A few of this fall’s pictures catch my interest, judging by the trailers.
I’m looking forward to seeing Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer’s (MGM) remake of the original Fame (1980), sampled here. The new Fame (Sept. 25) looks youthful, vibrant and I like Kelsey Grammer in just about anything. Also of interest are two Sandra Bullock films, and hopefully she’s on a roll after the enjoyable The Proposal: Warner Brothers’ The Blind Side (Nov. 20), which looks like a sentimental family sports movie based on a true story, and the romantic comedy All About Steve (Sept. 4), though it stars an actor who usually appears in total trash, so proceed with caution.
Several film trailers are less than impressive, including Chicago director Rob Marshall’s highly anticipated musical Nine, which, like his mixed Memoirs of a Geisha, looks terrific but also looks like it may lack a compelling story. Beyond a Reasonable Doubt looks awful, like a wannabe Jagged Edge with bad actors, and it looks like nothing interesting happens in the screen adaptation for Where the Wild Things Are, which feels as dull as a folk music festival or a guitar mass.
Topping my must-see list is what may be the season’s most heroic motion picture, Fox Searchlight’s Amelia (Oct. 23), starring Hilary Swank as pilot Amelia Earhart. Ms. Swank is an excellent actress and the film looks as if it’s a lush, stunning, and unapologetically larger than life spectacle. Amelia, scored by Gabriel Yared (The Lives of Others), is directed by Mira Nair and also stars Ewan McGregor and Richard Gere.
