io9 has posted their annual list of science fiction and fantasy movies to watch out for this year. I have gone over this list and made my own abbreviated version, accordingly.
Okay, I think we all know what movie is my Number One Priority by now. But there are tons of others I could potentially leave my apartment for, too.
MOVIES I WILL SEE IN THEATER, COME HELL OR HIGH WATER
Avengers: Age of Ultron (May 1st)
I don’t know if I have anything to say about this that I haven’t already said. Just . . . yeah. Must see. MUST. SEE.
Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens (December 18th)
I’ll admit, I have nowhere near as much nerd squee about this one as I have about Age of Ultron . . . but come on, it’s Star Wars. Obviously, I’m going to see it.
Though I guess that means I really need to get around to watching Revenge of the Sith, huh? Damn it. Not looking forward to that at all.
MOVIES I COULD TOTALLY SEE IN THEATER, UNLESS HELL OR HIGH WATER ARE ACTUAL POTENTIAL CONSEQUENCES
Kingsmen: The Secret Service (February 13th)
I don’t know if I’ll see this on the big screen or not, but I’m certainly considering it. Every promo I’ve seen of it just looks fun. Colin Firth as a posh badass action hero, Mark Strong possibly not playing a bad guy, Samuel L. Jackson as, well, Samuel L. Jackson, and a bunch of British YA spy recruits? And Michael Caine? And Matthew Vaughn at the helm?
Consider me on board, people.
Max Max: Fury Road (May 15th)
I’ve had mixed feelings about the Mad Max series overall (the first one bored the crap out of me, the second one was pretty awesome, the third one was . . . special), but holy shit, this looks balls to the wall insane. I was so-so on seeing this in theater — I’m a deeply lazy soul — but this trailer has definitely raised my interest.
Ant-Man (July 17th)
The truth is, I’m not really that excited about Ant-Man. I like Paul Rudd, and I figure if Marvel can make a talking space raccoon work, they can sell me on an itty bitty superhero. That being said, the trailer didn’t do much for me (abs aside, obviously), and the only Ant-Man I’m familiar with is Hank Pym, not Scott Lang. Also, what little excitement I did have took a pretty serious hit when Edgar Wright left the project. I’m relatively sure I’ll see it in theater for pure Marvel continuity reasons, but right now, my interest is mild at best.
Fantastic Four (August 7th)
No trailer for this one yet, unfortunately. I’m hoping that I’ll become more excited once one comes out because right now I can’t help but feel like the time and money we’re spending on remaking movies from a decade ago could’ve been better spent on a Black Widow or Captain Marvel movie. On the other hand, Chronicle’s director Josh Trank is at the helm, and the cast is fairly solid. (I’m mostly excited by Michael B. Jordan and Jamie Bell, even if I remain slightly bewildered by Bell’s casting as The Thing.) Anyway, I figure it has to be better than the first one, right? (Never mind Rise of the Silver Surfer, which I never saw but was, by all accounts, immensely terrible.)
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part II (November 20th)
I finally watched Mockingjay, Part I, so of course I’ll be finishing the series in theater. (Actually, that’s not an ‘of course’ for me. I seem to be a rarity in that I have absolutely no problem dropping a film series if I don’t like where it’s headed, as evidenced by the fact that I still haven’t seen Revenge of the Sith, The Matrix Revolutions, or Spiderman 3. The important distinction here, of course, is that I actually enjoy these movies.)
Anyway, I’m excited to see how the story ends, considering I never read past the first book. I’d go into more detail, but I think maybe I should hold off until my Mockingjay, Part I review. (Hopefully up sometime next week.)
Mission Impossible 5 (December 25th)
. . . does this really count as science fiction?
Well, whatever. I’m looking forward to this one, since Ghost Protocol was such an unexpected blast. Unfortunately, Brad Bird is not directing this time around, but the rest of the gang is back, which means Tom Cruise (meh), Paula Patton (meh), Jeremy Renner (YES), and Simon Pegg (YES). Hopefully, there will be more of these two. Like, as much as humanely possible of these two.
