My movie watching in August was downgraded to practically non-existent. Books took center stage (I’m currently trying to catch up with Nevada Barr’s Anna Pigeon series – on Borderline at the moment, and I have Deborah Harkness' debut novel, A Discovery of Witches, waiting in the wings).

Netflix provided The Invisible (yawn), The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai in the 8th Dimension (a 1984 camp-fest with a lot of familiar faces – it was fun), and the wrong Changeling (I could have sworn I selected the right one! Sigh). I have In the Valley of Elah (starring Tommy Lee Jones) waiting in my DVD player.

I also rented Arthur (the remake with Russell Brand and Helen Mirren – not that good, tho Mirren was terrific as always) and Paul(raunchy, fun, but ultimately not that great).

I did see Captain America, and it’s worth the trip to the theater, tho it might already be gone from most cineplexes.

Other August films I thought I might see – I’ll add The Help, One Day, Fright Night, Conan the Barbarian and Griff the Invisible to my to-rent list. The others, I’m ignoring.

Now on to September!

The Debt opens this weekend, and stars Helen Mirren, Tom Wilkinson, Sam Worthington and Jessica Chastain. Rated R, the film takes place during two different time periods, following a Mossad secret mission during the 1960s, and how that event affects the participants today. I’m hoping to see The Debt this weekend – I’ll let you know.

Also opening over the Labor Day weekend: Apollo 18, rated R, shot in the style of The Blair Witch Project, the tagline says it all “There’s a reason we’ve never gone back to the moon”; and A Good Old-Fashioned Orgy, rated R, follows the misadventures of a group of friends, now in their 30s, attempting to capture the care-free feelings from high school.

For the weekend of September 9, we have Contagion opening. Rated PG-13, the movie stars a host of familiar faces, including Matt Damon, Gwyneth Paltrow, Laurence Fishburne, John Hawkes and Jude Law. Too scary for me – I’ll pass. Also opening is Warrior (more my speed), rated PG-13 and starring Tom Hardy, Nick Nolte and Joel Edgerton, which pits two brothers against each other in the extreme fight scene.

One of the films I’m looking forward to this month opens September 16: Drive, rated R, stars Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan, Ron Perlman and Bryan Cranston. Gosling is a stuntman moonlighting as a driver for those with criminal intentions. Looks intense. Also opening this weekend are I Don’t Know How She Does It, starring Sarah Jessica Parker, Pierce Brosnan and Greg Kinnear and not yet rated; and Straw Dogs, starring James Marsden and Kate Bosworth in this remake of the 1971 film.

September 23 brings another movie I’m anticipating: Moneyball, starring Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill and Robin Wright. The baseball movie (tho it’s about more than just the sport) is based on a true story and is not yet rated. The weekend also finds opening Abduction, rated PG-13 and starring Taylor Lautner as a young man who discovers he was abducted as a baby; Machine Gun Preacher, rated R, starring Gerard Butler as a former biker who finds God and then goes to the Sudan to fight for children being forced to become soldiers (it’s based on a true story); Killer Elite, rated R, which stars Jason Statham, Clive Owen and Robert De Niro; and Dolphin Tale, rated PG, starring Morgan Freeman, Ashley Judd, Harry Connick Jr. and a dolphin without a tail.

For the last weekend of month, we can find in the theater: 50/50, rated R and starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Seth Rogen in a film penned by Rogen’s friend Will Reiser (JGL’s character is based on Reiser and Rogen plays a version of himself); Dream House, rated PG-13, a horror flick starring Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz (the romance began here); What’s Your Number, rated R, starring Anna Faris, Chris Pratt, Chris Evans, Ryan Phillippe and Joel McHale in a comedy about finding true love; Margaret, rated R, starring Anna Paquin, Matt Damon and Mark Ruffalo, is an indie originally shot in 2005 and just now being released; Take Shelter, rated R, with Michael Shannon and Jessica Chastain about a man who thinks he may be going insane; and Tucker & Dale vs. Evil, rated R, which stars Tyler Labine and Alan Tudyk as two mountain vacationers pitted against a group of college kids (while I love Tudyk, I’m going to skip this one).

