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Sunday, Nov. 22, 2009

Holiday movie preview

With divisive politics, global unrest and bad economic news seemingly around every corner, it’s nice to sink into a theater seat, grab a bag of popcorn and take in a movie or two this holiday season.

Except that the world is coming to an end — onscreen at least.

The holiday movie season began with a bang two weeks ago as “2012,” the latest blow-up-the-planet flick from director Roland Emmerich (“The Day After Tomorrow,” “Independence Day”), exploded onto the scene with a $230 million worldwide opening. The movie plays on the public’s fears about 2012, which some say is foretold by ancient Mayans as doomsday.

It’s not the only film this season that won’t exactly be spreading holiday cheer with bright, happy themes. “The Road,” adapted from Cormac McCarthy’s novel about survival in a post-apocalyptic future, opens Wednesday. The similarly themed “Book of Eli,” starring Denzel Washington, opens Jan. 15.

Audiences might have to find their holiday cheer from the fact that when they leave the theater, the world hasn’t ended.

Still, there are plenty of movies opening during the holiday season that don’t revolve around the concept of a dead Earth.

At the AmStar Cinema 16 on Thursday evening, hundreds of giddy women lined up early in anticipation of “Twilight: New Moon,” the second movie in the popular vampire series based on the books of Stephenie Meyer.

And those were just the so-called “Twilight Moms.” The target teen audience lined up to watch in a separate screening room. (Because, hey, what teen wants to enter an Edward-vs.-Jacob debate with her mom?)

“We’re an informal group, all moms from age 25 to 70. We’re all huge fans,” said Cindy Adrien, one of the organizers of the “Twilight Moms” event. “I’ve been anticipating this movie since the last movie came out (last year).”

Wesley Clark, general manager of the AmStar 16, said “Twilight: New Moon” could very well have the biggest opening of any movie at Amstar during the holiday season.

“It’s an extremely popular film,” Clark said, “and I think after the first movie, the popularity has grown immensely.”

It’s certainly off to a good start. Nationwide, the midnight showings earned a record $26.3 million.

Clark said the movie business has shown itself to be fairly resilient and that business from last year to now has remained fairly steady.

“Typically, the industry is recession-proof,” he said. “This year has been fine. We’re doing pretty much what we expected to do, but we’re really looking forward to Thanksgiving for the new releases.”

According to the tracking service Hollywood.com, the national box office for the year through the Nov. 15 weekend is up 6.9 percent from the same period last year.

This season’s movie choices run the gamut, from crime stories and poignant dramas to animation and real-life stories.

Yvonne Garnett, an analyst at Robins Air Force Base and a self-described movie enthusiast, said she looks at the movie’s story to decide whether she wants to see it. She said there are a slew of movies she hopes to see before the year’s end.

“Probably 40 of them,” she said with a chuckle. “I can see anything and everything. I do enjoy independent films, but I like the big box office hits as well.”

Many of the well-trumpeted releases of the holiday season are movies that should give audiences a positive feeling.

The much-hyped James Cameron adventure movie, “Avatar,” opens Dec. 18. The movie uses pioneering 3-D and computer graphics technology and is one of the most anticipated films of the year.

“It’s had a whole lot of hype, but there’s been a lot of positive feedback,” Clark said.

Also drawing a lot of attention is Disney’s “The Princess & The Frog,” opening Dec. 11. That movie is noteworthy for a couple reasons: It marks the first major Disney release in traditional 2-D animation in several years, and it’s the first Disney animated film to feature a black heroine.

Clark said the theater is celebrating the opening with a kids festival that weekend, which will include prizes, games and live animals provided by the Museum of Arts and Sciences.

One of the movies Clark said he’s personally looking forward to is “Sherlock Holmes,” which opens Christmas Day and features Robert Downey Jr. in the title role.

“That looks like it’s going to be a lot of fun,” he said.

In addition to crowd-pleasing titles, Hollywood also uses the holiday season to release movies expected to be Academy Award contenders.

Among the more notable films expected to contend for Oscar gold are “Precious,” which has already opened in limited release; “The Messenger,” starring Woody Harrelson and Ben Foster, about military officers who have the duty of informing families when soldiers are killed in action; “Invictus,” which opens Dec. 11, starring Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela and is about the real-life story of South Africa’s 1995 World Cup rugby team; and “Up In The Air,” starring George Clooney as a corporate hatchet man, which opens Dec. 4.

Garnett said if she had to pick one movie to see, it’s “Precious,” which was produced by Oprah Winfrey and Tyler Perry, and centers around the travails of a teenage, inner-city mother.

“I’m really interested in seeing that way of the world, especially how things are going on in the world today,” she said. “Those kind of stories interest me.”

Other movies drawing attention include “The Lovely Bones,” released Dec. 11 from director Peter Jackson, and “The Blind Side,” starring Sandra Bullock, which opened this weekend. It’s the true story of a poor black youth from a troubled home who reaches his potential with the help of a wealthy white family.

Adrien said she hopes to see “The Blind Side” at some point, but she hasn’t thought too much about the rest of the holiday schedule.

“My whole focus has been ‘Twilight,’ ” she said.

To contact writer Phillip Ramati, call 744-4334.