2012 Movie Preview: Action Blockbusters

The Bourne Legacy (August 3)

Jeremy Renner is everywhere. Edward Norton is nowhere, currently. But I’m equally excited to see them in this Bourne reboot (?), even though I’m not too excited that they’re continuing the franchise without Matt Damon. Hopefully Tony Gilroy (who wrote the other Bourne films and is stepping in as director for this one) makes it more interesting than he did with Michael Clayton.

Brave (June 22)

This is Pixar’s latest family film, and it looks pretty adorable and female-empowering, which is awesome. I also like that Craig Ferguson now has a second career doing voice-over work in kid’s movies.

Contraband (January 13)

This Mark Wahlberg shoot-em-up movie looks like pretty standard fare, however its cast has me slightly more interested. With a supporting cast that includes Kate Beckinsale, Ben Foster, Giovanni Ribisi, Lukas Haas, Caleb Landry Jones (last seen as Banshee in X-Men: First Class), J.K. Simmons, and Diego Luna, this movie has too many actors I like to not give it a rental.

Django Unchained (December 25)

I can’t think of a better Christmas present. Leo DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon-Levitt (!!), Sascha Baron Cohen, Samuel L. Jackson, Christoph Waltz, and Kurt Russell are just a few of the intriguing names attached to this Tarantino-directed western.

Cogan’s Trade (TBA)

The problem with following movie casting news is that it can lead to disappointment when things don’t pan out. I remember when Casey Affleck, Sam Rockwell, and Javier Bardem were all attached to Andrew Dominik’s follow-up to The Assassination of Jesse James. Nonetheless, I’m still very interested to see what else Dominik is capable of, and with Brad Pitt, Richard Jenkins, and Ben Mendelsohn all on board, we’re really not doing too badly.

Haywire (January 20)

This is Steven Soderbergh’s first action-y blockbuster since Ocean’s Thirteen. In Haywire, Ewan McGregor, Michael Fassbender, Antonio Banderas, Channing Tatum, Michael Angarano, Michael Douglas, and Bill Paxton all must deal with the fallout after a black ops super soldier (played by MMA fighter Gina Carano) is betrayed by her team. With such a strong cast, I have high hopes for the film, however being bumped from late 2011 to January 2012 (the doldrums of movie release dates) might not bode well?

Premium Rush (August 24)

Let’s ponder this for a minute. Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Michael Shannon. Bicycling. In what world does this exist as an action movie (or any kind of movie, for that matter)? Whatever, I’m excited.

Skyfall (November 9)

Daniel Craig + Javier Bardem + Ben Whishaw + Ralph Fiennes = a movie that I am very interested in. It would have been awesome if they’d gotten Martin Campbell back for this latest Bond film (I loved what he did with Casino Royale), but at least it’s not Marc Forster again (he fucked up Quantum of Solace pretty badly, in my opinion). Sam Mendes is certainly a good director, though, so I’m interested to see what he’ll do with the series.

This Means War (February 17)

I like Chris Pine and Tom Hardy quite a bit, so by default, I have to watch this movie at some point. The action-comedy genre has already played itself out, I think (and it was never that good to begin with), but this one looks at least potentially funny/interesting?

Untitled International Thriller (December 19)

(This Kathryn Bigelow project is better known by its working title, Kill Bin Laden.)

What a cast. Jessica Chastain is in every big movie, so obviously she is in this one. Throw in other up-and-comers like Joel Edgerton, Edgar Ramirez, Jason Clarke, and Chris Pratt (I like that he’s becoming kind of a movie star) and Mark Strong (who I have a newfound admiration for), and you’ve got a movie that I’m interested in. Also, I’m sure everyone is excited to see what Bigelow will come out with after The Hurt Locker.

Advertisement

2012 Movie Preview: Sci-Fi/Fantasy (Part 2)

We’re on to the second day of the 2012 movie preview, and this is the second half of my anticipated sci-fi/fantasy flicks. Tomorrow, I’ll be covering the upcoming action blockbusters that I think look promising.

Jack the Giant Killer (June 15)

I can’t say the premise interests me too much (how many fairytale movies do we need in one year?) However, I am very interested to see how Nicholas Hoult will do in his first big leading role. Also, Bryan Singer is a capable blockbuster director (X-Men 1&2), and Ewan McGregor, Stanley Tucci, and Bill Nighy are also in the movie.

