Yes, No, Maybe So: "Monuments Men"

Weep not for the embedded trailer I was going to use to discuss Monuments Men which vanished moments before I hit "publish". Trailers are not works of art we must protect from the Nazis so it's okay if they regularly get yanked or are seen in non-embeddable ways. They are but commercials for movies that we hope are works of art themselves. If you'd like to see the trailer to George Clooney's latest Oscar missile, click here.

I keep meaning to read the bestseller this film is based on but it basically about a group of older men on a special war time mission. They make like thieving soldiers to steal art from the Nazis before its destroyed.

YES

• Run, Jean Dujardin, run!
• Shoot Nazis, Bob Balaban, shoot 'em! [more...]

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Yes, No, Maybe So: "American Hustle"

If the movie year has been uninspired thus far -- and what honest assessment of mainstream cinema wouldn't come to that conclusion? -- things will undoubtedly be looking up as we move out of the season of movies with only one thing on their mind (profit) and arrive at movies with at least two things knocking around in their heads (awards and profit) but hopefully more. I haven't been much interested in American Hustle up till now (for various reasons) but it dropped a grabby tease of a commercial yesterday so let's play the Yes No Maybe So game and decide how badly we want to see it now that there's something to get a hold of.

...like any part of Amy Adams, just pick one! The trailer and three-pronged breakdown after the jump...

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'Yes, No, Maybe So' Blow-Out Special

Trailers everywhere! At the movies and at home this weekend I saw a whole slew of trailers and realized I hadn't written about any of them. So let's catch up with super quick trifurcated thoughts on five forthcoming features (The Grandmaster, Blue Jasmine, Out of the Furnace, Oldboy, and Runner Runner) via their current trailers.

Are you aching to see any of these movies, eager to avoid them, or withholding judgment until you see reviews? Don't be shy, lurkers. Speak your three-part thoughts in the comments.

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Yes, No, Maybe So: "12 Years a Slave"

One of our 'Most Awaited Titles of 2013' has long been 12 Years A Slave and very little of that anticipatory impatience is due to its arguable Oscar Baitiness (but yes, I've predicted it for several things back when the April Fools Predix arrived). No, ninety percent of the excitement comes by way of its director (Steve McQueen) who has yet to make a movie that's anything less than unmissable. True, he's only made two features and one of them has its very vocal detractors but if you missed Hunger or Shame it's your loss. They're two of the most striking features of the 21st century 

For his third feature he's reunited with his muse Michael Fassbender but this time the focus is on another actor, Chiwetel Ejiofor who has long been on the bubble to major stardom. 

Will this potentially potent period drama do the trick? Our Yes, No, Maybe So breakdown follows...

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There are Seven Shots of Julianne Moore in the Seventh Son Trailer. Just Saying.

I don't have the heart to do a "yes no maybe so" on the trailer for The Seventh Son, the latest fantasy epic would be franchise (there are more of them each month) because the movie has been moved to January. But it does co-star Julianne Moore as the sorceress Mother Malkin and the trailer does use her voiceover in a very Queen-Ravenna-in-Snow-White-and-Huntsman-trailer kind of way. So there's that.

Coincidentally (?) there are seven shots of our goddess in the trailer.  

THE SEVEN SHOTS

1. "Did you miss me?".... Mother Malkin materialize from the air and slinks towards Jeff Bridges Vocal Affectation. Oh Juli, in theory we always miss you but since you are one of the hardest working women in showbiz we seldom have to.

six more after the jump

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