Entertainment, Movies - Army Times

Season’s viewings

This holiday season offers a wealth of new films — some possible Oscar contenders (including “Doubt”), and others just pure family fun (such as Adam Sandler’s “Bedtime Stories.”)

Nov. 7:

• “The Boy in the Striped Pajamas” (PG-13). Vera Farmiga and David Thewlis star in the story of the son of a concentration camp commandant who befriends a Jewish boy held there.

Nov. 14:

• “Quantum of Solace” (PG-13). Daniel Craig is back as Bond, this time out for revenge over the death of his lover. Huh. The old Bond didn’t get that wrapped up in such things. Brave new world, and all that.

Nov. 21:

• “Bolt” (PG). Bolt (voice of John Travolta) doesn’t realize that he doesn’t really have superpowers; that, in fact, he simply plays a dog with them on TV. That, of course, changes. The cast includes Miley Cyrus.

• “Nothing Like the Holidays” (PG-13). John Leguizamo and Freddy Rodriguez star in the story of a Puerto Rican family celebrating Christmas in Chicago.

• “Twilight” (PG-13). Valley resident Stephanie Meyer’s book hits the big screen, with Kristen Stewart as the girl who falls in love with a vampire (Robert Pattinson). Will the disappointment over the last book in the series dull the buzz? Probably not.

Nov. 26:

• “Australia” (not yet rated). Big huge epic starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman. Guess where it’s set. Good buzz. Cast includes Bryan Brown, which we believe is required of films about Australia.

• “Four Christmases” (PG-13). And none of them happy, evidently. Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon play a couple who visit their divorced parents over the holidays. Big points for having Seth Gordon, who directed the great documentary “The King of Kong,” behind the camera.

• “Transporter 3” (PG-13). In which Jason Statham returns and answers the question: There was a “Transporter 2.”

Dec. 5:

• “Punisher: War Zone” (R). Ray Stevenson takes over the role of the Punisher, who is still meting out justice. Dominic West plays his adversary. All well and good, but if it was a good comic-book film, wouldn’t it have been out this summer?

Dec. 12:

• “The Day the Earth Stood Still” (not yet rated). So, genius in casting Keanu Reeves as Klaatu, the alien visiting Earth, in this remake of the 1951 classic, or a mean joke?

Dec. 19:

• “Doubt ” (PG-13). Oscar alert! Meryl Streep stars as a nun who accuses a priest (Philip Seymour Hoffman) of abusing a boy.

• “Revolutionary Road” (R). “Titanic” duo Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet reteam as a ’50s suburban couple.

• “Seven Pounds” (not yet rated). A suicidal IRS agent (Will Smith) helps seven people.

• “The Tale of Desperaux” (not yet rated). Emma Watson, Matthew Broderick, Dustin Hoffman and Sigourney Weaver are among the stars lending their voices to the animated version of the children’s book. A mouse who reads, that kind of thing.

• “Yes Man” (PG-13). Jim Carrey can’t say no. That’s not an evaluation of his script choices, it’s the plot of the movie. Guy says yes to everything for a year. So hey, he’s going to have to expect these kinds of jokes.

Dec. 25:

• “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (PG-13). Brad Pitt again teams with David Fincher in this tale, based on an F. Scott Fitzgerald short story, of a man born old who ages backward.

• “Bedtimes Stories” (not yet rated). Your gift for the holidays: an Adam Sandler movie on Christmas. What did you do wrong? Anyway, the movie’s about Sandler’s character, who tells his niece and nephew bedtime stories that come true.

• “Marley & Me” (not yet rated). If you were hoping for a Bob Marley biopic, well, no. Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson — tabloid writers get frothy just reading the names — star in this film about a family that learns much from a dog named Marley.

• “The Spirit” (PG-13). It’s fanboy heaven as Frank Miller directs the tale of Will Eisner’s hugely influential comic about a cop (Gabriel Macht) who fights crime from beyond. Scarlett Johansson, Samuel L. Jackson and Eva Mendes also star.

• “The Time Traveler’s Wife” (not yet rated). Henry (Eric Bana) is a librarian who travels through time involuntarily.

Dec. 26:

• “Valkyrie” (PG-13). Tom Cruise stars as Claus von Stauffenberg, a Nazi colonel who became part of a plot to assassinate Hitler. The film was delayed and then brought back this year, meaning the buzz went from bad to good in a hurry.