Fall Film Lineup: Potter Out, Bond In

Hollywood’s heavy hitter, Harry Potter, has been sidelined for fall, with the sixth adventure about the boy wizard transported from its original November release into next summer’s schedule.

Good thing the season has a deep bench, with Harry’s backup players including James Bond, a heartthrob vampire, those slaphappy kids from “High School Musical,” the yammering zoo animals from “Madagascar” and a party boy turned president.

A peek at five of fall’s must-see flicks:

– “Quantum of Solace”: James Bond picks up where he left off in “Casino Royale,” in a vengeful mood over the death of his great love and taking arms against a bad guy trying to corner the market on water. “It literally takes place 20 minutes after `Casino Royale’ ends,” says Daniel Craig, who returns for his second gig as Bond. “We pick the story up obviously with James Bond out for revenge, on a personal vendetta. It then gets more complicated than that.”

– “Twilight”: Based on the first installment in Stephenie Meyer’s best-selling series, this vampire romance centers on a teen (Kristen Stewart) in a love affair with a dazzling bloodsucker (Robert Pattinson) with a just-say-no policy on feeding off humans. “He doesn’t want to be a monster, he doesn’t want to kill people,” says director Catherine Hardwicke. “He loves her, but if he gets too passionate, he will want her blood. He will want to kill her.”

– “High School Musical 3: Senior Year”: The Disney Channel sensation comes to the big-screen, reuniting basketball jock Troy (Zac Efron) and brainiac Gabriella (Vanessa Hudgens), along with stage rivals Sharpay (Ashley Tisdale) and Ryan (Lucas Grabeel). “The set decoration is insane and beautiful. To think, in the first movie, we only had a ladder,” Tisdale says. “Everything’s bigger, from details like the wardrobe, because of how big the screen is, and the musical numbers are so much bigger.”

– “Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa”: Voice stars Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, Jada Pinkett Smith and David Schwimmer reunite for the further adventures of zoo animals getting back to nature. The sequel sets up a weird romance between Schwimmer’s giraffe and Pinkett Smith’s hippopotamus. “He has this crush on her and finally confesses,” Schwimmer says. “He believes he’s only got a short time to live and that he’s come down with this disease, so he’s kind of convinced he’s got to get up the nerve to tell her how he feels before he dies.”

– “W.”: Oliver Stone has done presidents before, No. 37 with “Nixon,” No. 35 (or at least the aftermath of his assassination) with “JFK.” But with George W. Bush (Josh Brolin), he’s having a go at a current commander in chief. “We’re telling it while he’s still in office, which has never been done,” says Elizabeth Banks, who plays Laura Bush. “The Bush family is a political dynasty. In America, it’s the closest thing we have to a political dynasty.”

Actor Daniel Craig, who plays James Bond in the upcoming ‘Quantum of Solace,’ on January 24, 2008 near London, England. Photo by Dave Hogan/Getty Images.


What else can you expect to see this coming fall? Here’s the list. (Release dates are subject to change, and some films will play in limited release):

Late August-September:

APPALOOSA: Hired lawman (Viggo Mortensen and Ed Harris) take on a tough rancher (Jeremy Irons) in a Western directed by Harris. Renee Zellweger co-stars.

BABYLON A.D.: Vin Diesel’s a hired gun escorting a mystery woman from Europe to New York in a post-apocalyptic future.

BANGKOK DANGEROUS: A lone-wolf hit man (Nicolas Cage) finds a young friend and potential romance on assignment in Thailand.

BATTLE IN SEATTLE: Stuart Townsend directs girlfriend Charlize Theron in a drama about the 1999 World Trade Organization protests.

BLINDNESS: A plague of sightlessness strikes humanity. With Julianne Moore, Danny Glover, Mark Ruffalo and Gael Garcia Bernal.

BURN AFTER READING: George Clooney and Brad Pitt star in the Coen brothers’ romp about CIA secrets that fall into the hands of fitness club employees.

CHOKE: A scam artist with a demented mother pursues the truth about the identity of his father. Sam Rockwell and Anjelica Huston star.

COLLEGE: Drake Bell and a couple of buddies are campus pledges fighting back against their fraternity tormentors.

DISASTER MOVIE: Catastrophe flicks are the target of the latest entry in Hollywood’s spoof craze. With Carmen Electra.

THE DUCHESS: Keira Knightley stars as an 18th century ancestor of Princess Diana who becomes a major political player. With Ralph Fiennes.

