It’s that
time of the year again, folks! 2013 has entered its third month, and while
some may already be sick of this calendar year (President
Obama, prominent
and respected
athletes, dying
rich people), for most of us, it feels like it’s just getting started. What
better way to get excited for this year than to take a look at all the tasty
cinematic treats lying in store for us? Spring looks like a barren wasteland as
usual, but once you hit May (or even April, if you’re feeling optimistic),
there should be a ton of awesome films coming your way. Because everyone on the
planet probably already has the big blockbusters circled and bolded on their
calendars (Star Trek Into Darkness
and The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
are my two personal must-sees), it seems only proper to shine a spotlight on some
promising and intriguing movies that might not be on your radar yet:
Elysium
Release Date: August 9
Plot: According to IMDb, Matt Damon is
a man on a mission for equality in a future (the year 2159, to be precise)
where the wealthy now dwell in a space station, leaving the rest of humanity to
live out their no-doubt miserable lives on a ruined Earth.
Why You Should Pay Attention: Okay,
fine, this movie isn’t exactly going to sneak up on anyone, but it’s not as
much of a sure-fire blockbuster juggernaut as, say, Iron Man 3 or Catching Fire,
so it still seems worth mentioning here. Directed by Neill Blomkamp, whose
first feature-length film District 9 was
a surprise commercial hit and got a wholly deserved Best Picture nomination
back in 2009, this sci-fi thriller sounds like it’ll be along the same lines.
Hopefully, this means we can expect some gritty, gruesome action scenes, a
decidedly realist/documentary-like filming style and an intelligent storyline
that uses its high-concept premise as a parable for real-world, topical issues
– in this case, the significant wealth gap in between the haves and have nots.
It also gives us the immensely talented trio of Matt Damon, Jodie Foster and District 9 breakout Sharlto Copley. If
Blomkamp’s second offering is as smart, original and entertaining as his first,
then Elysium should be well worth the
four year wait in between.
Besides, Matt Damon wouldn’t go bald for just any movie, right?
Closed Circuit
Release Date: August 28
Plot: Two lawyers, who just happen to
be ex-lovers as well, find themselves in danger after joining the defense team
for the trial of an international terrorist.
Why You Should Pay Attention: While
that rather contrived premise is usually the sort of thing that makes me yawn
or roll my eyes, there are a couple of reasons why I’m hopeful that this will
be more than the mediocre, forgettable thriller suggested not only by the
high-concept plot, but also the release date (after summer blockbuster season +
before Oscar season = not encouraging). First of all, John Crowley is at the
helm. In case you don’t know him, and you probably don’t, he’s the Irish
director behind the idiosyncratic, darkly amusing Intermission as well as Boy A,
the under-seen and utterly heartbreaking gem that put Andrew Garfield on the
map. Though Closed Circuit will
likely be more high-profile than either of those works, Crowley could make it
work if he maintains his indie sensibilities and grounds the action in his
characters, rather than the other way around – assuming, of course, that the
script, written by Eastern Promises
scribe Steven Knight, is any good. The second reason why I think – hope – this
movie is worth keeping an eye on is the presence of Eric Bana and Rebecca Hall
as the two leads. Both actors have a knack for choosing projects that fail to
match their talents, but I’d love for this to be an exception and to see them
get the great roles they deserve.
Serena
Release Date: September 27
Plot: A married couple sets up a timber
empire in Appalachia as America stands on the brink of the Depression.
Why You Should Pay Attention: That plot synopsis likely won’t get anyone’s
adrenaline pumping, but it’s based on an acclaimed, New York Times-bestselling novel by Ron Rash, directed by Danish
filmmaker Susanne Bier (who won a Golden Globe in 2010 for her drama In a Better World) and involves the
re-teaming of Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence, whose on-screen romance in
last year’s Silver Linings Playbook
was surprising, electrifying and delightful to watch. It should be interesting
to see how their dynamic translates to a very different setting and plot. Plus,
Indiewire
claims that Lawrence has “a killer role, landing somewhere between Lady
Macbeth and Daniel Plainview”, which sounds like the most amazing thing ever. Something
tells me we might not have to wait too long to see the newly-crowned Best Lead
Actress winner back on the road to the Oscars.
