BACK FOR MORE EVERTHING YOU LIKE - JUST ADD POPCORN.Byline: Bob Strauss Film Writer Lots of sequels. More cartoons. And way too many films about fantastic worlds where Good inevitably triumphs over Evil. Yep, looks like another year at the movies. But don't despair. While originality and maturity appear to be in short supply at this early date, there's a good chance that, as in most recent years, provocative and stimulating stuff for active mentalities will find its way to theaters at some point in 2007. Maybe not much before September, but it's out there somewhere. This year's list of returning filmmakers worth waiting for include Craig ``Hustle & Flow'' Brewer (``Black Snake black snake, name for several snakes, not all closely related, that are black in color. In the United States the name is applied chiefly to the black racer and to the black rat snake (Elaphe obsoleta), both partly arboreal in their habits. Moan''), David ``Se7en'' Fincher (``Zodiac''), Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez (``Grindhouse''), Wes ``Rushmore'' Anderson (``The Darjeeling Limited''), David Cronenberg (``Eastern Promises''), Ang Lee (``Lust, Caution''), Michael Moore (``Sicko''), P.T. ``Boogie Nights'' Anderson (``There Will Be Blood'') and Mike Nichols (``Charlie Wilson's War''). In the meantime Adv. 1. in the meantime - during the intervening time; "meanwhile I will not think about the problem"; "meantime he was attentive to his other interests"; "in the meantime the police were notified" meantime, meanwhile , it seems like half of the Marvel Comics stable (Spider-Man, Ghost Rider, Fantastic Four), additional pirates from the Caribbean (and points east), kid wizards growing up faster than they can produce pictures about them and more fairy tale creatures than a dozen Grimm Brothers could keep up with will do their best to amuse us. The following is a list of all the films we could find that are scheduled to open in L.A. between now and Memorial Day weekend. We've also chosen 50 or so of the most promising titles planned for later in the year. Be advised that all release dates are tentative and subject to change, acts of God and the whims of marketing departments. Oh, and remember: Pure Good triumphing over Abject Evil, almost always only happens in movies. Viewers are advised not to attempt to apply this principle to real-life situations. The same goes for governments and foreign policies. JAN. 26 BLOOD AND CHOCOLATE: Werewolf werewolf: see lycanthropy. werewolf In European folklore, a man who changes into a wolf at night and devours animals, people, or corpses, returning to human form by day. girl seeks love. (MGM MGM in full Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc. U.S. corporation and film studio. It was formed when the film distributor Marcus Loew, who bought Metro Pictures in 1920, merged it with the Goldwyn production company in 1924 and with Louis B. Mayer Pictures in 1925. ) CATCH AND RELEASE: After her fiance's sudden death, Jennifer Garner finds solace with his motley crew of buddies. (Columbia) EPIC MOVIE: Sounds more like a spoof of fantasy films than real Hollywood epics. But people who make these kinds of things tend to be incoherent anyway. (Fox) FUNNY MONEY: Chevy Chase is a regular schlub schlub also shlub n. Slang A person regarded as clumsy, stupid, or unattractive. [Yiddish, from Polish who mistakenly picks up a briefcase with $5 million in it. No reports of Howie Mandel involvement. (ThinkFilm) G.I. JESUS: A guy named Jesus comes home from Iraq. (Cineville) NOMAD: THE WARRIOR: A real film from Kazakhstan. Really. 18th century, about warriors. (Weinstein) SERAPHIM seraphim six-winged angels of the highest order, distinguished by their zeal and love. [O.T.: Isaiah 6:2; Benét, 915] See : Angel FALLS: Liam Neeson and some hired guns chase Pierce Brosnan through a biblically allegorical Old West. (Samuel Goldwyn) SMOKIN' ACES: Jeremy ``Ari Gold'' Piven finally plays something other than a sleazy agent -- he's a sleazy casino magician -- in this Tarantino-esque mob comedy. Ben Affleck, Alicia Keys, Ryan Reynolds, Andy Garcia and many more get shot up. (Universal) VERDICT ON AUSCHWITZ: Documentary taken from the 1960s trials of concentration camp personnel. (First Run) FEB. 2 BECAUSE I SAID SO: Diane Keaton interferes in daughter Mandy Moore's love life. It's meant to be funny. (Universal) CONSTELLATION: Something about an unrequited interracial in·ter·ra·cial adj. Relating to, involving, or representing different races: interracial fellowship; an interracial neighborhood. affair. Um, can you call it an affair if it's unrequited? With Gabrielle Union, Zoe Saldana and Billy Dee Williams. (Bigger Picture) FACTORY GIRL: Sienna Miller plays doomed '60s Warhol superstar Edie Sedgwick to Guy Pearce's ambiguous Andy. (Weinstein) THE MESSENGERS: City folks move to the country, find their new house is haunted. By Hong Kong's creepy Pang Brothers. (Screen Gems) FEB. 9 