Where was all this in September? November was busy and I limited myself as much as I could (Sorry Rosewater). December is expectedly stacked, and that's without including Foxcatcher and The Imitation Game which I'm still waiting on. Ok, no more wasting time. Let's get to the movies.
2013
12/5
Working For It: Reese Witherspoon was the early Lead Actress frontrunner for the Oscars and this is the centerpiece of a larger comeback year for her. I've never been able to muster any ill-will for Witherspoon so I'm happy to see what she does with a movie that looks a lot like Into the Wild except with a mom in her 30s.
Working Against It: Sadly, I won't be seeing it this weekend as it's only a limited release. Is it worth moving to New York or LA so my calendar matches up on these previews? I think it may be.
Odds I'll See It: 76%
Other Options:
Working For It: It's the only nationwide release that weekend. It's some kind of horror story. I think it might be foreign.
Working Against It: This isn't the time of year for horror and this isn't even thematically relevant. I don't recognize anyone in it either. The only way I manage to see this is all other option disappearing or already being checked off.
Odds I'll See It: 2%
Working For It: Wasn't there an Emmy Rossum movie just last month? It's good to see she's working. She stars with Justin Long in a movie about a relationship, involving time-jumping in a parallel universe.
Working Against It: This sounds an awful lot like (500) Days of Summer. As much as I like that movie, I'm going to need to hear more about how this movie is different before I look much into it.
Odds I'll See It: 5%
Working For It: Best friends played by Gillian Jacobs and Leighton Meester fight over a man. Oh, one of the girls is a lesbian. Jacobs is 95% of why I'd consider this movie.
Working Against It: It sounds hopelessly indie in that way that so many indie movie are cut from the same cloth.
Odds I'll See It: 10%
12/12
Working For It: Ridley Scott directing. Christian Bale as Moses. Aaron Paul as Joshua. Joel Edgarton as Rhamses. Yeah, like I'm gonna miss that.
Working Against It: Ridley Scott is not a guarantee that it's a great movie. There's a chance reviews come back and are atrocious, which could kill my excitement. I'm pretty sure that even then, I'll be there to make sure Joshua doesn't say "What's up with all these plagues, bitches?" or "Yeah, Yahweh!.
Odds I'll See It: 70%
Working For It: I'm always rooting for a Chris Rock movie to be good. So far, he's one of those guys who hasn't been able to translate his stand-up to movies. This looks to change that. Rock plays an A-list movie star who takes a reporter along as he goes through New York and interacts with different people from his past and present. This loose structure sounds perfect for Rock's sensibilities.
Working Against It: Rock's history as a director is Head of State and I Think I Love My Wife. Add in screenplay credits for Down to Earth and you have a very middling list. I have yet to hear a bad thing about this though.
Odds I'll See It: 82%
Other Options:
Working For It: This is basically a lock, but Paul Thomas Anderson movies are so divisive in my mind, even when I really like them. This is a comedy about LA in the 70s. There's a great cast (Joaquin Phoenix, Reese Witherspoon, Josh Brolin to name only a few) and reviews have said all the right things to make me interested even if it isn't universally lauded.
Working Against It: I'm looking at a busy December and this could be victim of a numbers game. It's super unlikely though.
Odds I'll See It: 58%
Working For It: A documentary about women wanting to breastfeed or something. I mean, there's an obvious immediate curiosity about it that I don't think I need to explain.
Working Against It: It's rare that a documentary gets me into a theater and it's highly unlikely that this gets a wide enough release anyway.
Odds I'll See It: 1%
12/19
Working For It: I'm going to see a Middle Earth movie. It's just that simple. I saw the first two Hobbits and liked them well enough. I'll probably be harsh on it in my Reaction for this, but it'll still be one of the movies I'm most likely to watch numerous times in the future.
Working Against It: I mean...no. There's not something that's going to stop me. I'll be seeing this movie. Even in "the darkest timeline", I'd be seeing this with a one armed Jeff Winger on our way back from Pierce's funeral.
Odds I'll See It: 98%
Other Options:
Working For It: It's already clear that this will be just zeitgeist-y enough that seeing it only to get any of the jokes about it would be valuable. As far as remakes go, I'd hardly call Annie untouchable. Quevenzhane Wallis is a former Oscar nominee and Jamie Foxx a winner, so there's some talent here. Also, it has Rose Byrne and she has been my tipping point for more than a few movies (I mean, I saw The Internship in theaters).
Working Against It: Something about this movie has the smell of a flop. People don't sound like they are ready for a new version and the changes to the story that we know of, such as Foxx being a mayoral candidate, don't look particularly inspired.
