The Movie Year in Preview – February

Part 2 of the 12 month preview of the movies to look out for in 2010 brings us to February. Traditionally a month short on days but high on quality as many of the awards season favourites make their way trans-Atlantic. With the Oscar nominations opening the month expect a lot of hype over certain movies and some older ones return for limited runs.

Week 6: February 5th to 11th

The first week of February opens with at big movie partially but not completely focused on one of my favourite sports, rugby. Away from the oval ball though it’s a tale of a country coping with change and a man coming to terms with greatness. If sport isn’t your thing there’s a new computer animated adventure based on a Japanese classic, an intriguing comic-book based movie and a nice new coming-of-age flick.

First up is Invictus, screen legend Clint Eastwood’s take on the events of the 1995 Rugby World Cup and the men at the centre of serious social change. South Africa is in upheaval, after spending 27 years in jail Nelson Mandela is elected President, but the country is still deeply divided. Against this backdrop the eyes of the world are about to turn to the country as it hosts the continents first ever global sporting competition. Trouble is the game is predominately a white man’s sport and unless Mandela and Springbok team captain Francois Pienaar can find a way to engage the locals they might miss out on this unique opportunity to unite their country. In action is a buffed-up, blonde coiffed Matt Damon as Pienaar, with Morgan Freeman playing Mandela, to add to an already impressive resume which includes the US President and even God himself.

The second movie of week 6 is Astro Boy. Based on the hugely popular Japanese Magna comic, first published in 1951 by artist Osamu Tezuka, Astro Boy has appeared in numerous comic strips, TV cartoon shows and now finally a big budget Hollywood film. Created by scientist Dr Tenma, Astro Boy has super strength, X-ray vision, unbelievable speed and the ability to fly. Setting out on a journey of self-discovery he returns to Metro City when his friends and family come under threat. Can he control his awesome powers and save the day? Nicholas Cage, Donald Sutherland, Kirsten Bell and Freddie Highmore provide voices to the computer generated characters to a movie that hasn’t fared particularly well in either the States or Japan. Kids should get a kick out of the colourful action though.

Third up is Solomon Kane, a comic-book based tale of a 16th mercenary comes to the realisation that his dark deeds have ensured him eternal damnation. Knowing that if he strays from a stringent path of peace the demons of hell will claim him as one of their own he ventures to the New World. Here he settles with the family of a man called William Crowthorn. But his hope for a peaceful new life is shattered when the Devil begins enslaving the weak colonists and recruiting the strong as soldiers for his ungodly armies. Will Kane stand up and accept his fate? James Purefoy plays the titular Kane, with Pete Postlethwaite and Rachel Hurd-Wood in support. Early footage and the images to date make this very dark movie look very interesting indeed. The source material is strong so lets hope the movie is too.

Youth In Revolt is the fourth and film movie out this week, a coming-of-age drama featuring Michael Cera as loveable nerd Nick Twisp (shocker!). On a family holiday Nick meets Sheeni Saunders, a beautiful, free-spirited young girl with whom he falls madly in love. Unfortunately for Nick he’s not the kind of man she is after. Unperturbed Nick adopts the alter-ego of Francois Dillinger, a bold, contemptuous ladykiller. And somehow it works as Sheeni takes to this stop-for-nothing man of mystery. Soon Francois starts to dominate Nicks live leading him into all manner of trouble. Nobody does lovable nerd quite like Cera but hopefully the Francois personality will allow him to explore other avenues for his acting. It has all the criteria to be a classic love-it or hate-it movie but either way it should be intriguing.

Week 7: February 12th to 18th

Werewolves, love, Greek gods, human invaders and loneliness are the order of the day as week 2 of February commences.

The first movie of week 7 should be the oft-delayed creature feature The Wolfman. The story focuses on Lawrence Talbot a man who left everyone and everything behind in an attempt to forget the past and his mothers early death. Drawn back home after the disappearance of his brother Lawrence learns that an unnamed creature of incredible strength and insatiable bloodlust has been killing the villagers. A Scotland Yard inspector called Aberline is up to his neck in the investigation and begins to suspect that something supernatural could be to blame. Uncovering an ancient curse that turns men in werewolves Lawrence must track down and kill the vicious creature in order to protect his family and the village from harm. Fate however has other plans… Jurassic Park III director Joe Johnston leads an all-star cast that features Benecio del Toro in the lead role with veteran actors Hugo weaving and Anthony Hopkins, and the charming Emily Blunt more than making up the numbers. Cast and crew alike have placed the delays, which usually predict major problems, on efforts to make the story as believable as possible. The initial trailer was very promising so let’s pray that they are right and that this ushers a glorious new era for the Universal monsters.

