Our 33 Most-Anticipated Films of 2017

By Ajay Shete

A new year of films is upon us. There will inevitably be disappointments just as there are pleasant surprises. We’ll try to get around to seeing as many movies as we can and yet there will be those that inevitably pass under the radar. While January rarely offers exciting new releases, it does afford us time to look ahead to what we know is coming up and there’s plenty worth looking forward to in 2017. We’ve compiled a list of 33 films that you should look out for in the year ahead. From blockbusters to indies, these are the movies that you should put on your calendar now, and if they don’t have a release date yet, just be vigilant.

The Lost City of Z

Release Date: April 14th

Director: James Gray

Cast: Charlie Hunnam, Tom Holland, Robert Pattison, Sienna Miller

Synopsis: The true-life drama of British explorer Col. Percival Fawcett (Hunnam), who disappeared while searching for a mysterious city in the Amazon in the 1920s.

Quite simply, James Gray is the most underrated American film director of this young century. His past two films, The Immigrant and Two Lovers (masterpieces both), have a history of being unceremoniously dumped by their distributor for Gray’s refusal to make the trims that the studio deemed necessary. But this passion project, which was previously set up to star Brad Pitt and Benedict Cumberbatch, is being fully supported by Amazon Studios (serendipitously!) just as Gray intended. Gray has expertly crafted some emotional melodramas but I can’t wait to see what he and his expert cinematographer, Darius Khondji, have up their sleeve for his first full-blown adventure. Judging from Chris Cabin’s review from its debut at the New York Film Festival, the long journey of The Lost City of Z is more than worth the wait. He called it “a masterpiece.” — Brian Formo

Wonder Woman

Release Date: June 2nd

Director: Patty Jenkins

Cast: Gal Gadot, Robin Wright, Chris Pine, Connie Nielsen, David Thewlis, Lucy Davis

Synopsis: An Amazon princess (Gadot) leaves her island home to explore the world and, in doing so, becomes one of the world’s greatest heroes.

We’ve waited a long time for this movie. Warner Brothers’ DCEU has a recent history of getting us ramped up with great marketing but then letting us down with product, but we soldier on undeterred. Wonder Woman looks great. The juxtaposition between the isle of women warriors and the World War I setting looks fabulous. Gadot is extremely commendable as she’s taken on this role for all the positive qualities it should exude. Now, all we want is a really good movie. — Brian Formo

The Beguiled

Release Date: June 23rd

Director: Sofia Coppola

Cast: Colin Farrell, Kirsten Dunst, Elle Fanning, Angourie Rice, Nicole Kidman, Oona Laurence

Synopsis: While imprisoned in a Confederate girl’s boarding school, an injured Union soldier (Farrell) cons his way into each of the lonely women’s hearts, causing them to turn on each other.

Sofia Coppola certainly made an interesting 180 when she dropped out of making The Little Mermaid to make a film set in the Civil War focusing on the seductive qualities of a soldier who’s been detained in a schoolhouse. That cast is great. Cannot wait for Dunst, Fanning and Kidman to get into Southern belle mode. And Farrell just turned in his career best performance in The Lobster. The actor who burst out in the early 2000s with a ton of movie idol swagger now possesses a certain beaten down quality that keeps him humble. For this tale, Farrell’s newfound humility mixed with seductive deception and Coppola’s expert use of cinematography certainly has gives The Beguiled the potential to be as delicious as a Mint Julip on a hot porch.

Coppola has impressed me with many films but I’ve always loved her period works the most (The Virgin Suicides, Marie Antoinette), so I am suited the hell up for this tale. (For the extra curious, The Beguiled is based on a book by Thomas Cullinan which was turned into a pre-Dirty Harry film starring Clint Eastwood and directed by Harry’s Don Siegel.) — Brian Formo

Baby Driver

Release date: August 11th

Director: Edgar Wright

Cast: Ansel Elgort, Lily James, Kevin Spacey, Jon Hamm, Jamie Foxx, Jon Bernthal, Eiza Gonzalez

Synopsis: After being coerced into working for a crime boss, a young getaway driver (Elgort) finds himself taking part in a heist doomed to fail.

We don’t know much, but all we need to know is Edgar Wright + chase scenes and we’re there. The action is propelled by music, but Wright’s been mum on how the 35 tracks will be used to enhance the action. Essentially, once we get a trailer we’ll rev our engines and when it is released we’ll peel rubber to see what the unpredictable director has in store. We don’t doubt that it’ll be raucous fun. The young cast is appealing and the vets (Spacey, Hamm, Foxx) are stacked with winks. — Brian Formo

Okja

Release date: 2017

Director: Bong Joon-ho

Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Tilda Swinton, Lily Collins, Giancarlo Esposito, Paul Dano, Ahn Seo-Hyun

Synopsis: A young girl named Mija (Ahn) risks everything to prevent a powerful, multi-national company from kidnapping her best friend—a massive animal named Okja.

