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Summer Movie Preview:

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The blockbusters…

The Bourne Ultimatum: Nothing says action like a tight T-shirt and a gun.

The Bourne Ultimatum
Release Date: August 3
Director: Paul Greengrass (The Bourne Supremacy, United 93)
Starring: Matt Damon, Julia Stiles, Joan Allen, David Strathairn, Paddy Considine, Edgar Ramirez
What It’s About: Assassin Jason Bourne (Damon) is back in this third installment of the successful action thriller franchise. So what’s up with Jason? Being on the run has made him tired, not to mention girlfriend-less, so now he’s decided to go back home to find out more about his past.
Outtakes: Filming locations for The Bourne Ultimatum included Morocco, Spain, France, and England.
Why You Shouldn’t See It: No one (read: me) thought that Matt Damon would ever make a suitable action here, and yet, here we are (take that, Ben “Daredevil” Affleck). And let’s face it: Jason Bourne is a pretty interesting fellow. If the franchise keeps it fresh, ticket sales should be brisk.
Official Website: www.thebourneultimatum.com
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 93%

Hot Rod
Release Date: August 3
Director: Akiva Schaffer (“Saturday Night Live”)
Starring: Andy Samberg, Isla Fisher, Jorma Taccone, Bill Hader, Sissy Spacek, Ian McShane
What It’s About: Amateur stuntman and all-around klutz Rod Kimble (Samberg) plans to clear fifteen buses in an attempt to raise money for his abusive stepfather’s (McShane) heart operation – so that the stepfather may live, and Rod can get even.
Outtakes: Director Akiva Schaffer is a part of the Lonely Island comedy team, which includes Adam Samberg and Jorma Taccone.
Why You Shouldn’t See It: It would only be a matter of time before Andy Samberg would go the way of any “SNL” cast and hit the big screen, but it seems like he’s taken half the time to get there. While his “SNL” digital shorts may be hilarious (depending on which ones you’ve seen), it doesn’t quite seem to be enough to headline a film.
Official Website: www.hotrodmovie.com
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 35%

Becoming Jane
Release Date: August 10
Director: Julian Jarrold (Great Expectations, Crime and Punishment)
Starring: Anne Hathaway, James McAvoy, Julie Walters, James Cromwell, Maggie Smith
What It’s About: Jane Austen (Hathaway) gets the big screen treatment in this imagined retelling of Jane’s adolescence, which includes a romance with Irishman Tom Lefroy (McAvoy).
Outtakes: In preparation for her role, Hathaway worked with a dialect coach and learned how to play the piano.
Why You Shouldn’t See it: It’s about time that someone honoured the prolific author by basing a film around her. And, although it remains to bee seen how well Hathaway can really nail that English accent (let’s hope it’s nowhere near as bad as Brad Pitt’s), a sweeping romantic movie never hurt anybody.
Official Website: www.becomingjane-themovie.com
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 58%

Bratz: The Movie
Release Date: August 10
Director: Sean McNamara (Raise Your Voice, “That’s So Raven”)
Starring: Nathalia Ramos, Logan Browning, Janel Parrish, Skyler Shaye, Paula Abdul
What It’s About: Based on the tween doll line and television show, Bratz: The Movie will bring the fashion toys to life. The original dolls (Yasmin, Cloe, Sasha and Jade) will be represented here as the film introduces their burgeoning friendship and teaches us a lesson about embracing our individuality by dressing like Pussycat Dolls rejects.
Outtakes: Not only does Paula Abdul serve as executive producer on this film, but she’ll also be appearing – hopefully sober.
Why You Shouldn’t See It: There’s nothing inherently wrong with this movie, unless you’re over the age of twelve.
Official Website: www.thebratzfilm.com
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 8%

