Last year, three new movies tried to take on the big holiday hits but none of them could dethrone the mighty combo of Happy Feet and Casino Royale, which ruled over the roost once again with Denzel Washington's Déjà Vu pulling in third place. New Line's hoped-for religious holiday hit The Nativity Story bombed, grossing just $7.8 million in over 3,100 theatres, far less than expected after the success among religious groups for Mel Gibson's The Passion of The Christ two years earlier. Fox Atomic's charter release, the vacation horror Turistas also tanked with just $3.5 million, faring better than the unwarranted MGM sequel Van Wilder: The Rise of Taj, which grossed just $2.3 million in 400 more theatres.

Awake (MGM/The Weinstein Company)
Starring Hayden Christensen, Jessica Alba, Lena Olin, Terrence Howard, Steven Hinkle, Jennifer Pedersen, Sam Robards, Poorna Jagannathan, Court Young
Written and directed by Joby Harold (debut)
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Rated R
Tagline: "Every year, one in 700 people wake up during surgery. When they planned her husband's murder, they never thought he'd be the one." (Hmm… that sounds like a big old spoiler to me, but since it's in the trailer, I guess it's fair game.)
Plot Summary: Clay (Hayden Christensen) is a young up ‘n' coming investment banker awaiting a heart transplant and in love with the beautiful Samantha (Jessica Alba), though his mother (Lena Olin) would disapprove if she knew about their relationship. When Clay finally goes into surgery with his hand-chosen doctor (Terrence Howard), he discovers that he's aware of everything being said and done despite being under anesthesia, and he ends up hearing a plot between the doctors that he's powerless to stop.

Interview with Joby Harold

Review (Coming Soon!)

Usually, when a movie is given a wide release completely on its own, it's a good sign that all the other studios are afraid to open anything against it, because it might impossible for them to make money. In the case of Joby Harold's debut, Awake, a medical thriller that's been in various stages of post-production for nearly two years, it's more that the Weinstein Company hasn't known what to do with it, and they figure that releasing it on the weekend after Thanksgiving, which is notoriously dead, they at least have some chance of getting some sort of audience since they have no other new competition. The movie is being marketed around the horrifying subject of "anesthesic awareness" in which patients in surgery aren't completely knocked out and can feel the operation, but can't act. It's a pretty grisly and graphic thought, which probably could have been turned into another "torture porn" type movie. Instead, Harold has made a bizarre combination of medical drama and mind-f*ck thriller in the vein of the 2005 thriller Stay or Nicole Kidman's Birth, neither which made too much money maybe because the premises were just too strange to get people interested. On the other hand, Harold has done interesting things with the idea that could entice viewers into theatres much like Ashton Kutcher's The Butterfly Effect or the 1993 thriller Malice.

Of the film's two main stars, Jessica Alba probably has the most significant box office clout, even though her 2005 Caribbean thriller with Paul Walker Into the Blue barely made a mark even with the promise of her wearing a skimpy bathing suit. (We actually see a little more skin in this one, in case that might help your decision to see it) More recently, she was cast in the raunchy comedy Good Luck Chuck opposite Dane Cook, which fared far better and shows that Alba's popularity might be growing following her turn as Sue Storm in the two "Fantastic Four" blockbusters. Anyone who's been following Alba's career i.e. stalkers will probably realize that her career began with the FOX drama "Dark Angel" and her first big hit as a leading actress was in the hip hop drama Honey which opened far better than anyone could imagine almost exactly four years ago.

She certainly has a better box office track record than the film's main star Hayden Christensen, who first came to fame thanks to George Lucas' "Star Wars Prequel Trilogy", but whose few other projects like the dramas Life as a House and Shattered Glass haven't done much business at the box office despite critical raves. Few of those raves were for Hayden's performances though, and he generally has been the target for much flak in reviews of the "Star Wars" movies, and nothing has shown that he has the ability to carry a movie like this, which makes it fortunate that the advertising includes lots of Jessica Alba…though not as much as we see in the film, if you know what I mean. The cast is rounded out by the ubiquitous Terrence Howard, trying to complete his attempt at appearing in every single movie this fall, but in this case, he's back to a supporting role after having moved into more co-leading roles with The Brave One and The Hunting Party earlier this season. Last but not least is Lena Olin, a talented actress who hasn't appeared in very much in recent years, and she plays a key role as Hayden's mother.