Snowpiercer was an imperfect first foray into English-language filmmaking from the Korean master, Bong Joon-ho, but it featured some of the most imaginative set pieces we’ve seen in a disaster film in ages. Snowpiercer was an appropriate visual allegory for our modern awakening to widening income equalities and how that’s stitched into the fabric of globalization, but while Bong’s best films (Mother, The Host, Memories of Murder) have all featured polemic outbursts, they all happened on the side of the narrative. And Okja sounds like it could be the director’s live-action Totoro. Regardless of what the creature is, knowing that Bong’s making a creature feature again after making one of the bests with The Host is more than enough to make us very excited. — Brian Formo

Untitled Detroit Project

Release date: 2017

Director: Kathryn Bigelow

Cast: John Boyega, Will Poulter, Jason Mitchell, Jack Reynor, Hannah Murray, John Krasinski, Kaitlyn Dever

Synopsis: A police raid in Detroit in 1967 results in one of the largest citizen uprisings in the United State’s history.

With Paul Thomas Anderson’s 1950s fashion film not shooting yet, Kathryn Bigelow arguably becomes the biggest American auteur to definitely have a film coming out in 2017. It currently doesn’t have a distributor, but The Hurt Locker filmmaker has reunited with her Zero Dark Thirty super-producer Megan Ellison (The Master, Spring Breakers) to fund a tale that, though 50 years ago, is rife for being told right now. Hate crimes are rising coast to coast, intolerance is at its peak and people are misconstruing support for police reform to mean anti-police. That’s the story of 1967. And that’s still a story now.

Bigelow’s last film got railroaded by the press for its depiction of torture but Zero Dark Thirty was, in my opinion, one of the best American-made films of the aughts. Bigelow’s ability to build tension to a boil is unmatched right now. And the story of the Detroit Riots feels like an intriguing and necessary pot to boil. — Brian Formo

Wonderstruck

Release date: 2017

Director: Todd Haynes

Cast: Julianne Moore, Michelle Williams, Oakes Fegley, Tom Noonan, Millie Simmonds

Synopsis: The story of a young boy in the Midwest (Fegley) is told simultaneously with a tale about a young girl in New York (Simmonds) from fifty years ago as they both seek the same mysterious connection.

Because a new Todd Haynes film is always a cause for celebration. That he’s making a childhood adventure story from the author of Hugo amps our excitement. But nothing can be more exciting than Moore reuniting with Haynes for a third time after he lens two of her career bests in Safe and Far From Heaven. I’m on record everywhere saying that Haynes’ last film, Carol, is a masterpiece and one of the best examples of pure cinema from this century. So hell yeah—whatever his follow up is—I’m there, hoping to be “wonderstruck.” — Brian Formo

You Were Never Really Here

Release date: 2017

Director: Lynne Ramsay

Cast: Joaquin Phoenix, Ekaterina Samsonov, Alessandro Nivola, Judith Roberts

Synopsis: A war veteran’s (Phoenix) attempt to save a young girl from a sex trafficking ring goes horribly wrong.

Now that Leonardo DiCaprio’s won an Oscar can we all agree that Joaquin Phoenix is the most overdue actor to win his first actor? His spotty but intriguing 2000s run included classic turns in Gladiator, Walk the Line and Two Lovers. But Phoenix has been on a tear in the aughts from The Master to Her, The Immigrant and Inherent Vice and he only has a nomination for The Master to show for it. After that great run, Phoenix has taken a bit of a break. He showed up for the annual Woody Allen movie in 2015, bought Doctor Strange comics and then finally shot a new movie!

The synopsis gives some Taxi Driver vibes, but what’s most appealing about the movie, other than Phoenix, is that this will be Lynne Ramsay’s first film since she left Natalie Portman’s Jane Got a Gun as a broken home in one of the nastiest set walk offs of the modern era (actually after Michael Fassbender dropped out, she just didn’t show up to set at all). The director of the searing We Need to Talk About Kevin took a great cast with her (Michael Fassbender, Jude Law and Bradley Cooper) and burned down a stately indie reputation she’d built up. Without ever speaking to the press, the director quietly made You Were Never Really Here, which could be the title of that failed Western’s tell all book. — Brian Formo

War for the Planet of the Apes

Release Date: July 14th

Director: Matt Reeves

Cast: Andy Serkis, Woody Harrelson, Steve Zahn, Judy Greer, Max Lloyd-Jones, Terry Notary

Synopsis: A nation of genetically evolved apes led by Cesar (Serkis) becomes embroiled in a battle with an army of humans.

