2013
10/3
Working For It: Directed by David Fincher (Fight Club, The Social Network). Screenplay from the writer of the acclaimed book of the same name. Reportedly, powerful lead performances from Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike. Supporting cast including Neil Patrick Harris, Carrie Coon (The Leftovers), and Patrick Fugit (Almost Famous).
Working Against It: I'm having trouble finding anything. Even Tyler Perry is said to be good in this.
Odds I'll See It: 95%
Other Options:
Working For It: Apparently, it's about parents and teenagers trying to navigate relationships in the internet age. That sounds hokey, but director Jason Reitman (Up in the Air, Young Adult, Thank You For Smoking) has earned the benefit of the doubt. It looks like a rare dramatic turn for Adam Sandler (anything to get him out of the Happy Madison bubble I meet with open arms) to go along with a large and talented cast, including Jennifer Garner, Dean Norris, Judy Greer, and JK Simmons.
Working Against It: Reitman's most recent movie was the critically ignored Labor Day. I haven't seen it, so I can't make a judgment, but he is in need of a critical or commercial hit.
Odds I'll See It: 30%
Working For It: October means it's time for scary movies. Here's one about a creepy doll. Do you need much more than that?
Working Against It: I don't know the cast very well. The writer hasn't worked on much else. The director is known for sequels to The Butterfly Effect and Mortal Combat. That paints the picture of a very forgettable scary movie.
Odds I'll See It: 20%
Working For It: I like seeing Reese Witherspoon showing up again. In this movie, she's helping out Sudanese refuges in Kansas.
Working Against It: I'm not familiar with the director, writer, or half the cast. More importantly, this is not the Reese Witherspoon movie that I'm excited to see this fall. That comes in December.
Odds I'll See It: 5%
Working For It: Uhhhhhhh, it's probably going to be more subtle than the Atlas Shrugged movies.
Working Against It: The poster looks like an internet meme that someone made on Reddit. I have enough issues with the internal logic of the books. Nic Cage is hell-bent on making sure no one ever accidentally takes him seriously. So many good reasons not to see this.
Odds I'll See It: .666%
Working For It: It's colorful.
Working Against It: Look at that poster. Do I need to explain why I won't be seeing this?
Odds I'll See It: -12%
10/10
The Lock: Despite being an incredibly busy weekend, nothing is required viewing.Other Options:
Working For It: It won people's choice at Sundance this year. Miles Teller stars as an aspiring drummer training at a competitive music conservatory, driven especially hard by JK Simmons. I won't pretend that the story is anything special, but the performances are what sell it. I've been looking forward to finally seeing it for most of the year.
Working Against It: As I said, the story isn't particularly special. It's hard to think that will matter in the end though.
Odds I'll See It: 58%
Working For It: A potential Oscar-worthy lead performance from Bill Murray. Melissa McCarthy in a supporting role (where I think she works better). A bunch of other actors that you like too. The story looks pretty simple: a young boy and a misanthropic older man become friends. I assume the performances make or break it.
Working Against It: When was the last time you really enjoyed a movie with Bill Murray in a lead role? Hyde Park on Hudson? Broken Flowers? Lost in Translation was over a decade ago. I'm not too worried, but Murray isn't without blemishes.
Odds I'll See It: 42%
Working For It: Robert Downey Jr. not playing Iron Man. Instead, he's a lawyer trying to defend his father in a murder case, or something like that. They've been advertising the movie hard and I like a good courtroom drama.
Working Against It: The reviews have already been mixed and it has the look of something that is all polish and no substance. It doesn't even look like it will be the awards season player that it hoped to be, so I'm fine with taking my time to catch this one.
Odds I'll See It: 33%
Working For It: Based on a book that I sort of remember from my childhood, it's a family comedy from Disney starring Steve Carrell, Jennifer Garner, and a bunch of kids who probably are in shows like "Dog with a Blog". The X-factor is going to be in the bit parts that feature people like Dick Van Dyke, Jennifer Coolidge, Megan Mullaly, and Donald Glover. If this movie is a success, it will be in the small jokes in between the zaniness.
