Romantic comedy, action melodrama arrive in theaters
A romantic comedy (“Just Like Heaven”), an action melodrama (“Lord of War”), a heartfelt tale (“The Thing About My Folks”) and a dark chiller (“Cry Wolf”) are the top titles arriving on the third weekend of September. The new motion pictures (with release dates subject to change) playing at a theater near you include:
– “The Baxter,” with Michael Showalter, who also wrote and directed, in a PG-13 comedy about a sweet but bland tax accountant continually dumped during relationships. The very low-key picture follows the main character as he learns that the prettiest young women aren’t always the best for him emotionally, physically or romantically.
– “The Conformist,” with Jean-Louis Trintignant in director Bernardo Bertolucci’s R-rated drama (1970) about a Mussolini follower trying to suppress the memory of a childhood incident that traumatized him.
That act leads him to become an adult seeking conformity within the Italian Fascist secret police, where he is ordered to assassinate his former professor who has become a dissident.
This restored version of the film, featuring stunning cinematography by Vittorio Storaro, is presented in Italian and French with English subtitles.
– “Cry Wolf,” with rocker-turned-actor Jon Bon Jovi (“Vampires: Los Muertos”) in a PG-13 thriller about some high school students who spread an Internet rumor that a serial killer is on the loose. Soon after bodies start piling up.
– “Just Like Heaven,” with Reese Witherspoon (“Sweet Home Alabama”) and Mark Ruffalo (“13 Going on 30”) in a PG-13 romantic comedy about a widower who falls in love with the spirit of a comatose woman. The supernatural story then becomes a race against time as the guy must convince the hospitalized woman’s well-meaning sister not to terminate life support.
– “Lord of War,” with Nicolas Cage (“Leaving Las Vegas”) in an R-rated melodrama about a former resident of the Ukraine who moves to America and becomes an international arms dealer who ignores the thousands of deaths caused by his weapons business. New Zealand filmmaker Andrew Niccol, who previously directed the stylish “Gattaca” and wrote the unnerving “The Truman Show,” raises some interesting themes about greed, responsibility and corruption, but the story jumps from deal to deal without ever allowing viewers to connect with the characters on an emotional level.
– “The Thing About My Folks,” with Paul Reiser (TV’s “Mad About You”), Peter Falk (TV’s “Columbo”), Elizabeth Perkins (“Big”) and Olympia Dukakis (“Moonstruck”) in a slice-of-life tale about a middle-aged son comforting his father when his mother decides to leave after more than four decades of marriage. The PG-13 picture contains some touching moments, but the script, written by Reiser, offers some far-fetched elements (particularly silly scenes with two pretty young women coming on to the veteran male stars) that give the material a TV-movie tone.
– “Tropical Malady,” with newcomers Banlop Lomnoi and Sakda Kaewbuadee in an unrated import about the relationship between a gay soldier and a farm boy and a quest to locate a ghostly shape-changing figure who takes the form of a tiger.
The atmospheric picture, directed by Thailand filmmaker Apichatpong Weerasethakul, won the jury prize at the 2004 Cannes International Film Festival.
It will be presented in Thai with English subtitles.
– “Venom,” with Agnes Buckner (“Murder By Numbers”) and Jonathan Jackson (“Insomnia”) in an R-rated chiller about a possessed man chasing some teenagers through the swamps of Louisiana so that he can collect their souls.
– “The Woods,” with Colleen Williams (“Welcome to Mooseport”) in an R-rated fright film about the 1965 murders occurring in a wooded area adjacent to an all-girls school where the students have to run for their lives.
At the buck$ office
“Emily Rose” took possession of theaters last weekend.
“The Exorcism of Emily Rose” opened with more than $30 million.
The PG-13 picture, the Associated Press reported, ranks as the third biggest September opener, behind “Sweet Home Alabama” and the first “Rush Hour.”
Eugene Levy and Samuel L. Jackson didn’t spread many laughs with their action comedy, “The Man.” The PG-13 picture opened with just $4 million.
According to AP, the 10 top-grossing films last weekend were:
1. “The Exorcism of Emily Rose” ($30.2 million)
2. “The 40 Year-Old Virgin” ($7.9 million)
3. “Transporter 2” ($7.2 million)
4. “The Constant Gardener” ($4.8 million)
5. “Red Eye” ($4.6 million)
6. “The Man” ($4 million)
7. “The Brothers Grimm” ($3.3 million)
8. “Wedding Crashers” ($3.2 million)
9. “Four Brothers” ($2.9 million)
10. “March of the Penguins” ($2.5 million)
Coming soon!
The films scheduled to arrive on Sept. 23 include: “Flightplan,” a suspense tale with Jodie Foster, and “Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride,” a stop-motion animation fantasy with the voice of Johnny Depp.