(Re-posted from LimitéMagazine.com)
The cineplex will be run over this year with quality movies, both big and small. This year, each member of Limité‘s film staff presents his or her top 10 picks. What movies are you most looking forward to? Comment below.
Note: Since many of these films are currently in various stages of production, the release dates are subject to change. All loglines are courtesy of IMDb.com, unless otherwise noted.
Dan’s Picks
GRAVITY
by Daniel Quitério
Director: Alfonso Cuarón
Screenwriters: Alfonso Cuarón, Jonás Cuarón, Rodrigo Garcia
Cast: Sandra Bullock, George Clooney
Genres: Sci-fi, Thriller
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Release Date: October 18
It’s been six years since Mexican writer/director Alfonso Cuarón took a seat in the director’s chair. And now, following his heralded 2006 release Children of Men, the filmmaker is primed to launch his much-anticipated sci-fi thriller Gravity. The $80 million space odyssey tale focuses on a pair of astronauts who are stranded beyond Earth after debris smashes into their shuttle during a routine spacewalk. Characters played by Oscar winners Sandra Bullock and George Clooney are tethered together as they spiral into negative space, hoping to find a way home.
The director partnered with his son Jonás Cuarón and filmmaker Rodrigo García (Albert Nobbs, 2011) on the script, which will be realized on screen in 3D and IMAX 3D. Prior to Bullock’s and Clooney’s attachment to the film, the two crucial roles had names like Angelina Jolie and Robert Downey Jr. attached to them. Several other notable Hollywood elites were also considered for the weighty female lead, including Marion Cotillard, Scarlett Johansson, and Natalie Portman, among others. Cuarón proves himself an auteur of the highest caliber with this and other films which he wrote, directed, produced, and edited. His three previous Oscar nominations came in the categories of Best Original Screenplay (Y tu mamá también, 2001), Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Editing (Children of Men, 2006). Gravity will be photographed by past Cuarón collaborator, the 5-time Oscar-nominated cinematographer and fellow Mexico native Emmanuel Lubezki, who likely employs a similar sense of vast space and wonder in this film as he displayed in Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life (2011).
STOKER
After India’s father dies, her Uncle Charlie, who she never knew existed, comes to live with her and her unstable mother. She comes to suspect this mysterious, charming man has ulterior motives and becomes increasingly infatuated with him.
Director: Chan-wook Park
Screenwriter: Wentworth Miller
Cast: Mia Wasikowska, Nicole Kidman, Matthew Goode, Dermot Mulroney, Jacki Weaver
Genres: Drama, Horror, Mystery
Distributor: Fox Searchlight
Release Date: January 20 (Sundance Film Festival)
CARRIE
A sheltered high school girl unleashes her newly developed telekinetic powers after she is pushed too far by her peers.
Director: Kimberly Peirce
Screenwriter: Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa
Cast: Chloë Grace Moretz, Julianne Moore, Judy Greer
Genres: Drama, Horror
Distributor: Sony Pictures
Site: carrie-movie.com
Release Date: March 15
STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS
After the crew of the Enterprise finds an unstoppable force of terror from within their own organization, Captain Kirk leads a manhunt to a warzone world to capture a one-man weapon of mass destruction.
Director: J.J. Abrams
Screenwriters: Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman, Damon Lindelof
Cast: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana, Benedict Cumberbatch
Genres: Action, Adventure, Sci-fi
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Release Date: May 17
MONSTERS UNIVERSITY
A look at the relationship between Mike and Sulley during their days at the University of Fear—when they weren’t necessarily the best of friends.
Director: Dan Scanlon
Screenwriters: Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter
Cast: Billy Crystal, John Goodman, Steve Buscemi
Genres: Adventure, Animation, Comedy
Distributor: Walt Disney Studios/Pixar
Site: monstersuniversity.com/edu
Release Date: June 21
ELYSIUM
Set in the year 2159, where the very wealthy live on a man-made space station while the rest of the population resides on a ruined Earth, a man takes on a mission that could bring equality to the polarized worlds.
