FILM SPOTTING: February 2010 in Polish cinemas (and I thought January was bad!)
{FILM SPOTTING}
This month I actually started out with 13 (!!!) February releases which were of interest to me, but with some effort I’ve managed to cut them down to 8 :] That’s still a lot for an exam month though *sigh*
Leap Year (2010, USA/Ireland)
Release Date (Poland): 5th February 2010
Release Date (worldwide): 8th January 2010
Runtime: 100′
Director: Anand Tucker
Cast: Amy Adams, Matthew Goode
Production House: Universal Pictures, Spyglass Entertainment, Birnbaum/Barber, BenderSpink, Octagon Films
Plot: (from imdb)
A woman who has an elaborate scheme to propose to her boyfriend on Leap Day, an Irish tradition which occurs every time the date February 29 rolls around, faces a major setback when bad weather threatens to derail her planned trip to Dublin. With the help of an innkeeper, however, her cross-country odyssey just might result in her getting engaged.
Trailer
See it here.
The sceptical part of me thinks that…
It looks like an average romcom.
The excited part of me thinks that…
I’ve wanted to see more of Amy Adams ever since viewing Doubt, but I keep passing on the opportunity (in fact one of the 13 films that didn’t make the final cut was an Amy Adams one). The reason I’ve figured I’m going to see this one is Matthew Goode ;-P He has quite clearly been stalking me (he keeps appearing in films I want to see even when I don’t want him there ;)) and I’ve decided that “if you can’t beat them, join them” and I am therefore going to join the Matthew Goode bandwagon ;-P If nothing else then clearly he has good taste in stories and acting ensembles ;) Besides, he looks kind of nice on the trailer - I think I like him with facial hair and an exaggerated Irish accent *grin*
Also, the script for this one was co-written by Simon Beaufoy, which is an extra enticement for me.
Valentine’s Day (2010, USA)
Release Date (Poland): 12th February 2010
Release Date (worldwide): 10th February 2010
Director: Garry Marshall
Cast: Jessica Alba, Kathy Bates, Jessica Biel, Jamie Foxx, Anne Hathaway, Ashton Kutcher, Queen Latifah, Taylor Lautner, Shirley MacLaine, Julia Roberts, Taylor Swift
Production House: Karz Entertainment, New Line Cinema, Rice Films
Plot: (from imdb)
Intertwining couples and singles in Los Angeles break-up and make-up based on the pressures and expectations of Valentine’s Day.
Trailer
The sceptical part of me thinks that…
It’s probably yet another standard romcom.
The excited part of me thinks that…
Taylor Lautner and Ashton Kutcher. Enough said. And Queen Latifah is a nice bonus *grin*
I’m not sure how much screen time Lautner actually has (have a feeling it’s not much), but I’ll take what I can get *sigh*
It’s Complicated (2009, USA)
Release Date (Poland): 12th February 2010
Release Date (worldwide): 25th December 2009
Runtime: 118′
Director: Nancy Meyers
Cast: Meryl Streep, Steve Martin, Alec Baldwin
Production House: Universal Pictures, Relativity Media, Waverly Films, Scott Rudin Productions
Plot: (from imdb)
During his son’s college graduation, Jane hooks up with her ex-husband, Jake, who’s married to a younger woman. As if being your ex’s mistress isn’t tough enough, Jane also finds herself drawn to Adam, a smitten architect.
Trailer
See it here.
The sceptical part of me thinks that…
I’m not sure I have enough words to express the same thought differently for the third time in a row ;-P The film might be yet another romcom of questionable quality ;)
The excited part of me thinks that…
I long for more commercial Hollywood films, which have female protagonists aged 50+. The day when such female protagonists are not played by Meryl Streep is yet to come, but for now I’ll take what I can get ;)
Amelia (2009, USA/Canada)
Release Date (Poland): 12th February 2010
Release Date (worldwide): 23rd October 2009
Runtime: 111′
Director: Mira Nair
Cast: Hilary Swank, Richard Gere, Ewan McGregor, Christopher Eccleston
Production House: AE Electra Productions, Avalon Pictures, Fox Searchlight Pictures
Plot: (from imdb)
A look at the life of legendary American pilot Amelia Earhart, who disappeared while flying over the Pacific Ocean in 1937 in an attempt to make a flight around the world.
