There are only a couple of movies that look to be something worth spending popcorn money on: Moneyball with Brad Pitt and Phillip Seymour Hoffman, and Joseph Gordon Levitt and Seth Rogen in 50/50. The rest of them are questionable, but there’s a wide selection of genres up for grabs.
September 23
Abduction
Is it just me, or does Taylor Lautner have an abnormally large head? Big head or not, the Twilight wolf is starring in his own movie. He plays Nathan, a high school student whose picture ends up on a missing children’s website. The only problem is that he’s been living with those whom he’s assumed are his parents all of his life. Of course, there’s much more to the story as the CIA gets in the middle of the weirdness and Nathan has to go on the run. Alfred Molina and Sigourney Weaver have supporting roles, so Lautner’s not hanging by the nape of his neck to carry the story.
Moneyball
Brad Pitt plays Billy Beane, the general manager of the Oakland A’s. They’re an underdog team with an underdog’s budget. This movie, based on a true story, follows Beane as he attempts to put together a baseball team by using computer-generated analysis to draft his players. Jonah Hill and Philip Seymour Hoffman co-star. Aaron Sorkin had a hand in the script, so it’s one to check out if you’re into the tear-eyed sports success stories. There’s some Oscar buzz surrounding Pitt on this one.
Dolphin Tale
Another true story on the same opening weekend? You bet. This one is a little less sportsy, as a doctor (played by Morgan Freeman) tries to fashion a mechanical tail on a dolphin. The story centers on a young boy who has a special attachment to the dolphin. Ashley Judd and Harry Connick, Jr. co-star.
Killer Elite
Action movies have gotten so plentiful that they’re just putting two actiony words together to create movie titles. When his mentor (Robert DeNiro) is taken captive, Danny (Jason Statham) goes on the hunt for the captors. Clive Owen plays the bad guy; well, one of the bad guys, since the whole movie is about bad guys.
September 30
Dream House
A thriller starring Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz? There are worse things that could happen. The pair move into a house where a brutal crime has taken place in the past and start discovering strange things about the residence. There appear to be plenty of twists in the premise, so here’s hoping they hold onto the story around the many bends.
What’s Your Number?
Here’s the thing about romantic comedies: they’re predictable and require too much suspension of disbelief. Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: overly sexy blonde (let’s call her Anna Farris) has a hard time finding the one. She takes an oath to avoid men until she’s found him. As luck would have it, she runs into a guy (let’s call him Chris Evans) who is willing to help with the cause. I sure hope he’s able to find someone for her. You know, that isn’t him, because that’d be predictable.
50/50
A 27-year-old man is diagnosed with cancer, which leads to the people around him dealing with it just as much as he is. Along the way, he deals with an inexperienced therapist played by Anna Kendrick, and his best friend, played by Seth Rogen. The film is directed by Jonathan Levine, who also wrote and directed The Wackness.
