The Marshall plan

New in theaters: Black Christmas, Dreamgirls, The Good German.

New on DVD: The Black Dahlia, Factotum, The Last Kiss.

Merry Christmas and happy holidays everybody. Here is a short version of the blog today, because I realize most devotees of The Filter are either A) Swamped trying to catch up at work after a few days off, B) Busy figuring out how to synchronize their DVD player with their new flat screen TV, or C) In bed with the flu, so I’ll spare everyone the filler.

So, during the Christmas break I saw Rocky Balboa, We Are Marshall and The Good Shepherd. They were surprisingly dramatic and not too bad, inspirational with only a few cheesy lines but still much better than all the Remember The Titans and Glory Roads out there, and confusing but somewhat entertaining … in that order.

Rocky certainly is worth seeing if you’re a fan of the original or were unfortunate enough to see Rocky V. It’ll wash that taste right out of your mouth, even if it isn’t “masterpiece theatre.”

One franchise that has lost its luster recently is the Ocean’s series. That may be because Ocean’s 12 was a letdown (gorgeously photographed and all, but still), or because the kitschy “wow” factor of having Clooney, Pitt and Damon all in the same frame has worn off. Well, here is the trailer for Ocean’s 13, out in theaters June 8. Yes, it’s dumb that Soderbergh just keeps adding a number, but hopefully this is the last ride for the criminally cool crooks. Plus Al Pacino is on hand to chew the scenery and be the best bad guy he can be.

And finally, here is a photo of Keith Richards all pirated up as Captain Jack’s dad. He looks okay, but I think the effects artists went way overboard on his make-up. You can barely tell it’s Keef! He doesn’t need any facial prosthetics, just give him a couple shots of bourbon, slap a bandana on him and shove him in front of the camera! There you go, gold!