John Carter (March 9)

A CGI-heavy Disney action film wouldn’t usually excite me too much, but there are a few things that John Carter may have working in its favour. The first is its star, Taylor Kitsch. Anyone who watches Friday Night Lights knows all about Kitsch’s charisma, so I’m very interested to see how he’ll do with his own film. Also, this is director Andrew Stanton’s first live action film after helming Pixar projects like Finding Nemo and Wall-E, and he seems to have brought the visual style from those films to this one. I remain cautiously optimistic.

Looper (September 28)

2012 seems to be the year of great director/actor teams reuniting. Here, we get director Rian Johnson and actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt who last teamed up for 2005’s compelling teen noir, Brick. The scope is a little bigger this time (they even got Bruce Willis and Emily Blunt!), but I love the idea of Johnson taking on a crazy sci-fi action film.

Prometheus (June 8)

I’m not a big horror movie fan, but this Ridley Scott prequel (?) to Alien has me very interested because of its great cast. Guy Pearce and Michael Fassbender are two of my favourite working actors, and I like Charlize Theron, Patrick Wilson, Idris Elba, and Noomi Rapace quite a bit, too. Having Lost writer Damon Lindeloff behind the screenplay can’t hurt, either.

Total Recall (August 3)

Do we need another Total Recall? Absolutely not. But Colin Farrell has proven to be a viable action hero, and with John Cho, Bryan Cranston and Bill Nighy in the supporting cast (along with the less-interesting Kate Beckinsale and Jessica Biel), it might be worth a try.

World War Z (December 21)

This Brad Pitt zombie vehicle based on the hugely popular book of the same name is just poised to be a Christmas hit. I’m really not sure if this will work, but I’m certainly interested to see them try. Between this and Warm Bodies, it seems like 2012 is the year of the zombie.

2012 Movie Preview: Sci-Fi/Fantasy (Part 1)

Alright, so I’ve come up with a giant list of upcoming films of 2012 that look interesting to me, and over the next week or so, I’ll be sharing it here in separate parts. It is by no means an exhaustive list, but I have tried to cover a lot of different genres. Today, we’ll look at the first half of the sci-fi/fantasy blockbusters that caught my eye. Stay tuned for part 2 of the sci-fi/fantasy list tomorrow.

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (June 22)

This could very possibly be terrible, but it could also be stylish and fun. Mary Elizabeth Winstead plays Mary Todd, which is bound to be awesome, and the film also stars Dominic Cooper, Anthony Mackie, Alan Tudyk, and Jimmi Simpson (McPoyles!). I must admit, lead actor Benjamin Walker (playing ol’ Abe) is pretty much unknown to me.

The Amazing Spider-Man (July 3)

Like most people, I think that a Spider-Man update is unnecessary. However, I do love Andrew Garfield, so I support his foray into leading man territory. Emma Stone, Rhys Ifans, and Dennis Leary are pretty cool, too, and I’m curious to see what 500 Days of Summer director Marc Webb will do with this oh-so-familiar story.

The Avengers (May 4)

It looks like Joss Whedon’s superhero amalgam, The Avengers, will serve as this year’s official kickoff to the summer movie season. The trailers haven’t impressed me too much, and I could see this thing going horribly wrong (too many stars!), but I still remain cautiously optimistic. And anything with Robert Downey Jr. is worthwhile watching.

The Dark Knight Rises (July 20)

Part of me thinks that Christopher Nolan should have stopped the Batman franchise with his 2008 masterpiece (yeah, I’m one of those people) The Dark Knight. But a bigger part of me is also excited to see where he’ll take the series, as well as what Tom Hardy, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Marion Cotillard, and Anne Hathaway will bring to the film.

Gravity (November 21)

Little is known about this Alfonso Cuaron-directed thriller, other than that it will star George Clooney and Sandra Bullock. It’s apparently about an astronaut trying to return to his family on earth. And while that doesn’t sound like especially new territory, Cuaron is bound to add a lot of visual richness.

The Hunger Games (March 23)

With its fast-paced plot and nonstop action, The Hunger Games reads like a book that is waiting to be adapted to a movie. So with that source material and with Jennifer Lawrence as your leading lady, it would be hard to screw up the movie too badly. It’s definitely marketed to a teen audience (a la Twilight) but The Hunger Games, if done well, could be an exciting time at the movies for all age groups.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (December 14)

Considering how good the Lord of the Rings films were, it’s hard not to be excited for part one of this prequel of sorts. Martin Freeman seems like a great choice for Bilbo, and it’ll be great to see some of the original LotR cast back.