Category: Movies

Trailers are an under-appreciated art form insofar that many times they’re seen as vehicles for showing footage, explaining films away, or showing their hand about what moviegoers can expect. Foreign, domestic, independent, big budget: What better way to hone your skills as a thoughtful moviegoer than by deconstructing these little pieces of advertising? This week we jettison the holiday season by taking a look at Thanksgiving, revisit SLC Punk, get misty at a story about dying, take to the skies over Israel post-WWII, and get confused with Chow Yun-Fat.

Thanksgiving: The Movie Trailer

Are you goddamned kidding me with this?

It’s a fake trailer for a fake movie with fake characters that needs to be made more than a lot of what will qualify as film fare this year. I love it completely, wholly, and deeply on multiple levels. What it lacks in reality it more than makes up for with how sharply creative it is and how it uses tropes we’ve seen before in order to be the very thing it is making fun of. With the meshing of Star Trek and Star Wars action figures clad in cockel hats, dinosaurs, time machines, the inclusion of the human hands directing them, and a keen eye on how to literally frame it all, you have something that is not only entertaining but makes you wonder why other people can’t get their crap together in order to actually make something as inventive as this. As a perfect distillation of all of this, when you get to the moment when a stormtrooper is explaining the situation they’re in and he’s asking if he’s being clear on his assertions, it’s at this moment when you realize why this won at the Lucasfilm company’s “Backyard Filmmaking Contest.” It’s just the kind of fresh, dorking around kind of film-making that I hope gets creators Keith Anthony-Brown and Jim Milton more than just visibility at an internal company event. They need to make this HAPPEN.

From Vegas to Macau II Trailer

This thing is an absolute mess.

It’s as if someone asked director Jing Wong “What do you want to see in a trailer?” and he happened to answer back, “I dunno. But, why not make it really hard to tell what’s going on, who’s who, why bikini clad women are on Flyboards with a pistol in each hand, have some supernatural card shark do crazy ass things with a Bicycle deck, get a dude to do that cool-walk-away-from-an-explosion-without-ever-looking-back thing and then put it all into a blender to try and really screw with people who might want to pay money to see it?” Mission accomplished in that regard. You have explosions that have no context and a story that, while I assume I probably need to seek out part one of this novel narrative, I have a feeling I’m going to be OK if I don’t.

However, make no mistake, I am absolutely entranced by what’s here. I am actually putting this on my personal radar to make sure I thoroughly ingest what looks like narrative insanity of the highest degree. The trailer perfectly targets who, I assume, are the intended target of this kind of fare and good on them for realizing what these kinds of hornballs need and giving a metric ton of it here.

Punk’s Dead Trailer

Serious question to the group: Should I seek out director James Merendino’s SLC Punk? And, secondary question: Was the world clamoring for a sequel?

I don’t think I paid it much attention when it came out, and I may have been feeling burnt out on the transgressive film-making of guys like Gregg Araki but I’ve heard the name of this movie whispered on more than one occasion to make me think it has made its way into the cinematic consciousness in some regard. That said, I’m not sure about this. I don’t know if it’s because what’s here is really heavy in its narrative explanation of things, or whether the pace needs to be picked up, but I think there are some genuinely interesting moments in here mixed with some scenes that don’t coalesce with the whole. The music choices are nice, albeit if they were mixed in a little better could really ratchet up things, but, again, I’m not sure how to feel at the end of this. There’s something very pure here, to be sure, I’m just not sure if this is the way to go to market with it.

Farewell to Hollywood Trailer

There are some things better left not known.

It’s not that I don’t want to immediately Wikipedia the subject of our film, or look up the synopsis of what brings us together today, but I want this trailer to tell me on its own. It’s genuinely a beautiful meditation on moments, on words, on reflection, and it works powerfully. Even though I don’t know suppose to know our filmmakers Henry Corra and Regina Nicholson, and how they became intertwined with each other’s lives, there’s enough given to us for work out on our own. The choice to use the subject of the film to be our shepherd through this journey is a sharp and logical one. Don’t allow us to have any distance between the situation and who we’re focused on. Make it about the present and prevent any opportunity to disengage, emotionally, with what we’re seeing. It’s heartbreaking once you “get it” and move through the little pieces we’re offered up. Instead of making this a vehicle to make a purchase decision it, rightly, makes this an earnest plea to consider listening to her story and allowing this human being to communicate what is so fundamental to our humanity. Get the tissues.

