee and David
Siegel did a nice job exploring family tensions in "The Deep End." And
if any actor can handle the story's spiritual twists and turns, it's
surely the Dalai Lama's No. 1 fan, Richard Gere. He plays a theology
professor convinced his young daughter (Flora Cross) has a divine
connection to another plane. Meanwhile, his teenage son (Max Minghella)
and mentally ill wife (Juliette Binoche) are floundering right here on
Earth.
Take My Eyes Acclaimed Spanish drama about a woman who takes her son
and leaves the abusive husband she still loves.
Ellie Parker In this low-budget indie comedy, which originated as a
2001 short film project, Naomi Watts'>Naomi Watts plays what she once was, an
Australian actress trying to get traction in Hollywood. With Chevy
Chase as her manager and writer-director Scott Coffey as her boyfriend.
Get Rich or Die Tryin' Taking its cue from "8 Mile," this urban drama
is a loosely autobiographical tale about an inner-city thief and drug
dealer who leaves prison determined to become a rap star. He's played
by - and inspired by - Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson. The director is
Jim Sheridan ("In America").
Sarah Silverman: Jesus Is Magic The raw standup comic expounds on
politics, race, sex and religion.
Cape of Good Hope South African drama about three women whose lives
intersect at an animal rescue shelter, to their lasting good.
Zathura Less a sequel to 1995's "Jumanji" than another wild game. In
this one, directed by Jon Favreau ("Elf"), two young brothers find a
space adventure board game in the attic of their California bungalow
and are soon hoist - house and all - into the galaxy. Tim Robbins
plays their befuddled father. The screenplay by David Koepp and John
Kamps was based, like "Jumanji" and "Polar Express," on a book by Chris
Van Allsburg.
NOV. 16
The Syrian Bride Israeli filmmaker Eran Riklis' drama about a Syrian
woman who, in her bridal outfit, is steps away from crossing the border
into Israel to meet her groom when politics stops her in her tracks.
NOV. 18
Walk the Line James Mangold ("Identity") directs Joaquin Phoenix in
this Johnny Cash biopic. Reese Witherspoon plays his wife, June Carter.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire In the fourth part of the series,
Harry, Ron and Hermione face down Voldemort's Death Eaters. There have
been some grumblings that Mike Newell, the director of "Four Weddings
and a Funeral," will not stay true to the daringly dark tone set by his
predecessor, Alfonso Cuar=F3n. As Dumbledore tells Harry, "We must all
face the choice between what is right and what is easy." Here's hoping
Newell chose wisely.
Pride & Prejudice A new adaptation of Jane Austen's novel about the
five Bennet sisters in Georgian England. Keira Knightley'>Keira Knightley is Elizabeth,
the most self-determined of the girls, and Matthew MacFadyen is Darcy,
the snob whom love will tame.
Breakfast on Pluto Director Neil Jordan ("The Crying Game") takes up
with another transvestite character in his adaptation of Pat McCabe's
novel about an Irish cabaret singer and prostitute who is wrongly
accused of planting a bomb in a 1970s London club. With Cillian Murphy
("Red Eye") and Liam Neeson.
Wolf Creek Australian horror movie about three young people who follow
their spring break with a trip to the outback, where somebody intends
to have fun at their expense.
NOV. 21
The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things A Southern Gothic movie about a
boy learning about the seedy sides of the world while on the road with
his impulsive young mother (played by actress-director Asia Argento).
With cameos by Winona Ryder, Marilyn Manson and Peter Fonda, among
others.
NOV. 23
Syriana George Clooney stars in the biographical drama of Robert Baer,
a 20-year veteran of the CIA, who worked undercover studying terrorists
in the Middle East and became fed up with the growing weakness of the
agency and the cozy relationship between the oil-hungry West and a
certain government (hint: Saudi Arabia). With Matt Damon, Amanda Peet.
Written and directed by Stephen Gaghan.
Rent Chris Columbus, director of the first two Harry Potter movies,
helms the screen version of Jonathan Larson's Tony- and Pulitzer
Prize-winning rock opera about a group of bohemians struggling with
life in the East Village. It stars Rosario Dawson, Taye Diggs and
several members of the original Broadway cast.
The Ice Harvest "Groundhog Day's" Harold Ramis directs John Cusack and
Billy Bob Thornton in a comedy about two guys who embezzle $2 million
from corrupt Wichita businessmen and are set to make a clean Christmas
Eve getaway until an ice storm arrives.
Yours, Mine and Ours Dennis Quaid and Rene Russo take over for Henry
Fonda and Lucille Ball in the remake of the 1968 comedy about a man
with 8 kids who marries a woman with 10.
