2010 Movie Preview Pt. 2

The upcoming year in cinema is full of sequels, remakes, book adaptations, video game adaptations, comic book adaptations, a few television show adaptations, a sequel to a television show adaptation, and of course a couple of original films thrown in for good measure.

Here are another 25 titles on my radar (in no particular order). If you see a star beside the title that means I’m anticipating the film and hope it turns out to be a good watch.

Dinner for Schmucks – Zach Galifianakis, Paul Rudd, Steve Carell, and Ron Livingston star in this comedy about a man who has the ability to ruin the life of anyone spending a few minutes with him. Directed by Jay Roach (Meet the Parents) this could be a sleeper hit. In theatres July 23.

Due Date – Zach Galifianakis is a college slacker who has to drive a father-to-be (Robert Downey Jr.) on a road trip in order to make the birth of his child. I can already anticipate the ending of this where they just make it in time and Downey Jr.’s character names the baby after Galifianakis’s character. Don’t have much faith in this one. In theatres November 5.   

Greenberg – Ben Stiller tones it down to play Roger Greenberg — a New Yorker who moves to Los Angeles to decide what he wants to do with his life. Written by husband and wife team Jennifer Jason Leigh and Noah Baumbach (with Baumbach directing) this could a very dry comedy-drama the way Baumbach’s The Squid and the Whale was in 2005. In theatres March 12.

* Paul – Simon Pegg and Nick Frost re-team to play British sci-fi geeks who encounter an alien near Area 51 in the U.S. Seth Rogen voices the alien and Kristen Wiig, Jason Bateman, Jane Lynch, and Sigourney Weaver also star. Sounds hilarious. No release date set yet.

The A-Team – Mr. T is not in it but Liam Neeson, Bradley Cooper, Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson, and District 9‘s Sharlto Copley are. Will it be a hit or will it be worse than The Dukes of Hazzard adaptation? Time will tell. In theatres June 11.

* Frozen – A horror film set in a chairlift on a ski hill. Sounds ridiculous but actually looks pretty freaky (and it’s playing at the Sundance Film Festival). Check out the trailer below. In theatres February 5.

Hereafter – Supernatural thriller directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Matt Damon and Bryce Dallas Howard. In theatres December.

Knight & Day – From the trailer (below) I gather this is an action-comedy starring Tom Cruise as a super-agent and Cameron Diaz as the ditsy woman he’s protecting. Don’t really know how I feel about this one. In theatres July 2.

* Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief – Things get a little crazy for Percy Jackson (Logan Lerman) after he finds out he’s the descendant of a Greek god. Uma Thurman plays Medusa. I’m sold! Based on the book by Rick Riordan. In theatres February 12.

Babies – The story of the first year of the lives of four babies from around the world. Could be the cutest documentary ever made. In theatres April 16.

Tron: Legacy – Effects-heavy sequel to the 1982 hit TRON. Looks amazing (it’s going to be in 3-D too) but not much is known about the story yet. In theatres December 17.

* Scott Pilgrim vs. the World – Scott Pilgrim (Michael Cera) lives in Toronto and plays bass in the band Sex Bob-omb. When he meets the girl of his dreams he has to battle her seven evil ex-boyfriends in order to win her heart. Directed by Edgar Wright and based on the Bryan Lee O’Malley comic book series this is hopefully going to be a blast. No set release date yet.

Hot Tub Time Machine – John Cusack, Crispin Glover, and Chevy Chase star in this film about a bunch of buddies who get wasted and travel back in time (via a hot tub I presume) to the ’80s. Oh boy. In theatres March 19.

The Runaways – Kristen Stewart plays Joan Jett and Dakota Fanning plays Cherie Currie in this biopic of the ’70s band chick band The Runaways. Could be a disaster or could end up surprising everyone the way Ray did. In theatres March 19.

* Machete – They teased Machete with a fake trailer in the Quentin Tarantino/Robert Rodriguez film Grindhouse, and now Rodriguez has turned it into a full blown film starring Danny Trejo (it could become a trilogy from what I hear too). It looks like a very violent throwback to the ’70s revenge film with lots of people being sliced and diced. In theatres April 16.

Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps – Stupidest title of the year goes to…Disgraced Wall Streeter Gordon Gecko (Michael Douglas) helps a young trader alert the financial community of the coming economic collapse. They also try to find out who killed the young trader’s mentor. Shia LaBeouf, Carey Mulligan, Susan Sarandon, Josh Brolin, and Charlie Sheen also star. Oliver Stone returns to direct. In theatres April 23.

Friday the 13th Part 2 – Masked serial killer Jason Voorhees kills more stupid teenagers in the sequel to 2009’s Friday the 13th remake. In theatres August 13.

* The Expendables – This is going to be big and loud. Every action star is in The Expendables including Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Bruce Willis, Steve Austin, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Mickey Rourke. Eric Roberts is in it too. Stallone is directing and early buzz is the film is awesome. In theatres August 20.

MacGruber – Based on the Saturday Night Live sketch where secret agent MacGruber can never stop the bomb from blowing up and killing everyone. SNL regulars Will Forte, Bill Hader, and Kristen Wiig star with Val Kilmer and Ryan Phillippe joining them. Early word is that this is more Wayne’s World than It’s Pat. Here’s hoping. In theatres April 16.

Shrek Forever After – Note to Dreamworks: please stop making Shrek movies! The first one was good but the two sequels stunk. Shrek Forever After looks no better. Mike Myers, Cameron Diaz, and Eddie Murphy return to voice the characters. In theatres May 21.

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time – Jake Gyllenhaal takes on the role of Prince Dastan, an adventurous prince who has to team up with a rival princess to stop an evil ruler from unleashing a sandstorm. Directed by Mike Newell (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire) and based on the video game series it looks cool but I don’t have high expectations. In theatres May 28.

Marmaduke – Owen Wilson voices the big, dumb dog in this mix of CG and live-action. Like the Alvin and the Chipmunks, Garfield, and Scooby-Doo adaptations this will most likely stink too. In theatres June 4.

* My Soul To Take – Wes Craven directs this horror-thriller about a serial killer returning to his hometown to stalk seven children who share the same birthday as the date he was supposedly put to death. No set release date.

* Oceans – DisneyNature goes underwater for its second release in the nature documentary field, Oceans. Directed by Jacques Perrin and Jacques Cluzaud (who did the wonderful Winged Migration together in 2001) expect some amazing cinematography that will have you glued to your seat. In theatres April 22.

The Karate Kid – Jackie Chan and Jaden Smith star in this remake of the classic ’80s film. Can they do it justice? I’m very hopeful but with Harald Zwart directing the outlook is not good. In theatres June 11.

What are you looking forward to at the cinema in 2010? Comment below or e-mail brian.mckechnie@citynews.rogers.com.

Top image: A scene from Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. Courtesy Walt Disney Pictures.