July Movie Preview Part 1

July is here, with promises of salvation after a (mostly) underwhelming summer of movies thus far. Aside from "Star Trek" and "Up", no movie has been truly great. But Depp vs. Bale is sure to turn heads come Oscar season and Sacha Baron Cohen makes his triumphant return. Harry Potter reaches his penultimate chapter and Judd Apatow has finally directed another movie. Oh, and there's this little indie movie I'm kind of excited about.

Here's Part 1.

The Over-Hyped Movie?:
Public Enemies, July 1


Note the question mark! I'm not saying that it's going to be bad. Let's just not too excited yet. Sure, it has the makings of a classic. Johnny Depp, as legendary gangster John Dillinger, and Christian Bale, his police pursuer Melvin Purvis, are undoubtedly two of the finest actors of our generation. The cast is rounded out by several underrated supporting players, with Billy Crudup (sans the blue wang) as FBI honcho J. Edgar Hoover, Stephen Graham (Tommy in "Snatch") as Baby Face Nelson, and David Wenham (Faramir!) as another member of Dillinger's gang. Ladies get a strong push, missing from most Michael Mann movies, with the addition of Oscar winner Marion Cotillard as Dillinger's girlfriend. And of course, cat-and-mouse movies are always fun to watch, especially with suave antiheroes.

So what am I worried about? Hype. Hype is a bad thing. Maybe the worst of things. And it needs to die. I'm guilty of this on several occasions. "Benjamin Button" is a good example. A great director (David Fincher), superb actor (Brad Pitt), and smart story was, by my expectations, supposed to lead to an incredible film. It turned out to be just a good film. The moral of the story is don't hype dramatic movies surrounded with great talent (comedies and action flicks are exceptions). No matter how awesome "Public Enemies" it is, it will be hard to live up to your expectations. Still, watch and enjoy. Long black trenchcoats and giant tommy guns are always cool.

Box Office Prediction: $120 million (because it's rated R)


Guaranteed Comedic Gold:
Bruno, July 10



This one's pretty obvious. "Borat" was a phenomenon in 2006, and deservedly so. It was risky, hilarious, and took comedy to unprecedented levels (remember the naked fight?) Now that the formula is proven, "Bruno"'s quality is pretty set in stone. Instead of ambushing civilians as a Kazakhi journalist, Sacha Baron Cohen will now adopt the guise of a gay Austrian fashion reporter.

It's surprising that even after the worldwide success of "Borat", he was still able to dupe enough people to make a feature-length film. It's exciting, as this is likely to be Baron Cohen's last film in this manner. He has already retired two of the characters from "Da Ali G Show", Ali G and Borat. The third, Bruno, will probably follow the same path after his movie is released.

Even if you disliked "Borat", give "Bruno" a chance. The man put his safety on the line and reportedly got arrested several times in order for this movie to work. Expect lots of nudity and stomach-splitting laughter. For a taste, here's one of Bruno's best sketches from season 2 of "Da Ali G Show."



Box Office Prediction: $120 million (less than "Borat" since homosexuality is more uncomfortable than racism)

The Promising Adaptation
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, July 15

I've always been indifferent towards the Harry Potter movies. There's something inherently dull about watching a movie for the first time when you know exactly what's going to happen. I still watched them all in theaters and they were all pretty "meh" until the big Dumbledore-Voldemort duel at the end of "Order of the Phoenix". That's when Harry Potter movies took the next step, transforming a ho-hum battle within the pages to a tremendous brawl that transfixed the audience.

Judging from the trailer, "Half Blood Prince" is going to continue this process. Instead of blindly restricting themselves to the pages of the novel, the filmmakers are going to take mild liberties in order to create their own spin of the story. As countless literary adaptations have proved, what works in a book doesn't always work in the movies.



Exhibit A: 1:54 in the trailer, where a bridge in London is dismantled by Death Eaters. Don't remember that in the book. But it looks outstanding, and will contribute to the dark tone and faster, action-oriented pace of the movie.

Other additions include the attack on the Burrow (correct me if I'm wrong) and a larger role for that terrifying Werewolf guy who appears to destroy Diagon Alley. The cinematography looks first class, too. I'm getting goosebumps.


Hopefully the Harry/Ginny and Ron/Hermione snogging, the worst parts of the book, will be kept to a minimum.

And yay. Quidditch is back. It's about time.

Box Office Prediction: $310 million (two years since the last movie and the last book. People need their Potter fix)