Gates Picks: This week's new releases

My wife said I should retitle this that. Blame her.

 

Hairspray

1. Hairspray (3,121 Theaters): I saw the new TV ad for the movie and when I saw John Travolta doing his little drag song and dance number, I temporarily went blind. Only for a few seconds. Luckily I turned away from the screen before any permanent damage was done.

Let that be a hint as to whether or not I will be going to see this movie.

This is the latest entry in the whole "movie to Broadway musical to movie musical" thing, following in "The Producers" footsteps.

It does have an interesting cast, I'll give it that. It has Christopher Walken in it, and who doesn't like Christopher Walken. And it also has James "Cyclops" Marsden too.

But Travolta in drag is a bit much for me. He has always been hit or miss for me as an actor. And from what I've seen in previews, his perfomance here might fall into the miss category.

 

Inowpronounceyouchuckandlarry

2. I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry (3,495 Theaters): And then there's this one.

Apparently, the movie has been screened by GLAAD and the organization has given it a passing grade. They say the movie uses humor to address and bring attention to some of the problems same sex couples face.

But the review from Time Out New York, written, if the first sentence of the review is to believed, by a gay woman, is a little less kind. Here's a quote: "What’s worse: a film that engages in fag jokes for two hours or one that does it only for the first half, devoting its remaining time to promoting the limpest liberalism?"

So, which is it? Could it be both? Is Sandler hoping to bring in homophobic frat boys with the promise of seeing Jessica Biel in her skivvies, soften them up with gay jokes for an hour, and then hit them with an eye-opening dose of awareness and compassion for those who are different? I don't know.

It might be worthy of a viewing just to see how they explain why a single father couldn't name his kids as the reciepient of his death benfits if he dies. I can wrap my head around why he has to get married at all.

So, what do I think the top 5 will look like?

1. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
2. I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry
3. Transformers
4. Ratatouille
5. Hairspray

I think the Deathly Hallows will cause enough buzz to keep Order on the top spot. I think people will be curious enough to make Chuck and Larry number two. But I think people just aren't up for seeing movie musicals nowadays, making it lucky if Hairspray gets to number five. Of course, this week of all weeks, I could be wrong.