Leonardo DiCaprio – Movies Spotlight – November 2011

Leonardo DiCaprio, 37, is still probably best known for his role opposite Kate Winslet in James Cameron’s Titanic. However, in recent years he has become one of the best leading men in Hollywood. This month he stars in the Clint Eastwood directed biopic J. Edgar about J. Edgar Hoover, the first director of the FBI.

Early Career:

DiCaprio began his career making appearances in commercials and educational films before getting his first break picking up a role in the soup Santa Barbara and a series regular role in Parenthood (the short-lived series based on the Ron Howard movie) in 1990. He continued to get TV work with roles on Roseanne and Growing Pains, and he got his first film role in 1991 on the sci-fi comedy Critters 3 and then another in Poison Ivy. His work on Parenthood garnered him a nomination for Best Young Actor from the Young Artist Awards. However, it was not until Robert De Niro chose him out of four hundred young actors to co-star with him that he had his real breakthrough. The film was 1993’s This Boy’s Life.

Breakthrough as a Child-Actor:

After This Boy’s Life, DiCaprio followed it up with another fantastic performance in What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, co-starring and even upstaging Johnny Depp as Depp’s mentally handicapped brother. Director Lasse Hallstrom was reluctant to cast him at first, as he felt DiCaprio was too good-looking for the role, but found that he was the best among the auditions by far. He earned his first Oscar nomination for the performance. Next, he worked with Sam Raimi on the campy western The Quick and the Dead playing the cocky son of the town’s big man. DiCaprio’s performance is fun, the film does feature a few great actors (like Gene Hackman and Russell Crowe) and is entertaining in spots, but it does not hold up too well as a whole. He also made his next critical hit in 1995 with The Basketball Diaries, a biopic about Jim Carroll.

Titanic – Becoming the Biggest Star in the World:

DiCaprio had established himself as a good young actor, one that critics knew and praised, but he was not yet a star or box office draw. That changed in 1996 when he was cast opposite Claire Danes (who was the bigger of the two, star wise, at the time thanks to My So-Called Life) in Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet. Luhrmann updated the style and look of Shakespeare’s play to feel more modern and hip and cast Danes and DiCaprio in an effort to appeal to younger film goers, and it worked. Even today, the film is one of the most iconic romances of its generation. Next, he took a role in Marvin’s Room playing opposite Robert De Niro again, as well as Meryl Streep and Diane Keaton, truly testing his skills as an actor.  The film is okay, but DiCaprio came out of it being called an equal to the wonderful actors sharing the screen. Now having both critical praise and commercial appeal, he was ready to become a huge star. The film that did it for him was his next – Titanic. Before Avatar topped it, Titanic was the highest grossing film of all-time, and it won eleven Oscars including Best Picture. It made DiCaprio one of the biggest stars in Hollywood and also one of the main heartthrobs from teenage girls. However, the film also had some backlash for him, as it was too big and a little too sappy. Critics and some audience members seemed to dislike him purely due to his association with the film and line ‘I’m the king of the world’, which was on repeat in pop-culture after the film (and to some extent still is). He may never be quite as popular as he was around the time of that movie. Now, as a big star, studios started to place him in bigger films. First up was United Artists’ The Man in the Iron Mask, directed and written by Randal Wallace, coming off his big hit Braveheart (which he wrote). The movie was a failure critically but made money commercially. He then made Celebrity with Woody Allen, which is one of Allen’s lesser films, appearing in a self-mocking cameo. And then Fox put him in The Beach, the second of their two film experiment with director Danny Boyle that yielded two disappointments for them critically (though I am a fan of both The Beach and A Life Less Ordinary). However, the film was a success at the box office thanks to DiCaprio’s fame (and the same goes for The Man in the Iron Mask). Both films garnered him Razzie nominations (not because he is bad in them, but due to the Titanic backlash).

Collaborations with Martin Scorsese:

DiCaprio has had one of his most fruitful actor-director relationships with Martin Scorsese. They have made four films together, beginning with Gangs of New York in 2002. Scorsese initially had trouble getting a studio interested in the film, but when DiCaprio became interested in starring, coming off three box office hits in a row, Miramax jumped in to finance the project. However, the filming was plagued with creative disputes between Scorsese and the producers as well as multiple budget overflows. It is the most expense film Scorsese has made. Despite the issues, the film received critical acclaim (for the most part, though I would argue it is one of his lesser films) and ten Oscar nods including Best Picture. While DiCaprio is good in it, giving his first grown-up performance (so to speak), he is overshadowed by Daniel Day-Lewis’s magnificent performance. Their next picture together came in 2004 with The Aviator, a biopic about Howard Hughes. DiCaprio originally developed the project with Michael Mann, but he decided to leave the director’s chair and only produce as he had just made two biopics (Ali and The Insider) and did not want to take on a third just then. DiCaprio decided to pitch the script to Scorsese after having a good working relationship with him on Gangs of New York. He spent over a year preparing for the role, which was his most difficult to date (and probably still is). The film was a financial and critical success and DiCaprio received his second Oscar nomination. In 2006 the two worked together again on The Departed, a remake of the Hong Kong film Infernal Affairs. The film was highly anticipated and became the biggest hit critically and commercially among their films together. It won Best Picture and Scorsese a Best Director Oscar at the 2007 Academy Awards. They again reunited in 2009 to make Sutter Island (which was delayed until 2010). The film is much different than most of the work either had done previously, being a psychological thriller, but it yielded both DiCaprio and Scorsese their biggest box office opening weekend of their careers to date. The pair is currently working on a few upcoming rumored projects together.

