Why 17? Because that’s how many I’m anticipating.
1. The Fountain. Darren Aronofsky’s Pi and Requiem For A Dream are instant classics. Artistic, meaningful and powerful. His visuals are beautiful and he works sound like few directors care to. The Fountain promises to be the next great science-fiction film.
2. Zodiac. David Fincher returns to the serial killer drama (remember Se7en?) with the true story of one who never got caught. Thankfully this one doesn’t have Jodie Foster trapped in a room or on a plane.
3. A Cold Case. Mark Romanek’s gripping and pretty One Hour Photo goes down as one of my favorites. There hasn’t been any news on A Cold Case, so this may not even happen, but I hope it does. Tom Hanks was scheduled to star as a detective in the mystery of who killed his partner. If it doesn’t happen, Romanek should get the nod for another gig.
4. The Da Vinci Code. The uber-populer novel finally hits the screen (also with Tom Hanks, but this one will definitely be out). I like Ron Howard as a director, and the material is fun and intriguing. What may ruin this film is the changes made to the story in order to not anger the uber-Catholics who get uber-pissed when anyone suggests the basis for their beliefs may be uber-bullshit.
5. Superman Returns. I’m not a fan of the Superman comics, nor the previous films. So why is this exciting at all? Simple. Bryan Singer. The guy’s good. And the whole Superman is Jesus theme (see the trailer) will get under the ubers’ skins.
6. The Science Of Sleep. Michael Gondry continues his experiment in reality, started in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless mind (one of my all-time favorites). This may creep up my list when I get to see a trailer. In ESotSM Gondry had wonderful material (thank you Charlie Kaufman, once again) to work with, but we don’t know how good The Science Of Sleep story is yet.
7. Night Watch. The Russian film was supposed to hit theaters in the states in 2005, but alas it didn’t happen. The film is the first in a trilogy, all based on popular Russian novels. Many of the books’ fans hated the film, but is that due to their inability to seperate the mediums? Or is the movie really bad? At the very least, the trailer is cool.
8. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest. The first was a wondeful surprise and fun for all ages. Disney didn’t meddle with this one, signing the director and cast members for the sequels.
9. Hostel. I find it strange that I’m looking forward to a movie directed by Eli Roth, who dumped Cabin Fever on us like a steaming pile of turd in the Florida sun, but…the trailer is inticing, so I’ll wait for it with some trepidation.
10. Ultraviolet. Just a desperate stab at something that may be entertaining from the guy who brought us the Gun Fu Equilibrium. All we’ve seen so far is a solitary pic of Milla Jovovich…how ’bout a trailer folks?
11. Saw 3. The first two were entertaining, but shared too similiar a twist. I found the first to be better visually, but that may be due to the second’s setting being a single home. The bad news: remember the shit in the Florida sun? That’s right, Eli Roth is directing.
12. Underworld: Evolution. Should be fun. ‘Nough said.
13. Lady In The Water. Based on the trailer, M. Night Shyamalan’s next flick looks intriguing, but then again, so did The Village.
14. Southland Tales. What the hell has taken Richard Kelly so long to return to directing? Donnie Darko was a lot of fun, but I’m one of the few that preferred the theatrical release to the “director’s cut”.
15. A Scanner Darkly. As bad as Keanu Reeves is, he picks good films to star in. Really, it’s amazing. I wonder if his agent does it for him, because, damn, The Matrix, Devil’s Advocate, Constantine, Dracula, The Gift…all movies I really enjoy. And, Richard Linklater gets to play with PhotoShop some more (yeah, it’s that weird animation he did for Waking Life.
16. Silent Hill. A movie based on a video game that doesn’t blow? Well, Uwe Boll isn’t directing it, so it’s possible. The trailer (here) doesn’t offer much to base an opinion on, but it’s dark, suggestive, and stylized enough for me to be curious.
17. V For Vendetta. The Wachowski’s are on my shit list because they stole from a screenwriter (for The Matrix), and this doesn’t really look all that good. But what else is there? You tell me.
Argue with me or place your own list by commenting.
Peace out.
narc