The reboot of The Planet of the Apes franchise is definitely the most unexpected success of the new movie universes—no one was really clamoring for a fresh take, but the films have been so great it could feasibly become the best new trilogy of the modern era with War for the Planet of the Apes. Serkis’ Caesar has become so seminal we often forget that this franchise was launched by James Franco’s scientist. Matt Reeves and Fox were very smart with the sequel, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, in their awareness that audiences were most aligned with the apes and not the humans and they shifted their focus properly.

This franchise has elevated what motion capture can do for drama by directing attention to the apes communal rallying points and how they deal with trauma differently. Harrelson has the potential for a fun human foil because Harrelson is at his best as an opposition, but this sequel is all about Caesar and finding out who Zahn is playing as an unspecified iconic ape from the novels. We wring our hands at the volume of reboot announcements, but when they’re done as well as the first two Apes installments, it becomes a huge anticipation. — Brian Formo

The Dark Tower

Release date: July 28th

Director: Nikolaj Arcel

Cast: Idris Elba, Matthew McConaughey, Tom Taylor, Abbey Lee, Jackie Earle Haley, Katheryn Winnick, Michael Barbieri, Fran Kranz

Synopsis: Gunslinger Roland Deschain (Elba) roams an Old West-link landscape in search of The Dark Tower, in hopes that reaching it will preserve a dying world.

Stephen King’s novels are so immense that a movie adaptation has seemed impossible, so the reports of how the screenwriters are starting midway through his books to work back into the lore is an interesting and potentially dangerous approach. Despite King’s fans growing weary about the timeline, the author has given his stamp of approval to Nikolaj Arcel’s method of creating a cinematic world where the story doesn’t feel too immense. Time will tell if that’s done correctly, but Arcel is an intriguing choice, as his most recent film was a royal melodrama that introduced Hollywood to Alicia Vikander, in the rich period romance of A Royal Affair.

The intriguing approach to the world-building, coupled with the immense acceptance of HBO’s sci-fi Western mash-up, Westworld, and the appealing dual casting of Elba and McConaughey, the timing seems perfect for a franchise that’s had numerous failures to launch. Now we’ll just have to see if they do it justice. Currently, you have to admire the ambition. — Brian Formo

Blade Runner 2049

Release Date: October 6th

Director: Denis Villeneuve

Cast: Ryan Gosling, Harrison Ford, Ana de Armas, Jared Leto, Mackenzie Davis, Dave Bautista, Berkhad Abdi, Robin Wright

Synopsis: Thirty years after the events of the first film, a new Blade Runner, LAPD Office K (Gosling), unearths a long-buried secret that has the potential to plunge what’s left of society into chaos. K’s discovery leads him on a quest to find Rick Deckard (Ford), a former LAPD Blade Runner who has been missing for 30 years.

Denis Villeneuve (Sicario, Prisoners) is a director who always showed immense promise that never completed gelled for me until Arrival. Now that he’s had a film where the storytelling equaled his visual and aural splendor, I personally can finally trust his guidance of this Blade Runner sequel. That Arrival was one of the most intelligent sci-fi films of this new millennia certainly bodes well, but nothing is more exciting than the fact that Roger Deakins, the G.O.A.T., lensed the sequel. Also, this seems to be a franchise that Ford is actually glad to be a part of.

Of the newbies, de Armas was a sexy and maniac b-movie find from Eli Roth’s best work he’s ever done (Knock Knock) and Davis broke our hearts in an episode of Black Mirror that perfectly lends itself to this world. And Gosling, well, he’d already perfected his neo-noir approach by working with Nicolas Winding Refn and now he fully embodies that Los Angeles malaises via La La Land. The biggest question is how Villeneuve handles fan service or if he’s able to make this film his own. The intrigue is monolithic. — Brian Formo

Kingsman: The Golden Circle

Release Date: October 6th

Director: Matthew Vaughn

Cast: Taron Egerton, Mark Strong, Colin Firth, Jeff Bridges, Julianne Moore, Halle Berry, Sophie Cookson, Elton John, Channing Tatum

Synopsis: When an attack on the Kingsman headquarters takes place and a new villain arises, Eggsy (Egerton) and Merlin (Strong) are forced to work together with the American agency Statesman to save the world.

