Gates Picks: This week's new releases

Simpsons

1. The Simpsons Movie (3,922 Theaters): I am of mixed opinions on this. I love the Simpsons. Love love love the Simpsons. I have yet to jump on the "the Simpsons have been going downhill for the last several years" bandwagon. All I know is that when I tune in, I get a chuckle or two out of the show.

That being said, I have my doubts about the movie. Like, how will it be different than the TV show? From what I heard, there will be some Bart nudity. And, frankly, that will not be enough for me.

It not like other TV to Movie adaptations where you have a bigger budget which means bigger sets, special effects and locations. The Simpsons is animated. Drawing France on the big screen costs no more or less than drawing France on the little screen.

I will probably go to see it. And it has recieved a 81% fresh rating from Rotten Tomatoes.   Which is a good thing.

The plot has been kept secret and none of the previews that I saw have given much a hint. The IMDB page for the movie says that the plot involves Homer dumping nuclear waste into Springfield's river, causing the town to possibly have to relocate. Oh, and that Tom Hanks plays himself in the movie.

No reservations

2. No Reservations (2,425 Theaters): This is weird. An Oscar Winner (Zeta-Jones), an Oscar nomineee (Abigail Breslin) and a Golden Globe Nominee (Eckhart) in a little piffle of a romantic comedy.

Not only is this film a remake of a German film (Mostly Martha) but the entire concept is not original. A high-powered business woman is forced to take care of a child, and love develops while she struggles in her guardianship role? Wasn't this essentially the plot of Baby Boom?

But I do like the actors involved. Zeta-Jones hasn't done much since winning the Oscar, but I think that she's a good actress. Eckhart has been good in everything I've seen him in so far (can't wait to see him in The Dark Knight). And Breslin held her own in Little Miss Sunshine.

Unfortunately, reviewers have not been kind to the flick. Rotten Tomatoes has it at only 44% positive. And even the good reviews don't gush over it. They call it "nice" and "simple". Not a ringing endorsement by any means.

I know who killed me

3. I Know Who Killed Me (1,200+ Theaters): And then there's this one. Poor Lindsay Lohan. If getting pulled over chasing the mother of your personal assistant while drunk and having cocaine in your pocket wasn't bad enough, your latest movie, which opens the same week, wasn't even submitted to be reviewed. That is a very, very bad sign.

You know, I have a little bit more sympathy for Lindsay than I do for Paris. Because Lindsay has a modicum of talent and a boatload of potential, which she is just throwing away.

That doesn't mean that her antics this week will in anyway help her movie at all. Not that we really know all that much about it.

All I know is that she plays a stripper in the film. Which, if she wasn't a total wreck, might have been enough to draw the horny frat boys in. The confusing story deals with her escaping from a serial killer, presumed to be another person, but the real person is still in danger.

If that sentence didn't make sense to you, sorry. But I really can't be bother trying to explain it more.

Who's your caddy

 4. Who's Your Caddy? (1, 019 Theaters): Here's something that might tragically become a trend. Let's take a classic 1980's comedy (say, like, Caddyshack) insert an ethic group (say, like, African-Americans) and rerelease it as a new movie with a slightly sterotypical name (say, like, Who's Your Caddy?).

I mean, basically, what this film is, with Big Boi playing the Rodney Dangerfield part.

I mean, the spirit is the same, the underdog dealing with prejudice from the rich elite and overcoming, only this time with poor upbringing being replaced by skin color. But that doesn't excuse the lack of originality.

 What's next? Will "Meatballs" turn into "Crunk Camp"? "Police Academy" into "Fuzz-izzle for Shizzile"? "Ghostbusters" into "I Ain't Afraid of No Ghosts?"

People criticize Hollywood for a lack of originality, with all the adaptations from novels, TV shows and comics. Not to mention the trend for sequels and remakes, which Who's Your Caddy essentially is. This movie makes me think those critics might have a point.

So, how do I think the top five will look like?

1. The Simpsons Movie
2. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
3. I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry.
4. No Reservations
5. Hairspray

I think the Simpsons will be on top when it's all said and done. I think Harry will sneak past Chuck and Larry. I think No Reservations will have enough to make the top five and I Know Who Killed Me and Who's Your Caddy? will be way out of the top 5, if not out of the top 10.