Movies in 2007 A.D.
I recently told Andrew that 2007 was a good year for movies, but then realized I only said that because I happened to see two good movies in one week (“Rescue Dawn” and “Sunshine”). At first I backpedaled from the statement, but I now assert that I might have been prescient in that observation. I think there are some very promising movies on the horizon…
3:10 to Yuma
(Opening September 7th, although I got tickets for a preview screening tomorrow)
I don’t know why, but I am in the mood for a Western. I also like Christian Bale, and have to admit that Russell Crowe is usually pretty good. I just watched the DVD of “The Insider” last night. That’s a damn good movie, and Michael Mann is a solid director.
Eastern Promises
(Opening September 14th)
Another David Cronenberg movie with Viggo Mortensen dealing with crime families. And Naomi Watts is in this one.
The Darjeeling Limited
(Opening September 29th)
I like Wes Anderson, although “The Life Aquatic” was kind of uneven and made me think he might be better when he doesn’t have the budget to do whatever he wants. Still, I am interested to check out anything Anderson does.
American Gangster
(Opening Nov 2nd)
Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe are pretty dope leads, it looks like an epic crime movie, and Ridley Scott will be trying to make up for the lameness of “A Good Year”.
No Country for Old Men
(Opening November 9th)
The second I saw the trailer for this movie, I texted Andrew from the theater with, “The Coens are back!” This looks like “Blood Simple” territory. So excited!!
Youth Without Youth
(Opening December 14th)
I miss Tim Roth and am excited to see him in the lead, as well as what Coppola is up to.
Sweeny Todd
(Opening December 21st)
I have seen this show live and it is really dark, particularly for a musical. Tim Burton directing and Johnny Depp starring definitely makes me curious.
There Will Be Blood
(Opening December 26th)
A new P.T.A. movie. Daniel Day-Lewis as the bad guy. Yessssssssss.
3 comments:
I'm especially looking forward to Eastern Promises, No Country For Old Men, Youth Without Youth and There Will Be Blood.
I'll definitely see the rest, and I agree that they all have potential, but I'm not getting my hopes up.
A few other films with potential include: Sean Penn's Into the Wild, Noah Baumbach's Margot at the Wedding, Robert Redford's Lions for Lambs and Ang Lee's Lust Caution.
I'm also especially looking forward to Eastern Promises, Lust, Caution, No Country For Old Men and Youth Without Youth, as well as Woody Allen's Cassandra's Dream. Rescue Dawn has yet to open here, but the combination of Bale and Herzog will definitely get me into the cinema.
I have to say, I thought Sunshine was terrible! I know that you guys (and plenty of other people) liked it, but for me it was an almost total failure. Its story had so much potential, and yet the way it was handled was unbelievable in the extreme. I felt the crew was nothing more than a glorified team from The Apprentice - as if this bunch of personality-free whinge-bags would be sent to perform such a daring and important feat! The movie squandered the grandeur of space, I wanted the sun to be as awesome as, say, Devil's Tower in Close Encounters or the Death Star in Star Wars, and there was almost no sense of their being out in space, tired, far from Earth, and with a seemingly impossible task ahead. Instead, the mise en scène was so fractured and random, I found it hard to get involved, as the movie lurched from one sub-Alien plot point to another. It's the worst movie I've seen since The Da Vinci Code. I did like the final scene - but then, oh, the cheek of the end credits, which assumed we'd like to see clips from the movie all over again! As you've probably gathered by now, it didn't work for me... :-)
You know, my opinion of Sunshine has been changing since I saw it. I think Danny Boyle has an infectious visual style, and I still do feel that he uses the sun and outer space well in a visual sense. I also liked the performances of Cillian Murphy, Chris Evans and Cliff Curtis. But as with other Danny Boyle films, once the rush has worn off, I feel like there's less there than meets the eye. I wasn't expecting anything in the league of 2001 or Solaris (the Clooney-free version), but for all of Sunshine's metaphysical musings, I really couldn't tell you what it's trying to say about the human condition. As with The Descent, I think Sunshine made a misstep by turning into a monster movie at the mid-point. And, yeah, what was up with those end credits? That's the last thing I needed after the impressive last scene.
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