Movie Preview for January of 2009

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 serious 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 January of 2009 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. One thing I'll tell you before I move ahead with this list is that I wish I could be paid to see these movies at their premiere and give my readers detailed reviews of each. But as it is, I am stuck making guesses and conjectures, not certain how well the movie will turn out.

2009 looks like a year of either great change or great disappointment. We've already had some great changes in the political world if you hadn't noticed. And, I'm obviously not talking about the shaky ecomony. This year in film may bring 3D to the screen like we've never seen before. January is the month that starts it all off. Despite the story and plot and perhaps, the acting, My Bloody Valentine 3D is the first of many 3D features coming out this year.

January 9, 2009

Bride Wars

Directed by Gary Winick

Written by Greg DePaul and Casey Wilson

The film stars Kate Hudson as Liv and Anne Hathaway as Emma. Both of these girls are best friends. That is until they schedule their weddings on the same day. Neither lady seems to appreciate this. And I'm guessing one of them pushes things too far. Eventually, it seems both of these ladies have an all-out war, sabotaging each other's weddings. If it wasn't far the talents of Hudson and Hathaway, I would quickly excuse this movie as another "chick flick" in the wake of The Women or Sex and the City, and ignore it. However, given the gags I saw advertised in the trailers, I've got high hopes for Bride Wars.

More of the principal cast

Bryan Greenberg plays Nate

Chris Pratt plays Fletcher

Steve Howey plays Daniel

Candice Bergen plays Marion St. Claire

The Unborn

Directed by David S. Goyer; written by David S. Goyer; starring Odette Yustman, Gary Oldman, Cam Gigandet, Meagan Good, Jane Alexander, Idris Elba and Gordon Beldon

January 16, 2009

Paul Blart: Mall Cop

Directed by Steve Carr

Written by Kevin James and Nick Bakay

Kevin James, that big guy from that TV show, he's playing Paul Blart and you guessed it. Paul Blart is a mall cop or should I say, security guard. Everything seems to be routine for Paul, aside from running over a dog here and there. That's until the mall is overtaken by a gang of organized crooks. It's up to the mild-mannered "nobody" to take them down and save the day. The previews make this film look almost dumb. But, I suspect we're in for some great laughs with Paul Blart: Mall Cop.

More of the principle cast

Keir O'Donnell plays Veck Sims

Jayma Mays plays Amy

Raini Rodriguez plays Maya Blart

Stephen Rannazzisi plays Stuart

Hotel for Dogs

Directed by Thor Freudenthal

Written by Jeff Lowell and Robert Schooley

You might have noticed previews and commercials for this movie on TV and at the movies by now. The advertisements may in fact show everything this movie is about. A group of kids led by Emma Roberts' Andi and Jake T. Austin's Bruce take in stray dogs at a vacant house. I'm sure we can look forward to some great fun, watching dogs of all sizes, ages and shapes in cute situations and positions. Kids, if you loved Bolt or Marley and Me, you might go crazy for Hotel for Dogs. If you're a cat person, you might go rent Garfeld or something at your local video store.

More of the principle cast

Kyla Pratt plays Heather

Lisa Kudrow plays Lisa Scudder

Kevin Dillon plays Carl Scudder

Don Cheadle plays Bernie

My Bloody Valentine 3-D

Directed by Patrick Lussier

Written by Todd Farmer and Zane Smith

With the return of James Cameron at the end of 2009, hopefully bringing 3D filmmaking to a whole new level with his Avatar, just the title alone, "My Bloody Valentine 3D" doesn't do a lot for the credibility of 3D. However, I have to keep my fingers crossed. This is the first of many major 3D releases coming out in 2009. It stars Jensen Ackles as Tom Hanniger and Jaime King as Sarah Palmer. It's the 10th anniversary of the Valentine's night massacre that got 22 people killed. Tom Hanniger is the prime suspect. Will the real killer make an appearance? We won't know until January 16th.