Gravity
Release Date: October 4
Plot: After their shuttle crashes,
stranding them in outer space, a pair of astronauts must find a way to get back
to Earth.
Why You Should Pay Attention: I didn’t
adore Alfonso Cuarón’s Children of Men
the way seemingly everyone else on the planet did, but his follow-up, coming an
incredible seven years later, sounds like a doozy. After being initially
scheduled for a 2012 release, Gravity
was pushed back eleven months, possibly due to the extra care required for the
extensive special effects. It’s apparently a technical game changer, having
been shot in 3D and combining live action and CGI elements a la Avatar, and could possibly
be Cuarón’s masterpiece. Of course, ambitious sci-fi epics like this have a
rather high risk of failure and often fail to live up to expectations (see: Cloud Atlas), but if buzz from early
test screenings is anything to go by, then it seems like the delay will be
worth it. As added bonuses, we might finally get a real dramatic showcase for
Sandra Bullock, who is said to be alone for the majority of the movie, and the
opening shot is allegedly almost
twenty minutes long. If that doesn’t make you positively giddy with
anticipation, then, well, you’re probably not as much of a film geek as I am
and you should get the fuck out of here (just kidding, but seriously, long takes are awesome).
I’m expecting some 2001-level
shit here, Cuarón.
Anything less will be a total disappointment.
The Wolf of Wall Street
Release Date: November 15
Plot: Based on the memoirs of its
protagonist, this based-on-real-life story centers on a Wall Street broker who
was convicted of and spent 22 months in prison for securities fraud and money
laundering in the 1990s. If that sounds a little too dry for you, just throw in
some drug
addiction, hookers and the mafia to spice things up.
Why You Should Pay Attention: Sure,
most of his recent movies haven’t had quite the impact of classics like Taxi Driver, Raging Bull or Goodfellas,
but Martin Scorsese remains arguably the greatest living filmmaker, a veritable
cinematic treasure even as he approaches five decades in the business. This time around, he’s bringing a tale
seemingly destined for the big screen, reminiscent of such films as The Informant! and Wall Street with a dash of the more grounded side of American Psycho, and has assembled an
expectedly talented, if overwhelmingly white male, cast. In addition to giving
Leonardo DiCaprio yet another chance to make a run for Oscar gold after he got
snubbed for Django Unchained (damn
you, Christoph Waltz!), the movie will give us our first post-Oscar-win look at
Jean Dujardin, hopefully proving that The
Artist star can succeed in an actual speaking role and is more than a
one-hit wonder. In terms of recent financial thrillers, a genre that has
suddenly become rather prolific, The Wolf
of Wall Street might not feel as urgent or relevant as, say, 2011’s
top-notch Margin Call, but simply
put, every Scorsese film is an event. There’s no reason to believe this will be
any different.
Inside Llewyn Davis
Release Date: TBD
Plot: A singer-songwriter enters New
York City’s folk music scene in the 1960s.
Why You Should Pay Attention: Though
your interest in this may be dependent on whether or not you care for
grassroots, Bob Dylan-type music, which is decidedly different from the Mumford
& Sons/The Lumineers folk rock of today, even the Coen brothers’ misfires
tend to be at least interesting and distinctive. After being absent for an
uncharacteristically long three years, the filmmaking duo return with a flick
that looks encouragingly intimate and personal, probably more along the lines
of 2009’s A Serious Man than the
rollicking 2010 Western True Grit. The
cast features actors who are at just the right point between A-list fame and
obscurity, including Oscar Isaac (who seemingly has been on the verge of
stardom for a while now), Carey Mulligan in a part that looks refreshingly
sharp and energetic compared to the ones she’s been getting since breaking out
in An Education four years ago, the
always-reliable John Goodman, promising up-and-comer Garrett Hedlund and Justin
Timberlake, who will hopefully be more Alpha
Dog or The Social Network than Bad Teacher or In Time. Plus, if that doesn’t convince you, then hopefully, this trailer, which
finds the perfect mix of funny and melancholic, will.
Help! I’ve fallen in love with this picture and I can’t get
up.
Ain’t Them Bodies Saints
Release Date: TBD
Plot: An outlaw breaks out of prison
and must cross Texas to reunite with his wife and a daughter he has never met.
