I went into 2007 not anticipating a whole lot of movies. There ended up being a lot of great films, sure, but none really got me buzzing months in advance. 2008, on the other hand, is all about the buzz. There are a lot of big movies coming this year and I thought I'd give you an insight on what I expect to be the most exciting films of 2008. But first, the leftovers.
The Leftovers
These lists pretty much always result in one or two films that don't make the release date. Two films I was excited for last year were
Be Kind Rewind and
Trick 'r Treat, both of which are now 2008 films.
Rewind, from Michel Gondry and starring Jack Black, comes out in just a few short weeks, and the trailer looks just as hilarious as the premise sounds. I'm still not sure if they kept the spoof of
Back to the Future in the final product, but I really hope so.
Trick, on the other hand, has no set release date, having been suddenly pushed out of its October 2007
release for no reason. A recent screening has resulted in some very strong reviews, calling it the next great Halloween classic, which is exactly why I was so excited for it in the first place. If they're smart, they'll wait until next October to release it. If not and they release it in spring, I think I'll skip it until it's on DVD. It just looks like too perfect of a match for Halloween viewing to waste it on the spring.
10. Star Trek
The idea of rebooting the
Star Trek franchise seems like a smart move in light of how well it worked for both Batman and James Bond. I'm not a Trekie, I didn't watch any of the TV shows outside of TNG as a child, and I find the movies to be very hit or miss. But there is a lot of potential in the property, so for some reason I am always very curious to see what direction the franchise goes in. However, the more I hear about this reboot, the more I'm convinced they've gone in the complete wrong direction. The cast reads like some sort of bizarre joke. John Cho as Sulu? Karl Urban as Bones? Simon Pegg as Scotty? That's pretty unanimously awful, and I can only imagine what die hard fans are thinking. Add to that the largely unproven track record of director JJ Abrams (the thing he gets the most street cred for seems to be
Lost, in spite of the fact he has almost nothing to do with it), and you have potential for the biggest bomb of the year. But if, by some miracle it does work, I couldn't be happier.
Star Trek belongs on the big screen.
9. The BoxWhat would a year in preview list be without the requisite Richard Kelly film?
Southland Tales took up a space on my last three years' lists, so it feels a bit bizarre not to have to talk about it anymore (this will be the last time, I promise). It sounds like Kelly realizes he let
Tales get out of control, as his newest effort sounds much simpler and, dare I say it, commercial. It follows a couple who find a man at their door with an offer: press a button in his mysterious box and amass untold wealth. One catch, though - pressing the button means someone they don't know will die. I really hope Kelly is back on his game with this, and I am willing to give him the benefit of the doubt once more.
8. The Brothers BloomIn 2006 we got a little film called
Brick, which marked the debut of a very promising new filmmaker in Rian Johnson. Here he attempts to follow it up with a film starring Mark Ruffalo and Adrien Brody as two con men, and Rachel Weisz as their target. It sounds pretty simple, but then so did
Brick, and that turned out to be brilliant. I know little else about the film, but Johnson has built in a great deal of goodwill with his first picture, and I trust him to deliver the goods here.
7. Iron ManI really have no preconceived notions about the character of Iron Man. My knowledge of comic book characters is largely limited to the ones who got Saturday morning cartoons in the 90's. That said, the trailers for this have made it look truly entertaining. And whoever thought it was a good idea to cast Robert Downey Jr as Tony Stark/Iron Man deserves a raise. He is one of the best actors working today, and his natural sardonic personality looks to elevate this one above the usual B-level comic book adaptations. My only problem so far is the overuse if the Black Sabbath song "Iron Man." It feels a little too on the nose.
6. The Curious Case of Benjamin ButtonYou could probably come up with a list of a number of great directors who are perfect to adapt the F. Scott Fitzgerald love story of a man who ages in reverse, but I suspect David Fincher would not make an appearance on that list. Fincher is really moving outside of his safety zone here, and that could prove very exciting. Lucky for him he has his goto guy Brad Pitt in the lead role. This could prove to be a very fun, fanciful movie, perhaps akin to
Big Fish from a few years ago. It will be interesting to see if Fincher uses any of his usual tricks here or if he tries to do something completely unexpected. Whatever else, this sounds like the first Fincher film destined for Oscar consideration.
5. Burn After Reading
I may be in the severe minority, but I was left cold by
No Country for Old Men. Luckily the Coen Bros are back already with another film, and it sounds much more akin to past efforts like
The Big Lebowski and
Raising Arizona. It follows a disgruntled, odious ex-CIA agent (John Malkovich) who decides to write a tell-all memoir. However, when he accidentally leaves the disk containing the memoir at his local gym, he must deal with a dimwitted man (Brad Pitt) who has found it and decided to sell it. It sounds like the perfect combination of high concept plot and sly comedy, and it features such Coen regulars as George Clooney and Frances McDormand. No, it won't be the awards contender
No Country has proven to be, but it sure sounds like a lot more fun.
