Sulmoney’s #4 Most Anticipated Film of 2009: Sherlock Holmes

There are times when I remember why Hans and I decided to start this blog up together, instead of as independent ventures. We both have an admiration for well crafted works, and his praise for Rome echoes my sentiments of the show exactly, and shows the power of a mini-series when there is enough support behind it from the people who want to make it. I am a sucker for the so called “swords and sandals epics”, (even Troy) (the director’s cut especially) (and if we are talking about director’s cuts, Kingdom of Heaven, totally different movie) (but definitely not Alexander), and am looking forward to Agora as well now, as it mixes in another favorite topic of mine, religion.

One thing though that I do not admire Hans for is his dislike of Guy Ritchie. Come on! He is a fun director (sometimes)! And guess what, I got another Guy Ritchie film to write about, just for the reading pleasure of my partner in blogging.

Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes

Title: Sherlock Holmes

Synopsis: Sherlock Holmes and Watson battle an enemy back from the dead who plans to bring about the end of England.

Director: Guy Ritchie

Cast: Robert Downey Jr, Jude Law, Rachel McAdams, Mark Strong, Eddie Marsan

Why you should be excited too: Besides it being Guy Ritchie’s next film? I kid. Not really. Putting my admiration for a well done Guy Ritchie film aside (he has put up some atrocities), we are being promised a totally different take on the Sherlock Holmes stories we read, heard, or watched while growing up. Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes is being billed as the Batman Begins of Sherlock Holmes, and promises to show us not the elderly Sherlock and the butler like Watson, but an ass kicking, glass shattering Sherlock and war veteran Watson. In the eponymous role, we have my current favorite actor at the moment, Robert Downey Jr., a man who will be able to bring much charisma and energy to the role. While I am not a fan of Jude Law, he should be an interesting Watson, while Rachel McAdams plays a femme fatale, and the under appreciated Eddie Marsan help to fill out the cast. Playing the leader of a cult and England’s villain, Mark Strong will hopefully carry over some of his energy from RocknRolla and pose an intimidating threat. There is still much work to be done on this film, and Sherlock Holmes has a tentative release date of December 25, 2009, but the payoff will be worth the wait. A potential entry for me top 10 of 2009? Elementary my dear Hans.

"I'm leaking massive amounts of iron, man!"

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Hans’s #4 Most Anticipated Film of 2009 – Agora

I gotta say, I’m a little shocked by Sulmoney’s #5 pick with The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. Director Terry Gilliam is known for creating some of the most thoughtful and intelligent movies around, so what about this flick could possibly appeal to the guy who crafted a makeshift shrine to Madonna’s boy toy? Wait, what’s that? It stars not just one but FOUR of the biggest heartthrobs for teenage girls everywhere? Ah, that explains it. Speaking of intelligent movies, here’s my #4:

Agora

Synopsis: A historical drama set in Roman Egypt, concerning a slave who turns to the rising tide of Christianity in the hopes of pursuing freedom while also falling in love with his master, the famous female philosophy professor and atheist Hypatia of Alexandria.

Directed By: Alejandro Amenábar (The Others, The Sea Inside)

Starring: Rachel Weisz, Max Minghella, Oscar Isaac

I’m such a sucker for Spanish-speaking (Spancophone?) directors. Guillermo Del Toro (Pan’s Labyrinth, Hellboy I and II), Alejandro González Iñárritu (Babel, 21 Grams), Pedro Almodóvar (Volver, Hable con Ella)  Alfonso Cuarón (Y tu mamá también, Children of Men) and most recently Juan Antonio Bayona (The Orphanage) are some of the most promising directors in showbusiness, and not a single one of them has even peaked yet (except maybe Almodóvar). Amenábar’s heritage alone would have been enough to sell me on this movie, but I’ve actually had the privilege of reading the screenplay, and I can report that its depiction of the timeless struggle between science and religion is almost pitch perfect (Bill Maher could learn a thing or two for his next documentary). As the trailer makes abundantly clear, it’s also going to be one of the grandest and most meticulously crafted ancient Roman period pieces since HBO’s “Rome,”which just happens to be one of my all-time favorite TV series. Forget CGI visual effects, these sets are very real, and in the age of Transformers it’s easy to forget how much this kind of pain-staking attention to detail can help to immerse viewers in the fiction. My only worry is that this story is almost too intelligent to appeal to broader audiences, hence the lack of any dialogue in the teaser trailer, but as long as I can see this thing fully realized in fall 2009, I don’t care what everyone else thinks.

