‘Tis the movie season

Published 8:02 am Friday, February 29, 2008

The holiday movie season is upon us, but you’d hardly know it. It’s a fairly quiet one this year — there’s no “Lord of the Rings” or “Harry Potter” sequels that would otherwise guarantee bountiful box office returns. In fact, there are only a handful of sequels making their way in the cineplex this winter.

The “big” movies of the season are just not your typical blockbusters. Of note are the biographical films that make an appearance, from the acclaimed tribute to the late, great music pioneer “Ray,” already in theaters, to Oliver Stone’s highly anticipated ancient history epic “Alexander,” Martin Scorcese’s Howard Hughes biopic, “The Aviator,” and crooner Bobby Darin’s story in “Beyond the Sea,” starring and directed by Kevin Spacey. Get your fantasy Oscar ballots out early.

Opening this week

The Polar Express (G) — Chris Van Allsburg’s beautiful children’s book is brought to life using a new live-action motion-capture computer animation technology. Tom Hanks plays five different characters in this story about true Christmas spirit.

After the Sunset (PG-13) — A jewel thief (Pierce Brosnan) retires to a tropical island with his girlfriend (Salma Hayek), but is coaxed into one last score, all under the watchful eye of an FBI agent (Woody Harrelson)sent to make sure he sticks to his word.

Seed of Chucky (R) — Killer doll Chucky returns with his bride Tiffany as they try raising a child, while also wreaking havoc on the set of a movie being made about them, which happens to star Jennifer Tilly.

Nov. 19

Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (R) — Renee Zellweger returns as the still lovably neurotic Bridget, who despite a solid relationship with the handsome Mark (Colin Firth), just can’t seem to get over her insecurities. Hugh Grant returns as Daniel.

National Treasure (PG) — Nicolas Cage is a “treasure protector” who must unravel the clues America’s founding fathers left behind to protect a vast fortune, before it falls into the wrong hands.

The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie (PG) — The trouser wearing spongia officinalis takes his show on the road when King Neptune’s crown is stolen and Mr. Krabs is wrongfully accused.

Nov. 24

Alexander (R) — Oliver Stone returns after a long hiatus to direct Colin Farrell as the Macedonian conqueror Alexander the Great, whose ancient empire grew to the largest the world has ever seen.

Christmas with the Kranks (PG) — Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis decide to ditch Christmas this year for a tropical vacation, but instead find themselves scrambling to put together a traditional Christmas at the very last minute.

Dec. 3

Closer (R) — Mike Nichols directs this frank adult story involving a love rectangle that includes Jude Law, Julia Roberts, Clive Owen and Natalie Portman.

House of Flying Daggers (not rated) — Ziyi Zhang and “Hero” director Zhang Yimou collaborate again for a martial arts tale of revolutionaries at the end of the Tang Dynasty.

Dec. 8

Blade: Trinity — Blade (Wesley Snipes) returns as the vampire Blade, who must confront the greatest vampire of them all — Dracula.

Dec. 10

The Life Aquatic (R) — Writer/director Wes Anderson (“Rushmore,” “The Royal Tenenbaums”) returns with a new set of eccentric characters, centering this time on a famous oceanographer’s (Bill Murray) quest to hunt down the mythical shark that killed his partner during the filming of their latest documentary.

Ocean’s Twelve (PG-13) — Danny Ocean (George Clooney) and and his crew team up for an even bigger heist than before, in three different locations – Rome, Paris and Amsterdam.

Dec. 17

The Aviator (PG-13) — Martin Scorsese directs this story of aviation pioneer Howard Hughes (Leonardo DiCaprio) as a young man directing and producing Hollywood movies and test flying his aircraft inventions.

Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events (PG) — The film adaptation of the delightfully gothic children’s literary series starts where the three young orphaned Baudelaires are shuttled between a series of eccentric relatives and guardians, beginning with the sinister Count Olaf (Jim Carrey).

Spanglish — James L. Brooks wrote and directed this social satire about a upper middle class Los Angeles family (Adam Sandler, Téa Leoni and Cloris Leachman) who take in a young Mexican woman (Paz Vega) and her daughter.

Dec. 22

Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera (PG-13) — Joel Schumacher directs the film version of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s dark musical of 19th century Paris and the masked figure who lives in the subterranean world beneath an opera house.

Flight of the Phoenix — This remake revisits the plight of survivors of a plane crash in Mongolia’s Gobi Desert and their desperate attempt to build a new plane from parts salvaged from the wreckage. Stars Dennis Quaid, Giovanni Ribisi.

Meet the Fockers (PG-13) — Greg Focker (Ben Stiller) and Pamela Byrnes (Teri Polo) are finally engaged, so Jack Byrnes (Robert De Niro) and his wife (Blythe Danner) travel to Detroit to meet Greg’s parents, who happen to be Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand.

Dec. 25

The Darkness (R) — When a teenage girl (Anna Paquin) and her family move into a remote house in the country, their new home soon reveals some terrifying secrets.

Fat Albert — The 1970’s Saturday morning cartoon series based on Bill Cosby’s Philadelphia neighborhood teens get a 21st century live action update directed by Joel Zwick. Stars Kenan Thompson (Saturday Night Live).

Dec. 29

In Good Company (PG-13) — Dan (Dennis Quaid) discovers his new boss Carter (Topher Grace), is half his age, and their relationship is tested when Carter starts dating Dan’s daughter Alex (Scarlett Johansson).

A Love Song for Bobby Long (R) — A teenager returns home after the death of her estranged mother, only to find the house is occupied by two of her mother’s friends: Bobby (John Travolta) and Lawson (Gabriel Macht). The three enter into an unconventional living arrangement, soon to discover each has painful secrets.

The Merchant of Venice (R) — Shakespeare’s most controversial play is adapted for the big screen and stars Al Pacino and Joseph Fiennes.

Beyond the Sea (PG-13) — Kevin Spacey directs and stars as singer Bobby Darin, who began as a pop singer and moved onto performing jazz standards before his tragic death. Kate Bosworth also stars as Darin’s wife, movie star Sandra Dee.