BREAKING AND ENTERING breaking and entering v., n. entering a residence or other enclosed property through the slightest amount of force (even pushing open a door), without authorization. If there is intent to commit a crime, this is burglary. : Infidelity and immigration immigration, entrance of a person (an alien) into a new country for the purpose of establishing permanent residence. Motives for immigration, like those for migration generally, are often economic, although religious or political factors may be very important. are just some of the hefty subjects addressed by writer-director Anthony Minghella (``The English Patient'') in this thoughtful drama starring Jude Law, Juliette Binoche and Robin Wright Penn. (Weinstein) HANNIBAL RISING: The origin of our dear Dr. Lecter. No Anthony Hopkins this time. (MGM/Weinstein) THE LAST SIN EATER: Louise Fletcher and Henry Thomas star in this Christian mystery, set in Appalachia. (Fox Faith) THE LIVES OF OTHERS: Prize-winning German film about a Communist secret policeman who questions his long devotion to the state some five years before the Berlin Wall fell. (Sony Classics) NORBIT: Eddie Murphy's at it again, playing a lovable loser, his obese wife AND his Chinese surrogate father. (Paramount) PUCCINI FOR BEGINNERS: Lesbians and a few guys get all mixed up romantically. They're calling it a screwball screw·ball n. 1. Baseball A pitched ball that curves in the direction opposite to that of a normal curve ball. 2. Slang An eccentric, impulsively whimsical, or irrational person. adj. comedy; that sounds right for a number of reasons. With Gretchen Mol and Elizabeth Reaser. (Strand) SAMOAN WEDDING: ``Wedding Crashers,'' Polynesian style. (Magnolia) THE SITUATION: American journalist Connie Nielsen gets herself into a romantic triangle in, of all places, Iraq. (Shadow Distribution) AN UNREASONABLE MAN: He would be consumer advocate/election wrecker Ralph Nader. A biographical documentary. (IFC (Internet Foundation Classes) A class library from Netscape that provides an application framework and graphical user interface (GUI) routines for Java programmers. IFC was later made part of the Java Foundation Classes (JFC). See JFC, AFC and AWT. See also ICF. ) FEB. 14 BEHIND THE MASK: THE RISE OF LESLIE VERNON: A guy who wants to be the next Freddy Krueger seeks media attention. (Anchor Bay) MUSIC AND LYRICS: Over-with '80s pop star Hugh Grant needs help writing a comeback song, and wouldn't you know that his kooky plant lady Drew Barrymore has a way with words A Way With Words is a nationwide, weekly public radio show about language, originally produced by KPBS in San Diego, CA, from 1998 to 2007. The show was originally hosted by authors Richard Lederer and Charles Harrington Elster. . Stop saying that sounds stupid, you people; it's Valentine's Day! Be romantic. (Warner Bros BROS Brothers BROS Benefits and Retirement Operations Section (King County, Washington) BROS Barnes and Richmond Operatic Society (London, UK) .) TYLER PERRY'S DADDY'S LITTLE GIRLS: A poor mechanic falls in love with the lawyer who's helping him keep custody of his daughters. Gabrielle Union and ``The Wire's'' Idris Elba star for ``Diary of a Mad Black Woman'' writer Perry. (Lionsgate) FEB. 16 AVENUE MONTAIGNE: France's Oscar entry, about a waitress from the provinces and her cross-section of customers at a chic Paris eatery. (ThinkFilm) THE BOY WHO CRIED BITCH: THE ADOLESCENT YEARS: All we can tell is that it's some kind of sequel to the, um, 1990s classic. (Pilgrims) BREACH: Thriller based on the Robert Hanssen FBI info-peddling case. Ryan Phillippe, Chris Cooper, Laura Linney and Dennis Haysbert star. (Universal) THE BRIDGE TO TERABITHIA: Two middle-school kids create their own fantasy realm and enter it. (Disney) DAYS OF GLORY (INDIGENES): Acclaimed story of North African troops fighting in the Free French army during World War II. (Weinstein) GHOST RIDER: Nicolas Cage is the devil-cursed motorcyclist from the comic books. (Columbia) GRBAVICA: A 12-year-old Bosnian girl discovers that her mother hasn't been entirely honest about what happened during the Yugoslav war. (Strand) STARTER FOR 10: A British university student competes on a TV quiz show -- and for love. ``Last King of Scotland's'' James McAvoy stars. (Picturehouse) FEB. 23 AMAZING GRACE: The 18th-century effort to abolish slavery in the British Empire is dramatized. (Samuel Goldwyn/Roadside Attractions) THE ASTRONAUT FARMER: Like it says, a farmer named Farmer builds his own spaceship in the barn. Billy Bob Thornton stars. (Warner Bros.) BLACK SNAKE MOAN: Sam Jackson is a reformed bluesman who tries to cure Christina Ricci of nymphomania nymphomania /nym·pho·ma·nia/ (nim?fo-ma´ne-ah) excessive sexual desire in a female.nymphoman´iac nym·pho·ma·ni·a n. -- by keeping her chained around his shack. From ``Hustle & Flow'' writer-director Craig Brewer. (Paramount Vantage) GLASTONBURY: The U.K.'s longest-running music festival is chronicled. (ThinkFilm) GRAY MATTERS: Heather Graham falls in love with her brother's fiancee. (Yari) THE NUMBER 23: Is the new 13, evidently. Jim Carrey plays a guy whose life is numerologically threatened. (New Line) RENO 911: MIAMI Miami, cities, United States Miami (mīăm`ē, –ə). 