PROBABLY RENTALS
Project Almanac (January 30th)
The trailer reminds me of Chronicle, which I liked a lot more than I was expecting to, and while found footage isn’t always my favorite, I deeply appreciate seeing it outside of the horror genre. Still, time travel stories rarely seem to do much for me. I keep trying them and keep finding them vaguely disappointing. Maybe I’ll check this one out too, but it’s probably gonna be on Netflix.
Jupiter Ascending (February 6th)
I could watch this in theater . . . in fact, I probably should watch this in theater . . . but despite the gorgeous visuals and Channing Tatum’s elf ears, I remain kind of ambivalent. The story just makes me shrug, and I don’t have any particular feeling about the Wachowskis one way or the other. So it’s a rental for me unless someone I know really wants to go see it.
What We Do In the Shadows (February 13th)
I feel like I watched a trailer for this that I thought was funnier, but I could still see this movie because, you know, vampire mockumentary. Seems to be getting great reviews anyway, although it’s not exactly a must-watch for me, probably because I still haven’t watched Flight of the Concords, Eagle vs Shark, or anything else by these guys.
It Follows (March 27th)
I’m actually pretty interested in this one — it looks creepy and original, and I’m really curious to see where the movie goes with the premise of a sexually transmitted haunting. I’m only listing it as a rental because I tend to watch horror movies at home instead of in the theater. But I have semi-high hopes for this.
Tomorrowland (May 22nd)
I really don’t know much about this movie at all, but I find the teaser intriguing enough. The cast is good, the visuals looks great, and as mentioned before, I jumped on the Brad Bird train after Ghost Protocol. It may move up or down on the list once I see a trailer that gives me a better idea of, you know, plot.
Pan (July 24th)
I expect either my sister, sheer curiosity, or a juvenile desire to mock Hugh Jackman’s wig in further detail will eventually get me to watch this weird Peter Pan origin story, but it’s definitely not a theater movie for me unless someone drags me there.
Selfless (July 31st)
No trailer for this one yet, but the basic plot description seems to go like this: Ben Kingsley is old and rich and dying, and transplants his consciousness into the younger Ryan Reynolds. Unbeknownst to Kingsley, however, Ryan Reynolds has some kind of mysterious past that puts Kingsley’s life in jeopardy. Also starring: Matthew Goode, Michelle Dockery, and Victor Garber. And it’s directed by Tarsem Singh, which is both a good and bad thing: I fully expect this movie to be visually compelling, but I can’t help but fear that it will be a big disappointment when it comes to script. I hope not, though, because I like Ryan Reynolds, and the guy could desperately use a win. (Which, hey, maybe that will be Deadpool. But I don’t care if it has a release date — I won’t let myself believe that movie is gonna happen until I actually have a trailer in front of me.)
Victor Frankenstein (October 2nd)
I don’t know very much about this yet, only that it’s an origin story about Victor Frankenstein (James McAvoy), as told by Igor (Daniel Radcliffe). Also, Max Landis wrote the script and Mark Gatiss costars. That’s enough for me to be seriously intrigued.
Crimson Peak (October 16th)
The plot here doesn’t do much for me — a wife’s new husband is not all he appears to be, yawn, Rebecca, yawn — but Guillermo Del Toro, Mia Wasikowska, Tom Hiddleston, Burn Gorman, Doug Jones, Jim Beaver, and the costuming department in general are making me interested despite myself. Holy God, those sleeves.
Spectre (November 6th)
Newest Bond movie. Christoph Waltz costars, presumably as a bad guy. (But wouldn’t it be funny if he wasn’t?) I had a pretty good time watching Skyfall, despite my problems with the film, so I’m sure I’ll get around to seeing this at some point.
Krampus (December 4th)
Movie about a homicidal Christmas demon? Yes, please.
WILL PROBABLY SEE EVENTUALLY, ALTHOUGH CURRENT INTEREST IS PRETTY LOW
Ex Machina (April 10th)
I like Oscar Isaac. I’d like to see more of Domnhall Gleeson. And I’m interested in seeing Alex Garland’s directorial debut. (He wrote 28 Days Later and Dredd, both of which I loved.) And yet, while this looks expertly crafted, the trailer leaves me entirely cold. I suspect I’ll watch it at some point on a recommendation from someone else, but the whole sexy AI conspiracy stuff . . . meh. I’d rather just watch Person of Interest, thanks.