Kingsman: The Secret Service was delicious fun. Like an old Guy Ritchie rock-‘em-sock-‘em film crossed with a polite coming of age prep school tale, it featured an eccentric villain, dapper suits and some wild laugh-out-loud moments at the number of violent atrocities Matthew Vaughn could fit into any given scene. Egerton, Strong and Cookson return amongst a stacked American cast of operatives with Moore having the tall task of making a villain as iconic as Samuel L. Jackson did with the first film.

Now, Firth, who died in the first movie is coming back for the sequel. Although we don’t know the explanation, I can’t help but be disappointed because it’s so rare for a franchise to kill off a star, especially in the initial introductory film. It was a surprise and surprises are rare in world-building films. I’m sure The Golden Circle will have some new surprises, but how they handle Firth will be key to the overall enjoyment. — Brian Formo

Song to Song

Release Date: March 17th

Director: Terrence Malick

Starring: Ryan Gosling, Michael Fassbender, Natalie Portman, Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara, Christian Bale, Hayley Bennett, Benicio Del Toro

Synopsis: Two intersecting love triangles. Obsession and betrayal set against the music scene in Austin, Texas.

It’s been what feels like ages since the very first set photos for Terrence Malick’s then-untitled music flick appeared online – and what photos they were: Ryan Gosling, Michael Fassbender, Natalie Portman, Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara, Christian Bale (shall I go on?) were gathered in the bleached Austin sun, strumming guitars, and the anticipation – amidst releases of Malick’s glacially paced Voyage of Time and musing curio Knight of Cups – continued to build as time ticked forward. We still don’t have a trailer, and there’s no promise from modern Malick of any coherent storyline, but I’m betting that it’s nearly impossible to combine this kind of on-screen and behind-the-camera talent into anything short of damn great. – Aubrey Page

Coco

Release Date: November 22nd

Directors: Lee Unkrich, Adrian Molina

Starring: Gael Garcia Bernal, Benjamin Bratt

Synopsis: Coco follows a 12-year-old boy named Miguel who sets off a chain of events relating to a century-old mystery, leading to an extraordinary family reunion.

While pretty much any Pixar film easily qualifies under the “heavily anticipated” banner, Coco is a rather special case. Lee Unkrich, the same man behind Monsters, Inc., is bringing us a family-based musical (or rather, a “music-packed” feature) boasting an all-latino cast and some heart-warming early key art. Still no trailer, but when the Pixar slate looks a lot like sequel central – that’d be Toy Story 4, Cars 3, The Incredibles 2 – Coco isn’t only an intriguing proposition, it looks like the original palate cleanser the studio (and its audience) needs. – Aubrey Page

Murder on the Orient Express

Release Date: November 22nd

Director: Kenneth Branagh

Starring: Daisy Ridley, Johnny Depp, Michelle Pfeiffer, Judi Dench, Kenneth Branagh

Synopsis: Renowned Belgian detective Hercule Poirot (Branagh) investigates the murder of a wealthy American traveling on the Orient Express, the most famous train in the world.

For an Agatha Christie devotee (guilty!) any adaptation of her beloved and mysterious Murder on the Orient Express is reason to celebrate. But when the cast includes Daisy Ridley, Judi Dench, Michelle Pfeiffer, Penélope Cruz and *gulp* Johnny Depp, and the feature is in the hands of the illustrious Kenneth Branagh, well, that’s when everyone should sit up and take notice. And while the story of Murder on the Orient Express might strike some more weary audiences as rote, this particular adaptations got a script by Michael Green, the guy behind everything from American Gods to Logan to Blade Runner 2049. – Aubrey Page

A Cure For Wellness

Release Date: February 17th

Director: Gore Verbinski

Starring: Jason Isaacs, Dane Dehaan, Mia Goth

Synopsis: An ambitious young executive (DeHaan) is sent to retrieve his company’s CEO from an idyllic but mysterious “wellness center” at a remote location in the Swiss Alps but soon suspects that the spa’s miraculous treatments are not what they seem.

In a sea of subpar and frankly embarrassing English-language horror remakes, there stands a shining beacon – The Ring. And while Gore Verbinski has in the past decade been harangued by a plethora of overblown Johnny Depp projects, A Cure for Wellness marks the director’s curious return to the horror genre. Thanks to an eerily strong premise that cashes in on our current societal obsession with health and wellness, strong dual leads in Jason Isaacs and Dane Dehaan and the handful of misleading and visually lush teasers, Wellness has all the makings of a twisty, instant horror classic. – Aubrey Page

The Shape of Water

Release Date: 2017

Director: Guillermo Del Toro

Starring: Michael Shannon, Octavia Spencer, Michael Stuhlbarg, Doug Jones, Sally Hawkins

Synopsis: An other-worldly story, set against the backdrop of Cold War era America circa 1963.