The White Countess The final Merchant-Ivory production (Ismail Merchant
died in May) is set in late-1930s Shanghai, where a blind,
disillusioned American diplomat (Ralph Fiennes) is making a careful
study of the decadent city's rankest bars with the idea of building the
perfect dive. Natasha Richardson plays the Russian taxi dancer who
catches the diplomat's eye and is recruited as the centerpiece of the
club.
Dying For Dolly After saving a mafioso's life, a young African-American
(R&B star Usher) is rewarded with a job in the mob and puts it in
jeopardy by falling in love with the boss' daughter. With Chazz
Palminteri, Emmanuelle Chriqui.
NOV. 30
The Boys of Baraka Documentary about the experience of a group of
Baltimore 12-year-olds sent to an experimental boarding school in
Kenya.
DEC. 2
Transamerica "Desperate Housewives'" Felicity Huffman plays a pre-op
he-to-she transsexual whose plans for the life-changing surgery are
disrupted by the discovery of a son (Kevin Zegers) fathered 20 years
before.
Aeon Flux Charlize Theron'>Charlize Theron has the title role in this adaptation of the
cult MTV action series about a physically agile heroine working as a
rebel operative in a walled city run by scientists 400 years in the
future. With Frances McDormand, Sophie Okonedo.
Be Here to Love Me Documentary about the late, hard-living songwriter
Townes Van Zandt, with appearances by fans Willie Nelson, Lyle Lovett,
Steve Earle and Kris Kristofferson.
The Kid and I California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger makes his first
post-inauguration movie appearance in a comedy about a 17-year-old boy
with cerebral palsy whose wealthy father (Joe Mantegna) decides to
grant his wish by financing an action movie for him to star in.
First Descent A documentary about snowboarding.
DEC. 9
Memoirs of a Geisha Zhang Ziyi, Gong Li and Michelle Yeoh, three of the
most beautiful Asian actresses, star in the adaptation of Arthur
Golden's epic novel about a peasant girl who is sold by her father to a
geisha house in 1920s Japan. As she flowers into adulthood, she becomes
the most desired geisha in the popular Gion district, and learns not
only the nuances of her profession but about human nature. With Ken
Watanabe. The director is "Chicago" Oscar nominee Rob Marshall.
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe What,
you thought there was room for only one series of CGI-heavy epics made
in New Zealand from an Oxford don's quasi-religious, mythical stories
of good and evil ? Whether "Shrek" director Andrew Adamson can do as
well by C.S. Lewis as Peter Jackson did by J.R.R. Tolkien remains to be
seen, but this tale of four children who discover the land of Narnia
and fight the evil white witch (Tilda Swinton) holds even more
box-office promise. While "The Lord of the Rings" had three parts,
"Narnia" has seven.
Brokeback Mountain Ang Lee ("Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon") directs
Jake Gyllenhaal'>Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger in an adaptation of Annie Proulx's
short story about two ranch hands who - to their great surprise -
fall in love in 1963 Wyoming. With Michelle Williams.
DEC. 14
King Kong Why, you ask, do we need another version of the 1933 classic?
Because the 1976 remake with Jessica Lange was awful and the special
effects in the black-and-white original are a bit too rudimentary for
today's audiences. Besides, Peter Jackson, hot off the "Lord of the
Rings" trilogy, was willing to do it. Unlike the '76 movie, Jackson's
film is faithful to the Depression period and to the original story.
Naomi Watts'>Naomi Watts is in for Fay Wray as heroine Ann Darrow, Jack Black is
obsessed filmmaker Carl Denham, and Oscar-winner Adrien Brody ("The
Pianist") plays Watts' love interest, Jack Driscoll. Andy Serkis, who
did the body-motion performance for the computer-animated Gollum in
"Rings," does the same for Kong and also gets a role of his own, as
Lumpy the Cook.
The Grace Lee Project An Asian-American documentary filmmaker with the
extremely common name of Grace Lee sets out to learn what she can about
other Grace Lees current and past, and comes to some conclusions about
Asian stereotypes.
DEC. 16
All the King's Men Sean Penn stars in Steven Zaillian's new version of
Robert Penn Warren's 1946 Pulitzer Prize-winning political satire about
a populist Southern governor (a thinly-veiled Huey Long) who becomes
intoxicated with power. A 1949 adaptation directed by Robert Rossen won
Oscars for Best Picture and Best Actor (Broderick Crawford). Jude Law
is Jack Burden, the journalist who unwittingly aids the cause of Penn's
Willie Stark, and Kate Winslet is Anne Stanton, the governor's niece
and Jack's girlfriend.