1 City (1990 pop. 358,548), seat of Dade co., SE Fla., on Biscayne Bay at the mouth of the Miami River; inc. 1896. : Comedy Central's Keystone-ish cops get their own movie, set in, like, Florida. (Fox) MARCH 2 FULL OF IT: New kid in school tells lies to try to fit in. Then they come true, and he does. (New Line) TEARS OF THE BLACK TIGER Tears of the Black Tiger (Thai: ฟ้าทะลายโจร, or Fah talai jone : Colorful Thai Western. You read that right. (Magnolia) WILD HOGS: Middle-age guys John Travolta, Tim Allen, Martin Lawrence and William H. Macy act like bikers for a while. (Touchstone) ZODIAC: Director David Fincher (``Se7en'') delves into the unsolved case of San Francisco's notorious serial killer serial killer Forensic psychiatry A person who commits serial murders Prototypic SK White ♂ age 30; 97% are ♂; 80% are sociopaths. See Dahmer, Depraved heart murder, Ice Man. Cf Megan's law, Son of Sam law. . Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo and Robert Downey Jr. investigate. (Paramount) MARCH 9 BELIEVE IN ME: Macho basketball coach gets saddled with a girls' team. (IFC) BEYOND THE GATES: The Rwandan genocide again, this time from (sigh) white people's perspectives. (IFC) BLACK BOOK: Paul Verhoeven (``Basic Instinct,'' ``Showgirls'') returns to his native Holland, but apparently remains crazy. This World War II story focuses on a Jewish woman who joins the resistance AND has an affair with a Nazi. (Sony Classics) FAST TRACK: Zach Braff is forced to go to work for his father-in-law. Jason Bateman plays the company's star employee -- who's also in love with Braff's wife (Amanda Peet). Better be funny. (Weinstein) FIDO FIDO - FInite DOmains. A constraint language implemented on top of Prolog. ftp://ftp.uni-kl.de/pub1/Unix/languages/fido/. : In the future, we'll all have zombies Zombies Companies that continue to operate even though they are insolvent. Also known as living dead. Notes: It's advisable to avoid investing in zombies at all costs their life expectancies are highly unpredictable. for domestic servants and pets. (Lionsgate) THE HOST: Korean guy tries to save his daughter from some icky virus monster in this critically acclaimed, special-effects extravaganza. (Magnolia) INTO GREAT SILENCE: Documentary about some very quiet French monks. (Zeitgeist) MAXED OUT: Documentary about credit card debt Credit card debt is an example of unsecured consumer debt, accessed through ISO 7810 plastic credit cards. Debt results when a client of a credit card company purchases an item or service through the card system. , and how we're all doomed. (Truly Indie) THE NAMESAKE: Jhumpa Lahiri's novel about generational conflict in an Indian-American family is brought to the screen by ``Monsoon Wedding's'' Mira Nair. Kal Penn stars. (Fox Searchlight) REIGN OVER ME: Adam Sandler comes to grips with the post-trauma of the 9/11 attacks. Yes, Adam Sandler. (Columbia) 300: The historic Battle of Thermopylae, in which 300 Spartans held off a couple million Persians -- or something like that. Anyway, this is based on a comic-book rendition of the story, with live actors fighting against virtually created backgrounds. (Warner Bros.) MARCH 16 AQUA TEEN HUNGER FORCE COLON MOVIE FILM FOR THEATERS: Apparently not the Borat sequel the grammatically challenged title indicates, but a big-screen version of the Adult Swim cartoon series. (First Look) CAFFEINE: Sex and coffee in London. (Cosgrove) I THINK I LOVE MY WIFE: Chris Rock directs himself as a guy who's got the itch. Based on Eric Rohmer's ``Chloe in the Afternoon.'' Yeah, right. (Fox Searchlight) LUCKY YOU: Professional poker player Eric Bana is unlucky in love until he meets Drew Barrymore. (Warner Bros.) THE NEXT GIRL I SEE: ``American Pie's'' Jason Biggs stars in this romantic comedy. The good news? The girl is played by ``Wedding Crashers' '' incorrigible in·cor·ri·gi·ble adj. 1. Incapable of being corrected or reformed: an incorrigible criminal. 2. Firmly rooted; ineradicable: incorrigible faults. 