11 must-see holiday movies
Studios trot out their best fare for the holidays – 11 not to miss
This is when movie critics get out the sharp knives ... and tuck them neatly back into the drawer. It’s holiday-movie season, the time of year studios present what they consider their best movies to audiences with some time off to see them and, more important for their purposes, to Academy Awards voters. Short memories, you see. So even the harshest critic falls prey to a Pollyanna-like attitude between now and Christmas, with one good movie after another (at least in theory) coming down the big-screen pike.
Here’s a list of 11 to look for. (Full disclosure: I’ve seen a few of them. But I’m not giving anything away. Yet. Or at least not much.)
Remember, dates are subject to change. “Frozen” (Opened Nov. 27): A return to form for Disney animation, with Kristen Bell starring (and singing) as a princess who goes looking for her sister the queen (Idina Menzel), whose behavior has left the kingdom a little, shall we say, frosty. The songs are terrific and there’s a huge twist, but I’ve said too much already.
“Out of the Furnace” (Opens Friday, Dec. 6): Director Scott Cooper gets some serious talent together for his story about a down-on-hisluck mill worker (Christian Bale) who gets drawn into the troubled life of his brother (Casey Affleck), who has survived several tours of Iraq. Not exactly a laugh riot, but an actor’s dream. “Her” (Opens Wednesday, Dec. 18): Spike Jonze has made some good, quirky movies (“Being John Malkovich,” “Adaptation”), but this tops everything in the quirk department: Joaquin Phoenix plays a writer who falls in love with his new operating system. Scarlett Johansson provides the voice of the system. Sounds sufficiently weird and certainly interesting. “American Hustle” (Opens Wednesday, Dec. 18): Christian Bale plays a con man who, with Amy Adams, has to go to work for an FBI agent (Bradley Cooper). Jeremy Renner and Jennifer Lawrence also star, along with Robert De Niro. Awful lot of headliners on that marquee. David O. Russell directs and co-wrote the script. Somebody’s gunning for Oscars ... “Inside Llewyn Davis” (Opens Friday, Dec. 20): The Coen brothers’ latest follows a winter week in the life of a sad-sack New York folksinger (Oscar Isaac) in the early 1960s, when people like Bob Dylan were coming onto the scene. The Coens, as they often do in their strongest films, find a compelling (and funny) story where there appears to be nothing. With Carey Mulligan, Justin Timberlake and John Goodman. “Saving Mr. Banks” (Opens Friday, Dec. 20): There is great buzz surrounding the performances of Tom Hanks and Emma Thompson in John Lee Hancock’s story, based on real events, about Walt Disney (Hanks) trying to persuade author P.L. Travers (Thompson) to let him make a movie of her novel, “Mary Poppins.” Seems like things worked out OK. “Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues” (Opens Friday, Dec. 20): Nitwit news anchor Ron Burgundy (Will Ferrell) goes from his beloved Forest Whitaker plays a lawman and Christian Bale a mill worker in “Out of the Furnace.” KERRY HAYES/RELATIVITY MEDIA San Diego TV station to try his hand at a new 24-hour news channel. The gang’s all here again: Christina Applegate, Paul Rudd, Steve Carell, etc. Plus, Jim Carrey, Kristen Wiig, Liam Neeson, Nicole Kidman and Harrison Ford (!), among others, are thrown into the mix. It could be hilarious, if we can get past the relentless marketing campaign. “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” (Opens Wednesday, Dec. 25): Ben Stiller directs and stars in another movie version of the great James Thurber short story, about a man who escapes his boring life by way of fantasies. Sounds like there have been some tweaks to the story, which was pretty swell to begin with, so we’ll see. Stiller is an underrated talent to be so famous. With Sean Penn, Kristen Wiig and Patton Oswalt. “Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom” (Opens Wednesday, Dec. 25): The great Idris Elba plays the great Nelson Mandela in Justin Chadwick’s biopic. Buzz has been so-so on the film but strong on Elba. And as taglines go, “It is an ideal for which I am prepared to die” is pretty hard to beat. “The Wolf of Wall Street” (Opens Wednesday, Dec. 25): Martin Scorsese. Leonardo DiCaprio. I’m. Kidding. Sort of. But Terence Winter wrote the screenplay, based on the true story of Jordan Belfort, a stockbroker flying a little too close to the sun, as it were. With Jonah Hill, Matthew McConaughey and Jon Favreau. Hopes are astronomically high, which is always dangerous. “August: Osage County” (Opens Wednesday, Dec. 25): The cast includes Meryl Streep, Julia Roberts, Benedict Cumberbatch, Ewan McGregor, Sam Shepard, Dermot Mulroney and Juliette Lewis. Is there enough scenery on this planet for them all to chew? It’s an actor’s film, no doubt, but don’t be surprised if you’re most moved by Julianne Nicholson’s quiet performance. Just a hunch.