Hollywood releases its Oscar contenders before the end of the year, including films by six Academy Award-winning directors.
By STEVE PERSALL
Published November 11, 2004
[Photo: Walt Disney Pictures]
National Treasure
There's no place like home for the holidays.
But Hollywood insists that theaters are the best places to be.
Welcome to another winter movie season, when studios traditionally unwrap their greatest gifts to moviegoers. Or at least drop tantalizing hints about films that Tampa Bay audiences won't see until after the new year.
A few movies will open in Los Angeles and New York before Dec. 31 to qualify for Academy Awards consideration. Then they'll gradually spread to other markets, including ours, in a platform release strategy to sustain interest through January when nomination ballots are shipped out. You'll see celebrities touting them on television perhaps weeks before the films arrive at local megaplexes. Be patient; they'll get here.
And don't worry; there's plenty to keep audiences occupied before the platform releases hit town.
We'll see works from six Academy Award-winning directors (Mike Nichols, Clint Eastwood, Oliver Stone, Steven Soderbergh, Robert Zemeckis and James L. Brooks), and one filmmaker, Martin Scorsese, who should have taken home a statuette by now.
We'll see sequels with good reasons to exist (Meet the Fockers, Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, Ocean's Twelve) and those without (Seed of Chucky, Blade: Trinity).
We'll see Broadway expanded for the big screen (The Phantom of the Opera) and the big screen shrunk to television size with Fat Albert and The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie. Hey, not every holiday gift can be a shiny bicycle.
Here's a rundown of the winter movie slate, with release dates that definitely are subject to change. Strong reviews and box office returns can lead to a platform release that wasn't expected, and poor reactions from critics and audiences can lead to an earlier, wider release to sell tickets before bad news travels.
NOW IN THEATERS
The Polar Express - Warner Bros.' expensive (reportedly $165-million) animation gamble rolled into theaters Wednesday. Computers never generated this visual style before, with motion-capture techniques allowing live actors (primarily Tom Hanks) to emote in animated form. The story, about a doubting child's rendezvous with Santa Claus, is almost secondary to the technology.
OPENING FRIDAY
Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason - Renee Zellweger returns as a British "singleton" who appeared to have found her true love (Colin Firth) at the conclusion ofBridget Jones's Diary. Not so, thanks to personal differences and the lingering allure of Bridget's former boss (Hugh Grant).
Seed of Chucky - The devilish doll is back, meaner than Jon Gruden after a Tampa Bay Buccaneers loss. Chucky and his bride (voice of Jennifer Tilly) want a baby but require a surrogate. Their perfect choice? The real Jennifer Tilly, spoofing her movie "star" persona.
After the Sunset - Master thieves (Pierce Brosnan, Salma Hayek) retire to a tropical island, ready to give up crime until their FBI pursuer (Woody Harrelson) inadvertently offers an idea for one last caper.
Undertow - Young brothers (Jamie Bell, Devon Alan) in the Deep South are led astray by a roustabout uncle (Josh Lucas). Directed by David Gordon Green, whose previous films, George Washington and All the Real Girls, earned high marks from critics.
Nov. 19
[Paramount Pictures]
The Spongebob Squarepants Movie
National Treasure - A high-tech treasure hunter (Nicolas Cage) seeks an original copy of the Declaration of Independence that may hide a map leading to the Founding Fathers' fortune. Hey, how about donating that to help cover the national debt?
Sideways - We'll give filmmaker Alexander Payne a chance to redeem himself after the disappointing About Schmidt. A revealing road trip with two obnoxious wine connoisseurs (Paul Giamatti, Thomas Haden Church) may please our palates.
The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie - A lot of people over the age of 7 swear the TV cartoon series is wonderfully goofy fun. We'll see if it translates to the big screen.
Nov. 24
[Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures]
Alexander
Finding Neverland - Get out your handkerchiefs. Playwright J.M. Barrie (Johnny Depp in top form) creates his masterpiece, Peter Pan, during a summer spent with a widow (Kate Winslet) and her children. Mrs. Barrie (Radha Mitchell) isn't pleased. The play's producer (Dustin Hoffman) only wants the show to go on. This is one of my favorite movies of 2004, so far.
Alexander - The release of Oliver Stone's epic biography of Alexander the Great (Colin Farrell) was postponed three weeks, reportedly for better positioning during the awards sweepstakes. Angelina Jolie, Val Kilmer and Anthony Hopkins are along for the chariot ride.
Christmas With the Kranks - If it's Christmas, Tim Allen must be trying a comeback again. With visions of The Santa Clause still dancing in his head, Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis play a married couple avoiding the commercialism of the holidays. Such as movies like this that string a few lights, sing some carols and expect moviegoers to line up at the box office. Ho ho hum.
Dec. 3
Closer - After four decades of landmark films, director Mike Nichols (The Graduate, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Angels in America) is still a filmmaker for all awards seasons. Julia Roberts, Jude Law, Natalie Portman and Clive Owen co-star in a partner-swapping drama.
Primer - The darling of this year's Sundance Film Festival, reportedly produced for only $7,000. The plot involves four friends who invent a time travel machine, but the central theme is a conflict of values and trust among the inventors, rather than science fiction.
Dec. 8
[Photo: New Line Cinema]
Blade: Trinity
Blade: Trinity - No, the vampire slayer (Wesley Snipes) hasn't joined forces with Carrie-Anne Moss' character from The Matrix. He's saving the human race from being overrun by bloodsuckers. Again.