3. Isla Fisher. (MGM) PREMONITION: Sandra Bullock dreams that her husband (``Nip/Tuck's'' Julian McMahon) is killed. But it's only a dream. Or is it? (TriStar) SHOOTER: Mark Wahlberg plays an ex-Army sniper framed for murder. (Paramount) THE WIND THAT SHAKES THE BARLEY: Cannes prize-winning, Irish revolution drama, directed by British leftie leftie n (inf) → gaucho m/f, gauchiste m/f leftie (inf) left n → Linke(r) f(m) Ken Loach. (IFC) MARCH 23 AIR GUITAR NATION: They actually have competitions for this. ANGEL-A: Love-him-or-loathe-him French director Luc Besson's latest, described as a kind of modern fairy tale with suicide attempts. (Sony Classics) BOY CULTURE: The kind men like. Well, some men. (TLA (Three Letter Acronym) The epitome of acronyms! While two-, four- and five-letter acronyms exist, there are more three-letter acronyms. Obviously, three words to describe a concept or product is the most popular. TLA - Three-Letter Acronym ) COLOR ME KUBRICK: Based on a true story, John Malkovich plays a guy who pretended to be the late, genius filmmaker, and fooled a lot of people into believing that he was. (Magnolia) DEAD SILENCE: The ``Saw'' creators strike again with a tale of murder and a small town's creepy history. (Universal) FIRST SNOW: Salesman Guy Pearce copes with a scary wintertime prediction. (Yari) THE HILLS HAVE EYES II: Does that mean that twice as many eyes will be gouged out in this one? (Fox Atomic) THE LAST MIMZY: Supersmart toys turn kids super-intelligent. (New Line) THE LOOKOUT: Joseph Gordon-Levitt stars as a mentally impaired young man who gets involved in bank robbery plans. (Miramax) PRIDE: Terrence Howard plays the founder of an African-American swim team. (Lionsgate) TMNT TMNT Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (cartoon/movie) : That stands for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, who have returned to the screen in CG cartoon format. (Warner Bros.) MARCH 30 AFTER THE WEDDING: Danish guy wants to help poor children in India, must participate in a rich girl's wedding to land a big donation. (IFC) BLADES OF GLORY: As the supply of new sports to parody continues to diminish, Will Ferrell and Jon Heder take on the figure-skating world. (Paramount) BLIND DATING: Yup, blind guy has trouble finding Ms. Right. (Samuel Goldwyn) MEET THE ROBINSON: Cartoon kid is whisked into the future. (Disney) THE REAPING: Hilary Swank horror movie that they've been threatening to release for almost a year now, but never seem to actually do. (Warner Bros.) RESCUE DAWN: True-life Vietnam P.O.W. escape adventure. Werner Herzog directs Christian Bale. (MGM) ALSO IN MARCH ADAM'S APPLES: Danish neo-Nazi gets redeemed caring for church's orchard. (Outsider) CUT SLEEVE BOYS: They're gay, British and Chinese! (Regent Releasing) THE PAGE TURNER: Thriller about a young French woman who takes a job in the home of a musician who screwed up her childhood. (Tartan) RACE YOU TO THE BOTTOM: ``Sideways'' with a chick and a gay guy. (Regent Releasing) APRIL April: see month. 6 ARE WE DONE YET?: Sequel to Ice Cube's family comedy ``Are We There Yet?'' You've been warned. (Columbia) GRINDHOUSE: Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez each directed a segment of this tribute to sleazy B movies. In one, Kurt Russell drives a killer car; in another, Rose McGowan has a machine gun attached to where her leg should be. You've been warned. (Dimension) THE HOAX: Howard Hughes autobiography faker Clifford Irving is played by Richard Gere. (Miramax) OFFSIDE: Females aren't allowed to attend soccer matches in Iran. But that's not gonna stop these girls from sneaking into the stadium. (Sony Classics) PENELOPE: Christina Ricci plays an heiress with a curse. No, it's not getting blitzed blitzed adj. Slang Drunk or intoxicated. every night at Hyde; her nose looks like a pig snout snout the upper lip and the apex of the nose, especially of the pig. Called also rostrum. Has a specialized skin to survive the rigors of rooting, is supported by a separate bone (the os rostri), and also has a few sensory hairs. . (IFC) SACCO AND VANZETTI Sacco and Vanzetti (Nicola, 1891–1927) (Bartolomeo, 1888–1927) Italian immigrants tried and executed for murder in witch-hunt for anarchists. [Am. Hist.: Sacco-Vanzetti Case: A Transcript] See : Controversy : The prison diaries of the executed anarchists are read aloud by John Turturro and Tony Shalhoub. (First Run) THE TV SET: David Duchovny wants to tell his family's story on a TV series. Network exec Sigourney Weaver wants a few things changed. (ThinkFilm) APRIL 13 DISTURBIA: Sounds like a teenage ``Rear Window.'' With Shia LaBeouf. (Paramount) HOT FUZZ: The British lads who made the hilarious ``Shaun of the Dead'' take on cop-movie cliches. (Focus) THE INVISIBLE: Ghost guy tries to solve his own murder. (Hollywood Pictures) PERFECT STRANGER: Halle Berry's sexy investigator tries to entrap suspected murderer Bruce Willis. (Columbia) RED ROAD: A Scottish CCTV CCTV abbr. closed-circuit television CCTV closed-circuit television monitor becomes obsessed ob·sess v. ob·sessed, ob·sess·ing, ob·sess·es v.tr. To preoccupy the mind of excessively. v.intr. with a man her cameras observe. (Tartan) THE RITCHIE BOYS: Documentary about escaped German Jews who were vital to U.S. counterintelligence coun·ter·in·tel·li·gence n. The branch of an intelligence service charged with keeping sensitive information from an enemy, deceiving that enemy, preventing subversion and sabotage, and collecting political and military information. in World War II. (Menemsha) SPRING BREAKDOWN: Three women in their 30s (Amy Poehler, Parker