At The Movies With Jay & Kat: December Movies "Oscar Buzz"

Kat and Jay are both TV/Movie junkies, and wanted to team up on a feature every month to share their thoughts on upcoming movies. Check out Kat and Jay's thoughts on the key movies coming out in December.




December 6th:

Out of the Furnace: 

Jay's Thoughts: This movie boasts some big names with Christian Bale, Woody Harrelson, Forrest Whitaker and William DeFoe, I don't see it making that much of an impact at the box office. The story seems very interesting with the younger Affleck brother playing an Iraq Vet that returns home and gets caught up in a ruthless crime ring with his brother (Bale) having to save him. I just don't see audiences wanting to see something this deep this close to the holidays. If this were released a few weeks sooner like the weekend of November 8th which would have fell on the U.S.M.C. birthday and Veterans Day I think people would be more in the frame of mind to see it. But critically I think this will get some attention.

Khumba:

Kat's Thoughts: The movie is about a half-stiped zebra who is blamed for a curse that has given drought to the land. I never heard of this movie until I started researching trailers for this article. I was bored with the trailer alone. It seems like a generic kid movie like Free Birds and Turbo. There are a mix of some popular child actors and voice actors like Jake T. Austin, Anna Sophia Robb, and Phil Lamar. With a movie like this to perk some interest they should have gotten some bigger names. Especially a bigger child actor like Selina Gomez or Ariana Grande. Jake T. Austin has not been in anything big since Wizard of Waverly Place ended.

This movie will have a challenge at the box office because Frozen will still be relevant. Frozen has an upper hand because it is a Disney movie that is targeted to adults and children. This does not seem like a film that is targeted to all ages, but instead just to children.

December 13th:

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug 

Jay's thoughts:  Peter Jackson seems to have gotten the formula down for the Tolkien movies. I was initially turned off by it when I heard that he was going to make the one book into a trilogy thinking that it will make the films feel stretched out and boring but instead he seems to have found a way to bring every nuance of the book to cinematic life. I think this is a movie that a lot of people are waiting to see. With them bringing back some fan favorites I predict this will be the #1 movie for a few weeks.

Tyler Perry's A Madea Christmas

Kat's Thoughts:  I have only seen one Madea movie in my life and that was Madea Goes to Jail. It was an okay film. It was very forgettable, but if you like her schtick than this may be a fun holiday film for you. This is the only holiday movie coming out in December. So, if you want to get into the holiday spirit than go see this film.

This should at least be in in the top 5 at the box office for its first week. These movies do fairly well, but it will be far from beating the Hobbit that comes out the same week.

December 18th and 20th

Anchorman 2 

Kat's Thoughts: Anchorman is going to be one of the biggest movies to come out this month. The first movie did extremely well and is still remembered after almost 10 years since its premiere. I have never seen the first Anchorman, but I have a feeling that I will be seeing it before Anchorman 2 comes out. I am rooting for this movie because I really want to see a good comedy movie. We haven't had a good comedy movie in my opinion since Bridesmaids. That was the last movie that made me genuinely laugh.

American Hustle

Kat's Thoughts:  I am a big fan of a lot of the actors in this movie, especially Jennifer Lawrence. The trailer doesn't tell you much about the film, but the title seems to tell it all. The movie is about a con man working with an FBI agent. I am really looking forward to the character interactions in this film. It is a weird group of people, but that's what makes the movie look so interesting.

December is the month of Oscar movies. Keep an eye on this one.

Saving Mr. Banks

Kat's Thoughts: I love Disney and filmmaking. So, this movie is a match made in heaven for me. Saving Mr. Banks is about how Disney made Mary Poppins from a book to a critically acclaimed movie. Tom Hanks seems to be the perfect choice to play Walt Disney. He looks like him and he is a great actor who can portray him. This is probably my most anticipated film for December. I also have a gut feeling that this film may get some Oscar buzz.

December 25th:

Kat's Thoughts: This has Oscar Nominated written all over it. Maybe this film will finally get Leonardo DiCaprio the Oscar he well deserves. Leonardo DiCaprio is one of my favorite actors and is one of the reasons I am looking forward to this movie. The story of Wallstreet is always interesting, and if Leonardo's character is telling it to us than I know my eyes will be glued to the screen. He can make the dictionary seem interesting.

47 Ronin

Kat's Thoughts: I haven't heard much about this film. Saw some trailers in the coming attractions of other films, but there hasn't been any buzz about it. It looks like a good Japanese style movie. Reminds me a little bit like The Wolverine, which I didn't like that much. This may be a good on demand movie, but I don't think I will be seeing this one in theaters.

Jay's Thoughts: I think that this movie has a very bad opening day. The trailer looks good with high energy, creative choreographic fight scenes, and inventive C.G.I. effects. With all of that said I go back to my opening thought that this isn't a Christmas Day movie where families go to the theaters together to watch one movie, this should have been pushed to a January or March opening date when people are more open to see this style of movie.

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty 

Jay's Thoughts: Before this article I hadn't heard any hype for this movie, which kind of goes with the theme of it. This movie is one of those movies where the main character (Ben Stiller) leads a very humdrum life, and all of his "adventures" are in his daydreams. I think the studio picked the best week in December for this movie. Christmas Day is usually a family day at the theater and with hope and inspirational feel to this movie I think this or Grudge Match might be the top new release, but I have a gut feeling that Saving Mr. Banks will still hold out the #1 spot given the wholesome family appeal of it.

Grudge Match

Jay's Thoughts: When going over the  movies for December, as a Philadelphia I felt it was my obligation to give my thoughts on this one. Sylvester Stallone is a former boxer who lends his name to a video game then comes out of retirement to settle a grudge match. I know this sounds like the plot to Rocky V and I think they may have been a Rocky script that they thought wouldn't sell because lets face it the Rocky franchise tapped out years ago. To differentiate this from that franchise they decided to make it a comedy and went with an opposite pairing by casting Robert DeNiro in the role of Stallone's rival. I think it is funny to see them squaring off given how much taller and better built Stallone is, but it kind of pushes the reality of it because I can not see these two every having been in the same weight class. I think it will do ok because both actors have good box office records and will be either 1st or 2nd new release place with The Secret Life of Walter Mitty taking the other spot and Saving Mr. Banks taking the overall #1 spot.

These are the key movies coming out in December. What movies are you going to see? What movies do you think will get Oscar Nominations? Tell us in the comments below and don't forget to follow us on Twitter.