The holiday Hollywood full court press returns this Friday after a brief hiatus last weekend while everyone took out the trash. Tomorrow is loaded with new releases vying for attention. The most high profile is Mel Gibson’s Apocalypto, but whether it’ll be able to overcome his personal life controversy in order to make a box office dent is anyone’s guess.
Here's our usual look at what's opening and worth watching this Friday in theaters around the country:
Limited Releases(Opening in fewer than 500 theaters.)
This is the weekend David Lynch’s Inland Empire hits a handful of screen. Yes, that’s the movie he’s promoting by sitting in a folding chair next to a cow. Lynch has never been much good at making sense. Expect Indland Empire to be every bit as confusing as everything else he does, but also every bit as interesting. The movie stars Laura Dern as an actress offered a role in a major motion picture. She sleeps with her co-star and gets confused about whether it’s she or her character in the film that’s the real person. Yep, definitely a David Lynch movie.
Apocalypto (Opens in 2,465 theaters.)
Mel Gibson’s follow up to sainthood is an action-adventure pic set against the turbulent end times of the once great Mayan civilization. When his idyllic existence is brutally disrupted by a violent invading force, a man is taken on a perilous journey to a world ruled by fear and oppression where a harrowing end awaits him. Through a twist of fate and spurred by the power of his love for his woman and his family he will make a desperate break to return home and to ultimately save his way of life. If you can get past the controversy surrounding Mel’s personal life, then consensus seems to be that somewhere in here you might find a good movie.
Blood Diamond (Opens in 1,910 theaters.)
Set against the backdrop of civil war and chaos in 1990s Sierra Leone, Blood Diamond is the story of Danny Archer (Leonardo DiCaprio), a South African mercenary, and Solomon Vandy (Djimon Hounsou), a Mende fisherman. Both men are African, but their histories as different as any can be, until their fates become joined in a common quest to recover a rare pink diamond that can transform their lives. The point of it all seems to be that our lust for diamonds is destroying Africa. I’d always thought it was their poor choices in government myself. It’s getting mixed reviews and DiCaprio’s accent in the trailer is so bad it’s almost unbearable. Unless you’re looking for an excuse to get out of buying your wife jewelry, skip it.
The Holiday (Opens in 2,610 theaters.)
Jack Black, Jude Law, Kate Winslet, and Cameron Diaz star in the story of two women on opposite sides of the globe, who find themselves in a similar predicament. Desperate for a change of scenery, the two women meet on the internet and swap houses for the Christmas. They find romance with geographically undesirable men, and bad reviews from critics who wish Cameron Diaz was dead. Guys if you’re looking for a way to impress a date, take her to this. Otherwise, consider skipping it.
Unaccompanied Minors (Opens in 2,775 theaters.)
It’s Christmas Eve and a huge blizzard has shut down the airport. Among the stranded travelers, five “Unaccompanied Minors” are determined to max out their holiday by running inside and outside the airport. Without a parent in sight, the rambunctious five outwit and outrun an uptight airport official (Lewis Black) and his gullible assistant (Wilmer Valderrama). Joyriding on golf carts, plummeting through baggage chutes and canoeing down a snow bank, the kids turn Christmas at the airport into holiday pandemonium. It’s exactly the movie you’d expect it to be. Not terrible, just utterly predictable. Rent Home Alone instead.
STILL IN THEATERS AND WORTH YOUR TIME: Happy Feet, Casino Royale, Deja Vu, Borat, Tenacious D in: The Pick of Destiny, Stranger than Fiction, Bobby, The Fountain, The Queen
