LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth |
CAMP Film |
by Rob Rector |
At this time of year, all the big picture prognosticators like to weigh in on what they feel will be deemed award-worthy, as Hollywood is set to embark on a multi-month trophy orgy.
The Golden Globes, The Screen Actors Guild, The People's Choice, The Blockbuster Awards and The Academy Awards are just a smattering of what is to clog our collective conscience in the weeks ahead. So let's skip right ahead to the summer. This is the beach, right? And with the "official" end of summer having recently passed, what better time to look ahead at what is on the slate, cinematically speaking, for the summer of 2005? It may seem like dj vu, as Hollywood seems to be prepared to churn out a slew of sequels and remakes. But, then again, who said summer is a time for creativity? Here's a peek ahead (remember, dates are subject to change at this early stage of the game): April Yes, though technically not summer, several studios start their "event pictures" this month in an attempt to cash in early on the crowds. The Amityville HorrorMichael Bay, who racked up a hit with the remake of Texas Chainsaw Massacre last year, now takes on the ultimate haunted house tale of supernatural and paranormal shenanigans in a sleepy suburban abode. Ask the DustSalma Hayek plays a feisty Mexican hottie who hopes to rise above her current lot in life by marrying a wealthy American. Things go askew when she meets Arturo Bandini (played by Colin Farrell), a first-generation Italian hoping to land a writing career and a blue-eyed blonde on his arm. This Tom Cruise-produced feature is directed by Robert Towne. ElizabethtownDirector Cameron Crowe (Almost Famous) returns with this ensemble comedy intended to be "a love letter to the resilience of the life force." The lengthy list of actors signed include Kirsten Dunst, Orlando Bloom, Susan Sarandon, Judy Greer, Jessica Biel and Loudon Wainwright III. May Star Wars III: Revenge of the SithAll will be forgiven for The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones if director George Lucas ends this trilogy with panache (read: no trade federation talks and demolish Jar Jar). This one takes place at the end of the Clone Wars and shows how young Anakin finally succumbs to the Dark Side of the Force. MadagascarFrom the DreamWorks animation team (who gave us Shrek, but also Father of the Pride) comes this computer generated tale of a group of zoo residents who accidentally get shipped to the wilds of Africa. The film features the voices of Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, Jada Pinkett-Smith and David Schwimmer. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the GalaxyBased on the Douglas Adams best-seller, this adventure follows a group of intergalactic joy riders, starring Martin Freeman, Sam Rockwell, Mos Def, Zooey Deschanel, John Malkovich. June Batman BeginsTaking a proper turn away from the camp-and-codpiece capers that director Joel Schumacher had digressed into, Begins shows us the roots of this caped crusader. Christian Bale stars as the masked superhero and Christopher (Memento) Nolan directs. The cast is also rounded out with Michael Caine, Liam Neeson, Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman, Katie Holmes, Tom Wilkinson, Cillian Murphy, Rutger Hauer and Ken Watanabe. Fun with Dick & JaneRemaking the Jane Fonda-George Segal feature, Jim Carey and Cameron Diaz reunite as the titular leads who lose everything and turn to a life of crime. July BewitchedThis one seems too good to be true. Apparently not as much a remake of the popular kitschy sitcom, but a film "about making a sitcom into a feature film." Whatever, as long as you have a cast like Nicole Kidman, Will Ferrell, Shirley MacLaine and Michael Caine, I'm there. Charlie and the Chocolate FactoryThe long-awaited reteaming of director Tim Burton and his male muse Johnny Depp could not have a richer turf to reunite. Based more closely on the darker vision of the Roald Dahl classic, Depp show us his Willy... Wonka, that is. The Pink PantherNo one could ever capture the utter comedic perfection that was Peter Sellers, and, as game as Steve Martin may be as Inspector Clouseau, his latest big-screen dalliances have been far from ingenious. Monster-in-LawPoor little J. Lo. She's taken quite a drubbing in 2004, so we can only hope this poor little lass can overcome the Gigli curse with this comedy, which marks the big-screen return of Jane Fonda. August Everything is IlluminatedBased on the novel by Jonathan Safran Foer, Elijah Wood stars as a young Jewish American who travels to the Ukraine in the hope of finding the woman who saved his grandfather from the Nazis. Aeon FluxCharlize Theron is currently hospitalized while filming this live-action version of the popular cult cartoon, so we shall see if it makes the date for summer. The film is set 1,000 years in the future, when disease has wiped out the majority of the population. Theron plays the titular lead who leads an underground rebellion of the government. No date, but scheduled Jurassic Park IVSteven Spielberg has not named a director of this installment (he may even take the reigns himself), and remains tight-lipped as to the details. Web reports, if true, reveal enticing tidbits, and leads Sam Neil and Jeff Goldblum have signed on. Brokeback MountainSet in Texas and Wyoming, Mountain is the romantic tale of two male cowboys from very different backgrounds who meet and fall in love while working together as ranch hands near Wyoming's Brokeback Mountain the summer of 1961. Starring Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal and directed by Ang Lee. War of the WorldsSteven Spielberg teams with Tom Cruise for this adaptation of H.G. Wells' classic. Sit tight during the following months and allow Hollywood to break its arm patting itself on the back and just keep focused for those hazy summer months at the multiplex, for it's only eight months away. |
LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth, Vol. 14, No. 13 September 17, 2004 |