Posey, Rachel Dratch) go to South Padre Island during spring break. Humiliation ensues, we presume. (Warner Bros.) TRADE: Texas cop Kevin Kline tries to help a young Mexican man save his sister from a sex-slave syndicate. (Lionsgate) VACANCY: Couple Kate Beckinsale and Luke Wilson's car breaks down in the middle of nowhere, and the only motel makes the Bates Bates , Katherine Lee 1859-1929. American educator and writer best known for her poem "America the Beautiful," written in 1893 and revised in 1904 and 1911. place look inviting. (Screen Gems) WHOLE NEW THING: Son of Canadian hippies goes gay. (Picture This) YEAR OF THE DOG: Molly Shannon must cope with the death of her beloved pooch. Think it's a comedy; ``Chuck & Buck's'' Mike White directed. (Paramount Vantage) APRIL 20 EVERYTHING'S GONE GREEN: ``Generation X'' author Douglas Coupland wrote this script about a slacker getting involved in a lottery scam Ask a Lawyer Question Country: United States of America State: Indiana I am receiving several e-mails telling me that my e-mail address has been put in a lottery and drawn out as a winner Ex. . (Indican indican /in·di·can/ (in´di-kan) potassium indoxyl sulfate, formed by decomposition of tryptophan in the intestines and excreted in the urine. in·di·can n. ) IN THE LAND OF WOMEN: ``The O.C.'' refugee Adam Brody learns a lot about, well, women. (Warner Bros.) KICKIN' IT OLD SKOOL SKOOL Secret Knowledge of Organized Lawbreakers (Hardy Boys fictional spy organization) : Rip Van Winkle, hip-hop style. Jamie Kennedy's the break dancer who wakes up after a 20-year coma. (Yari Film Group) THE KINGDOM: Jamie Foxx hunts terrorists in Saudi Arabia. (Universal) THE NANNY DIARIES: Scarlett Johansson stars in this film version of the best-selling expose. Paul Giamatti and Laura Linney are the dysfunctional Manhattan aristocrats she child-minds for. From the directors of ``American Splendor.'' (Weinstein) SEVERANCE: Corporate retreats are frightening enough. But when you work for a cost-cutting-conscious weapons manufacturer that sends you out into the remote woods ... (Magnolia) SMILEY FACE: Underground director Gregg Araki got serious with his last, best movie, ``Mysterious Skin.'' Now he seems to be back in hipster wackiness mode with a comedy involving bad actors, drugged cupcakes and the original edition of the Communist Manifesto. (First Look) STEPHANIE DALEY: Tilda Swinton and Amber Tamblyn are superb as a pregnant forensic psychologist and her teenage subject, who may or may not have intentionally killed her infant at birth. (Regent Releasing) THE VALET: French farce about a rich guy who hires a schlub to pretend to be his gorgeous mistress' boyfriend. (Sony Classics) APRIL 27 BALLS OF FURY: The dirty world of underground Ping-Pong tournaments -- exposed! (Focus) THE CONDEMNED: Latest reality show: Convicted killers fight to the death; last one standing goes free. (Lionsgate) DEATH AT A FUNERAL: Lotsa problems at Dad's wake in this British comedy. (Sidney Kimmel Entertainment) DIGGERS: Clam diggers in the Hamptons try to keep the family business going amid encroaching gentrification gentrification, the rehabilitation and settlement of decaying urban areas by middle- and high-income people. Beginning in the 1970s and 80s, higher-income professionals, drawn by low-cost housing and easier access to downtown business areas, renovated deteriorating . Paul Rudd stars. (Magnolia) FRACTURE: Good cast -- Anthony Hopkins, Ryan Gosling, David Strathairn -- for a courtroom thriller. (New Line) JINDABYNE: Guys on a fishing trip find a woman's corpse, keep fishing. It's Australian. (Sony Classics) PATHFINDER: Vikings vs. Indians, pre-Columbian style. (Fox) SHOW BUSINESS: Documentary follows the mounting of four major Broadway shows. (Regent Releasing) ALSO IN APRIL KLIMT: John Malkovich plays the Austrian painter for director Raul Ruiz. (Outsider) POISON FRIENDS: Power games among French college students. (Strand) MAY 4 AWAY FROM HER: Memory loss impacts a long, loving marriage. Julie Christie stars in this adaptation of an Alice Munro story. (Lionsgate) SPIDER-MAN 3: The superhero su·per·he·ro n. pl. su·per·he·roes A figure, especially in a comic strip or cartoon, endowed with superhuman powers and usually portrayed as fighting evil or crime. goes dark, with a new black Spidey suit to match. Extra villains (Sandman Sandman induces sleep by sprinkling sand in children’s eyes. [Folklore: Brewer Dictionary, 966] See : Sleep Sandman - The DoD requirements that led to APSE. , Venom) and a new Green Goblin, plus competition for Mary Jane in the form of blond comic-book hottie Gwen Stacy. Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst rejoin director Sam Raimi. (Columbia) MAY 11 DELTA FARCE: Larry the Cable Guy Daniel Lawrence Whitney (born February 17 1963 in Pawnee City, Nebraska), better known by the stage name Larry the Cable Guy, is a stand up comedian, actor, and one of the co-stars of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour and the subsequent series Blue Collar TV. and some drunk hunting buddies somehow wind up in Mexico and think it's Iraq. (Lionsgate) GEORGIA RULE: Rebellious teen Lindsay Lohan's fed-up mom Felicity Huffman sends her to live with strict Mormon grandmother Jane Fonda. The set of this one was surely more entertaining than the movie could ever be. (Universal) PARIS, JE T'AIME: Twenty-odd directors of varied coolness status contribute short films about strange encounters in different sections of the French capital. (First Look) 28 WEEKS LATER: Sequel to ``28 Days Later,'' in which the rage zombie A computer that has been covertly taken over in order to perform some nefarious task. It is estimated that millions of PCs around the world have been compromised and, under the control of a third party, routinely transmit messages unbeknownst to the user. virus has been neutralized and Britain is safe again. Or is it? (Fox Atomic) MAY 18 GOLDEN DOOR: Italian immigrant family's bittersweet bittersweet, name for two unrelated plants, belonging to different families, both fall-fruiting woody vines sometimes cultivated for their decorative scarlet berries. sojourn to America. (Miramax) SHREK THE THIRD: The ogre is next in line to become king, but he doesn't want the job. The usual fairy tale suspects return, with new voices provided by Justin Timberlake, Ian McShane, John Krasinski and a bunch more ``Saturday Night Live'' refugees. (DreamWorks Animation/Paramount) MAY 25 PAPRIKA paprika: see pepper. : Psychedelic Japanese anime adventure. (Sony Classics) PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN This article is about the franchise. For other, more specific uses, see Pirates of the Caribbean (disambiguation). For real pirates, see Piracy in the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean : AT WORLD'S END: The gang heads to Asia and beyond to save Jack Sparrow from Davy Jones' locker. Chow Yun-Fat and, finally, Keith Richards join Johnny Depp, Keira Knightley, Orlando Bloom and Geoffrey Rush for some very expensive swashbuckling swash·buck·le intr.v. swash·buck·led, swash·buck·ling, swash·buck·les To act as a swashbuckler, as in a movie or play. [Back-formation from swashbuckler. . (Disney) ALSO IN MAY ELEVEN MEN OUT: Gay soccer player brings trouble to Iceland. (Regent Releasing) FAY GRIM: Parker Posey is a single mom who gets swept up in some international intrigue. (Magnolia) LOOKING FOR Looking for In the context of general equities, this describing a buy interest in which a dealer is asked to offer stock, often involving a capital commitment. Antithesis of in touch with. CHEYENNE: French lesbian couple has relationship difficulties. Don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. if soccer is involved. (Regent Releasing) SPRING THE HAWK IS DYING: Paul Giamatti tries to find meaning in life through taming a wild hawk. (Strand) LIGHTS IN THE DUSK: Finland's wry but compassionate Aki Kaurismaki (``The Man Without a Past``) tackles -- what else? -- the topic of alienation. (Strand) SUNSHINE: Danny Boyle (``28 Days Later'') directed this tale of a space mission to restart our dying sun. (Fox Searchlight) SUMMER KNOCKED UP: ``Grey's Anatomy's'' Katherine Heigl finds herself unexpectedly expecting after a drunken one-night stand. From the guys who brought you ``40-Year-Old Virgin.'' (Universal -- June 1) LA VIE EN ROSE: Edith Piaf biopic bi·o·pic n. A film or television biography, often with fictionalized episodes. biopic Noun Informal a film based on the life of a famous person [bio(graphical) + pic(ture)] . Opening-night film of the Berlin Film Festival, in case you can't make it. (Picturehouse -- June 8) OCEAN'S THIRTEEN: More of the same. And Al Pacino. too. (Warner Bros. -- June 8) SURF'S UP: Surfing cartoon penguins! (Columbia -- June 8) FANTASTIC FOUR: RISE OF THE SILVER SURFER: One hopes that the World's Greatest Comics Magazine's (as it was called in the '60s, when it really was) film franchise can be redeemed from idiocy IDIOCY, med. jur. That condition of mind, in which the reflective, or all or a part of the affective powers, are either entirely wanting, or are manifested to the least possible extent. 2. Idiocy generally depends upon organic defects. by the arrival of its most philosophical character. (Fox -- June 15) NANCY DREW: Emma Roberts, Julia's niece, plays the girl detective on a movieland murder case. (Warner Bros.