Working Against It: Honestly, the biggest thing hurting this for me is that it's awkward being the lonely guy in his 20s in a theater full of families. Oh, and that it probably won't be very good.
Odds I'll See It: 25%
Working For It: It's October and, thanks to Underworld and Resident Evil, another staple of the season is the action horror movie. I'm sure it will be loud and fun and action-packed.
Working Against It: There's rarely more to these movies than the face value. It's not a genre that I'm attracted to. If I wasn't considering I, Frankenstein, which at least had Aaron Eckhart and Yvonne Strahovski, what hope does this have?
Odds I'll See It: 6%
Working For It: It's a Thriller. It looks a lot like No Good Deed, as far as I can tell.
Working Against It: I don't recognize the cast. I don't trust the director. Most importantly, I don't care for the genre very much. I'll admit, I know almost nothing about the movie, so my opinion could change. That's unlikely though.
Odds I'll See It: 4%
Working For It: A crime drama about some sort of whistle-blower with the CIA or something. Jeremy Renner, Robert Patrick, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Michael Sheen, Michael K. Williams, Ray Liotta, Andy Garcia. I like a lot of these people.
Working Against It: A paycheck movie is one that no one remembers and is filled with a lot of familiar actors who appear to be filling time in between other projects.
Odds I'll See It: 3%
Working For It: Muhammad Ali is an icon and it could never hurt to learn a little more about him in a documentary.
Working Against It: I live in Louisville. I think I get enough of the guy.
Odds I'll See It: 2%
Working For It: This again. Haven't I talked about this enough?
Working Against It: Look. One big delay in release (The Great Gatsby, Jupiter Ascending) isn't such a big deal. Repeatedly moving a finished project a month or two at a time for nearly a year is damning. Short of this becoming a Big Fat Greek Wedding sleeper hit, I'm not sure what could get me to see this in theaters.
Odds I'll See It: 1%
Working For It: Horror comedies can be pretty good in the right circumstances. I like Martin Starr (Freaks and Geeks, Knocked Up).
Working Against It: Was there a Dead Snow 1? Is this a foreign movie? Is there even a chance it will expand anywhere close to me? These questions lead me to believe that I won't be seeing this.
Odds I'll See It: null%
10/17
Working For It: I am excited about this one. Michael Keaton is reportedly putting on a career-defining performance. The previews for it, a story about a washed up movie star trying to make a comeback, look positively strange. The cast, including Emma Stone, Edward Norton, and Naomi Watts look game for whatever. Even if all it is is one great performance and a middling movie around it, I'm completely interested.
Working Against It: Occasionally, a movie will come out that's about the movie industry and all the critic love it because they understand the movie industry. The problem is that it's a little too inside and is completely inaccessible for normal audiences. I don't think that's what's going on here, but I recognize the possibility.
Odds I'll See It: 80% (although I'll be stuck waiting for expansion)
Other Options:
Working For It: As far as I can tell, this is Behind Enemy Lines with a tank. Brad Pitt, Shia LaBeeouf, and Logan Lerman (Perks of Being a Wallflower) along with several others make for an interesting cast. I love what Writer/Director David Ayer did with End of Watch.
Working Against It: He also did Sabotage, so...make of it what you will. This is looking more like another Lone Survivor: A solid war movie but not the awards contender they hoped it would be. I'm curious to see if Brad Pitt's name alone can propel this to a strong box office performance.
Odds I'll See It: 49%
Working For It: It looks like a Latin American Nightmare Before Christmas. A voice cast including Zoe Saldana, Channing Tatum, Danny Trejo, and Ron Perlman sounds like a great action movie. I'm sure they'll be good here too.
Working Against It: Fox Animation isn't at the level of Pixar or Dreamworks, or even of Blue Sky (Ice Age) or Illumination (Despicable Me). It's hard to see this making much of an impact in the box office. Of course, the x-factor is the Latino audience which has made modest hits of much smaller productions.