EAGLE EYE: Strangers (Shia LaBeouf and Michelle Monaghan) are cast together as fugitives by a phone call from a mystery woman.

FOREVER STRONG: A jailed rugby star (Sean Faris) gets a second chance with a rival team. Co-starring Sean Astin.

GHOST TOWN: A man (Ricky Gervais) revived after a near-death experience finds he can see ghosts – who all pester him with demands. With Greg Kinnear and Tea Leoni.

HOUNDDOG: After she’s raped, a girl (Dakota Fanning) in rural 1950s Alabama struggles to find solace in blues music.

HUMBOLDT COUNTY: A failing medical student finds refuge among a family of marijuana farmers. With Frances Conroy and Peter Bogdanovich.

IGOR: A mad scientist’s humpbacked lab flunky tries to create his own monster in this animated comedy. John Cusack heads the voice cast.

LAKEVIEW TERRACE: An L.A. cop (Samuel L. Jackson) harasses his new neighbors (Patrick Wilson and Kerry Washington) because of their interracial relationship.

THE LUCKY ONES: Iraq War vets adjust to changes on the homefront during an impromptu road trip. With Tim Robbins, Rachel McAdams and Michael Pena.

MIRACLE AT ST. ANNA: Spike Lee tells the story of four Americans in an all-black Army unit trapped behind enemy lines during World War II. With Derek Luke.

MISTER FOE: A runaway Scottish teen (Jamie Bell) plays Peeping Tom, obsessing on a young woman who resembles his dead mother.

MY BEST FRIEND’S GIRL: Kate Hudson becomes the object of a love triangle between her heartbroken ex (Jason Biggs) and his best buddy (Dane Cook).

NIGHTS IN RODANTHE: Strangers (Diane Lane and Richard Gere) with personal crises bond during a major storm at a coastal inn.

PING PONG PLAYA: An Asian-American youth who has shunned his family’s pingpong livelihood must step up and compete in a national tournament.

RIGHTEOUS KILL: Robert De Niro and Al Pacino are police detectives pursuing a vigilante serial killer. Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson co-stars.

SUKIYAKI WESTERN DJANGO: A gunman is caught up in a deadly battle between two clans in this Japanese take on spaghetti Westerns. With Quentin Tarantino.

SURFER, DUDE: A surfer (Matthew McConaughey) rides a wave of chaos in his life. With Woody Harrelson and Willie Nelson.

A THOUSAND YEARS OF GOOD PRAYERS: A Chinese widower comes to America to help his daughter through her divorce.

TOWELHEAD: An Arab-American girl (Summer Bishil) copes with love, sex and acceptance amid the Gulf War. With Toni Collette, Aaron Eckhart and Maria Bello.

TRAITOR: A shadowy U.S. operative (Don Cheadle) is the prime suspect of a deadly global conspiracy. Guy Pearce co-stars.

TYLER PERRY’S THE FAMILY THAT PREYS: Writer-director Perry spins a tale of secrets and shady dealings among two clans. Kathy Bates and Alfre Woodard star.

THE WOMEN: Meg Ryan, Annette Bening and Debra Messing lead the cast in an update of the 1939 classic about a woman with a cheating hubby and a circle of gossipy friends.

October:

AN AMERICAN CAROL: This twist on Charles Dickens features three spirits that give an anti-American filmmaker a lesson in U.S. values. With Kelsey Grammer.

BALLAST: A single mom on the Mississippi Delta copes with a man from her past while struggling to raise her son in this Sundance Film Festival hit.

BEVERLY HILLS CHIHUAHUA: A pampered pooch (voiced by Drew Barrymore) gets stranded in Mexico. The live-action family flick also features Andy Garcia and George Lopez.

BODY OF LIES: A CIA man (Leonardo DiCaprio) goes after a terrorist kingpin while a crafty colleague (Russell Crowe) runs interference. Ridley Scott directs.

BREAKFAST WITH SCOT: A gay hockey-player-turned-sports-commentator (Tom Cavanagh) and his lover become guardians to a flamboyant boy.

THE BROTHERS BLOOM: Con artist siblings (Adrien Brody and Mark Ruffalo) take an heiress (Rachel Weisz) on a globe-trotting quest for valuables.

CHANGELING: Angelina Jolie stars in Clint Eastwood’s drama about a single mom fighting corrupt police trying to cover their tracks in the abduction of her son.

CITY OF EMBER: Tim Robbins and Bill Murray star in a fantasy about an underground city coping with an energy crisis.

