Fall & Winter Movie Preview

I'm a regular subscriber to Entertainment Weekly and I love to receive their various Preview issues throughout the year, as I did last week. The anticipation of upcoming movies in the next four months is a lot of fun. Granted, my actual viewing decisions may change if I have a choice between an obscure critical darling and the current Hunger Games sequel but you just gotta go with the flow sometimes. In any case, here are my personal rankings...

Top Ten Picks
[10] Foxcatcher (Nov14) Trailer
Based on a real story of a wrestling coach trying to prepare an athlete to win gold at the 1988 Olympics, it becomes a grim psychological drama instead of the usual type of sports flick. It's being sold as a high-profile vehicle for Channing Tatum since he's on a roll at the box office lately but I'm also a fan of Steve Carell as a serious actor. There is plenty of award talk.

[9] Birdman (Oct17) Trailer
So much award buzz is coming out of Venice right now for this one. Michael Keaton stars as a former superhero actor a la Batman. Edward Norton joins in the fray as Keaton's character directs a Broadway play and starts to fall apart. Definitely in the running for Best Actor.

[8] The Interview (Dec25) Trailer
James Franco and Seth Rogen doing their shtick as reporters covertly tasked with assassinating the leader of North Korea. Their stoner humour has made me laugh too many times and the serious edge this time is intriguing.

[7] The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 (Nov21) Teaser
My wife and sister-in-law are big fans of the books so they'll likely see this in theatres before I do. Regardless, it is one of the biggest movies in the next few months and I have seen the previous ones, so I'll put this in my calendar. I guess it's obvious that I'm not geeked out for it but I do like my blockbusters.

[6] Gone Girl (Oct3) Trailer
Ben Affleck uses some of his real-life experience in celebrity to inform his character, which is a famous actor whose wife disappears... and then the clues and tabloids seem to point back to him as the culprit. It also includes various people like Neil Patrick Harris and Tyler Perry and a few other notable faces playing against type. The fact that David Fincher directed it and it had high expectations because of the book kind of annoyed me but I have to admit that my desire to see this is gradually increasing.

[5] Big Hero 6 (Nov7) Trailer
Now here's an obscure comic movie. Based on an old X-Men tie-in, it's been revamped without the Marvel stuff and with more new-era Disney influence. I was sold based on the "robot and his boy" aspect.

[4] The Judge (Oct10) Trailer
Robert Downey Jr. gets to make his big, personal movie with his producer wife now that he's a bigger/richer star than ever before. And I love this choice about a lawyer returning home to defend his estranged father in court. I'll watch Robert Duval in anything and Billy Bob Thornton can kick ass, too. This movie opens a week after Gone Girl so I'll be very curious to see how they duke it out for the same audience, but I'll certainly be watching it.

[3] Exodus: Gods and Kings (Dec12) Trailer
It's a massive Bible spectacle from Ridley Scott starring Christian Bale but the trailer sells the brother vs. brother drama at the heart of it. I am quite surprised at how much I want to see this one. And on a personal note, my Christian beliefs have changed a fair bit over the past few years as I question that factual nature of ancient stories like this one and the supposedly God-inspired Old Testament laws. Logic doesn't negate the desire for a fantastic flick, though. ; )

[2] The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (Dec17) Teaser
I know I've said it before on this blog but I just don't agree with all of the LOTR fans that have dismissed this Hobbit series. Granted, the gold dragon was silly but this is still going to be awesome.

[1] Interstellar (Nov7) Trailer
Christopher Nolan directs this epic sci-fi, which stars Matthew McConaughey at the top of his game. The world is dying, so someone needs to go into far space and find a new home. I expect an immersive experience with plenty of heart and it may get into the award discussion based on something other than technical merits. There is no doubt that this gets my #1 spot.

Oscar Bait
Every year, I try to see the main contenders for the Oscars and I have a competition with my wife and sister to predict the winners. So even if these don't rank highly for me personally, I'll still try to find some time for the following movies as well.

Selma (Dec25) **Martin Luthor King Jr. biopic with much prestige behind it.
Inherent Vice (Dec12) **70's PI flick with Joaquin Phoenix and Josh Brolin.
Unbroken (Dec25) Trailer **Angeline Jolie directs, hero from WWII & Olympics.
Wild (Dec5) Trailer **Reese Witherspoon hikes alone and re-examines her life.

Honourable Mentions
St. Vincent (Oct24) Trailer  **Bill Murray in a Bill Murray movie. Perfect.
Whiplash (Oct10) Trailer **Miles Teller and J.K. Simmons in a movie about competitive jazz drumming.
Fury (Nov14) Trailer **I can't buy Brad Pitt in the trailer but it looks good anyway.
The Maze Runner (Sep19) Trailer **May be a fun sci-fi teenfic but we'll see...
The Zero Theorem (Sep19) Trailer **Terry Gilliam's sci-fi mindbender starring Christopher Waltz.
A Merry Friggin' Christmas (Nov7) **One of the last movies by Robin Williams.