Theatrical Releases This Week
Our Idiot Brother
Director: Jesse Peretz
Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CfyHY58lqCk
Every family has one: the sibling who is always just a little bit behind the curve when it comes to getting his life together. For sisters Liz (Emily Mortimer), Miranda (Elizabeth Banks) and Natalie (Zooey Deschanel), that person is their perennially upbeat brother Ned (Paul Rudd), an erstwhile organic farmer whose willingness to rely on the honesty of mankind is a less-than-optimum strategy for a tidy, trouble-free existence. Ned may be utterly lacking in common sense, but he is their brother and so, after his girlfriend dumps him and boots him off the farm, his sisters once again come to his rescue. As Liz, Miranda and Natalie each take a turn at housing Ned, their brother’s unfailing commitment to honesty creates more than a few messes in their comfortable routines. But as each of their lives begins to unravel, Ned’s family comes to realize that maybe, in believing and trusting the people around him; Ned isn’t such an idiot after all.
The early reviews are mostly positive, with praise being heaped on Paul Rudd. This is the clear front-runner for the week and is a welcome relief after last week’s pathetic new movie showings.
Colombiana
Director: Olivier Megaton
Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_0R5mvrZ28
Zoe Saldana plays Cataleya, a young woman who has grown up to be an assassin after witnessing the murder of her parents as a child. Turning herself into a professional killer and working for her uncle, she remains focused on her ultimate goal: to hunt down and get revenge on the mobster responsible for her parents’ deaths.
Combining bad reviews and limited interest, “Colombiana” is a sure TNT Sunday afternoon classic in six months.
Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark
Director: Troy Nixey
Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFE4lGvRt8E
While architect Alex Hurst (Guy Pearce) and his new girlfriend Kim (Katie Holmes) restore their Gothic mansion’s period interiors, Alex’s young daughter Sally (Bailee Madison) can investigate the macabre history and dark corners of the estate. Spurring Sally’s investigation are the voices-rasping whispers who call out to her from the basement, who promise her understanding and friendship, who are so very hungry and would like to be set free. When Sally gives in to her curiosity, she opens a gateway into a hellish underworld from which an army of beady-eyed, sharp-clawed monsters emerge, small in size but endless in number. Confronted with the horror that now threatens to taker her life and destroy her family, Sally desperately tries to warn the whole house, but there’s just one problem: no one believes her.
The reviews are mixed, but the attachment of Guillermo del Toro as producer is generating interest. Whether this turns into “Pan’s Labyrinth” or “Hellboy 2” is up for debate.
DVD Releases This Week
Priest
Director: Scott Charles Stewart
Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gmlo6MyhDXw
Priest, a western-fused post-apocalyptic thriller, is set in an alternate world — one ravaged by centuries of war between man and vampires. The story revolves around a legendary Warrior Priest (Paul Bettany) from the last Vampire War who now lives in obscurity among the other downtrodden human inhabitants in walled-in dystopian cities ruled by the Church. When his niece (Lily Collins) is abducted by a murderous pack of vampires, Priest breaks his sacred vows to venture out on an obsessive quest to find her before they turn her into one of them.
Visually pretty, but stunningly painful to watch. Do yourself a favor and pick up “The Devil’s Backbone,” a unfairly overlooked Guillermo del Toro horror film.
(Plot descriptions provided by studio releases)
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