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The Last House on the Left – Opens Spring 2009

We've already been forced to bear a fair share (say that five times fast) of horror movie remakes in recent years. This much is true. But what separates The Last House on the Left from a lot of recently released schlock is it actually looks pretty appealing.

In the Wes Craven-produced project – he made his directing debut with the 1972 original – a band of friends have an unfortunate run-in with two murderers, who attempt to off one of them by leaving a girl for dead in a pool of water. Once the murderers force the teens to let them crash in one of their homes, the girl in the water reawakens...and seeks revenge.

Featuring a surprise, somewhat moving cover of Guns N Roses' "Sweet Child o' Mine" from Taken By Trees, the trailer makes the movie look super intense, especially once the resurrected girl starts busting some ass back home. And it's good to see Monica Potter in the cast. She was one of the lone things I liked about Saw – way back when the franchise wasn't a Halloween weekend staple.

Grade: A-

My Life in Ruins – Opens May 8th

Hey, Nia Vardalos! We've missed you. Appearing in her first film since the phenomenon that was My Big Fat Greek Wedding – I'm doing her the favor of skipping over Connie and Carla entirely – Nia is back...and this time in Greece.

Vardalos, who co-wrote the screenplay with Mike Reiss (of The Simpsons fame), stars here as Georgia, a Greek-American tour guide who leads oddball tourists across the country. And at seemingly every turn, something goes wrong, be it mechanical issues on the bus, mishaps at the hotels, and so on. Georgia's love life could also use a reboot.

That's where Richard Dreyfuss' character, Irv Gordon, comes into play. He teaches her to relax, have some fun and even give the supposed loser guys a chance...like her screwy, quiet Greek bus driver (Alexis Georgoulis). (As we learned in Not Another Teen Movie, it hardly takes any effort to turn an ugly duckling into a sexy, Greek swan).

This one looks cute. And like My Big Fat Greek Wedding, My Life in Ruins is backed by Tom Hanks.

Grade: B
Also expected to be released on this date: Star Trek XI, Wild Child

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