Movies of the Moment – December 2005

It's time to tell you what movies have caught my eye (for better or worse) this holiday season.

Will See

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe
Unlike with Lord of the Rings, I am very familiar with this story.  I, attempted to, read the book (never got more than a few chapters in), and I saw both play and TV movie versions.  As such, I'm excited about revisiting this story on the big screen.  Plus, the fact that the same effects people as LOTR are working on this film ain't back either.

King Kong
This is definitely my must-see movie this holiday season.  I don't care if it's 3 hours long, I am really interested to see how Peter Jackson handled the big ape.

Fun with Dick and Jane
Jim Carey is back in full comedy mode here.  What more can I say, I'm always ready for a laugh.

The Producers
Even though it's part of a busy Christmas weekend, I will try to make time to see the big-screen version of the musical version of Mel Brook's first film (that makes me woozy just thinking of it).

Probably Skip

The Family Stone
I'm not saying I'm planning to skip this film because I think it will be bad, it's just not really my kind of film.

The Ringer
This is the only real movie coming out this month that really has warning lights all over it.  A movie about a guy pretending to be mentally disabled doesn't sound very politically correct.

May Consider

Brokeback Mountain
Pretty much the only thing pretty much preventing me from seeing this film is the, still pretty taboo, subject matter of a gay romance.  However, it's receiving a lot of Oscar buzz.  Hmm…I might have to write a whole column on this film.

Munich
This, Steven Speilburg directed, drama has been receiving some Oscar buzz, as well as some controversy over it's subject matter (about a Mossad agent – played by Eric Bana – who tracks Palestinian terrorists who assassinated Israeli athletes).  May check it out if it goes wide.