Yes its that time again. Pretty good batch of movies to showcase this time around, for once. Opinions and assholes.
Suspect Zero - FBI agents programmed with a technique where they can use their mind to astral travel (for use of a better term) in order to track down serial killers. Then one goes off the reservation, and the only reason they know is that serial killers are starting to be killed off one by one. You'd think "great job, keep that up" but for some reason this dude has to be stopped. Great premise, preview looks hot, and we love empathy with the bad guy. Stars Aaron Eckhart and Ben Kingsley.
Code 46 - Hard to put a finger on what this one's about. A gifted man (mind reading I think) is asked to investigate a woman for a crime - "violated the code 46". I don't know what that means but it must be pretty serious if she's being investigated. So from there I get a bit of a Bladerunner vibe in that there's something unnatural about our heroes. Still, looks like its out of the square so looking forward to it. Stars Tim Robbins and the chick with the crew cut from Minority Report.
The Grudge - Think "The Ring", then amp it up on steroids and speed. This is another remake of a Japanese cult horror film (films like Ring-O and the original Ju-On should be watched before you watch the yank versions) and looks pretty good. Something about a soul that died during a fit of rage and now can't rest in piece. Or at least until everyone else is in pieces. Don't answer the phone! Actually it comes across as more earthy and plausable than that. Sarah Michelle Gellar here.
Paparazzi - My thriller/action pick for the US summer, its something we've all thought about since Dianna's death I'm sure. What would you do? You're famous yet the trappings of that result in cameras invading your privacy until the ultimate invasion occurrs and a loved one is killed. How do you really get them back? Watch and learn, wahoo! Stars Cole Hauser (Pitch Black) and Tom Sizemore (everything!).
The Manchurian Candidate - This looks like an interesting take on the whole Bourne Identity concept - manufactured humans. While the Bourne Identity is implied ("do you get the headaches too?"), this one looks to go a little further. Looks very promising, great casting with Denzel Washington and Merryl Steep heading it up.
Comedian - This sounds like its going to be a very interesting docu-drama with Jerry Seinfeld resurrecting his stand-up career and doing the circuit to make a living out of it once again. This film was created out of two guys following Seinfeld around for a year capturing all of the off stage and on stage drama as he went. It details how Seinfeld had to come up with an hour's worth of new material, make contacts, book gigs, basically life as a comedian, albeit with some success behind him. Sounds brilliant. But even better is the preview, its the best preview in the history of everness. It has absolutely nothing to do with movie and its just this one guy sitting in a sound booth doing the voice over for it. Absolute cracker, if you watch nothing else on the internet this year, watch this! You'll never watch a preview the same way again, LOL! http://www.apple.com/trailers/miramax/comedian.html.
Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story - This looks like a total pisser. This isn't necessarily aimed at Stiller fans, it appears to be balanced nicely with Vince Vaughn and Christine Taylor. Cheese and crackers. I think where Baseketball was a cult hit with the minority - mostly Southpark fans wanting to see what their heroes looked like in real life - this one has the potential for wider appeal. A great spoof on life, with our favourite PE class thrown in as more than just a bit background noise. Bring it on.
SABH
There are some interesting flicks on the horizon so without messing about I'll get straight to the point.
Super Size Me. Anyone catch Rove last night? If you didn't, this dude Morgan Spurling came on to promote his new movie Super Size Me, a documentary of sorts on the hazards of eating fast food. Get this, Morgan decided to live on McDonalds for 30 days straight to see what would happen. Need I say more? Well his heart nearly gave out only two weeks into the quest, his blood pressure shot through the roof and his liver "resembled pate". Still need convincing? Check out the website and you'll be sold. Here's a couple of stats from Morgan:
 | French fries are the most eaten vegetable in America |
| In America, they eat more than 1,000,000 animals per hour |
| McDonalds calls people who eat a lot of their food "heavy users" |
| McDonalds say "Any processing our foods undergo make them more dangerous than unprocessed foods" |
The Bourne Supremacy. Didn't this one slip under the radar! The Bourne Identity slipped into the number three spot recently after some deliberation with...err...myself. Ever been put on the spot for your Top 5 All-time Movies? Try it out and let me know how you go; its not as easy as it sounds. Anyway, so its sequel time and I don't want to read to much about this and so don't know much about it that I can tell you other than its coming soon - July 23 in the States so we're probably looking at August - and the preview ROCKS!. Interestingly the only reason I found out about this is I lucked upon an article in the free Blockbuster mag talking about how Matt Damon had to get back into the fitness thing for the sequel yada yada. I'm thinking "Dudes, why didn't I know anything about this?" Guess I've been spending my days working instead of surfing.
The Incredibles. Pixar strike again! Go checkout the preview at Apple.com for a better synopsis than I could ever give you. Looks like another priceless "children's movie" with all those adult undertones. Can't wait!
Garfield: The Movie. TOPS! We love Garfield, and what better way to bring him to the big screen than with Bill Murray doing the voice. Garfield is one of my childhood heroes, does anyone still wonder why I sleep in and love doing it?
Collateral. Tom Cruise as a samurai seems a little far fetched. Tom Cruise as a contract killer? Now that I can do. Collateral tells the story of one night in LA when a cab driver just happens to be chauffeuring a contract killer doing his rounds. The preview looks pretty tops (at Apple.com naturally), but I can't help get a bit of an Indy vibe from it. Cruise going Indy, interesting. Jaime "Steamin' Willie Beamen" Foxx plays the cabby...get you in the ball game!
The Chronicles of Riddick. Vin Diesel reprising his character from Pitch Black doesn't seem like a bad idea, but I think in the end it was our flying friends who stood out above all else. I'm getting a big Star Wars vibe from the preview however, perhaps a smattering of Soldier, but it looks like its going to have some awesome special effects. Probably something for the big screen.
Alien Vs. Predator. This is gonna totally rock. "Whoever wins...we lose!" You bet your sweet ass we do. No Ripply this time round by the way, but that's ok, I think if Ripply were to be there, "we" might actually stand a chance. We'll keep humans out of this though, because in the same way we enjoyed Underworld (humans=food), we'll do the same here (humans = fun + incubator + attractive skull). Nice one. Apple.com have a couple of trailers plus a couple of featurettes that (for once) don't give too much away. Enjoy.
That'll do for now I reckon. At least winter's going to be a little warmer on-screen than off. Cheers.
SABH