My 12 Most Anticipated Films of 2012

In my humble opinion, 2011 was pretty poor year for cinema. Don’t get me wrong, I saw a lot of enjoyable films this past year, from The Muppets to the final Harry Potter film, to the Amblin homage Super 8.  But that is just what they were, enjoyable.  I di2dn’t leave the theater disappointed very often this past year.  But I rarely, if ever, left the theater feeling exhilarated or did I walk out diving into an evening long conversation about the film I just saw.  I had a lot of fun at the movies in 2011, but I wasn’t ever “wow”-ed, the way I was countless times in 2010.

So today’s post is my list of hopefuls for the 2012.  The films that I am most anticipating and the films I think have the best chance at “wow”-ing me.

12. The Avengers (May 4th)

I love super hero movies.  It’s honestly hard for me to not enjoy a superhero movie.  Even at the extreme rate at which Hollywood is cranking them out these days, it has been a while since we’ve had a really great one.  And with Joss Whedon at the helm, I think this could be a fun and exhilarating film. While I’m a little disappointed that Edward Norton won’t be reprising his role as the Hulk, I’m excited to see how the extremely talented Ruffalo will portray the character.

11. Lincoln (December)

I love U.S. History, and have always been fascinated with this particular time period.  That alone will get me in the theater, but then when you tell me that Daniel Day-Lewis, the ultimate method actor, will be playing Lincoln, well now you got me really excited.  Not to mention Joseph Gordon-Levitt will playing his son.

10. Django Unchained (Dec. 25)

Leonardo DiCaprio has owned the past decade, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt is working real hard to steal it from him. And Tarantino has enlisted them both to tell his story of a freed slave-turned-bounty hunter on a mission to rescue his wife.  But I think his best move may have been bringing back Christoph Waltz.  I’m hoping their partnership can bring back some of the magic that was in Inglorious Basterds.

9. The Great Gatsby (Dec. 25)

Two Leo films coming out on Christmas Day? I think Popcorn and Coke will suffice for presents this year.  So I will see just about anything DiCaprio does, so you can imagine my excitement when I heard he would be taking the lead role in the new adaptation of one of my absolute favorite books.  If it weren’t being filmed in 3D, this would be much higher on my list.

8. Moonrise Kingdom (May 16)

It’s a new Wes Anderson movie, why wouldn’t I be excited about it?  Glad to see some new faces among Anderson’s usual favorites. Looks to be a fun one.

7. Blue Like Jazz (April 13)

Another one of my favorite books is being made into a film this year.  Donald Miller’s hilarious collection of essays should make for a fun film, and knowing that Miller himself was involved in the making of this film, gives me confidence that the faith aspect of the film will be done well.

6. The Hunger Games (Mar. 23)

My wife and I both devoured these books when we first discovered them a couple years ago.  Although I kind of doubt that this will end up being a good movie, I can’t help but be excited about watching.  I just don’t know how you could pull off the intensity of this film in a tasteful way.  But if they somehow pull it off, it will be epic.

5. The Hobbit (Dec. 14)

Peter Jackson reunites the whole gang with the addition of Martin Freeman (Sherlock, The Office) to adapt my favorite Tolkien book. Yes please!

4. Gangster Squad (Oct. 19)

Ryan Goslin, Emma Stone, Josh Brolin, and Sean Penn in a 40′s Mafia film.  Not a fan of the title, but that won’t stop me from seeing this flick.

3. Argo (Sept. 14)

While I still have my doubts about Ben Affleck as an actor, after watching Gone, Baby, Gone and The Town, I am a firm believer in Affleck the director, and will watch anything that he directs from here on out.  And with both Bryan Cranston and Kyle Chandler leading the way, I have pretty high hopes for this film.

2. Jeff Who Lives At Home (Mar. 16)

Jason Segel is quickly becoming one of my favorite comedians and I continue to be impressed with Ed Helms as he branches out into different comedic roles.   Just looks like my kind of indie comedy.

1. The Dark Knight Rises (July 20)

The Dark Knight was my favorite film of 2008 and I thought their absence from the Best Picture nominations was the biggest snub of the year.  Christopher Nolan hasn’t made a bad film yet.  It’s unfortunate that Ledger will never be able to reprise his terrifyingly awesome role, but I’m excited about the addition of Tom Hardy as Bane.  Excited to see how Nolan finishes up this epic superhero saga.

Hope you enjoyed the list. What film are you most excited about seeing this year? What egregious error did I make?

The Help

My wife and I have a tradition of spending the winter months leading up to the Oscars, catching up on seeing all of the most nominated films.  Last night, we watched The Help. I was pleasantly surprised with the film adaptation of this story.  Obviously it lacked a lot of the character development that made the book so rich and rewarding, but they did a really good telling this encouraging and challenging story.  If you haven’t read the book or don’t know much about the film, it is a fictional story of one brave young girl living in Jackson, MS decides it is worth the risk to try and publish a book from the perspective of the negro help.   Don’t want to say much more about the story, other than this film is worth seeing. All three of the ladies nominated for their performances are very deserving.  But what I love most about movies like this, are the questions it leaves you with. My wife and I were both left pondering how we would have lived, had we grown up in the deep south during this difficult time in our country’s history.  I would love to think that I would have seen the injustice of it all, but I am not so sure.  It is great to see how far we have come, but I am not so arrogant to believe that we have fixed all of our problems.  So it has left me wondering, what kind of injustice do I see and maybe even encourage on a daily basis?  My prayer today is that God would reveal to me the true nature of my heart and the way I view and love His people.  What injustices do you stand by and allow to take place?

First Official Hunger Games Trailer

Arcade Fire presents Scenes from the Suburbs

The Arcade Fire and Spike Jonze have teamed up to create a short film that was inspired by the band’s latest album, The Suburbs.   The film was written by Jonze and band members Win and Will Butler. It is a 30 minute short film based on the album and will premiere this weekend at the Berlin Film Festival.  According to Consequence of Sound the film is slated to be released on DVD in May along with an expanded reissue of The Suburbs.  Below is the trailer for the film that also serves as a music video for the title track.