PROMETHEUS
Starring: Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender, Guy
Pearce,
Idris Elba, Logan Marshall-Green & Charlize
Theron
Directed by Ridley Scott for distribution by 20th
Century Fox
The Plot: A team of
scientists head to a distant part of the world to explore what they believe are
clues to the origins of the universe and come face to face with unspeakable
terror.
The Final Word: Whether this
is really a prequel to the Ridley Scott’s thriller “Aliens” or not remains to
be seen, but you have to hand it to 20th Century Fox who have gone out of their
way to make sure the movie stands on its own. Through a viral campaign on the
level with Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight,” audiences are already buzzing
about this movie even though they have no real idea what it is about outside
its vague logline. One thing’s certain though; if you’re going to see this
movie, you have to see it in IMAX 3D.
MADAGASCAR 3: EUROPE’S MOST WANTED
Starring (voices): Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, David
Schwimmer, Jada Pinkett Smith,
Sacha Baron Cohen, Cedric The Entertainer, Andy
Richter,
Frances McDormand, Jessica Chastain, Martin Short
& Bryan Cranston
Directed by Eric Darnell, Tom McGrath, Conrad Vernon
for distribution by DreamWorks
The Plot: Still trying to
make their way home Alex the Lion, Marty the Zebra, Gloria the Hippo, and
Melman the Giraffe take refuge with a European circus where they quickly
reinvent themselves in their own unique style.
The Final Word: DreamWorks has
always had a strong number of franchises in their stable and with “Shrek”
retired, “Madagascar,” now becomes their longest running. Now the studio is
taking the recognizable franchise back to theaters and back to the summer
timeframe where the original debuted back in 2005. While it’s up against the
big budget and highly buzzed about Prometheus, it’s also a kids movie and
during the summer those do extremely well.
SAFETY NOT GUARANTEED
Starring: Aubrey Plaza, Mark Duplass, Jake Johnson,
Kristen Bell,
Jenica Bergere, Jeff Garlin, Karan Soni, Lynn
Shelton, Mary Lynn Rajskub
Directed by Colin Trevorrow for distribution by
FilmDistrict
The Plot: A classified ad
involving time travel intrigues three cynical Seattle reporters to reach out to
the person who placed it, only to realize he may not be as crazy as he sounds.
The Final Word: Believe it or
not this is based on an actual event, although while the ad itself was actually
placed in “Backwoods Home Magazine” in 1997, the film’s plot is made up. While
the person who placed this ad ("Wanted: Somebody to go back in time with me. This is not a joke. You'll get paid after we get back. Must bring your own weapons. I have only done this once before. Safety not guaranteed.") has since admitted it was a joke, the filmmakers
decided to use it as a jumping off point for what could have been and so far
it’s been very warmly received.