Above and Beyond Trailer

Had zero clue.

One of the things I was absolutely horrible at in school, it was damn near criminal, was my lack of any ability to comprehend, or appreciate, history. Sure, I knew the big events and would never be ignorant enough to be one of those jamokes on TV that would show you how dumb Americans could be, but it was the little moments of history that were tucked away in between the watershed moments that changed our path as a people, as a society. Enter director Roberta Grossman to provide some color on a period of time when throngs of Jewish Americans thought to help Israel as they fought in their War of Independence. What follows in this trailer is an exciting look at not only the seriousness of this call to arms but also showing some signs of levity in a time of great tragedy. This trailer is expertly edited not only in how it introduces us to the situation but in keeping things moving. Yes, these dudes are old and old people can sometimes take a while to get the damn point, but bam, bam, bam, we hit the high points, we get in, we get out. For all the stories you think you’ve heard by osmosis from having the History Channel pumping out program after program it’s kind of thrilling for dopes like me to marvel at this moment in time I never knew existed.

Nota bene: If you have any suggestions of trailers to possibly be included in this column, even have a trailer of your own to pitch, please let me know by sending me a note at Christopher_Stipp@yahoo.com or look me up via Twitter at @Stipp

The post This Week In Trailers: From Vegas to Macau II, Thanksgiving: The Movie, Punk’s Dead, Farewell to Hollywood, Above and Beyond appeared first on /Film.

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Which actor is hilariously being rumored as Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man replacement? Want to see Weta’s work on The Amazing Spider-Man 2? How is Marvel replacing the “dead” Wolverine in the comics? Would Hayley Atwell like to continue playing Agent Carter? Who is the latest actress who may be up for Supergirl? What happens when a dog watches Guardians of the Galaxy? Read about all this and more in the first Superhero Bits of 2015!

Sideshow Collectibles released this cool tease for the Thanos Hot Toys.

In today’s hilarious rumor of the day, Movie Pilot says Marvel wants Ty Simpkins to play Iron Man after Robert Downey Jr. He does have a multi-picture deal though.

Florey’s 1/1 like the one above are now available once again. Note: Most of the major superheroes are spoken for. Be creative!

Entertainment Weekly posted a non-embeddable clip of Monica Baccarin‘s introduction on Gotham.

Weta Workship posted a ton of images of their work on The Amazing Spider-man 2, including this scene of Norman Osborn’s head.

Hayley Atwell would love to continue playing Agent Carter, if fans watch the series of course.

The new comic book series following the Death of Wolverine is: Wolverines. Newsarama has a bunch of the variant covers.

Watch a couple clip from Agent Carter, this one done in the style of the era, this one featuring Chad Michael Murray.

Continue Reading Superhero Bits >>

Due to the amount of graphics and images included in Superhero Bits, we have to split this post over THREE pages. Click the link above to continue to the second page of Superhero Bits.

The post Superhero Bits: Agent of Carter, Amazing Spider-Man 2, Daredevil, Iron Man, Wolverines appeared first on /Film.

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SyFy has been working to redefine itself somewhat, with movie-inspired series such as 12 Monkeys and Ascension and to, well, varying degrees of success. The channel’s other original series Helix is also redefining itself for the second season. Or the show is changing up a few noticeable things, at least, trading the frigid “lab under ice” setting of the first season for a remote island. Check out the Helix season 2 trailer below for a taste of the new season.

What’s interesting here isn’t the Lost-inspired island setting, but the fact that, beyond the significant change of venue, this otherwise seems like a pretty similar setup to the first season: isolated location, viral outbreak, shadowy corporate malfeasance, and so on. And with some returning characters from the first season, we’ll be curious to see how this new chapter furthers their story while developing a new angle on the series’ overall concept. How does this story truly connect to the last, and will some of the hanging ideas from the finale be woven in here? It’s tough to predict the answers to those questions based on these trailers.

