This week's new movie releases - March 27, 2009

This week, we're looking at three wide releases: DreamWorks Animation's 3-D adventure "Monsters vs. Aliens," WWE's action flick "12 Rounds" with John Cena, and Peter Cornwell's horror movie "The Haunting in Connecticut" with Virginia Madsen:

THE HAUNTING IN CONNECTICUT

Synopsis: When the Campbell family moves to upstate Connecticut, they soon learn that their charming Victorian home has a disturbing history: not only was the house a transformed funeral parlor where inconceivable acts occurred, but the owner's clairvoyant son Jonah served as a demonic messenger, providing a gateway for spiritual entities to crossover. Now unspeakable terror awaits, when Jonah, the boy who communicated with the dead, returns to unleash a new kind of horror on the innocent and unsuspecting family.

First thoughts: Horror flicks about evil, undead spirits generating terror in haunted houses are not exactly new, which is why I'll walk into "Connecticut" with rather low expectations. Sure, maybe the film will surprise me a bit (I sure hope it will), but from what I've seen in trailers and clips so far, the plot looks a tad too familiar and unoriginal. But who knows...

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MONSTERS VS. ALIENS

Synopsis: When California girl Susan Murphy is unwittingly clobbered by a meteor full of outer space gunk on her wedding day, she mysteriously grows to 49-feet-11-inches tall. Alerted to the threat of this new monster, the military jumps into action and Susan is captured and secreted away to a covert government compound. There, she is renamed Ginormica and placed in confinement with a ragtag group of other monsters: the brilliant but insect-headed Dr. Cockroach, Ph.D.; the macho half-ape, half-fish The Missing Link; the gelatinous and indestructible B.O.B.; and the 350-foot grub called Insectosaurus. Their confinement is cut short, however, when a mysterious alien robot lands on Earth and begins storming the country.

First thoughts: This is one I am actually very excited about. The story of the government asking monsters for help in the battle against aliens sounds delicious, and so do the central characters in this 3-D adventure. Dreamworks Animation has rolled out several decent animated projects over the past years, and I'm ready for a fun film filled with hilarious gags and explosive actions. I only hope that's exactly what this one has to offer.

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12 ROUNDS

Synopsis: When New Orleans Police Detective Danny Fisher stops a brilliant thief, Miles, from getting away with a multi-million-dollar heist, the thief's girlfriend is accidentally killed. After escaping from prison, the criminal mastermind enacts his revenge, taunting Danny with a series of near-impossible puzzles and tasks... 12 rounds... that Danny must somehow complete to save the life of his fiancee.

First thoughts: "12 Rounds" is an action flick produced by the WWE and starring John Cena, and that says a lot. What I've seen in the film's trailers looks rather brianless, but with a bit of luck, the action will be explosive enough to keep me entertained. Then again, I guess "12 Rounds" will mostly appeal to Cena's loyal fans, and not necessarily to a massive audience.