Theatrical Releases: Into The Woods, Unbroken, & The Interview

December 26, 2014 / Leave a Comment

THE INTERVIEW || December 26th, 2014

	Bradley Cooper plays the most lethal sniper in U.S. history (whatever that means) in Clint Eastwood’s latest “American Sniper”. With the tone of “The Hurt Locker” swapping out bomb specialist for sniper, this has the raw feel of war that made Bigelow’s Oscar winning war film feel so original. Also starring Sienna Miller as Cooper’s wife, there looks to be some intense homeland drama as well, which audiences only got a taste of in “The Hurt Locker”. This might be carrying the smallest bit of awards buzz, but probably just in minor categories.	THEATER
	Tim Burton takes a step away from his twisted animation worlds and delivers “Big Eyes,” a drama based on a true story. Set in the 1950s and ’60s, Amy Adams plays Margaret, a single mother and avid painter of what most call Big Eyes paintings because the subjects have huge, disproportionate eyes. When Walter Keane (Christoph Waltz) steps into her life, she couldn’t be happier… until he starts taking credit for her work and capitalizes off it. Both Adams and Waltz are wonder in their roles and with Burton delivering such a rich production design, this feels utterly unique.
	Thank God this is coming out on Christmas Day after all. Let it be stated, however, that no one ever said that “The Interview” was a great film. It is a raunchy comedy starring Seth Rogen and James Franco, who play two television guys headed to North Korea to interview the leader, Kim Jung-Un (Randall Park). Before they leave, the CIA, lead by Lacey (Lizzy Caplan), requests that they assassinate the leader. At the heart of the Sony hacking and the major theater chains dropping the release do to threats, this has become so much more than just a movie and nothing makes me happier than having it released.
	Mixing the fairy tale worlds of “Cinderella”, “Jack and the Beanstalk”, “Little Red Riding Hood”, and “Rapunzel”, “Into The Woods” is a star-studded musical from Academy Award nominated director Rob Marshall (“Chicago”). Starring Meryl Streep as a witch, Johnny Depp as the big bad wolf, and Chris Pine as Prince Charming, as well as the gorgeous Emily Blunt and Anna Kendrick, there is definitely enough star power to afford a viewing, but unfortunately, this one feels more aimed at children. Expect the costumes and-or production design to get some attention at the Oscars, and possibly even some sound nominations.	THEATER
	Everyone involved with covering the Academy Awards is talking about “Selma” right now, a film about Martin Luther King Jr. that took critics by surprise when debuted at the AFI Fest. Said to be strong and poignant, the fictional film tells the true story of the march between Selma and Montgomery in a sign of protest against President Johnson. David Oyelowo plays Martin Luther King Jr. and is said to be phenomenal, with Oscar prognosticators discussing whether he will pull off an Oscar nomination. With plenty of other stars including Tim Roth, Tom Wilkinson, Giovanni Ribisi, Cuba Gooding Jr., and the always present Oprah Winfrey, this film will not be missed.	THEATER
	Angelina Jolie tells the incredible true story of Louis “Louie” Zamperini (played by Jack O’Connell in the film), an Olympian track runner and WWII war hero who was involved in a plane crash, survived on a raft for 47 days, and was taken as a POW by the Japanese Navy. Zamperini lived until this year, seeing the completion of his film, which is an amazing twist to the story. This is actually Jolie’s second time directing a feature film, the first being 2011’s Bosnian War drama “In The Land Of Blood And Honey”.	THEATER

The birth of the ménage-a-trois is uncovered in the latest 18th century period piece entitled “Beloved Sisters”. Germany’s official Oscar submission into the Best Foreign Language Feature category (which did not make the shortlist), the film is about two sisters, Caroline and Charlotte, that fall in love with the same man, a poet by the name of Friedrich Schiller. Instead of fighting over him, however, they share him, despite the things that will be said about them, which eventually is what brings the major conflict of the film. Somehow I feel this also cannot be missed.

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