Darren's Most Anticipated Movies of 2007!

Excuse me if this is significantly less in depth as my previous lists.


Felicity, Jane, Lindsay say that GEORGIA will rule 2007

LOOKING FORWARD TO:

Winter/Spring
Now that Alias is over, Jennifer Garner needs a career other than cranking out baby Afflecks. Luckily for her fans (ME!), we get 2 movies with Miss Garner: CATCH AND RELEASE, from screenwriter Susanna Grant (Erin Brockovich, In Her Shoes) and THE KINGDOM from Peter Berg (Friday Night Lights). The first finds Jennifer trying to get over the death of her fiance and coping with the secrets he kept from her. The latter sees her joining Jamie Foxx, Chris Cooper and Jason Bateman in a Saudi Arabia-set action film. ! As dimply cute as Jennifer is Jake Gyllenhaal, who hunts for the legendary ZODIAC killer in David Fincher's latest. Mark Ruffalo, Robert Downey Jr and Chloe Sevigny costar. Hilary Swank goes from boxing, to inner cities, to the bayou with the horror film THE REAPING. Luke Wilson and Kate Beckinsale encounter a horror of their own in VACANCY in which they play a couple staying at a cheap motel who find out they are about to be the stars of a snuff film. Christina Ricci is PENELOPE, a pig-faced woman going on a personal journey. The film is produced by and costars Reese Witherspoon. The reliably hilarious Anna Faris eats some of her roommates brownies and goes about her daily life while, unbeknownst to her, stoned in SMILEY FACE, costarring Jane Lynch and The Office's John Krasinski. If that doesn't have the makings of a cult classic, I don't know what does. And finally, there's 300, the latest from the creator Sin City and the director of the Dawn of the Dead remake. The trailer is delicious eye candy, as is the film's star, Gerald Butler.

SUMMER:



Lindsay Lohan will hopefully be in much better shape than she is now in May when the Garry Marshall-directed GEORGIA RULE hits theatres. In it, Lohan plays an out of control young woman (really stretching those acting skills, aren't we?) who is forced by her mother (Felicity Huffman) to stay with her grandmother (Jane Fonda) till she's a good little girl. Could be very schmaltzy, but that's a terrific cast. The sequel 28 WEEKS LATER picks up some time (perhaps 28 weeks) after the events of 28 Days Later and finds a group of American soldiers attempting to rebuild a destroyed London after a virus wiped most of it out. Catherine Zeta-Jones is a chef who becomes the guardian of her niece (Little Miss Sunshine's Abigail Breslin) in NO RESERVATIONS, costarring Patricia Clarkson and Aaron Eckhart and directed by Scott Hicks (Shine). Katherine Heigl gets KNOCKED UP by The 40 Year Old Virgin's Seth Rogen which features several of 40's supporting cast members. Catherine Keener imprisons Ellen Page in the basement for AN AMERICAN CRIME. Winona Ryder educates Simon Baker on SEX AND DEATH 101, from some of the people who brought you Heathers. And Keira Knightley reteams with her Pride and Prejudice director Joe Wright for ATONEMENT, due at the end of the summer. Oh, and at some point this year, another movie with Pirates and some giant green thing will hit screens. I have a feeling you won't here about these movies so I should tell you about them: PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD'S END and SHREK THE THIRD.

FALL:
Amy Adams voices and stars in ENCHANTED as an animated princess banished from her fairy tale world into the real world by an evil queen (Susan Sarandon). Once there she has to choose between Patrick Dempsey and James Marsden. Who said animated-turned-three dimensional princesses have it easy? Joaquin Phoenix, Jennifer Connelly, Mark Ruffalo and Mira Sorvino walk RESERVATION ROAD for director Terry George (Hotel Rwanda). Eric Bana falls for THE OTHER BOLEYN GIRL one of which is played by Natalie Portman and the other by Scarlett Johansson. I'm not sure who plays the other Boleyn. Steve Carell, Juliette Binoche and Emily Blunt star in the latest from Peter Hedges (Pieces of April): DAN IN REAL LIFE. Josh Hartnett and Melissa George face vampires in Alaska during 30 DAYS OF NIGHT. Kimberly Pierce finally directs her follow up to Boys Don't Cry: STOP LOSS, starring Ryan Phillippe and Channing Tatum. Cate Blanchett returns to her breakthrough role as The Virgin Queen (quite a stretch for Blanchett, right) in ELIZABETH: THE GOLDEN AGE, costarring Clive Owen. It costars Clive Owen. That's Clive Owen. Ben Stiller and Michelle Monaghan stars in the next Farrelly Brothers movie, currently untitled. Charlize Theron's boyfriend Stuart Townsend directs Charlize and Susan Sarandon among many others in THE BATTLE IN SEATTLE, another one of those ensemble films in which a big event takes place in the background. Maria Bello, Emily Blunt and many others are part of THE JANE AUSTEN BOOK CLUB in which a group of Austen-ites find their lives mirroring the events of some of Jane's most famed works. Hugh Jackman, Ewan McGregor and Michelle Williams star in the thriller THE TOURIST. Renee Zellweger investigages CASE 39 with Ian McShane and Bradley Cooper. Paul Thomas Anderson returns after a 5 year respite to direct Daniel Day Lewis in THERE WILL BE BLOOD, a drama about oil. David Cronenberg's next stars Naomi Watts and Viggo Mortensen and is called EASTERN PROMISES.


