This coming weekend will feature three new releases starring some of Hollywood’s hottest hunks. First up, Bradley Cooper, in Limitless, will portray a man who has reached the apex of the human condition with a little pharmaceutical assistance. Next, Matthew McConaughey plays The Lincoln Lawyer, a defense attorney who lands the case of the lifetime, only to find it might be more than he bargained for. And for the sexiest of the bunch, we have the highly anticipated Paul, the dirty-talking alien (voiced by Seth Rogen) who accompanies Simon Pegg and Nick Frost on a cross-country trip. Two out of three ain’t bad, ladies.
Hit the jump for all our coverage, including trailers and synopses, on these headliners as well as limited releases Cracks, The Music Never Stopped, and Win Win.
PAUL
Synopsis:
Simon Pegg and Nick Frost (Hot Fuzz, Shaun of the Dead) reunite for the comedy adventure Paul as two sci-fi geeks whose pilgrimage takes them to America’s UFO heartland. While there, they accidentally meet an alien who brings them on an insane road trip that alters their universe forever.
For the past 60 years, an alien named Paul (Seth Rogen) has been hanging out at a top-secret military base. For reasons unknown, the space-traveling smart ass decides to escape the compound and hop on the first vehicle out of town—a rented RV containing Earthlings Graeme Willy (Pegg) and Clive Gollings (Frost).
Chased by federal agents and the fanatical father of a young woman that they accidentally kidnap, Graeme and Clive hatch a fumbling escape plan to return Paul to his mother ship. And as two nerds struggle to help, one little green man might just take his fellow outcasts from misfits to intergalactic heroes.
Paul is directed by Superbad’s Greg Mottola, from a story by Pegg & Frost. Joining the comedy’s cast are Jason Bateman, Kristen Wiig, Bill Hader, Blythe Danner, Joe Lo Truglio, John Carroll Lynch, David Koechner and Sigourney Weaver.
Red-Band Trailer
For all of our Paul coverage, click here.
THE LINCOLN LAWYER
Synopsis:
Mickey Haller (Matthew McConaughey) is a Los Angeles criminal defense attorney who operates out of the back of his Lincoln sedan. Haller has spent most of his career defending garden-variety criminals, until he lands the case of his career: defending Louis Roulet (Ryan Phillippe), a Beverly Hills playboy accused of rape and attempted murder. But the seemingly straightforward case suddenly develops into a deadly game of survival for Haller.
For all of our The Lincoln Lawyer coverage, click here.
LIMITLESS
Synopsis:
Bradley Cooper and Robert De Niro star in Limitless, a paranoia-fueled action thriller about an unpublished writer whose life is transformed by a top-secret smart drug that allows him to use 100% of his brain and become a perfect version of himself. His enhanced abilities soon attract shadowy forces that threaten his new life in this darkly comic and provocative film.
For all of our Limitless coverage, click here.
Now opening in limited release:
CRACKS (limited)
Synopsis:
Within the confines of a strict, all-girls English boarding school (circa 1930s), a clique students participate on the swim team not only to pass the time, but to be close to their swimming instructor, the enigmatic, yet charismatic, Miss G (Eva Green). While Miss G originally encourages their idolization and crack (crush) on her, the teachers attention is quickly focused on the arrival of an exotic and beautiful Spanish foreign pupil, Fiamma (María Valverde). As the new girl rebuffs her classmates, and further rejects Miss Gs interest, her teammates begin to grow jealous of Miss Gs fascination with Fiamma, and resent the latters distain of their instructor, accumulating in the inexplicable disappearance of Fiamma.
For all of our Cracks coverage, click here.
THE MUSIC NEVER STOPPED (limited)
Synopsis:
The Music Never Stopped, based on the case study “The Last Hippie” by Dr. Oliver Sacks, M.D. (Awakenings), chronicles the journey of a father and son adjusting to cerebral trauma and a lifetime of missed opportunities. Through the music that embodied the generation gap of the 1960s, and working with music therapist Dianne Daly (Ormond), the film weaves the heartwarming progress of Henry (Simmons) and Gabriel (Pucci).
For all of our The Music Never Stopped coverage, click here.
WIN WIN (limited)
Synopsis:
Tom McCarthy, acclaimed writer/ director of THE VISITOR and THE STATION AGENT, once again explores the depths and nuances of human relationships in his new film about the allegiances and bonds between unlikely characters. Disheartened attorney Mike Flaherty (Paul Giamatti), who moonlights as a high school wrestling coach, stumbles across a star athlete through some questionable business dealings while trying to support his family. Just as it looks like he will get a double payday, the boy’s mother shows up fresh from rehab and flat broke, threatening to derail everything. McCarthy’s deft touch with balancing drama and comedy, broken hearts and poignant humanity is at play in WIN WIN.
For all of our Win Win coverage, click here.