Director: Neill Blomkamp
Screenwriter: Neill Blomkamp
Cast: Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, Sharlto Copley, William Fichtner, Diego Luna
Genres: Action, Drama, Sci-fi
Distributor: Columbia Pictures
Release Date: August 9
CAPTAIN PHILLIPS
The true story of Captain Richard Phillips and the 2009 hijacking by Somali pirates of the US-flagged MV Maersk Alabama, the first American cargo ship to be hijacked in two hundred years.
Director: Paul Greengrass
Screenwriter: Billy Ray
Cast: Tom Hanks, Catherine Keener, John Magaro
Genre: Drama
Distributor: Columbia Pictures
Release Date: October 11
I’M SO EXCITED
When a group of passengers aboard a plane fear for their lives, they reveal elaborate confessions. (Yahoo! Movies)
Director: Pedro Almodóvar
Screenwriter: Pedro Almodóvar
Cast: Penélope Cruz, Antonio Banderas, Paz Vega
Genre: Comedy
Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics
Release Date: November 22 (NYC)
AN ENEMY
A man seeks out his exact look-alike after spotting him in a movie.
Director: Denis Villeneuve
Screenwriter: Javier Gullón
Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Mélanie Laurent, Isabella Rossellini
Genre: Thriller
Distributor: TBD
Release Date: TBD
MAN OF STEEL
(See John’s Picks)
Stephanie’s Picks
THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE
by Stephanie Dawson
Director: Francis Lawrence
Screenwriters: Simon Beaufoy, Michael Arndt
Cast: Jennifer Lawrence, Elizabeth Banks, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Sam Claflin, Jena Malone, Woody Harrelson, Stanley Tucci, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Toby Jones, Donald Sutherland, Jeffrey Wright, Lenny Kravitz
Genres: Action, Adventure, Thriller
Distributor: Lionsgate
Release Date: November 22
NOTE: Since information on the film is being kept under wraps, the following is a summary from the novel on which the film is based.
In the second installment of the Hunger Games trilogy, heroine Katniss Everdeen returns to District 12 with Peeta Mellark, her co-victor of the 74th Hunger Games. Katniss’s relationship with her best friend Gale Hawthorne is complicated by her manufactured love for Peeta, but before they can resolve it, Katniss and Peeta embark on their Victor’s tour of Panem’s districts. It is clear the districts are filled with unrest and President Snow plans a twist for the 75th Hunger Games (aka the Quarter Quell) that could change Panem forever and threaten the lives of Katniss and Peeta yet again.
Though Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, and Liam Hemsworth reprise their roles as Katniss, Peeta, and Gale, respectively, a new writer, director, and cast members have been added. Director Francis Lawrence (I Am Legend, 2007) and Oscar-winning writer Simon Beaufoy (Slumdog Millionaire, 2008) take the reins from co-writer/director Gary Ross. Additional cast members include Philip Seymour Hoffman, Jeffrey Wright (Source Code, 2011), Jena Malone (Sucker Punch, 2011), and Sam Claflin (Snow White and the Huntsman, 2012). The film was shot in the fall and winter of 2012 in Georgia and Hawaii and is currently scheduled for a November release.
GANGSTER SQUAD
Los Angeles, 1949. Ruthless, Brooklyn-born mob king Mickey Cohen runs the show in this town, reaping the ill-gotten gains from the drugs, the guns, the prostitutes, and—if he has his way—every wire bet placed west of Chicago. (Yahoo! Movies)
Director: Ruben Fleischer
Screenwriter: Will Beall
Cast: Sean Penn, Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, Josh Brolin
Genres: Action, Crime, Drama
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Site: gangstersquad.warnerbros.com
Release Date: January 11
JACK THE GIANT SLAYER
A modern day fairy tale in which the long-standing peace between men and giants is threatened, as a young farmer leads an expedition into the giants’ kingdom in hopes of rescuing a kidnapped princess.
