This is a revision of a list I posted on FB a couple of weeks ago. I’ve upped the list from 10 to 15 movies and included a little bit more information about each one. Aside from the pointy end of the list, they are in a fairly loose order.
Honourable Mentions:
Two films from Terrence Malick that could show up any time between 2012 and 2032.
Voyage of Time
Untitled Terrence Malick Project (w/ Rachel McAdams, Ben Affleck, Jessica Chastain, Javier Bardem, Rachel Weisz, Michael Sheen)
Two films in one year from Mr. Malick? Yeah, I’m skeptical also. Considering it took about four years for Malick to edit Days of Heaven (1978), I’m not holding my breath for either one of these films. Voyage of Time is a documentary featuring narration by Brad Pitt and Emma Thompson. Release date: TBD
13. The Avengers
Director: Joss Whedon
Cast: Roberty Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Samuel L. Jackson, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Tom Hiddleston
It’s not completely true that I’m anticipating this with the joy of watching the movie; it’s closer to the truth to say I’m looking forward to this thing being over. I’ve already committed time and money to the franchise and I feel obliged to see its culmination. That being said, I am looking forward to seeing Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner/Hulk.
Director: Mark Webb
Cast: Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Rhys Ifans
I was a big admirer of Marvel’s Ultimate Spider-man, so I’m hoping this reboot of the film series is in line with the tone of those comics; however, the trailer doesn’t suggest my hope will be satisfied. Still, Andrew Garfield has been terrific in everything I’ve seen him in so far: Red Riding: In the Year of Our Lord 1974 (2009), Never Let Me Go (2010), and The Social Network (2010), and I heart Emma Stone.
11. Magic Mike
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Cast: Channing Tatum
1o. Haywire
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Cast: Gina Carano, Ewan McGregor, Michael Fassbender, Channing Tatum, Antonio Banderas, Michael Douglas
Unlike Mr. Malick, I can easily believe there will be two films from another Cinema & favourite director, Steven Soderbergh. Haywire has just been released in North America and Magic Mike should arrive this summer. An action movie and a male stripper comedy from a masterful filmmaker who never seems to repeat himself. With Mr. Soderbergh, you’re guaranteed to get a movie of the finest craftsmanship, and this year offerings each promise to have a combination of experimentation and mainstream aesthetic.
9. Looper
Director: Rian Johnson
Cast: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis, Emily Blunt
It’s sci-fi. It’s time travel. It’s JGL. And, most importantly, it’s Rian Johnson, the writer-director behind Brick(2005) and the seemingly under-appreciated The Brothers Bloom (2008).
Director: Wes Anderson
Cast: Edward Norton, Tilda Swinton, Bill Murray, Bruce Willis, Frances McDormand, Jason Schwartzman
With each new film, I think Wes Andersson is going to disappoint me, but he never does. I’ve thought about covered Mr. Anderson in one of my classes as an exercise in identifying an auteur. I’m not completely convinced if he is, but at the very least, Mr. Anderson is one hell of a stylist and I love the world he projects onto the screen: wide angle anamorphic photography, symmetrical composition, slow-motion tracking shots, Futura font, Brit rock soundtrack treats. The Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009) was a gem, so how can any fan not look forward to the new film?
7. Brave
Director: Mark Andrews
Voice Cast: Kelly Macdonald, Billy Connolly, Emma Thompson, Kevin McKidd
Last year was not a great one for animation and certainly not a great one for Pixar with the release of their first cinematic failure Cars 2. Brave, however, should be a return to form, and it’s the first time I’m really looking forward to a Pixar movie (I don’t know why I haven’t gotten excited about them in the past). Also, with all those Scottish accents, it’s going to be an aural feast as well as a slight Trainspotting reunion with Kelly Macdonald and Kevin McKidd. I’m going to love taking Euen to see this.