Daddy Day Camp
Release Date: August 10
Director: Fred Savage (“Hannah Montana,” “Zoey 101”)
Starring: Cuba Gooding Jr., Paul Rae, Lochlyn Munro, Richard Gant, Buck Hinton, Spencir Bridges
What It’s About: A follow-up to 2003’s Daddy Day Care, Daddy Day Camp will follow the exploits of Charlie Hinton (Gooding Jr.) as he sets up a summer camp. Notice that in addition to leaving a group of kids without a day care, Charlie’s also gone through extensive plastic surgery.
Outtakes: The three credited screenwriters of this film, Alec Sokolow, J. David Stem, and David N. Weiss, all have other (probably more successful) projects coming out this summer. Sokolow has worked on Evan Almighty, while Stem and Weiss collaborated on Shrek the Third.
Why You Shouldn’t See It: Did Cuba Gooding Jr. really win an Oscar, or was it all a bad dream? The only redeeming thing about this film is the fact that we finally know what Fred Savage’s been up to.
Official Website: www.sonypictures.com/movies/daddydaycamp
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 2%

Rush Hour 3: Lee and Carter share more hi-jinx in a cab.

Rush Hour 3
Release Date: August 10
Director: Brett Ratner (Rush Hour 2, X-Men: The Last Stand)
Starring: Chris Tucker, Jackie Chan, Hiroyuki Sanada, Youki Kudoh, Max Von Sydow, Roselyn Sanchez, Roman Polanski
What It’s About: Always restless, Chief Inspector Lee (Chan) and Detective James Carter (Tucker) – now demoted to traffic cop status – decide to go to France to track down a group of assassins that may be linked to the Chinese Triad.
Outtakes: Both Tony Jaa (Ong-bak) and Aishwarya Rai (Bride & Prejudice) declined to appear in the film.
Why You Shouldn’t See It: The first two films were highly successful, suggesting that this one will be no different. With an obvious chemistry between Chan and Tucker, plus their martial arts acrobatics, audiences should be entertained to no end.
Official Website: www.rushhourmovie.com
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 20%

Stardust
Release Date: August 10
Director: Matthew Vaughn (Layer Cake)
Starring: Charlie Cox, Claire Danes, Sienna Miller, Michelle Pfeiffer, Ricky Gervais, Peter O'Toole, Robert De Niro, Rupert Everett
What It’s About: Part whimsical, part fantasy, this is the story of Tristan (Cox), who wants to impress cold but beautiful Victoria (Miller) by retrieving a mystical fallen star, which has been transformed into the form of a young woman, Yvane (Danes). But he’s not the only one who’s after the star – a king’s four sons are also after the star that will secure them the throne, as well as an evil witch, Lamia (Pfeiffer), who needs the star to make her young again. Will Tristan find the star in time? Will he outsmart the evil witch? Will he wake up and realize that Victoria is a stone cold bitch and fall in love with Yvane instead?
Outtakes: Based on the graphic novel by Neil Gaiman, who consciously wrote the story with pre-Tolkien fantasy elements.
Why You Shouldn’t See It: With this all-star cast, you can’t go wrong.
Official Website: www.stardustmovie.com
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 74%

Fanboys
Release Date: August 17
Director: Kyle Newman (The Hollow)
Starring: Sam Huntington, Chris Marquette, Dan Fogler, Jay Baruchel, Kristen Bell, Carrie Fisher, Ray Park, Danny Trejo, Billy Dee Williams
What It’s About: Hardcore Star Wars fans Eric (Huntington), Linus (Marquette), Hutch (Fogler), and Jay (Windows) go on a road trip across the country with the intention of watching Star Wars: Episode I: The Phantom Menace at the Skywalker Ranch to fulfill the wish of a dying friend.
Outtakes: One of the executive producers of the film is actor Kevin Spacey. The film will feature roles and cameos for some iconic sci-fi actors – Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia), William Shatner (Captain James T. Kirk), and Billy Dee Williams (Lando Calrissian).
Why You Shouldn’t See It: Even if you aren’t a Star Wars fan, this sweet film embraces the inner geek in all of us, and lets us know that it’s totally fine to be quirky and offbeat.
Official Website: www.myspace.com/fanboysmovie
Update: The film is now slated for a January 18, 2008 release.

