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By Peter Chattaway
Movie studios tend to trot out some of their more
prestigious films as the year draws to a close, hoping these efforts will
be remembered when the Oscars and other awards are handed out early next
year. But the studios are also inclined to release some of their biggest
crowd-pleasers, as people prepare to celebrate the holidays together. Here
are a few of the more interesting films on the horizon. As always, release
dates are subject to change.
The Day the Earth Stood Still (December 12). The original 1951
science fiction film concerned a Christ-like alien named Klaatu and a robot
named Gort who come to earth at the height of the Cold War to warn the
governments of the world against their militaristic ways. The remake stars
Keanu Reeves as an alien who comes to earth to warn us against our
destruction of the environment. Directed by the openly Christian Scott
Derrickson, whose last film was The Exorcism of
Emily Rose.
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince (November 21). The sixth instalment of J.R.
Rowling’s popular series draws Harry and his friends into ever darker
territory, as the forces that follow the evil Dark Lord Voldemort begin to
assert themselves openly, while the wise and increasingly vulnerable
headmaster Dumbledore tries to prepare Harry for the challenges that still
lie ahead. On a lighter note, Harry and his classmates – now in their
mid- to late teens – also find themselves falling in love with each
other and coping with the usual jealousies and romantic attractions.
Changeling (October
24). Angelina Jolie stars as a single mother living in 1928 Los Angeles
whose child is kidnapped, and then returned to her, supposedly – but
she comes to suspect that the child that was returned to her is not really
hers. When she makes her doubts known, people react badly and accuse her of
being a bad mother, among other things. Based on a true story, the film is
directed by Clint Eastwood.
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Miracle at St. Anna (September 26) follows four African-American soldiers who
are trapped in a Tuscan village during World War II. Based on a novel by
James McBride, the film is directed by Spike Lee, who recently made the
news by criticizing Clint Eastwood for not depicting black soldiers in Flags of Our Fathers.
Quantum of Solace (November 7). Casino Royale gave the James Bond franchise a reboot and made it credible
again. Now we’ll see if lightning can strike twice, as Bond tracks
down the people he believes were responsible for the death of Vesper Lynd
in the previous film. Directed by Marc Forster (Finding Neverland, The Kite Runner), a
Swiss-German filmmaker who happens to be the first director in this
franchise who does not hail from a country in the British Commonwealth.
Defiance (December 12) is
a World War II film starring Daniel Craig (the current James Bond), Liev
Schreiber and Jamie Bell as three Jewish brothers who hide in the forests
of Poland and strike back at the Nazis along with other resistance
fighters. Directed by Edward Zwick, who has specialized in culturally
significant movies about cultural conflict like Glory, Blood Diamond, The Siege and The Last Samurai.
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (December 19) reunites director David
Fincher and star Brad Pitt for the first time since Fight Club. This time, Pitt stars as a
man who is born soon after World War I at the age of 80, and gets younger
as time goes by, eventually becoming an infant around the year 2000. The
script, based very loosely on a short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is by
Eric Roth (Forrest Gump).
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