1. The Final Destination (Warner Brothers/New Line, 3,121 Theaters, 82 Minutes, Rated R): The “final” Final Destination? Gosh, I certainly hope so!
The premise of these films is simple. A group of young people are supposed to die, but one of the group has a premonition about it and saves his friends. Death really doesn’t like it when people who are supposed to die don’t, and sets out to kill the survivors is the most gruesome and grisly ways.
Of course, the deaths, as far as I can see from the trailers, are so over the top that they defy believability.
I have an admission to make. I have a phobia about escalators. It all stems back to an episode of Trapper John M.D. I saw as a kid. A man fell down an escalator and later died. That was all that was needed to give me moments of hesitation getting on an escalator for the rest of my life.
Therefore you’d think that I’d be especially scared by the scene shown in this movie where the escalator breaks down and a character almost falls into the gears. But since the portrayal of the gears seems so blatantly unrealistic (What do they need such strong mechanics for? Does the escalator go to the moon?), I am not scared at all. Takes me right out of it.
2. Halloween II (Dimension Films, 3,000 Theaters, 101 Minutes, Rated R): Two horror films released in the same week? I had to check my calendar to see if it was the last weekend of August or the last weekend of October!
One of the most unique things about the first Halloween II was that the film was set a few scant seconds after the end of the first film. I always liked that about that film. It made it seem more like a true continuation of the story.
I don’t know if Rob Zombie will keep the same “seconds after” plot thread or not, but this is his adaptation of that sequel. This will probably do well, but odds are against it lasting tuntill Halloween actually roles around.
3. Taking Woodstock (Focus Features, 2,693 Theaters, 110 Minutes, Rated R): Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you must know the legendary concert called Woodstock took place 40 years ago. It seems hard to believe that those kids that were splashing in the mud back then are a stone’s throw away from retirement age.
Some of the concert’s mythic nature has tarnished over the years as the “3 Days of Peace, Love and Music” turned into decades of special edition DVD sets, limited edition CDs, and stylish T-shirts. This film seems to know this, and takes a less formal approach.
This film looks at the days before festival and details how the concert came together. As such, it’s not about the concert, per se, so you won’t hear music from the concert or see actor’s playing any of the acts at the show.
This film opened in 1,393 theaters on Wednesday and is directed by Oscar-winning Director Ang Lee.
