With so much grabbing for your attention and dollars these days, it’s easy to miss when the latest releases are heading to a cinema near you. So come back every week as we here at So, Is It Any Good? preview the new movies hitting screens and help you decide what to watch.
This weekend we get real-life rescue tale The Finest Hours, real-life lady in a van tale The Lady In The Van, and the not-so-real-life crooked cop tale Triple 9.
The Finest Hours
Rating: PG
Starring: Chris Pine, Casey Affleck, Ben Foster, Eric Bana
Synopsis: In February of 1952, one of the worst storms to ever hit the East Coast struck New England, damaging an oil tanker off the coast of Cape Cod and literally ripping it in half. On a small lifeboat faced with frigid temperatures and 70-foot high waves, four members of the Coast Guard set out to rescue the more than 30 stranded sailors trapped aboard the rapidly-sinking vessel.
Trailer:
Why you should be interested: If you’re a fan of The Perfect Storm, you’ll find a lot to like in this high seas rescue tale, also based on a true story. The cast is good, the effects look to be on point, and if they can nail the characters and the storytelling without it getting to corny, then this should be a pretty good time.
Who should see it: Boating enthusiasts
Triple 9
Rating: MA15+
Starring: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Casey Affleck, Woodey Harrelson, Norman Reedus, Kate Winslet, Teresa Palmer
Synopsis: A gang of criminals and corrupt cops plan the murder of a police officer in order to pull off their biggest heist yet across town.
Trailer:
Why you should be interested: Aussie director John Hillcoat (The Proposition, Lawless) continues his streak of looking at the dark side of human nature, in this tale of cops, robbers, and the crooked cops playing both sides. He’s assembled a killer cast with Casey Affleck doing double duty this weekend in this and Finest Hours. It’ll be nice to see Kate Winslet deliver a villain role as well. Hillcoat knows bad guys, and the trailer promises action out the wazoo.
Who should see it: Action junkies
The Lady In The Van
Rating: M
Starring: Maggie Smith, Dominic Cooper, James Corden
Synopsis: A man forms an unexpected bond with a transient woman living in her car that’s parked in his driveway.
Trailer:
Why you should be interested: Filling the charming British comedy slot in this week’s releases is The Lady In The Van. The incomparable, and apparently age defying, Maggie Smith can do more with a well placed look than most actors can do with their whole body, and when she turns her dry sensibilities to comedy, it’s usually a winner. She’s got a corker of a character to play in this one too, so if you’re a British comedy fan, this is the one for you.
Who should see it: Batty Brit lovers
After last weeks quartet of new movies was unleashed, how’d the money stack up?
AUSTRALIAN BOX OFFICE FEB 25-28
Source: Urban Cinefile
For three weeks in a row Deadpool has held court over the box office. Last weekend he racked up another $4.4 million in sales for an astonishing $33.5 million total. I think this weekend will be his last on top however, as the new releases this week will cut into the same audiences, and then next week brings 10 Cloverfield Lane.
The best of the new releases, to some surprise, was the Coen Brothers Hail, Caesar! which glammed up $1.2 million in the No. 3 spot. It handily beat what many thought was the biggest release of the weekend, Alex Proyas’ Gods Of Egypt. Critic bias or not, the widely panned films was also unanimously voted down by cinema-goers, scraping into the 4th spot on $901K. In 7th place, 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers Of Benghazi didn’t find a hugely captive audience either, only managing $608K. Debuting outside the top ten at No. 12, Pride And Predjudice And Zombies was dead on arrival, hunting down a measly $183K from 119 screens.
Who’s getting your hard earned dollars this weekend? Hit us up in the comments and let us know what you’ve watched, and if it’s any good!