Patrick Stoner welcomes your questions about movies and the people who make them. Send your questions to pstoner@whyy.org. Here's the current question and answer:
Q: What does the summer of '98 look like? A: Busy and lucractive. Not only are there lots of films scheduled to open between Memorial Day and Labor Day, but there are also some very high profile movies with equally high expectations.
I won't attempt to list them all. You can find that elsewhere. Let me just draw your attention to a good sampler:
- GODZILLA -- despite my resentment of its slogan ("Size does matter"), this looks like it might be an INDEPENDENCE DAY (with the same creators) with a sense of humor.
- MULAN -- Disney's annual animated film, but with a buzz that says the quality may rise from HERCULES back to THE LION KING level.
- FEAR AND LOATHING IN LAS VEGAS -- Hunter Thompson's drugged-out book is brought to controversial (not to mention disgusting) life by Terry Gilliam -- not a must-see for me, but the taste envelope is definitely pushed.
- THE TRUMAN SHOW -- Jim Carrey gets a chance to show he can act in a fascinating concept: a man's life is secretly shown on national TV until he discovers that his world is completely artificial.
- OUT OF SIGHT -- Elmore Leonard and George Clooney, how boring can that combination be?
- HOPE FLOATS -- the princess of light, Sandra Bullock, stretches her image with a darker romance.
- DOCTOR DOOLITTLE -- Eddie Murphy and animals created by the folks who brought you BABE chat. OK.
- GONE WITH THE WIND -- heard of it? They found the original negative and came up with a new Technicolor print. Let's hope a new generation discovers it.
- THE X-FILES -- that new generation has heard of this and will pack in to see it. I'll discover it.
- 54 -- the story of disco's dark star, Studio 54, with Mike Myers as the late Steve Rubell. It certainly has the potential for controversy.
- SIX DAYS, SEVEN NIGHTS -- Harrison Ford's summer film (Hollywood's most consistent product) with the added attraction of seeing if there IS anything between him and Anne Heche.
- ARMAGEDDON -- like DEEP IMPACT (which got a jump on summer by a week), this summer's disaster to avoid is big stuff from outer space. This will have the highest profile of any movie after GODZILLA.
- SMALL SOLDIERS -- imagine TOY STORY combined with GREMLINS. This will scare the kids, at least.
- A PERFECT MURDER -- Michael Douglas doesn't sit still for wife Gwyneth Paltrow's cheating. The director of THE FUGITIVE should keep it interesting.
- COUSIN BETTE -- Jessica Lange and Balzac. Hardly big box office, but certainly a nice alternative to the summer mega-hits.
- SAVING PRIVATE RYAN -- Spielberg's World War II drama with box office guarantees in Tom Hanks and Matt Damon.
- LETHAL WEAPON 4 -- Mel and Danny are back, with Richard Donner back in the saddle. This is one of the few series that continues to work.
- THE MASK OF ZORRO -- If Antonio Banderas can show more charisma than usual, he has Anthony Hopkins to help him bring the hero to life -- again.
- THE PARENT TRAP -- while we're recycling, why not try out the old Disney comedy, even with Dennis Quaid and Natasha Richardson as the unlikely divorced parents.
- THE AVENGERS -- my hope for the coolest film of the summer. I loved the original British TV series, and this one has Ralph Fiennes, Uma Thurman and Sean Connery, so it's the one with the greatest risk of disappointment.
- JANE AUSTEN'S MAFIA! -- every summer needs a spoof and this is Lloyd Bridge's penultimate film. I think I'll be ready to laugh.
Past questions and answers.
