MY MOST ANTICIPATED FILMS 0F 2006!!!!

(Yes, I'm aware that's not what she's doing in the final picture!)

I like making these lists so I can have something official. It would be silly to not make a list. That way someone could ask me at the beginning of the year what my most anticipated films were and I would randomly say Kingdom of Heaven and A History of Violence. Then, as the year is up, I would review Walk the Line where I would declare it my most anticipated film of the year. That would just be silly. And rude to others who asked my valuable opintion. However...

I'm not ranking them. I can't decide on a #1 film, but I'd say all of these films, including the 7 I mentioned yesterday would typically make up the #3-5 slots of a standard "most anticipated" list. So, that's a good thing! Special thanks to ComingSoon, Dark Horizons, JoBlo and IMDB for all the info and pics.

Here goes...

AMERICAN DREAMZ

(Universal - April 14 - TRAILER)

On the morning of his re-election, the President decides to read the newspaper for the first time in four years. He begins reading obsessively, reexamining his black and white view of the world, holing up in his bedroom in his pajamas. Frightened by the President’s apparent nervous breakdown, his Chief of Staff pushes him back into the spotlight, booking him as a guest judge on the television ratings juggernaut: the weekly talent show American Dreamz, hosted by self-aggrandizing, self-loathing Martin Tweed. His latest crop of hopefuls includes Sally, a conniving steel magnolia, and Omer, a recent SoCal immigrant (who just happens to be a bumbling, show tune singing, would-be terrorist awaiting activation). When both Sally and Omer make it to the final round of Dreamz – where the President will be judging along with Tweed – the stage is set for a show the nation will never forget.

Written & Directed by Paul Weitz (In Good Company, About a Boy)
Starring Hugh Grant, Dennis Quaid, Mandy Moore, Willem Dafoe, Marcia Gay Harden, Chris Klein, Sam Golzari, Judy Greer, Seth Meyers, Jennifer Coolidge, Shohreh Aghdashloo and John Cho

WHY AMERICAN DREAMZ? Did you not read any of the above? Did you not see that brilliant trailer? (Who would have thought in that cast Mandy Moore would be the one to shine?) Early reviews have called it the best 'pop culture meets politics' satire since Primary Colors and Wag the Dog. Of course, it could also be a more obvious, star studded satire in the vein of EdTV. Weitz is on a roll and most of the subject material is just dying to be spoofed.


FUR

(Picturehouse - Fall)
Set in New York in the late 1950s, the film explores an unlikely romance that leads legendary photographer Diane Arbus into a strange new world, sparking her evolution into one of the most provocative and visionary photographers of all time.

Directed by Steven Shainberg (Secretary)
Written by Erin Cressida Wilson (Secretary)
Starring Nicole Kidman, Robert Downey Jr, Jane Alexander, Emily Bergl and Ty Burrell

WHY FUR? Kidman has described the film as an acid trip. Shainberg has said it's a fairy tale for adults. It sounds like they are straying from the conventions of the standard biopic and into a more unique territory. Nic should be able to lead the early pack of Best Actress contenders with another performance as an artist who ultimately commits suicide. Buzz should pick up once the film debuts at Sundance later this month.


HOLIDAY

(Columbia - Fourth Quarter 2006)
A woman plagued by man trouble finds her fortune improves when she befriends an Englishwoman while on vacation.

Written & Directed by Nancy Meyers (Something's Gotta Give, The Parent Trap, What Women Want)
Starring Cameron Diaz, Kate Winslet, Jude Law and Jack Black

WHY HOLIDAY? A fun chick flick from a lady who knows how to do them. It should be worth noting that this is one of the few times Winslet will "lighten up" on screen. She's quite a funny woman in real life - check out her Inside the Actor's Studio appearance and various other talk shows. Next to Diaz, this could be gold. Production begins later this month in Europe. Expect an appropriate Holiday release.


INFAMOUS

(Warner Independent Pictures - October 13)
By turns hilarious, compassionate, chilling and heartbreaking - this is the true story of young Truman Capote and his investigation into the 1959 murders of a wealthy Kansas family of four. What starts out as a journey to figure out "whodunit" with his childhood friend Harper Lee, turns into something utterly unexpected: an intense and complex bond with one of the murderers that inspired his greatest work ("In Cold Blood") and indelibly changed his life.

Written & Directed by Douglas McGrath (Emma, Nicholas Nickleby)
Starring Toby Jones, Sandra Bullock, Daniel Craig, Peter Bogdanovich, Jeff Daniels, Hope Davis, Isabella Rossellini, Sigourney Weaver, Lee Pace, Juliet Stevenson and Gwyneth Paltrow

WHY INFAMOUS? The Volcano vs. Dante's Peak/Armageddon vs. Deep Impact of our time? Capote was an engrossing drama with compelling performances. This is said to be a more entertaining - and certainly star packed - retelling of the (in)famous story. Early stills are available at the Warner Independent website. The cinematography was done by the man who did Amelie and A Very Long Engagement. Expect a gorgeous looking film in the least. However, I prefer the film's original title: Every Word Is True.


LITTLE CHILDREN

(New Line - TBA 2006)
Based on the book by Tom Perrotta, Little Children is about two recently married couples living in the same community, whose lives become interconnected in dangerous ways.

Directed by Todd Field (In the Bedroom)
Written by Field and Tom Perrotta (author of Election)
Starring Jennifer Connelly, Kate Winslet, Patrick Wilson, Noah Emmerich, Gregg Edelman, Sarah Buxton and Trini Alvarado

WHY LITTLE CHILDREN? Does't Winslet look fugly in that pic? And Connelly so skinny? Having loved Field's In the Bedroom, I'm amped for his follow up. I've heard great things about the source material and it sounds like the exact kind of dark and twist character films we need more of. Sordid suburban lives are so in.


