Only one national release this week, making theater going a little slim in the picking. Maybe you could use this week to catch The Island or The Devil's Rejects, both of which deserve more than they are getting. Or you could help Batman Begins hit the $200 million mark.
Dukes of Hazzard. Not sure what to think of this one. I was a fan of the series, which I saw in reruns when I was very young. The casting seemed odd to me, some looks good, some doesn't. I think Johnny Knoxville looks pretty good as Luke Duke, and Jessica Simpson is hot enough for Daisy, I am just afraid she may play it too dumb. I also think Willie Nelson as Uncle Jesse is brilliant, and Burt Reynolds as Boss Hogg, not so (I pictured someone more like Danny Devito). It was directed by Jay Chandrasekhar, who was behind Super Troopers and Club Dread. I think I may give this a shot.
Kings and Queen. This is opening at the local arthouse. This is a French film from director Arnaud Desplechin. I saw a trailer which looked pretty good, but still not something I feel enticed to go out and see. It chronicles a divorcée trying to raise her son, while her ex is in a mental institution plotting his escape. It is my understanding that there is much more to it, but there have it.
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Article comments
1 - Tan The Man
Duke Of Hazzard is getting a theatre count of about 3800, which puts it in the league of most new animated films and the really big blockbuster movies. I think Warner Brothers is really trying to recoup a lot of the movie it spent on that whole copyright fiasco earlier this year with the movie.
2 - Chris Beaumont
Sounds right, but I dopn't think they'll do it with this one. I hope to have fun at it, but box office wise, I am expecting >20 mil.
3 - Dean
Insanely enough, the new family movie 'Duma", directed by Carroll Ballard ('The Black Stallion', 'Fly Away Home') is also now out in an very limited release (Chicago only). Film critic Roger Ebert has called it an "extraordinary" family film but apparently the film studio is reluctant to release it to a wider audience because they are uncertain of its commercial capabilities and they will not invest any marketing dollars or wide distribution.
The end result is we get heaping, steaming piles of sh*t like the DoH in hundreds of theaters and no access to what sounds like an amazing film.
Any Blogcritics in the Chicago area - take up the challenge, go see Duma and post a review. Let's see if we can get the film industry to market something other then Jessica Simpson's T&A!
4 - RC
I think it will do well at the Box Office. It doesnt hurt to have Jessica Simpson help promote the movie with her #1 music video, which if you have not seen yet, I highly recommend it. I think it will do alright. There was already plans for a second one during the making of this first film. So The Producers must have very high hopes for the film. I think it will do well, even if it is over hyped.
5 - Julie Richter
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Hi Dean,
I'm not a member of Blogcritics (though I do have a now much-neglected blog, whose URL is http://home.earthlink.net/~arichtersscale/).
But I DO live in the Chicago area, and I wrote a piece about "Duma" in my column over at at Hollywood Elsewhere that you might be interested in reading. (http://Hollywood-Elsewhere.com/again/)
Like you, I want to spread the word about this beautiful movie.
6 - Chris Beaumont
I have heard good things about it, and if it happens to come near me, I will definitely go and see it!