November is arguably the worst month for wide release movies in 2011 but that would be a really tight race. There’s not much to be excited about unless you have a cool theater near you to catch some of the limited releases out this month. I’ll give you my two cents.

  
November 4 
Tower Heist
Wow, I could not be more tired of seeing this trailer in theaters. There’s not a moment in this trailer that I laugh at but I’m surely not representative of the average American audience who will probably get a kick out of it. Hey, Ben Stiller is still raking in big bucks for the Meet the Parents franchise so there’s definitely an audience for comedies like this.

A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas
I really don’t get why this is being released at the beginning on November. New Line Cinema is releasing this about a month early, and also releasing December’s New Years Eve at the beginning of the month. I wonder if their plan to get audiences into theaters weeks before the appropriate time will work in their favor. It’s way too early in the season for me to even consider paying to see this. I HATED Escape from Guantanamo Bay so I am not really into this concept at all. They seem to be going for the “3D is ridiculous so we’re exploiting it”-thing but Piranhas 3D already did that and I’m almost certain they did it way better.
The Son of No One
 Limited?
Honestly, I’m not sure if this is definitely limited or not. Based on how much coverage it’s gotten I’m guessing it is although with the cast and premise I’m not sure why. I’m not too jazzed at any rate about Channing Tatum or Katie Holmes but Ray Liotta, Al Pacino, and Tracy Morgan in a serious role has got me curious. The plot seems like it could be interesting–a rookie cop trying to solve a cold case that has a lot more hidden underneath (crooked cops, present-day threats,etc). This could be completely run of the mill but I can get down with a crime thriller any day of the week.
November 11
Immortals
I’m really tired of the highly-stylized-trying-to-be-300 movie trend. This might be a fun action flick but looks to me like it’s trying way too hard and will also give me a huge headache if I attempt to watch this in 3D. The director Tarsem Singh had this to say about the film: “It’s turning into, basically, Caravaggio meets Fight Club. It’s a really hardcore action film done in Renaissance painting style.” This is the most ridiculous description of a film minus maybe the next film out this week.
Jack & Jill
This really pisses me off.
J. Edgar
There’s a few things pulling me into the theater to see this. 1. I love Leo. I think he’s one of the most talented actors around right now. Although I’m not too excited about the
aging makeup. 2. I really want to see Armie Hammer expand his filmography after play the Winklevoss twins. He has definite charm and decent comedic timing (whether that will be employed at all in this film I’m not sure). 3. Dustin Lance Black (Milk) wrote the screenplay and I’m intrigued to see how he depicts Edgar’s secret homosexuality. I’m neutral on the matter but I’m sure Clint Eastwood directing is a draw for some.
Melancholia
limited
 Lars Von Trier is always a divisive director, and this will probably be the first film of his that I kind of want to see. The trailer is all about the mood and its made me interested in how that will translate to its content.
November 18
Happy Feet 2
I honestly am not sure what the fuck this movie is about. A baby penguin doesn’t know how to dance which is a problem because? And meets a penguin who thinks he can fly which is a problem because? This must have been some admiral qualities to the original because it won the 2006 Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. But this one features penguins singing “Sexy Back” so there is that.
Breaking Dawn
This movie will be undoubtedly the hardest for nonreaders of the books to digest. A half-vampire baby clawing at Bella’s insides? Yeah, that’s more than a little weird and a really strange direction for this already silly story to go in.

The Descendants
George Clooney does family drama in this flick that seems just okay to me. This could be because his daughter is played by the girl from Secret Life of an American Teenager which I’ve seen nothing but laughable acting from. I’ve heard a lot of Oscar buzz but I really don’t see it.

November 23


Arthur Christmas 

Again with the Christmas movies out in November? I guess this one is a little closer but I still find it annoying.Now that I’m looking back, The Christmas Carol (2009) came out at the beginning of Nov and made a butt load so I’m apparently not a good judge. I think that this movie, Hugo, and The Muppets are going to struggle a lot against each other.

Hugo
This trailer kind of bored me but it is directed by Martin Scorsese so there’s some intrigue there. Also Chloe Moretz is pretty amazing in everything.
 


The Muppets
Aside from a brilliant marketing campaign, The Muppets has the nostalgia factor on its side. Just like in the case of Toy Story 3, audiences over the age of 20 will surely come out in troves to relive their childhood. I’m particularly excited to see how Jason Segel brings the Muppets back to life after his vampire puppet musical in Forgetting Sarah Marshall.

A Dangerous Method
limited
If you listened to our Favorite Movies So Far This Year podcast you’ll know that this is one of my most anticipated movies to come. Besides the interest in psychology this trailer just drew me in and made me excited to learn about the relationships between all of these sordid characters. The power house of Viggo Mortenson, Vincent Cassel, and Michael Fassbender (who has blown me away so far this year) just amplifies my high hopes for this film. 

My Week with Marilyn 
limited

It’s hard to argue that Michelle Williams doesn’t look pretty spot on as Marilyn Monroe.  The story seems okay but I can’t help but feel like this was a waste of potential use of Williams as Monroe, much like Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela in Invictus.