Anyone who’s taken a glimpse at Guillermo Del Toro’s imdb page would know – the dude is busy. So to hear the cinematic giant has thrown off a franchise (sorry, Pacific Rim) to pursue a much smaller, intimate drama, well, it’s more than a little exciting. So even before Doug Jones dropped some seriously intriguing tidbits about the forthcoming film, we were paying attention. But to hear the details: set in 1963, imbued with Cold War tensions, a non-genre love story between an aquatic man and a sure-to-be charming Sally Hawkins (not to mention Michael Shannon, Michael Stuhlbarg and Octavia Spencer), and it sounds like The Shape of Water has all the makings of his most moving, stunning and fanciful film since Pan’s Labyrinth. – Aubrey Page

The Fate of the Furious

Release Date: April 14th

Director: F. Gary Gray

Cast: Charlize Theron, Helen Mirren, Vin Diesel, The Rock, Michelle Rodriguez, Jason Statham, Kurt Russell

Synopsis: When a mysterious woman (Theron) seduces Dom (Diesel) into the world of crime and a betrayal of those closest to him, the crew face trials that will test them as never before.

Ever since the fifth, game-changing entry to the Fast and Furious franchise, the totally bonkers action series that runs on an engine full of family love, glittering vistas and very tanned legs in short shorts, has been all-but required viewing. But the eight film, regardless of our ill will towards to the very silly title (The Fate of the Furious? Really?), is perhaps the most exciting entry yet – boasting a director in F. Gary Gray and featuring eyebrow-raising cast additions like Charlize Theron in prime glowering form and Helen Mirren after a successful campaign to join the team. It’s also the first film (besides the one-off Tokyo Drift) to not feature Paul Walker, whose sudden tragic death rattled the cast and his legions of fans last year. It’s an installment that’s got a lot to live up to, but based on the trailer – Mind control! Prison fights! Submarines? – it likely won’t disappoint. As as is usually the case with the high octane fam, I’m not sure what we’re getting into, but I’m pretty damn excited. – Aubrey Page

The Killing of a Sacred Deer

Release Date: 2017

Director: Yorgos Lanthimos

Cast: Nicole Kidman, Colin Farrell, Alicia Silverstone

Synopsis: A teenager’s attempts to bring a brilliant surgeon into his dysfunctional family takes an unexpected turn.

Fresh off The Lobster (and now a highly anticipated AMC series), all eyes are on the once-niche Yorgos Lanthimos who landed on everyone’s radar with the dark, vicious but tongue-in-cheek Dogtooth and gained prominence thanks to his misfit nihilism and trademark visual touches. There’s little known about the project besides a scant synopsis, suggesting The Killing of a Sacred Deer follows a strange or sinister teenage boy and his twisted relationship with a brilliant surgeon. Regardless of the lack of details, we do know that Nicole Kidman and Colin Farrell will play husband and wife – a prospect that earns this film a spot on this list alone – and that Alicia Silverstone has recently joined the project. With that kind of talent in the hands of such a fierce creative, and with A24 already giving it its stamp of approval, we just might be looking at our first whispers of your favorite film of 2017. – Aubrey Page

Mother

Release Date: 2017

Director: Darren Aronofsky

Cast: Jennifer Lawrence, Javier Bardem, Michelle Pfeiffer, Domnhall Gleeson, Ed Harris

Synopsis: Centers on a couple whose relationship is tested when uninvited guests arrive at their home, disrupting their tranquil existence.

While Noah was no mess of biblical proportions, it certainly wasn’t particularly indicative of the cinematic spells Darren Aronofsky is capable of casting. But Mother, a drama featuring the talents of everyone from Jennifer Lawrence (meh) to Javier Bardem (yes!) to Ed Harris still flying high from his deliciously villainous stint on Westworld, Mother sounds, if anything, like a welcome return to form for Aronofsky – and with any luck, it could mean a return to the Oscars too. – Aubrey Page

Annihilation

Release Date: 2017

Director: Alex Garland

Cast: Natalie Portman, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Gina Rodriguez, Tessa Thompson, Oscar Isaac

Synopsis: A biologist signs up for a dangerous, secret expedition where the laws of nature don’t apply.

