What to watch for in November

As promised, I have chosen a  number of titles opening throughout this next glorious month (starting tomorrow, dummy) that probably, and in some cases definitely, deserve your attention.

Warner Bros.

So we start with Due Date. This is kind of a no brainer since it is hard to imagine how this movie could not be funny. Robert Downey Jr., and Zack Galifianakis is a duo that cannot be overlooked. Todd Philips made this film in between The Hangover and the now-in-producion The Hangover 2 which is supposed to take place in Thailand this time with all the same characters plus a cameo from Liam Neeson. "Hangover" was a surprisingly funny and successful movie thanks primarily to the hilarity that is Galifianakis and I hope we can see a lot of the same in this film that, I think, has an even more promising premise. There's really no comedic plot like the classic road trip. So many possibilities. This one hits theaters this Friday, Nov. 5th. and you can check out the trailer here if you haven't already seen it enough times.

20th Century Fox

Next we've got the true story directed by Slumdog Millionaire (and many other fantastic movies) director Danny Boyle, and starring James Franco, 127 Hours. It's a bold choice for entertainment and a storyline that seems like it would be pretty boring. Based on the story of Aron Ralston, a sort of adventurous, out-doors-ish type, who finds himself fallen into a canyon in the desert with a boulder pinning his arm. The title tells you something of how much time he spent there, and I believe it's no secret that he eventually has to cut his arm off with a pocket knife to escape. As a result, I read that this movie apparently has the most disturbing/uncomfortable noise ever. Definitely something to send chills down your spine. HOWEVER, I'm still really excited and early reviews on this say it's awesome, and I'm a huge Boyle fan. Watch for this one opening in select theaters on November 5th (Friday) and probably opening up wider after that, and here's the trailer too.

Summit Entertainment

Now although the trailer for this makes me yawn and the content is yawn inducing, the cast and creators still deserve some attention. Fair Game stars Naomi Watts and Sean Penn and is directed by Doug Liman, the guy who brought you The Bourne Identity and produced the other two in the series as well. So even though these details conjure up some more hope, the look and presentation of the movie from the marketing campaign doesn't have me THAT interested...I guess I'll just have to wait to hear early reviews. Because after all, it's not like I have loads of money to just go see movies every day! I sometimes have to depend on other people's opinions too before seeing movies! Also, trailer if thou art interested. 

Relativity Media

This one is probably the most risky of my anticipated movies for the month. Next to horror and romantic comedies, nothing can end being so bad as sci-fi. Skyline, the trailer with the giant alien ships sucking people up with giant blue-beam vacuums in Los Angeles, could be terrible or actually pretty cool. I'm really REALLY hoping it's on the 'pretty cool' side of things. So while the fact that directors Colin and Greg Strause also directed the awful Alien vs. Predator: Requiem isn't encouraging, I'm hoping the sheer scope of this alien invasion on screen will be enough to blot out, or at least dumb down, any short-comings in acting, storying-telling, and all those other important parts of cinema. 'Skyline' arrives in theaters Nov. 12th and check-out the 2nd trailer here.

Warner Bros.

Of course, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I definitely qualifies as the "no duh" selection on this list. This film is going to OODLES of cash at the box-office, and curiously enough, Warner Bros. opted out of converting this one to 3D and in doing so decided to not garner all the extra bucks 3D tickets bring in. It's really a very strange move for a studio which usually tries to do all in its power to make sure its movies make as much money as possible. And on top of that, Part 2 of "Hallows" is supposed to be in 3D. What? Make sense this does not. Oh well, there really isn't much to say here about WHY you should see this because all of the world (that's right, all 6.8 billion of you) is going to see this on Nov. 19th, AT MIDNIGHT! But for now, feed your excitement with the trailer!

Lionsgate Entertainment

So the fact that The Next Three Days comes out on Nov. 19th, the same day as Harry Potter (for those of you who can't read) indicates that either the studio thinks it can compete with Potter and co. or that it doesn't really stand a very good chance at doing very well not matter when it comes out. Since the first option is so impossible even a two-year old could understand the logic, I'd say it's the latter. Therefore, my hopes are not very high for this one. I'm basically only including it because I still have hope that Russell Crowe can redeem himself after the messes called "movies" that he's involved himself in during the past few years. And not even the presence of notorious badass Liam Neeson can distract me from this plot that looks to me like there's no way they can pull this off. But it's OK people because RZA is in it! Everything will be fine now. Although it is encouraging that Paul Haggis, writer of stuff like 'Casino Royale', 'Million Dollar Baby', 'Crash' and director of 'Crash', is directing. That gives me a bit more hope. But still not enough to tell you to go see this. Watch the trailer again if you need to remind yourself of the heck I'm talking about.

The Weinstein Company

The King's Speech is probably the one I'm most looking forward to on this list next to 'Potter' because it has received splendid reviews so far from all the film festivals. Colin Firth is really due to win the best acting Oscar sometime soon because he's getting to be sort of "older" and because he did such a great job in his role in A Single Man last year. Along with co-stars Helena Bonham Carter and Geoffrey Rush, there's not doubt we can expect some all around fabulous acting, and it definitely helps that the plot and general look of the film (from the trailer) look different and cool. So be watching for this to open up in select theaters Nov. 26th!


Well that's it for this month! Not really that much...December holds some exciting films though, so be looking forward to that!