As winter settles over the multiplexes, it's time for Christmas comedies, heartwarming dramas and ... Nazis?
First, the fun stuff: In the coming weeks, plenty of movies will battle for the hearts and minds of family filmgoers. On Dec. 19, "Seven Pounds," a Will Smith vehicle about redemption, goes up against "Yes Man," a comedy starring Jim Carrey as a man who decides to agree to everything. But both could be trumped by the animated- rodent fantasy "The Tale of Despereaux," opening the same day.
Meantime, "Nothing Like the Holidays" (Dec. 12), will vie for Latino audiences with stars including John Leguizamo and Freddy Rodriguez, while "Four Christmases" (Nov. 26) features Reese Witherspoon, Vince Vaughn, Mary Steenburgen and country-music star Tim McGraw.
But winter is also the season when Hollywood rolls out its Serious Films in the hope of grabbing some Oscars. This year's heavy theme: Nazis. We've already seen "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas," with Vera Farmiga as the wife of a concentration-camp commandant, but the floodgates open with "The Reader" (Dec. 10), starring Ralph Fiennes as a law student whose former lover is on trial for war crimes. Daniel Craig sheds his James Bond suits to play a rugged resistance fighter in " Defiance" Dec. 31, the same day as "Good," starring Viggo Mortensen as a novelist unwillingly cast as a Nazi propagandist. And don't forget the much-publicized " Valkyrie" (Dec. 26), in which Tom Cruise tries to assassinate Hitler.
Here's a selective list of the must-see movies this holiday season:
AUSTRALIA (Wednesday)
Director: Baz Luhrmann
The story: A large-scale adventure epic, with Nicole Kidman as an English aristocrat and Hugh Jackman as a rugged Aussie.
Another "Titanic"? Trailers and stills point to an old-fashioned, high-gloss Hollywood romance, with lots of sunsets and storm-drenched kisses.
FOUR CHRISTMASES (Wednesday)
Director: Seth Gordon
The story: Reese Witherspoon and Vince Vaughn undertake a holiday marathon to visit all four of their divorced parents. Also with Robert Duvall, Mary Steenburgen, Dwight Yoakam, Tim McGraw and Sissy Spacek.
Seth Who? The director made a splash last year with his documentary about video-game fanatics, "The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters."
MILK (Wednesday)
Director: Gus Van Sant
The story: In 1977, San Francisco supervisor Harvey Milk (who grew up in Woodmere) became the first openly gay man to hold a major public office. With Sean Penn as Milk, James Franco as his lover and Josh Brolin as his killer.
The more things change: In California, Milk helped defeat Proposition 6, an anti-gay ballot with striking similarities to Proposition 8, which just passed.
TRANSPORTER 3 (Wednesday)
Director: Olivier Megaton
The story: Jason Statham returns to his successful B-movie franchise about a driver for hire who drives really, really well.
