F
COLIN FARRELL
 PRIDE
AND GLORY: Edward Norton, Colin
Farrell, Noah Emmerich, Jennifer Ehle, Jon Voight, Lake Bell (Directed
by Gavin O’Connor; Written by Joe Carnahan and Gavin O’Connor;
New Line Cinema) Sometimes a New York cop gives in to temptation
and does something truly sinful. And that’s precisely what
happens in this three-generational tale of a badge-wearing Irish-American
family. Jon Voight is the proud--well, mostly proud--dad of Edward
Norton and Noah Emmerich. And though Colin Farrell is also an Irish-American
officer of the law, he is not a blood brother to Norton and Emmerich.
Gavin O’Connor is the director who turned out “Tumbleweeds,”
the terrific 1999 sleeper starring Janet McTeer as the, fun-loving,
over-the-top mom of a stressed-out teen-age girl.
WILL FERRELL
 STRANGER
THAN FICTION: Will
Ferrell, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Dustin Hoffman, Queen Latifah, Emma
Thompson (Directed by Marc Forster; Written by Zach Helm; Mandate
Films) An auditor for the IRS may not fit your image of the perfect
movie hero. And perhaps the fib-and-cheat detector played by Will
Ferrell in this oddball comedy is not altogether perfect. But you’ve
got to feel for the guy. Here’s his problem: an inner voice
that is not really his voice speaks up at unexpected moments,
telling him more than he really wants to know about the way his
life--and imminent death--are progressing. Dustin Hoffman, re-teaming
with “Finding Neverland” director Marc Forster, plays
a professor who tries to help Ferrell silence the meddlesome voice.
Now Playing
RALPH FIENNES
 BERNARD
AND DORIS: Ralph Fiennes, Susan
Sarandon (Directed by Bob Balaban; Written by Hugh Costello; HBO
Films) Doris Duke had beaucoup servants, but so far as
we know, she had only one butler who was Irish, gay and crazy as
they come. His name was Bernard Lafferty, and it was to him that
the poorest little rich girl in all the world left the bulk of her
fortune (approximately $1.2 billion). Bernard was 51 at the time
of Doris’s death, but wealthy as he became, he did not live
happily ever after. He died, crankily, three years later. It’s
so hard to please the help, isn’t it? To
read about many more new biopics, click here;
for Guy Flatley's 1978 interview with Susan Sarandon, click
here. This HBO production
was greeted with enthusiasm by the critics when it premiered on
cable in February, 2008.
JANE FONDA
 GEORGIA
RULE: Jane Fonda, Lindsay Lohan,
Felicity Huffman, Dermot Mulroney, Cary Elwes, Garrett Hedlund (Directed
by Garry Marshall; Writen by Mark Andrus; Universal) What would
you do if you had a mom like Felicity Huffman and a granny like
Jane Fonda? You might find out if you catch “Georgia Rule,”
in which Lindsay Lohan plays a rebel who can’t take any more
of Felicity, who’s even more dysfunctional than she was in
“Transamerica,” and therefore throws herself on the
mercy of Jane, who we assume is less manipulative than she was in
“Monster-in-Law.” Cary Elwes co-stars as a Humbert Humbert-like
stepfather who thinks of Lindsay as his very own Lolita. Now
Playing
JODIE FOSTER
 SUGARLAND:
Jodie Foster, Robert De Niro (Directed by
Jodie Foster; Written by Daniel Barnz and Ned Zeman; Universal)
When last seen together on screen, she was a post-adolescent prostitute
and he was a psychotic cabbie treating her to free rides on the
wild side of Manhattan. That was in Martin Scorsese’s 1976
“Taxi Driver.” After that memorable bloodbath, Jodie
Foster and Robert De Niro went their separate, Oscar-winning ways.