The Promise Chen Kaige ("Farewell My Concubine") directs this romantic
fantasy about a royal concubine in love with a slave.
DEC. 21
The Producers: The Movie Musical At last, the film version of the stage
musical of Mel Brooks' 1968 film arrives! Nathan Lane and Matthew
Broderick reprise their roles of Max Bialy=ADstock and Leo Bloom. The
only actors not from the Broadway production are Uma Thurman, as
Swedish secretary Ulla, and Will Ferrell, as retro Nazi Franz Liebkind.
Susan Stroman, director of the stage hit, makes her film-directing
debut, a stint that prompted rumors that Brooks stepped in to direct
some of the nonmusical scenes. The film was shot in the new Steiner
Studios in Brooklyn.
Fun With Dick and Jane The year's umpteenth remake stars Jim Carrey and
T=E9a Leoni in the roles played by George Segal and Jane Fonda in a 1977
comedy about a quiet suburban couple who moonlight as hooded robbers.
Cheaper By the Dozen 2 Steve Martin'>Steve Martin and Bonnie Hunt return for the
sequel to the 2003 remake of a 1950 comedy about a couple with an
oversized brood. Here, the Bakers find themselves in competition with a
family of eight children while on vacation. With Eugene Levy.
DEC. 23
Munich Steven Spielberg follows "War of the Worlds" with a true story
about a squad of Israeli secret agents assigned to track down and kill
the terrorists who engineered the plot against Israeli athletes at the
1972 Olympics in Munich. Eleven members of the Israeli Olympic team
were killed along with all of their Palestinian captors in a failed
rescue mission. Eric Bana plays the Mossad agent in charge of the
post-Munich search. With Daniel Craig and Geoffrey Rush.
The Ringer Black comedy (you may prefer the word "sick") starring
Johnny Knoxville as a nonhandicapped athlete who infiltrates the
Special Olympics with hopes of dethroning the champion.
Hard Candy When a 32-year-old man brings home a 14-year-old girl he met
on the Internet, things don't go as well as he'd hoped. With Patrick
Wilson and Ellen Page.
Cach=E9 A TV book critic (Daniel Auteuil) and his wife (Juliette
Binoche) have their lives turned upside-down by an increasingly
intimate and anonymously sent stream of videos and drawings depicting
the family in alarming situations.
When the Sea Rises French film starring Yolande Moreau as a married
actress and mother whose out-of-town tour with her one-woman show is
spiced up by her impetuous romance with a parade float conductor.
DEC. 25
Casanova What happens when the legendary seducer meets a Venetian
beauty immune to his charms? Why, he falls in love. With Heath Ledger,
Sienna Miller. Directed by Lasse Hallstr=F6m.
Rumor Has It Rob Reiner is back in "When Harry Met Sally ..." country
with this romantic comedy about a young woman (Jennifer Aniston) who
puts off her engagement (to Mark Ruffalo) when she discovers that her
grandmother (Shirley MacLaine) was the inspiration for Mrs. Robinson in
"The Graduate." When she meets an older man (Kevin Costner) who has
slept with both her mother and her grandmother, she begins to believe
she is reliving the experiences of Dustin Hoffman's Benjamin Braddock.
Match Point Woody Allen abandons Manhattan to direct this English
tragicomedy about a former tennis pro who has an affair with the former
girlfriend of his wife's brother. With Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, Scarlett
Johansson, Emily Mortimer. It was acclaimed at the Cannes Film Festival
in May.
Mrs. Henderson Presents Judi Dench stars in the biographical story of a
society matron who bought an old London theater with hopes of drawing
back audiences that had been lured away by talking pictures. Her
roaring success was an all-nude revue. With Christopher Guest, Bob
Hoskins. Directed by Stephen Frears.
Hoodwinked CGI-animated spoof of "Little Red Riding Hood," involving
cops sent from the animal world to investigate disturbances at Granny's
house. Voices of Andy Dick, Sally Struthers, David Ogden Stiers.
DEC. 28
My Name Was Sabina Spielrein Documentary about a Russian Jewish woman
who became Carl Jung's first patient in 1904, then began a long
correspondence with Sigmund Freud and ended up a renowned psychoanalyst
in her own right.
DEC. 31
In the Land of Women After being dumped by his actress girlfriend, a
young Hollywood screenwriter (Adam Brody) goes home to Michigan to ease
his pain and spend time with his grandmother (Olympia Dukakis). While
there, he starts up a relationship with a family across the street that
will change all of their lives. With Meg Ryan, Kristen Stewart.
Compiled and written by Jack Mathews and Elizabeth Weitzman
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