The Mummy has returned. Stifler and his buddies had their Pie and ate it too. Jay and Silent Bob have smoked their last blunt, and the lovely creatures that inhabit Jurassic Park have charmed us for yet a third time.
Memories of this summer's movies fade as quickly as our tans. An odd few moviegoers might wish to savor the joys of the summer's selection, but most would probably rather forget the stale day-old popcorn taste that most of the season's offerings left in our mouths.
But fear not, movie fans! Autumn is on its way and as those leaves turn to glorious hues of red, orange and yellow, theaters begin to show movies worth watching. When September rolls around, moviemakers- studios and independents alike -start to roll out products that look far different from the tripe that once filled the cineplex. With Academy voters starting to think Oscar and other awards to be handed out after the new year, film makers historically reward patient movie mavens with an onslaught of intriguing, innovative and often artistic films. So fill that glass with some hot mulled cider, don your flannel pajamas, and check the movie listings.
With well over 100 films scheduled to be released before the calendar reads 2002, it may be hard to distinguish the chaff from the good and the good from the great. We here at the Daily have compiled a list of films that should be worth investigating when the reels come rolling into area theaters.
<I>From Hell
From Hell, directed by Albert and Allan Hughes of Menace II Society fame, recounts the story of the search for Jack the Ripper. Starring Johnny Depp and Heather Graham and set in London in the 19th century, the film is a departure from the directors' previous films, which often take place in the urban US and deal with issues of race and violence. The film, based on a popular graphic novel by Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell, was shot in Prague over a three-month span. The preparation involved constructing a true-to-life replica of Victorian London's Whitechapel district. Buzz on this one is positive so far, despite the film's killer subject matter.<I>Mullholland Drive
Director David Lynch stunned his fans - a passionate yet obsessive bunch - when, a few years back, he released The Straight Story, a simple G-rated film about an old man who drives his lawnmower across middle America. The man who had established himself as the arbiter of all things freaky, surreal, and twisted, with such gut-wrenching, mind-bending works as Eraserhead, Blue Velvet, and Lost Highway, suddenly made a movie that was so un-Lynch-like we couldn't believe it. With that now out of his system, we can expect his latest fare to give us the usual indigestion, and that is the way his supporters like it. The film, which starts as your typical LA murder mystery, subtly makes it way onto planet Wacko before you can think twice. Good luck sorting this one out.<I>Waking Life
Richard Linklater's Slacker captured the rambling cynicism and pervasive ennui of an entire decade when it came out in 1991. Now it's 2001 and the man has something new to offer. Will it speak to our hearts and souls? Maybe, but one thing is for certain: it will be original. The film is neither fully live-action nor fully animated. How can that be, you ask curiously? The answer: it is both. The film features a set of loosely connected sequences, as the main character played by Wiley Wiggins moves in and out of dreaming. The visual technique utilized involves digitally painting over the footage of live actors. The result might just leave us in a state evoked by Linklater in Dazed and Confused.<I>New York
Martin Scorsese has made his share of crime films that take place in the Big Apple, but this one is the first set in 1860. Though the film might gather most of its attention from star Leonardo Dicaprio, keep your eyes open for real actors like Daniel Day-Lewis, Cameron Diaz, and Liam Neeson.<I>Vanilla Sky
It's pretty simple if you take a step back: Tom and Nicole break-up. Tom meets Penelope at work. Tom realizes he and Penelope have last names that are pronounced the same way. Tom is smitten. Tom and Penelope get together. Of course, director Cameron Crowe would rather we think about the movie and not the rumors that surround its stars Mr. and Miss Cruise/Cruz. This remake of a 1998 Spanish film unfolds as a twisted love story, a mysterious adventure tale, and a sharp-tongued commentary on popular culture.<I>Ali
Will Smith might not be many fans' first choice to play the lead in a powerful biopic about that boxer of boxers who once floated like a butterfly and stung like a bee. But with Director Michael Mann of The Insider fame and costars Jon Voight and Mario Van Peebles, this one might be winner. The film, which boasts a $100 million budget, addresses the man as both athlete and social activist.