If you need to catch up on the first season, SyFy offers a five-minute recap of the season:

Trailer via SyFy. Helix season 2 premieres Friday, January 16 at 10/9c.

After barely escaping with their lives, the survivors of Season One attempt to move on from the horrors that took place at Arctic Biosystems. But when their work takes them to a mysterious and remote wooded island, they quickly discover the Ilaria Corporation’s reach is deeper and darker than anyone imagined, and a deadly new virus will present a threat that no one thought possible.

The post ‘Helix’ Season 2 Trailers Head to a Remote Island appeared first on /Film.

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We’ve shown you our top 10s of 2014, our favorite actors, characters, and trailers, the best under-the-radar releases, and so on. Even so, there are a few more scenes, performances, gags, and other miscellanea we’d like to highlight before we close the book on 2014. So as we head into 2015, we present to you the odds and ends of 2014 — the other stuff that we’ll remember about the past year in film, for better or for worse.

Most Effective Marketing Campaign: The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1

Anyone can give you a well-cut trailer or a pretty poster. Lionsgate turned its marketing campaign for The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 into an experience. The Capitol TV dispatches turned us all into citizens of Panem, while supplementary materials like the District Heroes series expanded the world of Panem far beyond what we’ve seen or will ever get to see in the movies. But for me, the real evidence of the campaign’s effectiveness arrived in the theater. The hair on the back of my neck stood up at the opening strains of the Capitol TV, thanks to the months I’d spent listening to it in the run-up to the movie.

Worst Case of Dragon Sickness: Peter Jackson and Warner Bros.

If “dragon sickness” makes an otherwise sane person act unreasonably greedy, then Peter Jackson and Warner Bros. had the worst case of “dragon sickness” in Hollywood in 2014. As The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies rolled out, it became clear that every suspicion we’d had about the trilogy being a cynical money-grubbing ploy was correct. Together, the three epic pictures only served to prove that The Hobbit had no business being adapted into three epic pictures to begin with.

The You Tried Award: Winter’s Tale

There were a lot of bad movies in 2014. What made Winter’s Tale unique was that it was a bad movie that had clearly been made with a lot of care. The tone of the film is almost oppressively earnest, and not a single person in the cast or crew seems to be phoning it in. And yet nearly every decision is preposterously misguided, from Colin Farrell’s terrible haircut right up to the film’s very notion of “miracles.”

Best End Credits Sequence: 22 Jump Street

22 Jump Street was a sequel to a comic reboot of an old TV drama, that was all about the very ridiculousness of making a sequel to a comic reboot of an old TV drama. And just when I thought they’d squeezed every joke they possibly could out of that premise, they dropped about a dozen more in the credits. It’s almost too bad Sony is actually moving ahead with another Jump Street movie. The sly sequence would’ve been the perfect capper to a movie franchise that’s proved much sharper than it ever had any right to be.

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Things take a dark turn on the next page with the best and worst timing of the year, the best argument for letting humanity die off, and more.

Continue Reading The Odds and Ends of 2014 >>

The post The Odds and Ends of 2014: A Few More Superlatives to Wrap Up a Year in Movies appeared first on /Film.

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We’ve already heard from Kevin Smith about his impressive list of upcoming projects. He’s also told us about what making Tusk meant to him. Now, in part two of our long interview with the filmmaker, we dig a little deeper. Smith goes into great detail about some of the more talked-about decisions he made in Tusk, which is now on Blu-ray.

First Smith talks about the decision to reveal the walrus suit so early in the film. That leads into a discussion of effects in general, his preferred tone, other problems people have with the film and then his biggest regret in the marketing of the film. (A mistake he says he’ll never make again). He then talks about the inventive, aggressive schedule on Yoga Hosers, which is almost done filming. Read the rest of our Kevin Smith Tusk interview below.

This is the continuation of part 1, which you can read here.

/Film: The reveal of Wallace in the suit is a huge moment in the movie. I wondered why you did that reveal that so early?

