Holiday movies break all the rules as sequels, comedies and remakes join prestige films
The rules have changed.
There used to be a precise order for movie releases. Forgettable cinematic debris came out during the beginning of the year, blockbusters arrived in the summer, and the prestige pictures hit in the closing months.
Not so much these days.
During the finale of 2014, the so-called “holiday movies” offer a shake-and-bake mix of everything. Sequels, remakes, franchise starters, indie darlings and Oscar hopefuls are all clamoring for attention.
And considering that October was the earliest any of the nine best picture nominees was released last year, it’s a safe bet this is the pool from which the academy will be siphoning, for better or worse.
Here are some of the more eagerly anticipated efforts soon to be reaching Kansas City screens. Note: All release dates are subject to studio whimsy.
“Big Hero 6”
Marvel Comics ruled the summer, with “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” and “Guardians of the Galaxy” securing both critical and box-office victories. Few realize that Disney’s latest animated flick, “Big Hero 6,” is also based on a Marvel property, albeit a really obscure one.
Originally conceived as a Japanese superhero team linked to the X-Men, the concept has transformed into the tale of a personal health care companion robot converted into a superpowered bodyguard by a 14-year-old boy genius. Picture “Iron Man” meets “The Iron Giant.” (Opening Friday)
“Interstellar”
This sci-fi adventure from Christopher Nolan (“The Dark Knight” trilogy) stands as the most anticipated blockbuster of the year, and it’s completely superhero-free.
Matthew McConaughey follows up his Oscar-winning turn in “Dallas Buyers Club” (and those irritating Lincoln commercials) to play a widowed engineer who is part of a team preparing to explore a newly discovered wormhole. He must decide whether to abandon his two kids for a quest to find an alternate world that could rescue humanity from environmental disaster.
The story is based on the work of theoretical physicist Kip Thorne, a leading expert on the practical applications of Einstein’s theory of relativity. (Opening Friday)
“Foxcatcher”
Audiences might not expect to see lovable goofball Steve Carell in such a dark role, and they may not recognize him beneath a prosthetic nose, thinning hair and age-spotted skin.
In the biopic “Foxcatcher,” Carell plays John E. du Pont, a multimillionaire philanthropist whose obsession with wrestling bolsters the careers of Olympic champions Mark Schultz (Channing Tatum) and brother Dave Schultz (Mark Ruffalo). But his increasing paranoia leads to tragedy.
Bennett Miller (“Moneyball”) nabbed the best director award at Cannes for this true-life tale. (In limited release Nov. 14; no Kansas City date scheduled)
“Dumb and Dumber To”
With a title as intentionally terrible as “Dumb and Dumberer,” “Dumb and Dumber To” reunites original stars Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels, whose careers did just fine during the 20-year interim. The road movie finds the hairstyle-challenged men on a quest to find a long-lost child and her accompanying kidney.
This franchise launched the careers of the Farrelly brothers, the writer/director duo who hope to recapture the abrasive comedic spirit that made them a brand name in the ’90s. (Nov. 14)
“The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1”
“I have a message for President Snow. If we burn, you burn with us.” So says Katniss Everdeen in the third installment of Suzanne Collins’ dystopian megasellers. (Note to fans of the series: Please don’t ever name your kid Katniss, Peeta, Primrose, Plutarch or any of the other “dumberer” character names.)
For this rebellion-based sequel, Julianne Moore joins the cast as Alma Coin (a name that sounds like a setup for a knock-knock joke). (Nov. 21)
“The Imitation Game”
Even though Benedict Cumberbatch sounds like a character from “The Hunger Games,” he’s a real actor playing real hero Alan Turing in “The Imitation Game.” Turing was an English mathematician tasked with cracking the Nazis’ seemingly impregnable Enigma code during World War II.
Winston Churchill praised Turing as making the most important individual contribution to winning the war. But the British government eventually prosecuted the man for homosexual acts that the country then deemed illegal. (In limited release Nov. 28; no Kansas City date scheduled)
“Penguins of Madagascar”
It was a movie, then a TV show, now it’s a movie again. The semi-lovable spy team in “Penguins of Madagascar” — composed of Skipper, Kowalski, Rico and Private — is recruited to stop uber-villain Octavius Brine (John Malkovich) from endangering the world.
Teaming up with the quartet is Agent Classified, who is voiced by … Benedict Cumberbatch! Ken Jeong and Werner Herzog are other bizarro cast members assembled to voice these shenanigans. It’s directed by KC’s own Eric Darnell. (Nov. 26)
“Horrible Bosses 2”
With a $117 million domestic gross, 2011’s “Horrible Bosses” delivered quite a lucrative surprise. Naturally, that means Jason Sudeikis, Jason Bateman and Charlie Day (and their non-deceased bosses from the original) return for another comedic tale of crime gone wrong.
This time, the trio are business partners who run afoul of a sleazy investor (Christoph Waltz). Therefore, they kidnap his equally awful son (Chris Pine). Oddly enough, this film represents the only sequel Jennifer Aniston has ever appeared in. (Nov. 26)
“Top Five”
The top five reasons to see “Top Five”:
1. It’s written and directed by Chris Rock.
2. Rock and Adam Sandler both act in a movie that doesn’t have “Grown Ups” in the title.
3. The plot is about a comedian who tries to make it as a serious actor, but it’s actually a comedy.
4. It’s currently sitting at 92 percent fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.
5. Rosario Dawson.
(In limited release Dec. 5; opening in Kansas City on Dec. 12)
“Wild”
“I’m gonna walk myself back to the woman my mother thought I was,” asserts Reese Witherspoon in this adaptation of Cheryl Strayed’s acclaimed nature adventure. The “Walk the Line” star takes her best shot at a second Oscar, playing a former heroin and sex addict who attempts an 1,100-mile hike along the Pacific Crest Trail despite no previous backpacking experience.
