JOHN CARTER
Starring: Taylor Kitsch, Lynn Collins, Samantha
Morton, Mark Strong,
Ciaran Hinds, Dominic West, James Purefoy, Daryl
Sabara,
Polly Walker, Bryan Cranston, Thomas Hayden Church
& Willem Dafoe
Directed by Andrew Stanton for distribution by
Disney
The Plot: A former
military captain finds himself suddenly transported to a foreign planet where
he becomes the inhabitant’s last chance for survival.
The Final Word: On paper you
have to admit this sounds pretty interesting. You have Taylor Kitsch from
“Friday Night Lights” in a 3D action film directed by Pixar mainstay Alexander
Stanton in his live-action film debut. Granted looks can be deceiving as this
film has gotten ravaged by critics and is already being written off by
insiders. Stanton, known more for his animated directorial prowess, tried to
make a movie whose mystery was preserved until audiences came to the theater.
While that’s an honorable idea (and one J.J. Abrams has had equally varying
degrees of success with), audiences are not a patient bunch and after seeing
the trailer have just walked away confused. You just have to hope this isn’t anything
like last year’s mega-flop “Mars Needs Moms” which will be continue to be a
sore spot with studio executives for a long time to come.
A THOUSAND WORDS
Starring: Eddie Murphy, Clark Duke, Kerry Washington
& Justina Machado
Directed by Brian Robbins for distribution by
Paramount Pictures
The Plot: A literary
agent with a gift for gab sets his sights too high while trying to sign a New
Age guru and as a result falls under a curse where he literally has to make
every word count.
The Final Word: Back when
Eddie Murphy was slated to host the Oscars, this was the project that he was
hoping to gain some added promotion for in the process. While that of course
never happened, the movie itself is still slated to be released on scheduled.
Following a series of high-profile busts, Murphy looked to be getting his
career back on track, but between the Oscar fiasco and “Tower Heist”
under-performing, he’s really going to need “Words” to flourish. Luckily he’s
up against Disney’s “John Carter” which has run into its own set of problems.
SILENT HOUSE
Starring: Elizabeth Olsen, Adam Trese, Eric Sheffer
Stevens,
Julia Taylor Ross, Haley Murphy, Adam Barnett
Directed by Chris Kentis, Laura Lau for distribution
by Open Range Films
The Plot: Trapped inside
her family’s lake house, a young woman begins to experience unimaginable
terror.
The Final Word: Elizabeth
Olsen who broke through in last year’s “Martha Marcy May Marlene” returns for
this horror thriller that is based on the Oscar nominated short foreign film
“La Case Muda.” Fans of the genre should be prepared to be sufficiently freaked
out as in a cool twist the entire tension-filled, real time journey, will be
film using a single uninterrupted shot.
Previewed: 21 Jump Street
