"10 Years" trailer pushes breakout ensemble

To say that "10 Years" is the final lynchpin in the year of Channing Tatum might turn out to be true, but the trailer pitches it more strongly as an intentional ensemble piece. A high school reunion flick, the film pushes Tatum alongside Justin Long, Kate Mara, Chris Pratt, Brian Geraghty, Anthony Mackie, Rosario Dawson, Aubrey Plaza, but perhaps most interesting of all being Oscar Isaac. The actor has been in the post for a major surge in his career to push him towards definite stardom, not unlike many of the other actors featured in this film.

Kate Mara has been making her way with small roles since coming closest to the public eye in "127 Hours". Chris Pratt has tempered his comedic work with dramatic stabs in "Moneyball" and the upcoming "Zero Dark Thirty". Brian Geraghty has been pretty much MIA since a strong breakthrough with "The Hurt Locker", also featuring Anthony Mackie. "10 Years" feels like a film meant to do one thing, that being to nudge these worthy actors ever so closer to the spotlight, and it seems to be doing it in a supremely "nice" way. I can see it playing with audiences much the same way "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel" did. Take a look at the trailer after the jump!

THE LISTS: Best performances of 2012 thus far

At this point I have a tendency of wondering if we're really at the halfway point of this year already. It's true that often times this period of the year is marked by a stunt of intellectual cinematic properties and an abundance of blockbuster diversions. This year, however, it seems like things are just heating up exponentially with a rush of quality cinema. The past two weeks alone have offered not just one, but two films that may qualify the best of the year. But if I'm to be perfectly honest, the last thing I feel like doing at this point is putting the films to task in an effort to rank them. I leave the placing of favorites as a year end routine.

What's more, we're still waiting on plenty of films that seem ever so slightly outside our reach and prove to dramatically change the order of anyone's lists at this time. In just two weeks time we'll finally be able to take in Christopher Nolan's "The Dark Knight Rises", putting an end to suffocating fanboy hype and finally giving us a chance to judge it on its own humble merits. I'm waiting in eager anticipation to see how Yorgos Lanthimos' "Alps" turns out, since that's the real ticket premiere of this month, at least from where I'm looking. And we know that Venice, Telluride, and Toronto are just around the corner with more to bring to the table.

Film Review: "Magic Mike" (****)

Matthew McConaughey takes the stage, back to the camera as he takes his passion to the crowd of screaming girls. As he peruses his own body, gloriously drinking in the glory of himself as the audience is, he repeatedly asks the question, "Can you touch this?" That seems to be the question that Soderbergh and company are faced with in "Magic Mike", as everyone is heading into this with certain preconceptions regarding what they will be seeing. I walked in knowing nothing other than the simple fact of Channing Tatum playing a male stripper, which seems like such a coy play for laughs, and could easily end up as such in another world.

Fascinatingly enough, the thing that puts "Magic Mike" automatically on the right course is the least thing you'd be expecting, that being Channing Tatum. The word that this film takes cues from Tatum's earlier career has not escaped audiences, but that brings a certain honesty to the table that would otherwise not exist. Even more respectable of Tatum is his refusal to put himself at the center of this world, building other elements to the world Mike inhabits. The film is absolutely his story, but everyone involved is working desperately to remove that imposition, not for the loss of personality, but for the sake of the audience it is made for.

Quick Takes: "21 Jump Street", "Iron Man 2", "Captain America"

"21 Jump Street"

Directed by Phil Lord & Chris Miller

Channing Tatum has been a massive anomaly and point of confusion since the start of his existence. He's not especially influential in his action roles, and plain sappy and dull in his romantic roles. The guy simply was not meant for serious work, so it's no mistake that "21 Jump Street" finally gives the guy something that he can thrive in. Spinning off of the old television show, it ultimately ignores that small fact to embrace something funnier and more interesting. The high school stereotypes of old have changed dramatically in years recent, and the power structure of schools is less and less with jocks, and more with charismatic members of band and drama.

"21 Jump Street" is not at all about intensity, and is more about two polar opposite personalities having to come to terms with aspects of themselves that they have not realized before. Jonah Hill often times falls to idiocy in comedic roles, but the man is on a mean streak recently. "Moneyball" showed that he had serious chops in him, and this film gives him some sweet and affectionate chemistry work between him and Tatum. As said before, Tatum is the guy who truly rocks this film. His typically dopey work is hilariously on time here, and the guy really is a born comedic actor. Don't be afraid to defame yourself Tatum. It may be where you belong! And Brie Larson is just darling. The girl had me at hello.

For Your Anticipation: Finding The Lost Eagle

This the point in which people start deciding what they should see this weekend, as opposed to what they will see this weekend. There are plenty poor choices that I do not plan on consigning to at all, including this Channing Tatum vehicle. The Eagle is directed by Kevin MacDonald, most well known for making The Last King of Scotland, so it has a credible backbone to it. In all likelihood, this is the film you should see this weekend. Tatum's involvement is one of the only things keeping my from buying into it, because I just don't find the actor compelling in the slightest.