Director: Bryan Singer
Screenwriters: Darren Lemke, Christopher McQuarrie, Dan Studney
Cast: Nicholas Hoult, Stanley Tucci, Ewan McGregor, Bill Nighy, Ian McShane
Genres: Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Site: jackthegiantslayer.warnerbros.com
Release Date: March 1
THE HOST
A parasitic alien soul is injected into the body of Melanie Stryder. Instead of carrying out her race’s mission of taking over the Earth, “Wanda” (as she comes to be called) forms a bond with her host and sets out to aid other free humans.
Director: Andrew Niccol
Screenwriter: Andrew Niccol
Cast: Saoirse Ronan, Diane Kruger, William Hurt
Genres: Sci-fi, Thriller
Distributor: Open Road Films
Site: thehostthefilm.com
Release Date: March 29
THE LONE RANGER
Native American spirit warrior Tonto recounts the untold tales that transformed John Reid, a man of the law, into a legend of justice.
Director: Gore Verbinski
Screenwriters: Justin Haythe, Ted Elliott, Terry Rossio, Erin Aronson
Cast: Johnny Depp, Armie Hammer, Tom Wilkinson, Helena Bonham Carter, William Fichtner
Genres: Action, Adventure, Western
Distributor: Walt Disney Studios
Site: disney.go.com/the-lone-ranger
Release Date: July 3
MANDELA: LONG WALK TO FREEDOM
The biography of Nelson Mandela, based on the former South African President’s autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom.
Director: Justin Chadwick
Screenwriter: William Nicholson
Cast: Idris Elba, Naomie Harris, Mark Elderkin
Genre: Biography
Distributor: Pathé
Release Date: TBD
THE GREAT GATSBY
(See Curtis’s Picks)
HANSEL AND GRETEL WITCH HUNTERS
(See Saidah’s Picks)
MONSTERS UNIVERSITY
(See Dan’s Picks)
STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS
(See Dan’s Picks)
John’s Picks
MAN OF STEEL
by John Lee
Director: Zack Snyder
Screenwriter: David S. Goyer
Cast: Henry Cavill, Russell Crowe, Amy Adams, Michael Shannon, Kevin Costner, Diane Lane, Laurence Fishburne
Genres: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Site: manofsteel.warnerbros.com
Release Date: June 14
Coming off its failed attempt in 2006 to reboot the Supermanfranchise with director Bryan Singer’s Superman Returns, Warner Bros. tries again with what it hopes will net much better results withMan of Steel. Looking to capture the same success of Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy, the studio hired Nolan’s writing partner on that franchise, David S. Goyer, to pen the script. Nolan, himself, came on board as executive producer and entrusted director Zack Synder (Watchmen, 2009) to re-tell the famed character’s origin.
Goyer stated that this version of Superman would be more human and naturalistic without taking away too much of the whimsy and optimism fans have come to expect with this character. He said, “Our approach has been to try to imagine these stories as if they could happen in the same complex world in which we live.” The casting of the title character went through exhaustive searches before Synder and Nolan hired the relatively unknown Henry Cavill, best known for the Showtime series The Tudors. The British actor actually came close to landing the role in 2004 for a planned reboot that never materialized. The film’s plot has been kept top secret, but we do know that actor Michael Shannon will portray the villainous role of General Zod, and other notable roles will be filled by Amy Adams (Lois Lane), Russell Crowe (Jor-El), Diane Lane (Martha Kent), Kevin Costner (Jonathan Kent), and Laurence Fishburne (Perry White).
OZ: THE GREAT AND POWERFUL
A stage magician is hurled into a fantasy world and must use his wits to stay ahead of three enchantresses who have plans for him.
Director: Sam Raimi
Screenwriters: Mitchell Kapner, David Lindsay-Abaire
Cast: James Franco, Michelle Williams, Rachel Weisz, Mila Kunis, Zach Braff
Genres: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Distributor: Walt Disney Studios
Site: disney.go.com/thewizard
Release Date: March 8
THE BIG WEDDING
A long-divorced couple fakes being married as its family unites for a wedding.