6. Prometheus
Director: Ridley Scott
Cast: Noomi Rapace, Charlize Theron, Michael Fassbender, Patrick Wilson, Idris Elba, Guy Pearce
With Alien( 1979) and Blade Runner (1982), Ridley Scott provided two of the best , most influential, and most evocative science fiction films ever made; Prometheus is his return to that genre. However, both those films were a long time ago and Scott hasn’t knocked my socks off since the extended cut of Kingdom of Heaven (2005). But even with those misgivings, a non-Alien Alien prequel that promises to solve the mystery of the Space Jockey and it’s got Fassbender!
5. Gravity
Director: Alfonso Cuarón
Cast: George Clooney, Sandra Bullock
Alfonso Cuarón hasn’t directed a feature film since 2006’s excellent Children of Men, but he’s back late this year with the third science fiction movie to make my list (not counting super-hero movies). Mr. Cuarón films are technically experimental and expressive, but also he also creates tone with great editing and distinctive, effective use of colour palette (Great Expectations – 1998 and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkhaban – 2004). Gravity has long been in development and has had a revloving door of female leads cast before Sandra Bullock was settled upon. I’m no fan of Ms. Bullock, but she is not without presence. To counter this misgiving is the presence of Mr. Clooney who I like as an actor and a movie star.
4. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Director: Peter Jackson
Cast: Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, Richard Armitage, Andy Serkis
A return to Middle-Earth. I don’t really need to say much more. The trailer really had me. Martin Freeman looks perfectly cast as Bilbo and I trust Mr. Jackson and co. to handle the transition of The Hobbit into their LotR universe without too much fuss. Plus, singing Dwarves!!!!
3. Django Unchained
Director: Quentin Tarantino
Cast: Jamie Foxx, Leonardo DiCaprio, Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell, Christoph Waltz, Michael Kenneth Williams, Joseph Gordon-Levitt
I don’t know a sing film directed by Mr. Tarantino that has not gotten better with subsequent viewings. I haven’t always been a huge fan, but I have always been interested, and this director’s love of cinema (particularly pop cinema) is well-known. With dialogue, violence, genre, music, camera, and casting, Mr. Tarantino plays right into my wheelhouse. I’ll be fighting to keep my expectations and anticipation in check all the way to December; it’s going to be a long year.
Director: Christopher Nolan
Cast: Christian Bale, Tom Hardy, Gary Oldman, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Anne Hathaway, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Marion Cotillard, Liam Neeson
It’s a rather obvious choice right near the end of my list, but, who cares. The Dark Knight (2008) was a terrifically satisfying film on many levels and in many ways, and Mr. Nolan continues to be a favourite director. If I have one overwhelming apprehension about this movie, it’s in his casting of the female lead. Mr. Nolan doesn’t have a good record of either creating memorable or casting female characters. Some of his films come perilously close to being sabotaged by this weakness, such as Batman Begin (2006), The Prestige (2006), and Inception (2010). Anne Hathaway has turned in nice performances in the past, but none of her recent work has been memorable at all. If a lot of the movie relies on the Catwowan character and her relationship with Batman/Bruce Wayne, then things could easily enter Katie Holmes territory. To counter this apprehension, though, is the enormous presence of Tom Hardy.
Director: Whit Stillman
Cast: Greta Gerwig, Adam Brody, Analeigh Tipton
Here’s the film I am absolutely most looking forward to in 2012. It’s been 13 years since the last Whit Stillman picture, and I was beginning to fear that he was gone forever. My fears have been allayed. Thank goodness! Greta Gerwig is an indie darling and I recently saw Analeigh Tipton for the first time in Crazy, Stupid, Love (2011) and thought she was one of the best things about that movie. The only sadness I feel about the release of Damsels in Distress is that Chris Eigeman isn’t in it.
Who is Whit Stillman? Metropolitan (1989). Barcelona (1994). The Last Days of Disco (1998). Clever, endearing, smart, talkie little movies that nobody ever goes to see.
&.
Cinema & 