HONORABLE MENTIONS - MOVIES JUST OUTSIDE THE TOP 10:

Nicole Kidman looks to get back on track with a little bit of everything. First, in late summer, she'll star in the Invasion of the Body Snatchers remake THE INVASION, costarring Daniel Craig. The project has been delayed almost a full year, and that August release date isn't promising. And we all know what happened with Nic's last 2 remakes. But who knows? It's got a talented director, Oliver Hirschbiegel. In October, Kidman will join forces with Oscar-nominated filmmaker Noah Bambauch for the rather amusingly titled MARGOT AT THE WEDDING, a family dramedy costarring Jennifer Jason Leigh and Jack Black. Noah has great skill with actors, so this could be what garners her Oscar nomination #3. In December, Nicole will star in Paul Weitz's adaptation of HIS DARK MATERIALS: THE GOLDEN COMPASS which will again unite her with Daniel Craig and he will be rejoined with his Bond girl, Eva Green. Quite a good looking cast. I'm not sure what HDM:TGC is about, but the early production skills are absolutely gorgeous. And I hear it will be very controversial as the novel it's based on has strong atheist content. Neat! Arguably the biggest Oscar contender of the year will be CHARLIE WILSON'S WAR, starring Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Amy Adams and directed by Mike Nichols. The film is about a Texas congressman's covert dealings in Afghanistan, which has some dangerous consequences. Quite a stellar crew involved. And I haven't mentioned the screenplay is by Aaron Sorkin!! Harvey Weinstein will likely back Anne Hathaway during next year's Oscar race for Best Actress for her performance as the prefame Jane Austen (it really is her year, isn't it?) in BECOMING JANE. The period piece will costar James McAvoy as the young man who steals her heart and leads her to write some of literature's most prized works. Maggie Smith and Julie Walters also appear. Despite that it debuted at Cannes and was scheduled to be released in December AND was expected to garner Ashley Judd an Oscar nomination, Lionsgate made the odd decision to delay BUG till 2007. Let's hope the studio knows what it is doing and doesn't screw it over the way they screwed The Descent this past year. We'll know if they still haven't scheduled on a release date and Saw 4 is in theatres. Stupid Lionsgate! Judd plays a lonely woman who holds up in a hotel with a paranoid Gulf War veteran (Michael Shannon) who sees bugs everywhere. The movie received deafening raves after playing at Cannes. So what's the deal Lionsgate? You know how to market the biggest garbage like the Saw movies and Tyler Perry's movies! You know how to mount aggressive Oscar campaigns like the one you did with Crash! So why do you screw over acclaimed horror films like May, The Descent and now, apparently, Bug? Ah, I digress. One movie that is being marketed exceptionally is BLACK SNAKE MOAN. I must admit I was looking forward to this film because of the film's very talented director Craig Brewer (Hustle and Flow). It's about time Samuel L. Jackson and Christina Ricci did great work again. But I was totally blown away by the film's trailer and posters. Word on the street is this is quite a great film, though why it's being released in February is anyone's guess. In it, Jackson plays a southern bluesman who chains a nympomaniac (Ricci) is his house in order to cure her. What a concept! And another delayed film: Danny Boyle's followup to 28 Days Later, SUNSHINE. Starring Chris Evans, Cillian Murphy and Michelle Yeoh, it's about a rescue mission in space to literally revitalize the sun as the earth dies. A silly concept it might be, but in Boyle's hands this could be a miniclassic in the making. The director of the Oscar-nominated Tsotsi makes his followup with the political thriller RENDITION, starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Peter Sarsgaard, Meryl Streep and Reese Witherspoon. Jake is apparently old enough now to play a CIA analyst. And my lovely Rachel McAdams plays Pierce Brosnan's mistress, who would rather murder his wife (Patricia Clarkson) than put her though a divorce in the noirish drama MARRIAGE, set in the 1940's. Chris Cooper costars. Hmm. McAdams as a femme fatale...how many days till we can see this? And how bout this for an honorable mention: A TV Miniseries. That's right. A miniseries. COMANCHE MOON is a prequel to one of the best miniseries ever (Lonesome Dove) and is written for the (small) screen by Oscar-winners Larry McMurty and Diana Ossana, the screenwriters of Brokeback Mountain. Brokeback's Linda Cardellini is just part of the huge ensemble cast that also includes Val Kilmer, Steve Zahn, Karl Urban, Rachel Griffiths, Melanie Lynskey and Adam Beach. The likely Emmy sweeper will air on CBS this spring, and apparently will get a huge push during the Super Bowl, so pay attention during that. Remember those awesome miniseries like The Stand? They just don't do those anymore. :-( Oh well. Sometimes movies suck and we have to depend on the small screen. I digress.