Working with the Best Directors in Hollywood:

In addition to Martin Scorsese, DiCaprio has worked with many of the best directors in Hollywood since 2002 starting with Steven Spielberg on Catch Me If You Can. DiCaprio’s performance as Frank Abagnale Jr., a very skilled forger and con-man, seemed to make him cool again with many viewers put off by Titanic. And likewise, the film was a great international success (and one of Spielberg’s better films of the decade, second to Munich). He made Blood Diamond with Edward Zwick about the Sierra Leone Civil War in 2006. He played a South African and donned an Afrikaner’s accent. He received his third Oscar nomination for the film. In 2008 he made two films, first he worked with Ridley Scott on Body of Lies, a CIA spy Middle East thriller. DiCaprio liked the film because he viewed it as a throwback to the political films of the 1970s (things like The Parallax View and Three Days of the Condor). Then he reunited with Kate Winslet in Sam Mendes’s (her husband at the time) Revolutionary Road about a failing marriage in the 1950s. Both DiCaprio and Winslet had been reluctant to work on romances in the wake of Titanic, but had remained good friends. Thus, when Winslet came with the project to DiCaprio he agreed and production started quickly. Both are fantastic in the film (and it is one of the most underrated films of the year and possibly decade). In 2010 he starred in Christopher Nolan’s action thriller Inception, yet another critical and commercial success. These films have not only made DiCaprio one of the top leading men from a talent perspective, but also one of the biggest stars in Hollywood currently.

Future Projects:

DiCaprio has two films upcoming in 2012, both scheduled for a release on Christmas Day. First he is reuniting with his Romeo + Juliet director Baz Luhrmann for an adaptation of The Great Gatsby. It co-stars Carey Mulligan as Daisy and Tobey Maguire (who he worked with on This Boy’s Life) as Nick. Then, he takes on his first role as a villain in Quentin Tarantino’s southern western Django Unchained. It is about a slave turned bounty hunter who sets out to rescue his wife from a vicious plantation owner (played by DiCaprio). It stars Jamie Foxx and co-stars Samuel L. Jackson, Christoph Waltz, and Kerry Washington (among others). DiCaprio is also rumored to be attached to Todd Fields’s new film Creed of Violence about two men in 1910 who try to stop an organized arms smuggling ring.

Leonardo DiCaprio’s Career Highlights:

1)      What’s Eating Gilbert Grape (1993) – supporting (DVD, Streaming)

2)      The Basketball Diaries (1995) – leading (Blu-ray, DVD)

3)      Romeo + Juliet (1996) – leading (Blu-ray, DVD, Streaming)

4)      Titanic (1997) – leading (DVD)

5)      Gangs of New York (2002) – leading (Blu-ray, DVD, Streaming)

6)      Catch Me If You Can (2002)* – leading (DVD)

7)      The Aviator (2004) – leading (Blu-ray, DVD, Streaming)

8)      The Departed (2006)* – leading (Blu-ray, DVD, Streaming)

9)      Blood Diamond (2006) – leading (Blu-ray, DVD, Streaming)

10)   Body of Lies (2008)* – leading (Blu-ray, DVD, Streaming)

11)   Revolutionary Road (2008)* – leading (Blu-ray, DVD, Streaming)

12)   Shutter Island (2010) – leading (Blu-ray, DVD, Streaming)

13)   Inception (2010)* – leading (Blu-ray, DVD)

*Editor’s picks

Shutter Island (2010) – Review

Shutter Island is creepy, well made and interesting – a film that interacts with its audience, building not only tension but also engaging the viewer to participate in the detective aspect of the film. The main theme of the film is redemption set against the early Cold War paranoia. Leonardo DiCaprio’s character Teddy Daniels above all else seeks atonement for the tragedies of his past, which all come crashing to a head as he investigates the disappearance of a patient on Shutter Island’s facility for the criminally insane. As the Teddy and the viewer decipher clues, listen to the interviews and get wrapped up in the case, director Martin Scorsese forces in flashback and haunting imagery to signal that all is not what it seems, with the character, the case and the film. The avid viewer will enjoy participating in unraveling the case, clue by clue, as the payoff is evident amongst the facts before it is revealed. The thematic elements of the main character trying to find redemption and attempting to fit into society, in whatever form that exists around him, are common in Scorsese’s work and it is interesting to see the different ways that he comes at them. Here, Scorsese seems to be most interested in how tragedy affects people, the different ways that they cope. Do they retreat or push forward? Teddy digs deeper into his work, and so the film works best as an interactive detective narrative with these thematic elements influencing the character and his perspective. Another interesting aspect to the film is that only Teddy Daniels seems to be a fully fleshed out character – in other words, Teddy seems real, while everyone else is a caricature playing a role (minus one other character), which normally would seem like a negative, but here it works quite well in the narrative that Scorsese has laid out. The imagery that Scorsese uses is impactful and meaningful, both emotionally and in terms of solving the case. A number of the scenes visually were masterfully impressive, poetic and with wonderful composition (my favorite is the flashback scene in which DiCaprio is staring down at the German officer bleeding to death while paper floats in the air behind and around him, sort of beautiful and intensely sad). Scorsese’s visualization of Teddy’s nightmares is astonishing, visually stunning yet emotionally tragic. The music used in the film at first seemed to be strangely over the top and forced given the genre, but as the film plays out, this makes sense and like many other aspects works well in the structure. The music does add to the tension that the film builds throughout in addition to the story elements and situations that have implicit anxiety attached (some in the theatre could not handle it screaming out at parts). The film is very well acted by DiCaprio and there is strong supporting work by Michelle Williams. Ben Kingsley gives a slightly offbeat performance which seems very odd at times, yet like everything else, works here. Emily Mortimer is also good and really creepy. The shooting style of Robert Richardson mixed with the editing of Thelma Schoonmaker along with Scorsese’s input created an interesting visual style to the film. At times, the camera would pan, yet it looked like a projector moving to the next slide, as if the divulgence of visual information was rehearsed to be presented. Also, there are shots of perspective that seem off when the location is visited again. Things seem off throughout, but again it works. All in all, the film is a very good detective film with psychologically-thriller elements built in to the narrative structure with fantastic imagery creating an interestingly made film – another fine one from Scorsese. 8/10