The Invasion
Release Date: August 17
Director: Oliver Hirschbiegel (Das Experiment)
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig, Jeremy Northam, Malin Akerman
What It’s About: A mysterious epidemic that is altering the behaviour of its affected is sweeping the nation, and only one person can figure out what’s going on. That would be psychiatrist Carol (Kidman), who realizes that the epidemic is extraterrestrial in nature. She also discovers that her son may be the key to stopping this outbreak from spreading.
Outtakes: During filming, Daniel Craig received the news that he had won the role of James Bond in Casino Royale.
Why You Shouldn’t See It: As great as Nicole Kidman is, thrillers have never been her forte (The Peacemaker, The Stepford Wives), and this is no exception. With a mish-mash of elements from Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Thing, and every other alien film ever made, this film sounds like a mess. Amidst rumours that test screenings fell flat and half of the movie had to be re-shot, The Invasion probably sounds better on paper than it does on-screen.
Official Website: theinvasionmovie.warnerbros.com
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 20%

Superbad
Release Date: August 17
Director: Greg Mottola (“Arrested Development”)
Starring: Jonah Hill, Michael Cera, Seth Rogen, Bill Hader
What It’s About: Seth (Hill) and Evan (Cera) are two co-dependent high school seniors who must face separation anxiety as they try to score alcohol for a party.
Outtakes: You might recognize Jonah Hill from The 40-Year-Old Virgin (he was the annoying e-Bay customer that visits Trish’s store), and as luckless overachiever Sherman Schrader from Accepted.
Why You Shouldn’t See It: Seeing director Mottola and Michael Cera reunite after “Arrested Development” is always a treat, but what isn’t a treat is this juvenile comedy.
Official Website: www.areyousuperbad.com
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 87%

The Pleasure of Your Company
Release Date: August 17
Director: Michael Ian Black (debut)
Starring: Jason Biggs, Isla Fisher, Joe Pantoliano, Mark Consuelos, Chris Diamantopoulos
What It’s About: When Anderson’s (Biggs) girlfriend unexpectedly dies, he becomes disillusioned and, on a dare, proposes to waitress Katie (Fisher). Katie, who’s also going through disenchantments of her own, accepts.
Outtakes: This film has several working titles in addition to The Pleasure of Your Company: The Next Girl I See, and Wedding Daze.
Why You Shouldn’t See It: In addition to seeing where they’ve dug up Jason Biggs from, you can see if Michael Ian Black, one of the masterminds behind the comedy troupe “Stella,” has what it takes to make it as a comedic director.
Official Website: www.mgm.com
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 60% (based on 5 reviews)

Good Luck Chuck: All about Dane Cook's awesome crotch powers.

Good Luck Chuck
Release Date: August 24 September 21, 2007
Director: Mark Helfrich (debut)
Starring: Dane Cook, Jessica Alba, Dan Fogler
What It’s About: After Charlie Kagan (Cook) refuses to kiss a psycho Goth girl during an intense game of spin-the-bottle, she places a hex on him that, years later, prevents him from finding the woman of his dreams. When Charlie realizes that every woman he’s been with immediately finds true love after dating him and word gets out, multitudes of women start suddenly lining up to have meaningless sex with him so that they may find The One. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but when Charlie meets Cam Wexler (Alba) and falls for her, he’s got to find a way to break the curse before Cam falls for someone else.
Outtakes: Although this marks Helfrich’s directorial debut, he’s been a film editor for numerous films, including Predator, Showgirls, Scary Movie, Rush Hour 2, and X-Men: The Last Stand. In the latter film, he had an uncredited role as Ash Man.
Why You Shouldn’t See It: As funny as this film might turn out to be, there’s no denying that Dane Cook is really, really annoying.
Official Website: www.goodluckchuckthemovie.com
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 3%