Despite the rather mediocre cast--sorry, Jessica, you know I wouldn't knock you if I stood even the slightest chance of spending any amount of time beyond a normal 15-20 minute interview with you--the film's real selling point will be the premise, and while some might be too freaked out just by the thought of being able to feel everything during an operation, others might have a morbid curiosity about the phenomenon that might get them into theatres to see the movie. While it certainly will have more interest among the women that already watch hospital dramas on TV, the movie's being marketed like a horror-thriller, which might be a bad move considering how poorly Fox Atomic's Turistas--which involved a similar operation scene--fared in the weekend after Thanksgiving last year.

Regardless of whether the movie gets good or bad reviews--one would think that critics just won't feel right giving a movie starring Alba a positive review--many people are so movied out from the Thanksgiving weekend that the box office tends to be hit pretty bad the week after as so many adults work late to try to make some extra money for holiday gifts and students have to study a bit harder before semi-finals or the end of the semester. This has always hurt the box office in the past few years and with so many strong choices already in theatres, there's nothing to say that Awake will be strong enough to make a mark. Still, with few other new movies in theatres in this vein, there's a chance it could make some inroads at least into the Top 5 even if it doesn't stand much of a chance at repeating the success of Owen Wilson's war drama Behind Enemy Lines, which is still the only real surprise break-out in the weekend following Thanksgiving. (Not sure if Ocean's 11 or Tom Cruise's The Last Samurai really count.)

Why I Should See It: First-time filmmaker Joby Harold has found an intriguing unexplored premise for a thriller.
Why Not: You don't go to see a Jessica Alba (or a Hayden Christensen movie for that matter) for the acting, if at all.
Projections: $6 to 8 million opening weekend and roughly $20 million or less in total.

COMPARISONS

THE CHOSEN ONE:

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (MIramax)
Starring Mathieu Amalric, Emmanuelle Seigner, Marie-Josée Croze, Max von Sydow, Anne Consigny
Directed by Julian Schnabel (Basquiat, Before Night Falls); Written by Ron Harwood (The Pianist, Oliver Twist, Love in the Time of Cholera)
Genre: Drama
Rated PG-13
Tagline: "Let your imagination set you free."
Plot Summary: Jean-Dominique Bauby, the prestigious editor of "French Elle", suffered a sudden and massive stroke in 1995, which left his entire body paralyzed except for one eye. Using a complex system of blinking, he's able to communicate with others and dictate his memoirs, but he would die mere days after its release before it became a national bestseller in France.

My Thoughts from Toronto

A Feature on Julian Schnabel and Cast

I have to make a confession before recommending this movie and that's that I've yet to see Julian Schnabel's acclaimed second film Before Night Falls and in the spirit of confession, I also never really got through his first movie Basquiat either. Actually, I just watched that after seeing the real Basquiat in a documentary and after being chided by Jeffrey Wright for not being familiar with the movie when I interviewed him for Syriana. When I saw Schnabel's third film a couple days before heading up to the Toronto Film Festival, I was blown away by the beautiful story of Jean-Dominique Bauby, a philandering playboy who finds himself trapped in his own body after a sudden paralyzing stroke, and from there, he needs to find a way to communicate with the outside world using a complex system using his one functioning eye to blink out his responses. Now when this movie began, basically from Bauby's perspective, I thought we were in for two hours of seeing everything from the view of a paralyzed person, which immediately makes one think of a very dull movie indeed. (And believe me, the irony of this opening the same week as Awake was not lost on me either.) But no, Julian Schnabel has found a masterful, artistic way of cutting back to Bauby's past leading up to the stroke, as well as showing his interaction with others, not only from his point of view but also from theirs. Mathieu Amalric has received a lot of praise in the past, mostly for his role in Armaud Desplechin's Kings and Queen (which I felt was highly overrated), but he deserves any and all accolades for this performance that has him spending most of his time completely immobile except for one blinking eye. It's a jarring transformation but even moreso when we see Bauby before the stroke, which is more like the Amalric we've seen in other movies. It's a performance that surpasses Javier Bardem's performance in The Sea Inside, which I personally thought was sorely overlooked at awards time a few years back. Schnabel has also assembled a great cast around Amalric including a trio of beautiful actresses in Emmanuelle Seigner as Bauby's estranged wife who returns to his side in his time of need and Anne Consigny and Marie-José Croze as the two gorgeous angels who helps him recover. There's also a small but memorable appearance by Max von Sydow, playing very much against type as Bauby's aging father who feels completely powerless to help his son. There is little question in my mind that this movie will end up in my Top 5 for the year, as well as in many Top 5 lists, and that it will be a huge contender at the Oscars, even though France decided not to go with it (or La Vie en Rose for that matter) as their national selection in the Foreign Language category, even though both movies have more to do with France than the movie they went with.

