Looking forward to a new year of movies and attempting to come up with a list of films I’m most anticipating is never a simple proposition. In compiling this year’s list of fifty there were 230 film titles I looked at, some a little more seriously than others, but nonetheless, it wasn’t a small list of films. As a result, not everything could make the list.
NOTE: I have included a navigation to browse all five lists directly below as well as at the end of this post for easy navigation.
Most Anticipated 2013 Navigation
Some of the films just missing the top fifty include Zal Batmanglij‘s The East, Spike Jonze‘s Her starring Joaquin Phoenix, the horror film You’re Next, which first premiered in 2011 and is finally being released this year, and Devil’s Knot as the story of the West Memphis Three continues, only this time in a dramatic account rather than documentary with Colin Firth and Reese Witherspoon starring.
I’m also interested in seeing the final product when it comes to 47 Ronin and World War Z. Both films have been in production forever. Both have endured massive reshoots and gone wildly over budget. How it all turns out we will know soon.
I’m interested in seeing Welcome To The Punch due to its massive cast of who’s who in British actors, 2 Guns with Mark Wahlberg and Denzel Washington could be entertaining as could Dito Montiel‘s Empire State.
I’m interested in Olympus Has Fallen, if only to see what Antoine Fuqua‘s latest will look like. James Wan returns with Insidious Chapter 2 and the Evil Dead remake is looking more and more intriguing.
I want to see Diablo Cody‘s directorial debut, ditto Joseph Gordon-Levitt‘s with Don Jon’s Addiction. Ramin Bahrani‘s At Any Price should be worth a look, Lee Daniels‘ The Butler features a stacked cast and Parkland has my attention.
Shane Carruth‘s Upstream Color is his first film since 2004’s Primer and Ari Folman‘s The Congress looks as if he may finally have a follow-up to 2008’s Waltz with Bashir.
I’ll be interested in films like Man of Steel, Iron Man 3, Thor: The Dark World and Riddick once their release dates finally arrive, but for now those franchise starters and sequels don’t really get my juices flowing. This, however, isn’t to say my top 50 most anticipated films are entirely void of franchise features as there are a few coming in 2013 that have me excited.
What excites me most looking forward, are the films from some of my favorite directors and storytellers. Some because of the unique nature of the story. Some featuring the return of old friends and others because of the ambition they portend.
So with that small group of honorable mentions out of the way, let’s begin with the first ten films on my list of the Top 50 Most Anticipated Movies of 2013. I’ll deliver ten each day this week, finishing on Friday with my top ten. As we go along I’d love to hear your thoughts on your most anticipated and what you think of my choices as well. Let’s get started…
#50
Horns
TBA
What will come of Daniel Radcliffe‘s post-Harry Potter career? Last year’s The Woman in Black proved successful, and in 2013 he’ll star as Allen Ginsberg in John Krokidas‘ Kill Your Darlings, he’s starring in The F Word for Michael Dowse (Goon) and in Horns he plays a man who awakens one morning after a hard night of drinking to find horns growing from his head.
Described as a supernatural thriller, Horns is directed by Alexandre Aja (High Tension, Piranha 3D) and based on the novel by Joe Hill, the son of Stephen King. The film’s synopsis says that on top of the horns growing from his head, he’s also the lead suspect in the rape and killing of his girlfriend. His horns, however, give him a power that will lead him to the truth — and revenge.
A combination of an outrageous story and the talent involved in its telling has me interested, but without a distributor it seems this may be a film that will make its way around the festival circuit before finding its way to theaters.
#49
A Good Day to Die Hard
February 14
Am I really looking forward to A Good Day to Die Hard? Yes, as redundant as following the exploits of John McClane (Bruce Willis) has become, there are exceptions each year where momentary escapism is necessary and I’m much more interested in reuniting with John McClane at this point than another outing with Iron Man, Thor or even Superman (though I must admit a morbid curiosity as to what Zack Snyder will deliver with Man of Steel, if only to see Michael Shannon’s performance as Zod).
My expectations for the quality with this latest Die Hard are slim as I am no fan of director John Moore (Max Payne, The Omen), but I even liked the last one while others didn’t so why not give this new one a chance and hope for the best.
