New Movie Releases — December 2012

It's a winter wonderland outside (kind of), so it's time to head inside and take in one of the great movies December has to offer. We've got epic fantasy, engaging action, and even some stuff for the whole family to enjoy.

December 7

'Playing for Keeps' -- Directed by Gabriele Muccino. Starring Gerard Butler, Jessica Biel, and Dennis Quaid. A former sports star tries to redeem himself by coaching his son's soccer team.

'Deadfall' (Limited) -- Directed by Stefan Ruznowitzky. Starring Eric Bana, Olivia Wilde, and Charlie Hunnam. When their casino heist goes awry, a brother and sister split up and find themselves reunited during another family's Thanksgiving dinner.

'Hyde Park on Hudson' (Limited) -- Directed by Roger Michell. Starring Bill Murray, Laura Linney, and Olivia Williams. FDR has an affair with a distant cousin during the weekend when the King and Queen of England visited his home in upstate New York.

'Lay the Favorite' (Limited) -- Directed by Stephen Frears. Starring Rebecca Hall, Bruce Willis, and Vince Vaughn. A Vegas cocktail waitress proves to be quite skilled at gambling and finds herself mixed up with a sports gambler, annoying his wife.

December 14

'The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey' (3D) -- Directed by Peter Jackson. Starring Martin Freeman, Ian McKellan, and Richard Armitage. Hobbit Bilbo Baggins goes on an epic journey with 12 dwarves to reclaim the treasure stolen from them from the evil dragon Smaug.

'Save the Date' (Limited) -- Directed by Michael Mohan. Starring Alison Brie, Lizzy Caplan, and Mark Webber. While Sarah questions her life following a break-up and subsequent rebound, her sister Beth is busy planning her upcoming wedding.

December 19

'The Guilt Trip' -- Directed by Anne Fletcher. Starring Seth Rogen and Barbra Streisand. An inventor takes his mother on the road with him while he attempts to sell his latest creation.

'Monsters Inc. 3D' -- Directed by Pete Docter, David Silverman, and Lee Unkrich. Starring John Goodman, Billy Crystal, and Steve Buscemi. Monsters must mine the screams of children to keep their city's electricity running. Terrified of being contaminated by human children, the monsters panic when one unwittingly infiltrates their city.

'Amour' (Limited) -- Directed by Michael Haneke. Starring Isabelle Huppert, Jean-Louis Trintignant, and Emmanuelle Riva. A musician is called upon to lend aid to her elderly parents when her mother endures an attack.

'Zero Dark Thirty' (Limited) -- Directed by Kathryn Bigelow. Starring Chris Pratt, Jessica Chastain, and Joel Edgerton. The true story of the decade-long search for Osama bin Laden that led to his death at the hands of a Navy SEAL team.

December 21

'Jack Reacher' -- Directed by Christopher McQuarrie. Starring Tom Cruise, Rosamund Pike, and Richard Jenkins. A homicide detective investigates a trained military sniper who shot and killed five people.

'This is 40' -- Directed by Judd Apatow. Starring Paul Rudd, Leslie Mann, and Jason Segel. In this semi-sequel to 'Knocked Up,' Pete and Debbie cope with their lives as they enter their 40s.

'The Impossible' (Limited) -- Directed by Juan Antonio Bayona. Starring Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor. While vacationing in Thailand, a family endures one of the worst natural disasters in Southeast Asian history.

'Not Fade Away' (Limited) -- Directed by David Chase. Starring Jack Huston, John Magaro, and Will Brill. Inspired by the Rolling Stones, a group of friends in 1960s suburban New Jersey start a band.

'On the Road' (Limited) -- Directed by Walter Salles. Starring Garrett Hedlund, Sam Riley, and Kristen Stewart. Based on the novel by Jack Kerouac, this film follows a young author named Sal Paradise, and his adventures with free-spirited Dean and his girlfriend Marylou.

December 25

'Django Unchained' -- Directed by Quentin Tarantino. Starring Jamie Foxx, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Christoph Waltz. A slave takes up with a bounty hunter to help him track down three men in exchange for freedom and the training to rescue his wife from an evil plantation owner.

'Les Miserables' -- Directed by Tom Hooper. Starring Anne Hathaway, Russell Crowe, and Hugh Jackman. Based on the classic stage musical of the same name, this film captures the hardships in the lives of several people in 19th century France.

'Parental Guidance' -- Directed by Andy Fickman. Starring Billy Crystal, Bette Midler, and Marisa Tomei. An older couple agrees to look after their three grandkids while their jet-setting parents are away, resulting in a hilarious culture clash between the old-school couple and modern youth.

December 28

'Promised Land' (Limited) -- Directed by Gus Van Sant. Starring Matt Damon, Frances McDormand, and John Krasinski. John Krasinski wrote the script for this film about a natural gas salesman whose world is changed when he visits the small town his corporation plans to tap for resources.

'Quartet' (Limited) -- Directed by Dustin Hoffman. Starring Maggie Smith and Michael Gambon. During their annual concert, the people at a retirement home for opera singers must deal with a diva and former wife of one of the residents.