4月18日
Critics 'Invisible,' Feel The 'Chill'
I don't like this trend (now, I suppose staple) of neglecting to screen movies for critics--and not because I must see every movie for free (though that's nice). No, I'm one of those writers who finds value in some so-called "crappy" films and will go to bat for a say, "Resident Evil" or "Hulk" or "The Skeleton Key" or "The Wicker Man" (albeit with questions) and most Jean Claude Van Damme films made by Hong Kong directors (seriously, "Double Team" is a bizarre work of near brilliance).
And though I'm pretty certain I wouldn't rate Jamie Kennedy's "Kickin' It Old Skool" (did I misspell that correctly?) on par with a Tsui Hark. Van Damme, Dennis Rodman, Mickey Rourke blast of surrealism, who the hell knows? Maybe there's some subversive elements within. Perhaps an accidentally intriguing examination of race relations.
"On Friday the 27th, for the first time in memory, three movies will go into wide release without advance critics screenings. Two are supernatural thrillers. Emily Blunt of 'The Devil Wears Prada' gets above-the-title billing for Screen Gems' 'Wind Chill,' wherein she and Ashton Holmes are college students whose car breaks down.. and they are victimized by ghosts. Disney's 'The Invisible,' which uses even more rain in the poster art, features Justin Chatwin as an unfortunate young man who lingers in limbo and must prevent his body from being disposed of -- sounds like a cross between 'Heaven Can Wait' and 'The Sixth Sense.' The Yari Film Group offers the unscreened comedy 'Kickin' It Old Skool,' starring Jamie Kennedy as a break-dancer who comes out of the coma he's been in since 1986. Sounds like many film critics will feel the same way on the 27th."
Yeah, and no early peeks at Emily Blunt. That's the most unfortunate part of all this.
--posted by Kim