Director: Justin Zackham
Screenwriter: Justin Zackham
Cast: Robert De Niro, Diane Keaton, Katherine Heigl, Amanda Seyfried, Robin Williams, Susan Sarandon, Topher Grace
Genre: Comedy
Distributor: Lionsgate
Site: thebigweddingmovie.com
Release Date: April 26
IRON MAN 3
Tony Stark uses his ingenuity to fight those who destroyed his private world and soon goes up against his most powerful enemy yet: the Mandarin.
Director: Shane Black
Screenwriters: Drew Pearce, Shane Black
Cast: Robert Downey Jr., Guy Pearce, Gwyneth Paltrow, Paul Bettany, Rebecca Hall, Jon Favreau, Ben Kingsley, Don Cheadle
Genres: Action, Adventure, Sci-fi
Distributor: Walt Disney Pictures
Site: marvel.com/ironman3
Release Date: May 3
NOW YOU SEE ME
FBI agents track a team of illusionists who pull off bank heists during their performances and reward their audiences with the money.
Director: Louis Leterrier
Screenwriters: Ed Solomon, Boaz Yakin, Edward Ricourt
Cast: Jesse Eisenberg, Mark Ruffalo, Michael Caine, Isla Fisher, Morgan Freeman, Woody Harrelson, Mélanie Laurent, Common
Genre: Thriller
Distributor: Summit Entertainment
Release Date: June 7
THIS IS THE END
While attending a party at James Franco’s house, Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, and many other celebrities are faced with the apocalypse.
Directors: Evan Goldberg, Seth Rogen
Screenwriters: Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg
Cast: Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, James Franco, Emma Watson, Paul Rudd, Jonah Hill, Jason Segel, Michael Cera, Mindy Kaling, Danny McBride, Rihanna, Kevin Hart
Genres: Action, Comedy
Distributor: Sony Pictures Entertainment
Release Date: June 14
THE WOLVERINE
Wolverine travels to Japan to train with a samurai warrior.
Director: James Mangold
Screenwriters: Mark Bomback, Scott Frank, James Mangold, Christopher McQuarrie
Cast: Hugh Jackman, Will Yun Lee, Tao Okamoto, Famke Janssen
Genres: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Distributor: Twentieth Century Fox
Site: thewolverinemovie.com
Release Date: July 26
GANGSTER SQUAD
(See Stephanie’s Picks)
JACK THE GIANT SLAYER
(See Stephanie’s Picks)
WORLD WAR Z
(See Morgan’s Picks)
Curtis’s Picks
THE GREAT GATSBY
by Curtis John
Director: Baz Luhrmann
Screenwriters: Baz Luhrmann, Craig Pearce
Cast: Tobey Maguire, Leonardo DiCaprio, Carey Mulligan, Joel Edgerton, Isla Fisher, Jason Clarke
Genres: Drama, Romance
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Site: thegreatgatsby.warnerbros.com
Release Date: May 10
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic novel The Great Gatsby sees its latest adaptation courtesy of director and creative madman Baz Luhrmann (Moulin Rouge!, 2001), who brings the Roaring Twenties to a vivid and vibrant 3D life. Gatsby is seen through the eyes of Nick Carraway (Tobey McGuire), a burgeoning writer who arrives in New York City in 1922 amidst the breakout of jazz music, free-spirited women, and Prohibition-era bootlegging. He lives across the bay from his cousin Daisy (Carey Mulligan) and her cheating aristocratic husband Tom Buchanan (Joel Edgerton), and next door to wild party-throwing, enigmatic millionaire Jay Gatsby (Leonardo DiCaprio). In witnessing their wealthy, madcap lives, Carraway writes about their passions, struggles, and eventual tragedy.
Luhrmann reunites with star DiCaprio for the first time since their 1996 adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet. Though shooting completed in December 2011, and the film was slated to see a Christmas 2012 release (prime time for Oscar consideration), the film was pushed back to next spring’s pre-Memorial Day film rush, prompting many to believe that it has some problems. Yet, this latest film adaptation of the novel remains one of the most anticipated films of 2013.
