Honorable Mention: Sin City; A Dame to Kill For
One of my many, many weird habits is that I don't believe a movie exists until it's being sold to me; i.e. until I see a trailer. No trailer has been released for the long-awaited sequel to 2005's Sin City, and compounded with the fact that this movie's been in the works for eight years, plus the fact that some of the principle roles have yet to be cast, I'm not getting my hopes up too soon. Still, according to the ever-reliable news sources of Wikipedia and IMDb, A Dame to Kill For is coming to theaters next October, and even with the ever-controversial Frank Miller lending a crazy hand to the proceedings, Robert Rodriguez is back to making movies for grown-ups. That alone is worth getting excited about.
10) Jack the Giant Slayer
Another of the suddenly popular 'revisionist fantasy' genre, this is one that's been stuck in development for some time, having intended to be released in February 2011 and now coming in March 2013, reportedly so that Warner Bros can perfect the film's visual effects. Development hell doesn't bode well for any picture, but this one still gets my interest because of four words: Directed by Bryan Singer. Say what you will about his disappointing Superman Returns; he's had a hand in all of the good X-Men movies and he's proven himself as a great director of action and character beats. That alone has me interested.
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9) End of the World
Okay, this is sort of weird since I just said I don't believe a movie exists until it's being sold to me a mere two entries ago, but the premise of this one is a killer. In End of the World, we see the apocalypse from the point of view of Hollywood's most available. A party with James Franco, Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, Jonah Hill, Michael Cera, Craig Robinson, Emma Watson, Rihanna, and others is interrupted when the end times come. You can't put that many funny people and also Rihanna in one movie and not expect to get some laughs. Until the trailer hits, settle for the fake trailer that inspired the real movie.
8) Man of Steel
Here's the short version: Marvel has won the movie race. They're not winning right now and DC just needs to catch up; the race is over and they've won. The Avengers came out, a movie that teams a space god, a dude in a robot suit, and a man whose entire character can be summed up as "good guy", while DC Entertainment is struggling to get their Amazon princess flick off the ground. Marvel went for the silly crap and came out ahead for it. DC's trying to make their characters relevant and modern and edgy, and that's handicapping them and keeping them from making Avengers-level money. Until they can figure out how to do someone besides Batman in movies, they're always gonna be lagging behind the House of Ideas.
That's why I'm apprehensive about Man of Steel. Yes, I'm gonna see it, I'm just worried it's gonna reach for being The Dark Knight but just end up as another Superman Returns, or (god forbid) a Green Lantern. Bottom line is that I'm apprehensive, but eager to see the results. Plus they got Zack Snyder directing it. Say what you will about Sucker Punch or 300; at the very least, the dude knows how to make things look good on film, and hopefully, the story will be good enough to match Snyder's visuals. So who knows? Might be the first step in DC expanding it's film base and making their proposed Justice League movie happen in 2015.
7) Star Trek into Darkness
J.J. Abrams first Trek movie was flawed, but ultimately a really fun ride that showed a lot of respect for the old show. In addition to having the dumbest film name in the franchise, the sequel hopes to do the same as the first and improve upon it by making TV's Sherlock Benedict Cumberbatch the main villain. I can think of few ways of improving a movie than adding Benedict Cumberbatch to the cast. Couple that with all of the stuff that made the first movie good and you've got a sequel I really want to see.
6) Oz, the Great and Powerful
I feel like it's 2001 again, and cult-favorite director Sam Raimi is showing the world how to make a blockbuster. After helping to elevate comic-book movie to it's current dominance with his Spider-Man trilogy, Raimi is now tackling L. Frank Baum's most famous books. Great and Powerful serves as a prequel to the more famous story already captured on film, telling the origin of the Wonderful Wizard as he first comes to the world-famous fantasy land. Visually, the movie borrows from both the classic film and Baum's vivid descriptions of the Land of Oz from his books, and if the trailer's any indication, the result will be bloody gorgeous. Great and Powerful looks like an absolute blast from a director who, above all else, knows how to have fun.
5) Iron Man 3
Marvel's first movie post-Avengers trades in regular director Jon Favreau for Shane Black, who previously directed the well-received crime film Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, also starring Robert Downey Jr. Here in Iron Man 3, it appears they'll be borrowing from Warren Ellis's story arc, Extremis, which I never read, but involves a techno-organic virus that changes how Tony Stark interfaces with his armor or some such comic-book pseudo-scientific BS. Whatever, THE MANDARIN IS IN THE TRAILER! The Mandarin, a character who I never thought we'd see on film because he's so firmly rooted in the Cold War, is not only in the film and played by Oscar-winner Ben Kingsley, but is put right there in the trailer. See, DC Entertainment and Warner Bros? THAT'S how you do a movie!
4) Much Ado About Nothing
Joss Whedon: So I've got a new movie...
Me: I'm in.
Joss Whedon: It's called Much Ado About Nothing...
Me: I'm in.
Joss Whedon: It's based on the Shakespearean comedy...
Me: I'm in.
Joss Whedon: It stars a bunch of my usual people...
Me: I'm in.
Joss Whedon: I filmed the whole thing at my house in black and white...
Me: I'm in.
Joss Whedon: And I also did the music for it.
Me: I'm in.
Joss Whedon: You wanna see it?
Me: ...I guess so.
3) Thor: The Dark World
Again, we have no trailer as this will be a November release, not a summer blockbuster. Still, I'd be jazzed about this one if they put it out on a Tuesday in September. Details on the exact plot of Thor 2 haven't been released yet, except that the villains have been cast, with 9th Doctor Christopher Eccleston playing the dark elf sorceror Malekith the Accursed, and actor whose name I can only enter through copy-pasting Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje as fellow dark elf Algrim the Strong, a.k.a. Kurse. Really though, the big seller for me is that it's a Thor movie. I loved the first one because it dove in headfirst with all its goofy Norse mythology and by the looks of things, they're doing the same with the sequel. Forsooth!
So how does Edgar Wright follow-up directing my favorite movie of all time Scott Pilgrim vs. the World? By going back to the well, and re-teaming with Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, and the rest of the gang to complete their Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy with the comedy film The World's End (not to be confused with my #9 pick, the End of the World). The World's End is actually the name of a fictitious pub, one of many that the film's characters attempt to visit as they try to recreate a legendary pub crawl from their youth. However, things don't go as planned, the actual apocalypse may or may not be happening...look, I don't know the details. All I know is that Edgar Wright is making a movie, and therefore, I am obliged to see it. That's enough for me.
1) Pacific Rim
So Guillermo Del Toro made a movie that's a tribute to Japanese Kaiju stories, and it's about Godzilla-style giant monsters attacking the Earth and humanity fights them with giant humanoid robots that can punch them in the face and Idris Elba's in it and the ship's AI is voiced by Ellen McLain of Portal fame and OH MY GOD PUT THIS MOVIE IN FRONT OF MY EYES RIGHT NOW AAAAAAAAAARGH!!!
So that's my list. What are the movies you're most looking forward to next year? Post 'em, discuss 'em, but most importantly, see 'em. Thanks for reading and I'll see you next time!
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