On his latest expedition, Dr. Rick Marshall (Ferrell) is sucked into a space-time vortex alongside his research assistant (Friel) and a redneck survivalist (McBride). In this alternate universe, the trio make friends with a primate named Chaka (Taccone), their only ally in a world full of dinosaurs and other fantastic creatures. Can they all make it back to our world alive, and if so: Will Dr. Marshall can go from zero to hero with his discoveries?

Say what you want about Kroft’s original ’70s Saturday morning fix (if you can even remember it), sleestaks, pakunies and Marshall Marshall are ripe for parody. And, Ferrell’s just the right guy to deliver it. While many seem ready to write off his various shirtless, man-boy, sport-spoof antics, we’re not. Mostly because he’s still funny as hell. Plus, we can’t wait to see what he and already-arrived comic McBride come up with together.

Rated PG-13 for crude and sexual content, and for language including a drug reference.

Director: Brad Silberling
Stars: Will Ferrell, Danny McBride, Anna Friel
Studio: Universal Pictures
Release Date: 5 June 2009 (USA)
Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi

A loan officer ordered to evict an old woman from her home finds herself the recipient of a supernatural curse, which turns her life into a living hell. Desperate, she turns to a seer to try and save her soul, while evil forces work to push her to a breaking point.

Foreclosure would be a kinda scary title, too … Check out Sam Raimi, returning to the horror genre before travels back to Gotham City for a couple more Spider-Man movies. With a tip of the hat to George A. Romero, Raimi has found a way to comment on the housing crisis, and I can imagine his tones will be bitter, wicked, and (hopefully) subtle. No offense to Ellen Page, but I am relieved she opted out of the movie, making room for Lohman, who is starting to take on more mainstream roles, albeit ones that are offbeat and, like, interesting.

But what is the film going to look like? And will it be funny? Here’s proof that the answer to both questions is YES!

And a quote from this year’s South by Southwest festival: “Any inkling that Raimi’s soul might have been irretrievably chewed up by the Hollywood studio machinery — a well-founded concern after the disappointing Spider-Man 3 — quickly evaporates once the story gets underway.”

Rated PG-13 for sequences of horror violence, terror, disturbing images and language.

Director: Sam Raimi
Stars: Alison Lohman, Justin Long, Ruth Livier
Studio: Universal Pictures
Release Date: 29 May 2009 (USA)
Genre: Horror, Thriller

A petty thief is gunned down in an alley and a Congressman’s assistant falls in front of a subway – two seemingly unrelated deaths. But not to wisecracking, brash newspaper reporter Cal McAffrey who spies a conspiracy waiting to be uncovered. With a turbulent past connected to the Congressman and the aid of ambitious young rookie writer Della Frye, Cal begins uprooting clues that lead him to a corporate cover-up full of insiders, informants, and assassins. But as he draws closer to the truth, the relentless journalist must decide if it’s worth risking his life and selling his soul to get the ultimate story.

You couldn’t ask for a better cast for this thriller: Affleck is spot-on, Crowe finally gets to flex his acting muscle without mugging (in a role that was considered for Brad Pitt, Johnny Depp and Tom Hanks), McAdams finally gets to act period, and Mirren is every reporter’s worst nightmare boss. The original 2003 BBC miniseries was fantastic television (once you could understand everyone’s accents) and if they don’t mess it up, this could be stellar, especially once you add in director Kevin Mcdonald (The Last King of Scotland). Our only question: why the April release? This could be a perfect adult option for the sequel-friendly days of summer.

Rated PG-13 for some violence, language including sexual references, and brief drug content.

Director: Kevin Macdonald
Stars: Russell Crowe, Rachel McAdams, Ben Affleck
Studio: Universal Pictures
Release Date: 17 April 2009 (USA)
Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller

Vin Diesel and Paul Walker reteam for the ultimate chapter of the franchise built on speed — “Fast and Furious.” Heading back to the streets where it all began, they rejoin Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster to blast muscle, tuner and exotic cars across Los Angeles and floor through the Mexican desert in the new high-octane action-thriller.

When a crime brings them back to L.A., fugitive ex-con Dom Toretto (Diesel) reignites his feud with agent Brian O’Conner (Walker). But as they are forced to confront a shared enemy, Dom and Brian must give in to an uncertain new trust if they hope to out manuever him. And from convoy heists to precision tunnel crawls across international lines, two men will find the best way to get revenge: push the limits of what’s possible behind the wheel.

No doubt that Justin Lin was eager to return to the director’s chair after shaking the dust off of this franchise back in ‘06, and we can only imagine that Diesel, Walker, Rodriguez, and Brewster caused zero problems during their respective negotiations to reprise the characters that first brought them true fame (or something like it). One great thing: Lin has delivered a teaser trailer (located above) that is better than most full-fledged action sequences in recent memory. Too bad this one was detoured off the summer release calendar, though …

Rated PG-13 for for intense sequences of violence and action, some sexual content, language and drug references.

Director: Justin Lin
Stars: Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Michelle Rodriguez
Studio: Universal Pictures
Release Date: 3 April 2009 (USA)
Genre: Action

A pair of corporate spies (Owen and Roberts) who share a steamy past hook up to pull off the ultimate con job on their respective bosses — but can they learn to truly love and trust one another?

Tony Gilroy (Michael Clayton) is back to write, direct, and confuse with another crime/suspense story, but this time there’s some lovemaking to be had. I’m all phew for many reasons: Tom Wilkinson’s has reunited with Gilroy for another supporting role; Paul Giamatti replaced Billy Bob Thornton as one of the warring CEOs; we finally get to see what Ocean’s 11 could have been like if Tess were allowed to be more than wallpaper; Clive Owen takes a break from dark/stressful thrillers to deliver some mystery and cheer. But what this project could really use? A title change.

Rated PG-13 for language and some sexual content.

Director: Tony Gilroy
Stars: Julia Roberts, Clive Owen, Tom Wilkinson
Studio: Universal Pictures
Release Date: 20 March 2009 (USA)
Genre: Crime | Thriller