Sunday, December 27, 2009

2010 movie preview (#30-25)

As the days in December dwindle, we must begin to look forward to the new year and with that a whole slew of new films to get excited about. Over the next five days I'll be previewing the top 30 films I'm most looking forward to as we start a new decade. So without further ado, let the counting begin...

#30 Little Fockers (July 30)

Plot: The Focker and the Byrnes families brace themselves for the arrival of a baby.

Personal opinion: Meet the Parents was one of the best comedies of the decade, while Meet the Fockers only had moments of greatness. I worry this will be another case of the Law of Diminishing Returns. Still, all signs point to the main cast all returning for this one and when you have that kind of talent, I've got to believe there will still be enough here worthy of giving this a look.


#29 Kick Ass (April 16)

Plot: Dave Lizewski is an unnoticed high school student and comic book fan with a few friends and who lives alone with his father. His life is not very difficult and his personal trials not that overwhelming. However, one day he makes the simple decision to become a super-hero even though he has no powers or training.

Personal opinion: This appears to be Watchmen meets Mystery Men. The idea of average people trying to be superheroes is appealing (look what it did for Batman), but I wonder if it may be a bit too graphic to appeal to a large audience, especially considering that a lot of the violence is being committed by young children. If that is your cup of tea, though, this movie seems like it will be perfect for you.


#28 Grown Ups (June 25)

Plot: Thirty years after their high school graduation, five good friends reunite for a Fourth of July holiday weekend.

Personal Opinion: If you like the Adam Sandler gang (Kevin James, Chris Rock, Rob Schneider, David Spade, etc.) then you'll probably enjoy this one as they're all featured here. The trailer can already be seen here. Lets hope that having all of Sandler's friends in this makes it a great film and not a case like in Ocean's 12, where the actors seem to be having more fun making the film than we are in watching it.


#27 Daybreakers (January 8)

Plot: In the year 2019, a plague has transformed most every human into vampires. Faced with a dwindling blood supply, the fractured dominant race plots their survival; meanwhile, a researcher works with a covert band of vamps on a way to save humankind.

Personal opinion: You would think that being a vampire movie would immediately eliminate this film from contention on this list, but unlike that wretched Twilight series, this movie seems to have a unique and interesting take on the genre. Given it's release date, it may turn out to be a sci-fi dud, but if it's at least halfway decent, we could be looking at the first big hit of the new year.


#26 Cop Out (February 26)

Plot: A comedy about two cops whose adventures include locating a stolen baseball card, rescuing a woman, and dealing with gangsters and their laundered money.

Personal opinion: I was all ready to put this film much higher on my list based on the cast (Bruce Willis and Tracy Morgan play the cops) and the director (Kevin Smith). However, the trailer for this was just released and left me underwhelmed. Tracy Morgan's wackiness seems to be better served in small doses, like on 30 Rock, so this film may suffer from an oversaturation of his antics. The one thing going for this is that Kevin Smith fell in love with the script so much he wanted to direct it (He's never directed a film before that he hasn't also wrote). For him to like someone's else work that much seems like the trailer may be just misleading and we're in for some big laughs and action here.


#25 Knight and Day (July 2)

Plot: An action-comedy centered on a fugitive couple (Cruise and Diaz) on a glamorous and sometimes deadly adventure where nothing and no one – even themselves – are what they seem. Amid shifting alliances and unexpected betrayals, they race across the globe, with their survival ultimately hinging on the battle of truth vs. trust.

Personal opinion: Considering how much I don't care for Tom Cruise or his acting skills, he's once again attached himself to a film that has me intrigued. The trailer won me over displaying a nice mix of comedy and action without exactly tipping its hat to what's really going on. Given the release date, the studio clearly has high expectations for this one, so lets hope it's able to meet them.

No comments: