20.
Sinister
October 5
I’m basing my interest in this one largely on the word-of-mouth out of the South by Southwest Film Festival where Sinister premiered and scared a lot of folks. Come October that’s exactly what I’m looking for and while I must admit, I am curious to see what Paranormal Activity 4 (Oct 19) will bring to the table, it’s always nice to look forward to something altogether new.
19.
The Silver Linings Playbook
November 21
I want to see The Silver Linings Playbook, but based on the trailer it seems rather “been there, done that” so my interest has diminished slightly, though not entirely considering David O. Russell has proven to be a director not to count out.
The film is based on Matthew Quick’s debut novel and centers on former high school history teacher Pat Peoples (Bradley Cooper) who has just been released from a mental hospital and is trying to settle back into day-to-day life. Believing he’s been gone for only a few months rather than four years, he attempts to reconcile with his estranged wife and ultimately attempting to become the man she had always wanted him to be.
Along with Cooper, the film co-stars Robert De Niro, Jennifer Lawrence, Chris Tucker, Jacki Weaver, Julia Stiles, John Ortiz and Shea Whigham.
18.
Gangster Squad
September 7
My interest in Gangster Squad has really gone down, largely out of a lack of faith that director Ruben Fleischer can pull it off and because Warner Bros. can’t seem to settle on a release date they feel comfortable with. The September 7 date tells me they may be pushing for a Toronto Film Festival premiere with the fest beginning on the 6th, but I have a hard time believing the opening day film would be one hitting theaters less than 24 hours later.
The cast, which includes Sean Penn, Ryan Gosling, Josh Brolin, Michael Pena, Anthony Mackie, Giovanni Ribisi, Emma Stone and Nick Nolte among others is impressive, but will this feel more like an authentic crime drama or like a glossy, fake period mess? I clearly have my doubts.
17.
Jack Reacher
December 21
I am a huge Tom Cruise fan so basically anything he’s in (Rock of Ages excluded even though he was the best thing about that movie) I’m going to be interested in seeing and Jack Reacher is no different.
Based on the Lee Child novel “One Shot”, the film features Cruise as the titular character, a former military policeman-turned-drifter, who’s on the trail of a lone sniper who murders five victims before being captured. Only problem is the investigation doesn’t end there. An international trailer recently debuted, which I’ve included below, but I expect we’ll have a cleaner domestic trailer soon enough.
16.
The Sessions
October 26
The Sessions premiered at the Sundance Film Festival where it was titled The Surrogate and went on to win the Audience Award (Dramatic) and Special Jury Prize (Dramatic). Fox Searchlight picked it up, re-titled it Six Sessions before finally deciding on The Sessions and here we are, anticipating a film that a lot of people are talking about and when they do the word “Oscar” seems to always be involved.
Starring John Hawkes, Helen Hunt, William H. Macy and Moon Bloodgood, the film centers on a man (Hawkes) confined to an iron lung who is determined–at age 38–to lose his virginity. With the help of his therapists and the guidance of his priest (Macy), he sets out to make his dream a reality. The story is based on the autobiographical writings of California-based journalist and poet Mark O’Brien.