Odds I'll See It: 42%
Working For It: It's an easy premise and I assume that if you like the 1974 movie, you'll like this too. Oh, and there's Brie Lason. If you don't like Brie Larson, you should.
Working Against It: Something tells me that no one is coming away from this saying that it was better than the original and going from a Scorses/DiCaprio project to a Rupert Wyatt/Mark Wahlberg project looks like a step down.
Odds I'll See It: 32%
Working For It: Because if it's not a trilogy, then what's the point? You don't need me to tell you what to expect from these movies by now. Ben Stiller is back. They bring in Rebel Wilson. Many others have returned and this gets the bittersweet distinction of being Robin Williams' final screen role.
Working Against It: They lose points for not getting Amy Adams back (although I would've felt bad for her if she got sucked into another one of these). I've grown tired of moving third movies to Europe in an exhausted franchise (See: Madagascar 3, Rush Hour 3). Then there's all the kids that would be in the theater. This would have to be a massive hit for me to risk it.
Odds I'll See It: 20%
Working For It: Timothy Spall (Wormtail from Harry Potter) plays the titular Mr. Turner, the famous English painter. He's been receiving high praise for his work in this for months.
Working Against It: It is a period piece and, even in the previews, looks impossibly stuffy. Then again, I'd've said the same thing about Philomena last year.
Odds I'll See It: 15%
Working For It: An indie dramedy starring Paul Schneider, Melanie Lynskey, and Anna Camp.
Working Against It: Look at that cast. You don't need to know what it's about. You can already assume most of it. Besides, this isn't coming to a theater near you. Not for very long.
Odds I'll See It: 4%
12/26
Working For It: I don't know what I think of this. It's adapted from the Sondheim musical and with a cast that includes Meryl Streep, Anna Kendrick, Chris Pine, Emily Blunt, Johnny Depp, and many others I'm sure I'll like the performances.
Working Against It: Perhaps fatigue over all this reimagining of fairy tales? ...Maybe. Also, director Rob Marshall's work has been a mixed bag so far (Chicago, Nine, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides).
Odds I'll See It: 86%
Working For It: Angelina Jolie's sophomore directing effort (No one saw the first one, so don't worry if you haven't either). It stars Jack O'Connell (If I hear him described as an "up and comer" one more time, I'm going to lose it) as a former Olympic star who become a Japanese prisoner of war. It's been an Oscar front runner since Jolie first got the rights to the screenplay.
Working Against It: Forgive me for being cynical but people want this to be a major awards player and hit just a little too much. Jolie is hardly proven. O'Connell is on his way up, but there's no guarantee he can carry a movie. I'll be happy to be wrong, but it's hard to say.
Odds I'll See It: 79%
Working For It: 2nd Directorial effort by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg. They didn't write the screenplay (although they always do some writing). Rogen and James Franco are starring in the comedy about a TV personality hired to kill Kim Jong-un. I have a major soft-spot for the Rogen/Goldberg duo, so this is as big a guarantee as you'll find for me.
Working Against It: I mean, if it turns out to be a truly horrible movie...no, I'll still see it even then. Granted, I didn't see The Green Hornet in theaters, so there's that.
Odds I'll See It: 99%
Other Options:
Working For It: Bradley Cooper's stock has risen a great deal thanks to his last two David O'Russell collaborations. Basing the movie on the US's most decorated sniper is a very easy-in for director Clint Eastwood. There's very little chance that this will be a bad movie.
Working Against It: So, we're all collectively just giving Eastwood a pass for Jersey Boys? Ok, sure. I'm not always the biggest Eastwood fan, so I could easily wait for this to go to DVD because, like Lone Survivor last year, it's not going to be an awards player.
Odds I'll See It: 25%
Working For It: Amy Adams. Do you need more than that? Adams plays artist Margaret Keane who's husband took credit for her work in the 50s and 60s. It's directed by Tim Burton which is still seen as a good thing by many people (myself included, hesitantly). If I watch it, it will be for the meta-commentary of Christoph Waltz (two time Oscar nominee and winner) lording himself over Amy Adams (0-5 at the Oscars).
Working Against It: It looks like a predictable movie. I feel like I have the beats of it all worked out just from the trailer. The further we get into the holiday season, the more this looks like this year's Saving Mr. Banks: reasonably enjoyable and easily forgotten.
Odds I'll See It: 37%
Working For It: Foreign movie starring Marion Cotillard. Without her in the lead, I wouldn't even consider it.
Working Against It: I need to hear a lot more about it (I think it's about a woman trying to save her job or something), like an Amour amount, for it work it's way into my schedule.
Odds I'll See It: 3%
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