Friday nights on Studio Universal are dedicated to comedy,
presenting the most side-splitting silliness and slapstick Hollywood has to
offer. This month’s movies check in on famous faces before they made their
names.
Adventureland on
January 2 features Kristen Stewart and Jesse Eisenberg. Set in 1987, Eisenberg
plays James Brennan, who was planning a summer trip to Europe until a collapse in
the parental finances nixed it. Instead obliged to get a job at the local theme
park, he comes to realise it’s a very different education but a thoroughly
rewarding one.
The Battle of Shaker
Heights on January 9: Stars Shia LaBeouf as Kelly, a young war re-enactment
enthusiast who has shown that he can apply his military knowhow to dealing with
the trials of high school. But just as many great conquerors were ultimately
undone by hubris, so Kelly risks alienating his friend and mentor with an advance
too far.
Gettin’ Square on
January 16: Sam Worthington takes one of his first starring roles in. He plays
a freshly-released prisoner determined to stay clean but beset by pressures and
temptations to go back to a life of crime. Timothy Spall and Lord of the Rings star David Wenham also
feature.
Don’t Be a Menace to
South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood on January 23: This may seem an oddly familiar title – that’s
because this early effort from the Wayans brothers gleefully mocks every familiar
trope from films showing the mean underside of America’s inner cities. How will
young Ashtray cope when he finds himself in a ludicrously tough new
neighbourhood?
Teaching Mrs Tingle
on January 30 qualifies. While Helen Mirren was already a star when she played
the eponymous steely teacher, Katie Holmes was a new arrival. She co-stars as
the driven student determined that Tingle’s grudge won’t stand in the way of
her being valedictorian at the class graduation ceremony.
Posts
