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A blog for poetry, prose, and pop culture.

Wednesday, May 10, 2006

Back in the Saddle

Original title eh?

Anyway, other than the one person who got that joke, lets get on with the business at hand.

Finally got the PC back up after a couple of days being down.. I really have to invest some money to fix this.

First off I promised like a week ago to talk about the big movies I am looking forward to this summer.

#1- Pirates of the Caribbean 2; Dead Man's Chest.
The first flick was great, Johnny Depp owned that performance and that movie and they took what was a dead genre (Cuttthroat Island anyone?) the pirate movie and made it great. Plus the fact that its based on a theme park ride. Imagine the opposite of that.. Oh yeah, Haunted Mansion. THAT MOVIE SHOULD HAVE BEEN CRAP!!!

The sequel should have everything we loved about the first one. The only complaint I have heard is that people have begun to wonder if that Keith Richards act that Depp is doing will get stale. I don't think so, its been a long wait for this movie and it should pay off big time. Definitely a top 5 summer finish.

#2- The Da Vinci Code- The biggest book phenomenon of all time hits the multiples in just over a week, and it looks solid. Tom Hanks is Hollywoods most loved actor on the whole and despite his last two films commercial failure, his Teflon image should rebound here. Its got a solid creative team in Ron Howard who rarely directs clunkers, with a smart script and a solid supporting cast.

The only potential downfall is that EVERYONE has read the book and that could impact repeat viewings. Then again, everyone knew what happened in Titanic and look at what that did.

#3 X-Men: The Last Stand- The first 2 films were solid comic book movies with plenty of plot and story driving them. I personally am looking forward to new director Brett Ratner upping the action quota here. I am not saying that it doesn't need to be smart. But like Elvis said, "A little less conversation, a little more action..."

The downside is the loss of Bryan Singer. He made 2 almost universally accepted movies keeping close to the fans hearts, will Ratner see things the same way...

#4- Cars. Pixar has yet to make a bad movie. Think about that. No other company has turned out such solid dependable and well made movies in the last 10 years. CGI animated movies are pretty much unbeatable at the box office (The Wild not withstanding) The film has solid voice casting and a solid history. I will sincerely be surprised if it is not #2 or 3 at the box office this summer.

Downside- There have been some so-so prescreening reviews of the films rough cut.. But remember, Finding Nemo had the same things said about it.

#5- Superman Returns- In what most critics and box office pundits are calling the summers surefire guarantee film, Superman returns to the big screen. The word is that proven comic book director Bryan Singer's movie will take place between the events of Superman 2 and 3, staying close to original director Joel Silver's take on the first 2 movies. Utilizing archival footage of Marlon Brando as Jor-El, Superman's father, and pieces of John Williams original theme, Singer hopes to hearken back to what made the original Superman movies in the 70's so great. Also casting Kevin Spacey as Lex Luther was a solid move.

Downside- Can unknown actor Brandon Routh hold up as Superman? With the huge expectations on this film, will he be able to handle the pressure. Also, will people support Singer's take on Lois Lane? Superman, having left Earth on a five year exile after the events of Superman 2, returns to find Lois with another man, she has moved on and had a child. Superman... As My babies Daddy?
Keep in mind, Christoper Reeve was also an unknown when he was cast, and that paid off, lets hope this move will too.

Hope you all enjoyed that. I hope to have another update soon on some of the goings on around here. Including Suns playoff fever!!

End of Line.
Gerrad!

2 comments:

eltoromuerto said...

Ok, they all sound great and I agree with you. All except "Cars". The fact of this movie being a a Pixar film and that they have yet to have a flop is one thing. But to predict this movie as going to be a great movie for the kids....I feel it may be the sacrificial lamb of Pixar. Having gone to school where Pixar teaches classes and knowing where their head was at when thay concieved this one, I find it a posible flop waiting to happen. You see Pixar was at the end of their contract with Disney at the time of its conception. And the heads of Pixar were watching all thier money slip away from them in the product side of things. And as Disney is very aware. The movies make money...But the toys and collectibles make 10X more. So Pixar knowing this were more than willing to get the winning streak monkey off their backs and send out a movie that was more than likely not going to be a "Nimo" or Toy Story" film . So I think yes, it will bring in the viewers....but it will not remain at the top very long.
And I think Disney is aware of this also. Because there is very little push on the marketing side. The Animated film I think that wil have a bigger success this summer is "Over the Hedge". This one has adults and children already foaming at the mouth to see it. But like the elections....Middle America will decide on this one.

Jody said...

I just saw X-Men III yesterday, and I am so disappointed :( They totally ruined the Phoenix Saga and homeboy just did not know how to give enough attention to each of the characters. Like Angel was in what? Three scenes? And most of them he's just flying around... Like what was the point of showing him as a child if he doesn't do squat later in the film? If they were doing that to show the dad's motivation for creating a "cure" then they should have shown it more from the dad's POV in my opinion. Meh it sucks it had to go like that but that's Hollywood.