Monthly Movie Preview – September 2010 The summer movie season is now over. But don't start saving all of your movie-going money for the winter award season just yet. There are plenty of films coming out this month that have some specialness to them, and are therefore more likely to be worthy of your movie-going attention.

On the mainstream circuit, we've got scheduled a full-length feature version of the Grindhouse trailer for Machete, a fourth Resident Evil film, a teen comedy starring breakout Emma Stone, a horror movie "from the mind of M. Night Shyamalan," and more! As for the limited releases, September is giving us two directorial debuts - Casey Affleck's I'm Still Here and Philip Seymour Hoffman's Jack Goes Boating, along with other notable releases like Mark Romanek's Never Let Me Go. Lest we not forget, that-movie-with-Van-Wilder-in-a-box, Buried, is also finally coming out at the end of the month.

Fall is here, but the plethora of curious-looking movies usually felt by the days of summer doesn't seem to have stopped. So, whether I write about some of these films or not, it looks like I'll be going to my local multiplex a lot this month.

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September 3

Movie of the Week

The American

The Stars: George Clooney, Irina Bjorklund, Paolo Bonicelli The Plot: An assassin (Clooney) needs to lie low in Italy, but trouble keeps finding him. The Buzz: From the look of the trailer, this Anton Corbijn-directed movie looks to be pretty artsy (which is semi-confirmed by Jeff Bayer's review that says it "slow"). But, this movie does have one hell of a force that can move it to mainstream viewers, and that force is George Clooney.

The Others:

Going the Distance - Justin Long, Drew Barrymore, Christina Applegate, Charlie Day, Jason Sudeikis Machete - Danny Trejo, Steven Seagal, Robert De Niro, Lindsay Lohan, Jessica Alba

September 10

Movie of the Week

Resident Evil: Afterlife

The Stars: Milla Jovovich, Ali Larter, Sergio Peris-Mencheta The Plot: The fourth film in the zombie-action series based on the popular video game. The Buzz: Yes, 3-D has powers. Not only can it make your head hurt and take away more of your money than any bad movie ever should, but it can bring a franchise out of Extinction and into a curious Afterlife. Without using "the same technology from Avatar" there's no way a Resident Evil movie could have found its way into the IMAX 3-D screen circuit. But here it is, blasting into screens. Who knows how much staying power it will have, however, even if its got the power of IMAX 3-D.

The Others:

I'm Still Here - Joaquin Phoenix The Virginity Hit - Matt Bennett, Zack Pearlman, Jacob Davich The Romantics - Katie Holmes, Anna Paquin, Josh Duhamel, Malin Akerman, Adam Brody, Elijah Wood

September 17

Movie of the Week

The Town

The Stars: Ben Affleck, Jon Hamm, Jeremy Renner, Blake Lively, Rebeccca Hall, Chris Cooper The Plot: A bank robber struggles with the feelings he has towards a teller from an earlier mission, while at the same time trying to elude the FBI. The Buzz: The "town" in question is Charleston, MA, and the director is ... Ben Affleck. But before any scoffs burst from your mouth, just remember how "wicked pissah" Gone Baby Gone was. The tables have turned slightly as Affleck has now thrown his presence into the mix, but he will be working with a cast more solid than the 2004 Red Sox lineup - Jon Hamm ("Mad Men"), Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker), and Rebecca Hall (Vicky Christina Barcelona).

The Others:

Never Let Me Go - Carey Mulligan, Andrew Garfield, Keira Knightley Easy A - Emma Stone, Cam Gigandet, Stanley Tucci, Lisa Kudrow, Thomas Haden Church Devil - Geoffrey Arend, Chris Messina, Logan Marshall-Green Jack Goes Boating - Philip Seymour Hoffman, John Ortiz, Amy Ryan

September 24

Movie of the Week

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps

The Stars: Michael Douglas, Shia LeBeouf, Josh Brolin, Carey Mulligan The Plot: A sequel to the 1986 film Wall Street, in which "greed is good" was the mantra posited by sneaky corporate tyrant Gordon Gekko (Douglas). The Buzz: We aren't sure who ordered the sequel to Wall Street, but this looks to be a second film that will be worthy of an existence, if just for the comparison it will make to the economic times that the first movie thrived on, while commenting on our own. Douglas is back as the mischievous Gekko, and LaBeouf, formerly known as a whippersnapper running away from something, will be taking on his first big dramatic role, without the help of any CGI robots.

The Others:

You Again - Kristen Bell, Odette Yustman, Sigourney Weaver, Betty White, Jamie Lee Curtis Buried - Ryan Reynolds Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole - Ryan Kwanten, Hugo Weaving, Sam Neill