MOVIE 43
An ensemble comedy intertwining different tales.
Directors: Elizabeth Banks, Steven Brill, Steve Carr, Rusty Cundieff, James Duffy, Griffin Dunne, Peter Farrelly, Patrik Forsberg, James Gunn, Bob Odenkirk, Brett Ratner, Jonathan van Tulleken
Screenwriters: Steve Baker, Will Carlough, Patrik Forsberg, Matt Portenoy, Greg Pritikin, Rocky Russo, Jeremy Sosenko, Elizabeth Wright Shapiro
Cast: Emma Stone, Stephen Merchant, Richard Gere, Hugh Jackman, Elizabeth Banks, Chloë Grace Moretz, Gerard Butler, Kate Winslet, Kristen Bell, Naomi Watts
Genre: Comedy
Distributor: Relativity Media
Release Date: January 25
IDENTITY THIEF
When a mild-mannered businessman learns his identity has been stolen, he hits the road in an attempt to foil the thief—a trip that puts him in the path of a deceptively harmless-looking woman.
Director: Seth Gordon
Screenwriter: Craig Mazin
Cast: Jason Bateman, Melissa McCarthy, John Cho, Jon Favreau, Amanda Peet, Robert Patrick, Eric Stonestreet, Morris Chestnut
Genres: Comedy, Crime
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Site: identitythiefmovie.com
Release Date: February 8
BEAUTIFUL CREATURES
Ethan longs to escape his small, southern town. He meets a mysterious new girl, Lena. Together, they uncover dark secrets about their respective families, their history, and their town.
Director: Richard LaGravenese
Screenwriter: Richard LaGravenese
Cast: Alden Ehrenreich, Alice Englert, Viola Davis, Emma Thompson, Emmy Rossum, Jeremy Irons
Genre: Drama
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Site: beautifulcreatures.warnerbros.com
Release Date: February 13
OLYMPUS HAS FALLEN
A former Secret Service agent works to prevent a terrorist attack on the White House.
Director: Antoine Fuqua
Screenwriters: Creighton Rothenberger, Katrin Benedikt
Cast: Gerard Butler, Angela Bassett, Robert Forster, Morgan Freeman, Dylan McDermott, Aaron Eckhart, Ashley Judd, Radha Mitchell, Melissa Leo
Genres: Action, Thriller
Distributor: FilmDistrict
Release Date: March 22
STARBUCK
As his lover announces her pregnancy, a 40-something slacker receives other life-changing news: 142 people—all of them the result of artificial insemination—have filed a class action lawsuit against him, their biological father.
Director: Ken Scott
Screenwriters: Ken Scott, Martin Petit
Cast: Patrick Huard, Julie LeBreton, Antoine Bertrand
Genre: Comedy
Distributor: Entertainment One
Release Date: March 29
WE THE PEEPLES
A psychologist realizes his professional help is needed after he arrives unannounced at his girlfriend’s family’s annual end-of-summer party.
Director: Tina Gordon Chism
Screenwriter: Tina Gordon Chism
Cast: Craig Robinson, Kerry Washington, David Alan Grier, Ana Gasteyer, S. Epatha Merkerson, Diahann Carroll, Melvin Van Peebles
Genre: Comedy
Distributor: Lionsgate
Release Date: May 10
KICK-ASS 2
The costumed high-school hero Kick-Ass joins with a group of normal citizens who have been inspired to fight crime in costume. Meanwhile, the Red Mist plots an act of revenge that will affect everyone Kick-Ass knows.
Director: Jeff Wadlow
Screenwriter: Jeff Wadlow
Cast: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Chloë Grace Moretz, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Jim Carrey, John Leguizamo, Morris Chestnut
Genres: Action, Comedy, Crime
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Release Date: June 28
2 GUNS
A DEA agent and an undercover Naval Intelligence officer who have been tasked with investigating one another find they have been set up by the mob—the very organization the two men believe they have been stealing money from.
