any movie which is considered oscar "worthy" is scheduled for a december release because they want it be fresh in the minds of the voters. plus, most major stars want their movies to come out in december in order to feed their egos. the is some indication that there is a shift in opinion regarding the release of only oscar worthy films in december. instead scheduling them through out the year to prevent overload. however, "eternal sunshine of the spotless mind" came out and despite heaps of critical praise tanked commercially. which probably means that it's back to old logic.
ever notice all the horror genre pictures that come out at the beginning of the year? this is because it's the only time of the year when they can schedule. i.e. not up against oscar or summer movies.
it appears that is some attempt to bring together special effects with a good story. "Master and Commander", "Pirates of the Caribean", LOTR of course... Any movie with Vin Diesel is going to blow.
there will be light saber effect of the non-digital kind in "Young Adam"
