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NOVEMBER 9
THE HEIST
Plot: A professional thief (Gene Hackman) must contend with a duplicitous partner (Danny DeVito) and an unfaithful wife (Rebecca Pidgeon).
The Good: Writer-director David Mamet appears to be in his element, and he's aided by a top-flight cast.
The Bad: After the disappointment of The Score, a movie about double-crossing career criminals doesn't sound so exciting anymore.
The Outlook: Unless he's working on a grand scale (say, penning The Untouchables), Mamet has always been an acquired taste; it's doubtful this will lead to his acceptance by the masses.
THE MAN WHO WASN'T THERE
Plot: After learning that his wife (Frances McDormand) has been unfaithful, a small-town barber (Billy Bob Thornton) concocts a blackmail scheme that instead leads to murder.
The Good: This is the latest feature from the Coen Brothers, whose winning percentage remains higher than that of just about any other current filmmaker. For this movie, Joel Coen earned the Best Director award at the recent Cannes Film Festival (shared with David Lynch for Mulholland Drive).
The Bad: Neo-film noir may be on its way to becoming a burnt-out genre.
The Outlook: This won't match the grosses of O Brother, Where Art Thou? (the team's biggest hit to date), but it should draw those who consider themselves rabid Coenheads.
SHALLOW HAL
Plot: A dorky womanizer (Jack Black) who dates only perfect 10s undergoes hypnosis that makes him see the beauty beneath the physical exterior; under this spell, he falls for an incredibly overweight woman, seeing her as svelte (Gwyneth Paltrow) while everyone else merely sees the obesity (Paltrow in a fat suit).
The Good: After attaching their names to rancid fare like Say It Isn't So and Osmosis Jones, it's time for the Farrelly brothers (There's Something About Mary) to hit another one out of the park. Since this was filmed in Charlotte, local audiences will have plenty of opportunities to play spot-the-landmark.
The Bad: Jack Black is generally a scream in supporting roles (most notably High Fidelity), but will having him front-and-center for an entire picture be too much?
The Outlook: Any protests regarding the film's perceived insensitivity don't stand a chance in the wake of its hefty grosses.
NOVEMBER 16
HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER'S STONE
Plot: An 11-year-old orphan (Daniel Radcliffe), upon learning that he's the son of two wizards, is sent to a special school to hone his own supernatural skills.
The Good: Take it with a grain of salt, but director Chris Columbus is reportedly very faithful to J.K. Rowling's best-selling novel, a tactic that pleased Rowling and should please the series' army of fans. The cast includes a number of terrific British vets, including Richard Harris, John Cleese, Robbie Coltrane and Maggie Smith.
The Bad: It's hard to forget that Columbus was responsible for those insufferable Home Alone flicks.
The Outlook: Next to Monsters, Inc., this should emerge as the season's biggest moneymaker.
NOVOCAINE
Plot: A dentist (Steve Martin) with a thriving business and a lovely fiancee (Laura Dern) jeopardizes everything after he falls for a sultry patient (Helena Bonham Carter).
The Good: This combines a hard-boiled plot with Martin's style of comedy -- a potent mixture.
The Bad: Having already seen this one, I can attest to some shaky plot contrivances.
The Outlook: Forget the novocaine: This film's producers will feel numb enough after watching their picture get zapped by the blockbusters.
NOVEMBER 21
AMELIE
Plot: A young woman (Audrey Tautou) anonymously transforms the lives of her neighbors (usually for the better), but her own life gets a makeover after she falls in love.
The Good: Director Jean-Pierre Jeunet is responsible for the delightfully loopy fantasy flicks Delicatessen and The City of Lost Children.
The Bad: This is going to require a marketing blitz on the order of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Life Is Beautiful to emerge from the art-house shadows.
The Outlook: Its mainstream acceptance is virtually nil, but if reviews are strong, this could earn a few million on the foreign film circuit.
BLACK KNIGHT
Plot: In the latest variation on A Connecticut Yankee In King Arthur's Court, a present-day employee (Martin Lawrence) of a medieval theme park finds himself magically thrust back into the Middle Ages, whereupon he introduces funk to the locals, discovers that the king's daughter is a "freeak" in bed, and saves the kingdom from villainous forces.
The Good: The "fish out of water" concept usually yields a few laughs. Lawrence is often appealing even when his films are not.