Director: Baltasar Kormákur
Screenwriter: Blake Masters
Cast: Denzel Washington, Mark Wahlberg, Paula Patton, James Marsden, Bill Paxton, Edward James Olmos
Genres: Action, Crime, Drama
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Release Date: August 16
MR. PEABODY & SHERMAN
A young boy and his dog, who happens to have a genius-level IQ, spring into action when their time travel machine is stolen and moments in history begin to change.
Director: Rob Minkoff
Screenwriter: Craig Wright
Cast: Ty Burrell, Max Charles, Stephen Colbert, Leslie Mann, Stanley Tucci, Ariel Winter, Ellie Kemper, Allison Janney, Mel Brooks
Genres: Adventure, Animation, Family
Distributor: Twentieth Century Fox
Release Date: November 1
Saidah’s Picks
HANSEL AND GRETEL WITCH HUNTERS
by Saidah Russell
Director: Tommy Wirkola
Screenwriters: Tommy Wirkola, Dante Harper
Cast: Jeremy Renner, Gemma Arterton, Peter Stormare, Famke Janssen
Genres: Action, Fantasy, Horror
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Site: hanselandgretelmovie.com
Release Date: January 25
Hansel and Gretel Witch Hunters, directed by Norwegian filmmaker Tommy Wirkola (Dead Snow, 2009), is a dark, violent, and action-packed take on the children’s fairy tale. It takes place 15 years after the original story, and we find the brother-sister duo (Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton) making a living as vengeful bounty hunters who work to rid the world of witches. When they are called by the Mayor of Augsburg to rid the forests of an evil sorceress (Famke Janssen) who plans to sacrifice a group of children, Gretel is captured and Hansel must rush to save her before it’s too late.
Fortunately for fans of the horror-action genre, all of the blood and gore will be presented in 3D and on IMAX screens this January. There’s a lot of buzz surrounding Hansel and Gretel Witch Hunters, which, apart from its cast (Renner’s role in The Avengers is sure to draw an audience), might also be attributed to the fact that the film is produced by Gary Sanchez Productions, the Will Ferrell/Adam McKay company that is behind popular website Funny Or Die. It will be interesting to see how their influence affects the movie (if at all), but it’s safe to predict a bloody, fast-paced, action movie that doesn’t take itself too seriously.
WARM BODIES
After a zombie becomes involved with the girlfriend of one of his victims, their romance sets in motion a sequence of events that might transform the entire lifeless world.
Director: Jonathan Levine
Screenwriter: Jonathan Levine
Cast: Nicholas Hoult, Teresa Palmer, John Malkovich
Genres: Comedy, Horror, Romance
Distributor: Summit Entertainment
Site: warmbodiesmovie.com
Release Date: February 1
21 AND OVER
The night before his big medical school exam, a promising student celebrates his 21st birthday with his two best friends.
Directors: Jon Lucas, Scott Moore
Screenwriters: Jon Lucas, Scott Moore
Cast: Miles Teller, Justin Chon, Jonathan Keltz
Genre: Comedy
Distributor: Relativity Media
Release Date: March 1
THE HANGOVER PART III
This time, there’s no wedding. No bachelor party. What could go wrong, right? But when the Wolfpack hits the road, all bets are off.
Director: Todd Phillips
Screenwriters: Todd Phillips, Craig Mazin
Cast: Bradley Cooper, Zach Galifianakis, Ed Helms, Jamie Chung, John Goodman, Heather Graham, Jeffrey Tambor, Justin Bartha, Ken Jeong, Mike Tyson
Genre: Comedy
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Release Date: May 24
AFTER EARTH
After a crash landing, a father and son explore a planet that was evacuated by humans 1,000 years earlier.
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Screenwriters: Stephen Gaghan, M. Night Shyamalan, Gary Whitta
Cast: Will Smith, Jaden Smith, Isabelle Fuhrman, Zoë Kravitz, Sophie Okonedo
Genres: Action, Adventure, Sci-fi
Distributor: Columbia Pictures
Site: afterearth.com
Release Date: June 7
THE INTERNSHIP
Two recently laid-off men in their 40s try to make it as interns at a successful Internet company where their managers are in their 20s.
