Hello folks…sorry that this weeks Looking Ahead is several days late. Had a long weekend that included Long Beach Comic Con, fighting exhaustion from the weekend (which included celebrating my birthday) and today I started to even loose my voice due to a cold, so I had to take care of that.

But, I didn’t want to leave you guys hanging. See, every time I think no one reads this column, I discover that a friend tells me that they read it every week and actually use this column, which of course fuels me to try to get it out there.

This week, I’m just gonna blast through this but do know that I think you guys lucked out and that there is actually a pretty decent week of movies to choose from this week. So lets start with…

What’s it about? A climbing expedition on Mt. Everest is devastated by a severe snow storm.

My thoughts? That’s a pretty damn impressive cast in a movie that seems like it’s quietly coming out. That might not be a good sign of it’s quality, but if you want to just want the survival thrills, it at looks like it will deliver on that alone. The action scenes look solid and while the characters seem a bit trope (Keira Knightly is stuck being worried wife in this movie) at least the cast will do a solid job. Again, that is one impressive cast, and it’s not the only movie coming out this week that will have Josh Brolin in it….

What’s it about? An idealistic FBI agent is enlisted by an elected government task force to aid in the escalating war against drugs at the border area between the U.S. and Mexico.

My thoughts? Looking like a huge step up in the budget compared to director Denis Villeneuve previous films, Sicario looks to be a solid political action film. I truly love that the films lead is a woman, and Emily Blunt looks to be keeping some of her skills that she got in Edge of Tomorrow for this role. It’s a great use of her.

What’s it about? American chess champion Bobby Fischer prepares for a legendary match-up against Russian Boris Spassky.

My thoughts? One of my favorite movies of all time is Searching for Bobby Fischer. A great film that found a way to capture my imagination and gave me a peek at the intricacies of the game of Chess. As you could imagine, it’s also the film where I learned of who Bobby Fischer was. Doing a film based on this part of his life makes sense, even thought it’s a story we’ve seen a bunch of times already. I know it’s easy to crap on Tobey Maguire, but in the right role he brings a very interesting approach to a performance . I will say, as a fan of the movie GOON, it’s a bit distracting to see Liev Schreiber in a role that is pretty much the same kind of character he played in the GOON. Director Edward Zwick does solid enough work, and while I’m not a fan of EVERY movie he’s made, he has the potential to make this film work.

What’s it about? The true story of Whitey Bulger, the brother of a state senator and the most infamous violent criminal in the history of South Boston, who became an FBI informant to take down a Mafia family invading his turf.

My thoughts? Is this film gonna rely on Johnny Depp having the make up do all the character work, or is Depp gonna deliver with a performances that matches the huge physical transformation. Perhaps, as I do see some really intense moments in the film. I’ve still haven’t seen a film directed by Scott Cooper, but I keep hearing great things about his previous films. The film looks to be really well made, and Whitey Bulger is certainly a great source for stories so I look forward to seeing how this all comes together.

 

And finally…“THE ONE I’LL DEFINITELY WILL SEE BECAUSE I LIKED THE FIRST MOVIE.”

My thoughts? After having escaped the Maze, the Gladers now face a new set of challenges on the open roads of a desolate landscape filled with unimaginable obstacles.

My thoughts? The first film really surprised me on how much I liked it. The characters were good, the directing was great, the sci-fi concepts were good…it was an overall really solid movie. When I found out about the second on being made, I instantly knew I was gonna be down to see the new one. After checking out the panel at Comic Con, I got the chance to see the element that was mostly missing in the trailers…the crank. (click here to read my write up on the panel during SDCC 2015). So yeah, pretty simple…I am down to face the Scorch Trail.