Holiday movies
Published Tuesday December 9th, 2008
A wide range of films are hitting Metro theatres this month
Everything from a swash-buckling mouse to the real life story of a plot to assassinate Nazi leader Adolf Hitler will be among the wide variety of movies coming to area theatres over the next month.
The Christmas season is one of the biggest movie-going times of the year, says Dean Leland of Halifax, vice-president of media and studio relations for Empire Theatres Inc.
"People take a breather from their Christmas shopping to catch a movie; university students are home for their Christmas break and are looking for things to do; the regular school kids will soon be off for the yuletide season and a lot of adults take their vacation time during the holiday season," he said.
And do not think talk of economic woes will reduce the number of people taking in the movies this Christmas, said Leland.
"We do very well when times are tough for the economy," said the Empire Theatres spokesman. "People want to escape all the bad economic news and sit with a Coke and popcorn, enjoy a movie and let their imagination do the work for them."
Through the heart of the Depression in the 1930s, the movies reported record attendances, said Leland.
Over the next few weeks, he said the theatres will respond to the season with Christmas movies, family films, dramatic movies aimed at attracting the attention of the Academy Award voters and the usual array of action flicks.
Following in the footsteps of Bolt and Madagascar 2, which were released in November, will be another animated feature which promises to be just as popular with the youngsters. It is -- The Tale of Despereaux.
The story involves three unusual heroes -- a misfit mouse who prefers reading books to snacking on them, a rat who plots to leave the darkness of the dungeon and a bumbling servant girl with cauliflower ears. It will be coming to the theatres on Dec. 19.
Another family-oriented film is Marley and Me, which will be hitting the theatres on Christmas Day, starring Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston. Leland noted a lot of movies are released on Dec. 25 because it is one of the biggest movie-going days of the year.
Marley and Me is about how a family learns important lessons from their adorable, but often mischievous, dog.
Another Christmas Day release is Bedtime Stories. It is a comedy about a hotel handyman, played by Adam Sandler, whose life changes when the lavish bedtime stories he tells his nieces and nephew start to come true. Leland noted this is a departure for Sandler who usually does adult comedies, but added that this one is definitely family-oriented.
There is also no shortage of action films coming up over the next few weeks -- two of them coming to theatres on Dec. 25.
One is The Spirit, starring Samuel L. Jackson and Scarlett Johansson, which is an action thriller about a rookie policeman who literally returns from the grave. His mission is to battle crime against the evil forces in Central City.
Then, there is Valkyrie, an action film set in Nazi Germany during the Second World War. In the movie, Tom Cruise plays German Col. Claus von Stauffenberg in this real-life story of a Nazi officer who led an ill-fated plot to assassinate Hitler.
As the Oscars draw nearer, some heavy dramas will be also in the offing over the next few weeks.
One will be Gran Torina, in which Clint Eastwood both acts and directs. In the film, a disgruntled Korean War veteran, played by Eastwood, attempts to reform his neighbour, a southeast Asian teenager who tried to steal his (the veteran's) prize possession -- his 1972 Gran Torino.
There is also the film Milk, starring Sean Penn, which deals with the election of the first openly gay politician in the United States. However, Harvey Milk's political rise was cut short in the 1970s when he was assassinated by San Francisco city supervisor Dan White.
The drama Revolutionary Road -- reuniting the Titanic stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, in the adaptation of the novel by Richard Yates -- will also be coming to the theatres soon. The story involves a young couple living in a Connecticut suburb in the mid-1950s and their efforts to come to grips with their personal problems while trying to raise their two children.
Another upcoming film, based on a novel, is The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Although not opening in theatres until Christmas Day, it is already getting a lot of Academy Award buzz.
Adapted from F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel and starring Brad Pitt, it chronicles the story of Benjamin Button, a man who starts aging backwards with some bizarre consequences. It was directed by David Fincher.
One of the most intriguing movies coming out this month is Seven Pounds, which is being released on Dec. 19.
Starring box office favourite Will Smith, it deals with an IRS (Internal Revenue Service) agent with a fateful secret. He embarks on an incredible journey of redemption, which involves permanently altering the lives of seven strangers.
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