THE EXPRESS: Ernie Davis (Rob Brown), the first black Heisman Trophy winner, faces his greatest challenge after he’s diagnosed with leukemia. Dennis Quaid co-stars.

FILTH AND WISDOM: Madonna’s directing debut centers on a Ukrainian cross-dressing punk-rocker and his roommates – a ballerina-turned-stripper and a humanitarian pharmacist.

FLASH OF GENIUS: The engineer (Greg Kinnear) who invented intermittent windshield wipers obsesses on lawsuits after automakers swipe his idea.

HAPPY-GO-LUCKY: An eternal optimist (Sally Hawkins) finds her upbeat attitude severely challenged by the people in her life. Mike Leigh directs.

THE HAUNTING OF MOLLY HARTLEY: A teen faces unseen horror at a private school for girls. With Haley Bennett and Chase Crawford.

HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL 3: SENIOR YEAR: Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale and the other kids sing and dance through their final school year.

HOW TO LOSE FRIENDS AND ALIENATE PEOPLE: An inept British journalist wreaks havoc among the celebrities he covers. With Simon Pegg and Kirsten Dunst.

I’VE LOVED YOU SO LONG: A woman (Kristen Scott-Thomas) long estranged from her kin reconnects when she moves in with her younger sister’s family.

MAX PAYNE: Mark Wahlberg takes the title role as a cop tracking the killer of his family and partner in this video-game adaptation.

MORNING LIGHT: Roy E. Disney, a veteran sailor in the Transpac ocean competition, produces this documentary about a team training for the 2,300-mile race.

NICK & NORA’S INFINITE PLAYLIST: A Manhattan all-nighter holds the promise of romance for two teens (Michael Cera and Kat Dennings).

NOAH’S ARC: JUMPING THE BROOM: A gay man heads cross-country for his same-sex wedding, bringing along three pals in this big-screen take on the TV series.

PRIDE AND GLORY: A New York City family of cops is shaken when a son is forced to investigate his brother. With Edward Norton and Colin Farrell.

QUARANTINE: A news crew’s video holds the key to the truth about a mysterious infection that strikes an apartment building in this horror tale.

RACHEL GETTING MARRIED: An addict (Anne Hathaway) rekindles tension and tragic family memories at her sister’s wedding. Jonathan Demme directs.

RELIGULOUS: Bill Maher travels the world to talk God and religion with the faithful in this documentary from “Borat” director Larry Charles.

ROCKNROLLA: London crooks scramble for a piece of the action in a land scheme. With Gerard Butler, Tom Wilkinson, Thandie Newton and Ludacris. Guy Ritchie directs.

SAW V: If it’s Halloween season, it must be time for another torture tale about diabolical killer Jigsaw. With Tobin Bell and Costas Mandylor.

THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES: A troubled teen (Dakota Fanning) finds respite in the beekeeping world of three sisters. With Queen Latifah, Jennifer Hudson, Alicia Keys and Sophie Okonedo.

SEX DRIVE: A teen (Josh Zuckerman) sets out with two pals on a cross-country trip to lose his virginity. Featuring Seth Green and James Marsden.

SYNEDOCHE, NEW YORK: Philip Seymour Hoffman plays a theater director trying to re-create New York City. Screenwriter Charlie Kaufman (“Being John Malkovich”) directs.

W.: Oliver Stone chronicles the life of party-boy-turned-president George W. Bush (Josh Brolin). Elizabeth Banks, James Cromwell and Richard Dreyfuss co-star.

WHAT JUST HAPPENED: A producer (Robert De Niro) juggles family and film pressures in Barry Levinson’s Hollywood satire, which features Sean Penn and Bruce Willis.

ZACK AND MIRI MAKE A PORNO: Destitute roommies (Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks) try to make a skin flick to raise cash. Directed by Kevin Smith.

November:

AUSTRALIA: Nicole Kidman reunites with “Moulin Rouge” director Baz Luhrmann for the story of a noblewoman on a cattle drive in Australia during World War II. With Hugh Jackman.

BOLT: A canine TV star (voiced by John Travolta) hits the streets to reunite with his human co-star (Miley Cyrus) in this animated comedy.

THE BOY IN THE STRIPED PAJAMAS: A Jewish boy forges a friendship with the son of a Nazi concentration camp commandant. With Vera Farmiga and David Thewlis.

FOUR CHRISTMASES: A couple (Reese Witherspoon and Vince Vaughn) with a large extended family must endure four holiday gatherings with kin.

