Gorilla Pants Eagerly Awaits . . .

Gorilla Pants eagerly awaits . . .

To get kind of analytical about it, on a scale of one to ten my anticipation level for these movies would rate at least a seven. I can’t guarantee they’re any good, I don’t even promise you that I’ll see them. (It’s a gorilla’s prerogative to change her mind.) But as of now, I’m looking forward to:

Superman Returns	Release Date: June 28, 2006 Now Playing!
Written and directed by Bryan Singer
Starring Brandon Routh, Kate Bosworth, Kevin Spacey, Parker Posey, James Marsden, Frank Langella, Eva Marie Saint
Am I actually enthusiastic about this? No I’m not. Do I need movies to round out my summertime coming attractions list? Obviously. Do I have any hope for it at all? Oh sure. Bryan Singer did right by the X-Men twice upon a time. And I like Parker Posey. And Kevin Spacey seems to be hamming it up to exactly the right degree. Besides, TV’s Smallville got me hooked on Superman then jumped the shark so I need a fix, man. I need it bad. Trailer

#daysTillSupe# Days

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest	Release Date: July 7, 2006 Now Playing!
Directed by Gore Verbinski, written by Ted Elliott & Terry Rossio
Starring Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley Bill Nighy, Stellan Skarsgard, Jack Davenport, Naomie Harris, Jonathan Pryce, Mackenzie Crook
Dear Mr. Verbinski: More Captain Jack, less Will and Elizabeth and some fun ghosts, please. Thanks. Love, Gorilla Pants. Trailer

#daysTillPirates# Days

A Scanner Darkly	Release Date: July 7, 2006 Now Playing!
Written and directed by Richard Linklater based on a novel by Philip K. Dick
Starring Keanu Reeves, Winona Ryder, Robert Downey Jr., Woody Harrelson
The story: there’s this drug that causes users to develop split personalities and this cop that’s hooked on this drug and he ends up trying to bust himself. And Linklater does that live-action-then-animated thing that he did with Waking Life, only this time with a plot. And it has Keanu in it, which is unfortunate, but maybe they’ll animate in a personality for him. The trailer starts off with kind of a Matrix feel, but with more Robert Downey Jr..

#daysTillPirates# Days

Scoop	Release Date: July 28, 2006 Now Playing!
Written and directed by Woody Allen
Starring Scarlett Johansson, Hugh Jackman, Woody Allen, Ian McShane, James Nesbitt
The last time Woody and Scarlett got together in London they made Match Point, which I really liked. So, alright guys let’s see if you can do it again. Plus, Hugh Jackman. You know, for the ladies. Scarlett plays a student journalist who stumbles upon a "scoop of a lifetime," leading to mystery and romance. She's far less femme-fatale-y in this one. The bad news: the trailer is giving me a definite Curse of the Jade Scorpion vibe. And on a freaky note, I started the trailer loading, went to get a cup of coffee, and came back in the room to see an image of Scarlett frozen on the screen and I could have sworn it was Mia Farrow. Now THAT would have been a scoop.

#daysTillScoop# Days

The Wicker Man	Release Date: September 1, 2006 Now Playing!
Written and directed by Neil LaBute
Starring Nicolas Cage, Ellen Burstyn, Molly Parker, Leelee Sobieski, Frances Conroy
Okay, first of all The Wicker Man should be British. But I suppose pagans are everywhere these days. Cage plays a cop looking for a missing girl on a mysterious island with a dark secret. For more info, see the trailer.

#daysTillWicker# Days

The Prestige	Release Date: October 27, 2006 (limited) Now Playing!
Directed by Christopher Nolan, written by Christopher and Jonathan Nolan, based on a novel by Christopher Priest
Starring Christian Bale, Hugh Jackman, Michael Caine, David Bowie, Scarlett Johansson, Ricky Jay, Piper Perabo, Andy Serkis
Two 19th century stage illusionists start a game of petty one-upmanship that quickly escalates into a deadly feud, the effects of which are still felt by their families a century later. I'm enough of a Nolan fan that I read the book when I heard he was adapting it, and I can tell you that it's atmospheric and enigmatic and I'm really looking forwad to seeing what Nolan does with it.

#daysTillPrestige# Days

Obligatory disclaimers: Release dates are for the U.S. because that's where I live. If you want to know when a movie will be out in some other country, drop me a line. You never know, I may be able to hook you up. Oh, you should also know that release dates are subject to change, and believe it or not the studios don’t always bother to inform me when it happens. Check back for hopefully more up-to-date information.

I’ll try to revisit this page fairly often to keep things current and as my enthusiasm for these and other movies waxes and wanes.