Already one of the most exciting new voices in sci-fi thanks to his sumptuous and transgressive Ex Machina, all eyes are on Alex Garland in 2017. But with Annihilation on the docket, the young director is poised to become a cinematic force of nature – provided the film is as amazing as it sounds. Starring Natalie Portman, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Tessa Thompson and Oscar Isaac, the film promises an expedition-based genre flick following a biologist (Portman) who wanders into a curious environmental disaster zone in search for her missing husband. Specifics, of course, are scant, but I wouldn’t want it any other way.- Aubrey Page

John Wick: Chapter 2

Release Date: February 10th

Director: Chad Stahelski

Cast: Keanu Reeves, Common, Riccardo Scamarcio, Laurence Fishburne, Ruby Rose, Bridget Moynahan, Lance Reddick, Franco Nero, with John Leguizamo, and Ian McShane

Synopsis: The continuing adventures of former hitman, John Wick (Reeves).

John Wick was one of those unexpected delights that dominated the conversation when it dropped back in 2014, a welcome kick in the ass of the American action genre, which has drifted more towards the super-powered and apocalyptic in recent years, leaving good, old-fashioned fight scenes by the wayside. John Wick bucked that trend with an old-fashioned one-man-army in the form of a career-best Keanu Reeves and directed by long-time stunt pros David Leitch and Chad Stahelski (Who worked as Reeves stunt double for more than a decade), John Wick had the relentless kinetic flourish and technical excellence that makes a good action movie great. While Leitch stepped off to direct The Coldest City, Stahelski is back to helm the sequel and the trailers we’ve seen so far promise a return to stylish form with the classic bigger and badder sequel flourish, and Reeves isn’t missing a beat as the relentless badass. Yeah, I’m kind of thinking he’s back. — Haleigh Foutch

Beauty and the Beast

Release Date: March 17th

Director: Bill Condon

Cast: Emma Watson, Dan Stevens, Luke Evans, Kevin Kline, Josh Gad, Ewan McGregor, Stanley Tucci, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Audra McDonald, Ian McKellen, Emma Thompson

Synopsis: An adaptation of the Disney fairy-tale about a monstrous prince and a young woman who fall in love.

Disney’s live-action adaptations of their animated classics have been hit-and-miss over the last couple years as the studio has been feeling out the best way to revive old favorites for modern audiences. But Cinderella and The Jungle Book have pointed to a surge of confident direction for the studio’s burgeoning storybook tentpole trend and this year brings the live-action incarnation of one of Disney’s most beloved and iconic tales, the 1991 Best Picture nominee (the first ever animated nomination for the trophy), Beauty and the Beast. Director Bill Condon is uniquely suited to the material with a track record for musicals (Dreamgirls, Chicago) and the fantastical (Breaking Dawn), and he’s lined up an extraordinary cast including Emma Watson, Ewan McGreggor and Dan Stevens. Perhaps most exciting, legendary Disney composer Alan Menken is back on board to write the score and I just can’t wait to watch the dining room, once again, proudly present our dinner. — Haleigh Foutch

Thor: Ragnarok

Release Date: November 3rd

Director: Taika Waititi

Cast: Chris Hemsworth, Cate Blanchett, Idris Elba, Jeff Goldblum, Tessa Thompson and Karl Urban, Mark Ruffalo, Anthony Hopkins

Synopsis: Thor (Hemsworth) must face the Hulk (Ruffalo) in a gladiator match and save his people from the ruthless Hela (Blanchett).

Taika Waititi is directing Thor: Ragnarok, and that’s really all I need to get excited about a movie at this point. With Boy, What We Do in the Shadows, and Hunt for the Wilderpeople, Waititi has delivered a directorial trifecta of delights that are funny, touching, and singular in a way that signals tremendous directorial command. Now Marvel’s gone and given him a massive budget. I’m all in for that. At the same time, as a huge fan of the MCU at large, I can’t wait to catch up with Thor and Banner after missing them in Captain America: Civil War. While we haven’t seen any actual footage from Ragnarok yet, we have been treated to Waititi’s “Team Thor” short and if the feature maintains a half of that charm, we’re in for the best Thor movie yet. Oh, and the cast is absurd. As if the triple-whammy of charm in the returning leads Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, and Mark Ruffalo wasn’t enough, Waititi has filled out the supporting cast with gems like Jeff Goldblum, Tessa Thompson, Sam Neill, and Cate freaking Blanchett. Oh, and Doctor Strange is going to pop up. — Haleigh Foutch

Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets

Release Date: July 21st

Director: Luc Besson

Cast: Cara Delevingne, Dane DeHaan, Ethan Hawke, Rihanna, Clive Owen

Synopsis: Time-traveling agent Valerian (DeHaan) is sent to investigate a galactic empire, along with his partner Laureline (Delvingne).

