Movie Preview for April 18th, 2008

I love movies. I look forward to seeing almost every movie that comes out. There's always a question of whether or not it's a good movie. As a seriously moviegoer, you've got to keep your mind open. Perhaps the most unlikely film will be your favorite film of the year. You never know. So I have gone ahead, taken a look at some movies coming out in April and I decided to give my readers a glimpse at some of those movies. Once you've read what I've got to say, it'll be up to you whether or not you want to see the films listed below.

88 Minutes

Directed by Jon Avnet
Written by Gary Scott Thompson

Starring Al Pacino, this smart, gripping thriller puts him in the spotlight as a killer and maybe even a rapist. His character Dr. Jack Gramm is a college professor who is also a forensic psychiatrist for the FBI. From what I could see in the trailer, Dr. Gramm is kind of erogant when it comes to putting away rapists. This seems to backfire on him. When Jack Gramm starts getting threatening phone calls from a voice telling him when he's going to die, he starts losing his cool. Then the police come into the picture, suggesting that maybe he murdered a young woman back in the day. The only thing I'm hoping is that the filmmakers aren't trying to throw in some kind wildly unexpected and unnecessary surprise ending. Otherwise, 88 Minutes looks like a solid movie with a great cast and perhaps another great performance by Al.

More of the principle cast

Alicia Witt plays Kim Cummings
Leelee Sobieski plays Lauren Douglas
Amy Brenneman plays Shelly Barnes
Neal McDonough plays Jon Forster

The Forbidden Kingdom

Directed by Rob Minkoff
Written by John Fusco

Have you ever wanted to see Jet Li and Jackie Chan in the same movie together? Well, here's your chance. The really cool thing is how good this movie looks. It's a fantasy and a mystery. It follows a kung fu obsessed American teenager, Jason Tripitikas (Sky High's Michael Angarano). He discovers a special item amongst a room of junk and transported to China. This is where he meets up with Lu Yan (Chan) and Jet Li's Lan Cai He. I can't be certain if this movie will be good, but at least the premise and concepts sound intriguing. Then of course, there's the pairing of two great on-screen martial artists. It's like putting Micheal Jordan against Magic Johnson, Arnold Schwarzenegger against Sylvester Stallone, and so forth and so on. I'll go to see The Forbidden Kingdom just for that.

More of the principle cast

Yifei Liu plays Golden Sparrow
Collin Chou plays Jade War Lord
Bingbing Li plays Ni Chang
Morgan Benoit plays Lupo

Forgetting Sarah Marshall

Directed by Nicholas Stoller
Written by Jason Segel

From those wildly funny guys who produced Knocked Up and The 40-Year-Old Virgin comes another outrageous comedy, Forgetting Sarah Marshall. The writer, Jason Segel happens to be the star. He's playing Peter Bretter, a man who absolutely cannot let go of his ex-girlfriend. He takes a vacation to Hawaii just to get away from here. Unfortunately, Peter is in for a surprise. His girlfriend is already there with another guy. Reading this, the situation and concept sounds like it came from the mind of Neil Simon. But I'm sure there's a few unintelligent, gross-out and ultimately hilarious jokes to be had in Forgetting Sarah Marshall. Then again, it could be a major disappointment. Sadly we won't know anything more until April 18th.

More of the principle cast

Kristen Bell plays Sarah Marshall
Mila Kunis plays Racheal
Bill Hader plays Brian
Russell Brand plays Aldous Snow

More new releases for April 18th, 2008

The Life Before Her Eyes

Directed by Vadim Perelman; starring Uma Thurman as Diana, Evan Rachel Wood as Young Diana, Sherman Alpert as 'Professor', Eva Amurri as Maureen, and Gabrielle Brennan as Emma.

Kiss the Bride

Directed by C. Jay Cox; starring Tori Spelling as Alex, Philipp Karner as Matt, James O'Shea as Ryan, Joanna Cassidy as Evelyn, Garrett M. Brown as Gerald, and Tess Harper as Barbara.

Pathology

Directed by Marc Schoelermann; starring Milo Ventimiglia as Ted Gray, Michael Weston as Jake, Lauren Lee Smith as Juliette Bath, Dan Callahan as Chip Bentwood and Alyssa Milano as Gwen.

Wild Child

Directed by Nick Moore; starring Emma Roberts as Poppy, Natasha Richardson, Aidan Quinn, Shirley Henderson as Matron, Vanessa Branch as Rosemary, and Nick Frost as Mr. Christopher.

Now & Later

Directed by Philippe Diaz; starring Luis Fernandez-Gil as Luis, Adrian Quinonez as Diego, Shari Solanis as Angela, Marcellina Walker as Sally, and Keller Wortham as Bill.