Director: Shawn Levy
Screenwriter: Vince Vaughn
Cast: Owen Wilson, Vince Vaughn, Will Ferrell, Rose Byrne, John Goodman
Genre: Comedy
Distributor: Twentieth Century Fox
Release Date: June 7
I, FRANKENSTEIN
Frankenstein’s creature finds himself caught in an all-out, centuries-old war between two immortal clans.
Director: Stuart Beattie
Screenwriter: Kevin Grevioux, Stuart Beattie
Cast: Aaron Eckhart, Bill Nighy, Miranda Otto
Genres: Horror, Thriller
Distributor: Lionsgate
Release Date: September 13
SIN CITY: A DAME TO KILL FOR
The town’s most hard-boiled citizens cross paths with some of its more reviled inhabitants.
Directors: Frank Miller, Robert Rodriguez
Screenwriters: Frank Miller, William Monahan, Robert Rodriguez
Cast: Clive Owen, Jessica Alba, Mickey Rourke, Jamie Chung, Rosario Dawson, Jaime King, Dennis Haysbert
Genres: Action, Crime, Thriller
Distributor: Dimension Films
Release Date: October 4
OLDBOY
An everyday man has only five days and limited resources to discover why he was imprisoned in a nondescript room for 15 years without any explanation.
Director: Spike Lee
Screenwriter: Mark Protosevich
Cast: Josh Brolin, Elizabeth Olsen, Samuel L. Jackson, Sharlto Copley
Genres: Action, Drama, Mystery
Distributor: FilmDistrict
Release Date: October 11
ENDER’S GAME
Seventy years after a horrific alien war, an unusually gifted child is sent to an advanced military school in space to prepare for a future invasion.
Director: Gavin Hood
Screenwriter: Gavin Hood
Cast: Asa Butterfield, Abigail Breslin, Harrison Ford, Hailee Steinfeld, Ben Kingsley, Viola Davis
Genres: Action, Adventure, Sci-fi
Distributor: Summit Entertainment
Release Date: November 1
Morgan’s Picks
WORLD WAR Z
by Morgan Goldin
Director: Marc Forster
Screenwriters: Damon Lindelof, Matthew Michael Carnahan
Cast: Brad Pitt, Mireille Enos, David Morse, Matthew Fox
Genres: Action, Drama, Horror
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Site: worldwarzmovie.com
Release Date: June 21
The resurgence of zombies in pop culture has lead to an explosion of undead lore in various media. The show The Walking Dead is one of the most popular programs on television right now. Next year,Twilight fans get their own flesh-eating romance movie with the release of Warm Bodies. However, the most eager release for a zombie movie is most likely World War Z, based on the hugely popular best-selling novel by Max Brooks. The story concerns a journalist covering the apocalypse, and the book covers various angles of that framed narrative all over the globe. How successfully the movie translates that into a single, straightforward plot remains to be seen.
Brad Pitt both stars in and produces the film. He personally selected director Marc Forster, who helmed the previous James Bond filmQuantum of Solace (2008). However, that collaboration has proven to be far from fruitful. As reported by Vulture magazine, tensions between the two have escalated to the point where they only communicate through assistants. Further complicating matters, early screenings of rough cuts have shown massive problems with the film’s end, which would benefit from major rewrites. Indeed, it seems that much is still in the works. Audiences will get a chance this July to see if they get the all-out zombie action epic they’ve been hungry for.
JOHN DIES AT THE END
A new street drug that sends its users across time and dimensions has one drawback: some people return as no longer human. Can two college dropouts save humankind from this silent, otherworldly invasion?
Director: Don Coscarelli
Screenwriter: Doc Coscarelli
Cast: Chase Williamson, Rob Mayes, Paul Giamatti
Genres: Comedy, Fantasy, Horror
Distributor: Magnet Releasing
Release Date: January 25
SIDE EFFECTS
A woman turns to prescription medication as a way of handling her anxiety concerning her husband’s upcoming release from prison.