-- June 15) EVAN EVAN Expandable Van ALMIGHTY: Reportedly the most expensive comedy sequel ever, and Jim Carrey's not even in it. Rather, Steve Carell steps up from his small role in ``Bruce Almighty'' to become a Noah for our times. (Universal -- June 22) A MIGHTY HEART: The story of murdered reporter Daniel Pearl, with Angelina Jolie as his wife, Mariane. (Paramount Vantage -- June 22) LIVE FREE OR DIE HARD: Bruce Willis goes back to the franchise well. (Fox -- June 29) RATATOUILLE ra·ta·tou·ille n. A vegetable stew, usually made with eggplant, tomatoes, zucchini, peppers, and onions, seasoned with herbs and garlic. [French, from alteration of toillier, touiller, : Another animated rodent infestation infestation /in·fes·ta·tion/ (-fes-ta´shun) parasitic attack or subsistence on the skin and/or its appendages, as by insects, mites, or ticks; sometimes used to denote parasitic invasion of the organs and tissues, as by helminths. . At least this one come from Pixar, and was directed by ``The Incredibles''' Brad Bird. (Disney/Pixar -- June 29) TRANSFORMERS: Some guys of a certain age are unimaginably excited about Michael Bay directing a live-action version of the old aliens-who-turn-into-vehicles toys. (Paramount -- July 4) HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX: More of the same, and not even any extra added Al Pacino. (Warner Bros. -- July 13) HAIRSPRAY: Movie of the musical based on the John Waters movie. Waters didn't direct this one, but it does feature John Travolta in drag, if that's any consolation. Queen Latifah, Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken and Amanda Bynes, too. (New Line -- July 20) I NOW PRONOUNCE YOU CHUCK AND LARRY: Fireman buddies Adam Sandler and Kevin James must pretend to be domestic partners for some contrived reason or another. See, they're not really gay ... Oh, you got that. (Universal -- July 20) EL CANTANTE: Biopic of drug-addicted salsa legend Hector Lavoe stars singing couple Marc Anthony and Jennifer Lopez. (Picturehouse -- July 27) THE SIMPSONS MOVIE: Finally. They say it'll be more than just an extended TV episode. (Fox -- July 27) BECOMING JANE: Anne Hathaway plays a young Jane Austen, who falls in love with hot property James McAvoy. (Miramax -- Aug. 3) THE BOURNE Bourne, town (1990 pop. 16,064), Barnstable co., SE Mass., crossed by Cape Cod Canal; settled 1627, inc. 1884. Bourne Bridge (1935), across the canal, made the town an entry point to Cape Cod and a resort and commercial center. ULTIMATUM: A third round with Matt Damon's good-thing-he's-super secret agent who can't remember who he is. The last one's (and the estimable es·ti·ma·ble adj. 1. Possible to estimate: estimable assets; an estimable distance. 2. Deserving of esteem; admirable: an estimable young professor. ``United 93's'') director Paul Greengrass returns as well. (Universal -- Aug. 3) RUSH HOUR 3: Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker cash paychecks. Roman Polanski gets a little on-screen on·screen or on-screen adj. & adv. 1. As shown on a movie, television, or display screen. 2. Within public view; in public. work, too. (New Line -- Aug. 10) THE INVASION: It's those body snatchers again. This time they're up against Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig. (Warner Bros. -- Aug. 17) HALLOWEEN: More of the same, this time told with director Rob Zombie's unique personal insights. (Dimension -- Aug. 31) FALL MICHAEL CLAYTON: George Clooney plays a lawyer in trouble. (Warner Bros. -- Sept. 14) INTO THE WILD: Sean Penn returns to the directing chair for this true story of the college graduate who went off to live in the Alaskan wilderness. (Paramount Vantage -- Sept. 21) THE BRAVE ONE: Another Jodie Foster psychological thriller. No evidence of Al Pacino participation. (Warner Bros. -- Sept. 28) THE GOLDEN AGE: Playing Queen Elizabeths has proven so lucrative that Cate Blanchett came back to take another run at Liz the First. (Universal -- Oct. 5) MARGOT AT THE WEDDING: Noah Baumbach's follow-up to his acclaimed ``The Squid and the Whale.'' With Nicole Kidman, Jack Black and Jennifer Jason Leigh. (Paramount Vantage -- Oct. 12) 3:10 TO YUMA: Russell Crowe and Christian Bale star in this remake of the Elmore Leonard-written Western about a good guy and a bad guy on a train. (Lionsgate -- Oct. 12) BEE MOVIE: Jerry Seinfeld finally comes back to work -- as the voice of an animated honeybee honeybee Broadly, any bee that makes honey (any insect of the tribe Apini, family Apidae); more strictly, one of the four species constituting the genus Apis. The term is usually applied to one species, the domestic honeybee (A. . (DreamWorks Animation/Paramount -- Nov. 2) AMERICAN GANGSTER: Denzel Washington is a crime kingpin and Russell Crowe is the cop trying to nail him. Ridley Scott directs, hopefully better than he did ``A Good Year.'' (Universal -- Nov. 2) FRED CLAUS: Vince Vaughn plays Santa's disgruntled dis·grun·tle tr.v. dis·grun·tled, dis·grun·tling, dis·grun·tles To make discontented. [dis- + gruntle, to grumble (from Middle English gruntelen; see brother. From ``Wedding Crashers'' director David Dobkin. (Warner Bros. -- Nov. 9) BEOWULF: The oldest story in the English language is brought to the screen by Robert Zemeckis in that ``Polar Express'' sorta live-action but mainly computer-animated way of his. Ray Winstone plays the legendary Saxon warrior, Anthony Hopkins is duplicitous King Hrothgar and, in her ongoing quest to become Hollywood's ultimate maternal figure, Angelina Jolie is monster Grendel's mother. (Paramount -- Nov. 16) MR. MAGORIUM'S WONDER EMPORIUM: Natalie Portman inherits a magical toy store from a 243-year-old Dustin Hoffman. (Fox -- Nov. 16) ALSO IN THE FALL ACROSS THE UNIVERSE: Beatles-inspired musical, directed by Julie Taymor. (Columbia) ATONEMENT: Ian McEwan's disturbing novel of decades-long guilt is brought to the screen by Joe Wright, who directed that great ``Pride and Prejudice'' adaptation a few years back. Keira Knightley, Vanessa Redgrave and the ubiquitous James McAvoy star. (Focus) THE DARJEELING LIMITED: Let's hope Wes Anderson's latest comedy-as-therapy is more ``Royal Tenenbaums'' than ``Life Aquatic.'' Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody and Jason Schwartzman are three brothers bonding -- or not -- on a trip to India. (Fox Searchlight) EASTERN PROMISES: David Cronenberg's latest crime thriller reteams him with ``History of Violence'' star Viggo Mortensen. Naomi Watts should fit in just perfectly with these two, don't you think? (Focus) GONE, BABY, GONE: Ben Affleck makes his directing debut with this adaptation of fellow Bostonian Dennis ``Mystic River'' Lehane's crime novel. Brother Casey Affleck stars. (Miramax) IN THE VALLEY OF ELAH The Valley of Elah is the valley of the terebinth (Arabic Wadi es-Sunt), best known as the place where the Israelites were encamped when David fought Goliath (1 Sam. 17:2, 19). It was near Azekah and Shochoh (17:1). : Iraq War veteran waits until he comes home to go AWOL. Hey, it's a weird war. Tommy Lee Jones For the musician, see . Tommy Lee Jones (born September 15, 1946) is an Academy Award-winning American actor and director. Biography Early life Jones was born in San Saba, Texas, the son of Clyde C. and Susan Sarandon play the parents for ``Crash'' writer-director Paul Haggis. (Warner Independent) THE KITE RUNNER: The best-selling novel about life in war-torn, late-20th-century Afghanistan becomes a movie. With, presumably pre·sum·a·ble adj. That can be presumed or taken for granted; reasonable as a supposition: presumable causes of the disaster. , kite-flying footage. (Paramount Vantage) LUST, CAUTION: Ang Lee returns from ``Brokeback Mountain'' to China with this World War II espionage thriller. (Focus) THE OTHER BOLEYN GIRL: Anne (Natalie Portman) and her sister (Scarlett Johansson) compete for Henry VIII's, um, favors. Be careful what you wish for Be Careful What You Wish For is a 2006 novel written by Alexandra Potter. It tells the story of thirty-year-old singleton Heather Hamilton who is constantly wishing for things. , girls. (Columbia) RENDITION: Starry cast of Jake Gyllenhaal, Reese Witherspoon and Meryl Streep take issue with our government's treatment of incarcerated incarcerated /in·car·cer·at·ed/ (in-kahr´ser-at?ed) imprisoned; constricted; subjected to incarceration. in·car·cer·at·ed adj. Confined or trapped, as a hernia. Middle Easterners. (New Line) SICKO sick·o n. pl. sick·os Slang A deranged, psychotic, or morbidly obsessed person. [From sick1.] : Activist documentarian doc·u·men·tar·i·an also doc·u·men·ta·rist n. One that makes documentaries or a documentary. Michael Moore takes on America's healthcare system. (Weinstein) THERE WILL BE BLOOD: Paul Thomas Anderson (``Boogie Nights,'' ``Magnolia'') gets back in the directing saddle with this saga of the early days of California's oil industry. Starring Daniel Day-Lewis. (Paramount Vantage) HOLIDAYS THE GOLDEN COMPASS: The first adaptation of Philip Pullman's ``His Dark Materials'' fantasy series stars Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig and Ian McShane. Controversial religious stuff has reportedly been left out. (New Line -- Dec. 7) I AM LEGEND: I think this is the fourth time Richard Matheson's last-man-on-Earth novel has been made into a movie. Will Smith stars. (Warner Bros. -- Dec. 14) THE EYE: American remake of scary Asian thriller stars Jessica Alba as a blind woman who has eye surgery that not only enables her to see, but to see ghosts. (Lionsgate -- Dec. 21) CHARLIE WILSON'S WAR: Tom Hanks is the congressman whose covert efforts in Afghanistan led to what's known in the international calamity trade as blowback blow·back n. 1. The backpressure in an internal-combustion engine or a boiler. 2. Powder residue that is released upon automatic ejection of a spent cartridge or shell from a firearm. 3. . With Julia Roberts. Directed by Mike Nichols. (Universal -- Dec. 25) CAPTION(S): 4 photos Photo: (1 -- cover -- color) SWINGING INTO THEATERS Our 2007 movie preview (2) Geoffrey Rush, Keira Knightley and Johnny Depp in ``Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End,'' opening May 25. (3) AnnaSophia Robb and Josh Hutcherson in ``The Bridge to Terabithia,'' opening Feb. 16. (4) ``Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer'' opens June 15. |
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