But at long last they are teamed again, this time in an adaptation
of Marie Brenner’s “In the Kingdom of Big Sugar,”
a true story about two brothers, Alfy and Pepe Fanjul, who were
accused of seriously abusing migrant workers in Florida. Brenner’s
gripping account was published in the February 2001 issue of Vanity
Fair. Foster, gutsy enough to both direct and star in the film,
plays a crusading attorney, and De Niro plays a powerful sugar baron
with strong political connections. To
read Guy Flatley's 1973 interview with Robert De Niro, click
here. Opening date to be announced
JAMIE FOXX
 THE
KINGDOM:Jamie Foxx, Chris Cooper,
Jennifer Garner, Jason Bateman, Jeremy Piven, Andrew Esposito, Brooke
Langton, Minka Kelly, Frances Fisher, Richard Jenkins, Brian Mahoney,
Amy Hunter, Trevor St. John, Tom Bresnahan, Tj Burnett, Raad Rawi
(Directed by Peter Berg; Written by Matthew Michael Carnahan; Universal)
This is a fictional film set in Saudi Arabia, but the depiction
of a terrorist massacre of innocent people--including many American
civilians--is strikingly similar to the one that occurred in Riyadh
in 2003. And, while the intention of director Peter Berg
and screenwriter Matthew Michael Carnahan is not to make light of
the swiftly barbaric nature of contemporary warfare, it’s
said that they do tell their story of attack and rescue with cinematic
vitality and even a touch of black humor. The film focuses on the
heroically gung-ho resourcefulness of a hotshot team of FBI agents
that includes Jamie Foxx, Jason Bateman, Chris Cooper and an artfully
T-shirted Jennifer Garner. To
read Michael Cieply’s New York Times report on this potential
sleeper, click here; for a round-up
of upcoming war movies--from World War II to Iraq--click
here. Now Playing
BRENDAN FRASER
 THE
AIR I BREATHE:
Forest Whitaker, Brendan Fraser, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Kevin Bacon,
Andy Garcia, Julie Delpy, Emile Hirsch (Directed by Jieho Lee; Written
by Jieho Lee and Bob DeRosa) According to a Chinese proverb, the
key components of human existence are happiness, pleasure, sorrow
and love. Or so say the makers of this film. To hammer home the
point, writer-director Jieho Lee and co-author Bob DeRosa explore
the emotionally charged stories of a banker (Forest “happiness”
Whitaker), a gangster (Brendan “pleasure” Fraser), a
pop performer (Sarah Michelle “sorrow” Gellar) and a
doctor (Kevin “love” Bacon). The members of this quartet
tangle and untangle with one another on their life-and-death trudge
to spiritual fulfillment, helped and possibly hindered by their
close encounters with a criminal mastermind played by Andy Garcia.
Opening date to be announced
INKHEART:
Brendan Fraser, Paul Bettany, Helen Mirren,
Jim Broadbent, Andy Serkis, Rafi Gavron, Sienna Guillory (Directed
by Iain Softley; Written by David Lindsay-Abaire; New Line Cinema)
A man named Mo has a unique, sometimes dangerous talent. He can
read books from his vast collection to his beloved daughter Meggie,
and the results are so vivid that the characters literally jump
off the pages and enter their quaint home. That’s how they
strike up an acquaintance with a slimy villain named Capricorn,
and that’s also how Mo manages to get himself kidnapped. Can
Meggie and an assortment of helpmates come to his rescue. Based
on the first book of a trilogy by children’s author Cornelia
Funke, the movie features Andy Serkis, of “The Lord of the
Rings” fame, as Capricorn and good “Queen” Helen
Mirren as a quirky collector of rare books. Opening
date to be announced
MORGAN FREEMAN
 WANTED:
Angelina Jolie, James McAvoy, Morgan Freeman,
Terence Stamp, Thomas Kretschmann, Chris Pratt (Directed by Timur
Bekmambetov; Written by Derek Haas, Michael Brandt, Dean Georgaris
and J. G. Jones; Universal) Following his standout turns in “The
Last King of Scotland” and “Atonement,” James
McAvoy plays a clueless young man who is stunned to learn his long-missing
father has been murdered. As if that weren’t enough of a shock
to handle, he is also informed that daddy was an extraordinarily
accomplished assassin. So, naturally, McAvoy says yes when he’s
invited to sign up with the old man’s former employers, and
to take lessons from lethal champ Morgan Freeman in the fine art
of killing. As for Angelina Jolie, anyone who caught her hit-woman
act in “Mr. & Mrs. Smith” won’t be surprised
if she teaches McAvoy a few tricks of her own. Opens
6/27/08
THE DARK
KNIGHT: Christian Bale, Gary
Oldman, Heath Ledger, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Cillian Murphy, Morgan
Freeman, Aaron Eckhart, Anthony Michael Hall, Michael Caine, William
Fichtner, Eric Roberts (Written and directed by Christopher Nolan;
Warner Bros.) Batman (Christian Bale) and good-guy lawman James
Gordon (Gary Oldman) have got trouble, BIG trouble, right here in
Gotham city. And the biggest part of
the big trouble is The Joker, a lethal lunatic brought memorably
to life by Jack Nicholson in the 1989 Batman extravaganza. This
time, the sicko is played by Heath Ledger, the charismatic actor
who recently died of an accidental overdose of prescription drugs.
If you flipped for “Batman Begins” (2005), chances are
that “The Dark Knight” will please you, since it too
has been helmed by that film's director, Christopher Nolan, and
many cast members are doing encores. Katie Holmes, however, does
not return as delectable Rachel Dawes. That role, we’re pleased
to say, has been inherited by Maggie Gyllenhaal. Opens
7/18/08
FOR A COMPLETE ALPHABETICAL LISTING OF STAR
TURNS, CLICK HERE.
|
