There is life after Avatar
Five films to satiate moviegoers’ cravings during the pre-summer blockbuster season
By Erik Hayden 01/28/2010
Suffering from post-Avatar syndrome? Has the lull between the holidays and the summer blockbuster season let you down? For some theatergoers, that seems to be the case, as no movie, including such hopefuls as Book of Eli and Legion have been able to take down the reigning Pandoran epic at the box office. But for those with insatiable appetites for the next, biggest CGI event, here’s a little preview.
These are the five spring films that’ll still get your adrenaline pumping into overdrive (no Na’vi included):
Edge of Darkness: (Jan. 29) Mel Gibson stars as a Boston detective in this Taken-esque revenge thriller, unleashing his fury at the faceless baddies who killed his daughter. This could be the former Mad Max hero’s return to form — kicking and slashing away at goons used to be his specialty. Still, you should probably wait for early reviews before rushing to theaters. The past-his-prime superstar seems to be a risky proposition these days, and it wouldn’t be surprising if the film disappoints a la Harrison Ford’s recent techno-thriller, Firewall. I wouldn’t count Mel out, though, he’s resurrected his career (literally — think The Passion of the Christ) more than a few times over the past two decades.
The Wolfman: (Feb. 12) Casting Benicio del Toro as the Wolfman was certainly an inspired move, and the early trailers (and ubiquitous TV spots) make a convincing case for this violent period piece. At any rate, the visual effects will be something to behold. The helmer, Joe Johnston, has previously been the art director for Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith and Indiana Jones, but has a decidedly mixed record when he heads out on his own (Jumanji, Hidalgo). If you prefer your werewolves to be of the Twilight variety, this may not be your movie.
Shutter Island: (Feb. 19) The pedigree of this film couldn’t be any higher. Despite being directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Leonardo DiCaprio (with distinguished character-actor Ben Kingsley thrown in for good measure), this movie was pushed from its original October release date in the face of stiff competition during the holiday season.
Let’s hope the scheduling change won’t be a sign of poor quality, as the initial teaser pointed towards a pulpy psychological thriller set in the bowels of a mental asylum. At this point in Scorsese’s career, he can make a satisfying B-movie slasher — this could be too dark for general audiences, though.
Green Zone: (March 12) Paul Greengrass (Bourne Identity, United 93) reteams with star Matt Damon to recreate the bewildering first few weeks of the 2003 invasion of Saddam Hussein’s Iraq. Leaning heavily on the search for weapons of mass destruction, the film hopes to be a satisfying, crowd-pleasing actioner, and a heavy-handed message movie. A rough cut of the film last year (before special effects were added in post-production) made it appear split down the middle, leaving both camps wanting. However, with a little bit of deft editing and the elimination of most of the political dialogue, a solid adventure movie might be salvaged. Not quite what Greengrass envisioned, but hey, he was never going to top The Hurt Locker anyway.
Clash of the Titans: (March 26) Clearly gunning for 300-like success, Titans stars Jake Sully from Avatar (Sam Worthington) as the fearless leader commissioned to defeat Hades and stave off hell on earth — and in the process tick off more than a few gods. Everything, from the production design to the historically-based fantasy nature of the Greek and Roman gods, seems haplessly ripped from the 2006 Spartan epic. But it doesn’t seem to matter. The special effects artists have delivered the goods once again, and I’m sure this one won’t disappoint in Imax 3-D.
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