Film critic Dan Dunn previews upcoming holiday films
THE MOVIE: King Kong (Dec. 14) THE STARS: Naomi Watts, Jack Black, Adrien Brody THE DIRECTOR: Peter Jackson THE SKINNY: A remake of the 1933 classic from the guy who made “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy. THE DRAW: Comparing the cuddliness factor of Jack Black versus the ape. THE VERDICT: Though remaking “Kong” seems a bit unnecessary, the enormously talented Jackson has earned the benefit of the doubt.
THE MOVIE: Fun with Dick and Jane (Dec. 21) THE STARTS: Jim Carrey, Tea Leoni THE DIRECTOR: Dean Parisot THE SKINNY: White collar couple Carrey and Leoni fall on hard times and turn to a life of crime. THE DRAW: Director Parisot makes his cinematic debut after an impressive television career (“Monk,” “The Job,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm”) THE VERDICT: We know what we’re getting with Carrey. The wild card here is Leoni, whose past performances have been hit (“Flirting with Disaster”) or egregious miss (“Spanglish”).
THE MOVIE: The Matador (Dec. 23) THE STARS: Pierce Brosnan, Greg Kinnear, Hope Davis THE DIRECTOR: Richard Shepard THE SKINNY: Black comedy about an unlikely friendship between a globetrot-ting contract killer and a down-on-his-luck Denver businessman. THE DRAW: Brosnan delivers one of the best performances of his career. The hipness quotient is high. THE VERDICT: If you don’t see this one, you deserve to get whacked.
THE MOVIE: Munich (Dec. 23) THE STARS Eric Bana, Daniel Craig, Geoffrey Rush THE DIRECTOR: Steven Spielberg THE SKINNY: Dramatization of events surrounding Palestinian terrorist attack at the 1972 Olympic games. THE DRAW: Spielberg, you may have heard, knows his way around a movie set, and is particularly good with historic dramas (see “Schindler’s List,” “Saving Private Ryan”) THE VERDICT: The Buzz has this one pegged as the year’s Best Picture favorite.
THE MOVIE: The Ringer (Dec. 23) THE STARS: Johnny Knoxville, Katherine Heigl, Brian Cox THE DIRECTOR: Barry W. Blaustein THE SKINNY: Two guys conspire to fix the Special Olympics by having one of them enter the competition. THE DRAW: See political correctness take a serious ass-whupping. THE VERDICT: Pretending to be mentally-challenged is right up the former “Jackass” star’s alley. The Farrelly Brothers oversaw the production.
THE MOVIE: Casanova (Dec. 25) THE STARS: Heath Ledger, Sienna Miller THE DIRECTOR: Lasse Hallstrom THE SKINNY: The famous lover (Ledger) meets his match (Miller). THE DRAW: Is there really anything to the rumors of an off-camera romance between the two leads? THE VERDICT: Sienna really should dump Jude.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on November 11, 2005. Read the original PDF.