Todd’s Movie Blog

This is the slowest time of the year for movie fans, not much of interest is being released, unless you’re really dying to see Christina Ricci search for true love while sporting a pig nose.  Nope this is the where studios put out the films they have little confidence in (with the possible exception of Will Ferrell’s latest sports comedy, which I’m sure will do well with his fan base) while gearing up for the summer blockbuster season.

I’m looking forward to this year’s summer release schedule.  I don’t think I’ve seen one this strong in almost a decade.  there’s the Batman Begins sequel The Dark Knight,  Marvel Comics’ Iron Man and a new version of The Hulk, Hellboy 2, the second Narnia Chronicles’ film Prince Caspian, the road trip comedy Fanboys (about the misadventures of a group of Star Wars fans trying to get an early view of The Phantom Menace prior to it’s 1999 release), and the long overdue return of my favorite childhood hero Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

Now that the Writer’s strike is over and we were able to have the Oscars, everything seems to be getting back to normal, right?  Wrong!  Tom Hanks, George Clooney, Meryl Streep, and Robert De Nero have put out full page ads urging the Screen Actor’s Guild to start negotiating with the studios because the SAG leaders are apparently dragging their feet.  According MSN.com, SAG thinks it’s too early to begin negotiations as there is still four months to go before contracts are due to expire.  The first warning of a new strike happening this summer came when Spielberg announced he’s putting his new project on hold until an agreement is reached.