MARIE-ANTOINETTE

(Columbia - October 13 - TRAILER)
Based on Antonia Fraser's biography of Marie Antoinette, a naïve 14-year-old Austrian and queen of France. At a young age, she was arranged to marry Louis XVI and was very unprepared for the woes of politics. She continued to be ridiculed by France and was decapitated during the French Revolution. This is a stylized, $40 millon budgeted retelling of her life.

Written & Directed by Sofia Coppola (Lost In Translation, The Virgin Suicides)
Starring Kirsten Dunst, Jason Schwartzman, Rip Torn, Judy Davis, Asia Argento, Molly Shannon, Danny Huston, Marianne Faithfull, Steve Coogan, Shirley Henderson and Jamie Dornan

WHY MARIE-ANTOINETTE? Sofia + a period piece = ....how many days till this baby is released? I'd watch just about anything that woman did at this point. This could easily be a disaster. But isn't that the fun of watching an auteur go the edge without quite going over the top (see Baz Lurhman)? The casting is wicked inspired and it'll be exciting to see what Sofia does with a budget 10x her norm. And who doesn't want to see Dunst lose her head? Suggested tagline: This Fall, Eat Cake.




A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION

(Picturehouse - June 9)
A Prairie Home Companion is a fictionalized account of Garrison Keillor's award-winning show, which currently runs on more than 558 public radio stations. The film follows the show's cast of characters preparing for the final live broadcast on the eve of being shut down after 30 years. As passions erupt, secrets emerge and a mysterious stranger lurks in the shadows, the vigilant stage manager must hold it all together since the "show must go on."

Directed by Robert Altman (Nashville, Gosford Park, need I go on?)
Written by Garrison Keillor
Starring Garrison Keillor, Meryl Streep, Kevin Kline, Tommy Lee Jones, Lily Tomlin, Lindsay Lohan, John C. Reilly, Woody Harrelson, Maya Rudolph and Virgnia Madsen.

WHY A PRARIE HOME COMPANION? Doesn't it sound kind of like A Mighty Wind? Anything Altman does is worth looking forward to and would you believe this is his first collaboration with Meryl Streep?!?!? Paul Thomas Anderson stepped in for a slightly ailing Altman, 80, and will be credited as executive producer. There seems to be a silent realization that this might be Altman's last film and if so, what material and cast to go out with!



SUNSHINE

(Fox Searchlight - October 13)
Fifty years from now, the sun is dying, and mankind is dying with it. Our last hope: a spaceship and a crew of eight men and women. They carry a device which will breathe new life into the star. But deep into their voyage, out of radio contact with Earth, their mission is starting to unravel. There is an accident, a fatal mistake, and a distress beacon from a spaceship that disappeared seven years earlier. Soon the crew is fighting not only for their lives, but their sanity.

Directed by Danny Boyle (28 Days Later, Trainspotting)
Written by Alex Garland (28 Days Later)
Starring Cillian Murphy, Michelle Yeoh, Chris Evans, Rose Byrne, Cliff Curtis, Troy Garity and Benedict Wong

WHY SUNSHINE? A relatively standard storyline gets pimped up (sorry, couldn't resist) by the 28 Days Later team and that cool cast. I've enjoyed all of Boyle's films I've seen. I can't wait to see his take on the sci-fi genre after witnessing his terrific reviving of the zombie genre. I'd say the trio of Cillian Murphy, Chris Evans and Michelle Yeoh in space outfits might bring about a new space suit fetish. Tehe.



THE VISITING

(Warner Bros - August 11)
The Visiting tells the story of a mysterious epidemic that alters the behavior of human beings. When a Washington D.C. psychiatrist (Nicole Kidman) discovers the epidemic's origins are extraterrestrial, she must fight to protect her son, who may hold the key to stopping an imminent invasion.

Directed by Oliver Hirschbiegel (Downfall, The Experiment)
Written by Dave Kajganich
Starring Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig, Jeremy Northam, Veronica Cartwright and Jeffrey Wright

WHY THE VISITING? This $50 million unofficial Invasion of the Body Snatchers remake sees acclaimed filmmaker Hirschbiegel making his American film debut. It'll be one of the last chances to see actor Craig before he Bond-ages his career for good. Though the thought of Kidman and a remake seems illfated of late, I'm hoping this one is a good as everyone makes it sound. The script is said to be top notch and as long as they take a more natural approach to things - as opposed to lots of effects and gores - The Visiting could be a creepy late summer sleeper.


THE WICKER MAN

(Warner Bros - TBA 2006)
In a remake of the 1973 British horror thriller of the same name, Nicolas Cage plays a reclusive sheriff who goes to search for his astranged daughter after she mysteriously disappears on a secluded island. When he arrives, he senses something more is amiss among the island's secretive residents as he starts to uncover a mystery involving strange sexual rituals, a harvest festival and possible human sacrifice.

Written & Directed by Neil LaBute (In the Company of Men, Nurse Betty)
Starring Nicolas Cage, Ellen Burstyn, Leelee Sobieski, Frances Conroy and Molly Parker

WHY THE WICKER MAN? How timely is this! Rent the original and you'll know EXACTLY why this should be relevant to today. The storyline is similar with just enough changes to warrant a remake. Get ready for more weird dance numbers to odd folk songs, but I doubt you'll see any of those ladies pulling a Britt Eckland. Labute is best known for his scathing and twisted take on humans and a glossy, studio movie might be an excellent choice for him. (Hey, I say keep giving the guys who know how to make movies bigger budgets, as opposed to Brett Ratner or Michael Bay.)


HOPE YOU HAVE A GREAT 2006!