Travolta, Crowe will make your pulse race

What is the movie version of a triple espresso? How about a flick where Jason Stratham has to jolt himself back to life while pursuing his missing heart? Or maybe Denzel Washington saving New York subway passengers from hijacker John Travolta would give you a buzz. Need fast cars? Vin Diesel and Paul Walker once again get revved up. Russell Crow and Ben Affleck check in with a political thriller. Beyonce plays an angry wife set on revenge. And “Buffy the Vampire  Slayer” fans should check out “Dragonball Evolution,” which features Spike actor James Marsters.

“The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3”

Free video   ‘The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3’: June 12 Denzel Washington stars as New York City subway dispatcher, whose ordinary day is thrown into chaos by an audacious crime: the hijacking of a subway train MSNBC

Starring: Denzel Washington, John Travolta, John Turturro, Luis Guzman, Michael Rispoli, James Gandolfini
Director: Tony Scott
Story: Washington stars as subway dispatcher Zachary Garber, whose normal workday is interrupted when a group of hijackers led by Mr. Blue (Travolta) hijack a New York subway train. Mr. Blue wants to trade the hostages for money, and it’s up to civil servant Garber to play the hero and make sure the hostages get off the train safely.
Worth seeing? Maybe. This film is a remake of the 1974 film with Robert Shaw in the Travolta role and Walter Matthau in the Washington role. Will the idea of hijacking a subway hold up in the post-9/11 era? “I wrote many drafts to try and put it in the present day and keep all the great execution that was there from the first one,” screenwriter David Koepp told MTV. “It’s 30 years later so you have to take certain things into account.” This is director Scott’s fourth collaboration with Washington (“Déjà vu,” “Man on Fire” and “Crimson Tide”) and the partnership has produced some fun if not groundbreaking action flicks.
Web site: http://www.catchthetrain.com/
Release date: June 12

“State of Play”

Video   ‘State of Play’: April 17 Based on the BBC miniseries, Ben Affleck and Russell Crowe star as a politician and a journalist caught up in a story of murder, conspiracy and betrayal.

Starring: Russell Crowe, Ben Affleck, Rachel McAdams, Robin Wright Penn, Jason Bateman, Jeff Daniels, Helen Mirren
Director: Kevin Macdonald
Story: Crowe stars as reporter Cal McAffrey, who gets drawn into the case of a murdered woman when he learns it could involve his friend, Congressman Stephen Collins (Affleck). McAdams co-stars as Della Frye, the reporter McAffrey teams with to write the story, while Penn co-stars as Congressman Collins’ wife, who finds herself drawn to McAffrey.
Worth seeing? Worth a look. This film is based on the fantastic BBC miniseries of the same name and it’s hard to believe the director will be able to cram those six hours of intricate plotting into one movie. Four separate screenwriters took a crack at this story (including “Bourne Ultimatum” writer Tony Gilroy and “Frost/Nixon’s” Peter Morgan). Brad Pitt was supposed to play Crowe’s role initially and Ed Norton was set to take on Affleck’s role until delays struck the project. Director Macdonald is best known for helming “The Last King of Scotland,” and his terrific documentary, “Touching the Void.”
Web site: http://www.stateofplaymovie.net/
Release date: April 17

“Fast & Furious”

Video   ‘Fast & Furious’: April 3 Vin Diesel, Paul Walker and Michelle Rodriguez return for this reboot to the action series.

Starring: Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Michelle Rodriguez, Jordana Brewster, John Ortiz, Laz Alonso
Director: Justin Lin
Story: The tagline says it all: “New Model. Original Parts.” Diesel, Rodriguez, Brewster and Walker all return (although one of these stars reportedly has much less time than the others). Brian O’Conner (Walker) is released from prison and teams up with Dom Toretto (Diesel) to bring down a heroin ring.
Worth seeing? If you like this sort of thing, you’re probably going to like this film. Walker told Collider.com, “I came back for the fun and hanging out, getting paid, doing it again, you know?” Hey, at least he’s honest. Director Lin returns from “The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift” and brings Sung Kang with him to reprise his role as Han Lue.
Web site: http://www.fastandfuriousmovie.net/
Release date: April 3

“Crank: High Voltage”

Video   ‘Crank: High Voltage’: April 17 Hopped-up hitman Chev Chelios must find a Chinese gangster who substituted his heart with a mechanical one that needs to be jolted with an electric charge to stay pumping.

Starring: Jason Statham, Amy Smart, Dwight Yoakam, Efren Ramirez, Clifton Collins Jr., Bai Ling
Director: Mark Neveldine, Brian Taylor
Story: The action picks up just where the first film ended when Chev (Statham) is kidnapped by a Chinese gang of medics who replace his heart with an electronic temporary one. Once Chev breaks free he must find the gang who has stolen his heart, while shocking himself with regular jolts of electricity to stay alive.
Worth seeing? Yes. The first film was a whole lot of ADHD-style fun. Statham told IGN.com, “It's so out there. It's so wacky. It's so unbelievable, but at the same time it's the Neveldine and Taylor edgy, mad filmmaking that they do so well.” He added that his initial reaction to the sequel’s script was, “This is absolutely silly! When do we make it?” It’s hard not to love the giddiness of this series.
Web site: NA
Release date: April 17

“Obsessed”

Video   'Obsessed': April 24 Idris Elba stars as married businessman who makes the mistake of getting involved with a temp (Ali Larter) who becomes obsessed with him. Beyonce Knowles co-stars.

Starring: Idris Elba, Beyonce Knowles, Ali Larter, Bruce McGill, Jerry O'Connell, Christine Lahti
Director: Steve Shill
Story: Everything is going well for asset manager Derek Charles (Elba) until temp worker Lisa (Lartner) begins stalking him. Suddenly, everything he holds dear, including his marriage to Sharon (Knowles), is in jeopardy.
Worth seeing? No. Beyonce told Vogue that the film was a welcome change. “It was so great for me to be able to release everything,” she said. This looks like the standard “Hand That Rocks the Cradle,” “Fatal Attraction”-type thriller. The film almost promises to have some unintentional, campy laughs. Shill is mostly known for directing TV and worked on the Elba-starring “The Wire,” as well as “Dexter” and “The Tudors.”
Web site: http://www.areyouobsessed.com/
Release date: April 24

“Dragonball Evolution”
Starring: Justin Chatwin, James Marsters, Jamie Chung, Emmy Rossum, Eriko Tamura, Joon Park, Chow Yun-Fat
Director: James Wong
Story: Goku (Chatwin) is a powerful warrior who protects Earth from a group of villains, including the evil Lord Piccolo (Marsters), who wants to control the seven mystical Dragon Balls. Master Roshi (Yun-Fat) is Goku’s reluctant mentor who trains him for his battle with Piccolo.
Worth seeing? No. The film is based on Akira Torikyama’s popular manga series of the same name. The series has also spawned trading cards and video games. Marsters (“Buffy the Vampire Slayer”) must be a fan because he told Total Sci Fi, “I would rather have been fired than mess up Piccolo.” Marsters also told IGN.com, “(The film has) a Shakespearean sense of good and evil and there are incredible action scenes with characters of unbelievable power.” However, creator Torikyama sounded a bit skeptical when he told The Oricon, “As the original creator, I had a feeling of ‘Huh?’ upon seeing the screenplay and the character designs.”
Web site: http://www.dragonballthemovie.com/
Release date: April 8

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