The last hurrah for 2006 is upon us and what do the local theaters have to show for it? Nothing. At least, nothing in my area. There is not a single new release arriving locally for me to see. That means one thing, time to catch up on a couple that I have missed. It is also a time to recommend a few movies that are on the big screen and well worth the visit. There are a few major films that are not playing in my area, most notably Dreamgirls and Children of Men.

This weekend I am hoping to catch Black Christmas. I am a big horror buff, and although I am generally let down by Hollywood's offerings I am looking forward to this. It is a remake of Bob Clark's cult flick from 1974, and being such is an automatic target of derision from fans. However, the drubbing it has taken may not be completely without reason, as at the moment the critical consensus rates a whopping 14% at Rotten Tomatoes (narrowly outranking the current king of rotten, Eragon).

I am like a moth to a flame in my desire to go and see the movie, of course. I have not seen the original film and therefore lack the baggage that such a thing would entail. All I am really hoping for is a horror movie with a decent amount of blood and a moderate entertainment level — anything else would be setting myself up for massive disappointment. I do have a little faith in director Glen Morgan, who is behind the entertaining Final Destination series and cut his teeth in the business with the Chris Carter-created X-Files.

Following the holiday horror, I am looking to give myself an inspirational boost by taking a journey in the Pursuit of Happyness. This one is responsible for some of the best reviews of Will "Awww hell no" Smith's career. Perhaps it is his straying from the action genre, or perhaps working with a director making his English language debut, or maybe it is acting alongside his real son that inspired his performance. Whatever the case, he should try it again. The movie is the inspirational, true life (aren't they all?) tale of a man trying to create a beter future for his son as he battles out of homelessness through an unpaid internship where he hopes to become a stock broker. It looks like a good movie, and it has been receiving generally strong notices. It was directed by Gabriele Muccino, who recently had one of his films remade by Hollywood, L'Ultimo bacio, which became the Zach Braff vehicle The Last Kiss.