The Place Beyond The Pines
This shadowy crime drama arrives from Blue Valentine director, Derek Cianfrance. Cianfrance reunites with star Ryan Gosling here wisely pairs him up with newcomer Bradley Cooper, the latter gaining serious cred in the acting arena and responsible for earning Silver Linings Playbook several awards show nods. The movie has already gained some glaringly positive reviews following a few select festival screenings. Based off previous movies, we have no doubt Cianfrance can add the right balance of tone to elicit career performances from Gosling and Cooper.
Man of Steel
Described as ‘the crown jewel’ of DC Comics by some in the industry, it’s about time a quality filmmaker like Zack Snyder (Watchmen, 300) put love and same attention to detail into Superman that franchises like Batman have enjoyed of late. Speaking of Batman, Christopher Nolan is acting as producer here and reportedly helped Snyder guide important elements of the story and tone. If Nolan had his hands on any part of this movie, coming off the heels of The Dark Knight Rises, audiences aren’t wrong to expect the most compelling installment in this timeless franchise to date.
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
It’s fair to say The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey received mixed reviews at best, but for true Lord of the Rings fans it’s still coveted as an opportunity to return to Middle Earth. Director Peter Jackson has clearly found ways to justify an entire trilogy, incorporating much of the lore easily left by the wayside. It’s safe to assume the first installment of the slightly controversial trilogy merely served the purpose of setting the long oaken table in the hobbit-hole. Martin Freeman should continue to flourish in his title role alongside the brilliant Ian McKellen.
Monsters University
Pixar can seemingly do no wrong. The animation has no equal when creating movies ideal for kids that respect the intelligence of older audiences, blending complex emotional themes not seen since the likes of Lion King. Their latest installment, Monsters University, actually arrives around the same time kids who saw the original in theater would be entering college. It’s been that long since Billy Crystal and John Goodman, monsters Mike & Sully, teamed up for one of the greatest feel good family friendly comedies to date. There’s good reason to be excited – Pixar is highly versed in the art of sequels (see: Toy Story 3).
Star Trek Into Darkness
There’s still quite a bit of mystery enshrouding the incumbent sequel to J.J. Abram’s Star Trek revival, stemming from an explosive trailer that has Trekies itching in anticipation. Is that supposed to be Khan? Did they just allude to the death of Spock? Is the Enterprise going to crash, again? The franchise has hit a tremendous stride under new direction, ushering forth an impossible reality where more people are excited for an imminent Star Trek installment over the next chapter of Star Wars.
World War Z
Perhaps our morbid curiosity got the best of us here, but this adaptation of Max Brooks’ bestselling novel is incredibly alluring – and not entirely for reasons encouraging. A Brad Pitt heavy trailer suggests serious liberties have been taken in plot, liberties that already seem to be generating tremendous backlash amongst fans of the original concept. Can audiences gain anything from a disaster flick with the XY portion of Brangelina? Maybe not. But hey, zombies!
Kick-Ass 2
The refreshingly original Kick-Ass finally gets its long awaited sequel with the added bonus of a rare Jim Carrey sighting as the newly recruited Colonel Stars and Stripes. Critics hailed the original ode to vigilantism for being equal parts compelling and hilarious, an unconventional comic book flick that never takes itself too seriously with just the right amount of gratuitous violence. Kick-Ass 2 promises to raise the stakes.
Ender’s Game
It’s any wonder Hollywood hasn’t already churned out the appropriate adaptation for Orson Scott Card’s cult classic sci-fi novel. Alas, Harrison Ford returns to the very interstellar space that made him famous alongside budding actor Asa Butterfield. Whether the film can step outside the immense shadow cast by the source material, Ender’s Game seems to at least be a visual draw of blockbuster proportions.
12 Years a Slave
Following Quentin Tarantino’s 2012 revisionist history epic Django Unchained, comes another story of an enslaved man in the antebellum south from one of my favorite up-and-coming directors, Steve McQueen. Best known for writing and directing 2011’s controversial Shame, McQueen has broken character with this dark historical drama. 12 Years a Slave is the adaptation of an 1853 memoir written by Soloman Northup. The story follows Northup, a freed slave who is unwillingly forced back into slavery and passed from plantation to plantation for over a decade. The film features a cast that is a cinephile’s wet dream with Brad Pitt, Michael Fassbender, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Dano, Paul Giamatti, Michael Kenneth Williams (Omar from the Wire), and Chiwetel Ejiofor in the lead role. Twelve Years promises to be an excruciating character study that is impeccably shot.
The Great Gatsby
Written off by many when first announced, The Great Gatsby raised further criticism when production was halted and the original release was pushed back. The film actually boasts the appropriately named director Baz Luhrmann and the talents of Leonardo DiCaprio as the lead role. A justifiable version of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s could resonate effectively with audiences as the behavior of the 1% remains a considerably topical talking point.
