With a weekend like this one, you’d be forgiven for thinking it was deepest darkest January and the studios were dumping their surefire misses on an indifferent public. The key difference is that studios actually release movies in January. As we make our way into Summer blockbuster territory, only one film is getting a wide release this week, the Steve Carrell/Tina Fey comedy “Date Night.” With little competition outside of last week’s CGI borefest “Clash of the Titans,” the film should have a good shot at the top spot at the box office. Maybe we’ll finally spend some time outdoors this weekend.
In Wide Release: “Night at the Museum” director Shawn Levy teams up with two of the biggest (and best) TV comedy stars for the comedic adventure film “Date Night.” For their first-ever collaboration, the twosome play a married couple who get mistaken for spies while out in Manhattan on an all-too-rare date. We caught the film earlier this week, finding a very weak script held together by strong comedic performances from the leads. The movie is also chock full of smaller roles from a grab bag guestlist including Mark Walhberg, James Franco, Mila Kunis, Mark Ruffalo, Kristen Wiig and more. Critics mostly agree with our assessment, Rotten Tomatoes tracking the film at 70%, with a 58 score from Metacritic.
In Limited Release: Liam Neeson must be the hardest working actor around. After “Clash of the Titans” and “Chloe” in recent weeks, he is once again gracing cinema screens with this week’s “After.Life.” Christina Ricci plays a young woman who wakes up in a funeral home after a terrible car accident feeling quite alive and finding her body being prepared for the afterlife by Neeson’s character, a funeral home director. Agnieszka Wojtowicz-Vosloo directs the film, with Justin Long playing Ricci’s boyfriend, who begins to suspect Neeson might not be exactly what he seems. A concept as ridiculous as this one could really go either way, but the buzz on this picture has been less than encouraging. RT has the film at 21%, while Metacritic has a slightly more positive 35 score.
Micro-budget film-making twins George and Mike Kuchar are the subject of Jennifer M. Kroot’s new documentary “It Came From Kuchar.” Growing up in the Bronx during the 1950’s, the movie-obsessed brothers began to film their own Hollywood-style melodramas on their aunt’s 8mm camera. By the 60’s they were a vital part (along with Andy Warhol) of New York City’s burgeoning underground film scene. They never gained much fame, but have a host of well-known admirers including John Waters, Buck Henry, Atom Egoyan, and Guy Maddin, all of whom are interviewed in the doc. With an 80% score from Rotten Tomatoes, we imagine it to be well worth your while if it happens to be playing near you.
“Living In Oblivion” director Tom DiCillo tries his hand at rock documentary with “When You’re Strange: A Film About the Doors.” Johnny Depp narrates the film, which presents much unseen footage of the band, both live and in the studio. We just posted our review, finding it both mildly interesting and totally forgettable. With no major revelations, the film is a pretty ordinary entry into the rock doc cannon. For serious fans only. RT tracks the film at 55%, Metacritic is right in synch with a 55 score.
Also in limited release this week: Generating some very positive buzz, the Australian noir “The Square” is out on a few screens today. Co-written by brothers Nash and Joel Edgerton (Nash directs, Joel stars) the film follows an adulterous couple both scheming to blackmail the other. We hope to get a look at this one soon. RT: 92%, Metacritic: 70. Benjamin Bratt plays a tough reformed inmate who discovers his son is gay in “Mission.” Directed by his brother, Peter Bratt, the film has a 33% rating from RT and a 52 score from Metacritic.