Paranoia
Release Date: August 16 Oscar Prospects: Bad Poor, poor Harrison Ford. What happened to you, man? Your ass use to be beautiful. Putting aside the fact that Mr. Ford was the actor who brought two of the most indelible characters in the history of cinema to life in Han Solo and Indiana Jones, Harrison Ford also did brilliant understated work in films like Blade Runner, Witness, and perhaps his most under appreciated performances, Apocalypse Now and The Conversation. Lately though, Mr. Ford's choices of films and his performances in those films have been sketchy at best. Crossing Over, Extraordinary Measures, Morning Glory? I mean, when was the last time you were actually impressed with his performance in a film, Air Force One? In his latest cinematic endeavor, Harrison Ford plays one half of a bitter tech rivalry between mega-corporate billionaires (the other half played by Gary Oldman). The film's protagonist is actually played by Liam Hemsworth, a young, up-and-coming technological whiz-kid who gets caught up in the heated, and apparently deadly, competition between the two tech titans. The premise actually isn't half bad, and the fact the film is based on a novel gives it some added credibility as well, but there are a couple factors that hold me back from having any hope for the movie. First off, the film is directed by Robert Luketic. Haven't heard of him? That's okay, I wouldn't have expected you to, but you have probably seen at least one of his movies. Legally Blonde, The Ugly Truth, Killers... the only thing in his oeuvre that comes anywhere close to this type of material is the MIT/Vegas scam flick, 21, which didn't exactly blow anyone's socks off. Then there is the fact the film is being released in August, which for this type of movie pretty much guarantees the studio thinks it's no good. For these reasons, I can't say I'm expecting much from Paranoia (even with Gary Oldman), and that goes 100% for its Oscar expectations as well. Possible nominations: None