Kevin Smith: My feeling was the only reason anyone’s really tuned in is to see the human walrus. So rather than make them wait until like the third act, I was like “All right, we’re before the hour mark, let’s show them the walrus.” And story wise it just kind of worked out for me to have it happen earlier rather than later. And then it was also a feeling of “Let’s just hang a camera on it.” Like “Look at it.” You know, it’s weird.

I know some people have been like “It doesn’t look real,” which always made me laugh. Of course it don’t fucking look real, man! Like do you know a real human walrus somewhere in the world? So, for me, I’m like you can’t really attack the effect. Usually you don’t show something because some people are like “That looks fake.” But this is fake. There is no antecedent in the real world which somebody can point to and be like that doesn’t look like a human walrus. So I was like “Let’s show it as often as we can,” because as a horror movie fan or as a rubber movie fan, you hate when they cut away. You wanna sit there and stare at it, look at all the seams and see what they put in the design and whatnot. And usually it’s quick cuts in movies like that. But here, we just hold on that mother fucker so you can see it. Warts and all. And, it’s part of the effect.

Like, I can’t say the movie’s horrifying unless you’re like “I just can’t believe he even made it. I’m horrified this movie exists and he’s a terrible filmmaker.” But I can say that “What I go for with Red State and Tusk is disturbing.” I like to keep it disturbing. I can’t horrify. I don’t like have people pop out of nowhere and be like “Boo” and shit. But I love to keep people unsettled, just slightly disturbing, you know? And unsettle the viewer where they’re kind of shifting in their seat. That’s the fun of making a movie like this. It’s different from making a comedy because the button that makes somebody laugh and the button to make somebody go “Huh,” are pretty darn close. So for me, showing that suit was about “All right, let’s unnerve them and leave them unnerved for the rest of the movie.”

Also, I thought it would be the dividing line for most people. People who are like “I’m giving this movie a chance,” ‘because, believe me, I understood this movie was not gonna be widely embraced. It asks a lot of the audience. But I always figured the walrus suit would be the dividing line. Where people are like “Well that’s where he lost me.” But it wasn’t. There was some people that were like “The Guy Lapointe scenes are the dividing line.” They’re like “You were making an awesome horror movie up until that Guy Lapointe stuff.” But I’m like “I don’t know if I was interested in making an awesome horror movie. I just wanted to make a Smodcast picture.” And if we were gonna do that, it can’t be one thing. It’s gotta like “You talk about this and this is fucked up.” And then you make a bunch of jokes and then you fucking do funny accents, but it’s usually about Canada.

I mean, to me, in order to do what I want it to be – which is a true Smodcast picture so to speak – which sounds a little first world, but whatever. Here in the arts we are all very first world. But in order to do that, I wanted it to be as close to the podcast, not the podcast that birthed it, although we stayed very close to that as well as a blueprint, but just like the show that spawned it. Like it’s a bouillabaisse of a lot of shit. And sometimes it’s unsettling and creepy and then sometimes it’s kind of funny. But it’s always honest. And hanging that camera on the walrus and having him early in the movie just felt like the more honest thing to do. Like knowing that everyone’s going like show us the walrus, dude, show us… You know, I felt bad it took that long. But, you know, I feel like it was the right move.

Continue Reading Our Kevin Smith Tusk Interview

The post Kevin Smith Interview Part 2: The Walrus Suit, ‘Yoga Hosers’ Production And His Only ‘Tusk’ Regret appeared first on /Film.

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As it has done in the past, the New York Times offered a great collection of conversations with directors this year, as the Anatomy of a Scene series gave the directors of many films a chance to dissect their approaches to major scenes in films such as Birdman, A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night, Interstellar, Foxcatcher, Wild, and others. (My only complaint is that directors such as Ava DuVernay and Jennifer Kent are MIA.) Below, you can watch the Anatomy of a Scene series from late 2014.

We’ve already shown you the Inherent Vice installment of this series (which is embedded below, just for the sake of completion) but HitFix points us to the YouTube embeds of more recent entries in the series. These are the most recent videos; you can see more from the last year here.

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Interstellar: Christopher Nolan discusses an attempt to enter an alien planet’s atmosphere.

Birdman: Alejandro G. Iñárritu on the first meeting between Mike Shiner (Ed Nortan) and Riggan Thompson (Michael Keaton).

