Movie Releases, 3/31

Sort of late this week, but there's still time to inform everyone of the new movies.

Clearly, the movie everyone has been waiting for this weekend is Basic Instinct 2. This long-delayed sequel (14 years after the original) stars the now 48-year-old Stone, who does indeed still look dynamite. Subbing for Michael Douglas is David Morrissey. The original launched a million copycat late-night Cinemax softcore flicks--but the 1992 hit, directed by Paul Verhoeven, was much better than those even though the draw was, to quote Philip Baker Hall in Boogie Nights, "To see people fuckin' on film." The trailer looks nothing much better than those copycats, and the long period of time between the two reeks of Legend of Zorro staleness.

And, yes, this weekend has room for another sequel. Ice Age 2: The Meltdown. The first, which came out in 2002, was Fox's answer to Pixar, and it wasn't very good. But the movie went on to gross an astounding $176 million. John Leguizamo, Ray Romano, and Denis Leary return along with a gaggle of other voices like Queen Latifah.

And these films saw an overcrowded market, and said, "Me too!" ATL, which is the abbreviation for Atlanta, is a story about growing up and avoiding life's pitfalls and such, and there's something about rollerskating in it. It's got Outkast's Big Boi, Keith David, and Mykelti Williamson as the familiar names--but it's mostly about the younger crowd.

Also, the campy Slither arrives in theatres this weekend, starring "Firefly" and Serenity captain Nathan Fillion as well as ultra-hottie Elizabeth Banks. This is about wormlike aliens possessing people and making them into zombies. James Gunn of Troma fame and one of their sick-to-the-stomach entries Tromeo & Juliet, writes and directs. From the producers of 2004's Dawn of the Dead. This might be fun.

But what a strange weekend. Something for everyone here. The horny, the prepubescent, horror geeks, and rollerskating drama fanatics can all be seen at the theatre this weekend. Enjoy!