The Brothers Solomon
Release Date: August 31 September 7
Director: Bob Odenkirk (Let’s Go to Prison)
Starring: Will Arnett, Will Forte, Chi McBride, Kristen Wiig, Malin Akerman
What It’s About: Brothers Dean (Forte) and John (Arnett) Solomon have been sheltered by their well-meaning father all their lives, so they’re surprised to find that their father’s last wish is to be a grandfather. Now Dean and John, socially awkward and romantically inept, must find someone crazy enough to have a baby with them (…have they tried “The Bachelor”?).
Outtakes: Will Forte can currently be seen on “Saturday Night Live,” alongside Will Arnett’s wife, Amy Poehler.
Why You Shouldn’t See It: It’s neither novel nor droll, and Will Arnett’s talents seem to be wasted here (as they were in RV and Let’s Go to Prison). If you’re in the mood, watch The 40-Year-Old Virgin instead.
Official Website: www.sonypictures.com/movies/thebrotherssolomon
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 16%

Halloween
Release Date: August 31
Director: Rob Zombie (House of 1,000 Corpses, The Devil’s Rejects)
Starring: Scout Taylor-Compton, Malcolm McDowell, Daeg Faerch, Tyler Mane, Sheri Moon Zombie, Dee Wallace Stone, William Forsythe, Ken Foree, Udo Kier
What It’s About: This is a remake of John Carpenter’s 1978 horror flick of the same name, where deranged killer Michael Myers escapes from a mental institution and goes looking for his sister, Laurie Strode (Taylor-Compton).
Outtakes: Oliver Stone was previously attached to this project. He opted to film World Trade Center instead.
Why You Shouldn’t See It: Hardcore fans of the Halloween franchise, Rob Zombie movies, and gory horrors in general will get a kick out of this film, but don’t expect the remake to trump the original.
Official Website: www.halloween-themovie.com
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 25%

Mr. Bean's Holiday
Release Date: August 31
Director: Steve Bendelack ("The League of Gentlemen")
Starring: Rowan Atkinson, Emma de Caunes, Jean Rochefort, Antoine de Caunes, Willem Dafoe
What It’s About: Mr. Bean, the mumbling recluse, goes on vacation to Cannes and inadvertently separates a young boy from his father. In usual Bean fashion, he is mistaken as both a kidnapper and an acclaimed filmmaker when he tries to reunite the boy with his father.
Outtakes: Rowan Atkinson has sparked rumours that this will be Mr. Bean’s last adaptation.
Why You Shouldn’t See It: If this were 1995, this film would be a sure-fire hit – but since it’s 2007 and liking Mr. Bean is almost passé, producing a feature length film about the hapless protagonist seems like beating a dead horse. Despite this, if rumours serve to be true and this is indeed Mr. Bean’s last film, you should see this one as a fitting final good-bye to a great comedy icon.
Official Website: www.beansholiday.com
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 50%

Wristcutters
Release Date: August 31
Director: Goran Dukic (How I Saved the World, The Yellow House)
Starring: Patrick Fugit, Shannyn Sossamon, Shea Whigham, Tom Waits, John Hawkes, Will Arnett, Leslie Bibb
What It’s About: When Zia (Fugit) slits his wrists, he enters a strange afterlife reserved for people who have committed suicide. In this bizarre world, Zia befriends Eugene (Whigham) and Mikal (Sossamon) as he tries to find his long lost love.
Outtakes: Based on Etgar Keret’s short story, "Kneller's Happy Campers," and the graphic novel "Pizzeria Kamikaze.”
Why You Shouldn’t See It: Budding filmmakers may take special note of this film, which was shot entirely on custom made super-16 color infrared film. And for non-budding filmmakers who enjoy a good, surreal film with unconventional undertones, this one’s for you too.
Official Website: www.wristcutters.com
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 89% (based on 9 reviews)

[ From Ocean's Thirteen to Live Free or Die Hard. Part I of the preview. ]