A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night: Ana Lily Amirpour on one example of the concept reflected in the film’s title.

Nightcrawler: Dan Gilroy on a revealing dialogue scene between Lou Bloom (Jake Gyllenhaal) and Nina (Rene Russo).

Wild: Jean-Marc Vallée on what he calls “the funniest scene” in the film.

Into the Woods: Rob Marshall on the ‘No One Is Alone’ scene.

Foxcatcher: Bennett Miller on a confrontation between John Du Pont (Steve Carrell) and Dave Schultz (Mark Ruffalo).

Rosewater: Jon Stewart on a scene that builds expectations for a prisoner and his interrogator.

And, once again, Inherent Vice: Paul Thomas Anderson on the trip to a looney bin taken by “Doc” Sportello (Joaquin Phoenix).

The post Watch the ‘Anatomy of a Scene’ Series: Directors Discuss ‘Birdman, ‘Interstellar,’ ‘Foxcatcher,’ More appeared first on /Film.

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Briefly: During the halftime of the Rose Bowl, it was revealed when we’d see the next trailer for Avengers: Age of Ultron. It’ll premiere January 12 during the College Football National Championship game on ESPN, starting at 8:30 p.m. EST. Expect it online soon after. We’ll have the new Avengers Age of Ultron trailer here on /Film as soon as it’s available.

The post New ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ Trailer Coming January 12 appeared first on /Film.

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Russ Fischer, Germain Lussier and Angie Han have already posted their most anticipated films of 2015 lists, and all three lists are very different. Germain’s list is comprised of mostly mainstream accessible big releases; Russ has a mix of filmmaker-focused picks and big studio tentpoles; and Angie’s list… had The Little Prince in the top five. While all three lists are great, I found that there were many films not listed on either list that I was looking forward to. So after the jump, you can find my listing of the most anticipated movies of 2015.

[For additional looks forward to movies in 2015, see our additional staff lists from Russ Fischer, Germain Lussier, and Angie Han.]

If you’ve ever read any of my lists on the site, then you know I just can’t narrow things down to ten options and tend to go much longer than I should. So it should come to no surprise that my most anticipated movies of 2015 list is comprised of a few dozen films. I apologize in advance, but there are just too many films that I’m excited about and want to share them all. I have, however, ranked them, so if you want just my top ten picks you can skip to the chase. However I’d encourage you to check out the rest because thats where many of the different choices fall. There, you’re likely going to discover some films you weren’t aware or forgot were coming this next year.

Runners Up

These movies for whatever reason didn’t make my top 30 most anticipated movies of 2014, even though I’m still very interested and excited about them.

Mission: Impossible 5

I loved the last two Mission: Impossible films, but I’ve heard the fifth installment might be a real mess and no one knows how Christopher McQuarrie’s film will turn out.

Project Almanac

Project Almanac should have me more excited then I am but the plot seems to be a found footage take on some elementary concepts already explored in my favorite film of all time, Back to the Future. The film had a sneak preview at Comic Con and those in attendance were surprised at how much they enjoyed the film which has me optimistic.

Entourage

I watched the HBO television series and loved how it lampooned the world of Hollywood, but I’m worried the movie will be less about the world of Hollywood and more about the core group of characters, who I have never been entirely invested in.

Terminator: Genisys

I have to admit, I haven’t been very excited about the latest Terminator movie but the recent teaser trailer got me interested in the franchise again. The divergent timeline concept at the start of the film has earned my interest, but the shorts of the group trying to infiltrate skynet or cyberdine reeks of more of the same.

Victor Frankenstein

Max Landis‘ original script was great and 20th Century Fox seems to be in a renaissance which makes me hopeful for this prequel/reboot/adaptation.

The Maze Runner: Scorch Trials

I actually really dug the debut chapter in this series, but I’m not sure if I will find the evolution of this story as interesting as the Lost-style mystery box inside a mystery box construct of the first film.

Pitch Perfect 2

The first Pitch Perfect was not even close to being on my most anticipated list for 2012, but the Bring It On-style comedy won my heart. For some reason I’m worried the sequel won’t recapture the magic of the original, but I’m still a fan of everyone involved and very much looking forward to it. In a less-packed year it would be in my list proper.