Also vying for Oscar props is Laura Dern, nailing a supporting role (via flashbacks) as her encouraging, undaunted mom. (In limited release Dec. 5; no Kansas City date scheduled)
“Inherent Vice”
Speaking of “Walk the Line” … stars Reese Witherspoon and Joaquin Phoenix reteam for an adaptation of Thomas Pynchon’s recent novel. (Incredibly, this is the first Pynchon work ever adapted for the screen.)
Paul Thomas Anderson (“There Will Be Blood”) writes and directs this early 1970s account of a private eye (a mutton-chopped Phoenix) investigating the kidnapping of his ex-girlfriend’s billionaire boyfriend.
Treading in the same “stoner noir” territory as “The Big Lebowski” and “Jackie Brown,” “Inherent Vice” promises a trippy trip through a psycho-psychedelic L.A. (In limited release Dec. 12; scheduled to open in Kansas City on Jan. 9)
“Exodus: Gods and Kings”
The 1956 archetype “The Ten Commandments” gets a digital facelift in “Exodus: Gods and Kings.” Christian Bale takes over the Charlton Heston role and Joel Edgerton the Yul Brynner one in this tale of Moses defying Ramses and the Egyptian empire.
Admittedly, the casting sounds zany. Misguided, even. But the 142-minute epic places Ridley Scott (“Prometheus,” “Black Hawk Down”) in the director’s chair, so at the very least the locust plague and Red Sea parting should look pretty spiffy. And it’s in 3-D! (Dec. 12)
“The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies”
Deciding to split the adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s 1937 novel into three movies instead of two necessitated a subtitle change from the breezy “There and Back Again” to the more action-oriented “The Battle of Five Armies.” (Apparently, “Gods and Kings” was already taken.)
If this third installment is anything like Peter Jackson’s “The Return of the King,” we can expect the primarily personal struggles to give way to more of a battlefield scope, with thousands of digital extras painting the frames. (Dec. 17)
“Annie”
Images of precocious little redheads caterwauling “The sun’ll come out tomorrow” may fill you with dread. But the new version of “Annie” already seems poised to reinvent this overripe chestnut.
“Beasts of the Southern Wild” star Quvenzhané Wallis earns the titular role — she’s still the youngest performer ever to land a best actress nomination. Cameron Diaz, Jamie Foxx and Rose Byrne round out the foster kid musical’s cast.
Will the film have some hard-knock edge to it? Might want to wait until the early reviews come out to bet your bottom dollar. (Dec. 19)
“Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb”
While this sequel seems like a predictable cash grab for 20th Century Fox, the film already sports some historical significance. “Secret of the Tomb” denotes the final screen appearances of Robin Williams and Mickey Rooney, a pair with eight Oscar nominations (and one win) between them.
But don’t expect any posthumous acting nominations for this globe-hopping, kiddie-aimed tale. Monkey slaps to the face? Sure thing. (Dec. 19)
“Unbroken”
Director Angelina Jolie was heartbroken when the real-life star of “Unbroken” died in July at age 97. But Louis Zamperini’s legend lives on in this years-in-the-making biopic.
Brit Jack O’Connell earns the lead, portraying the former Olympic track star who competed in the 1936 Berlin games and then survived a plane crash in the Pacific during World War II. Zamperini spent 47 days on a raft before being captured by the Japanese, then suffered more than two years in POW camps.
In addition to Jolie’s clout behind the camera, the project boasts a screenplay that includes writing credits by the Coen brothers. (Dec. 25)
“The Interview”
With Kim Jong Un retreating far away from the limelight these days, it’s unlikely he’ll emerge for the premiere of “The Interview.” That’s because this comedy finds James Franco and Seth Rogen playing celebrity journalist hosts of the TV show “Skylark Tonight.” When the North Korean leader — apparently a fan of the series — grants them an interview, it prompts the CIA to order the pair to assassinate him.
The two “This Is the End” stars reteam with their writer/director Evan Goldberg for a movie that guarantees plenty of irreverent, un-PC laughs. (Dec. 25)
“Into the Woods”
Jack and the Beanstalk, Rapunzel, Little Red Riding Hood and Cinderella are rather played out. (Anybody remember “Jack the Giant Slayer” or “Tangled”?) But “Into the Woods” incorporates all these alarming children’s tales in one setting, tied together by a fresh story involving a witch (Meryl Streep) who puts a curse on a baker and his wife (James Corden and Emily Blunt). Rob Marshall (“Chicago”) brings the 1987 James Lapine/Stephen Sondheim musical to the screen, which marks the first theatrical adaptation of a Broadway production in Disney’s history. More importantly, Johnny Depp portrays the Big Bad Wolf in what will surely be next year’s go-to Halloween costume. (Dec. 25)
This story was originally published November 5, 2014 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Holiday movies break all the rules as sequels, comedies and remakes join prestige films."