Spring 2004 brings several potentially solid films from a wide array of genres. Here are a few of the biggest ones on the horizon:
The forerunner this season is Quentin Tarantino’s “Kill Bill Vol. 2.” Like its predecessor, which was released last October, this will be an exceptionally gory movie.
The “Kill Bill” series follows Black Mamba (Uma Thurman) on an epic, and sometimes comical, quest for vengeance against the “Deadly Viper Assassination Squad” – an elite team of assassins responsible for the death of her family.
The flick is currently scheduled for a Feb. 20 release, but rumor has it that Tarantino wants to release the film at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. That would likely push the theatrical release back to sometime in April.
“The Ladykillers” remake puts Tom Hanks in the role of Professor Goldthwait Higginson Dorr, an eccentric college professor turned criminal mastermind who devises a scheme to hijack money from a riverboat casino. Much of the movie was filmed in New Orleans.
The film was directed and produced by Joel and Ethan Coen, the duo behind such films as “Fargo,” “The Big Lebowski” and “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” It is slated for a March 26 release.
Writer/director Kevin Smith will release “Jersey Girl,” his sixth film, on Feb. 20.
The film stars Ben Affleck as a single father struggling to raise his daughter. Upon viewing the trailer, the humor in the film seems to be reminiscent of Smith’s earlier work in “Chasing Amy.”
“Troy,” the latest movie by German director Wolfgang Petersen (“The Perfect Storm”) will be released May 14.
The film is an adaptation of Homer’s epic poem “The Iliad.” It stars Brad Pitt in the lead role of Achilles, a mythological warrior who was impervious to injury everywhere but his Achilles heel.
The movie boasts a great supporting cast that includes Orlando Bloom (“The Lord of the Rings”) as Paris and Eric Bana (“The Hulk”) as Hector.
“Hellboy” once again pairs director Guillermo Del Toro with actor Perlman. The two previously worked together on “Blade 2.” The movie, based off of a comic book with the same name, will be released April 2.
In the final days of World War II, the Nazis completed a ritual to conjure the “Hellboy” – a demon originally intended to aid Axis forces.
Unfortunately for them, Allied soldiers capture him, and through a slightly ironic transition, Hellboy now fights evil for the modern-day “Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense.”
“Shrek 2” will be released May 21. The entire cast from the first film returns for the second installment in which Princess Fiona (Cameron Diaz) takes Shrek (Mike Myers) to meet her parents. Antonio Banderas joins the cast as a wise-cracking fairy tale cat known as “puss-in-boots.”
“Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” – one of the coolest and most intriguing titles ever – is set to open March 19.
The film follows the story of a couple in a failing relationship who choose to have their memories of each other erased by partaking in a new medical procedure.
During the procedure Jim Carrey’s character, Joel, decides that he no longer wants to forget Clementine (Kate Winslet) and begins stashing memories of her in random corners of his mind.
Unlike Carrey’s typical slapstick movies, this film promises to delve into his often overlooked dramatic sills.
“Dawn of the Dead” is a remake of George Romero’s classic zombie flick of the same name.
The film stars Sarah Polley and Ving Rhames in the lead roles and was directed by first-timer Zack Snyder. It will hit theaters on March 26.
“The Passion of the Christ” is arguably deserving of a higher position on this list, but being shot entirely in Aramaic, Latin and Hebrew will discourage many would-be viewers.
Mel Gibson is the force behind this film in practically every stage of production. He postponed filming of the newest “Mad Max” movie to focus entirely on “The Passion of the Christ.”
The film has been the source of a plethora of controversy, including accusations that it conveys an anti-Semitic message.
Whatever the case, preliminary screenings of the film have been positive, often resulting in standing ovations. “The Passion of the Christ” opens Feb. 25.