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Tuesday, April 29, 2008
June’s summer movies: WALL-E, Get Smart, etc.
June is a transitional month for summer movies, traditionally offering mid-level hits sandwiched in between the heavier hitters of May and July. At the end of the month, I expect there to be one giant hit.
Here’s my May forecast.
JUNE 6
The lowdown: Jack Back plays a panda trained in martial arts.
The box office: $180-200 million
The forecast: When I first saw the posters, I thought, “THAT’S the big summer movie from DreamWorks?” But then the very amusing ads started to win me over. I hope it’s more Over the Hedge than Madagascar.
The prospect: B
The lowdown: Adam Sandler plays a Mossad agent who reinvents himself as a hairstylist.
The box office: $90 million
The forecast: “Adam Sandler plays a Mossad agent who reinvents himself as a hairstylist.” Huh? The good news here is that Sandler co-wrote this with comedy god of the moment, Judd Apatow. The bad news is, it’s directed by Dennis Dugan, a member of Sandler’s stable of anonymous hacks. Think that doesn’t make a difference? Consider that Steven Brill, another member of that stable, made Drillbit Tayor, the Apatow-backed movie that made most people say “Meh” at best. I’m curious but leery.
The prospect: C
JUNE 13
The lowdown: M. Night Shyamalan returns with another world in peril thriller, this time apparently focusing on some kind of natural disaster. Mark Wahlberg and Zooey Deschanel star.
The box office: $100 million - maybe higher if it delivers
The forecast: This may be the single biggest question mark of the whole summer. After the fiasco that was Lady in the Water, Shyamalan seems to be retrenching to scary thrillers, which seems to be the right move, but will it be enough damage control? Right now it’s just too early to tell. Here’s a curio: word has it this will be his first R-rated film.
The prospect: B
The lowdown: He’s mean, and green, and he is … well, hopefully not as bad as most people thought he was last time.
The box office: $100 million
The forecast: OK, supposedly this time you’ve got more action in your Hulk movie after people complained the Ang Lee film was too slow and dour. Given all the reports of strife surrounding this do-over, I’m concerned Marvel may have erred too far in the other direction and dumbed it down. I’ll see it, but I’m worried.
The prospect: B
JUNE 20
The lowdown: It’s another remake of a beloved TV series, with Steve Carell and Anne Hathaway in the leads.
The box office: $125 million
The forecast: Simply put, the trailers are very funny. If the film is as clever as its ad campaign, this movie could be even bigger than some predict.
The prospect: B
The lowdown: Mike Meyers returns to live action comedy, playing the bearded title character who tries to help a hockey player.
The box office: $60 million, tops
The forecast: Meyers looks ugly and so does this movie. The godawful trailer gives me Cat in the Hat flashbacks. Somebody needs to tell Mike that donning makeup and talking in a funny voice just aren’t enough.
The prospect: D
JUNE 27
The lowdown: A robot janitor who remains on Earth long after the human race has left finds out what he was meant to do.
The box office: $250 million
The forecast: Pixar+robots=easy sell. I’ve heard many people say they want a WALL-E of their very own already. Still, Pixar is taking a bit of a gamble on this one by having very little human dialogue. Can Pixar make material like this work for 90 minutes plus?
I’m thinking yeah.
The prospect: A
The lowdown: James McAvoy gets sucked into his dad’s super-secret assassination organization, with an uber-babe, Angelina Jolie, as a partner.
The box office: $50 million
The forecast: I’ll admit the trailer looks like this might be loopy fun, but still - this has “been there, done that” written all over it. This will get lost in the shuffle.
Tomorrow: July’s movies, including Hancock and The Dark Knight.
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Today’s DVDs: A must-see this week
This week’s DVD roster brings us a brilliant film I urge everyone to see, so first thing’s first:
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly: This is the true story of French Elle Editor Jean-Dominique Bauby, who suffered a stroke and was completely paralyzed, except for one eyelid; he could only communicate by blinking. Via some striking visuals by director Julian Schnabel and cinematographer Janusz Kaminski (both of whom earned well-deserved Oscar nominations), this extraordinary film boldly puts us inside Bauby’s head so we can feel what it is like to be him. That means the film can be an endurance, but that’s as it should be - it makes the film deeply moving. This will be in my top 5 this year, guaranteed. GRADE: A+
The Golden Compass: This adaptation of the Philip Pullman novel attracted all kinds of attention for supposedly being an atheist tract - then the mediocre movie came out and nobody cared. Full review: GRADE: C
27 Dresses: A fairly standard romantic comedy about a woman who is eternally a bridesmaid gets a lift from solid performances by Katherine Heigl and James Marsden. GRADE: B
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