After the big Christmas time films and awards contenders run out of gas at the box office, America's worst movie drought of the year begins. From late January until the middle of May when the unofficial hunting season opens for the summer blockbusters to be, the offerings at the ticket window are, in a word, shitty.
The chance does exist for a bright spot or two, and I'm not so cynical about it that I have completely given up all hope. So, here are few films scheduled to hit theaters during the dry spell that just might break the mold for the typical first quarter drought we're usually treated to. No promises on these though, they're coming out now for a reason.
HAYWIRE | Starring: Gina Carano, Channing Tatum, Ewan McGregor, Michael Fassbender, Antonio Banderas, Bill Paxton, Michael Douglas | Directed by Steven Soderbergh | Opens January 20, 2012
Synopsis:
Beautiful freelance covert operative Mallory Kane (Carano) is hired out by her handler to various global entities to perform jobs which governments can't authorize and heads of state would rather not know about. After a mission to rescue a hostage in Barcelona, Mallory is quickly dispatched on another mission to Dublin. When the operation goes awry and Mallory finds she has been double crossed, she needs to use all of her skills, tricks and abilities to escape an international manhunt, make it back to the United States, protect her family, and exact revenge on those that have betrayed her.
Outlook:
It sure looks a lot like the Bourne Vagina, but it is Steven Soderbergh. And, if it were a femme fatale meets Jason Bourne, wouldn't that be bad ass too? Soderbergh is generally pretty reliable and his use of non-actors is always interesting and here he's chosen to work with Gina Carano who made her name in women's MMA. The supporting cast looks solid (super-duper solid - Michael Fassbender I am looking at YOU!) and Soderbergh has the potential to make really fascinating choices as the director of a fast paced action film. Don't go in expecting an award winner, but it could be a fun gender twist on a fun genre that usually winds up worth the price of admission. Oh yeah and it's Soderbergh plus Fassbender. Did I mention I kinda like those guys?
RETURN | Starring: Linda Cardellini, Michael Shannon and John Slattery | Directed Liza Johnson | Opens in limited release on February 10, 2012
Synopsis: Linda Cardellini, best known for her work on the under-appreciated TV series Freaks and Geeks plays a woman (Kelli) just back from a tour of duty trying to assimilate with her old life back in the town where she grew up. However, it becomes apparent that her husband and family have no idea what she has been through and her return to her old way of life will be anything but easy.
Outlook: It's nice to see Cardellini get a meaty role. She deserves the chance and I hope she can pull it off. The supporting cast looks terrific, what with the use of ringers like Shannon and Slattery. This film looks to have lots of promise as long as it stays away from obvious choices, like a soundtrack filled with Bruce Springsteen and John Mellencamp numbers.
BEING FLYNN | Starring: Robert Deniro, Paul Dano, Julianne Moore, Olivia Thurlby and Lili Taylor | Directed by Paul Weitz | Opens March 2, 2012
Synopsis:
Being Flynn is the new dramatic feature from Academy Award-nominated writer/director Paul Weitz (About a Boy). Adapted from Nick Flynn’s 2004 memoir Another Bulls—t Night in Suck City. Nick Flynn (Dano) is a young writer seeking to define himself. He misses his late mother, Jody (four-time Academy Award nominee Julianne Moore), and her loving nature. But his father, Jonathan, is not even a memory, as Nick has not seen the man in 18 years.
Jonathan Flynn (De Niro) has long defined himself as a great writer, “a master storyteller.” After abandoning his wife and child, Jonathan scrapes through life on his own terms, and ends up serving time in prison for cashing forged checks. After prison, he drives a cab for a number of years, but with his drinking and eccentricities now accelerating, he loses his job. Despite the occasional grandiose letter to his son, he has remained absent from Nick’s life.
Suddenly facing eviction from his apartment, Jonathan impulsively reaches out to Nick and the two come face-to-face. The older man is eloquent and formidable; overwhelmed, Nick nonetheless prepares to integrate his father into his own life. But, as quickly as he materialized, Jonathan flits away again.
Outlook:
The trailer gives the impression that Deniro might be back after a very long dry spell. Weitz did a nice job with his previous feature, About A Boy and with Dano and Moore onboard along with a good supporting cast, this has promise. Don't forget though, that this is in essence a biopic, and one based on a memoir to boot. Those are a tricky lot and in the hands of the wrong script writer and director it can mean a very mushy and tedious night out. It's probably worth a ticket just to see if Deniro still has it.
THIS MUST BE THE PLACE | Starring: Sean Penn, Frances McDormand, Judd Hirsch and Harry Dean Stanton | Directed by Paolo Sorrentino | Opens March, 2012
Synopsis:
Cheyenne, a wealthy former rock star (Penn), now bored and jaded in his retirement embarks on a quest to find his father's persecutor, an ex-Nazi war criminal now hiding out in the U.S. Learning his father is close to death, he travels to New York in the hope of being reconciled with him during his final hours, only to arrive too late. Having been estranged for over 30 years, it is only now in death that he learns the true extent of his father's humiliation in Auschwitz at the hands of former SS Officer Aloise Muller - an event he is determined to avenge. So begins a life-altering journey across the heartland of America to track down and confront his father's nemesis. As his quest unfolds, Cheyenne is reawakened by the people he encounters and his journey is transformed into one of reconciliation and self discovery. As his date with destiny arrives and he tracks down Muller, Cheyenne must finally decide if it is redemption he seeks ....or revenge. Starring two time Academy Award winner Sean Penn and marking the much-anticipated English-language debut of acclaimed director Paolo Sorrentino,
Outlook:
It seems tough to imagine watching Sean Penn dressed as a guy from The Cure for two hours, but like him or hate him, he's always making interesting choices as an actor. The road movie meets family reunitement meets black sheep all seems pretty hokey until you toss in the part about a hunt for a Nazi War criminal! In reality, it has a "this is so crazy it just might work" kind of feel to it. I'm sort of skeptical on this one, but hearing a pudgy middle schooler ask for an Arcade Fire song that's really a Talking Heads song in the trailer probably puts on my Netflix queue at the very least.
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