Jurassic World (June 12th)
Dinosaurs AND Chris Pratt, and my interest level is meh? Something feels very wrong with the world. And yet, here we are.
Terminator: Genisys (July 1st)
I want to be more interested in this, but the Terminator series is another one that I have mixed feelings on. I don’t remember caring much about the first one (although, to be fair, it’s been a really long time since I’ve seen it). I enjoyed the second one (cause, dude, Linda Hamilton), but probably not as much as other people did. Never even bothered to see the third one, and the fourth one sucked donkey balls, like, massive donkey balls. Oh, and I did enjoy the short-lived television series, although I’m one of the rare people who actually didn’t particularly like Lena Headey as Sarah Connor, and I like Lena Headey. (Also, I often wanted to throw things at John. Derek was was pretty awesome, though. Cameron, too.)
As far as Genisys itself goes — I like Emilia Clarke quite a bit, and Alan Taylor directed some awesome episodes of Game of Thrones, but other than that stupid, stupid title, I just can’t help but feel bored by the idea of any more installments in this franchise. Cause Sarah Connor’s like, “We can stop Judgment Day!” and I’m like, “Look, fool me once, shame on you, fool me five times and this is just getting ridiculous.” Judgment Day can’t be stopped, people. We’ll still be trying to stop Judgment Day when I’m ninety.
Friday the 13th (November 13th)
Yup. Another one. I’m not sure if it’s a prequel or another remake, but it sounds like we’re going back to the 1980’s one way or another. I’ll see it because I see them all, but let’s just say my expectations are not high.
I guess that’s it for now. Any movies I missed, or ones you’d rank considerably higher?
My Geek Blasphemy 
“What We Do In The Shadows” came out in a few cinemas in the UK and I was lucky enough to see it. It was BRILLIANT! The bit where the police come around was particularly funny.
Personally I’m more interested than Terminator than Star Wars. JJ Abrams already messed up Star Trek and I don’t care if it IS Andy Serkis, that voiceover in the new Star Wars teaser was extremely naff. Whereas Alan Taylor has done Game of Thrones and one of my favourite Marvel movies (in spite of studio interference) and I’m really keen to see what he does with Terminator now.
Alicia Vikander plays the robot in Ex Machina and I last saw her in “A Royal Affair”. If you haven’t seen “A Royal Affair” already, seriously check it out. I’m not normally much of a costume drama person but with her and Mad Mikkelsen in the lead roles and a true story about Danish politics that I’d never heard before, it was just amazing.
I notice that you mentioned the “Fantastic Four” reboot but didn’t mention “Batman Vs Superman”. I absolutely agree. It doesn’t sound like they know what in the hell they are doing with Batman Vs Superman, whereas a new movie from the ‘Chronicle’ director? Sign me up!
Our lists are pretty similar, but I think there are a few important movies you’ve missed. My list is on Letterboxd (I’m gonna do a more refined list on LJ soon). Here’s the link:
http://letterboxd.com/fatpie42/list/films-to-look-forward-to-in-2015/detail/
Also, quite excited by the idea of Paramount taking back Friday the 13th, but I’m not convinced it’s really happening this year yet.
See, and I like the new Star Trek movies. Well, I like the first one, and I had a decent time watching Into Darkness, even if I thought it was a flawed film and, overall, disappointing. I found it enjoyable enough to watch, but it could have been so much better. That aside, if I remember correctly, JJ Abrams is actually much more of a Star Wars than a Star Trek fan himself, so maybe that will come through in the film? (Also, I enjoyed Thor 2, but I didn’t love it nearly as much as other people did. For me, it got a little overhyped.)
I have not seen A Royal Affair, but I’ll look into it. Period drama isn’t normally my go-to genre of choice either, but I can be talked into it. And I do like Mads Mikkelsen.
Sorry to disappoint, but I didn’t mention Dawn of Justice because last I heard, it’s coming out in 2016. I originally thought it was 2015, but then I looked it up and saw the 2016 release date. There IS a rumor right now that it’s going to be split up into two movies, and the first half would come out this fall, but as far as I can tell, that’s only a rumor. Either way, I’ll definitely see it in theater. My expectations aren’t high, exactly, but I’m trying to reserve judgement, and anyway, I feel morally obligated to see any live action Batman movie in theater. Also, I like the Justice League, and I’m curious to see the other superheroes in this movie, even though I feel like DC is rushing it by introducing so many people at once.
