Spring Movie Preview

Sick of deciding between Revolutionary Road and Paul Blart: Mall Cop? Well, the spring movie season is upon us, and I've compiled ten movies I'm excited to see. Now, spring doesn't have the blockbusters of the summer or the pedigree of the fall (and I'll likely strike most of these from the list as reviews come in), but that doesn't mean some diamonds can't be found in the rough.

Coraline (February 6th)
From the real director of The Nightmare Before Christmas (no, it wasn't Tim Burton), Coraline shares Nightmare's alternate world style fantasy and fantastic visuals. Plus this time there's Neil Gaiman as source material and 3D. Given the great reviews, Coraline looks like the best argument that February isn't all Oscar leftovers.

Gomorrah (February 13th)
Italy's snubbed submission for Best Foreign Film has been called the best mob movie since The Godfather by just about everyone who's seen it. What higher praise do you need?

Watchmen (March 6th)
If you've read the graphic novel or seen the trailers, you don't need me to tell you this is the biggest movie of the spring. The movie is also intriguingly cast, featuring Jackie Earle Haley, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, and Patrick Wilson. If a dark tale of outlawed superheroes isn't your thing, best stay out of the way of the book's obsessive fans.

Duplicity (March 20th)
Tony Gilroy's follow up to Michael Clayton, this one looks a bit lighter with Julia Roberts and Clive Owen as former spies exploiting two competing companies. The trailer makes this look like a lot of fun, and I'll see Clive Owen in just about anything. Maybe even The International.

I Love You, Man (March 20th)
While looking for a Best Man for his wedding to Rashida Jones, Paul Rudd becomes bffs with Jason Segel. While not actually affiliated with Judd Apatow, the Rudd/Segel pairing should make this a no-brainer for Apatow fans.

Monsters vs. Aliens (March 27th)
These CGI kids movies can definitely go either way, but I like what I've seen so far. A voice cast consisting of Stephen Colbert, Kiefer Sutherland, Will Arnett, Paul Rudd, Reese Witherspoon, Hugh Laurie, Seth Rogen, and Rainn Wilson also doesn't hurt.

17 Again (April 17th)
This is probably the movie from this list I'm least likely to see, but I couldn't disappoint Zac Efron fans excited to see him back onscreen. Personally, I'm more interested in Matthew Perry's return to film and the Big-in-reverse concept.

State of Play (April 17th)
I couldn't tell you what this is about, but I do know it's based on a supposedly awesome British miniseries, the cast is stacked (Russell Crowe, Rachel McAdams, Ben Affleck, Jason Bateman), and the trailer looks really intense. That's enough for me.

The Informers (April 24th)
Early word from Sundance says this LA-in-the-80s set drama is more Rules of Attraction than American Psycho on the Bret Easton Ellis adaptation scale. But given my love for Ellis' books (and an appropriately 80s-nostalgic cast featuring Kim Basinger, Mickey Rourke, and Winona Ryder), that's certainly not enough to deter me.

The Soloist (April 24th)
I usually say nothing is worse than failed Oscarbait (the movie was pushed from November to April), but Robert Downey Jr. and Jamie Foxx could change my mind.