Movie Reviews for January 2010

2010 will be an interesting year, what with all the speculation of the precursor events leading up to 2012 (be that a great awakening or the end of the world) and the political atmosphere leading up to the mid-term elections. But what else will pique our interests and keep us occupied? How about the entertainment of new movies coming out?

Here is a look at the movies coming up in January of 2010. Maybe we'll have some good old fashioned blockbusters to take our minds off the impending doom. Or maybe not. (Hopefully we won't have another Star Trek-style delay on any of them.)

(Bone Deep) - Takers - current release date of 8 Jan 2010 - Action/Thriller with Matt Dillon as a hard-boiled detective chasing a group of bank robbers after a $20 million heist. This will be John Luessenhop's third film; his two previous endeavors being somewhat a mixed bag. In 1995, he acted in and asst. directed (second unit) Dirty Money, which was kind of a flop. But his directorial debut was in Lockdown, which had some critical acclaim. No matter, I really don't see Takers as a contender, and something you can wait for DVD or cable to see.

Daybreakers - current release date of 20 January 2010 - Action/Horror/SF with an interesting cast. Ethan Hawke and Willem Dafoe, along with Sam Neil, live in a world where vampires are the majority population and the remaining humans are hunted down to be farmed for their blood. The plotline has Sam Neil (Vamp-in-chief) and Ethan Hawke (Vamp Hematologist with a conscience) facing the extinction of their race, and Willem Dafoe (the guy with the crossbow) as part of a group of humans trying to find an alternative for their persecutors. This is a new take on an old story and it looks pretty good (as vampire movies go). Check out the trailer. The cast also includes Isabel Lucas (Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen) and Claudia Karvan (as Sola Naberrie in Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith).

The Last Song - current release date 8 January 2010 - Drama with Miley Cyrus, Kelly Preston and Greg Kinnear. This is Julie Ann Robinson's big screen directorial debut, although she has been doing television for most of this decade. This new Disney movie (based on the Nicholas Sparks novel of the same name), is a typical vehicle for Miley. She plays a troubled teenage girl sent to a southern beach town to spend the summer with her father. Music provides the glue that brings them together. Not even Hannah Montana or Nicholas Sparks fans will shell out the big bucks to see this one in theatres though. Maybe Disney and Ms Robinson should have stuck to the small screen.

Hoodwinked Too!: Hood vs. Evil - current release date of 15 January 2010 - Animated Comedy Adventure from the creators of the original Hoodwinked! Some favorite voices are back with Glen Close as Granny and the ever popular Patrick Warburton as Wolf. And there are some new characters as well, with David Ogden Stiers (Winchester on M*A*S*H) as Nicky Flippers from the Happily Ever After agency, Brad Garret (of Raymond fame) as Giant, Joan Cusak as the Witch and Amy Poehler as Gretel. But some familiar voices are going to be different; most notable Martin Short as the Woodsman instead of James Belushi and the ever important character of Red being voiced by Hayden Panettiere (of Heroes) instead of the original Anne Hathaway. If you liked Hoodwinked, you'll probably find the sequel humorous. If not . . . well, you know. I'd wait for the DVD or cable either way.

The Book of Eli - current release date of 15 January 2010 - Action/Adventure reminiscent of Costner's Postman in as much as it is set in post-apocalyptic America. Here Denzel Washington plays Eli, a lone traveller who is protecting a book that may hold the key for the salvation of humanity. Gary Oldman plays the despot character of Carnegie, who wants what Eli has. If you will be at ComiCon in San Diego this year, you'll be treated with the first trailer for this movie (a teaser from ET can be seen here). Also on hand are Mila Kunis (That 70's Show) and Jennifer Beales (late of the cable show The L Word) as a mother and daughter who are Carnegie's women. It may be a typical post-apocalyptic movie but the cast makes you think it could be good. Or maybe not. If you waited for Denzel's Deja Vu to come out on DVD, then you can wait for this one as well.

Legion - current release date of 22 January 2010 - Action/Horror where God is ticked off with the world and sends the apocalypse to wipe us all out. The movie follows a small group of survivors holed up in a southwest diner and are being aided by the archangel Michael. Paul Bettany plays the winged warrior who aides the humans, which include Tyrese Gibson (Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen), Charles S. Dutton (TV's Roc and Aliens3) and Adrianna Palicki (Kara on Smallville). Among the survivors fighting off the winged hordes of God's wrath is a young woman carrying the Messiah. Expect some great visual effects from director Scott Stewart. But that may be all you get (ala Constantine). Another wait for DVD release. But the good news is that a movie like this may become a cult classic and show up in stores about six months later.

Tooth Fairy - current release date of 22 January 2010 - Comedy/Fantasy starring Dwayne (The Rock) Johnson as a hard hitting minor league hockey player who gets into a bit of trouble. His sentence for his "crime" is to be the real life tooth fairy for a week. With an all-star cast including Julie Andrews, Billy Crystal, Ashley Judd and newcomer sensation Maya Washington, this fun romp looks to have a few good laughs . . . mostly at Dwayne's expense, as he 'wings' his way through (tutu and wand included) his sentence as the Tooth Fairy. Michael Lembeck, no stranger to comedy (Santa Clause 2 and Santa Claus 3), directs this light hearted lesson in good deeds and redemption. A good escapist route for those wanting to laugh and forget about their worries for a few hours.

Edge of Darkness - current release date of 29 January 2010 - Drama/Thriller starring Mel Gibson as a detective investigating the death of his activist daughter. His search leads into a world of cover up, government corruption and the 'cleaner' sent to erase all evidence of the murder. Ray Huston (X-Men: Wolverine and Children of Men) and Ray Winstone (Indiana Jones and The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull) co-star in this dark conspiracy laden thriller. Maybe not one for taking your mind off the ills of the day, but a gripping tale to watch. (Check out ET on the set with Mel.)

The Spy Next Door - current release date 29 January 2010 - Comedy/Action with Jackie Chan once more fighting off the bad guys in a style he has perfected over the years; a mix of comedy and martial arts. Joining him in this Brian Levant (Flintstones, Beethoven and Snow Dogs)(mis)adventure are Billy Ray Cyrus (Hannah Montana) and George Lopez (Mr. Troop Mom and Swing Vote). Jackie must protect a couple of kids he agrees to babysit from secret agents when one of them downloads a secret code. A bit silly and fun to watch, this may nonetheless be one for the DVD download.

When in Rome - current release date 29 January 2010 - Romantic Comedy with Kristen Bell (Heroes, Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Veronica Mars) as a hopeless romantic who is very unlucky in love. She goes to Rome for her sister's wedding and 'steals' a coin from a so-called fountain of love. Before long she is relentlessly pursued by a horde of would-be suitors. Joining her in this cute tale of love, romance and self discovery are Josh Duhamel (Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen and TV's Las Vegas), Wil Arnett (G-Force and the upcoming Despicable Me), Don Johnson (Miami Vice), Angelica Houston (Ever After, Martian Child and, of late, on TV's Medium) and Danny DeVito (Renaissance Man and TVs Taxi). A Light date movie you can even take the teens to see. Check out a behind-the-scenes video clip here.

Author's choices: To go see - Daybreakers. For sheer laughs - Tooth Fairy. A great date movie - When In Rome. To wait for DVD - The Last Song and Hoodwinked too!: Hood vs Evil.

Coming up . . . John Travolta in From Paris With Love and the remake of George Romero's The Crazies.

Sources

IMDB

http://www.imdb.com/

The Movie Insider

http://www.themovieinsider.com/