Wizards, Gorillas and Cash: Hollywood wants you this fall and winter

Been to the movies much lately?

According to current trends in box office sales, your answer is probably no. Ticket sales have been dropping steadily since 2002, seemingly with no end in sight. The drop in revenue has the movie industry scrambling to find the source of this problem, as well as to concoct new means to get the butt of you, the viewer, back in their seats.

If you were to ask the average moviegoer why his attendance has lapsed in recent years, you're likely to get many of the same old gripes about the theater experience that have always been around-the tickets are too expensive and the concessions are overpriced.

It's true that ticket and popcorn prices have raised steadily over the past few years to make up for the lost revenue. However, when has there ever been a period of time where movie tickets were inexpensive and popcorn was reasonably priced? Not in my lifetime.

High ticket prices and the people who complain about them are an ingrained part of the theater-going experience.

I'm sure that even back at the Globe theater they had pimply peasants trying to get you to shell out a Toppin more to megasize the bowl of gruel and mug of watery ale you've already paid a weeks wage for.

So the answer to this elusive question must be somewhat more subtle. Many people point to the speedy release of films onto DVD. Where you used to have to wait up to a year to own your own copy of your favorite newly released films, now it only takes a few months for new films to hit the shelves at Hastings.

I'd like to believe that the drop off in movie patronage is a result of the lack of originality in Hollywood these days. With most of the major film releases of this summer being either rehashing of old films -"Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," "War of the Worlds," "Mr. and Mrs. Smith," "The Longest Yard," "Herbie," or film version of television shows older their target audiences-"Dukes of Hazzard," "Bewitched," "The Honeymooners" - there is a distinct shortage of new ideas coming from the Hollywood Hills.

This is perhaps our own fault, for all of you who rushed out to see "Scooby Doo" or "Starsky & Hutch." Filmmakers thought, "Hey, this is great, we don't have to think anymore."

But after a few years of "Charlie's Angels" and "The Time Machine" remakes, I think (I hope) that the moviegoing public has grown tired of the phoned in storylines.

So after what has turned out to be one of the worst summers in recent memory in terms of box office revenue, the movie industry is scrambling to break out of its financial slump with a jazzed-up fall/winter movie selection.

The Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday weekends are some of the biggest movie draws of the year. That along with the Oscars coming up at the beginning of the year, we see a switch from flash-and-grab action films to more serious cinematic endeavors. But with more remakes/adaptation formulas on the horizon, will it be enough to get you back?

Contrary to what we've grown accustomed to in recent years, this winter will see very little in the way of sequels. With the "LOTR," "Star Wars" and "The Matrix" trilogies all having run their course, cinematic series have become scarce.

There are, however, a few standout sequels coming to a theater near you. The first of these, "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire," is also pretty much the only surefire hit to materialize this winter.

Sure, the films have dropped in popularity slightly as of late, but only down a step from "insanely popular film" to "mega blockbuster hit." With the inexplicable popularity of the novels and the universal appeal to both young and old audiences alike, there is little doubt that this film will score big.

Last year's sleeper hit horror movie "Saw" will also be resurrected this fall, just in time for Halloween. I'm not sure how I feel about this. I thoroughly enjoyed the first film and admittedly am interested in the possibility of a sequel. But I'm afraid that this film will just be an uninspired rehashing of all the same themes of the first film in an attempt for a quick box office buck.

As hard as we may try, we still can't get away from the remakes. This winter, the theme seems to be instead of remaking crappy old television shows, lets remake well established films to capture a new audience with old material.

Topping this list are "All the Kings Men" which took home the best picture Oscar in 1949, and "The Producers," which won the Best Screenplay award in 1969.

Can these two remakes outdo their predecessors? Probably not. Can they garnish instant box office bucks? You betcha.

Also in remakes, Peter Jackson returns this Christmas, but he's traded in orcs for apes. Coming from Jackson, I'd like to think that this remake of "King Kong" will be done in his usual epic fashion. But the truth is, I think we need another "King Kong" movie like we need a third term from W.

But the main theme as always in winter films is the Oscar grabs. The crippling, sorrowful dramas. The uplifting, inspirational films. The biographical epics. This winter is no exception.

Roman Polanski hits early with his much anticipated adaptation of Charles Dickens classic novel "Oliver Twist." Also in statuette-grabbing literary adaptations are yet another film version of "Pride & Prejudice," this time with Keira Knightley in the lead.

In more contemporary literature, bestselling novel "Memoirs of a Geisha" will likely be an epic story, but without "Crouching Tiger" swordplay it likely wont get much attention. Also, the movie version of the Broadway hit "Rent" will try to capitalize on the "Chicago"-musical-to-box-office-gold formula for instant cinematic success. Also in the stage-to-cinema category the drama "Proof" starring Oscar-heavies Anthony Hopkins and Gwyneth Paltrow hoping to gutwrench themselves an Oscar nod.

Many other familiar faces will be gazing out longingly at you during the next set of movie trailers you are subject to. Dreamy Jake Gyllenhaal plays a gay cowboy, a desert storm trooper, and a math student (no not in the same movie) in hopes that at least one will land him a seat at the grownups table on Oscar night.

"It" girl Charlize Theron returns in the tearjerker based-on-a-true-story-plight-of-one-woman-in-a-male-run-world "North County."

Biographies are also due to make a big splash this winter. Heath Ledger probably wont make cinematic history in his depiction of Giacomo Casanova in the film "Casanova." However, Philip Seymour Hoffman's portrayal of Truman Capote in the upcoming film "Capote" is already creating Oscar buzz.

Also, Joaquin Phoenix is garnishing an equal amount of attention in the role of the legendary Johnny Cash in "Walk the Line."

Oscar juggernaut Tom Hanks isn't in anything this winter, but will likely manage to go home with a few naked little gold statues, anyway.