More of the principle cast

Kerr Smith plays Axel Palmer

Betsy Rue plays Irene

Edi Gathegi plays Deputy Martin

Tom Atkins plays Burke

Notorious

Directed by George Tillman Jr.; written by Reggie Rock Bythewood and Cheo Hodari Coker; starring Angela Bassett, Joy Curry, Taylor Dior, Edwin Freeman, and Corey Hibbert

January 23, 2009

Inkheart

Directed by Iain Softley

Written by David Lindsay-Abaire

In this tale of reality and fantasy, Brendan Fraser plays Mo 'Silvertongue' Folchart, a 'Book Doctor' that seems to have the talent to bring characters out of books. After bringing three characters out of Inkheart, a story set in medieval times, Mo and his daughter Meggie, played by Eliza Bennett are taken on some pretty wild adventures. If you like Fraser in the latest Journey to the Center of the Earth and The Mummy: The Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, there's no reason you shouldn't like him here. If you enjoyed Bedtime Stories, for some strange reason, I suspect Inkheart will not disappoint.

More of the principle cast

Sienna Guillory plays Resa

Paul Bettany plays Dustfinger

Helen Mirren plays Elinor Loredan

Matt King plays Cockerell

Underworld 3: Rise of the Lycans

Directed by Patrick Tatopoulos

Written by Danny McBride and Dirk Blackman

The prequel to Underworld and Underworld 2 with Kate Beckinsale brings back those nasty vampires and werewolves, two fighting clans of creatures that just can't stop biting. With the prequel craze still going strong, its no surprise that they would decide to tell the origin of the Lycans or werewolves. Bill Nighy plays the leader of the vampires, Viktor once again. Michael Sheen from Frost/Nixon returns as the leader of the Lycans, Lucian. And, once again, I'll be returning to this series to watch monsters attacking monsters in blue lighting.

More of the principle cast

Kevin Grevioux plays Raze

Steven Mackintosh plays Andreas Tanis

Rhona Mitra plays Sonja

Craig Parker plays Sabas

Outlander

Directed by Howard McCain; written by Dirk Blackman and Howard McCain; starring James or Jim Caviezel, Sophia Myles, Jack Huston, Ron Perlman, John Hurt, and Katie Bergin

January 30, 2009

New in Town

Directed by Jonas Elmer

Written by Ken Rance and C. Jay Cox

Renee Zellweger plays Lucy Hill, an executive from Miami who tries to begin a new life in Minnesota. Ii haven't seen enough of this movie to advise anyone. But, the cast looks good, including Harry Connick Jr. as Ted Mitchell and J.K. Simmons as Stu Kopenhafer. We can also take a look back at Ms. Zellweger's past in comedies. The first movie or movies to pop up in my mind is the Bridget Jones films. Bridget Jones' Diary not only showed that Renee Zellweger can be funny as a title character, but also that she can give a very convincing British accent. Here's hoping that New in Town is less of a flop and more of a Bridget Jones for Ms. Zellweger.

More of the principle cast

Siobhan Fallon plays Blanche Gunderson

Mike O'Brien plays Lars Ulstead

Frances Conroy plays Trudy Van Uuden

Ferron Guerreiro plays Robbie Mitchell

Taken

Directed by Pierre Morel

Written by Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen

Liam Neeson is an ex-spy, Bryan Mills. His daughter, Kim (Maggie Grace) gets kidnapped and Mills goes on a thrilling mission to hunt down the kidnappers. As you might have seen in some of the trailers, Neeson's Bryan Mills explains to the kidnappers that he's got the skills to find them and kill them. I normally wouldn't think anything of a movie like this. We've seen this story in a lot of different movies. It's basically a revenge story. However, this is Liam Neeson. This is written by the guy who gave us Fifth Element and Leon: The Professional. Then again, Luc Besson also wrote all three Transporter films. I'm still interested, regardless.

More of the principle cast

Famke Janssen plays Lenore

Xander Berkeley plays Stuart

Katie Cassidy plays Amanda

Leland Orser plays Sam

The Uninvited

Directed by Charles Guard and Thomas Guard; written by Craig Rosenberg and Doug Miro; starring Elizabeth Banks, Danny Bristol, Matthew Bristol, Emily Browning, and Dean Paul Gibson