THE TOP 10:

#10 - EVENING

It might as well be called The Hours 2. As her daughters (Natasha Richardson and Toni Collette) prepare for her death, Ann Grant (Vanessa Regrave) reflects on the time in her youth when she first fell in love. Claire Danes will play the young Ann, and Patrick Wilson will be the object of her affection. Rounding out the cast is Hugh Dancy, Eileen Atkins, Glenn Close, Mamie Gummer, and in a cameo appearance, Meryl Streep. The film's screenplay is written by Michael Cunningham (author of The Hours) and the film is directed by Lajos Koltai. It could be really special, as it has some of the best pedigree of any film this year, or could be another How to Make an American Quilt. Due June 15, from Focus Features.



#9 - SPRING BREAKDOWN

Rachel Dratch, Amy Poehler and Parker Posey are friends forced to escort their boss's daughter (Amber Tamblyn) to a popular spring break destination where they get a second chance at being young and wild. Dratch wrote the screenplay and I hope she has the razor sharp comedy skills her former Saturday Night Live cohort displayed for Mean Girls. Missi Pyle, Jane Lynch and Seth Meyers round out the cast. April 13.



#8 - THE NANNY DIARIES

Scarlett Johansson plays a college student who gets a job working for an affluent New York City couple (Paul Giamatti, Laura Linney) as a nanny. The dramedy is Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini's follow up to American Splendor. The supporting cast includes Chris Evans, Alicia Keys (yes, that Alicia Keys) and Donna Murphy. April 20.

#7 - MY BLUEBERRY NIGHTS

Wong Kar Wai's first English-language film also finds Norah Jones in her first film. Jones plays a young woman on a soul-searching journey across America attempting to resolve questions about love, while encountering many memorable characters. Hmm. Trip across America? Soul searching? Did I mention who else is in it? Jude Law, Natalie Portman, Rachel Weisz and David Strathairn. SCORE. From the Weinstein Company, Blueberry is currently scheduled for fourth quarter.

#6 - THE SIMPSONS MOVIE

Need I say more? Yes, this: Please. Don't. Suck. (July 27)



#5 - I'M NOT THERE

With all these biopics, it was bound to happen that someone would make a film about Bob Dylan. This one stars Christian Bale as Bob Dylan. It also stars Richard Gere as Bob Dylan. Oh yeah, and Heath Ledger as Bob Dylan. And how bout this: Cate Blanchett as Bob Dylan. Todd Haynes (Far From Heaven) directs this rather unconvential biopic, with a handful of actors starring as Bob Dylan in various vignettes of the singer's life. As other characters in the film, watch out for Julianne Moore, David Cross and Michelle Williams. Williams will get it on with Blanchett-Dylan. This has the potential to be great. Or really bad. (TBA 2007)

#4 - LUST, CAUTION

Ang Lee follows up Brokeback Mountain in predictable fashion: with something completely unlike his last project. Lee directs this espionage thriller set in World War II era Shanghai. It stars Tony Leung, Tang Wei and Joan Chen. How will it be? As Grace Adler so expertly described all of Ang's films: "A little slow paced, but visually stunning." Either way, it certainly has the most intriguing title of the year. From Focus Features, it hits theatres September 28.



#3 - THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM

Can Jason Bourne still score big after James Bond's comeback? You betcha. Hot off the critical success of United 93, Paul Greengrass returns to direct the third go-round of the acclaimed espionage series. This one will find Bourne trying to find out more informatino about his past, as cops, federal officers and Interpol agents keep him in their crossheirs. Julia Stiles and Joan Allen reprise their roles, and are joined by franchise newcomers Paddy Considine, David Strathairn and Edgar Ramirez. (August 3)



#2 - GRINDHOUSE

What do you get when the minds that brought you Pulp Fiction, Sin City, Kill Bill and From Dusk Till Dawn team up to bring you a double dose of schlocky exploitation cinema? GRINDHOUSE. Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez each direct their own 90 minute film, attach some fake trailers in the middle, and us hardcore gorehounds get over 3 hours of carnage candy. Tarantino's segment - titled Death Proof - is a slasher film where the killer is Kurt Russell in a kickass car. Rodriguez directs Planet Terror - a zombie film. In addition to Russell, Grindhouse features Rose McGowan (with one good leg and a machine gun for the other), Marley Shelton, Freddy Rodriguez, Bruce Willis, Naveen Andrews and Rosario Dawson. (April 6)



#1 - SPIDER-MAN 3

Spider-Man was very good. Spider-Man 2 is, in my opinion, the most perfect superhero film ever. And the same screenwriter as the illustrious #2 returns for this segment. So, what's gonna happen with Spider-Man 3? Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) goes to the dark side (hence the new dark suit) and must battle new villains Sandman (Thomas Haden Church) and Venom (Topher Grace), while trying to win the affection of MJ (Kirsten Dunst) and resisting the temptations of Gwen Stacey (Bryce Dallas Howard, blonde and gorgeous!). It's very soap operatic, on a large epic scale. Sam Raimi returns as director. But you already knew that. (May 4)

HOPE YOU HAVE A GREAT 2007 MOVIE YEAR!

And here's hoping Miss Lohan is out of rehab in time to film LOSS OF A TEARDROP DIAMOND so that can become my most anticipated movie of 2008. :-)