The Weekend Tease

Archive

Guess I was right about Failure to Launch coming up big at the box office last weekend. I, too, was one of millions who went to see it. Didn’t like it so much. But it wasn’t as bad as Ultraviolet, which I saw right after. Visual diarrhea if there ever was such a thing. Burn my eyes out with alcohol bad. Yes, it seems Kurt Wimmer is a one-trick pony. If someone asked my opinion on the current crop of 2006 movies, I’d tell them that out of the 24 movies I’ve seen this year, I would only recommend maybe four in which you wouldn’t regret paying hard-earned money to see in theaters. So sad.

Thankfully, this weekend has one of my most anticipated releases of 2006: Thank You for Smoking. Unfortunately, it is in limited release and probably won’t hit my neck of the woods until the end of March.

But I digress. Here’s what’s happening for the weekend of 3/17 – 3/19/06.

Find Me Guilty – March 17, 2006. Rated R (for strong language and some violence). The Tagline: Sometimes the best defense. . . is a wiseguy.

From the director Sidney Lumet, the man who gave us Network, Dog Day Afternoon, and Serpico, gives us his first feature film since 1999. It stars Vin Diesel, but he isn’t named Riddick or drives fast or furiously. No, Find Me Guilty is a drama based on the longest Mafia trial in U.S. history. Mobster Jack DiNorscio (Diesel), faced with a series of charges, decides to stand trial instead of ratting out his family and associates. A wrench is thrown into the system when DiNorscio opts to defend himself.

She’s the Man – March 17, 2006. Rated PG-13 (for some sexual material). The Tagline: Everybody has a secret…

Viola Johnson (Amanda Bynes) had her own good reasons for disguising herself as her twin brother Sebastian (James Kirk) and enrolling in his place at his new boarding school, Illyria Prep. She was counting on Sebastian being AWOL from school as he tried to break into the music scene in London. What she didn’t count on was falling in love with her hot roommate, Duke (Channing Tatum), who in turn only has eyes for the beautiful Olivia (Laura Ramsey). Making matters worse, Olivia is starting to fall for Sebastian, who—for reasons Olivia couldn’t begin to guess—appears to be the sensitive type of guy she’d always dreamed of meeting. If things weren’t complicated enough, the real Sebastian has come back from London two days earlier than expected and arrives on campus having no clue that he’s been replaced… by his own twin sister. If you are hip to Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night or remember Just One of the Guys from the 80’s, She’s the Man is the girl for you. Teenage girls will eat this one up.

V for Vendetta – March 17, 2006. Rated R (for strong violence and some language). The Tagline: People should not be afraid of their governments. Governments should be afraid of their people.

Set against the futuristic landscape of totalitarian Britain, V For Vendetta tells the story of a mild-mannered young woman named Evey (Natalie Portman) who is rescued from a life-and-death situation by a masked man (Hugo Weaving) known only as “V.” Incomparably charismatic and ferociously skilled in the art of combat and deception, V ignites a revolution when he urges his fellow citizens to rise up against tyranny and oppression. As Evey uncovers the truth about V’s mysterious background, she also discovers the truth about herself – and emerges as his unlikely ally in the culmination of his plan to bring freedom and justice back to a society fraught with cruelty and corruption. Based on Alan Moore’s graphic novel.

Don’t Come Knocking – (Limited) – March 17, 2006. Rated (for language and brief nudity).

From acclaimed director Wim Wenders and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Sam Shepard. An official selection at the 2005 Cannes Film Festival, Don’t Come Knocking stars Sam Shepard as Howard Spence. Once a big Western movie star, he now drowns his disgust for his selfish and failed life with alcohol, drugs and young women. If he were to die now, nobody would shed a tear over him, that’s the sad truth. Until one day Howard learns that he might have a child somewhere out there. The very idea seems like a ray of hope that his life wasn’t all in vain. So he sets out to find that young man or woman. He discovers an entire life that he has missed…

Thank You for Smoking – (Limited) – March 17, 2006. Rated R (for language and some sexual content). The Tagline: Nick Naylor doesn’t hide the truth. . . he filters it.

Nick Naylor (Aaron Eckhart), chief spokesman for Big Tobacco, makes his living defending the rights of smokers and cigarette makers in today’s neo-puritanical culture. Confronted by health zealots out to ban tobacco and an opportunistic senator (William H. Macy) who wants to put poison labels on cigarette packs, Nick goes on a PR offensive, spinning away the dangers of cigarettes on TV talk shows and enlisting a Hollywood super-agent (Rob Lowe) to promote smoking in movies. Nick’s newfound notoriety attracts the attention of both tobacco’s head honcho (Robert Duvall) and an investigative reporter for an influential Washington daily (Katie Holmes). Nick says he is just doing what it takes to pay the mortgage, but he begins to think about how his work makes him look in the eyes of his young son Joey (Cameron Bright).

Yeah, this weekend is pretty much reserved to V for Vendetta. With a budget hovering around $50 million it is sure to recoup most of that by Sunday night. Nothing better than drinking green beer and seeing Sinead O’ Portman in action with *cough* Agent Smith as a terrorist/patriot.

Best choice if you wish to see a movie this weekend:

1. V for Vendetta
2. She’s the Man
3. Find Me Guilty
4. Thank You for Smoking (if you can find it)

All posters courtesy of www.impawards.com

Travis Leamons is one of the Inside Pulse Originals and currently holds the position of Managing Editor at Inside Pulse Movies. He's told that the position is his until he's dead or if "The Boss" can find somebody better. I expect the best and I give the best. Here's the beer. Here's the entertainment. Now have fun. That's an order!