That all being said, we definitely agree on a new movie from a Chronicle director. That’s an exciting thing.
I think your list includes more non-genre movies than my own (which makes sense, since I pulled mine from an SF website), but you reminded me about The Hateful Eight, which I totally forgot about. That would be a must-see for me. That cast!
It Follows looks interesting, although I’d like to know more about the mechanics of… whatever that thing is. For instance, can it teleport at all? Or is it more like a zombie that’s constantly homing in on you? Is it solid, or can it just move right through doors and walls and things?
I don’t know how I feel about it apparently attacking her friend, either. Somehow a curse like this feels to me like it should only afflict the actual victim, and not be killing random bystanders. But I can’t explain why I feel that way, and perhaps things aren’t quite like the trailer makes them seem.
Damn it, I watched the Pan trailer, and all it’s doing is making me wish it was an adaptation of The Child Thief. I’d kind of forgotten that the backstory given in that book wasn’t the official version.
There was actually a Grimm episode about Krampus. He was a goat creature dressed as Santa, and his modus operandi was going around beating juvenile offenders with a switch, then stuffing them into a giant sack and walking off with them. He’d keep them all in giant closed baskets that would hang off of the tallest tree in the area until the Winter Solstice. Then he would eat them all, and retake human form until the December next year.
That was delightfully gruesome – well, except that the heroes stopped him before he ate anybody this time around, boo – but the rest of the episode was kind of meh, honestly.
I can see what you mean, about the curse attacking her friend not working for you offhand. I think I’d have to see how it plays out.
I would also love to see a film adaptation of The Child Thief. I still maintain that Guillermo del Toro would be a great director for it.
Too bad about the rest of the episode, because that Krampus sounds awesome. I never did make my way back to Grimm. I feel like I should at some point because it seems like exactly my kind of show, but I just haven’t done it. I blame my sister, which is always fun.
Del Toro would be perfect, yeah. Alternately, The City Of Lost Children makes me think Jean Paul Jeunet could do a good job with it.
He was awesome. My favourite part was the sack. It’s such a whimsical way to kidnap people! Especially since they weren’t small children, but late teenagers, who would be a lot bigger and heavier.
It’s a fun show, and I think it’s gotten a lot better, on an episodic basis. (OTOH, the quality of the story arcs vary greatly.) Hank and Juliet got a lot more enjoyable/relevant once they knew the score. Rosalee, who is delightfully clever and practical, joined the show in late Season One, and her and Monroe’s burgeoning romance has been a thing of beauty in how steady, supportive, and normal it is. Team Grimm is also so charmingly domestic sometimes. There’s been a few times they’ve discussed cases over group dinners or potlucks, which is adorable.
It’s been a long time since I’ve seen The City of Lost Children, but I know I liked it. I’ll have to watch it again sometime.
Maybe I’ll try to catch some episodes of Grimm to get a feel for it. I do like my domesticity, I can’t lie. Alas, it’s Mek’s turn to pick whatever our next Netflix show is (whenever we’re less busy with all the currently on-air shows), and she won’t pick it. To be fair, even if it was mine, I feel like Babylon 5 is currently higher on my list. I’m starting to feel bad for having never seen that show.
“I can’t help but feel like the time and money we’re spending on remaking movies from a decade ago could’ve been better spent on a Black Widow or Captain Marvel movie.”
Small point of order. FOX owns the film rights to Fantastic Four. Disney/Marvel owns the rights to Black Widow and Captain Marvel, so FOX re-making FF is really neither here nor there in terms of resources spent towards properties. Disney/Marvel isn’t spending a dime on it.
Of course, that just means there’s even more reason to have a Black Widow film by now.
That’s right, I forgot about that. All right, I amend my statement: I feel like FOX could be spending their time and resources making an original superhero film (preferably starring a woman) rather than a reboot of a movie made ten years ago. But I know how deeply unrealistic that is.
I mean, they own the rights to the X-Men, they could easily spin one of them off. There’s like a million mutants.