At the Movies – February

Must See in Theatres:

Shutter Island (Martin Scorsese) – Thriller – Feb 19

A thriller set in 1954 about a U.S. Marshall investigating the disappearance of a patient who is believed to have escaped from a hospital for the criminally insane and is thought to be hiding somewhere on the remote Shutter Island which houses the hospital. The film is highly anticipated as it has tested through the roof with screening audiences, which makes sense as it is Scorsese’s first film since he won his Oscar. The film has an excellent cast headlined by Leonardo DiCaprio (frequent Scorsese collaborator), Mark Ruffalo, and Ben Kingsley (and based on the trailer Jackie Earle Haley is doing what looks like Rorschach again). Another aspect to be excited about is that Robert Richardson shot the movie, coming off his ASC Award nomination for Inglourious Basterds. All in all, this looks to be a great film. Check out the trailer.

Worth Checking Out (if not in theatres then at home):

The Ghost Writer (Roman Polanski) – Thriller – Feb 19

A thriller about a ghostwriter hired to complete the memoirs of a former British Prime Minister only to uncover secrets that put his own life in peril. Polanski returns to the world of film (admit still shrouded in controversy) with good people in front of and behind the camera, notably actors Ewan McGregor, Pierce Brosnan, Olivia Williams, and Tom Wilkinson, D.P. Pawel Edelman, and music by Alexandre Desplat (who is seemingly the hardest working man in show business). Based on Polanski’s past work and the cast and crew involved, this should be an interesting film (he did do The Pianist, Chinatown and Rosemary’s Baby after all). Check out the trailer.

Good for Dates:

Dear John (Lasse Hallstrom) – Romance – Feb 5

A romance based on the Nicholas Sparks novel about a boy and girl who meet and fall in love over the span of a week, only for boy to then be shipped off to the war in Iraq. To stay together and connected, the two write letters to each other. Based on the synopsis all that can be said is BLAH! (so much for visual storytelling). Plus the stars are Amanda Seyfried and the never very good Channing Tatum. However, upon looking at who is involved, the film appears more attractive. Hallstrom is a fine director and he has got D.P. Terry Stacey shooting the movie and Richard Jenkins acting in it. So maybe it will all come together and be decent. Check out the trailer.

Valentine’s Day (Gary Marshall) – Romance – Feb 12

An interweaving romance about couples and singles in LA, their break-ups and make-ups, as the cultural pressures and expectations of Valentine’s Day weigh upon them. First off, this is by Gary Marshall, director of Pretty Woman, and therefore is something of high regard (or at least has the expectation of something of high regard) for fans of Pretty Woman (or so the studio would have you believe). Second, it is has the biggest all-star cast since A Bridge Too Far (check out the full credits). And third, screenwriter Katherine Fugate has never written anything resulting in a good film or TV series. Add that up, and then multiple it by the absurd silliness of this film actually existing and what that says about America’s already overly commercial society, and what do you have…Probably something along the lines of last year’s He’s Just Not That Into You – decent but nothing special. But, maybe Marshall will do well with the pieces he has and make a solid movie (though, his best work, Pretty Woman and Overboard, came out in 1990 and 1987 respectively, so maybe not). Check out the trailer.

Fun Movies:

From Paris with Love (Pierre Morel) – Action – Feb 5

An action film about a US Ambassador who must work together with an American spy, their mission: to stop terrorists from attacking the city of Paris. Why Paris? Well, this is another in the long line of Luc Besson action films (producer and originator of the story). It also marks Morel’s third collaboration with Besson (Taken being the film best known to American audiences). Jonathan Rhys Meyers (who is brilliant in Showtime’s The Tudors, by the way) and John Travolta star – one can hope that Travolta’s zaniness pays off in a role that almost seems catered towards it (though, who saw him as an action hero at this point in his career?). Check out the trailer.

The Wolfman (Joe Johnston) – Horror – Feb 12

A horror film about a man who returns to his ancestral home, only for him to be bitten by the beast, cursed and subsequently turned into a werewolf at inopportune times. Now, the cast is good, Anthony Hopkins, Benicio Del Toro, Emily Blunt, and Hugo Weaving, but the director…Not so much. He has done the marvelously terrible (or at least forgettable) Jumanji, Jurassic Park III, and his last film was Hidalgo. Maybe the cast can carry the film like Sherlock Holmes (2009), maybe too much emphasis is being placed on the director, maybe the fact that it is a classic story (or a remake of a classic film) will elevate it,…Maybe? Check out the trailer.

Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (Chris Columbus) – Adventure – Feb 12

An adventure film about a teenager that discovers that he is the descendent of a Greek God and now must set off the settle an on-going battle between the Gods. The film is yet another in the long line of Harry Potter franchise (film franchise, not novels, as this is a successful series of books, apparently) wannabes. But this time, their ace in the hole…Chris Columbus, who directed the first two Harry Potter films (though, they are by far the least effective of the series), and he did Home Alone. The movie also features the talents of Sean Bean, Kevin McKidd, Pierce Brosnan, Uma Thurman, Steve Coogan, Rosario Dawson, and Catherine Keener to supplement a young principal cast. The film might be epic and fun, but probably just so-so quality wise, like all the other novel franchises trying to be the next Potter film franchise, but hey, one of them is going to be good eventually right? Check out the trailer.

The Crazies (Breck Eisner) – Horror – Feb 26

A horror film about the townspeople of small Iowa town suddenly plagued by rampant insanity and then death after a mysterious contaminate gets into their water supply, no one is safe. Timothy Olyphant stars in this George A. Romero remake with Radha Mitchell and Danielle Panabaker co-starring. Hopefully this will feature a high dose of Olyphant doing crazy; he does do his crazy well, and sort of sinister. Director Eisner does not have too much on his resume; his big feature was Sahara. It is interesting to note that Romero is the executive producer on the film (though, the original is one of his weaker works); how many filmmakers come back and produce remakes of their old works? Everything is possible in today’s Hollywood (but of course, Hitchcock did remake a number of his own British films for Hollywood). Check out the trailer.

Cop Out (Kevin Smith) – Comedy – Feb 26

A comedy about buddy cops, inept at their job, but they will likely save the day anyway. Originally titled A Couple of Dicks, the film is notable for fans of Smith as it is his first feature directing job in which he did not also write the script (rumors have it that he is taking a break from writing after Zack and Miri Make a Porno, a film that he sees as a commercial failure). It will also be interesting to hear Smith’s stories on subsequent commentaries and/or An Evening with Kevin Smith DVDs about directing Bruce Willis and co-star Tracy Morgan. A bright spot for Smith fans, in the face of the downer that is the lackluster trailer and fact that Smith did not write this, is the cameo appearances by favorite Jason Lee. The film also boosts a cast with a few talented actors that should provide some good laughs like Rashida Jones and Kevin Pollack. No one would be surprised if Jason Mewes pops up in this as well. Check out the trailer.

Art-House:

The Yellow Handkerchief (Udayan Prasad) – Romance – Feb 26 (LA/NYC)

A romance about three strangers, who embark on a transformative road trip through Louisiana, brought together by their respective feelings of loneliness. The film is touted as an actor’s film, in which the cast and their performances are the point. This can often lead to slow paced film, in the hands of a lesser director, such a structure is difficult and often leads to a movie that less than engaging for most audience members. Thus, it will be interesting to see how Prasad fairs. The film stars William Hurt, Maria Bello, Kristen Stewart, and Eddie Redmayne as well as beautiful photography by Chris Menges. Check out the trailer.

A Prophet (Jacques Audiard) – Gangster – Feb 26 (NYC)

A gangster film about a young Arab man who is sent to prison in France, he meets a prisoner who is the leader of a large gang and this man becomes his mentor. Subsequently, he becomes involved in the mafia lifestyle (looks to be a telling of the classic rise and fall gangster story). Coming off the wonderful The Beat that My Heart Skipped, it should be interesting to see how Audiard handles the gangster genre, as his style of filmmaking lends itself quite well to the genre. The film features a score by (big surprise) Alexandre Desplat and cinematography by Stephane Fontaine, who did excellent work on Audiard’s last film. The film is also likely to be nominated for this year’s Academy Awards for Best Foreign Film. Check out the trailer.

Anticipated Movies of 2010

30.) The Social Network

Director: David Fincher

Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Justin Timberlake, Rashida Jones, Brenda Song, Rooney Mara, Joseph Mazzello, and Andrew Garfield

Release: August, fall 2010

Plot: A story about the founders of Facebook.

Buzz: A movie about Facebook is just what we need…Yeah, it really does not sound too terribly interesting to me either, but hey it is directed by David Fincher and written by Aaron Sorkin so it has to be good right. Maybe? If not for Fincher and Sorkin this certainly would not make the list. Though on the other hand, who does not want to see a gripping drama about kids at Harvard creating a website, there is no way this is not going to be thrilling, think of all the coding and other cool stuff computer science majors do. But again…David Fincher, director of Seven, Fight Club, The Game, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button…It will probably turn out to be good, maybe.

29.) Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

Director: Mike Newell

Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Gemma Arterton, Ben Kingsley, and Alfred Molina

Release: May 28

Plot: An adventurous prince who teams up with a rival princess to stop an evil ruler from creating a sandstorm that could destroy the world as they know it.

Buzz: The film is based on the popular series of video games (never a good sign, given past video game to movie releases). Newell did well with Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, so this should be in his wheelhouse to put out a fun and entertaining film, but do not expect much more than summer-style fun (i.e., real quality, think Transformers not The Dark Knight). The cast is good here (well, minus Jake Gyllenhaal), as Molina has been quite good in recent projects (like An Education) and it is the second major role for Arterton (the first being in Quantum of Solace). All in all, this should be a fun but it is doubtful that Disney will have another franchise like Pirates of the Caribbean with Prince of Persia.