Silence

Anytime Martin Scorsese makes a feature film I will buy a ticket. However, the subject matter doesn’t necessarily excite me and the fact that it is a passion project worries me, too. Those are often not great. The fact that a Scorsese movie doesnt make my top 30 most anticipated films of the year goes to show you the awesome promise of this upcoming year.

On the next page you will find the beginning of the real list.

Continue Reading Peter Sciretta’s Most Anticipated Movies of 2015 >>

The post Peter Sciretta’s Most Anticipated Movies of 2015 appeared first on /Film.

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It’s that time of the year again, not only for best-of lists, but for the lists that look forward to what’s coming next. 2014 has been an incredible year for film; the list of 50 films we compiled not long ago is just a sample of what we’ve seen in this calendar year. 2015 certainly has quite a few big films on offer — between Avengers, Star Wars and the new Bond film, Spectre, the blockbuster is well-represented. What else does the year have in store? Quite a lot, really.

Below is my list of ten particularly anticipated films for 2015, augmented by some runners-up and personal curiosities. As always, it’s weird to make this list just as the Sundance lineup is released, because so many of the currently unknown quantities in that program could end up being among the films we’re more eager to see hit theaters later in the year. A lot of what follows is drawn from the crop of bigger movies, though there are some smaller surprises in store, too.

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[For additional looks forward to movies in 2015, see our additional staff lists from Peter Sciretta, Germain Lussier, and Angie Han.]

The Runners-Up and Curiosities

This part of the list is going to be weird. It’s not the “real” list, so I’ve given it the freedom to go all over the damn place. Some of the films listed below are more curiosities than my most anticipated, some are things that I hope are good but have reason to doubt, and some are films that are big, but for which we haven’t seen much in the way of story or footage. They’re all films that have my attention for one reason or another.

Jane got a Gun
The behind-the-scenes problems of this film put it under public scrutiny long before it was ready, and if it was still Lynne Ramsay’s movie it would probably rank in my most anticipated lineup with no qualifications. As is, the idea of seeing Natalie Portman in a revisionist Western is too interesting to pass up.

Peanuts
Here’s a choice born from pure hope, and it’s probably a long shot. I hope that this new feature based on Charles Schultz’s incredible comic strip can live up to even some of the spirit of the original strips. The first Charlie Brown Christmas special shows that the translation can be done successfully, and I don’t expect this film to even live up to that standard. But a good Peanuts movie would be a gift. I’d feel more confident if the promo images didn’t all feature Charlie Brown smiling, but we’ll see what happens. 

By the Sea
I’m hoping to see Angelina Jolie truly blossom as a director, and I’m wondering if this smaller film, in which she stars with husband Brad Pitt, might be the one to do it. 

Chappie
One more big curiosity — some of the tone of the first Chappie trailer was really terrible, but I’m also told that was a bit of a marketing ploy. I’d like to see Neill Blomkamp deliver, and this film seems like an oddly personal effort that just happens to come from a studio.

Spectre
The latest Bond film sees the return not only of director Sam Mendes and star Daniel Craig, but of Spectre, the fictional organization that has been off-limits to Bond films for years thanks to an old split between producers. The production is clearly glad to have Spectre back in-house, and with Christoph Waltz on hand as the bad guy (he just has to be Blofeld, right?) this one could be good.

Ex Machina
Alex Garland moves into the director’s chair for a sci-fi thriller starring Oscar Isaac and Alicia Vikander. Isaac has become someone I’ll watch in anything, and Garland has been an integral part of enough other projects we like that I’m curious to see what he has to offer as a director.

Inside Out
Pixar’s next film looks like one of the studio’s more unusual ideas, as it follows the anthropomorphized emotions that drive a young girl as she grows from childhood into adolescence.

Crimson Peak
Guillermo del Toro gets to make the big haunted house movie he’s always wanted to do. Since he has already made an excellent small haunted house movie (The Devil’s Backbone) we know he can pull this off. But I’m eager to see what he does with a big budget, a great cast, and the influence of classic old films such as The Haunting.

