Mamma Mia Cool

Swedish songsters ABBA inspire a musical feast that’s both sweet and surprisingly spicy. Sophie Sheridan is about to be married to her true love, Sky, but has no father to give her away. What’s a bride to do but go poking through Mom’s past for answers? In the pages of an old diary she finds a shocking secret: any of three men could be her father. She sends a letter to each one, hoping to discover who has the right to escort her down the aisle… and throwing a big fat Greek monkey wrench into Mom’s life.

Three go reason you should go and see it

1. The legendary, luminous Meryl Streep scores points for 50+ women everywhere by stealing the show from her equally gorgeous onscreen daughter (Amanda Seyfried of Mean Girls).
2. Fans of the stage show may have thought there was no way to improve on it, but the Greek scenery (including Pelion and Skopelos) provides a breathtaking backdrop for the tale.
3. This is the type of musical where you go into the theater humming the songs. So grab your friends and go prove to the world that disco never died.

Handcock

A Will Smith movie packs in millions of people over Fourth of July weekend. No surprises there.

Yet Smith’s “Hancock,” the tale of an anti-social boozer who happens to be a superhero, comes with an abrupt plot twist, one that has divided critics and the moviegoing public in the real world (Critics and everyone else can’t agree. Now there’s a real surprise).

For those who have yet to see “Hancock,” we won’t give the secret away, but it has something to do with why Charlize Theron’s soccer-mom-style character doesn’t want Smith’s surly superhero anywhere near her family.

Critics generally thought the turn the movie takes halfway through was a cheat, spoiling what had been a promising idea that was a fresh twist on the superhero genre in its own right.
The people who turned “Hancock” into an instant blockbuster beg to differ — to the sum of $185 million worldwide at the box office in just a few days.

The plot twist in “Hancock” won’t go down in cinema history alongside Darth Vader revealing he’s Luke Skywalker’s pappy in “The Empire Strikes Back” or Anthony Perkins turning out to be a slasher in his mom’s housedress in “Psycho.”

However, it does give us a chance to buzz once more about the really great curve balls — and maybe a wild pitch or two — that Hollywood has tossed our way

Journey To The Center Of The Earth

Trevor is used to being laughed at. He’s the type of guy whose colleagues use finger-quotes when describing him as a “scientist.” But the joke’s about to be on those guys, because apparently the center of the earth contains fish and dinosaurs and stuff! When Trevor’s brother disappears, the only clues to finding him are the notes he scrawled in a copy of Jules Verne’s classic adventure novel. Trevor takes a leap of faith and journeys to the uncharted worlds beneath the surface in search of his missing bro.

reason you should go and see it

1. Witness moviemaking history! This is the first narrative live-action movie to be shot in digital 3D, and the dazzling special effects make full use of the technology.
2. Makes for a great family bonding session, as the mix of action and humor will appeal to adults and older kids alike.
3. It’s possible that Tomb of the Dragon Emperor didn’t quite satisfy your need to see scary things chasing Brendan Fraser

Hellboy II

“Hellboy II” tops the box office, but don’t expect it to last. I know, I know. You haven’t been able to properly kick-start the week without my puketastic poetry. But I didn’t forget — I had the day off.

In case you haven’t heard (and considering the belated blog, you probably have), a lot happened over the weekend: “Hellboy II” is a confirmed solid hit. It didn’t do “Hulk” numbers, but for a lesser-known comic book character, it’s a good start (soon to be obliterated by that guy with the pointy ears, whose movie is predicted to earn at least $100 million this weekend).

Also, “Meet Dave” continued its roller-coaster ride. A couple weeks ago, rumor was, it was dead in the water already. Then, probably thanks to some desperate marketing, industry insiders were predicting a $30-million-plus opening weekend. And now we laugh, because the latest Eddie Murphy dud scraped up a paltry $5.2 million in box-office receipts, finishing at No. 7.

Here are the top five earners over the weekend, according to boxofficemojo.com
:
1. “Hellboy II: The Golden Army” — $34.5 million
2. “Hancock” — $32 million
3. “Journey to the Center of the Earth” — $21 million
4. “WALL-E” — $18.7 million
5. “Wanted” — $11.9 millionAnd the promised hellacious haiku:

Hellboy monster mash
The big star is Guillermo
But Batman comethBe sure to check in next Monday, when I focus my horrific verse on “The Dark Knight.” Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Space Chimp movie

If Ham III weren’t the grandson of the first hominid ever to travel in space, there is no way he would have been chosen to go on this prestigious NASA mission along with the heroic Titan and the courageous Lt. Luna. These three hapless chimps are sent to retrieve an errant space probe, but instead find themselves caught up in the plight of a peaceful planet that has been taken over by the evil overlord Zartog. Will Ham III discover his hidden hero genes and help save the day?

Three reason you should go and see it?

1. Oh come on, people! It’s chimps… in space. Do you really need two other reasons?
2. If you’re sad that you didn’t catch SNL’s Andy Samberg kickin’ it with part two of The Chronic(WHAT?)cles of Narnia, you’ll hear his famous slacker wit in the voice of space ape, Ham III
3. The film is produced by John H. Williams (Shrek) and Barry Sonnenfeld (Men in Black), so they’ve got the whole “funny animated aliens” thing pretty well covered.