Definitely, Jumper
Back from Hawaii and boy are my arms tired. Photos here (with more to come).
In other news, Matthew McConaughey’s still got it.
2/15
Wide
WHAT’S THE PITCH?
How I Met Your Mother: The Movie
WILL IT SUCK?
Working Title is like the Pixar of romcom (About a Boy, Bridget Jones’s Diary, even the title font and colors for this one come from Love, Actually). That having been said, the writer/director wrote the Bridget Jones sequel and Practical Magic.
Early buzz, however, is good. And the cast is hot: Ryan Reynolds, Isla Fisher, Elizabeth Banks, Rachel Weisz, Abigail Breslin, Kevin Kline, Derek Luke, and Nestor Serrano.
HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
Very crowded field. $33mil.
WHAT’S THE PITCH?
Best use of a “2″ pun in a sequel title since Teen Wolf, Too.
WILL IT SUCK?
The only two things distinguishing this from all other You Got Served kith in my mind are (a) one of the writers wrote Save the Last Dance, which was supposed to not suck and (b) it’s set at the Maryland School of the Arts, and I’m from Baltimore.
HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
Field didn’t get any less crowded, but don’t underestimate dance challenge flicks. $33mil.
WHAT’S THE PITCH?
Another kids’ fantasy flick.
WILL IT SUCK?
Mark Waters helmed the shit out of Freaky Friday and Mean Girls, but seeing Chris Weitz fail to crossover from romcom to fantasy with Golden Compass gives me pause. Writers have done everything from Chicken Run to Haunted Mansion, so your guess is as good as mine, although they did bring in John Sayles to script doctor. Early buzz is good.
HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
Bad timing. Jumper’s going to be an issue. If the rumors about an attached Indiana Jones trailer hold true, that might give the opening weekend a bump. $58mil.
WHAT’S THE PITCH?
Teleporting freaks battle it out with government agents.
WILL IT SUCK?
Director Doug Liman knows his shit, and the writers have titles like Fight Club and Batman Begins under their collective belts. Early buzz, however, is not good.
HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
Will own a crowded weekend. $93mil.
Limited
GEORGE A. ROMERO’S DIARY OF THE DEAD
WHAT’S THE PITCH?
George goes all Cloverfield on the zombie genre.
WILL IT SUCK?
Zombies are what this man does. Early buzz is good. Keep an ear out for voice cameos from Quentin Tarantino, Guillermo Del Toro, Stephen King, Simon Pegg and Wes Craven.
HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
Oft-delayed indie horror flick Signal comes out next week, but no one takes on Romero. $10mil.
Next Week: The best premise I’ve heard in a long time.