2016 opens quietly until the end of the solstice, when a little comic book movie opens. Let’s start in the month of spring’s beginning, March:
ZOOTOPIA
The Good: Disney Animation Studios has been on a roll
The Bad: 5+ writing credits
Prediction:
The early March release date isn’t a good sign for this one from Disney, who has been on too much of a roll and is due for a meh release.
LONDON HAS FALLEN
The Good: Everyone is mostly back, and the movie looks as stupidly patriotic as ever. I mean, come on, Morgan Freeman as a US executive!!
The Bad: Sequels of stupid action movies are almost always lazier than the original.
Prediction:
Should be stupidly fun, but not as much fun as Olympus has fallen.
WHISKEY TANGO FOXTROT
The Good: The 30 Rock creative team adds Margot Robbie: too hot.
The Bad: I can already see the title: white intellectual saves the Iraqui heathens.
Prediction:
We’ll see if the 30 Rock formula can translate to the movies, but those people are funny, and the Fey/Robbie Combo is very enticing.
10 CLOVERFIELD LANE
The Good: The rebooter extraordinaire (JJ Abrams) is back to reboot this flawed franchise he helped start with a decent cast.
The Bad: People only sorta liked Cloverfield, and that was 8 years ago.
Prediction:
Abrams knows how to course correct, getting rid of excessive shaky cam and making this reboot into something very interesting.
THE YOUNG MESSIAH
The Good: A story of Jesus not normally told by the movies
The Bad: A lot of this movie will ride on a child, and have to feed the fervor their Christian demo will want in the story.
Prediction:
To appeal to the audience, sappy choices to deify Jesus will remove anything interesting the movie might have to say.
THE BROTHERS GRIMSBY
The Good: The Sacha Baron Cohen/Mark Strong combination feels like a deep well of funny possibilities.
The Bad: Baron Cohen peaked on his first film.
Prediction:
I will laugh, and probably more than at the Dictator, Cohen’s last film. My gut says his shtick has seen its timeline pass in the comedy world.
THE DIVERGENT SERIES: ALLEGIANT
The Good: Shaliene Woodley is a great young actress, and Jeff Daniels might be a good bad guy.
The Bad: So many places to go, but simply put, it is a mediocre YA series that have been crappier films.
Prediction:
The weakest book is gonna turn THIS around? Nope.
MIRACLES FROM HEAVEN
The Good: Should be a relatively well-made faith based film, like Heaven Is For Real.
The Bad: Faith based films skew very often too heavily into preaching, removing the potency of the story.
Prediction:
Should be uplifting well meaning manipulative tear jerky moviemaking.
MIDNIGHT SPECIAL
The Good: Jeff Nichols writes very interesting stories and gets the mega talented Michael Shannon to star in them.
The Bad: Full creative control could potentially bite Nichols in the butt.
Prediction:
This movie has the potential to be something really special as the Nichols/Shannon pair has made other great stuff.
BATMAN V. SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE
The Good: The writers look ok; Chris Terrio wrote Argo, and David Goyer wrote The Dark Knight
The Bad: Zack Snyder hasn’t made a good film since 300, and Man of Steel was a DRAG.
Prediction:
This is going to be either a bleak movie that tries to hard to be funny, or a light movie that can’t help but be desolate. Warning signs abound here.
MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING 2
The Good: Nia Vardalos is adorable and needs to work more, right?
The Bad: Clearly the title should have been My Bigger Fatter Greeker Wedding…er
Prediction:
A straight retread of the joyful original, and a classic sequel making the first look worse by just existing.
I SAW THE LIGHT
The Good: Tom Hiddleston in a cowboy hat flashing those big eyes…geez, even I’m wooed.
The Bad: Philandering country singer meets woman who helps him reform? Joaquin and Reese did that pretty well already.
Prediction:
Hiddleston and Elizabeth Olsen will be great, but the untrusted production team and story familiarity hold this one back a tad.