28.) The Tree of Life

Director: Terrence Malick

Starring: Brad Pitt and Sean Penn

Release: Fall 2010

Plot: A 1950s period piece, a tale of a Midwestern boy’s transformation from innocence as a boy to disillusionment as an adult and his quest to redeem himself by attaining again the meaning of life.

Buzz: Malick is a very visceral director, exploring emotion through the juxtaposition of images, so who better to be the D.P. than Emmanuel Lubezki (who worked with Malick on The New World). Alexandre Desplat is doing the score as well. And, with Penn and Pitt coming off of an Oscar win and nomination, respectively, on paper, this should be a best picture contender. For fans of what could be called serious thematic cinema, the name Terrence Malick incites excitement. Look for this in a limited release that could be expanded in 2011 if it should be nominated for best picture.

27.) Black Swan

Director: Darren Aronofsky

Starring: Natalie Portman, Winona Ryder, Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel, and Barbara Hershey

Release: Fall 2010

Plot: A thriller about two rival ballet dancers.

Buzz: Black Swan is another film with a super exciting (can you read the sarcasm?) sounding logline that makes the list due to the film’s director. No doubt, the film will be gritty and complex in its character study of the ballet dancers, and it does not hurt that Aronofsky cast Portman and Kunis (though, not really sure why Ryder is in this). Like many to follow, it is the potential for this film to be great. Locking down a place on the list (however, more interested to see his RoboCop than this).

26.) My Fair Lady

Director: John Madden

Starring: Keira Knightley

Release: Winter 2010 (could get pushed to summer or winter 2011)

Plot: A musical about snobby professor, Henry Higgins, taking a bet that he can turn a street urchin into a lady of society, but he gets a little more than he bargained for in the process.

Buzz: The 1964 film with Rex Harrison and Audrey Hepburn is wonderful, so why even remake it? Well, if the remake involves Keira Knightley (beating out Scarlet Johansson and Anne Hathaway) and either of rumored actors Daniel Craig or Daniel Day Lewis, remake or update (as Columbia Pictures calls it), this is going to be good. Not to mention that the script is being written by Emma Thompson! On the downside though, John Madden is set to direct. While many like Shakespeare in Love, Madden has not done good work since then, and that was 12 years ago. It is too bad that Danny Boyle and Joe Wright passed on this. (Also, the last Audrey Hepburn movie remake was The Truth About Charlie, which was fairly terrible.)

25.) Robin Hood

Director: Ridley Scott

Starring: Russell Crowe, Cate Blanchett, Kevin Durand, Matthew Macfadyen, Mark Strong, Danny Huston, William Hurt, Max von Sydow, and Scott Grimes

Release: May 14

Plot: Robin Hood, is there much more to write than that?

Buzz: Ridley Scott/Russell Crowe collaborations have been mostly good, though there was a bad patch in there. The good news about Robin Hood is Crowe is no longer playing both Robin and the Sheriff. The film boasts a pretty solid cast (anything is usually better with Mark Strong and Danny Huston). There is a rumor though that Robin may not be the hero of this story, but wait for the trailer to fully hedge your bets. The issue though is do we really need another Robin Hood story, especially with the very good BBC series?

24.) Get Him to the Greek

Director: Nicholas Stroller

Starring: Russell Brand, Jonah Hill, Kali Hawk, Elisabeth Moss, Rose Byrne, Aziz Ansari, and Colm Meaney (plus a bunch of musician cameos)

Release: June 11

Plot: A comedy about a record company intern that must do whatever it takes to get a down and out rock star to his comeback tour’s first gig at the LA Greek Theater

Buzz: Stroller and Jason Segel produced the best comedy of 2008 in Forgetting Sarah Marshall, so it only makes sense that Stroller would return to the material, but this time Aldous Snow (Brand) is the focus. The film is produced by Judd Apatow (surprise) and thus should feature his brand of adult comedy with a heart. Hopefully, the loss of screenwriter/star Segel will not leave this spin-off tired and washed-up. The June release implies that Universal has high hopes.

23.) A Couple of Dicks

Director: Kevin Smith

Starring: Bruce Willis, Tracy Morgan, Michelle Trachtenberg, Sean William Scott, Jason Lee, and Adam Brody

Release: February 26

Plot: A comedy about two cops as they protect and serve: solving the case of the missing baseball card, rescuing a woman and thwarting gangsters.

Buzz: Kevin Smith makes his feature directorial debut (having directed the pilot of Reaper) on material not written by him (though it is likely he tinkered with the script upon signing on). With Zack and Miri Make a Porno not living up to his expectations, Smith decided it was time to move on as a filmmaker and try working on something not penned by him, the result…(we shall see). Needless to say, fans of Smith will likely see anything he makes and thus,  this has a built-in box office, but will it finally be his first breakout hit since Clerks – can Bruce Willis push him over the top, can Smith’s famously strict style with actors clash with Willis’ star power (inquiring minds want to know)? By the way, who isn’t excited to see Jason Lee in this? On the studio front, there is a rumor that Warner Bros. does not like the title.

 22.) Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

Director: Edgar Wright

Starring: Michael Cera, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Kieran Culkin, Chris Evans, Anna Kendrick, Brandon Routh, Alison Pill, and Jason Schwartzman

Release: Summer 2010

Plot: An action adventure fantasy comedy about Scott Pilgrim, who must defeat his new girlfriend’s villainous ex-boyfriends to win her heart.

