A couple remakes, a CGI robotfest, and one good movie are in the lineup this week. Oscar season starts heating up the theaters soon, so look for more grabs in the coming weeks.
October 7
The Ides of March
It might be the worst-named movie for an October release, but this one looks good. George Clooney running for president isn’t such a bad idea, right? In this flick, Clooney does just that with a young but experienced campaign staffer, played by Ryan Gosling, leading the way. Despite trying to buck the system as it stands, the campaign is drawn into the dark, dark recesses of politics.
Real Steel
A former boxer (played by Wolverine himself Hugh Jackman) takes on the reins of a big fighting robot. It’s basically Rock ‘em Sock ‘em Robots: The Movie. The CGI of the flick looks to be inspired by the Transformers movies, but there’s a little less Michael Bay in this one.
October 14
Footloose
There ain’t gonna be any dancing or the rock n’ roll in this town, ya hear? Here’s the Footloose remake that we’ve all been waiting for. What’s that? No one was waiting for it? The remake’s director Craig Brewer has gone to great lengths to show respect for the original, but it’s a High School Musical world that we now live in and this flick seems to fit in that mold. Ren MacCormack takes on his first big role in the dancing shoes left behind by Kevin Bacon. Dennis Quaid and Julianne Hough co-star.
The Thing
For the sake of journalistic integrity, I should admit that I have a wicked crush on Mary Elizabeth Winstead, who stars in the movie. The blame for that crush lies solely on the shoulders of Edgar Wright and his adaptation of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World where Winstead plays Ramona Flowers. With that creepy disclaimer out of the way, this looks like it could be a fun horror movie. It’s allegedly a prequel to the original The Thing that starred Kurt Russell. In the movie, a team of Antarctica scientists find an alien spacecraft and then everything goes crazy.
The Big Year
Steve Martin, Jack Black and Owen Wilson in the same movie? That might be a little overkill. They play birdwatchers who embark on a quest to find the rarest birds in the world. Lamest. Mid-Life Crisis. Ever. Expect Jack Black to fall down a lot.
Trespass
Nicolas Cage and Nicole Kidman play a rich couple who are held for ransom by a group of bad guys. Of course, there’s more to the story as the lies and deceit add up around them. The man who gave Batman nipples, Joel Schumacher, directs.