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Screenwriter: Scott Z. Burns
Cast: Rooney Mara, Channing Tatum, Jude Law, Catherine Zeta-Jones
Genres: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Distributor: Open Road Films
Release Date: February 8
LIKE SOMEONE IN LOVE
A drama centered on the relationship of a young woman and old man in Tokyo.
Director: Abbas Kiarostami
Screenwriter: Abbas Kiarostami
Cast: Ryo Kase, Rin Takanashi, Denden
Genre: Drama
Distributors: IFC Films, Sundance Selects
Release Date: February 15 (NYC)
PACIFIC RIM
When an alien attack threatens the Earth’s existence, giant robots piloted by humans are deployed to fight off the menace.
Director: Guillermo del Toro
Screenwriters: Travis Beacham, Guillermo del Toro
Cast: Idris Elba, Charlie Hunnam, Rinko Kikuchi, Ron Perlman, Charlie Day
Genres: Action, Adventure, Sci-fi
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Site: pacificrimmovie.warnerbros.com
Release Date: July 12
MALAVITA
The Manzoni family, a notorious mafia clan, is relocated to Normandy, France under the witness protection program, where fitting in soon becomes challenging as the family’s old habits die hard.
Director: Luc Besson
Screenwriters: Luc Besson, Michael Caleo
Cast: Robert De Niro, Tommy Lee Jones, Michelle Pfeiffer, Dianna Agron, Vincent Pastore
Genres: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Distributor: Relativity Media
Release Date: October 18
TRANCE
A fine art auctioneer mixed up with a gang joins forces with a hypnotherapist to recover a lost painting. As boundaries between desire, reality, and hypnotic suggestion begin to blur the stakes rise faster than anyone could have anticipated.
Director: Danny Boyle
Screenwriters: Joe Ahearne, John Hodge
Cast: James McAvoy, Rosario Dawson, Vincent Cassel
Genres: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Distributor: Fox Searchlight
Release Date: TBD
GRAVITY
(see Dan’s Picks)
MANDELA: LONG WALK TO FREEDOM
(See Stephanie’s Picks)
SIN CITY: A DAME TO KILL FOR
(See Saidah’s Picks)
Adrian’s Picks
MAMA
Annabel and Lucas are faced with the challenge of raising his young nieces that were left alone in the forest for five years … but how alone were they?
Director: Andrés Muschietti
Screenwriters: Neil Cross, Andrés Muschietti, Barbara Muschietti
Cast: Jessica Chastain, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Megan Charpentier
Genre: Horror
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Site: mamamovie.com
Release Date: January 18
STAND UP GUYS
A pair of aging con men tries to get the old gang back together for one last hurrah before one of the guys takes his last assignment—to kill his comrade.
Director: Fisher Stevens
Screenwriter: Noah Haidle
Cast: Al Pacino, Alan Arkin, Christopher Walken, Julianna Margulies, Mark Margolis
Genres: Comedy, Crime
Distributor: Lionsgate
Site: standupguysfilm.com
Release Date: February 1
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The life story of Jackie Robinson and his history-making signing with the Brooklyn Dodgers under the guidance of team executive Branch Rickey.
Director: Brian Helgeland
Screenwriter: Brian Helgeland
Cast: Chadwick Boseman, Harrison Ford, Kelley Jakle, Alan Tudyk, Christopher Meloni
Genres: Biography, Drama, Sport
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Release Date: April 12
DESPICABLE ME 2
Gru, the girls, the unpredictably hilarious minions, and a host of new characters return.
Directors: Pierre Coffin, Chris Renaud
Screenwriters: Ken Daurio, Cinco Paul
Cast: Steve Carell, Al Pacino, Kristen Wiig, Miranda Cosgrove, Russell Brand, Steve Coogan
Genres: Animation, Comedy, Family
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Release Date: July 3
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