Yesterday my good friend and Reel True owner, Greg Rouleau, unleashed the first half of his Most Anticipated Movies of 2014 list. Today, we'll look at the top 5 films you should be dying to see this year. We'll begin by throwing out a second batch of honorable mention selections.
Honorable Mention Picks - Part Two:
Unbroken – Angelina Jolie directs her
second feature in which an Olympic runner is stranded at sea. We’ve had a couple films like this in just
the past couple years but Unbroken takes
it a step further. Once “rescued”, the
protagonist in then imprisoned by the Japanese.
Jolie helms the film, written by the Coen Brothers. – Dec
25th
Midnight Special – Jeff Nichols is certainly a
young director worth keeping an eye on.
Mud was a great, underrated film of 2013 and he follows that up with a
story about a father and son on the run after they learn of the child’s special
powers. Starring Kirsten Dunst, Joel
Edgerton and Nichols' movie regular, Michael Shannon. – Release
TBD
Rosewater – Jon Stewart was moved by
Maziar Bahari’s memoir Then They Came for
Me enough that the Daily Show host was moved to write and direct his first
feature adapting the story. The film
follows journalist Bahari who is detained and tortured in an Iranian prison for
100 days. It’ll be interesting to see
how the funnyman handles a serious drama – Release
TBD
Untitled Cameron Crowe Movie – Another director in need of
a return to form is Cameron Crowe. The
now 13-year-old Almost Famous was the
last great effort from Crowe. His new
project, with a working title Deep Tiki, follows
suit as a romantic dramedy set in Hawaii and stars Bradley Cooper, Rachel
McAdams, Emma Stone and Bill Murray. Release
TBD
#5. Monuments Men
It
won’t take long into the New Year to get our first look at one of this list’s most
anticipated. George Clooney’s World War II drama is one
of the casualties of 2013. Pushed back
to early 2014 because of the apparent glut of awards season films, Monuments Men was at one point a
possible Best Picture Oscar contender; despite Clooney himself claiming it was
more of a commercial piece. January,
February and even sometimes well into March are widely acknowledged as the
movie studios “off-season”. The holiday
season has ended; many are still catching up on those films and possible awards
contenders, so the new releases are ones that studios are less enthusiastic about. It’ll be great to have something to look forward to in the early months of 2014. Clooney shares writing and producing credits
with long-time collaborator, Grant Heslov.
He also directs and headlines a cast that includes Matt Damon, Cate
Blanchett, Bill Murray and John Goodman.
Release Date: February 7th
#4. Gone Girl
Over
the past decade, director David Fincher has entered into an elite class where
every movie he directs is a must-see for me.
With classics like The Social
Network and a major sleeper and personal favorite, Zodiac, Fincher has really etched out quite the filmography. While it was slightly disappointing to hear
that the director’s next project wasn’t the next chapter in the popular “The
Girl With…” series, I can take some solace in knowing that the novel from which
this film is being adapted has been touted as a dark thriller with some
fascinating twists and turns, which sounds right up his alley. Despite some questionable casting choices
(Neil Patrick Harris and Tyler Perry?) I have faith in the director until
proven wrong. The story follows Nick
Dunne (Ben Affleck) and his pursuit to find his wife Amy (Rosamund Pike) who
went missing on their fifth wedding anniversary. During his search the police finger him as
the possible prime suspect in her disappearance. With an early October release this could essentially
kick-off the 2014 awards season. Release Date: October 3rd
#3. Inherent Vice
Another
director in that class where every movie is a must-see is Paul Thomas Anderson.
With only two major releases over the past
decade, it’s pretty clear that “PTA” chooses his projects wisely. Only two years removed from his last effort, The Master, Anderson has already found a
project that intrigues him. Adapted from
the Thomas Pynchon novel, Inherent Vice follows
detective Larry “Doc” Sportello and his investigation of a former lover and her
boyfriend. To add even more intrigue to
the already promising story is Joaquin Phoenix in the title role. The film is also a period piece set in 1970s
Los Angeles, where drugs are in abundance.
Very little has been revealed about the project thus far, but there’s
some evidence that the film could take on more a comedic approach similar to
this year’s American Hustle. There’s also this, which is pretty amazing.
Even without much info, Joaquin Phoenix/PTA/neo-noir 70s LA settling all
sounds like a match made in heaven. Release Date: TBD
#2. Foxcatcher
(please ignore the annoying woman before and after the trailer)
Another
holdover from 2013 is Bennett Miller’s Foxcatcher. This was at one point my most anticipated
of last year, originally set for a December release; it was delayed in order to
allow the filmmakers ample time to edit the film. A smart, if heartbreaking move, at the time,
by studio Sony Pictures Classics, a studio that relies heavily on producing
Oscar-caliber films. Currently there is no release date set but star Mark
Ruffalo recently stated that the film is aiming for a spot at the Cannes Film
Festival in May, but theatrical release could still be any time after
that. Despite the uncertainty, there are
many reasons to remain intrigued.
Miller’s previous efforts were both Best Picture nominees (Capote and Moneyball). The story
follows paranoid schizophrenic wrestling trainer John DuPont (Steve Carell) and
his relationship with Olympian wrestlers Dave (Ruffalo) and Mark Schultz
(Channing Tatum). I’ve always enjoyed
when comedian Carell steps outside of his comfort zone and takes on something
more dramatic. There’s already been some
buzz about this being a potential Oscar role for Carell. Channing Tatum has also proven to be a strong
actor when paired with the right director and Miller has directed four
different actors to Oscar nominations in his previous two films. Release
Date: TBD
#1. Interstellar
It’s a
consensus, Dave and I both agree, our most anticipated film of 2014 is
Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar. Dave covered much of the details of the film here when
the first teaser was released. Details
of the film, like all Nolan movies, have been kept under major secrecy but the
teaser revealed that it could be tapping into something that seems to have been
lost on us as a nation: the thrill of exploration, in particular when it comes
to NASA and their steadily declining budget.
It remains to be seen how much of this theme factors into the final
movie but aside from that we have a loaded, star-studded cast and director that
seems to have been itching to get back to some original, sci-fi material. Matthew
McConaughey, in the middle of a great career resurgence, heads the
ensemble. Still nearly a year away from
release, there’s some major Avatar-like expectations with this one already, as
this will surely be marketed as an event movie.
Nolan’s films have typically been staples of the summer blockbuster
season but this one is being positioned right in the heart of the movie awards
season. A deserved Best Director
nomination has eluded Nolan thus far, but if the vision of this film lives up
to its massive expectations then perhaps, that will change. Release
Date: November 7th
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