2016 Film Preview: January

January is traditionally a dumping ground for films that the studios don't feel good about. Occasionally you get a home run like Taken in 2009 ($24 million opening weekend, total gross of $145 million against a $25 million budget and not an awful film) but for the most part the cupboard is pretty bare.

So I can across an article about January 2016 films to see and I had to put my two cents in. So I'll list the films that may not be bad and titles that should be ignored. This is only 2016 releases, a film like The Revanant are getting wider releases in this weekend after a limited release on Christmas Day. Here we go...

January 15th

• Ride Along 2: Most of the cast from the original returns as Ben is now a full fledged police officer and goes to Miami with Ice Cube to bust a drug ring. I never saw the firs installment but I guess that there's more of the same shenanigans here. Kevin Hart is very talented but he's pretty much typecasted playing the same person in every film. Wait until this one comes out in another form (streaming or DVD) and check it out then. It looks stupid which is a shame because both Hart and Ice Cube can do better.

• 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi: The latest feature from Michael Bay deals with the CIA security contractors who defended the American diplomatic compound during the 2012 Benghazi attack. The trailer seems to deal with the men who fought off the attacks but who know if it gets politicized.It appears to follow in the footsteps of Lone Survivor (another January release), small group of highly trained ex-soldiers facing overwhelming odds. Might be worth a look but it's Michael Bay so buyer beware.

• The Benefactor: Written and directed by Andrew Renzi, the film is about a wealthy guy who inserts himself into the life of a young couple because due to the guilt over the death of his ow family. Things get a little weird. I'm neither hot or cold on this one. If the buzz becomes to great to ignore then I may check this out but I can see waiting until it hits Netflix. I'll probably forget about it though.

• 400 Days: A science fiction thriller about four prospective astronauts who go into a simulation to test the stress of being isolated in space (my guess is around 400 days). Something happens and things start to breakdown. Problem #1 with the film...Dane Cook in a sci-fi film. No thanks.

• A Perfect Day: The English speaking film debut of writer/director Fernando León de Aranoa features a solid cast as aid workers in 1995 Serbia. They're trying to fill a well but run into a dead body. Suffice to say that those in charge would prefer to just leave the body in the well and forget about the whole thing. Looks interesting.

• Intruders: Rednecks break into the home of a woman who's father just died and left her a satchel full of cash. However the thieves get more than they bargained for...

January 22nd

• The Fifth Wave: Earth has been invaded by aliens and they can appear human. It's a cross between ID4 and Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Next!

• The Boy: A nubile twenty something female gets a nanny job in a creepy house with creepy parents and a creepy "kid." Scary things  happen. Ugh! No thanks!

                                     

Mojave: This rime thriller debut at the Tribeca Film Festival in April 2015. It was released on DirecTV Cinema in December and is now getting it's theatrical release. Probably due to the fact that Oscar Isaac a hot commodity. Isaac plays a drifter that runs into a guy out in the desert and the meeting doesn't go well. Isaac proceeds to stalk the guy and things don't go well. Not too original. 

• Dirty Grandpa: Robert DeNiro teams with Zac Efron and hijinx ensue. Based on the title, who's the antagonist? Does DeNiro not have enough money? Did he feel the need to work with Efron because he dressed up like Travis Bickle in a another film? Run away!

• Synchronicity: Sci-fi thriller about a guy who invents time travel and things go awry. To be honest, this looks kind of cool.

• Ip Man 3: The 3rd film about Bruce Lee's master. There's some cool martial arts stunts and the trailer looked really cool. Until there's a fight with Mike Tyson. Not sure how I feel about that.

• Prescription Thugs: Documentary about America's prescription drug consumption and the power and influence that Big Pharma has. Remember the plot of  The Fugitive? Their power and profits have grown exponentially since then. This looks very interesting and I will see this picture in some form or another.

January 29th

• Kung Fu Panda 3: The latest installment of the franchise returns with your favorite voice actors. More Pandas equals more fat jokes. Has this franchise got anything left in the tank? Apparently not, so there's still money to be wrung out of it.

• The Finest Hours: Based on a true story, though it looks a lot like The Perfect Storm. Which is a different true story. Judge for yourself. I will take a pass on this.

• Jane Got a Gun: Natalie Portman's husband has some not so friendly gents coming for him and he's unable to defend himself. Portman enlists the help of a reformed gunman who happens to be very studly. Apparently this film has been plagued by production issues and multiple release dates. That's never a good thing. Check out the trailer but I'd avoid this film at the theater. 

• Fifty Shades of Black: Remember when Marlon Wayans did some real edgy stuff? I sure do. He's back doing spoofs. Work is work and I hope he's doing well. Sometimes I think he's wasting his talent but the mortgage doesn't pay itself. This time Fifty Shades of Grey gets the treatment. There's some jokes in there that would make some people (Caucasians) wonder if it's racist to laugh at them. Since I never cared enough about the source of this parody I'll probably pass on this. Here's a trailer link.