Fall Movie Preview 2007!

September

Across the Universe

There has been a lot of drama involved with this film, which the studios wanted to cut down for length and, presumably, content. Julie Taymor refused to put her name on the chopped-up version, which I admire. Now it looks like the issues have been resolved, and I’m glad they were, because this looks like an awesome film. It centers around the Beatles and the peace movement in America during the Vietnam War, two things that are guaranteed to attract a wide audience, but it also utilizes trippy dream/drug sequences to illustrate the psychedelic nature of the time. Sweeeet.

I Want Someone to Eat Cheese With

Curb Your Enthusiasm‘s Jeff Garlin finally stars in his own movie (he wrote and directed it), and the title combined with Jeff’s hilariousness make this seem like a film I would like. Add to that the fact that Amy Sedaris, Sarah Silverman and Dan Castallaneta make appearances, and you’ve got yourself a guarantee that I will wait three months and then download this the second I get drunk and there’s nothing on TV.

Shine a Light

The last thing the world needs is another fucking Rolling Stones-umentary. OK, OK, it’s a Scorcese picture, but what is it, a new law that every American must automatically go out and see everything the man makes? I’m not buying into the whole film messiah treatment he gets. When he stops making American Express commercials, then we’ll talk.

October

The Darjeeling Limited

Wes Anderson is an Indie darling, but that doesn’t mean he’s not awesome. He co-wrote this film with Roman Coppola and Jason Schwartzman (who are indeed related), and though I still say his strongest material was written with the Wilson brothers, this might work too. They certainly picked an awesome setting (a train travelling through India). It reminds me of a book I’d love to have read when I was little.

The Golden Age

The sequel to the biopic Elizabeth, The Golden Age (I guess Elizabeth II would be too confusing) is sure to make plenty of money and earn plenty of award nominations for Set Design and most likely Best Actress. Who knows whether it’ll be any good, but with all that distracting mise en scène and Geoffrey Rush to boot, who really cares?

Sleuth

I loved the original Sleuth (1972), which was based on the mystery play of the same title by Anthony Shaffer. Now, granted, I was 12 or so when I first saw that movie, so it was extra-super awesome (kids love mysterious shit). But it still holds up, due to the twist-filled plot and the verbal sparring between the two leads, played in the original by Laurence Olivier and Michael Caine. Now Michael Caine has graduated to the older role, and sexy Jude Law has joined the cast as the younger character. Sounds awesome!

Wristcutters: A Love Story

This is an interesting-sounding experimental film set in a limbo of sorts, restricted to suicides. Nothing wrong with that. The cast includes Shannyn Sossamon, Jake Busey and (the coolest man in the world) Tom Waits. Filmmaker Goran Dukic wrote the screenplay based on a short story called “Kneller’s Happy Campers” by Etgar Keret. Sounds weird, in a good way!

November

No Country for Old Men

The movie film dweebs have been drooling over for years now, No Country for Old Men promises to be, at the very least, an interesting way to spend a few hours. I happen to adore the Coen Brothers, and with them writing the screenplay from the novel by Cormac McCarthy (author of All the Pretty Horses) and co-directing, this could be quite a film. The suspenseful plot, which is reminiscent of that of A Simple Plan, contains all the elements of a classic Coen film in the making: dead bodies, a suitcase full of money, the Rio Grande, and plenty of violent action. Score!

I Could Never Be Your Woman

Finally, a new Amy Heckerling movie! Has she really not done anything since Loser? Am I the only person who liked Loser? I’m glad to see that she’s back in business, but this seems like a weird way to return to Hollywood. First of all, Uma Thurman plays Mother Nature, some sort of Greek God-style meddling character who fucks with the characters in the movie. That’s cool and all, but ever since Cabin Boy I’ve been wary of such mythological overtones. (Laura shudders, trying to shake the image of Chris Elliott’s impish face from her mind). Secondly, I’ve seen a lot of crazy rom-com pairings, but Michelle Pfeiffer and Paul Rudd? Ick.