October 13, 2000
The Fall 2000 Movie Preview: October - THE COMMENTARY
By Joseph Planta
VANCOUVER -- Here is a rundown of the upcoming celluloid releases for the month of October. It follows on an edition of The Commentary going over the movies to open in September...
MEET THE PARENTS brings together two pretty good actors. Robert De Niro, the most superb actor of the last 25 years, as a parent who has to meet his future son-in-law. The son-in-law is played with great self-deprecation by Ben Stiller. I’ve actually seen this, so I can parlay the fact it’s pretty good. It opened on the 6th.
Oscar winner’s Ben Affleck (Good Will Hunting) and Gwyneth Paltrow (Shakespeare In Love) get together in the junior edition of Random Hearts, the clunker that starred Kristen Scott Thomas and Harrison Ford of a couple seasons ago. BOUNCE is directed by the fellow who directed the indie hit The Opposite of Sex and it’s one of them hokie love stories. During the making of this film, it reinforced the rumours of whether Paltrow and Affleck are actually still dating. Bounce bounces into your local cineplex October 13th.
Spike Lee, alongside Meet The Parents, bowed, on October 6th, his latest picture, BAMBOOZLED. Starring a Wayans brother (Damon), Mrs. Will Smith, Jada Pinkett and tap dancing extraordinare, Savion Glover - it’s a tale of show business and race relations, as told with the bluntness and thought-provoking nature of Mr. Lee.
The original Blair Witch scared moviegoers and movie makers alike - how could a low budget amateur effort scare up so much business at the box office? Its sequel, BOOK OF SHADOWS: BLAIR WITCH 2 opens October 27th.
October 13th sees the debut of another Robert Altman picture. Starring Richard Gere as Dr. T, and Helen Hunt, Shelly Long, Laura Dern, Kate Hudson (Goldie Hawn’s daughter) and Liv Tyler as the women, DR. T & THE WOMEN opens on October 13th.
GET CARTER, the locally-shot Sly Stallone drama opens on October 6th. It co-stars Alan Cumming, who wowed Broadway with his performance in Cabaret and Michael Caine who picked up his second Oscar this spring for The Cider House Rules.
Robert De Niro returns with Cuba Gooding Jr. in MEN OF HONOR. It’s a navy drama that has evoked the adjectives: old-fashioned and inspirational. Honor opens on the 20th.
Joan Allen is earning early Oscar buzz with her performance in THE CONTENDER. It co-stars Gary Oldman, who’ll probably earn a nod for his work as the assassinator of Ms. Allen’s chances in assuming the vice-presidency in Jeff Bridges’ administration. It looks like a brilliant political drama and it opens on October 13th.
Janusz Kaminski, who besides being married to Holly Hunter, spent most of his career as Steven Spielberg’s cinematographer, helms LOST SOULS. It opens on the 13th and it stars Winona Rider as a person who constantly sees the devil.
Jonathan Lipnicki, the little boy who impressed us in Jerry Maguire, returns to the screen on the 27th with THE LITTLE VAMPIRE.
John Travolta and Lisa Kudrow join Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks as the on-screen couple that had their fame enshrined by screen scribe and director Nora Ephron. Helming Sleepless in Seattle and You’ve Got Mail, Ms. Ephron returns on the 27th with LUCKY NUMBERS. It’s the tale of Travolta, the seedy man trying to corrupt the Pennsylvania state lottery and TV’s Phoebe.
BILLY ELLIOT is a boy that rejects boxing for ballet. It’s one of these heart-warming foreign films and it opens on the 13th of October.
Tim Meadows is off Saturday Night Live now, favouring to co-star in Michael Richards’ new sitcom. But his most famous incarnation on SNL was THE LADIES MAN. Another SNL character adapted for the big screen for the umpteenth time. It opens on the 13th.
Kramer’s Seinfeld alum, Jason Alexander has a self-directed film, JUST LOOKING opening on October 13th. It’s the tale of a 1950s kid obsessed with the catching adults doing the horizontal mambo.
Mark Whalberg and Joaquin Phoenix are supported by James Caan and Faye Dunaway in THE YARDS. It’s the thriller regarding the life of a shady New York family. Yards bows on October 20th.
Kyra Sedgewick (Mrs. Kevin Bacon) and ER’s former chief nurse, Julianna Margulies star as lesbian lovers in WHAT’S COOKING?. It’s been compared to Soul Food and it cooks into theatres on the 25th.
Speaking of the ER, Mimi Leder used to direct episodes of the NBC drama. On the 20th she opens her, PAY IT FORWARD in which she directed Oscar winners Kevin Spacey and Helen Hunt, and Oscar loser Haley Joel Osment in a tale about kindness and the motions thereof.
Michael Douglas’ unorthodox performance in WONDER BOYS is re-released this month in the hope of garnering Oscar nods. Boys co-stars Robert Downey Jr.
Sometime this month bows the remake of the 1967 Dudley Moore starrer, BEDAZZLED. This time around Brendan Fraser is bedazzled by the devilish Elizabeth Hurley.
October the 6th saw the release of REQUIEM FOR A DREAM. It wins an award for title of the month and it stars Jared Leto as a young man who’s addicted to heroin and his mother, Oscar-winner Ellen Burstyn, who’s addicted to diet pills. It’s directed by Darren Aronofsky who directed the indie hit, Pi.
The real shots for Oscar in the month’s stable of films are probably Pay It Forward for Haley Joel Osment and something for Ellen Burstyn in Requiem for A Dream. Robert Altman’s Dr. T & The Women could make waves, as is the custom with Altman’s past efforts: Short Cuts, The Player and Nashville. His last picture, however, Cookie’s Fortune, failed to create Oscar buzz. The Sun recently stated that if the Academy had any humour Meet The Parents could be up for nods. I think the song written by Randy Newman is their only shot. The producers of Get Carter will hype Sylvester Stallone’s performance as Oscar worthy, but his last Oscar worthy effort, Cop Land, went unnoticed at Oscar time. Robert De Niro, if he doesn’t score a supporting Oscar nomination for Meet the Parents could collect for Men Of Honor.
Probably the only shoo-in for Oscar consideration will probably be the Gary Oldman and Joan Allen starrer, The Contender. This picture’s got class.
And for The Ladies Man? Nothing, I’m afraid.
Questions and comments may be sent to: editor@thecommentary.ca
An archive of Joseph Planta's previous columns can be found by clicking HERE .