Fall movie preview.

September

The American - George Clooney is an assassin on one last job. Maybe, it's less generic than I'm making it out to be.

Going the Distance - Apparently, this was pushed back a week. Seriously, have there been any good R-rated romantic comedies in the last 15 years? (And a kidney punch to anyone even thinking of saying There's Something About Mary.)

Machete - Could the movie really be as good as the trailer? Who knows? I must say, though, that I'm glad that they kept the 'I'll see what I can do' bit from the original trailer.

Resident Evil: Afterlife - Paul W.S. Anderson directs a series entry for the first time since the original. Really, does anyone care?

Easy A - Emma Stone is the school slut. Well, not really. A modern update of "The Scarlet Letter" from the director of the surprisingly funny Fired Up.

The Town - Another tale of nogoodniks in Boston, from the director/co-writer of Gone Baby Gone and 'the studio that brought you The Departed'. I'm sure that Boston is a nice place, just the same.

Devil - As one of the few people who didn't hate The Last Airbender, I'm somewhat intrigued by this M. Night Shyamalan-produced thriller about a group of strangers stuck on an elevator, one of whom might be...well, you know.

Alpha and Omega - I'll see just about any animated film that comes out, but this one...there's way too much cheese in the trailer that paints it as a parody of CG animated films instead of the real McCoy.

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps - Gordon Gekko is back and now, he's the mentor to the kid from Disturbia. Never saw the original, but the trailer has me interested.

You Again - Veronica Mars is in a snit because the girl who made her life in high school a nightmare - the chick from The Unborn - is due to become her sister-in-law. Looks cheesy as all hell...and yet, I'm kind of looking forward to it. Also, the poster may be one of my favorites of the year.

Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole - 'From the studio that brought you Happy Feet'. Man, Warner Bros. sure loves that slogan, don't they? Much like last year's 9 (not Nine), this animated feature - about owls and some kind of mythology - doesn't look that appealing to me. From the director of Watchmen. No, really.

Buried - Ryan Reynolds gets buried underground. I think this review pretty much tells you all you need to know.

October

The Social Network - Hopefully, the uproarious trailer parodies that have popped up (I highly recommend the Twitter one) won't diminish the impact of the story about the creation of Facebook. And, no, I don't have a page, thanks for asking.

Case 39 - This long-delayed thriller about a social worker (Renee Zellweger) getting in way over her head in her latest case is finally getting a release. From what I've read, the horror elements in this one are slightly less retarded than the ones in Orphan.

Let Me In - Remake of the acclaimed Swedish thriller Let the Right One In with Hit Girl as the young vampiress and a creepy-looking Richard Jenkins.

Life as We Know It - Katherine Heigl and Josh Duhamel don't care for each other very much, but end up as godparents to a baby girl. Despite an unfortunate bit of toilet humor in the trailer, this looks like an inoffensive, forgettable little movie.

Secretariat - Let me get this straight: this is a true story where a plucky blonde housewife (played by a fairly attractive brunette) throws her lot in with a stranger who is shown to possess great athletic ability and, in the process, it changes her life. Looks like Disney wants a piece of that sweet Blind Side money. Hey, if it works, it works.

It's Kind of a Funny Story - A teenager commits himself to a psychiatric ward. The trailer was amusing, especially the moments with Zach Galifianakis. (BTW, this looks far more promising than that other movie he's starring in this season.)

Jackass 3-D - Just what the world needed: disgusting, boneheaded stunts comin' at ya! You Hollywood yutzes sick of 3-D yet?!

Nowhere Boy - He was Kick-Ass. He was Charlie Chaplin (in Shanghai Knights). Now, Aaron Johnson takes on John Lennon. Interesting trailer. Could be worth a look.

Conviction - Hilary Swank puts herself through law school to get her brother, Sam Rockwell, cleared of murder charges. Could be fairly interesting.

Red - John McClane, Det. Somerset, Queen Elizabeth and that guy from Being John Malkovich are assassins trying to avoid termination. If there's a cooler-looking movie being released this season, I don't want to know about it. From the director of Flightplan, who seems to have a better script this time around.

Saw VII - Pretty much what I said about that Jackass movie.

Paranormal Activity 2 - Didn't see the original and I'm not that interested in this one. (Fun fact: the guy who directed last year's Saw movie was up for this film until Lionsgate - in a ridiculous bit of cockblockery - forced him to do the above film.)

