4/8 – 4/10 New movies come out each weekend; come here to find out what happens when I put The Weekend Blend off until the last minute. Two new wide releases this weekend, with several great limited releases to hunt down. Keep reading to find out how you should spend your movie going weekend:
Misc. Limited Releases
(Opening on fewer than 500 screens.)
Woody Allen’s Will Ferrell powered Melinda & Melinda opens it slightly wider release this weekend on 294 screens, and is somewhat enjoyable. But, if it wasn’t playing near you last weekend, it probably still isn’t this one. Neither for that matter is Eros, a sexy composition of three short pieces of erotica from three different directors on 12 screens. But the only limited I’m really interested in is Steven Chow’s Kung Fu Hustle, opening only in LA and NYC. It’s a comedy, a western, a Matrix rip-off, and bears a weird resemblance to Monty Python. The truth is it’s hard to figure out exactly what it is, except to say that there’s Kung Fu in it, and it looks like a blast. Watch for it as the release expands.
Fever Pitch
(Opens on 3267 screens.)
Jimmy Fallon watches Drew Barrymore get knocked out by an errant baseball and cheers in this romantic comedy that you won’t realize is directed by the Farrelly Brothers until their names roll across the end credits. Fallon’s enjoyment of her bad fortune is as close as this thing gets to typical Farrelly gross out humor, but maybe that’s good sense their shtick has gotten pretty tired. The movie is light, sweet, harmless, and as a bonus comes with a hilarious “American Dad” cartoon short from Seth McFarland. Sure, Fallon could stand to take off a little of that rouge, but if you can ignore his eyeliner Fever Pitch is a decent romantic comedy, probably best suited as rental.
Sahara
(Opens on 3154 screens.)
It looks like an Indiana Jones rip-off marketed as a National Treasure rip-off, and that’s quite probably what it is. Still, for the ladies it’s hard to resist Matthew McConaughey’s melon-like muscles, and for me impossible not to root for the revitalization of wisecracker Steve Zahn. High desert adventure is hard not to enjoy, a viewpoint which no doubt explains why I’m one of the few critics to smile upon The Mummy… both of them. Sahara is not getting an overwhelming sand storm of positive reviews, but there are enough out there that you should be willing to give it a chance. Puff entertainment at the theater has its place, and Sahara looks like a good way to get it.
Still In Theaters and Worth Your Time: Sin City, Guess Who, Hostage, Million Dollar Baby
