By Emily Weikl
Staff Writer
nferno/Sony Pictures-Oct.
28th (Rated PG-13)
Based on author Dan Brown’s 2013 novel Inferno, this upcoming movie references Dante Alighieri’s epic poem that details a journey into hell. Inferno is also the fourth of Brown’s novels that features Robert Langdon, a Harvard professor of symbology, as a main character but only the third to be adapted as a motion picture.
“When Langdon wakes up in an Italian hospital with amnesia, he teams up with Sienna Brooks (Felicity Jones), a doctor he hopes will help him recover his memories,” according to the official movie website. “Together, they race across Europe and against the clock to foil a deadly global plot.”
The cast also includes Tom Hanks, reprising his role as Langdon, Omar Sy as Christoph Bouchard and Ben Foster as Bertrand Zobrist. Ron Howard directs.
Hacksaw Ridge/Lionsgate-Nov. 4th (Rated R)
The two-month battle of Okinawa during World War II resulted in 50,000 casualties for Great Britain and the United States, according to historynet.com. An American soldier named Desmond Doss managed to save 75 men during that battle without carrying a weapon. Doss was a Seventh Day Adventist and did not want to kill.
“As an army medic, he [Doss] single-handedly evacuated the wounded from behind enemy lines, braved fire while tending to soldiers and was wounded by a grenade and hit by snipers,” according to the movie’s website.
Doss was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor by President Harry Truman in October 1945, and was the first time the medal was awarded to a conscientious objector. Andrew Garfield portrays Doss and additional cast includes Teresa Palmer, Sam Worthington and Vince Vaughn.
Loving/Focus Features – Nov. 4th (Rated PG-13)
Since the 1920’s, Virginia had an anti-miscegenation law, which meant couples of mixed races could not marry. Residents Richard Loving and Mildred Jeter, the former white and the latter African-American, married in Washington D.C in 1958 to get around the law. The two were eventually found out.
According to the biography.com profile of Jeter, “When the sheriff demanded to know who Mildred was to Richard, she offered up the answer: ‘I’m his wife.’”
The Lovings pled guilty to violating Virginia’s Racial Integrity Act and their sentences were suspended. The American Civil Liberties Union accepted the Loving’s case to get the law reversed by going to the Virginia Supreme Court, but in 1965 it was unsuccessful.
In 1967, however, Loving v. Virginia made it to the Supreme Court and ruled in favor of the Loving’s and the original law was overturned.
What the Lovings went through is the basis of this film. The movie was shown at the Cannes Film Festival in France.
According to The New York Times, director Jeff Nichols discussed the movie at a press conference.
“I truly believe this is one of the most pure love stories in American history,” Nichols said.
Joel Edgerton and Ruth Negga portray the Lovings.
Doctor Strange/Marvel Studios-
Nov. 4th (Rated PG-13)
The character of Doctor Strange first appeared in 1963’s “Strange Tales #110,” who was described in that issue as a “master of black magic.”
In this movie, after a car accident damages his hands, the neurosurgeon looks for healing in an enclave called Kamar-Taj.
According to Marvel.com, “He quickly learns that this is not just a center for healing but also the front line of a battle against unseen dark forces bent on destroying our reality. Before long, Strange – armed with newly acquired magical powers – is forced to choose whether to return to his life of fortune and status or leave it behind to defend the world as the most powerful sorcerer in existence.”
In December 2014, Benedict Cumberbatch was chosen to star as the lead. Scott Derrickson directs, and the movie also stars Chiwetal Ejiofor and Rachel McAdams.
Trolls/Dreamworks- Nov. 4th (Rated PG)
Troll Dolls were invented in 1959 by Danish woodworker Thomas Dam.
“They were originally called Dam Dolls and were made of wood, with wooden hair and glass eyes. Imitations made of plastic were released in North America and became popular,” Time writer Allie Townsend explained.
According to Dreamworks, “After the Bergens invade Troll Village, Poppy (Anna Kendrick), the happiest Troll ever born, and the overly-cautious curmudgeon Branch (Justin Timberlake) set off on a journey to rescue her friends. Together, this mismatched duo embarks on a rescue mission full of adventure and mishaps.”
Music is a big part of the movie, with original music by Gwen Stefani and notable songs from the 1960’s to the 1980’s. The cast also includes Zooey Deschanel, Russell Brand and John Cleese.