Buzz: Based on the graphic novels by Bryan Lee O’Malley, this is Edgar Wright’s first feature away from Simon Pegg and Nick Frost (side note: if you like them, check out Spaced). If anything, this film is going to have good looking action, as Wright has hired Bill Pope (Matrix and Spider-Man movies, 2&3) to shoot the film. The premise (having not read the comics myself) sounds like it will produce an entertaining story, which in Wright’s hands (he did Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz) will more than likely turn out to be a fun film. The cast is also packed with young talent (though, who else is a little sick of Michael Cera and his one note comedy), which also includes Mark Webber and up-and-coming Aubrey Plaza.

21.) The Expendables

Director: Sylvester Stallone

Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Eric Roberts, Randy Couture, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, Terry Crews, Mickey Rourke, Bruce Willis, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Danny Trejo, Brittany Murphy, and Charisma Carpenter

Release: August 20

Plot: An action film about a group of mercenaries that head to South America to deal with a dictator.

Buzz: First off, YES!!! Second, who else wishes Chuck Norris, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Steven Seagal were in this too, oh and of course Kurt Russell (who was asked by Stallone, but Kurt Russell does not star in movies unless Kurt Russell is the star). This is the movie that every 80s/90s action movie fan has been waiting for! On a side note, Terry Crews needs to continue to sing/lip-sync to cheesy songs, it is genius. Will any women actually see this? If there ever were a MANFLICK, this is it.

20.) Alice in Wonderland

Director: Tim Burton

Starring: Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp, Anne Hathaway, Michael Sheen, Helena Bonham Carter, Alan Rickman, Crispin Glover, Christopher Lee, Stephen Fry, and Timothy Spall

Release: March 5

Plot: A fantasy film in which, a now 19-year-old, Alice returns to the magical world of her childhood adventure.

Buzz: The cast is pretty awesome. The production design is pretty strange. But, it is Tim Burton after all. What seems like a big enough film to be in the summer is slated for March, which is odd, does Disney know something we do not, or do they not want to crowd their flagship release Toy Story 3? Burton (often vastly overrated) seemingly continues to produce audience alienating fare. Hopefully for him, and us, Alice in Wonderland will be his return to form.

19.) Iron Man 2

Director: Jon Favreau

Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson, Jon Favreau, Sam Rockwell, Samuel L. Jackson, Leslie Bibb, Mickey Rourke, Gwyneth Paltrow, Paul Bettany (voice), Kate Mara, and Don Cheadle

Release: May 7

Plot: Iron Man returns to do Iron Manny things.

Buzz: Most are thinking right now, “Iron Man 2, only 19th, it should be way higher,” maybe, but there is a sneaking suspicion that the overall goodness of Iron Man (1) was a fluke: the film had an awful third act, why in the world is Jon Favreau directing these and Robert Downey Jr. is probably the real only reason it is good (well and the cool special effects). And, Mickey Rourke as the villain is a little suspect, did anyone see him in Double Team, yeah, do not need that again. However, the additions of Scarlett Johansson and Sam Rockwell are great, and Don Cheadle filling in for Terrence Howard is about a wash. Will the film all come together for another hit (box office is pretty much a sure thing, but critically, and something that holds up well to the three kings of comic book movies, Batman Begins, The Dark Knight and Spider-Man 2, is less than assured).

18.) Hereafter

Director: Clint Eastwood

Starring: Matt Damon, Cecile De France, Mylene Jampanoi, Marthe Keller, and Thierry Neuvic

Release: December 2010

Plot: Supernatural thriller about three people that survive near-death experiences.

Buzz: Not too much detail is out there about this film yet, but it is suppose to be like The Sixth Sense. Given Eastwoods streak of good films and the release date of this, it is likely yet other Oscar type film, though typically Oscar films are not supernatural thrillers. Eastwood must have liked working with Damon on Invictus as he returns. It is also nice to see De France get another role in an American film after her first was in the not so great Around the World in 80 Days, because she is quite good in a number of French films. The film is being produced by Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall, who produced The Sixth Sense as well (so maybe they have moved on from M. Night and hired an actual quality director to make a supernatural thriller). The script was written by Peter Morgan (The Queen, Frost/Nixon, The Damned United). It will be interesting to see how he handled a fictional story.

17.) Looper

Director: Rian Johnson

Starring: No one cast yet

Release: Fall/winter 2010 or maybe 2011

Plot: A sci-fi film set in present day dealing with hitmen that travel back in time to assassinate their intended victims.

Buzz: While the plot is still mostly unknown, the logline not telling the full story, and no cast, Looper is high on the list for two reasons, A) what is known is awesome (and sounds a bit like Terminator) and intriguing, and B) Johnson’s ability to combine genres makes him one of the most exciting directors working today.

16.) Somewhere

Director: Sophia Coppola

Starring: Stephen Dorff, Elle Fanning, Michelle Monaghan, Benicio Del Toro, and Laura Ramsey

Release: Spring or fall 2010

Plot: A drama about a Hollywood bad-boy, on the decline, who takes a second look at his life when his 11-year-old daughter comes back into his life.

