Well Summer is over, and pretty soon movies will be getting arty (we hope). Making a list for Fall (i.e. the remainder of the year. Yes, including December) is always tough because more often than not films come out of nowhere (festivals) and surprise everyone, and the ones with the big hype in August fizzle upon release. That said, here’s what I think is worth looking out for at the moment.
10 Ninja Assassin
This could easily be terrible, but the trailer looked like fun. I think a nice break for ninja action during award season sounds like a good idea.
9 The Invention of Lying
I’m a huge Ricky Gervais fan, and this looks like it could be his Groundhog Day. At the very least, it would be nice if the rest of America got on the bandwagon.
8 The Road
This one has been delayed and delayed and delayed, which is never a good sign, but I’ve heard some pretty good advance reviews so we’ll see. Director John Hillcoat’s last feature, The Proposition was pretty freakin’ great too.
7 Shutter Island
Yup, it’s Martin Scorsese, so it automatically gets a spot on the list. The trailer looked fairly cookie-cutter though, and devoid of Marty’s trademarks, so I’m not quite frothing at the mouth to see it (yet).
6 The Fantastic Mr. Fox
Wes Anderson’s first animated film will at the very least be his most unique feature. The reaction to the trailer was decidedly mixed, but I personally found the animation and humor pretty charming. I’m also a sucker for stop-motion.
5 A Serious Man
The Coen Brothers’ new film looks like it will fit right in with their filmography, despite the fact that they are working with a no-name cast for the first time since…. um Blood Simple? The Coens have always been industry darlings, but No Country put them over the top, and it will take a really bad movie to knock ‘em down at this point.
4 Sherlock Holmes
Robert Downey Jr. pretty much has the world by the balls right now, so any movie he makes is going to pique my interest. The trailer for this one looked surprisingly madcap, but also very fun. Not at all what I was expecting, but I’m definitely intrigued.
3 The Lovely Bones
Peter Jackson’s first film since King Kong deals with some pretty heady themes, the most notable of which is the idea of an afterlife. The visuals look absolutely stunning and this is the guy who made Lord of the Rings we are talking about. Ticket = bought.
2 Where the Wild Things Are
I’ve been mentioning trailers a lot, but this one wins the trailer competition hands down. I’m always skeptical of children’s books stretched into feature films, but the latest from Spike Jonze looks like a classic in the making already. Seriously, expect major buzz on this one.
1 Avatar
Ok, I’ve already talked Avatar to death. Just to recap, it’s James Cameron’s breakthrough in 3-D cinema, and his first movie since Titanic (not counting documentaries). I have no idea if this will live up to the hype, but I’ll have a better idea next Friday, when Imax screens previews of the film nationwide. If it even approaches 1/10th of the movie I have in my head, it will easily hold onto the title of “thing I am most excited for in the world”.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteSorry. My first comment had typos and I HATE those. Anyway, all I said was that I feel iffy about Ninja Assassin as well. Only because Rain, the main actor, is not an actor, but a singer/dancer. I guess Ziyi Zhang was in that same boat too. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt, even if he is Korean. =)
ReplyDelete