It’s true, Luc Besson‘s resume is a bit of a mixed bag, but when he hits, it’s a homerun. we’ve seen it with his best films, legit modern action classics Leon: The Professional and The Fifth Element, and now he’s making the project of his dreams with Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets (based on the beloved French sci-fi comic “Valerian and Laureline”). Besson has spoken openly about the fact that he’s spent most of his life wanting to adapt the imaginative comic series. Indeed, he already collaborated with artist Jean-Claude Mézières on The Fifth Element, and the fruits of that long-brewing vision was on full display in the breath-taking footage I saw at last year’s Comic-Con presentation. I can’t say I’m completely sold on the idea of Cara Delevingne and Dane DeHaan as a leading duo, but Besson has a vision of staggering scope and scale for Valerian that will introduce moviegoers to an insanely rich and immersive world or worlds they’ve never seen before. I’ll be honest, Valerian wasn’t really on my map until I saw that footage, but it’s been on my mind ever since. — Haleigh Foutch

Logan Lucky

Release Date: 2017

Director: Stephen Soderbergh

Cast: Daniel Craig, Adam Driver, Sebastian Stan, Katie Holmes, Hilary Swank, Katherine Waterson, Channing Tatum, Macon Blair

Synopsis: Two brothers (Tatum, Driver) attempt to pull off a heist during a NASCAR race in North Carolina.

Stephen Soderbergh is directing a movie again. That’s enough to get excited about, right? The ’90s indie scene prodigy turned Box Office topper (turned guy who just kind of directs whatever he wants) has been on a break from feature films since 2013, turning his attention to TV and the stage instead, but he makes a welcome return to the big screen this year with the NASCAR heist film, Logan Lucky. The set-up certainly has hints of the Ocean’s 11 franchise, and Logan Lucky’s cast is appropriately stacked including Daniel Craig, Adam Driver, Sebastian Stan, Katie Holmes, Hilary Swank, Katherine Waterson, Channing Tatum, and even Jeremy Saulnier’s not-so-secret weapon, Macon Blair. It’s such a perfect Soderbergh set-up I can almost see it already, and yet I have no doubt that the final product will be a thousand times more compelling and surprising than anything I’d ever imagine. — Haleigh Foutch

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

Release Date: May 5th

Director: James Gunn

Cast: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Michael Rooker, Karen Gillan, Kurt Russell, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel

Synopsis: Set to the backdrop of Awesome Mixtape #2, ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2′ continues the team’s adventures as they unravel the mystery of Peter Quill’s (Pratt) true parentage.

Have you seen Baby Groot? There’s no good reason not to be excited about Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, but really, have you seen Baby Groot?James Gunn‘s first film was a pinnacle Marvel movie that demonstrated the strength of the oft-maligned formula when it’s in the hands of the right creative mind. Now Gunn is back at it again, most likely with even more breathing room to get weird with it (any fan of Slither or Super can tell you that Gunn’s weirdness quotient runs pretty high) and a family-based story that doubles down on the lovable bunch of A-holes we all fell for in the first film. This movie will have Kurt Russell and Baby Groot, and that’s really all I should have to say. And on top of it all, we’re going to get another Awesome Mix to keep us bobbing our heads and tapping our toes as we play it on repeat all summer long. — Haleigh Foutch

Get Out

Release Date: February 24th

Director: Jordan Peele

Cast: Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams, Bradley Whitford, Caleb Landry Jones, and Catherine Keener

Synopsis: A young African American man (Kaluuya) visits his Caucasian girlfriend’s (Williams) cursed family estate.

For years, Key and Peele was one of the funniest shows on television, but it was also one of the most fearless. Jordan Peele and Keegan Michal Key treated genre like a wide-open door they waltzed through at will, mixing comedy, cultural insight, horror, and sci-fi with casual abandon in a way that reaped incredible insight from incredibly outrageous scenarios. With his Blumhouse production, Peele is putting flourish to a new effect with his first ever horror film, Get Out. And the timing couldn’t be more effective. Peele has written a race-based horror story at a time when racism. It will be interesting to see if Peele can translate his knack for the rhythm of comedy beats to the similar narrative patterns of horror, or if like Keanu, Get Out will give the distinct impression of a sketch that’s run on too long. What we know for sure is that coming from Peele, it will be a story told with a singular and strong satirical voice at a time when we most need to face the unpleasant horrors of contemporary race relations. — Haleigh Foutch

The LEGO Batman Movie

Release Date: February 10th

Director: Chris McKay

Cast: Will Arnett, Zach Galifianakis, Michael Cera, Rosario Dawson, Ralph Fiennes

Synopsis: Bruce Wayne (Arnett) must not only deal with the criminals of Gotham City, but also the responsibility of raising a boy he adopted.