4. Zack and Miri Make a PornoFor the first time ever it looks like Kevin Smith might have a blockbuster on his hands. He has consistently delivered wonderful films for the past decade plus (yes, even
Jersey Girl was good, though his weakest effort), so I can't see any reason the streak won't continue here. It doesn't hurt that he has current "It" comedy guy Seth Rogen in the lead. The title kind of says it all, but the premise follows best friends Zack and Miri (Elizabeth Banks) as they decide to create a porno in order to deal with their current financial woes. The usual Smithian dialog will certainly be abound, but filtered through the wonderful charm and charisma of Rogen could make for the funniest film of the year.
3. WALL-EI usually don't include Pixar films on this list, which is kind of a shame. The fact is, I take for granted how consistently excellent Pixar is. I pretty much don't have to even hear the plot at this point, I'll still go see the movie, so I just don't think about them too much in advance.
WALL-E is different.
WALL-E is special. Pixar has decided to really try for something unique here, and if it works, it could well be their crowning achievement.
WALL-E is a film featuring largely no dialogue. It is about a robot who has been left on Earth hundreds of years after the last human has left for space, and his only job is to clean the planet of all the trash we've left behind. The film follows him as he learns about humans through our trash. One day a space craft arrives, a probe sent to see what ever became of our beloved planet Earth. At this point, WALL-E must decide if he is to stay on Earth and do what he was programmed to do, or leave and do what he has always wanted to do. I really can't explain just how exciting this concept sounds to me, it is so unlike anything else out there that it could stand to shake things up in a big way.
2. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal SkullI honestly never really thought I'd see this film come to fruition. With every passing year it just seemed less and less realistic. Yet here we are, the film is shot and awaiting a summer release. Were this a film from any other director, I'd assume it was going to be an awful cash-in on a once wonderful trilogy (
Live Free or Die Hard, I'm looking at you). But I just can't imagine Spielberg whoring himself out to such an extreme. He is notoriously against sequels, having only made the Indiana Jones films and
The Lost World. So if this project didn't seem up to snuff, I'd like to think he would have vetoed it. The pictures that have been released so far make Ford look young enough to pull it off, so I don't think we need worry about him. The biggest question is whether a series that reveled in old school thrills can work in the age of CGI without conforming. I really hope this doesn't soil the otherwise great trilogy, but I am cautiously optimistic.
1. The Dark Knight
Batman Begins is the best superhero movie ever made. There's no "possibly" or "just about" needed, it is flat out better than anything else. Now here comes the sequel, and it actually looks better. I had my doubts about Heath Ledger as the Joker (I was gunning for Crispin Glover), but the trailer has assuaged my lingering fears. I can't imagine this being anything less than amazing. Batman is my favorite superhero, and it's great to see him get such a wonderful treatment from Christoper Nolan. His take on the Batman world, in which it is all based in reality and not in fantasy, makes this so much more resonant. And I have to give bonus points for the title. For once a studio realizes we aren't idiots and can plainly see this is a Batman film even if the title isn't "Batman." I hate sequel titles that unnecessarily reference the prior film (
The Lost World: Jurassic Park. I mean, seriously, WTF).
Who knows how many of these will actually turn out good. And they aren't the only exciting films to be released this year. Also exciting are
Cloverfield (a mix between Blair Witch and Godzilla),
Son of Rambow (the story of a group of kids who decide to create their own Rambo film), the Will Smith superhero spoof
Hancock, the second
X-Files movie, the reunion of Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet (and Kathy Bates) in
Revolutionary Road, the new Charlie Kaufman film
Synecdoche, New York, and the new James Bond film, among others.
Two special notes: I have huge expectations for both
Where the Wild Things Are and
The Lovely Bones. Both have finished filming, but neither is set for release until early 2009. I suspect one or both could be bumped up, especially if the Oscar season looks shaky this year.
The Lovely Bones could easily sneak in at the last minute and steal all the buzz if it's as good as expected. And
Wild Things is the loooooong awaited third film from Spike Jonze, whose last two films were my favorites of 1999 and 2002. It's also the adaptation of one of the best children's books ever published. Expect to see both on the list next year if they stay with their current release plans.
It's being reported that today we lost a gifted actor. Heath Ledger, who was only 28, has reportedly been found dead in New York. I am simply stunned by this. He was clearly on track to have a long and memorable career.