For October, keep an eye on Real Steel (sci-fi with Hugh Jackman and robots!), The Ides of March (political thriller with Ryan Gosling – busy guy), Footloose (a remake – I have no idea why), The Three Musketeers (another tale of the sword – looks good), The Rum Diary (Johnny Depp’s latest), Anonymous (period piece about who really penned Shakespeare’s plays) and Safe (Jason Statham – do I need to say more?). And for November, watch for Tower Heist (even with Ben Stiller this looks good); Happy Feet 2 (happy!); Hugo (the trailers look great): Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (remake alert); The Descendants (lastest from George Clooney); and The Artist (look back at 1927 Hollywood).

What do you recommend? See ya at the movies!

 Since we last talked movies, I’ve gone to the theater to see Buck (a documentary showing at the local art film theater; excellent); Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2(sad to see the franchise end; this was an excellent ending, though); and Cowboys & Aliens (an interesting take on alien movies, well done, good if you like lots of explosions, and the special effects were excellent).

Rentals includedStolen(stars Jon Hamm of HBO’s Mad Men; haunting); Independence Day (from my collection; love the scene when Will Smith shoots down the alien craft and drags the alien into Area 51); Crazy Heart(not sure why it won so many awards, I don’t find drunks entertaining); Alien Trespass (fun, if you remember this is all campy cheesiness); Cleaner(with Samuel Jackson, kind of an interesting mystery but it’s also fairly predictable); I tried to watch From Paris With Love, but turned it off after about 15 minutes;In the Electric Mist (stars Tommy Lee Jones, kind of intriguing and kind of boring, all at the same time); and I started to watch Ondine, with Colin Farrell, but the Netflix Streaming version ended at 17 minutes. Sigh.

I have plans to see Captain America in the near future. I decided that Larry Crowne and Crazy Stupid Lovewere perfect rentals, so I’ll see those one of these days.

What’s in store for August, you ask? Well, in two words: Not much. (Why am I saying that so often these days?!)

 August 5 brings Rise of the Planet of the Apes, starring James Franco, Andy Serkis and Brian Cox. I have no desire to see this prequel. The classic 1968 film starring Charlton Heston is the only Planet of the Apes movie I need to see. (The four sequels in the early 1970s weren’t great, though I’ll take them over the prequel any day.) The prequel is rated PG-13.

The Change-Up , rated R, stars Jason Bateman and Ryan Reynolds as two friends envious of the other’s life. A body switch proves what? And in limited release, The Whistleblower, rated R, stars Rachel Weisz as a police officer serving as a U.N. peacekeeper in Bosnia.

August 12 finds 30 Minutes or Less opening at your local theater. Not yet rated, the film stars Jessie Eisenberg as the kidnapped pizza delivery guy forced to rob a bank. The film will have wide appeal, I’m sure.

More my speed is The Help, starring Emma Stone, Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer, which opens August 10 and is rated PG-13. Good and bad buzz on this one; the book was a bestseller, so we’ll see how the big screen version does. Final Destination 5 is rated R, of course, and is in 3D. And the title of Glee: The 3D Concert Movie says it all.

August 19 brings One Day, rated PG-13, to the big screen. Starring Anne Hathaway and Jim Sturgess, the movie shows the two meeting on the same day for two decades. Reminds me of the Broadway play and movie Same Time, Next Year (the 1978 movie starred Alan Alda and Ellen Burstyn).

Also opening this weekend: Fright Night, rated R, finds a vampire (Colin Farrell) living next door to teen Anton Yelchin who goes to a magician (David Tennant) for help in this remake of a 1985 cult classic; Conan the Barbarian, rated R and in 3D, stars Jason Momoa as the barbarian in this new interpretation of the original Robert E. Howard stories; Spy Kids: All the Time in the World in 4D (rated PG) stars Jessica Alba, Jeremy Pivin and Joel McHale in a reboot of the popular family franchise; Griff the Invisible, rated PG-13 and in limited release, stars Ryan Kwanten as an office worker moonlighting as a superhero, and also in limited release, the R-rated Amigo, the latest from director/writer John Sayles, takes a look at the Philippine-American War.

Opening August 26, Our Idiot Brother stars Paul Rudd, Elizabeth Banks, Zooey Deschanel and Emily Mortimer in an R-rated comedy about stoner Ned and his affect on the lives of his three sisters. My only question is, why, Paul, why?