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Sulmoney’s #5 Most Anticipated Film of 2009: The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

Leave it to Hans to select proper adult and mind challenging films such as those based on a Roald Dahl novel. Alas, he is going for something that someone with his 5th grade reading level will enjoy. But in all seriousness, I am also a huge fan of Wes Anderson, and he has reached automatic watch level. I am in the minority however, as I count The Life Aquatic as one of my favorite movies ever; it’s irreverent humor just struck such a chord with me, and the island assault scene is easily one of my favorite film sequences of all time. But moving on to my #5, I present what will most likely be one of the most bittersweet films of 2009…

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

Title: The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

Synopsis: The leader of a traveling theatre troupe takes audience members through a magical mirror to explore their imaginations, all under the auspice of the cliche deal with the Devil.

Director: Terry Gilliam

Cast: Christopher Plummer, Heath Ledger, Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell, Jude Law, Tom Waits

Why you should be excited too: A Terry Gilliam film is usually a must see, but in this case, we will witness the last recorded performance by the late Oscar winner, Heath Ledger. When Ledger died during the filming of this flick, there was no shortage of people who chalked it up under the multitude of misfortunes that Terry Gilliam has had during his tenure in Hollywood. However, when the film was made salvageable by the plot device of using three different actors to play Ledger while in different parts of the film, and that the three would be Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Farrell (I can hear the thuds of the women of the world feinting to the floor now), and that each of these movie stars would be donating their salaries to Ledger’s daughter Matilda, it made my interest in what Gilliam’s fantastic imagination would be bringing to the screen all the greater. I eagerly await the work of some of the finest actors in the business under the direction of one of the business’ most creative, coming out as of now, on September 24, 2009.

Heath Ledger's final performance

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Top 5 Most Anticipated Films of 2009 – Hans’s #5 – Fantastic Mr. Fox

With Watchmen finally here, the 2009 movie season is just reaching full swing, and we thought we’d save you the trouble of wading through the sea of schlock that’s hitting screens this year by preaching our top 5 most anticipated movies of 2009. To keep things interesting, we thought we’d start by counting down some movies that you haven’t seen in Superbowl spots or plastered all over billboards or the side of a bus. So if you’re looking for a list of 2009’s biggest blockbusters, hang tight, and we’ll get there. But for now let’s kick it off with my #5:

Fantastic Mr. Fox

Synopsis: Angry farmers, tired of sharing their chickens with a sly fox, look to get rid of their opponent and his family.

Directed By: Wes Anderson

Starring: Cate Blanchett, George Clooney, Bill Murray, Jason Schwartzman, and Anjelica Huston

Simply put, I’ll watch anything Wes Anderson touches (even when he’s just trying to sell me something). Although The Life Aquatic disappointed me and The Darjeeling Limited was only a moderate improvement, I keep holding on to hope that Mr. Anderson will knock me off my feet with another modern classic like The Royal Tenenbaums, or at least another witty comedy on the level of Rushmore. Fantastic Mr. Fox has the potential to deliver on that promise more than either of his past two efforts for two big reasons: 1) Wes Anderson didn’t write the story. 2) He’s making it with stop-motion animation.

Based on the children’s novel by Roald Dahl (the man who gave us Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, James and the Giant Peach and Matilda), Fantastic Mr. Fox could very well be the first movie from Wes Anderson that sidesteps the overwhelming feelings of loneliness and abandon that plague so many of his characters, and consequently the movies about them. Although I haven’t read the book, the premise sounds a great deal more upbeat and energetic than the emotional/family dramas Anderson’s used to. This is a good thing because in my mind, Anderson’s always been a better visual director than writer. It’s true that he was a co-writer with Owen Wilson on both The Royal Tenenbaums and Rushmore, but after seeing his more recent solo writing efforts, I’m starting to wonder how much of the magic came from Mr. Wilson’s pen and not his own.  I’m excited to see how he adapts his carefully composed but vibrantly colorful style to the fancy of a children’s tale through the use of stop-motion animation, an art form that’s always beautiful to watch. Then of course there’s the cast, which is as great as all of his movies, with the promising addition of George Clooney to the gang of regulars.

And even if the movie sucks, I know I’ll love the soundtrack if it includes more of his trademark offbeat hipster gems like this one.

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