Will Mumble and his fellow penguins hold onto the top box-office spot over the long Thanksgiving weekend or will one of the highly promoted newcomers set Warner Bros.’ Happy Feet aside to thaw? That’s the question as kids and adults alike across the U.S. ditch school and work to spend time with family and take in a movie or two. Warner Bros. opened its trippy, vfx-laden sci-fi thriller The Fountain in theaters today as Buena Vista uncovers the phenomenon known as D’j’ Vu and 20th Century Fox takes holiday decorating to madcap extremes with Deck the Halls. Fans of Jack Black and novelty rock music can also check out New Line Cinema’s Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny.
The Fountain may be one of those movies that people either love or hate. The trailers are selling it as a love story that deals with the concept of immortality, but many are calling this latest effort from director Darren Aronofsky (Pi, Requiem for a Dream) an art film that requires some effort on the part of audiences. Still, Warner Bros. is giving it a fairly wide release in just over 1,400 theaters.
Starring Hugh Jackman, Rachel Weisz and Ellen Burstyn, The Founatin is described as an odyssey chronicling one man’s eternal struggle to save the woman he loves. The film begins in 16th Century Spain and traverses a thousand years and three storylines as characters played by Jackman seek the key to immortality. Lending visual effects to the ambitious project are Mokko Studio, Intelligent Creatures Inc., Buzz Image Group, LOOK Effects, New Deal Studios Inc., Digital Dimension, Giant Killer Robots, TCS Toronto and Klon Films.
Rather than living forever, D’j’ Vu explores the idea of living one moment more than once. Directed by Tony Scott and featuring visual effects by Asylum, the movie stars Denzel Washington as an ATF agent who travels back in time to save a woman from being murdered. The pic has been well marketed and may have the best chance of dethroning the Emperor penguins over the holiday period. Tenacious D Fans will be out in force for Pick but the appeal is somewhat limited and Deck the Halls just treads on far too familiar ground despite the draw of stars Danny Devito and Matthew Broderick. Expect to see this one packaged on DVD with the Arnold Schwarzenegger holiday comedy Jingle All the Way.
Leave a Reply