Arts & Entertainment

Christmas 2012: What New Movies Will be Playing?

Check out trailers for 'The Guilt Trip,' 'Les Miserables,' 'Django Unchained' and more.

The Metro Detroit area has always loved a great film's release and the Christmas 2012 season should again prove fruitful. From Trenton to Fenton, film audiences in recent years have adored Meet the Fockers, The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King and National Treasure: Book of Secrets, among others.

Here is a look at what audiences have to look forward to this year, courtesy of moviefone.com:

Les Miserables

Find out what's happening in Trenton Grosse Ilewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

  • Starring: Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway, Helena Bonham Carter, Sacha Baron Cohen
  • Director: Tom Hooper
  • MPAA rating: PG-13
  • Plot: Les Miserables is the motion-picture adaptation of the beloved global stage sensation seen by more than 60 million people in 42 countries and in 21 languages around the globe and still breaking box-office records everywhere in its 27th year.

Django Unchained

  • Starring: Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Kerry Washington, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kurt Russell, Samuel L. Jackson
  • Director: Quentin Tarantino
  • MPAA rating: Not Yet Rated
  • Plot: Set in the South two years before the Civil War, Django Unchained stars Academy Award-winner Jamie Foxx as Django, a slave whose brutal history with his former owners lands him face-to-face with German-born bounty hunter Dr. King Schultz (Academy Award-winner Christoph Waltz). Schultz is on the trail of the murderous Brittle brothers, and only Django can lead him to his bounty. The unorthodox Schultz acquires Django with a promise to free him upon the capture of the Brittles - dead or alive. Success leads Schultz to free Django, though the two men choose not to go their separate ways. Instead, Schultz seeks out the South's most wanted criminals with Django by his side. Honing vital hunting skills, Django remains focused on one goal: finding and rescuing Broomhilda (Kerry Washington), the wife he lost to the slave trade long ago.

    Django and Schultz's search ultimately leads them to Calvin Candie (Academy Award-nominee Leonardo DiCaprio), the proprietor of "Candyland," an infamous plantation where slaves are groomed by trainer Ace Woody (Kurt Russell) to battle each other for sport. Exploring the compound under false pretenses, Django and Schultz arouse the suspicion of Stephen (Academy Award-nominee Samuel L. Jackson), Candie's trusted house slave. Their moves are marked, and a treacherous organization closes in on them. If Django and Schultz are to escape with Broomhilda, they must choose between independence and solidarity, between sacrifice and survival.

Parental Guidance

Find out what's happening in Trenton Grosse Ilewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

  • Starring: Billy Crystal, Bette Midler, Marisa Tomei, Tom Everett Scott, Bailee Madison
  • Director: Andy Fickman
  • MPAA rating: PG
  • Plot: Old school grandfather Artie (Billy Crystal), who is accustomed to calling the shots, meets his match when he and his eager-to-please wife Diane (Bette Midler) agree to babysit their three grandkids when their type-A helicopter parents (Marisa Tomei, Tom Everett Scott) go away for work.  But when 21st century problems collide with Artie and Diane’s old school methods of tough rules, lots of love and old-fashioned games, it’s learning to bend – and not holding your ground – that binds a family together.

What's already playing?

The Guilt Trip

  • Starring: Seth Rogen, Barbra Streisand, Kathy Najimy, Colin Hanks, Adam Scott
  • Director: Anne Fletcher
  • MPAA rating: PG-13
  • Plot: Andy Brewster is about to embark on the road trip of a lifetime, and who better to accompany him than his overbearing mother Joyce. After deciding to start his adventure with a quick visit at mom's, Andy is guilted into bringing her along for the ride. Across 3,000 miles of ever-changing landscape, he is constantly aggravated by her antics, but over time he comes to realize that their lives have more in common than he originally thought. His mother's advice might end up being exactly what he needs.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

  • Starring: Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, Richard Armitage, Andy Serkis, Aidan Turner
  • Director: Peter Jackson
  • MPAA Rating: PG-13
  • Plot: The adventure follows the journey of title character Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor from the fearsome dragon Smaug.

This Is 40

  • Starring: Paul Rudd, Leslie Mann, Megan Fox, Albert Brooks, Chris O'Dowd
  • Director: Judd Apatow
  • MPAA Rating: R
  • Plot: Five years after writer/director Judd Apatow introduced us to Pete and Debbie in 'Knocked Up', Paul Rudd and Leslie Mann reprise their roles as a husband and wife both approaching a milestone meltdown in 'This Is 40', an unfiltered, comedic look inside the life of an American family.

Rise of the Guardians

  • Starring: Chris Pine, Hugh Jackman, Jude Law, Alec Baldwin,Isla Fisher
  • Director(s): William Joyce, Peter A. Ramsey
  • MPAA Rating: PG
  • Plot: 'Rise of the Guardians' is an epic and magical adventure that tells the story of Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy, the Sandman, and Jack Frost - legendary characters with previously unknown extraordinary abilities.

Life of Pi

  • Starring: Suraj Sharma, Irfan Khan, Tabu, Adil Hussain, Gérard Depardieu
  • Director: Ang Lee
  • MPAA Rating: PG
  • Plot: Yann Martel's ponderous adventure novel gets the big-screen treatment with this Fox 2000 adaptation helmed by director Ang Lee. The coming-of-age story surrounds the son of a zookeeper who survives a shipwreck by stowing away on a lifeboat with a zebra, an orangutan, a hyena, and a Bengal tiger by the name of Richard Parker. Suraj Sharma heads up the cast as the young boy, with Gérard Depardieu, Adil Hussain, Irrfan Khan, Rafe Spall, and Bollywood actress Tabu also starring.

Which movie are you most looking forward to this Christmas?

For the latest Trenton and Grosse Ile news and information, "like" Trenton-Grosse Ile Patch on Facebook, follow us on Twitter and sign up for our daily newsletter.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here