The Plot: The two stars of a struggling animal adventure show look to give their ratings a boost by scoring footage of Bigfoot in the wild.

THE BUZZ: Comments we've read from the way-in-advance screenings do nothing to dissuade us from our take on this movie: cross a moderately funny (but too long) SNL skit with a very special episode the Jackass spin-off, Wildboyz, and here you go: the quintessential winter release for boys who should know better. The red-band trailer is now online and it left us wondering why Steve Zahn is trying to act like Owen Wilson.

The Plot: A 3-D concert film of the 2007 Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus tour.

THE BUZZ: This 3-D presentation symbolizes the Disney Channel's chokehold on the spendy tween audience and its gradual push to bring their top small-screen productions into the grand stage. P.S. We heard Miley Cyrus was an absolute angel during filming, but Ms. Montana would often show up late to set and was a total tween diva.

The Plot: After they are released from jail for trying to rob an ATM, Ricky (Wells) and Julian (Tremblay) reunite with their pal Bubbles (Smith) at the Sunnyvale Trailer Park, where they soon plan a new caper: a coin heist that will make them all rich.

THE BUZZ: This long-running Canadian TV series never quite caught on in the U.S., because we try and act like we don't love foul language, nudity, and drugs. Indie distributor Screen Media, who is ramping up their theatrical offering this year, somehow thinks this could be their breakout star. Hmm. While we hope this is the case, we don't even think TPB will attract those of us who'd rather be living in East Vancouver with our oldest friend and his sexy wife. (By the way, said friend says of the TV show: "It's brilliant ... gets better the more you watch it. Season 1 and early season 2 were awkward, but by mid-season 2 and onward it's [expletive deleted] gold ... If you can rent the DVDs, start with season 3 and go from there."

The Plot: After a botched job in London, two hit men (Farrell and Gleeson) are ordered to cool out in Bruges, Belgium, where their perspectives on life and death become violently skewed as they begin to acclimate to the capital city.

THE BUZZ: Back in '06, playwright-turned-filmmaker Martin McDonagh saw his project Six Shooter win the best live-action short film Oscar, so it was only a matter of moments before producers began rooting through his back catalogue, optioning plays left and right. Bruges is a particularly dark affair and a custom fit for the alluring pairing of Farrell (where you been?) and Gleeson (call me!). The film will introduce a few emerging Euros, notably Clémence Poésy and Jérémie Renier, who play lovers, much to Farrell's chagrin. Also, this is the production during which co-star Ralph Fiennes generated headlines for cavorting naked with a quartet of ladies in his hotel's pool.

The Plot: Mason (Moore) is a reclusive, gifted painter leading a life of anonymity in Portland, Oregon, where he works a dreary job at a phone bank. He makes a connection, however, with his co-worker Amber (Tamblyn), who agrees to pose for him. The friendship illuminates Mason's talent ... and also the dark corners of his past.

THE BUZZ: Joan from Joan of Arcadia and Chuck from Chuck help their pal Joel Moore, last seen in Hatchet (another Anchor Bay release) but still most known from Dodgeball, get his feature directorial debut into a smattering of theaters this weekend; Trisha "Six" Helfer is along for the ride as well, but we think hers is a small role. Hatchet, a horror film made by Spiral co-director Joel Green, greatly impressed genre fans, but we're wondering how they will respond to such a change of pace; Spiral is apparently quite "talky" and the blood and screams arrive right at the end of the film. Look for this one to resurface on DVD soon ...

The Plot: An orchestra comprised of Egyptian policemen head to Israel to play at the inaugural ceremony of an Arab arts center, only to find themselves lost in a foreign city.

THE BUZZ: Eran Kolirin's festival-winner raised eyebrows last fall when it was disqualified as Israel's foreign-language submission to the 2008 Academy Awards (for having too much of its dialogue is in English). More than one reviewer has commented on Kolirin's ability to use a lighthearted approach to such a serious subject, and it appears that everyone is in love with Ronit Elkabetz, who here plays a brassy cafe manager who puts the wayward band up.

The Plot: As Will Hayes (Reynolds) explains the complexities of his pending divorce to his daughter, Maya (Breslin), he opens up about the three other women with whom he has had relationships -- a process that gets him to reconsider some of his past decisions.

THE BUZZ: This is easily the date movie of the year, what with Ryan Reynolds mentoring Abigail Breslin (or the other way around) under the guidance of UK rom-com specialist Adam Brooks. Let's just hope he doesn't require R.R. to get too cerebral, or else he might start to regret his career -- and romantic -- choices of late, too. P.S. With a cast that includes potential GFs such as Isla Fisher and Elizabeth Banks, this looks to be way harder than Bridget's quandary concerning Daniel Cleaver and Mark Darcy.

The Plot: Upon moving into the run-down Spiderwick Estate with their mother, twin brothers Jared and Simon Grace, along with their sister Mallory, find themselves pulled into an alternate world full of faeries and other creatures.

