Movies
Fall movie preview: From here to Thanksgiving, all-you-can-eat at cinemas

By Moira Macdonald
Seattle Times movie critic

LAURIE SPARHAM / UNIVERSAL STUDIOS Renée Zellweger returns in "Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason," due in theaters Nov. 19. Ladies, Colin Firth and Hugh Grant are back, too.

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Autumn brings falling leaves, cozy sweaters and a logjam at the box office. Here's a look at many of the films opening between now and Thanksgiving; note that all release dates are tentative and can change as quickly as Renée Zellweger's accent.

All you need is love

Romance blooms this fall for Charlize Theron and Stuart Townsend in the 1930s drama "Head in the Clouds" (Friday), and for Richard Gere and Jennifer Lopez in "Shall We Dance" (Oct. 15). Zellweger reprises her role as the toffee-voiced British singleton in "Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason" (Nov. 19) — and yes, Colin Firth and Hugh Grant are back, too.

The older-woman/younger-man game gets played by Laura Linney and Topher Grace in Dylan Kidd's "P.S." (Nov. 5), and by Annette Bening and Shaun Evans in István Szabó's period comedy "Being Julia" (Oct. 22). Billy Crudup and Claire Danes star in the 17th-century theatrical tale "Stage Beauty" (Oct. 22), and, back in this century, Hilary Duff warbles a few tunes and finds true love (or, at least, the teenage version) in "Raise Your Voice" (Oct. 8).

For the kids

	WARNER BROS. The animated comedy "Shark Tale," to be released Friday, features the voices of Will Smith and Robert De Niro.

So, he's yellow and absorbent and lives in a pineapple under the sea ... he's TV star SpongeBob SquarePants, and he now has his very own movie, imaginatively titled "The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie" (Nov. 19), which sounds just cute as a button. Also under the sea are the denizens of "Shark Tale" (Friday), an animated comedy featuring the voices of Will Smith, Zellweger, Robert De Niro, Jack Black and Angelina Jolie.

"The Incredibles" (Nov. 5), the latest offering from the wizards at Pixar ("Toy Story," "Finding Nemo"), is a superhero comedy voiced by the likes of Samuel L. Jackson, Holly Hunter and Jason Lee. And Tom Hanks leads the voice cast for "The Polar Express" (Nov. 10), a holiday tale about a train to the North Pole, based on the book by Chris Van Allsburg.

What's up, doc?

Plenty of documentaries are set to unspool this fall, beginning Friday with "The Yes Men," which follows a team of anti-corporate activists who travel the world, impersonating members of the World Trade Organization. Presidential candidate John Kerry's Vietnam War service and subsequent political career is the focus of "Going Upriver: The Long War of John Kerry" (Friday), directed by George Butler ("The Endurance: Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Adventure").

Ron Mann's "Go Further" (Nov. 12) follows actor/activist Woody Harrelson on a hemp-fueled, healthy-living tour of the Pacific Coast. "Bright Leaves" (Nov. 5), by Ross McElwee ("Sherman's March"), casts its eye on a family legacy in the North Carolina tobacco business. Jim de Sève's timely "Tying the Knot" explores the debate over same-sex marriage.

Two music documentaries are due Oct. 29: "The End of the Century: The Story of the Ramones," which examines the 20-year history of the punk band, and Antoine Fuqua's look back at the blues, "Lightning in a Bottle," much of which was filmed at a 2003 Radio City Music Hall concert celebrating the centenary of American blues music.

Jonathan Caouette's "Tarnation" (Oct. 22) stretches the boundaries of this category but has its roots in the documentary form. It uses his own childhood footage, as well as numerous clips from movies and television, to tell the story of a deeply troubled family — his own.

Reality shows

What do Che Guevara, Ray Charles, Alfred Kinsey and Alexander the Great have in common? Nothing whatsoever, except that they're all the subjects of biopics this fall. Walter Salles' "The Motorcycle Diaries" (Friday) uses the writings of the pre-revolutionary Guevara to re-create a journey from his younger days. Gael García Bernal ("Y tu mamá también") plays Che. Jamie Foxx channels R&B legend Ray Charles for "Ray" (Oct. 29), directed by Taylor Hackford.

Colin Farrell goes blond for "Alexander" (Nov. 24), Oliver Stone's epic set in ancient Greece and Persia, co-starring Jolie, Val Kilmer and Anthony Hopkins. And Liam Neeson plays the famous sex researcher in "Kinsey" (Nov. 19), with Linney as his wife; Bill Condon ("Gods and Monsters") directs.

Scary movies, thrillers and demon dolls

Sarah Michelle Gellar sees something creepy in "The Grudge" (Oct. 22). Nicole Kidman's dead husband might be reincarnated in a creepy kid in "Birth" (Nov. 5). Robin Williams does creepy things to people's memories in "Final Cut" (Oct. 15). The ultra-violent serial-killer thriller "Saw" (Oct. 29), with Cary Elwes and Danny Glover, just sounds creepy. Welcome to fall.