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly opens in New York and L.A. on Friday.

Honorable Mention

The Savages (Fox Searchlight)
Starring Laura Linney, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Philip Bosco
Written and directed by Tamara Jenkins (The Slums of Beverly Hills)
Genre: Drama, Comedy
Rated R
Plot Summary: John and Wendy Savage (Philip Seymour Hoffman, Laura Linney) are a competitive pair of siblings who suddenly have to put their own lives and neuroses aside to deal with their aging father (Philip Bosco) who is suffering from dementia.
Of Note: Tamara Jenkins, whose debut The Slums of Beverly Hills received a lot of indie acclaim, returns after eight years with her second feature, featuring awards-worthy performances by Laura Linney and Philip Seymour Hoffman, making it the toast of festivals from Sundance to Telluride.

Interview with Tamara Jenkins

My Thoughts from the Sundance Premiere

Also in Limited Release:

Chronicle of an Escape (IFC First Take) - Adrian Caetano's ‘70s based crime thriller tells the tale of a goalkeeper for a local soccer team, kidnapped by a government task force that forces him into four years of imprisonment, interrogation and torture, as he tries to survive the experience and escape with some of the other detainees. It opens at the IFC Center in New York on Wednesday.

Aaja Nachle (Yash Raj Films) - A New York dancer of Indian descent, Dia (Madhuri Dixit), must return to her small town in India after severing ties with her family and people to help save her guru Makarand's beloved Ajanti theatre which is under threat of demolition. With the help of a local doctor, they work together to save the theatre by putting together a new production using the locals despite all sorts of problems. It will open in select areas where Bollywood films normally play.

Badland (Badland Corp.) - Francesco Lucente's drama stars Jamie Draven as an Iraq war veteran and father of three who returns home broken and traumatized, lashing out at their loved ones in acts of domestic violence. It also stars Joe Morton, most recently seen in Ridley Scott's American Gangster as another vet. It will open in New York and L.A. on Friday.

Be My Oswald (Chip Away Productions) - Don Cato's dark comedy about a militant vegetarian with the codename "B" who plots to assassinate Santa Clause during the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, along with a clueless socialite, codenamed "A", but things quickly go wrong. The festival favorite opens on Thursday at the Pioneer Theater in New York City, but it's not to be confused with…

Oswald's Ghost (Seventh Art Releasing) - Robert Stone, the director of Guerilla: The Taking of Patty Hearst, takes a comprehensive look at the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and the political conspiracy theories that surrounded it for years, which led to nationwide paranoia that's lasted for over 40 years. The documentary opens at the Cinema Village on November 30 and in Los Angeles at the Laemmle Grande on December 7.

Protagonist (IFC Films/Red Envelope) - Oscar-winning filmmaker Jessica Yu takes a look at the narrative myths behind dramatic heroes by looking at the stories of four real people--a bank robber, a German terrorist, a martial arts expert and a gay man fighting against homosexuality for the church --and tying them into the works of Greek playwright Euripides. The challening and unconventional doc opens at the IFC Film Center on Friday.

Interview with Jessica Yu (Coming Soon!)

The Rocket (Palm Pictures) - This French-Canadian sports drama telling the story of Quebecor hockey player Maurice "The Rocket" Richard who came from a blue collar background to become one of the sport's first true superstars in the ‘50s. It opens in New York at the Cinema Village on Friday.

The Sasquatch Gang (Screen Media Films) - Tim Skousen's comedy stars Justin Long (Accepted) as Gavin Gore, who leads a group of friends on a hike in the mountains where they find suspicious footprints that can only come from Bigfoot, but when they notify the authorities, they become the butt of jokes and accusations of starting the hoax.

Sex and Breakfast (First Look Studios) - Miles Brandman's erotic romantic comedy stars Macaulay Culkin, Kuno Becker, Eliza Dushku and Alexis Dziena as two twenty-something couples who experiment with group sex, leading to jealousy and confusion after a few mishaps. It opens in L.A. at Laemmle's Sunset 5 On Friday.

Tony ‘n' Tina's Wedding (Emerging Pictures) - After years of delays, the popular off-Broadway play comes to the big screen to tell the story of a young couple from Queens who finally decide to tie the knot, running into all sorts of problems leading up to their wedding. It will play special midnight shows this weekend at the IFC Film Center and opens in other places on December 5.

Next week, the last month of 2007 kicks off with The Golden Compass (New Line), the big screen version of the first book in Philip Pullman's best-selling "His Dark Materials" series, starring Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig.

Copyright 2007 Edward Douglas