Trailer
The sceptical part of me thinks that…
The trailer doesn’t look all that good to me.
The excited part of me thinks that…
It has a good director, a great cast and trailers can be deceiving…
The Ghost Writer (2010, France/Germany/UK)
Release Date (Poland): 19th February 2010
Release Date (worldwide): 11th February 2010
Director: Roman Polanski
Cast: Ewan McGregor, Pierce Brosnan, Olivia Williams, Tom Wilkinson
Production House: RP Films, France 2 Cinéma, Elfte Babelsberg Film, Runteam, Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg, Studio Babelsberg
Plot: (from imdb)
A ghostwriter hired to complete the memoirs of a former British prime minister uncovers secrets that put his own life in jeopardy.
Trailer
The sceptical part of me thinks that…
The trailer isn’t all that enticing.
The excited part of me thinks that…
Roman Polański + Ewan McGregor + Pierce Brosnan + Tom Wilkinson was always bound to arouse my curiosity.
Savage Grace (2007, Spain/USA/France)
Release Date (Poland): 19th February 2010
Release Date (worldwide): 18th May 2007
Runtime: 96′
Director: Tom Kalin
Cast: Julianne Moore
Production House: 120dB Films, A Contraluz Films, ATO Pictures, Celluloid Dreams, John Wells Productions, Killer Films, Montfort Producciones, Videntia Frames
Plot: (from imdb)
The true story of the beautiful and charismatic Barbara Daly, who married above her class to Brooks Baekeland, heir to the Bakelite plastics fortune. Their only child is a failure in his father’s eyes, and as he matures and becomes increasingly close to his lonely mother, the seeds for tragedy are sown.
Trailer
The sceptical part of me thinks that…
It could be one of those generic art house movies that aims mainly to shock.
The excited part of me thinks that…
This seems to have truly shocked some people rather than merely tried to. A lot of people seem to declare this movie totally perverse and sick. I guess I’m a little intrigued by that… especially that I usually trust Julianne Moore’s choices. She tends to pick interesting stories.
Świnki (Germany/Poland, 2009)
Release Date (Poland): 26th February 2010
Release Date (worldwide): July 2009
Originally spotted this during the Warsaw Film Festival. I didn’t see it then, but I gambled right - it has indeed found a Polish distributor *grin*
Desert Flower (2009, UK/Germany/Austria)
Release Date (Poland): 27th February 2010
Release Date (worldwide): 5th September 2009
Runtime: 120′
Director: Sherry Horman
Cast: Liya Kebede, Sally Hawkins, Timothy Spall
Production House: Desert Flower Filmproductions, Majestic Filmproduktion, MTM West Television & Film, Dor Film Produktionsgesellschaft, Desert Flower, ARD Degeto Film, Bac Films, Backup Films, BSI International Invest, Mr. Brown Entertainment, Torus
Plot: (from imdb)
Based on the world best-selling book DESERT FLOWER by Waris Dirie - the autobiography of a Somalian nomad circumcised at 5, sold in marriage at 13, who became an American supermodel and is now at the age of 38, the UN spokeswoman against circumcision.
Trailer
The sceptical part of me thinks that…
I just wonder how come I haven’t heard of this movie before - the trailer looks awesome… Might be that the trailer is much better than the film, but we shall see…
The excited part of me thinks that…
This looks like a really strong British film, the trailer already makes me teary. And I’m loving the lead actress (who I haven’t seen before). And Sally Hawkins and Timothy Spall are looking strong too :)
