The TV Addict 

Editor’s Note: Our Top 10 Anticipated Summer Movies was actually written in April, but posted late due to theTVaddict’s unfortunate addiction to TV!

Honorable Mentions: THE HAPPENING, THE INCREDIBLE HULK,

Guilty Pleasures: MAMMA MIA!, SISTERHOOD OF THE TRAVELLING PANTS 2, THE ACCIDENTAL HUSBAND , WANTED, THE MUMMY: TOMB OF THE DRAGON EMPEROR

10. GET SMART (June 20th)
I’ll concede that there’s a pretty substantial chance that GET SMART might not end up being very good. The thing is I grew up loving the TV show (when I lived in Germany the only English-language channel we got was one that played older shows like “Bewitched,” “I Dream of Jennie,” etc), and Steve Carell is ideally suited for the role – both in terms of appearance and humor. I also never cease to enjoy watching The Rock poking fun at himself, nor seeing Anne Hathaway get increasingly more attractive and diverse with her roles.

9. STEP BROTHERS (July 25th)
The interactions between Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly in TALLEDGA NIGHTS were the highlight of the film for me, and the notion of pitting them together as boy-men stepbrothers is nothing short of comedic gold. I mean, I can’t remember the last time I laughed so much during a trailer. The “Did we just become best friends?!” line cracks me up every time. It’s good too to see that Will Ferrell is taking a role that is also ideally suited for his brand of humor (and isn’t making fun of a sport/career).

8. TROPIC THUNDER (August 15th)
Robert Downey Jr. playing an over-the-top method actor playing an African American solider? That’s all I pretty much need right there. But sure, having Ben Stiller, Jack Black, Jay Baruchel, Nick Nolte and a handful of cameos doesn’t hurt either, nor does the film’s motivation to spoof war films like APOCALYPSE NOW and the way they attempted to immerse their actors in the war experience.

Read the rest of this entry »

Even though this subject has already been covered by both Cinematical and First Showing, I just can’t help but throw in my two cents as well now that I’ve seen the film for myself. In case you haven’t had the chance to check out the above articles, basically the issue at hand is how the heck THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: PRINCE CASPIAN managed to secure a PG rating in the US and Canada. It’s not that I have any issue with violence in film as a general moviegoer, but I am an uncle who is very close to his niece and nephew, and you tend to adopt certain protective traits as a result. As a result I often watch certain children’s films wondering whether if it would be appropriate for them.

During PRINCE CASPIAN I just pictured my niece being overwhelmed with not just the pervasive violence in the film, and the omnipresence of death, but also the film’s overall bleak and dark tone. Heck, the entire film is about war, instigated by genocide, fratricide (killing a sibling), regicide (killing of a monarch), and the more general parricide (killing a close relative. Sorry, I went dictionary nuts). Throughout the film there are any number of LORD THE RINGS style battles (I’d say almost the last hour is nothing but fighting), and I’d imagine if somebody took the time to do a body count of visible deaths in the film, it would probably fall anywhere between 50 to 100. Heck, there’s one part of the film where a Narnian attack turns into a massacre and we’re provided with a (literal) birds’ eye view of bodies strewed everywhere.

Read the rest of this entry »

The Narnia series pretty much opened my eyes to the sheer possibility of the fantastical, so my eternal debt to C.S. Lewis’ extended yarn, as well as my enjoyment of the first NARNIA film (even if it was a bit LORD OF THE RINGS lite), ensures that I’ll be seeing PRINCE CASPIAN, no matter what. It of course helps matters when Disney/Walden Media throw an exciting, action-packed trailer like this at me.

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian HD Trailer