Baghead
Opening August 8, 2008
Mumblecore breaks into the mainstream with a genre film about Murray Langston? Perhaps not. The latest offering from scruffy-kid favourites, writer/director team Jay and Mark Duplass (The Puffy Chair), distorts the typical zeitgeist paradigm by infusing it with an inherently comedic conceit and classic horror/thriller traits. A cabal of young-ish friends heads to the woods, ostensibly to write a film; though, a villain with a bag over his head (not Murray Langston) impedes the creative process by stalking them in typical sylvan killer fashion. Like other Mumblecore films, this one should feature awkward post-graduate existential questioning, self-reflexiveness (i.e. indie film aspirations), and cautious forays into romantic entanglement. Movement grand dame, the beautifully epicene Greta Gerwig (Hannah Takes the Stairs, LOL, and Nights and Weekends), stars alongside a roster of unknowns and her Haydée Politoff-invoking charisma alone is worth the theatre tariff. Incidentally, does anyone else have "The Bagheads" by CB4 stuck in their head? -S.T.



Tropic Thunder
Opening August 15, 2008
The Ben Stiller-directed Tropic Thunder is the most controversial war spoof since Hot Shots: Part Deux (it's not an oft-visited genre). The Hollywood send-up follows a coterie of coddled actors on location shooting an epic war film. When their petulance becomes exigent, the frustrated production team drops them into a dangerous jungle to fend for themselves (think: The Three Amigos goes tropical). The big draw here is the cast. Aside from Stiller, the name-heavy film also stars Robert Downey Jr. (as an African American), Jack Black, Nick Nolte, Jay Baruchel (Million Dollar Baby, Knocked Up), and Steve Coogan. Also, like most Hollywood satires, you can expect a host of cameos (Tom Cruise, Matthew McConaughey, etc.). –S.T.



Vicky Christina Barcelona
Opening August 15, 2008
Cutting your hair into a bob and wandering the desert with a cumbersome cattle gun can lead to a Best Supporting Actor Oscar; it can also lead to a romantic comedy which sees you sharing love scenes with Penelope Cruz, Scarlett Johansson, and Rebecca Hall. The penance seems minimal, doesn't it? Javier Bardem is a lucky man. In Woody Allen's Vicky… he plays a Barcelonan painter/lothario, seducing two American tourists (Johansson and Hall) while contending with the meddling of his ex wife (Cruz). While Allen's late period resume has been lackluster - Scoop and Match Point underperformed and Cassandra's Dream died on impact - this flick has generated the most buzz he's seen in years, largely thanks to a Sapphic kiss between two pretty stars. With his latter day muse (i.e. Johansson) onboard and the typically compelling Bardem and Cruz set against a sunny Spanish backdrop, this could finally lure a larger audience. -S.T.



Fireflies in the Garden
Opening August 16, 2008
The roster of talent behind Fireflies in the Garden renders the Robert Frost reference joyously fitting and playfully ironic (look it up). Julia Roberts heads the cast as the beleaguered Lisa Waechter, the pregnant wife of Willem Defoe’s pedantic cad, Charles. A drama with a semi-sylvan setting, expect droves of familial strife and award-grabbing turns. Ryan Reynolds – in what could be a career changing performance – Carrie-Anne Moss, Ioan Gruffud, and Emily Watson round out the stellar players in this Dennis Lee helmed/scripted picture. –S.T.