Also opening this weekend: Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark, rated R and starring Katie Holmes and Guy Pearce, takes a horrifying twist as a young girl (Bailee Madison) discovers creatures in her father’s new home; Colombiana, rated PG-13, stars Zoe Saldana as an assassin after the mobster who killed her parents; and in limited release, Higher Ground, rated R, examines a woman’s struggle with her faith in an adaptation of the book This Dark World.

I might see The Whistleblower, The Help, Fright Night and Conan the Barbarian. Then again, they all might wait for my to-rent list. I see a lot of rentals in my future.

In September, look for The Debt (this one looks very good), Warrior, Drive, Moneyball (the buzz is high on Brad Pitt’s performance), KillerElite, Dolphin Tale (my niece has personally met the dolphin at the center of this feel-good movie), 50/50and Dream House. Wow, looks like things might be picking up!

What’s on your must-see list? See ya at the movies!

While I love to talk movies, I’ve been allowing the real world to interfere with my writing about them. (Sorry, Dave!) So I’m going to play catch up today. I also have a few books waiting in the wings for future reviews. Stay tuned!

The last time we talked about movies, it was February and the Academy Awards. Hope you’ve all seen The King’s Speech. Well worth the rental, believe me!

So it’s been kind of quiet for me and the cineplex. Heavens, I just noticed I haven’t told you what I’ve seen since December! Yikes!

January: True Grit (good); Black Swan (good but disturbing and difficult to watch); The Mechanic (not that great, even for a Jason Statham action flick).

February: Unknown (not bad, worth a rental); and rentals, Toy Story 3 (good), Winter’s Bone (depressing and difficult to watch), The Social Network (not worth it), The Town (decent action, Jeremy Renner and Ben Affleck are good), Saving Grace (fun but not great), The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest (the third in the Swedish trilogy is well done, again difficult to watch, as are the first two).

March: The Company Men (depressing but well done), The Adjustment Bureau (very good!), and rentals Miss Pettigrew Lived for a Day (worth the rental) and The Children of Huang Shi (well done , based on a true story, but I didn’t like the ending). 
 

April: Source Code (good with a neat twist), Hanna (definitely not worth it), and rentals How Do You Know (better than I expected) and Kinky Boots (fun).

May: Fast Five (I’ve seen the others in the series so had to see this one too), Thor (good action and special effects, light on plot, of course), Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (fun, not much to it, though); and rental Just Wright (fun, lightweight).

For Memorial Day weekend, we have opening The Hangover Part II (no, thank you), Kung Fu Panda 2 (eventually), and The Tree of Life (in limited release, and I’ll probably see it eventually).

So what’s coming up in June? Not much, I’m afraid.

The first weekend of the month brings X-Men: First Class to the big screen. I enjoyed the others in the franchise, so this is one of the ones I’ll probably see in the theater. We also have the limited release of The Beginners with Ewan McGregor and Christopher Plummer. This one looks very good, and I hope it plays somewhere near me.

On June 10, Super 8 opens. With Elle Fanning and Kyle Chandler, and directed by J.J. Abrams, Super 8 looks pretty good. I like science fiction and aliens, so this might be one to see in the theater. We also have in limited release a Norwegian release, The Troll Hunter, which might be worth seeing.

For the June 17 weekend, Green Lantern, starring Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively and Peter Sarsgaard, opens. I think I’ll go see this one in the theater, as the special effects look pretty awesome. Although, if it’s playing only in 3D, I’ll skip it. Also opening this weekend is Jim Carrey’s latest, Mr. Popper’s Penguins. I just saw the trailer for this one, and it looks like fun. A limited release is a documentary titled Buck, about a horse whisperer.

The last weekend of the month brings Cars 2 to your local theater. Lots of great voices, and even a couple of well-known race car drivers are on the list. Darrell Waltrip voices the character of Darrell Cartrip, and Jeff Gordon voices Jeff Gorvette. Looks like fun. An indie selection, A Better Life, looks pretty good, though I doubt if it makes it into many theaters.

You might keep an eye on July:Transformers: Dark of the Moon opens July 1, and the Harry Potter series concludes with The Deathly Hallows Part 2 on July 15. We also have another comic book coming to the screen with Captain America:The First Avenger opening July 22. And a big one for me will be Cowboys and Aliens, which opens July 29.

What’s on your to-see list? See ya at the movies!