LAKE CITY: A son on the run returns home to a hard reunion with his mother. Sissy Spacek and Troy Garity star.

MADAGASCAR: ESCAPE 2 AFRICA: Zoo animals are stranded again in this animated sequel reuniting voice stars Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, David Schwimmer and Jada Pinkett Smith.

MILK: Sean Penn stars as gay political pioneer Harvey Milk, who was slain by a fellow San Francisco city supervisor. Gus Van Sant directs.

NOBEL SON: A doctoral candidate’s dad wins a Nobel Prize, leading to a kidnapping and ransom demand for the award money.

NOTHING LIKE THE HOLIDAYS: A sack full of surprises awaits a family during their Christmas reunion. With Debra Messing, John Leguizamo and Alfred Molina.

QUANTUM OF SOLACE: James Bond (Daniel Craig), vengeful over the death of his love, takes on a phony environmentalist trying to control water supplies.

REPO! THE GENETIC OPERA: Organ-donor recipients who can’t make their payments face repossession in this horror-musical that features Paris Hilton.

THE ROAD: A man and his son trek across a desolate land after a global catastrophe has destroyed most life on Earth. With Viggo Mortensen and Charlize Theron.

ROLE MODELS: Two adult adolescents (Paul Rudd and Seann William Scott) are sentenced to community service as youth mentors.

THE SOLOIST: A music prodigy (Jamie Foxx) now living on the streets is befriended by a journalist (Robert Downey Jr.).

SOUL MEN: Samuel L. Jackson and the late Bernie Mac are an estranged singing duo reunited for a tribute concert. The late Isaac Hayes co-stars.

TRANSPORTER 3: Jason Statham is back on the job as the ex-Special Ops guy who’s now the world’s most-dangerous delivery man.

TWILIGHT: The publishing sensation comes to Hollywood in this tale of an eternally young vampire (Robert Pattinson) and his teen soul mate (Kristen Stewart).

December:

BEDTIME STORIES: Adam Sandler’s a hotel handyman whose drab life starts changing after the tall tales he tells his niece and nephew start to come true.

THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL: Keanu Reeves stars as an alien on a portentous visit to Earth in this remake of the 1950s sci-fi classic. Jennifer Connelly co-stars.

THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON: Brad Pitt stars as a man aging backward from his 80s to infancy. With Cate Blanchett, directed by David Fincher.

DEFIANCE: Jewish brothers (Daniel Craig, Liev Schreiber and Jamie Bell) evade the Nazis and form a community to protect others in jeopardy.

DOUBT: Meryl Streep, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Amy Adams star in a drama about a nun who accuses a priest of abusing a student.

FROST/NIXON: Ron Howard directs the adaptation of the play about the soul-baring 1977 interview between Richard Nixon (Frank Langella) and David Frost (Michael Sheen).

GRAN TORINO: Clint Eastwood directs and stars as a veteran whose prejudices are challenged by his immigrant neighbors.

HURRICANE SEASON: In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, a coach (Forest Whitaker) leads a ragtag basketball team to the Louisiana state championships.

MARLEY & ME: A kooky dog winds up teaching valuable life lessons to his two-legged friends. With Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson.

PUNISHER: WAR ZONE: The Marvel Comics vigilante (Ray Stevenson) is himself a target for vengeance by a crime boss.

REVOLUTIONARY ROAD: “Titanic” stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet reunite as a couple struggling to break out of the boredom of 1950s suburbia.

SEVEN POUNDS: Will Smith’s an IRS agent making amends for past wrongs by helping seven strangers. With Rosario Dawson and Woody Harrelson.

THE SPIRIT: Graphic novelist Frank Miller (“300”) directs the tale of a resurrected crime-fighter (Gabriel Macht). With Samuel L. Jackson and Scarlett Johansson.

THE TALE OF DESPEREAUX: Matthew Broderick provides the voice of a mouse who sets out to rescue a princess in this animated adventure.

VALKYRIE: Tom Cruise stars as a German colonel attempting to assassinate Adolf Hitler. Bryan Singer (“The Usual Suspects,” “X-Men”) directs.

WALTZ WITH BASHIR: An Israeli Army veteran struggles with cloudy memories of the war in Lebanon in the early 1980s in this animated documentary.

WENDY AND LUCY: Michelle Williams stars as a woman whose dream of a new life for her and her dog in Alaska hits a road block.

YES MAN: A guy (Jim Carrey) whose life has stagnated turns it around with a just-say-yes policy about everything.

List from: The Associated Press

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