Watch a Globe-Hopping Simon Pegg in Trailer for 'Hector and the Search for Happiness'

In last year's The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Ben Stiller played a regular guy living a boring life who sought freedom and new experiences by traveling the globe. The film was originally seen as an Oscar contender but ultimately kind of vanished without making much of a mark. Now a very similar film led by Simon Pegg is on the way in Hector and the Search for Happiness, and the jury is out whether it can succeed where 'Mitty' may have failed.

A new U.K. trailer for it has been released and it's the rare chance to see Pegg in a lead role all by himself. Normally he's got his partner-in-crime Nick Frost by his side, or he's part of a larger ensemble, but now Pegg is being asked to carry all of the emotional burden. He plays the titular Hector, a psychologist who, despite a lovely wife (Rosamund Pike) and successful practice, feels dissatisfied with life. And so he sets out on a journey around the world to investigate if true happiness really exists, along the way meeting a diverse array of characters played by Toni Collette, Jean Reno, Christopher Plummer, and Stellan Skarsgard. This is also the first film directed by Peter Chelsom since 2009's Hannah Montana: The Movie.

Hector and the Search for Happiness opens September 19th, and that fall date suggests somebody has fairly high aspirations for the film.

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Trailer Time: Margaret, starring Anna Paquin and Matt Damon

The road to seeing Margaret finally hit theaters has been a long, bumpy one fraught with legal entanglements. The follow-up directorial effort by Kenneth Lonergan(You Can Count On Me), the film stars Anna Paquin as a flirtatious teen whose reckless behavior inadvertently causes a fatal bus accident. Matt Damon stars as one of her teachers she seems to form some sort of relationship with. Mark Ruffalo, Allison Janney, Jean Reno, and Matthew Broderick also star.

Part of the issue surrounding the film had to do with Lonergan's rare status as a director with "final cut", which meant that neither studio or the producers could release anything other than his own vision. Margaret was completed way back in 2005(!!!), and Lonergan has been editing the film ever since. Screenings were set up then cancelled back in 2006 because Lonergan couldn't decide on a cut he liked. Lawsuits were filed, blah blah blah, and now finally we have a completed film, although the 150 minute run time indicates Lonergan didn't cut a hell of a lot out. Frankly I'm amazed he had final cut rights to begin with based solely on You Can Count On Me, although it did get nominated for two Academy Awards.

A trailer has been released for Margaret ahead of it's September 30th release, and it looks like an incoherent, heavy handed mess. Kinda reminds me of another film Mark Ruffalo starred in which was equally misguided, Reservation Road.  Here's hoping the performances by the extraordinary talent involved will make this film better than it appears here...

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John Favreau & Vince Vaughn Reunite for a little 'Couples Retreat'!

There was a time when the idea of Vince Vaughn and John Favreau teaming up on screen was enough to get me super hyped. But that was 1996 some time after Swingers. Then Made was a complete flop. And then there was The Break Up, and y'know the luster kinda faded. But Couples Retreat actually has me pretty amped up. I dig Favreau as a writer more than a director, and this time around he's passing the reigns over to Peter Bilingsley. Yes, that Peter Billingsley. A Christmas Story Peter Billingsley. Red Rider BB Gun Peter Billingsley. He's actually become quite the successful producer but this is his first crack at a big time directing gig. Just check out the talent he's gathered up for this thing.

Vaughn
Favreau
Kristen Bell
Kristin Davis
Malin Ackerman
Jean Reno
Faizon Love
Jason Bateman
Ken Jeong

Pretty vicious, right? The trailer looks pretty good, and while not hysterically funny I see tons of potential in it. Check it out and let me know what you all think.

Couples Retreat is set to be released on October 9th, 2009.

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