Why You Should Pay Attention: Directed
and written by unknown filmmaker David Lowery, Ain’t Them Bodies Saints was one of several movies to break out at
this year’s surprisingly strong Sundance Film Festival in January, drawing
mostly rave reviews and quickly getting picked up by distributor IFC Films,
which is positioning the film for a possible
awards season push. The movie has already drawn comparisons to Terrence
Malick’s films, specifically Badlands,
which will likely either make you instantly salivate or send you running as
fast as you can in the opposite direction, depending on your taste. While I’m
not the biggest Malick fan, the enthusiastic
word-of-mouth
alone is enough to make me jittery with anticipation, and as a film obsessive,
there are few things I enjoy more than discovering a new cinematic talent. What’s
more, Lowery has gathered a fantastic cast, headlined by Casey Affleck, Rooney
Mara and Ben Foster, for the film, which is supposedly an elegiac and powerful
subversion of the Western and neo-noir genres. I also dig the distinctive,
awesomely poetic title. If the early festival buzz is accurate, then look at
this to possibly be 2013’s Beasts of the
Southern Wild.
Only Lovers Left Alive
Release Date: TBD
Plot: IMDb has only the basic,
uninformative description of “a story of two vampires who have been in love for
centuries”.
Why You Should Pay Attention: Over the
course of the past decade, Twilight
and its successors, with few exceptions, have pretty much sucked the life out
of vampire stories and left the genre a pale, wheezing, rotting corpse, so
perhaps ardent skepticism is the right approach here. But if any movie has a
chance at resuscitating the genre, it might be this one, especially since it
doesn’t sound like we’re getting that TV show adaptation of Justin Cronin’s The Passage any time soon (Ridley Scott
is technically preparing it as a movie, but if he had any brains or common
sense, he’d figure out that the small screen is the way to go). I’m shamefully not
familiar at all with director-writer Jim Jarmusch’s work, but he’s highly
respected among the art house crowd and is credited with being one of the
biggest forces behind the independent film movement of the ‘80s and ‘90s.
Judging from the description
of his style on Wikipedia, he sounds like a perfect fit for the moody,
atmospheric tone often needed for a vampire flick that will perhaps stay truer
to that monster’s sinister, Gothic roots than its lovesick, maudlin 21st-century
incarnations. Not to mention that if the cast of Tom Hiddleston, Tilda Swinton,
Anton Yelchin, Mia Wasikowska and John Hurt doesn’t make your pulse quicken,
then you clearly have absolutely no appreciation for extremely white, gifted
thespians with amazing bone structure. The only way this ensemble could be more
vampire-like is if it included Michael Fassbender – oh, wait, it
almost did.
Yep, I’m sold.
Lowlife
Release Date: TBD
Plot: After finding herself trapped by prostitution,
an immigrant meets a magician who tries to save her from her sleazy lifestyle
and bring her and her sister, who is being held on Ellis Island, back together.
Why You Should Pay Attention: Okay,
I’ll concede that the plot sounds potentially clichéd and melodramatic, but so
did James Gray’s last feature, the love-triangle drama Two Lovers, and that turned out to be a pleasantly restrained,
authentic-feeling venture that didn’t go quite where you expected it to.
Reteaming with Joaquin Phoenix for the fourth time in five directorial outings,
Gray is possibly tackling a much bigger, more ambitious scope with this period
piece, though he stays in the New York City setting that he seems to know so
well. His presence at the helm should hopefully indicate that this will be more
than just a dressed-up, wannabe-prestigious Cinderella story. The nearly always
wonderful Marion Cotillard ought to have a juicy, compelling role as the female
lead, and after seeing him dabble in the world of commercial Hollywood with The Avengers, The Bourne Legacy and Hansel
and Gretel: Witch Hunters, I’m thrilled (and, frankly, relieved) that
Jeremy Renner will be returning to the gritty dramatic mold that brought him
his late-blooming fame.
Untitled David O. Russell/Abscam Project
Release Date: TBD
Plot: In the 1970s, a convicted con
artist helps the FBI with a sting operation that looked into public government
corruption and was, according to
Wikipedia, the first major FBI investigation to convict corrupt public
officials.
Why You Should Pay Attention: A
‘70s-set crime thriller that reunites Silver
Linings Playbook trio Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence and David O.
