CinemaNerdz

The Preview Reel: Hanks and Eastwood to Triumph

Scott Davis
The Preview Reel

Welcome to another “Preview Reel” column, where we look at the week’s upcoming wide-release movies. The summer movie season is officially behind us, and even though there seemed to be more disappointments than pleasant surprises, we have a lot to look forward to this fall. This weekend features a potential early award contender in Sully, a romantic thriller in When the Bough Breaks, and another haunted house horror flick in The Disappointments Room. We know there’s plenty of football to watch, but let’s see if any of these movies are worth leaving the couch for.

 

Sully

What we are excited about:
Tom Hanks and Clint Eastwood are two of the biggest Hollywood icons ever, so when it was announced that they would be tackling the true story of the Miracle on the Hudson, that immediately got us excited. Tom Hanks has one of the richest filmographies and has been on a hot streak lately. He has starred in two Best Picture nominees in the last two years, Captain Phillips and Bridge of Spies, and turned in two very solid performances. Clint Eastwood has also had a bit of a hot streak himself as he directed the Best Picture nominee and box office smash, American Sniper. The two should make for the perfect pair and if done right, it could lead to some awards talk later this year.

What we are worried about:
The trailers have been mostly good but also somewhat underwhelming. It’s not that there is anything glaringly wrong with them, there is just nothing truly remarkable about them either. Hanks seems like the perfect fit for Sullenberger, but everything else seems somewhat mundane. Don’t get us wrong, the story itself is remarkable and we have confidence in Eastwood and company to respect the true story, but the trailers make it seem mostly by the numbers. Hopefully the movie itself will be more ambitious and be more memorable than the trailers.

The Buzz:
The buzz was pretty strong when this was announced, and if you have been to the movies at all in the last few months, chances are you have seen the trailer for this movie. The film’s buzz is still strong, but it has been somewhat muted by the good, but not great reviews. Most critics are saying it is a safe drama that is a fitting tribute to the everyday hero, but very few are going crazy over it. Look for it to gross around $22 million in its opening weekend, enough for first place.

Final Thoughts:
Sully looks like it will continue the winning ways of Hanks and Eastwood, whether it will be one of the best movies of the year remains to be seen, but it definitely looks to be worth a trip to the cinema.

 

When the Bough Breaks

What we are excited about:
The cast, which includes Morris Chestnut and Regina Hall, seems impressive. While the story seems a little troublesome, maybe the actors can elevate the material and make it at least somewhat watchable.

What we are worried about:
The premise kind of sounds like a cable movie or something you would see on a daytime soap opera. It seems ludicrous and way too melodramatic for our taste, but we know there is an audience for it. If this is your cup of tea, then enjoy, but it’s not ours.

The Buzz:
Much like Sully, the trailers for When the Bough Breaks seems to be played before every movie at the theatre. The buzz has been slowly building for this movie over the last couple of weeks, and even though it does not have any reviews yet, look for it to finish around $18 million on the weekend.

Final thoughts:
This looks like it could be an interesting date night choice, but we think this might make for a better rental option in a couple of months.

 

The Disappointments Room

What we are excited about:
This movie was co-written by Wentworth Miller, the lead actor from Prison Break and part of DC’s Legends of Tomorrow. We might be the only ones to think that is cool, but it’s also directed by DJ Caruso, who also directed Disturbia and Eagle Eye. He’s a solid director so maybe he can turn in another decent psychological thriller.

What we are worried about:
The trailer does nothing to sell us on this movie. It looks like every other haunted house horror flick we have been watching for decades. Oh, it’s “based on true events,” did not see that one coming.

The Buzz:
The buzz is very poor on this movie. In fact, it is tracking for one of the worst wide openings of all-time. With no reviews and a very mediocre trailer, look for this to bomb with around a $3 million opening.

Final thoughts:
Depending on what critics ultimately say on this, maybe we will think about renting it a couple months from now. Maybe, but probably not, especially since The Shining is still amazing on its umpteenth viewing.

Scott Davis

Scott Davis is a recent graduate of Oakland University where he earned a degree in journalism. He worked for the student newspaper on campus, The Oakland Post, where he became the paper's managing editor. He also earned a minor in Cinema Studies at OU. Scott enjoys all things film and TV related, especially the blockbuster kind. He might be the biggest Christopher Nolan fan you know.
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