It wouldn’t be the 14th of February without a Valentine’s movie and this year’s one has the entirely unoriginal tile of Valentine’s Day. The movie follows the intertwining lives of a cross-section of people in Los Angeles one Valentine’s Day. From young to old and everyone in between the world is working through the ups and down of romance. With characters too numerous to mention this movie sees Anne Hathaway, Emma Roberts, Jessica Alba, Jamie Foxx, Jessica Biel, Patrick Dempsey, Jennifer Garner, Ashton Kutcher, Bradley Cooper and Julia Roberts all show different sides and approaches to love. So if you fancy a date movie with more stars than you can shake a stick at this is the one for you.

Movie three is Percy Jackson & The Lightning Thief, the first of a brand new Harry Potter baiting franchise based on the series of children’s books by author Rick Riordan. Steeped in Greek mythology the movie follows Percy Jackson a seemingly normal kid who has the unusual ability of being able to survive underwater for long periods of time. After a teacher at the school transforms into a winged demon and tries to attack Percy he ventures to the mythical 600th floor of the Empire State Building, where he finds that the Gods of Mount Olympus are real, and they’ve been expecting him. Here he learns that he is the demi-god son of Poseidon, lord of the sea and that someone has stolen Zeus’ lightning bolt, the most powerful weapon ever imagined. Cast as the thief Percy and his friends must get it back in order to clear his name and prevent a war between the Gods. Logan Lerman plays Percy with Ireland’s own Pierce Brosnan bearded up something lovely as a teacher of Greek mythology. If the movie lives up to the initial trailer then this could be the first Harry Potter competitor to stand a legitimate chance since Lemony Snicket.

Another one for the kids this week is Battle For Terra 3D, an interesting project that was initially shown in 2007 as Terra and won Best Animated Feature at the 2008 Ottawa International Animation Festival. After screening at numerous festival the production team went back to the drawing board to add in a second camera and so make the movie 3D. The plot focuses on the inhabitants of another world, called Terra, who live an idyllic life of peace and serenity. This lifestyle is swiftly threatened when invaders from Earth set up shop after an environmental disaster back home. To begin with the Terrans view these invaders as gods until the worse aspects of human behaviour come to light. The movie features the voice talent of Evan Rachel Wood and Luke Wilson as Mala and Jim, the only hope for the two races ever to live in harmony. It’ll be interesting to see if the additional year and a half of production and millions in costs have produced a better movie than was originally released.

A fifth release this week is A Single Man, an adaptation of the novel by Christopher Isherwood and directed by world-famous fashion designer, and former Creative Director of Gucci, Tom Ford. Set in 1962, A Single Man tells the story of George, a well dressed, well mannered guy who is attempting to cope with the lose of his partner Jim. During the course of a single fateful day his encounters include Kenny, a cocky youngster who lives in the moment, and old friend Charley who still harbours the delusion that she and George might have a future together. The cast includes Colin Firth, Matthew Goode, Nicholas Hoult and Julianne Moore. The movie and Fith have ben nominated for 3 Golden Globes so there’s obviously something to it.

Also out: My Name Is Khan, a movie from director Karan Johar featuring Bollywood megastars Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol.

Week 8: February 19th to 25th

Week 8 should bring us another gem from one of cinema’s greatest directors, a return to form from on of cinema’s finest actors and musical ditty from one of Ireland’s biggest stars and some other movie treats if all goes according to plan.

First up is Shutter Island, legendary director Martin Scorsese’s take on the book by Mystic River author Denis Lehane. Set in 1954, the movie shows US marshals Teddy Daniels and Chuck Aule who are tasked with investigating the disappearance of a patient from a mental hospital on Shutter Island, a remote outcrop some 11 miles off the coast of Boston. As the pair begin their investigation Teddy uncovers some sinister goings on involving everyone from the hospital administrator to the caretaker. When a hurricane hits the island more inmates manage to escape and Teddy becomes trapped. Suffering from horrific visions Teddy begins to doubt everyone and everything and, questioning his sanity, fears he’ll never make it off the island alive. Scorsese’s new favourite actor Leonardo DiCaprio stars as Teddy with Sir Ben Kingsley, Mark Ruffalo, Michelle Williams, Patricia Clarkson and Emily Mortimer adding their not inconsiderable dramatic heft in what should be a truly great movie experience.