Russell while also starring Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner and Louis C.K.? Um, where has this movie
been my whole life? I’m a total sucker for period crime movies, an itch that
the disappointingly blah Public Enemies
failed to scratch, and that’s pretty much my dream cast; not only are they
unfairly talented (and yeah, I’ll say it, attractive), but Louis C.K. is the
only person who hasn’t been nominated for an Oscar already, and he still has at
least an Emmy nod to his name. With Silver
Linings and, before that, The Fighter,
Russell has developed a newly mature, stripped-down approach to directing
that’s refreshing in an age when flashy stylization often gets mistaken for
artistry. This movie marks a departure from those intimate family dramas, but
as long as Russell stays true to his reputation as a keen observer of human
quirks and the nuances of relationships, the genre shift shouldn’t be an issue.
Russell’s last two movies both wound up with both Best Picture and Best
Director Academy Award nominations; can he go three in a row with this
as-yet-untitled film? Obviously, we’ll have to wait and see, but I’m already
swooning with anticipation.
Perfection.
Others to Watch Out For: Derek
Cianfrance follows up his emotionally devastating romantic drama Blue Valentine with The Place Beyond the Pines (3/29, limited release), a crime drama
starring Ryan Gosling, Bradley Cooper and Eva Mendes……Ethan Hawke and Julie
Delpy return as Jesse and Celine for Before
Midnight (5/24), the third installment in Richard Linklater’s unique
trilogy……Guillermo del Toro brings us one of the more fascinating blockbusters
of the year with the secretive, Idris Elba-led, sci-fi action Pacific Rim (7/12)……Crime drama Prisoners (9/20) has a Black Listed,
highly buzzed-about script and an all-star cast led by Hugh Jackman and Jake
Gyllenhall……Winner of both the Audience Award and Grand Jury Prize at Sundance,
Ryan Coogler’s debut film Fruitvale
(10/18) depicts the true story of Oscar Grant, who was shot and killed by a policeman
in 2009……The Counselor (11/15) boasts
Ridley Scott as its director, a cast that includes Brad Pitt, Javier Bardem,
Penelope Cruz and Michael Fassbender and, most notably, renowned author Cormac
McCarthy with his first-ever screenplay……The
Monuments Men (12/20) has George Clooney doing the directing/writing/acting
trifecta with an A-list cast for what could be this year’s Argo……Headlined by Tom Hanks, Emma Thompson and Colin Farrell, Saving Mr. Banks (12/20) follows the
journey that Mary Poppins took from
novel to big screen success
And Still More, Because I Just Can’t Stop
(all release dates TBD): Starring Josh Brolin and Kate Winslet, Labor Day supposedly continues director
Jason Reitman’s descent into darker, more dramatic territory……Spike Jonze
returns for his first movie since 2009 with the intriguing, almost assuredly
innovative Her, which has a lonely
writer developing a relationship with a computer……Keira Knightley, Mark Ruffalo
and Hailee Steinfeld lead an oddball ensemble for the musical Can a Song Save Your Life? from Once writer-director John Carney……Joseph
Gordon-Levitt’s directorial debut Don
Jon and coming-of-age dramedy The Spectacular Now with Shailene Woodley and Mary Elizabeth
Winstead count among the many Sundance successes……Out of the Furnace comes from Crazy
Heart director Scott Cooper and features Christian Bale, Zoe Saldana, Casey
Affleck and Woody Harrelson......The consistently underappreciated Chiwetel
Ejiofor anchors Steve McQueen’s historical drama Twelve Years a Slave in what looks like the art house world’s answer
to Django Unchained……If you can get
past Mark Ruffalo looking like this,
Bennett Miller’s Foxcatcher, which
depicts the real-life story of a schizophrenic millionaire who killed an
Olympic wrestler, sounds like an interesting follow-up to Moneyball worth keeping an eye on……In what is an
undoubtedly ambitious and experimental first feature from newbie director Ned
Benson, The Disappearance of Eleanor
Rigby: His/Hers is actually two parallel movies that both tell the story of
a New York couple’s relationship, once from his (James McAvoy’s) viewpoint and
once from her (Jessica Chastain’s) perspective……The Past brings together three recent foreign film breakouts in
director Asghar Farhadi (Oscar nominee for 2011’s A Separation) and stars Bérénice Bejo and Tahar Rahim (The Artist and A Prophet, respectively) for
a complex-sounding domestic drama
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