fall movie preview: september (part one)

I had so much fun doing a literary take on Entertainment Weekly's summer movie preview, I'm tackling the task again for the fall movie preview. I only saw one movie in the theater this summer, Julie & Julia, and the impetus was more about spending a hot afternoon in air conditioning than my own urgency to see it. I love movies, but at almost $10 each, I usually wait for dvd. Because I rarely make it to the theater, I love to stay current by at least reading the books being made into movies before the movies come out. If you're like me, read on, and you too will be able to answer "not yet, but I read the book" when the inevitable question arises, "have you seen [this movie] yet"?

Sidenote: I'm sure someone is keeping track of the number of covers devoted to Twilight, both books and movies, but it seems to be passing excessive and reaching ridiculous.



September:

• Jennifer's Body - the new film written by Diablo Cody. It's not based on a book, but it's one I may take the time to support in the theater, as I adore Diablo Cody and Amanda Seyfried entranced me in the endlessly rewatchable Mamma Mia.
• All About Steve - I'm already tired of the ads for this movie, but it's not based on a book.
• Love Happens - not based on a book
• Tyler Perry's I Can Do Bad All by Myself - I still have not ventured into the Tyler Perry empire, but as always, he wrote and directed this film, as his name above the title always reminds you.
• Extract - the new comedy written and directed by Mike Judge of Office Space and Beavis and Butthead fame.
• Capitalism: A Love Story - Michael Moore is back with his latest, sure to be talked about, documentary.
• Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs - An animated film based on Judi and Ron Barrett's picture book of the same name.
• The Boys Are Back - based on Simon Carr's memoir of the almost same name, The Boys Are Back in Town: a Father and Two Sons, Home Alone.
• Surrogates - based on the graphic novels of the same name by Robert Venditti and Brett Weldele
• Brief Interviews with Hideous Men - Jon Krasinski bought the rights to this collection of short stories by David Foster Wallace with his first paycheck from The Office; I'm excited to see him turn it into a cohesive film, and I definitely need to read this book soon. Thankfully, it's my book club's selection this month.
• The Informant - based on the nonfiction book of the same name by Kurt Eichenwald
• Fame - it's back! I grew up on the tv show, which was based on the 1980 movie, and I'm thrilled for this remake, featuring Kherington from So You Think You Can Dance.
• 9- based on the Oscar-winning short film of the same name.
• The Other Man - adapted form a short story by Bernhard Schlink.
• The Invention of Lying - The latest film from Ricky Gervais, who both stars, and co-wrote and co-directed the film. The premise is delightful: Gervais is the only person capable of telling a lie.
  
• Bright Star - Jane Campion wrote and directed this tale of John Keats and Fanny Brawne's love.
• Amreeka - the first full-length film from writer and director Cherien Dabis.
• Carriers - not based on a book
• Gamer - not based on a book
• No Impact Man - documentary not based on a book, but the subject of the documentary is a nonfiction writer.
• Unmade Beds - not based on a book
• Beyond a Reasonable Doubt - based on the 1956 film of the same name
  
• Whiteout - based on the 1998 comic book of the same name.
• 35 Shots of Rum - not based on a book
• The Burning Plain- not based on a book
• Disgrace - based on the J.M. Coetzee book of the same name; I need to read this book before the film comes out Sept. 18.
• Pandorum - not based on a book
• Paris - not based on a book.
• The Age of Stupid - an interesting drama-documentary-animation hybrid not based on a book.
• Blind Date - remake of the 1996 Dutch film.
• The Blue Tooth Virgin - not based on a book.
• Coco Before Chanel - based on the biography of Coco, Chanel and Her World byEdmonde Charles-Roux
• The Damned United - based on David Peace's novel, which is said to be based on his interpretation of Brian Clough's time managing Leeds. I love sports movies, so I'm eager to read the book and see the film.
• I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell - based on a short story ("The Austin Road Trip Story") from the book of the same name by Tucker Max.
• Pretty Ugly People - not based on a book
• The Horse Boy - documentary not based on a book.
  

My must reads for September movies: Brief Interviews with Hideous Men by David Foster Wallace and Disgrace by J.M. Coetzee. Both have been on my to read list for years.

September alone is a busy month. Check back tomorrow for October.