In Theaters This Weekend: July 18, 2008

Posted by Veronica Santiago
Categories: 20th Century Fox, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Weinstein Company, Action, Adaptation, Animation, Documentary, Drama, Foreign, Independent, Music, Musicals, Period, Romance, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Lists, Upcoming Releases

Here are some possible suggestions for your upcoming weekend:

• The Dark Knight (PG-13): starring Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart (directed by Christopher Nolan)
• Mamma Mia! (PG-13): starring Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan, Amanda Seyfried (directed by Phyllida Lloyd)
• Space Chimps (G): starring Andy Samberg, Cheryl Hines, Jeff Daniels (directed by Kirk De Micco)

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In Theaters This Weekend (5/2)

Posted by Veronica Santiago
Categories: Columbia Pictures, Paramount, Sony, Action, Adventure, Foreign, Political, Romance, Comedy, Lists, New Releases

Here are some possible suggestions for your upcoming weekend:

• Iron Man (PG-13): starring Robert Downey Jr., Terrence Howard, Gwyneth Paltrow (directed by Jon Favreau)
• Made of Honor (PG-13): starring Patrick Dempsey, Michelle Monaghan, Sydney Pollack (directed by Paul Weiland)

• Fugitive Pieces* (R): starring Rosamund Pike, Stephen Dillane, Rade Serbedzija (directed by Jeremy Podeswa)
• Mister Lonely* (NR): starring Diego Luna, Samantha Morton, Werner Herzog (directed by Harmony Korine)

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Martin Scorsese Reteams with Leonardo DiCaprio

Posted by Veronica Santiago
Categories: Adaptation, Drama, Thrillers, Casting, Upcoming Releases

Muses can come in all different shapes and sizes.  Woody Allen has Scarlett while Spielberg has Tom Hanks.  For Martin Scorsese, his actor of choice has clearly become Leo.

The Academy Award-winning director and Leonardo DiCaprio will soon be reteaming for their fourth project together.  Shutter Island will follow their work on The Gangs of New York, The Aviator and last year’s winner, The Departed.

Shutter is based off a book written by Dennis Lehane, the same man behind two critically-acclaimed films: Mystic River and Gone Baby Gone.  The story focuses on two marshals who become trapped on a Boston-area island while searching for a criminally insane escapee.  (Lehane’s stories are primarily set around Boston.)

The movie, which starts production next month, already boasts an all-star cast.  Joining DiCaprio will be Mark Ruffalo (Reservation Road), Max von Sydow (The Diving Bell and the Butterfly), Emily Mortimer (Lars and the Real Girl), Jackie Earle Haley (Little Children), Ben Kingsley (You Kill Me), Michelle Williams (Brokeback Mountain) and Patricia Clarkson (No Reservations).

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In Theaters this Weekend (10/19)

Posted by Veronica Santiago
Categories: Columbia Pictures, DreamWorks, FOCUS, Miramax, New Line, Sony, Drama, Horror, Independent, Political, Science Fiction, Comedy, Thrillers, Lists, New Releases

Here are some possible suggestions for your upcoming weekend:

• 30 Days of Night (R):  starring Josh Hartnett, Melissa George (directed by David Slade)
• The Comebacks (PG-13):  starring David Koechner, Carl Weathers (directed by Tom Brady)
• Gone Baby Gone (R):  starring Casey Affleck, Michelle Monaghan, Morgan Freeman (directed by Ben Affleck)
• Lars and the Real Girl (PG-13):  starring Ryan Gosling, Emily Mortimer (directed by Craig Gillespie).  Read the FilmCrunch review here.
• Rendition (R):  starring Reese Witherspoon, Jake Gyllenhaal, Meryl Streep (directed by Gavin Hood)
• Sarah Landon and the Paranormal Hour (PG):  starring Rissa Walters, Brian Comrie (directed by Lisa Comrie)

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Review: Lars and the Real Girl

Posted by Neil Estep
Categories: MGM, Drama, Independent, Romance, New Releases, Upcoming Releases, Theatrical Reviews

Lars Lindstrom (Ryan Gosling) is a shy but amiable man yearning for love in a world he has trouble confronting. When he finds the woman of his dreams on the Internet, Lars emerges from his funk and proceeds to introduce his new girlfriend to friends and family. There’s only one problem: His new sweetheart is a life-size, anatomically accurate sex doll, and Lars has convinced himself she’s real. With love and concern, family, friends and other locals resolve to play along while Lars undergoes surreptitious mental evaluations.

In August, I made a prediction about an upcoming film called Lars and the Real Girl. The educated guess was part of a sporadically written column I write called The Preview Review, where I watch new trailers, look at who’s involved and try to speculate as to the film’s commercial and critical success.  Here’s what I had to say about Lars:

Prediction: Lars and the Real Girl will be a simple story with deep, complex characters, awkward comedy, and unconditional familial support.  It will be on par with the fantastic Little Miss Sunshine, but with one great bonus—Ryan Gosling.

Well, I was largely correct in my assertion—not too impressive, admittedly—but I did walk out of the theater with some caveats.  Read the full review after the jump.

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In Theaters This Weekend (10/12)

Posted by Veronica Santiago
Categories: Magnolia, MGM, Lionsgate, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Yari Film Group Releasing, Documentary, Drama, Foreign, Period, Comedy, Sports, Lists, New Releases

Here are some possible suggestions for your upcoming weekend:

• Elizabeth: The Golden Age (PG-13):  starring Cate Blanchett, Geoffrey Rush (directed by Shekhar Kapur)
• The Final Season (PG):  starring Sean Astin, Larry Miller (directed by David Mickey Evans)
• Michael Clayton (R):  starring George Clooney, Tom Wilkinson (directed by Tony Gilroy)
• We Own The Night (R):  starring Joaquin Phoenix, Mark Wahlberg (directed by James Gray)
• Why Did I Get Married? (PG-13):  starring Tyler Perry, Janet Jackson (directed by Tyler Perry)

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The Preview Review: Be Kind Rewind, Lars and the Real Girl, Good Luck Chuck

Posted by Neil Estep
Categories: FOCUS, MGM, Lionsgate, New Line, Drama, Independent, Satire, Comedy, Trailers, Upcoming Releases

Welcome to an exciting August edition of The Preview Review, where the newest trailers get a second glance.

This time, we turn a scrutinizing eye on three upcoming films about bumbling, unlucky men struggling to overcome ineptitude and find happiness, fall in love, or replace hundreds of erased VHS tapes with homemade film homages.  I’ll explain after the jump.

Click to continue reading The Preview Review: Be Kind Rewind, Lars and the Real Girl, Good Luck Chuck

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