THE BUZZ: So this is Mark S. Waters' next project and it will be the first big family film of 2008 (though it was originally set for a Christmas 2007 release). Secrecy surrounded the status of the script and casting, until July 2006, when it was announced Freddie Highmore would play both Jared and Simon Grace alongside the emerging Sarah Bolger, who won the role of Mallory. As nearly every studio is looking for a franchise that will appeal to children as well as adults, Spiderwick is Paramount's best optioned bet to date.

The Plot: During production on their fictional zombie flick, a group of film students encounter the actual undead.

THE BUZZ: Five films in, George A. Romero reboots his own legacy and takes the ... of the Dead serial back to its roots. Yes, this is an origins story, and this time around, Romero, who has been living in Canada since making Land of the Dead, has ratcheted up his social commentary -- the thrust here is young people connections with media and techonology -- and, from what we understand, the ending is a rather haunting antiwar statement. But what's this about a low body count? Dread Central has an expletive-laden interview with the horror master, where you can read about his original idea to distribute Diary as a webisode series.

The Plot: Five different points-of-view are woven together to chronicle an attempt on the life of the President of the United States.

THE BUZZ: With its controversial subject matter and Rashomon-styled narrative structure (the 5 POVs will be told in 15-minute increments, by the way), VP seems like a tall order for a director who's only worked for the small-screen and a green screenwriter. Matthew Fox can guide director Pete Travis through those tricky flashback sequences, but let's hope that doesn't leave us with more questions than answers.

The Plot: Unaware that he has a magnetized brain, a man (Jack Black) accidentally erases every tape at the video store where his friend (Mos Def) works. In order to satisfy the store's most loyal renter, an aging woman with signs of dementia, the two men set out to remake the lost films.

THE BUZZ: Michel Gondry's second solo script finds Jack Black victimized by his own attack against a local power plant, a scenario that sets up the most anticipated art film of the year. The story, along with the exciting pairing of Black and Def (wasn't Kirsten Dunst supposed to be in this, too?), is an easier sell than The Science of Sleep, a narrative experiment that didn't earn for Gondry his typical level of acclaim. On paper, we hear Be Kind is definitely the filmmaker at his most accessible -- no signs of the darkening edges that cause his work with Charlie Kaufman to resonate with audiences. Imagine if that collaboration with Dan Clowes ever materializes, though?

The Plot: A horror film told in three parts from three perspectives, in which a mysterious transmission invades every cell phone, radio and TV, turing people into killers.

THE BUZZ: Picture something nowhere near as lame as Pulse that has been shot on an indie budget, given a unique narrative structure and moods that fluctuate from sickly funny to slickly gross, and injected with a potential Ash-like supporting character halfway through the story, and you have everything you need to know before going to see the horror movie of the year (?). Sorry, Eli Roth.

The Plot: Jackie Moon (Ferrell), the owner-coach-player of the American Basketball Association's Flint Michigan Tropics, rallies his teammates in an effort to make their far-fetched NBA dreams come true.

THE BUZZ: Kent Alterman took leave from his post at New Line Cinema in order to direct Will Ferrell in his latest sports comedy. While Ferrell himself might not be bringing anything particularly new to the court this time around, he at least had the sense to recruit Woody Harrelson, who hasn't dribbled since 1992. Speaking of Harrelson, we hear his character gets harassed by none other than Amy Sedaris in white-trash mode. Fingers crossed this scene makes the cut.

The Plot: Penelope (Ricci) is a modern-day princess who was born with a pig's snout -- a curse that can only be broken when she finds true love with a prince.

THE BUZZ: Reese Witherspoon essentially grew up (on screen) in a series of offbeat movies, so we're sure her advice to first-time director Mark Palansky is part of the reason Penelope has received good-to-great reviews for its ability to blend a contemporary fairy tale and a critique of celebrity obsession. It'll be great to see Peter Dinklage back in a higher-profile film; he plays a bottom-feeding journalist whose actions cause Penelope's parents to fake her death, only to reactivate the story and spin it into a tabloid sensation.

The Plot: A road movie about a widow (Lange) faced with a harsh ultimatum regarding her late husband's ashes and her close friends (Bates and Allen) who help her find an alternate path to letting her lover rest in peace.

THE BUZZ: Back in 2006, Bonneville was shaping up to be a hot property for a studio looking to reach out to older female audiences, and untested filmmaker Christopher Rowley was maybe going to have a breakout indie hit on his hands. Some two years later, armed with its top-notch cast but, unfortunately, a folder full of negative reviews (all of which compare the movie to a made-for-TV drama) we still say these gals could make inroads away from the spotlights and Internet critics in Los Angeles and New York City. Savvily marketed to audiences in key cities such as Salt Lake City (Mormon overtones alert) and, well, most of Florida, we see a Boynton Beach Club-level hit here.