Odds I'll See It: 29%
Working For It: It's a Nicholas Sparks adaptation and it sounds like it could be onto something by following two timelines. You have James Marsden and Michelle Monaghan, established Hollywood vets to play the older editions of the lead, star-crossed lovers. Then Liana Liberato and Luke Bracey, relative unknowns, get to play the younger, sexier versions of them. I don't know. It could work.
Working Against It: Of course, it's all about if you've tired of the Nicholas Sparks model yet. Unsurprisingly, I've never been much of a fan and I don't see anything about this that is new or different from what's been done before.
Odds I'll See It: 16%
Working For It: The only actor I recognize is the kid from Everybody Hates Chris. It's a satire about racial politics in today's society. It's the feature debut by writer/director Justin Simien, so it's a real wild card.
Working Against It: I'm not sure if that title is meant to scare me or attract me.
Odds I'll See It: 7%
Working For It: Kristen Steward plays a Guantanamo Bay soldier who befriends one of the prisoners. I don't hate Stewart as much as a lot of people do, so I want to believe she could pull a good performance out of this.
Working Against It: Maybe this is a gender bias that I'm having trouble suppressing, but it seems odd to cast Stewart as a soldier at a place as associated with harden terrorists as Guantanamo Bay. Right now, it looks like dress up. With any luck, once I see it, I'll be able to look past that.
Odds I'll See It: 2%
10/24
The Lock: Waiting only movie expansions.Other Options:
Working For It: A movie based on Ouija boards. Somehow, I don't think it will play like Jumanji though. The premise is not very limiting so this could really be about anything.
Working Against It: First time director. A horror movie with a PG-13 rating. A cast full of CW and ABC Family types. Take your pick. A lot of things could go wrong.
Odds I'll See It: 40%
Working For It: Kiera Knightley, Chloe Grace Moretz, and Sam Rockwell is a great set of names at the top of a cast list. Knightley plays a woman in arrested development who befriends a high school girl (Moretz) and falls for her dad (Rockwell). The release date keeps getting pushed around, but the previews I've seen look good.
Working Against It: The change of the release date is a bad sign. It looks like a fun indie movie and not much more than that.
Odds I'll See It: 39%
Working For It: Shailene Woodley. I can stop there...oh, you need more? Ok. Eva Green. Chris Meloni. Gabourey Sidibe. The directory of Mysterious Skin.
Working Against It: Most of you aren't familiar with Mysterious Skin and there's a reason for that. It's not an easy film. If this is anything like that, it may be a little too intense to see in theaters.
Odds I'll See It: 38%
John Wick
Working For It: Keanu Reeves is a hit man who comes out of retirement after mobsters kill his dog.
Working Against It: No, really. That's the story. And, to my knowledge, it's not a comedy.
Odds I'll See It: 1%
10/31
Working For It: Jake Gyllenhaal plays a creepy guy in L.A. working as a freelance crime photographer. It's a crime thriller, not a horror movie, but I can understand your confusion.
Working Against It: This time of year is generally all about the blockbusters or Oscar hopefuls. I doubt this will be either, but reviews from the festival circuit have been so favorable that I don't care.
Odds I'll See It: 79%
Other Options:
ABCs of Death 2 [Limited]
Working For It: A horror anthology sequel. I enjoy horror anthologies and V/H/S 2 has me high on their sequels. I hope to see the first ABC sometime this month, so that wouldn't be in the way of me seeing this.
Working Against It: There's no way this is coming to Louisville. Also, after my Evil Dead experience, I'm cautious about what I see in theaters.
Odds I'll See It: 50%
Working For It: Daniel Radcliffe wakes up one morning and has horns on his head. That's about all I know and that's enough for consideration.
Working Against It: It just may not be enough for theaters.
Odds I'll See It: 38%
Working For It: Nicole Kidman plays the Drew Barrymore character from 50 First Dates, only in a thriller in which she starts remembering things. It looks like a fringe enough Halloween release to benefit from coming out on Halloween but won't disappear after opening night.
Working Against It: I'll have to see more previews and hear more about it before I can start making guesses about it.
Odds I'll See It: 3%
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