Hereafter - Clint Eastwood's latest is a movie about coming to terms with death. Seriously, if that's not a bad omen, I don't know what is.

My Soul to Take - Another long-delayed thriller sees Wes Craven returning to the territory of A Nightmare on Elm Street, Scream and even Shocker! Could do without the 3D, methinks. (Yeah, I'm a broken record, but I'm not the only one.)

November

Megamind - Dreamworks' latest animated feature tells of a supervillain who finds himself having to save the day from an up-and-coming villain. Hey, it might be as good as Despicable Me.

Due Date - The promise of a reunion between Kiss Kiss Bang Bang stars Robert Downey Jr. and Michelle Monaghan (as a married couple; Harry and Harmony got hitched!) is nowhere near enough to redeem what looks to be an obnoxious rip-off of Planes, Trains and Automobiles.

127 Hours - Danny Boyle directs James Franco in this story of a mountain climber who ends up stuck for... yeah. Based on a true story.

Fair Game - Yet another true story. This one's about how CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity was revealed, endangering her. (Dick move!) Not my thing, but the trailer looked okay.

For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf - Tyler Perry's first film not based on one of his own plays. Whether that's a positive or a negative, I don't know, but how about that cast: Thandie Newton, Whoopi Goldberg, Anika Noni Rose, Kerry Washington, Loretta Devine, Phylicia Rashad, Janet Jackson and Kimberly Elise.

Unstoppable - Here's hoping that Tony Scott's visual style doesn't completely overwhelm this interesting thriller about Malcolm X and Captain Kirk trying to stop a train carrying nuclear waste.

Morning Glory - Rachel McAdams (in a role that cries out for Katherine Heigl...or maybe, it's just been too long since McAdams has done a light comedy) lures grizzled Harrison Ford out of retirement to co-host a morning chat show with Diane Keaton. Looks amusing...and (unbelievably) it was co-produced by J.J. Abrams!

Skyline - From the brothers who brought you Alien vs. Predator: Requiem! For those still reading, I'm not quite sold on this alien invasion story, even though Donald Faison (Turk!) is one of the heroes.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I - The first half of the last of the Potter films. The trailer is so dark, one could scarcely recognize it as a Harry Potter film. It got my attention.

The Next Three Days - Russell Crowe is determined to get his wife Elizabeth Banks out of jail...any way he can. Not-bad looking thriller from Crash director Paul Haggis.

Tangled - For some reason, Disney seems to be underselling this version of "Rapunzel", but I'll see it, regardless.

Burlesque - A young woman goes to the big city to make it in Los Angeles. Sounds ordinary, right? Did I mention the young woman is Christina Aguilera? Didn't see that coming, did you?

Faster - The Rock...er, Dwayne Johnson is out for revenge and getting trailed by Billy Bob Thornton. From the director of Soul Food and Men of Honor, who, apparently, refuses to be pigeonholed.

December

Black Swan - This looks to be a peculiar cross between Suspiria and Swan Lake. Might appeal to me if it hits me in the right mindset.

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader - New studio, new director, new composer, but same kids. Still, I'm sure the target audience won't mind.

The Fighter - The story of an aspiring boxer. David O. "You are an adult!" Russell directs Christian "You are trashing my scene!" Bale and Mark "Say hi to your mother for me." Wahlberg (okay, he didn't really say that).

TRON: Legacy - Though thirty years late, a follow-up to Disney's cult classic, with Jeff Bridges reprising his original role.

I Love You, Phillip Morris - One more long-delayed movie sees the light of day. Jim Carrey chucks married life for a relationship with cellmate Ewan McGregor. I like the stars and the writer/directors, whose credits range from Bad Santa to "The Angry Beavers". Honestly.

Yogi Bear - Yeah. I think it looks okay. Want to make something of it?

Little Fockers - This, on the other hand... wow. Yet another Ben Stiller comedy of embarassment. Jesus, I thought we were rid of these! Oh, and they stooped to using a Gigli reference in the trailer. Still feel like making this film a box-office hit, America?!

Everything You Got - Reese Witherspoon must choose between Paul Rudd and Owen Wilson. Again, I'm making this sound generic, but it comes from James L. Brooks, so it could be something special.

True Grit - The Coen brothers take on a John Wayne classic. If nothing else, Carter Burwell's score should be fantastic.

Gulliver's Travels - Jack Black is Gulliver in what looks to be the loosest adaptation of the classic story yet.