Dec. 10
Ocean's Twelve - How dare Steven Soderbergh make a sequel to his 2001 heist hit, Ocean's Eleven, and not film any scenes in the Tampa Bay area? We all know Derby Lane was the reason that movie was successful, not George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, Matt Damon, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Andy Garcia. Yet they're all back for the encore. Go figure.
Dec. 17
The Aviator - If any December movie looks like Academy Award bait, it's this one. Director Martin Scorsese presents the Hollywood years of future billionaire Howard Hughes, played by Leonardo DiCaprio. An all-star cast includes Cate Blanchett as Katharine Hepburn, Kate Beckinsale as Ava Gardner and rock star Gwen Stefani as Jean Harlow. No doubt about this one.
Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events - This one, based on the book series, looks like An Addams Family Christmas in preview trailers. Jim Carrey plays multiple roles, primarily Count Olaf, the evil guardian of three orphans with a hefty inheritance to steal. The Grinch looks like Santa Claus next to this guy.
[Photo: Fox Searchlight Pictures]
Kinsey
Kinsey - Liam Neeson portrays Dr. Alfred Kinsey, whose surveys of human sexuality in the 1940s both enlightened and enraged Americans. Written and directed by Bill Condon, an Oscar winner for his Gods and Monsters screenplay.
Beyond the Sea - Kevin Spacey nursed this project for years, possibly too long to convincingly play 1950s pop star Bobby Darin (Mack the Knife), who threw away his career in the 1960s by protesting the Vietnam War, then died young. Kate Bosworth co-stars as Darin's wife, actor Sandra Dee.
Spanglish - Looking for a dark horse during the awards sweepstakes? This may be it. Writer-director James L. Brooks has a solid track record (Terms of Endearment, Broadcast News, As Good As It Gets). He also has Adam Sandler stretching out from his frat boy comedies, although not as far out as Punch Drunk Love. Sandler plays a chef whose marriage is affected by the arrival of a Mexican housekeeper (newcomer Paz Vega) and her cute daughter.
Dec. 22
[Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures]
Phantom of the Opera
The Phantom of the Opera - Andrew Lloyd Webber's enduring (some say endured) musical finally reaches the silver screen. Gerard Butler sings the title role, a disfigured composer haunting the Paris Opera House. Emmy Rossum plays his soprano fascination, and St. Petersburg product Patrick Wilson is the third corner of a love triangle. Message to director Joel Schumacher: Something as vibrant as Moulin Rouge; that's all I ask of you.
Meet the Fockers - Surviving his future in-laws in Meet the Parents was only half the battle for Greg Focker (Ben Stiller). Now he must introduce them (Robert De Niro, Blythe Danner) to his parents. Table talk should be hilarious, with Barbra Streisand and Dustin Hoffman as the Fockers.
The Flight of the Phoenix - Twentieth Century Fox executives must believe they have something here; this remake of a 1965 adventure was moved from the end-of-summer dead zone to the holiday season. Dennis Quaid takes the controls from Jimmy Stewart as pilot of a crashed airplane that must be rebuilt for his co-stars to survive.
Dec. 25
The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou - Anything springing from the mind of Wes Anderson is worth attention, especially if it stars Bill Murray, who graced the director's cult faves Rushmore and The Royal Tenenbaums. Murray plays an oceanographer seeking the elusive "jaguar shark" that ate his colleague. No explanations of an Anderson plot are possible; there's only the experience.
Fat Albert - Bill Cosby's beloved cartoon hit gets the live action treatment. Albert (Kenan Thompson) and the gang escape their television lives and enter a world where sunny dispositions aren't enough to get by in real-life Philadelphia.
Waiting on the platform
[Photo: Sony Pictures Classics]
The Merchant of Venice
In Good Company - A businessman (Dennis Quaid) deals with a boss half his age, who's dating his daughter. Written and directed by Paul Weitz, whose resume ranges from the ridiculous (American Pie) to the nearly sublime (About a Boy).
The Merchant of Venice - Al Pacino doing Shakespeare. Enough said.
A Love Song for Bobby Long - A young woman (Scarlett Johansson) returns to New Orleans after her mother's death. John Travolta plays the title character, a down-and-out professor living as a squatter in her mother's house.
Million Dollar Baby - Flying under the radar is director Clint Eastwood, perhaps to lower expectations after his Mystic River triumph. The followup doesn't sound nearly as ambitious: Eastwood plays a tough boxing trainer whose latest pupil is a woman (Hilary Swank). Didn't she go this route before in The Next Karate Kid?
In the art houses
Hoping to find a niche among major studio releases are a number of independently produced films, imports and documentaries that will arrive locally when their limited distribution deals allow.
The list includes: Zhang Yimou's martial arts epic House of Flying Daggers; Javier Bardem as a terminally ill man navigating The Sea Inside; James Caviezel in the Holocaust drama I Am David; Kevin Bacon as a pedophile in The Woodsman; Don Cheadle harboring African refugees in Hotel Rwanda.
Then there's the Bollywood comedy, Bride & Prejudice; the opera biography Callas Forever; Pedro Almodovar's Cannes Film Festival hit Bad Education; an eerie, violent Enduring Love; Audrey Tautou (Amelie) in A Very Long Engagement; the documentary Marilyn's Man, an extension of the Monroe mystique; Jean-Luc Godard's latest puzzler, Notre Musique; Chazz Palminteri's holiday fantasy, Noel; and Guerrilla: The Taking of Patty Hearst. And, since the elections are over, no Michael Moore.