Buzz: “Stephen Dorff stars” is not usually the backbone of a hit, let alone a possibly good movie, and yet there is enough to like here, even despite the overused story of redemption at the discovery of a child. Why? First, the pattern of Sophia Coppola’s career, The Virgin Suicides (not that great), Lost in Translation (top 25 of the decade, film of the year, 2003), Marie Antoinette (again not that great), based on the pattern, this is going to be good (plus, it does not star Kristen Dunst). Second, Michelle Monaghan makes her return to acting after having a baby, one of the most promising talents (go see Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, and she was great in Mission: Impossible III, Gone Baby Gone and Trucker). Third, the film is shot by Harris Savides, who did great work on Milk. And fourth, doesn’t Stephen Dorff as a hard-living washed-up Hollywood “star” hit the same tone as Mickey Rourke in The Wrestler?

15.) The Green Hornet

Director: Michel Gondry

Starring: Seth Rogen, Cameron Diaz, Christoph Waltz, Edward James Olmos, Edward Furlong, Tom Wilkinson, and Jay Chou

Release: December 22

Plot: Britt Reid, newspaper publisher by day, crime-fighter by night.

Buzz: What was once not even a consideration for this list, last summer, the film has now jumped to the 15th spot. How? Nicholas Cage is out as the villain and the superbly awesome Christoph Waltz is in. Plus, the randomly kind of cool casting of the Edwards, and Tom Wilkinson is always good. Now if only Cameron Diaz was recast…(oh well, not likely). The script is by Rogen and writing partner Evan Goldberg, a team that can do no wrong, or so it seems. And best yet, who on earth ever thought of Seth Rogen – action hero? Or even, Michel Gondry – action director? But one thing is for sure, whether it works or not, it sure should be an interesting experiment (on a side note, who else is glad Kevin Smith ended up not making this?).

14.) How Do You Know?

Director: James L. Brooks

Starring: Paul Rudd, Reese Witherspoon, Jack Nicholson, and Owen Wilson

Release: December 17

Plot: A comedic drama about an executive and baseball player chasing the same girl.

Buzz: This is the sixth film directed by Brooks, of the five previous, three were nominated for best picture (Terms of Endearment winning), and two are not good at all. On which side of the line will this be? Well, the film not being ready for the 2009 Oscar Season, Columbia could have dumped it in January-April, but they delayed it all the way until next year’s Oscar Season, a good sign that it will be good, and with the cast it has, pencil it in for a best picture nod in February 2011 (questioning the Oscar potential of something with Paul Rudd and Owen Wilson? See Rudd in Role Models and Wilson in The Darjeeling Limited. Still not convinced, well this does have Reese Witherspoon and umm Jack Nicholson, so…).

13.) Your Highness

Director: David Gordon Green

Starring: Zooey Deschanel, Natalie Portman, James Franco, Danny McBride, Damian Lewis, Justin Theroux, Charles Dance, and Toby Jones

Release: October 1

Plot: A fantasy movie about a heroic strapping young price that must rescue his fair maiden and his father’s kingdom from the evil forces that would destroy it and her, only his loser brother has to come along too.

Buzz: Cast + director + logline = sold. The film is written by Danny McBride and his friend Ben Best, for those that like Eastbound & Down this is something to be excited about. The comedy gold months are usually March/April, August and October, so this seems to have a winning formula.

12.) The A-Team

Director: Joe Carnahan

Starring: Bradley Cooper, Liam Neeson, Sharlto Copley, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, Patrick Wilson and Jessica Biel

Release: June 11

Plot: An action film about four Iraqi-conflict vets try to clear their name after being framed for a crime.

Buzz: This is another one that was on the “not anticipated” list for 2010 when it was first announced. Since then, a potentially cool director (at the very least he can make a good movie, see Narc, and yes there is also Smokin’ Aces which is not so good, but focus on the positive here) and a pretty awesome cast has been added (probably the best thing about the cast is the addition of Sharlto Copley). Missing from the details is who plays the villain. The film is currently shooting, so likely the villain has been cast, Jessica Biel (probably playing a love interest or something) and Patrick Wilson are the only other name actors, so it is probably one of them, sort of hope it is Biel just for the change of pace.

11.) Kick-Ass

Director: Matthew Vaughn

Starring: Aaron Johnson, Nicolas Cage, Mark Strong, Chole Moretz, and Christopher Mintz-Plasse

Release: April 16

Plot: An action comedy/drama about an unnoticed high school comic book fan that decides that he will become a super-hero, despite not having any powers or training.

Buzz: Based on the comic book series by Mark Miller, Kick-Ass looks to be a lot of fun. Matthew Vaughn’s last film (Stardust) was a great blend of action comedy drama and fantasy making him a perfect choice to handle the material. He also brings his D.P. Ben Davis with him and Stardust co-writer Jane Goldman (which is a good thing). Two potential bad points in the film’s credits are Nicholas Cage and composer Marius De Vries. Normally (with a few exceptions like Adaptation.), if you see the name Nick Cage, you know it is not going to be good, or it will be less good, or you can expect a strange and imprudent performance, but hopefully his antics and overall exaggeration will be beneficial to this (I really hope so, but I am not holding my breath). De Vries, on the other hand, is mostly a songwriter/producer who has worked with Baz Luhrmann (which can be taken either way, depending on whether you like Romeo+Juliet and Moulin Rouge!) and has done limited work scoring films (I was not too big a fan of his Easy Virtue score). Overall though, especially having seen the trailer, this looks to be pretty kick ass (oh come on, you knew that was coming).

