Opening this week at a theatre near you:
Tyler Perry’s Good Deeds (2012)
Source: Lionsgate
To businessman, Wesley Deeds (Tyler Perry), life is good. He runs his father’s company and is engaged to a beautiful woman (Gabrielle Union). Wesley’s structured life, though, is about to change when he offers to help a cleaning woman (Thandie Newton) named Lindsey, who is a down-on-her-luck single mother. Tyler Perry’s Good Deeds website
What to Watch For: This is a much more restrained role for Perry, who is better known for his Medea persona, but the film should do well with a broad range of movie-goers.
Word on the Street: Producer/Writer/Director/Actor Perry will have another big hit on his hands.
Act of Valor (2012)
Source: Relativity Media
An elite Navy SEAL team goes on a mission to save a kidnapped CIA agent. As the mission progresses, the team discovers a terrorist plot to attack the US. Act of Valor website
What to Watch For: Some of the film stars are actual Navy SEALS, but their names will not appear in the credits.
Word on the Street: By using Navy SEAL team members and lots of creative camerawork, the directors of the film hope to give the audience the feel of actually being on a mission.
Gone (2012)
Source: Summit Entertainment
Jill (Amanda Seyfried) was kidnapped two years ago by a serial killer, and barely escaped with her life. Now her sister is missing, and Jill is convinced the same person who kidnapped her is responsible. When she receives little help from the police, Jill goes out on her own to track down the kidnapper and save her sister. Gone website
What to Watch For: Amanda Seyfried has starred in a number of films lately that have not done well at the box office (Red Riding Hood, Jennifer’s Body, In Time), so can she break her streak and open this film big?
Word on the Street: Seyfried took the role because she was tired of playing “damsels in distress” and wanted to kick some butt.
Wanderlust (2012)
Source: NBC Universal
A married couple (Jennifer Aniston and Paul Rudd) decide to leave their cushy lives in New York when the husband loses his job. They opt to explore their options, and ultimately find a commune where free love rules. Wanderlust website
What to Watch For: There certainly will be chemistry between Rudd and Aniston, as Rudd guest-starred on Friends, and they co-starred in the 1998 comedy, The Object of My Affection. The film was shot in Georgia, so look for landmarks like the Gwinnett Diner in Lawrenceville to make appearances.
Word on the Street: You have to give props to Jennifer Aniston as she appears not to be scared to take on non-traditional roles: first as a sexual harassing dentist in Horrible Bosses and now co-starring in a film with nudity and drug use.
Rampart (2012)
Source: Millennium Entertainment
Set in 1999 Los Angeles in the wake of the “Rampart scandal” of the 1990’s, a crooked cop (Woody Harrelson) is forced to face the repercussions of his actions. Rampart website
What to Watch For: The film has a strong cast with Cynthia Nixon, Anne Heche, Ice Cube and Audra McDonald.
Word on the Street: Woody Harrelson gives one of the better performances of his career.
If you can’t make it to the theatre this weekend, stay at home and watch movies on CW69:
Saturday
1:00 pm
Nine to Five (1980) The classic comedy starring Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin and Dolly Parton who play three secretaries hell-bent on changing the culture of the company branch they work for, even if it means killing their boss (Dabney Coleman).
3:00 pm
The Year of the Yao (2004) A fascinating documentary on the first year in the NBA of Yao Ming, a center for the Houston Rockets who is from China. Ming has to deal with playing in the NBA without knowing English and having the pressure of living up to his hype.
Sunday2:00 pm
Stealth (2005) In the near future, three of the best fighter pilots (Jamie Foxx, Josh Lucas and Jessica Biel) join a secret project to develop an automated computer-driven robotic stealth aircraft. The computer, though, goes out of control and starts acting on its own. It’s up to the pilots to bring it down before the robotic plane starts a war.