The second movie of the week is Everybody’s Fine. Frank Goode is a newly widowed man, still coping with the pain of loss. Realising he’s spent too little time with his children he sets out cross-country to visit them all. First up is son David in New York, who unfortunately doesn’t seem to be home. Second is daughter Amy who is reportedly ‘high up in advertising’ in Chicago. Third stop is Denver to see son Robert, an ‘orchestral conductor’, and finally fourth is Rosie ‘a dancer in a Las Vegas show’. Frank soon comes to the revelation that his children might not be quite as perfect as his late wife had led him to believe. With a cast that includes Robert De Niro, Kate Beckinsale, Sam Rockwell and Drew Barrymore this certainly has the talent to succeed.

Crazy Heart is the story of a drunken old country music singer, Bad Blake, scraping a living in backwater bowling alleys and third-rate piano bars. His glory days long gone his is offered the chance to open for his old protege Tommy Sweet who, unlike his mentor, has found fame and fortune. On tour one night in Santa Fe Bad meets local journalist Jean Craddock, a single mom, and falls for her. Poring a lifetime of sorrow and regret into his music Bad manages to write some of his best work ever and learns that true experience and living only comes from hard living. Jeff Bridges has the lead in this musical Wrestler-esque story, while Colin Farrell and Maggie Gyllenhaal round out the impressive cast. The movie is written and directed by first-time director Scott Cooper and based on the 1987 novel of the same name by Thomas Cobb.

Also out: Micmacs, Amelie director Jean-Pierre Jeanut’s look at the lives of a motley crew of modern-day ragpickers; and The Last Station, a look at the last days of Tolstoy and the contentious nature of his estate post-mortem, starring James McAvoy, Christopher Plummer and Helen Mirren.

Week 9: February 26th to March 4th

The finally week of February will bring us a movie that’ll put the Oi into Oirish, another that make the land of the free into the land of the poor, a two others that promise adrenaline fuelled kicks as we enter March.

First up it’s Leap Year, a Hollywood take on the Irish tradition that women can propose to men on February 29th. When Anna’s boyfriend Jeremy fails to propose after 4 years of dating she decides to take matters into her own hands. She sets out to follow him to Dublin but freak weather forces her to land elsewhere. Somehow she ends up alone and lost but never fear help is on hand in the guise of handsome stranger Declan. Many mishaps befall the pair on the rocky road to Dublin which lead them both to pastures new. Now the trailer for this made it look like complete rubbish but Amy Adams is always a good laugh so maybe it’ll be cringe-worthy and enjoyable at the same time.

Second up is Michael Moore’s latest rant on the current woes of the United States, Capitalism: A Love Story. This time he’s examining the disastrous impact of corporate dominance on the everyday lives of Americans (and by default, the rest of the world). Basically it’s a close look at the true price of capitalism and American indulgence brought to you by a big fat, loud-mouthed American. Seems a tad ironic but his movies are usually compelling viewing whether you love or loathe the man.

Third up is Extraordinary Measures, the story of a biotechnology executive, whose two youngest children were afflicted with Pompe disease. Together with his wife they raise money to fund a new pharmaceutical company and hire research scientist Robert Stonehill to find a cure. What Happen in Vegas director Tom Vaughan helms a true story based on Geeta Anand’s Pulitzer-winning book The Cure. In the first movie since Star Wars to feature Harrison Ford as second credited Brendan Fraser takes on the lead role, with Keri Russell as his wife.

The fourth movie is From Paris with Love, which centres on a young embassy worker, Richard Stevens, and an FBI special agent, Charlie Wax, who cross paths while working on a high-risk mission in Paris. Featuring Jonathan Rhys Meyers and John Travolta this promises high action and thrilling set-pieces. The screenplay was co-written by Luc Besson and the movie is directed by Taken helmer Pierre Morel. All in all there are some really promising things in this one.

Also out: Freestyle, a movie about moto-cross racing; and Heartless, a movie about a guy who must fight off demons in London starring Jim Sturgess.