Ringing in the New Year!

Ringing in the 2011 movie season is always fun, especially with all the movies to look forward to in the year ahead. But before we get into that, let’s review “Little Fockers.” The cast of the film was packed with A-listers, and with salaries, according the the New York Post, quite astounding. The major chunk went to Ben Stiller and Robert De Niro racking in $20 million. Owen Wilson took in $15 million and Barbra Streisand $7 million. While Dustin Hoffman negotiated $7.5 million, and Jessica Alba was paid $3 million.


While I just love Robert De Niro (he is an amazing and talented actor), it’s certainly not his fault that the writers didn’t deliver. “Little Fockers,” was as funny as having a root canal. I mean it. In the 97 minutes that I watched the movie, I didn’t laugh once. The movie made no sense at all; since when do in-laws come to visit two weeks prior to the grandkids' birthday party? Perhaps if they live in a third world country, and getting there would be full of travel mishaps. A perfect example would be the original “The Out of Towners,” starring Jack Lemmon. I just didn’t get it. Even the title had little to do with the Focker kids. The third film in the Ben Stiller-Robert De Niro series went absolutely nowhere, and I suppose the only reason it made so much money New Year’s weekend, was that it had an A-list cast and the audience was curious. A decade ago, “Meet the Parents” was funny, and then the 2004 sequel “Meet the Fockers,” with Barbra Streisand and Dustin Hoffman added to the cast, was hilarious; however, “Little Fockers” was lost in translation.

Anything is subject to change, so while many dates are tentative, here is what is scheduled for the first three months. In January we have the film “Country Strong,” starring Gwyneth Paltrow; “The Green Hornet,” starring Seth Rogan; and the much-anticipated “No Strings attached,” starring Ashton Kutcher and Natalie Portman.

In February, we have a concert documentary about the boy, the legend, the fever, “Justin Bieber: Never Say Never.” So if you’re a parent of a tween, get ready for the much-anticipated movie. In March, we are graced with “Jane Eyre,” with Mia Wasikowska as Charlotte Bronte’s timid governess and Michael Fassbender as Rochester. For the kids, there is the voice of Johnny Depp in the Wild West cartoon, “Rango.”

So what’s ahead for 2011, besides these movies? We will see many more inspired ballet books, due to the phenomenal turn in “Black Swan” starring Natalie Portman. We’ll also see many celebrities steeping out with their fashion label. Recently, Justin Timberlake's collection William Rast will be featured at Target. Avril Lavigne, who two years ago launched her line to Kohl’s, currently relaunched her line on her e-commerce site, AbbeyDawn.com. Her collection includes handbags, shoes, dresses, denim, active wear and even a few men’s pieces.