CHRISTMAS FLICKS
‘Tis the season to look for locals coming soon to a theater near you. You’ll see Charlize Theron as you’ve never seen her before. The Oscar winner is suiting up and flying into action as a mysterious secret agent from the country of Monica in the recently released fantasy/sci-fi thriller “Aeon Flux.” The film is set 400 years in the future when a bug wipes out the majority of the earth’s population except for the walled off city-state of Bregna. Aeon Flux is the top operative in the Monican Rebellion led by Frances McDormand.
Brosnan, Pierce Brosnan is back, not as Bond but as Julian Nobel in “The Matador.” The comedy/thriller centers on a friendship between a globetrotting hitman and a traveling salesman who meet up in Mexico City. Linda Hamilton also returns to the screen opposite Tom Arnold and Joe Mantegna in the comedy “The Kid and I.”
Jennifer Aniston takes a comic turn in “Rumor Has It.” Aniston teams up with longtime local Shirley MacLaine. The former “Friends” star plays Sarah Huttinger, an unsuspecting daughter who discovers her family was the inspiration for the film “The Graduate.” Coo coo ca choo!
As for sequels, wild and crazy guy Steve Martin and one day at a timer Bonnie Hunt will return to their roles as husband and wife in “Cheaper by the Dozen 2.”
And what would a movie season be without a remake or two? Téa Leoni is on the run with funny guy Jim Carrey in a redo of “Fun with Dick and Jane.” They play a married pair who turns to bank robbery to pay the bills. The 1977 original featured Jane Fonda and George Segal.
But that’s not the only remake in the mix. Naomi Watts will be going ape in the new “King Kong.” Watts is taking on the role first portrayed by Fay Wray in 1933 and 43 years later by Jessica Lange. The return engagement also stars school of rocker Jack Black, which could be interesting. But if any one can pull off this monkey business, it’s “Lord of the Rings” director Peter Jackson.
One of the most anticipated films of 2005 hits theaters on Dec. 23. Steven Spielberg will unveil his super secretive project “Munich,” which details the attack on Israeli athletes at the 1972 Olympics. Also at year’s end, Woody Allen’s smashing tennis comedy, “Match Point.”
To round things off, there’s nothing like a little song and dance. Matthew Broderick and Nathan Lane reprise their Broadway roles in “The Producers.” This one looks like a sure fire holiday hit with Uma Thurman as sexy Ulla and a whole lotta ho, ho, ho.