Silence
Passion projects are always dangerous prospects; there are many that, after years of gestation, emerge over-cooked and unsatisfying. But this is Martin Scorsese, and I’m guessing that his adaptation of Shusaku Endo’s 1980 novel about Jesuit missionaries in 17th Century Japan will avoid the pitfalls of the passion project.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens
That teaser trailer was terrific, and the cast is excellent. Those two line items might be enough for many people, but this is also the follow-up to Revenge of the Sith from the director of Star Trek Into Darkness. I’ve been burned by Star Wars films too many times to just go on faith that this one will work. If it does, I’ll be ecstatic.

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The real list starts on the next page. And now that you know that Star Wars isn’t there, what does make the cut?

Continue Reading Russ Fischer’s Most Anticipated Movies of 2015 >>

The post Russ Fischer’s Most Anticipated Movies of 2015 appeared first on /Film.

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If Hollywood plays its cards right, there’s no way 2015 shouldn’t break every single yearly box office record on the books. The calendar is simply jam packed with huge movies. They may end up being good, or maybe they won’t, but either way they’re going to put asses in seats. These are films audiences are excited for. Films they demanded. In some case, films we’ve been waiting years to see or never thought we’d actually see.

All that said, there’s an embarrassment of potentially awesome movies coming out during 2015. I considered at least 50 before cutting back down to a top ten that really speak to my personal tastes. Then I threw in ten more for good measure. Either way, there’s no doubt that, as great a year as 2014 has been for film, 2015 undoubtedly has it beat in the “potential” column. Especially when it comes to those big time Hollywood blockbusters I tend to get really excited about.

So, without further ado, here are my most anticipated films of 2015.

[For additional looks forward to movies in 2015, see our additional staff lists from Peter Sciretta, Russ Fischer, and Angie Han.]

One quick note before getting to the main list. Two of my top 10 most anticipated films of 2014 were bumped into 2015: the Wachowskis’ Jupiter Ascending (on February 6), and Cameron Crowe’s Untitled Hawaii Film (on May 29). Both are still films I’m anticipating, but neither would make this year’s top 10. Plus I’ve already written about them. Now, I’m just mentioning them here because they deserve it.

Here are the 10 runners up, aka movie numbers 20-11. Films that I’m very much looking forward to, but which are slightly eclipsed by the primary ten.

20. Bond 24

Sam Mendes and Daniel Craig return for to follow-up what’s arguably the best Bond to date. We’ll know a lot more about this one shortly Release Date: November 6

19. Mission: Impossible 5

Jack Reacher guys Tom Cruise and Christopher McQuarrie reteam with a bigger budget and bigger expectations, especially after the amazing fourth film. Release Date: December 25

18. Fantastic Four

In Josh Trank we trust for this highly secretive superhero film that’ll hopefully be the birth of a new franchise. Release Date: August 7

17. Straight Outta Compton

The rise of west coast rap will be chronic’led in this officially licensed biopic. Release Date: August 14

16. Mad Max Fury Road

After years and years of waiting, George Miller‘s epic looking return to the Mad Max franchise is almost here. Release Date: May 15

15. Pixels

Classic video game characters attempt to destroy the Earth and only the nerds can save us. Chris Columbus directs. Release Date: July 14

14. Furious 7

The seventh film in the Fast franchise had a terrible tragedy but looks even bigger than the previous films. Release Date: April 3

13. Ant-Man

If Edgar Wright was still directing, this would be #2. Either way, Marvel’s biggest gamble to date still should be exciting with Paul Rudd and Michael Douglas. Release Date: July 17

12. That’s What I’m Talking About

Richard Linklater directs a spiritual sequel to Dazed and Confused set in the ’80s about baseball. Um, yes? Release Date: TBA

11. Crimson Peak

Guillermo del Toro does big budget, IMAX horror with an all-star cast. Release Date: October 16

Now onto the top ten. Again, this is my personal list. I can’t stress this enough. There are films that I, personally, am very much looking forward to this year which I’m sure many of you aren’t. And I’ll explain below. But don’t forget, this is Germain’s list. Feel free to put yours in the comments.

Continue Reading Germain’s Most Anticipated Films of 2015

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