December movie preview

Must-see movie for everyone

Enchanted (Disney)
Though Enchanted appears to be a lame twist on an average Disney fairytale, it is not. Even if you hate Disney flicks, you’ll enjoy this one.

The premise is simple: a cartoon soon-to-be princess is pushed down a magical well by a wicked witch who doesn’t want to see her son, the prince, take over the kingdom. At the bottom of the well is a cruel fate: she is thrust into our world – New York City, to be exact. It is then that the movie shifts from cartoon to live-action.

Enchanted is extremely witty and has no problem poking fun at itself and all fairytales you’ve seen Disney adapt to film. You’ll see a girl call for the animal kingdom to help her clean a filthy apartment by singing a corny song. You’ll see how silly it is to break out into synchronized song and dance in real life.

Every girl will want to see Enchanted because they all want to be princesses. No guy will go willingly, but will be reluctant to say he liked it afterward for fear of their manhood. But everyone will enjoy it.

Must-see movie for adults

No Country for Old Men (Miramax)
Every once in a while, a movie comes out that everybody loves, yet nobody can put a finger on the single thing that made it worth while. Joel and Ethan Coen’s No Country for Old Men is easily one of those and it’s already being deemed worthy of the title "American classic."

No Country based on the fantastic Cormac McCarthy novel, is a story set in 1980 told by Sheriff Bell (Tommy Lee Jones).

His story follows an investigation in a small Texas town with a large trail of blood. A sociopath named Chigurh will kill whomever gets between him and his target: Llewelyn Moss, a good man that found a case filled with millions of dollars at the site of a corpse-riddled desert, drug deal gone bad.

No Country is an all-out gritty take on the harshness of getting old in America. It’s an honest commentary on society and aging. And even with that said, it’s a hardcore violent film that will not only convey its moral, but  also entertain to the highest degree through great writing, acting, tension and action. The Coen Brothers are once again receiving the praise they deserve with No Country. If you can handle an ‘R’ for brutality, don’t miss it.

Looking good

Juno (Fox Searchlight)
From the director of Thank You for Smoking comes a comedic drama about a teenage couple that end up pregnant, trying to figure out what to do with the accidental child. Looks funny and heartwarming. Plus, any movie willing to re-team George Michael and Michael from Arrested Development has to be good.

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (Dreamsworks/Warner Bros.)
Tim Burton and Johnny Depp join forces once again to bring the legendary tale of slasher Sweeney Todd to the big screen. This Broadway-to-big screen musical is so bloody that it earned an ‘R’ rating and made Burton say that Sweeney is his favorite Depp character.

There Will Be Blood(Paramount Vantage)
Paul Thomas Anderson’s adaptation of the novel Oil! is looking like it’s going to be one of the most powerful and driving films of the year. Daniel Day Lewis plays a greedy, corrupt oil prospector who is willing to do whatever to whomever in order to make his money. Looks intriguing.

Could go either way

Alvin and the Chipmunks (Fox)
You’d think that this would be in the Leery column, but you cannot forget the fact that Jason Lee, better known as Earl from My Name is Earl, is in it. And anything that dude does is pretty stinking funny.

The Golden Compass (New Line)
In the future, humans learn that the human soul can become a personal companion in the form of an animal that follows you around. The Golden Compass could go either way. You’ve got great actors and a good story, but if the studio can’t show you an ad for it without trying to reel you in with its Lord of the Rings credibility, you know they’re trying to cover up something.

I Am Legend (Warner Bros.)
Will Smith. Positive. Early previews were intriguing, making you ask yourself, ‘Why is this guy alone in a destroyed, abandoned NYC?’ Positive. But now previews show you corny vampire-like villains and cheesy sequences. Double negative. We’ll just have to wait and see.

Walk Hard (Sony)
The guys who gave us Talladega Nights, Knocked Up and Superbad can’t always be successful. And this might be the one to bring them off their high. The green-band trailer for this spoof of Walk the Line and rockers looks mediocre, where the red-band trailer makes it look irreverently good. The only true positive it has going for it is Jenna Fischer, better known as Pam from The Office.

Doubt it

Alien vs. Predator: Requiem (Fox)
Geeks of the world, unite! You’re asking yourself, ‘Who would write a sequel to the worst movie of ’04?’ I’ll tell you. While playing World of Warcraft online, a group of geeks got into a conversation about who would win – aliens or predators. And when they couldn’t come to an agreement, the frustrated one said, "Hey, what if an alien and a predator mated?"

Charlie Wilson’s War (Universal)
Another not-so-entertaining political biopic about the sneaky Texas alcoholic congressman in the ’80s. Stars Tom Hanks, Julia (Age Hasn’t Been Nice To Me) Roberts and Phillip Seymour Hoffman. Looks like another boring news brought-to-life story you could easily look up in news archives.

National Treasure: Book of Secrets (Disney)
You think they would’ve learned their lesson after two crappy Pirates sequels, but they didn’t. The curse of the Disney sequels is back. Bigger names. Bigger budget. But the only thing dumber than the look on Nicholas Cage’s face is the idea of another National Treasure movie.