If you told me right now that The LEGO Batman Movie will end up being the best superhero film of 2017, I would have no trouble believing you. The film seems perfectly primed to poke fun at not only tropes of the superhero genre, but at at Batman himself in a way that only an animated family film can. The trailers have been not only hilarious, but delightfully clever. While I’m not sure if LEGO Batman will be as good as 2014’s The LEGO Movie, it certainly has the potential to be, and also be a whip-smart take on The Dark Knight to boot. – Matt Goldberg

Spider-Man: Homecoming

Release Date: July 7th

Director: Jon Watts

Cast: Tom Holland, Michael Keaton, Zendaya, Jon Favreau, Donald Glover, Tyne Daly, Marisa Tomei, Robert Downey Jr.

Synopsis: A young Peter Parker/Spider-Man (Holland) begins to navigate his newfound identity as the web-slinging superhero.

A Marvel movie done in the style of a John Hughes film? Yes, please. While the first trailer was fairly standard superhero fare, Marvel has clearly embraced having a teenage protagonist, and all that entails. Previous Spider-Man movies have either breezed past Peter Parker’s high school days or tried to ignore them. Homecoming instead sees the life of a high schooler as an essential part of Peter’s character, and that should offer up something fresh and exciting. Between struggling to get good grades and having your crushes ignore you, a supervillain almost seems like an unnecessary antagonist. – Matt Goldberg

Justice League

Release Date: November 17th

Director: Zack Snyder

Cast: Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Ray Fisher, Ezra Miller, Jason Momoa, Cirian Hinds, Amy Adams, Willem Dafoe, Amber Heard, Jeremy Irons, Jesse Eisenberg, Connie Nielsen, and Henry Cavill

Synopsis: Fueled by his restored faith in humanity and inspired by Superman’s selfless act, Bruce Wayne (Affleck) enlists the help of his newfound ally, Diana Prince (Gadot), to face an even greater enemy.

I’m not sure if I’d say I’m “excited” for Justice League, but it feels like the make-or-break film for the DCEU. Even if Wonder Woman goes horribly wrong (although I pray it doesn’t), all eyes will turn to the big team up film that supposed to be DC’s answer to The Avengers. If Zack Snyder can learn from his mistakes and actually view his heroes as heroic individuals and not indifferent gods, then perhaps he can tap into the hope that made these characters so appealing in the first place. Snyder needs to break out of Watchmen-mode to succeed. I want more good superhero movies in the world. DC and Marvel can be compared, but they shouldn’t be competing among fans. We should all want Justice League to succeed. – Matt Goldberg

Untitled Paul Thomas Anderson Film

Release Date: 2017(?)

Director: Paul Thomas Anderson

Cast: Daniel Day-Lewis

Synopsis: Plot unknown. Described as a drama in the fashion world of London in the 1950s.

We don’t know much about this film other than it takes place in “the couture world of 1950s London.” But let’s be honest, Anderson and Day-Lewis is all we really need. Separately, when either of them takes on a project, it’s worth noting, and together, they only made There Will Be Blood, one of the finest films of the 21st century. If this untitled project is even half as good as their previous collaboration, it will be one of the best films of 2017 (or whatever year it is ultimately released). – Matt Goldberg

Star Wars: Episode VIII

Release Date: December 15th

Director: Rian Johnson

Cast: Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Domhnall Gleeson, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Andy Serkis, Benicio Del Toro, Laura Dern, and Adam Driver

Synopsis: Having taken her first steps into a larger world in Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015), Rey (Ridley) continues her epic journey with Finn (Boyega), Poe (Isaac) and Luke Skywalker (Hamill) in the next chapter of the saga.

The time is right for a great Star Wars film. We’ve now had two years to get expectations in check. The Force Awakens and Rogue One went through their rough patches. But Episode VIII has everything in place. It has a talented writer-director with Rian Johnson. It has characters we already love from previous Star Wars movies. The table has been set for greatness, and I fully believe that if everything comes together just right, there’s no reason Episode VIII can’t be as good as A New Hope or Empire Strikes Back. The Force is strong with this one.

Monday, May 8, 2017

Upcoming movies in 2017

Trainspotting 2

Star Wars: Episode VIII

La La Land

Blade Runner 2049

Dunkirk

Murder on the Orient Express

Kong: Skull Island

Thor: Ragnarok

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

Manchester by the Sea