This week we look at nine films a lot of them are indie flicks. One is a big summer release. Why toy around, let's get to the flicks.
9) Fame (Sept. 25)
Trailer
Yep, I'm man enough to put the remake of FAME on my buzz list. I'm doing so for three reasons. First I love dance. I hope director Kevin Tanchareon knows how to film it. Second, Kherington Payne. She was a contestant of SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE, and she has star quality. I'm curious if she can act. Lastly the film reunites Fraiser with Lilith — both Kelsey Grammer and Bebe Neuwirth appear.
8) Easy Virtue (May 22)
Trailer
Yep, I'm man enough to put Noel Coward on my buzz list. Coward was one of the wittiest writers of his day and this cast looks like they are having fun with his dialogue. Film stars Colin Firth (perfect for Coward), Kristin Scott Thomas, and Jessica Biel. Is it me, or does Biel shine in the trailer?
7) The Escapist (April 3)
Trailer
Good word came from the festival circuit on this one. The prison break flick stars Brian Cox, Joseph Fiennes, and Dominic Cooper. The trailer is intense. Is that the first trapped in a subway scene that actually felt scary?
6) Summer Hours (May 15)
Trailer
The French have always been masters are simple plotted family dramas that turn into profound statements on life. Whether Olivier Assayas' SUMMER HOURS fits the tradition, we'll have to wait and see, but the trailer looks promising and Assayas has done great work before. He also has the always-amazing Oscar-winner Juliette Binoche. For fans of the Dardenne Bros. or In BRUGES, it will also be interesting to see Jeremie Renier playing something other than a punk.
5) Rudo Y Cursi (May 8)
Trailer
Diego Luna and Gael García Bernal team up with the brother of Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN director Alfonso Cuaron, Carlos Cuaron, for this Spanish-language Sundance fav about two brothers picked from a small Mexican village to be pro soccer players. The trailer makes it out to be a silly, fun adventure.
4) The Garden (April 24)
Trailer
This trailer makes me understand how this film could be nominated for Best Documentary over something from Errol Morris. The trailer for Scott Hamilton Kennedy's torn-from-the-headlines doc about the fight to save a 14-acre community garden in downtown L.A. gave me chills.
3) Bruno (July 10)
Trailer
Sacha Baron Cohen is back in theaters — this time not as Borat, but as Bruno, his gay Austrian fashionista alter ego. I wondered how he would be able to pull off something like Borat again, but the trailer makes it seem like he's found the way. This can't be as good as BORAT, can it? Here's hoping it isn't ALI G INDAHOUSE.
2) Anvil! The Story of Anvil (April 10)
Trailer
Yep, I'm man enough to put Anvil on my buzz list. Do you remember this '80s hair band? I didn't, but now I wish I had. This film looks like a real life THIS IS SPINAL TAP combined with AMERICAN MOVIE and an honest look at the fickleness of stardom. How cool is that?
1) Sin Nombre (In Theaters)
Trailer
This drama about illegal immigration is already playing in some markets. Like GOODBYE SOLO last week, something about the trailer didn't strike me the first time I saw it, but a second viewing made me take notice. With all the Mexican gang violence in the news right now, it seems like a perfect time for a film like this to hit theaters. Some are saying Cary Fukunaga is a new director to watch.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
