releasing this week: I Love You Philip Morris and Zonad

There’s a variety of films opening on Friday 19th March here in Ireland so hopefully something for everyone. 2 family films, 2 romantic comedies (to throw them under one umbrella), an Irish comedy and a drama/thriller. Well ok, there’s not quite something for everyone – there’s no big action film – but Green Zone is still out from last week so you can go see that if you want to see some explosions.

The Jennifer Aniston / Gerard Butler comedy-action-romance The Bounty Hunter is undoubtedly the biggest film out this week but the two I’m highlighting are I Love You Philip Morris and Irish comedy Zonad.

I Love You Phillip Morris is a bit of a surprise one.

It appeared out of nowhere on the schedule from a relatively small distributor but it’s actually quite a big release and you should be able to catch it in most cinemas. There seems to be a pretty big marketing push behind it anyway and the more I see about it the more I want to go and see it.

Oh, in case you are wondering, it has nothing to do with smoking… also, you may think the trailer seems pretty outlandish but apparently it is all based on a true story.

Jim Carrey plays Steven Russell. Mr. Russell is a happy Christian family man until he suffers a serious car accident. Seemingly out of the blue he decides he is gay and embarks on a life of crime. Presumably the movie does not try to make out that these two changes are related.

So off he goes on a rollercoaster of fraud. Unsurprisingly he ends up in prison and it’s there that he meets the titular Phillip Morris (played by Ewan McGregor) and falls madly in love with him. I gather the rollercoaster continues after than but I’ll leave it there.

I like Jim Carrey and I’m looking forward to seeing him in what seems to be a more developed comedy. He’s a good actor and he needs to be seen in good roles. Ewan McGregor I have no real opinion on but I certainly don’t have anything against him. The trailers look really funny and the advance reports are good so I definitely think this one could be worth a look.

Second film this week is Zonad; an Irish made comedy starring Simon Delaney of Bachelor Walk fame.

To be honest this one could be great or it could be awful, I have no idea. It’s getting a huge push though, what with being Irish and all. I’m gonna be positive and lean to the it’ll be great side of things. It looks pretty funny anyway. Ok, I laughed more at the I Love You Phillip Morris trailer but there’s no reason to hold that against Zonad.

The premise is that, on the night that a comet passes over Ireland, a man appears in a small town claiming to be an alien. Since we’re so welcoming and all everybody loves him and everybody thinks he’s a legend. Or at least as far as I can tell from the trailer. I imagine that all may not be as it seems though. I don’t think this is E.T. or anything.

Truth be told it looks like a fairly standard “aren’t small towns funny” film but as far as I’m concerned if the writing is good and the characters close enough to home then this one should be a winner.

Other films coming out this week in Ireland are…

The Bounty Hunter – Romantic comedy with a bit of action thrown in. Gerard Butler plays a bounty hunter sent out to track down and arrest his ex-wife, played be Jennifer Aniston. I like Gerard Butler so I’m not going to say anything against this one. I’m sure it’s perfectly serviceable.

Old Dogs – From the director of Wild Hogs and Van Wilder comes a family comedy starring John Travolta and Robin Williams. So probably more like Wild Hogs than Van Wilder.

The Spy Next Door – The legendary Jackie Chan plays an ex-CIA agent who’s left in charge of his girlfriend’s three kids. I’m sure action packed hilarity will ensue.

The Scouting Book for Boys – British drama thriller. I’m not sure how to describe it without giving things away but it sounds like it’ll be something like Stand By Me… maybe more in atmosphere than story. Actually if you do see it or you have seen it then let me know if I’m right in thinking that. I’d love to know because I probably won’t get a chance to see it any time soon.

Zonad, I Love You Phillip Morris, The Bounty Hunter, The Spy Next Door, Old Dogs and The Scouting Book for Boys are all in Irish cinemas from Friday 19th March 2010.