Also in the chilly vein, an ultra-skinny Christian Bale wonders if he's going mad in Brad Anderson's "The Machinist" (Oct. 29). A suicidal Japanese man meets a slovenly young woman in Pen-Ek Ratanaruang's "Last Life in the Universe," photographed by the great cinematographer Christopher Doyle ("Hero"). And yes, Chucky's back, and he's got a spawn — the orphan doll Glen, in "Seed of Chucky" (Nov. 12). Don't leave him alone with Barbie.

Brothers, buddies and bonding

	WARNER BROS. Colin Farrell stars as Alexander the Great in Oliver Stone's "Alexander," scheduled for release Nov. 24. It co-stars Angelina Jolie, Val Kilmer and Anthony Hopkins.

Guys are getting in touch with their sensitive sides all over the place this fall, with John Travolta and Joaquin Phoenix as firefighters in "Ladder 49" (Friday), Billy Bob Thornton and Derek Luke as coach and football player in "Friday Night Lights" (Oct. 8), and Paul Giamatti and Thomas Haden Church as buddies on a wine-country trip in Alexander Payne's "Sideways" (late October).

On a related note, Michael Caine, Christopher Walken and Josh Lucas play three generations of a troubled family in "Around the Bend" (Oct. 15), and Dermot Mulroney, Jamie Bell and Lucas (again!) are father, son and uncle in David Gordon Green's Southern gothic, "Undertow" (late October). And Johnny Depp finds his inner child (not to mention a Scottish accent) as "Peter Pan" playwright J.M. Barrie in "Finding Neverland" (Nov. 12).

Adventure, high and low

"The Flight of the Phoenix" (Nov. 24), a remake of the 1965 James Stewart film, has Dennis Quaid leading a group of plane-crash survivors in the Mongolian desert. Nicolas Cage searches for a Revolutionary War cache in "National Treasure" (Nov. 19). But surely this season's best-looking adventurers are Pierce Brosnan and Salma Hayek, who play a thief and an FBI agent in Brett Ratner's caper "After the Sunset" (Nov. 12).

Comedy, high and low

Jude Law brings his peerlessly dashing grin to "Alfie" (Oct. 22), a remake of the 1966 Michael Caine film, and to David O. Russell's existential comedy "I [Heart] Huckabees" (Oct. 8), alongside Jason Schwartzman and Naomi Watts. Diego Luna, currently on screen in "Criminal," stars in "Nicotina" (Oct. 8), a real-time caper set in Mexico City. Michael Clancy's ensemble comedy "Eulogy" (Nov. 15), with Ray Romano, Zooey Deschanel and Famke Janssen, follows a three-generational family through the burial of their patriarch.

Queen Latifah drives a cab in "Taxi" (Oct. 8), along with Jimmy Fallon and supermodel-turned-actress Gisele Bundchen. Troy Parker and Matt Stone, better known as "the 'South Park' guys," return with "Team America: World Police" (Oct. 15), an adventure/satire in which superhero marionettes fight terrorism, in that special "South Park"-ish way. Stanley Kubrick's 1964 classic "Dr. Strangelove" celebrates its 40th anniversary with a new print and a Nov. 19 re-release.

And no, it's not too early to think about the holidays. "Surviving Christmas" (Oct. 22) features a lonely Ben Affleck renting a family for the holiday season. (Insert your favorite J. Lo joke here, if you must.) And Jamie Lee Curtis and Tim Allen star in "Christmas with the Kranks," (Nov. 24) in which a suburban couple must hastily throw together a festive celebration. Ho-ho-ho.

All creatures great and small

Filmmaker Werner Herzog pursues the Loch Ness monster, sort of, in the zany "Incident at Loch Ness" (Friday). And an exceptionally charming camel turns up in a small Polish village in "The Big Animal" (Oct. 8), whose screenplay was written by the late Polish master Krzysztof Kieslowski.

Life during wartime

Directed by Margarethe von Trotta, "Rosenstrasse" (Oct. 8) looks back at a German woman who saved the life of her Jewish husband during World War II. Ondrej Trojan's "Zelary" (Oct. 15), an Academy Award nominee last year, is a drama set in 1940s Czechoslovakia, where a nurse and surgeon are part of the resistance movement.

Award winners

Mike Leigh's "Vera Drake" (Oct. 22), about a woman (Imelda Staunton) who performs abortions in 1950s England, won the grand prize earlier this month at the prestigious Venice International Film Festival. And at Sundance earlier this year, the music documentary "DiG!" (Oct. 8), about the bands the Dandy Warhols and Brian Jonestown Massacre, won the grand jury prize for documentary, while Shane Carruth's time-travel drama "Primer" (Oct. 15) took the grand jury award for drama.

Festive festivals

The Northwest Asian American Film Festival begins Thursday with the Imelda Marcos documentary "Imelda" and continues through the weekend with a full schedule of shorts, features and forums. For more information, see www.nwaaff.org, or call 206-340-1445.

And the weeklong Seattle Lesbian and Gay Film Festival begins Oct. 15. Programming details will be announced soon; see www.seattlequeerfilm.com or call 206-323-4274 for details.

Moira Macdonald: 206-464-2725 or mmacdonald@seattletimes.com

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company

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