Nine Travel Movies to Watch For in 2009

If there’s one December fixture that I enjoy almost as much as the ubiquitous “Best of the Past Year” list, it’s the “Trends to Watch Next Year” list. What’s new and hot? What’s old but hot again? And what never goes out of style? (Trends to Watch lists, that’s what.)

So, with that in mind, here are nine travel-esque movies hitting theaters in 2009.

The Descent 2: Looks like one of our favorite travel horror movies has spawned a sequel. In the second round, the lone survivor of a caving trip gone horrifically wrong heads back below the surface—local sheriff in tow—to confirm the fate of her companions. Predictably, things don’t quite go as planned.

Point Break: Indo: Twenty years later, there’s a new band of surfing bandits on the loose—this time in Bali—and a new surfing cop on their trail, too. The producers are being coy about possible cameos from Patrick Swayze or Keanu Reeves, but hey, Swayze turned up in a Dirty Dancing re-hashing a few years back, so why not Point Break, too?

Angels & Demons: The latest highly anticipated Dan Brown adaptation is expected to do for Rome what “The Da Vinci Code” did for Paris, London, Edinburgh and anywhere else it filmed. (In other words, flood some of the city’s finest buildings with visitors who have only a passing interest in their history, art or architecture? Well, sure, if you want to be cynical about it.) Tom Hanks reprises his role as Dr. Robert Langdon.

Night at the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian: Ben Stiller’s museum night watchman leaves New York behind and heads to the Smithsonian to rescue his miniature pals, Octavius and Jedediah. Hilarity (and a heap of comedian cameos) ensues.

Last Chance Harvey: Dustin Hoffman plays Harvey, a down-and-out man who heads to London for his daughter’s wedding, meets an equally single and struggling Emma Thompson at the airport, and—well, you know what happens next. After a 2008 festival release, word has it this one will hit theaters just in time for awards season.

A Walk in the Woods: We’ve been keeping tabs on the planned adaptation of Bill Bryson’s travel classic. Robert Redford will be leading the on-screen assault on the Appalachian Trail. Details are still sketchy, but it’s tentatively slated for a 2009 release.

Fast & Furious: Vin Diesel, Paul Walker and Co. are back, minus a couple of definite articles, in yet another sequel to “The Fast and the Furious”. This time they race from LA to Mexico—and yes, there are plenty of hot girls and hotter cars.

The Rum Diary: The film adaptation of the early Hunter S. Thompson novel has been in the works for nearly a decade, and (fingers crossed) it should finally hit big screens this year. Word has it Johnny Depp will be playing the lead role of Paul Kemp, a New York journalist who relocates to Puerto Rico and lands in a lust-fueled tangle of expat intrigue.

Escape From New York: Hey, who doesn’t like another remake? This time around, Gerard Butler plays Snake, the war hero/convict sent into a dystopian Manhattan (now a maximum security prison) to rescue the President, whose plane was brought down over the island by terrorists. Yup, they really didn’t change a thing. Except, presumably, it’s no longer set in the late 1980s.

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