10.) The Book of Eli

Director: The Hughes Bros.

Starring: Denzel Washington, Mila Kunis, Gary Oldman, Michael Gambon, Malcolm McDowell, Jennifer Beals, Ray Stevenson, and Tom Waits

Release: January 15

Plot: An action film set in post-apocalyptic America, one man must fight to protect a sacred book that could save mankind.

Buzz: The logline, alone, is pretty tired sounding, but just look at the cast again, or think about how well the Hughes Bros. use their camera and have a flair for cool dark images. Plainly put, if there is only one reason to see this, it is Gary Oldman playing a villain (but really, anything with Oldman, Washington, Gambon, McDowell, and Rome’s Ray Stevenson is very likely to be awesome, or at the very least entertaining).

9.) Toy Story 3

Director: Lee Unkrich

Starring: Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Michael Keaton, Joan Cusack, John Ratzenberger, R. Lee Ermey, Bonnie Hunt, Whoopi Goldberg, Wallace Shawn, Laurie Metcalf, Timothy Dalton, Jeff Garlin, Kristin Schaal, Don Rickles, and Ned Beatty

Release: June 18         

Plot: Andy has grown up and is off to college, what is to be with all his toys? Day-care!

Buzz: The good news here is Lee Unkrich is returning, having directed Toy Story 2, and with a screenplay by Little Miss Sunshine scribe, Michael Arndt, Toy Story 3 has a better than good chance of being able to live up to its predecessors. And, the whole cast, practically, is back as well. Lastly, it is Pixar, who, in the last two years, has put out Up and WALL-E, nothing but blue skies.

8.) The Adventurer’s Handbook

Director: Akiva Schaffer

Starring: Jason Segel, Jason Schwartzman and Jonah Hill

Release: Fall/Winter 2010 (could get pushed back to early 2011)

Plot: A comedy about four friends who decide to ditch their mundane lives for global adventure!

Buzz: This film is either going to be really funny or be like Land of the Lost (Will Ferrell version). Watching Segel, Schwartzman and Hill survive the wilds like Man vs. Wild, adding in SNL and Hot Rod’s Akiva Schaffer to direct, just seems like so much awesome comic potential. Details are still short on this, the full cast is unknown and it has not even started filming, but Jason Segel is just so on his game right now that even with little info, excitement is in the air.

7.) Green Zone

Director: Paul Greengrass

Starring: Matt Damon, Jason Isaacs, Greg Kinnear, Brendan Gleeson, and Amy Ryan

Release: March 12

Plot: A thriller about a committed military officer that aids the CIA in search for WMDs in Iraq, pre-Iraqi War, and instead starts to unravel a conspiracy.

Buzz: Greengrass and Damon’s third collaboration (the first two were quite good, stands to reason that this should be no different, on the other hand…). Why do people cast Greg Kinnear? Aside from Kinnear, the rest of the cast is brilliant. This might be the next good Iraq War film after 2009’s The Hurt Locker. This was lower on the list before the trailer arrived, check it out.

6.) The Town

Director: Ben Affleck

Starring: Ben Affleck, Blake Lively, Chris Cooper, Jon Hamm, Jeremy Renner, and Rebecca Hall

Release: September 10

Plot: A crime drama about a thief planning his next job, trying to both balance his feelings for a bank manager connected to a previous score and also deal with a FBI agent out to bring him and his crew down.

Buzz: Reasons to both see a Ben Affleck movie and also to why a Ben Affleck movie is this high on the list: A) Gone Baby Gone, Affleck can direct a solid film, B) the cast is great, C) cinematography by Oscar winner Robert Elswit, D) Affleck is due to star in a good movie after a decade of mediocrity to just plain bad. This has potential to be an Oscars sleeper.

5.) London Boulevard

Director: William Monahan

Starring: Keira Knightley, Colin Farrell, Anna Friel, Ray Winston, Jamie Campbell Bower, David Thewlis, Stephen Graham, Ben Chaplin, and Eddie Marsan

Release: Spring/Fall 2010

Plot: A crime romance drama about an ex-con who is befriended by a movie star, hiding from the world in a Holland Park mansion.

Buzz: William Monahan steps out for his directorial debut; he is also co-writing. Wondering why the name sounds familiar or why this is high on the list, Oscar winner Monahan is the writer behind Kingdom of Heaven (watch director’s cut), The Departed and Body of Lies (all good) and has another script to film coming out in January, Edge of Darkness (narrowly missing this list, Martin Campbell returns to direct Mel Gibson once again seeking revenge). The cast in the film also sparks interest, Keira Knightley is usually good, Colin Farrell has his moments of brilliance, Anna Friel (just watch Pushing Daisies), Ray Winston, David Thewlis and Eddie Marsan are always great, Stephen Graham coming off a fine performance in Public Enemies, and Jamie Campbell Bower (fairly unknown) was a bright spot in the otherwise not so great RocknRolla (he can also be seen in the Harry Potter finales). And for the icing on the cake, Chris Menges is shooting it.

4.) Shutter Island

Director: Martin Scorsese

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Ruffalo, Ben Kingsley, Emily Mortimer, Michelle Williams, Max von Sydow, Jackie Earle Haley, Elias Koteas, Patricia Clarkson, Ted Levine, and John Carroll Lynch

Release: February 19

Plot: A mystery thriller about a cop that goes to investigate a breakout/disappearance of an inmate at Shutter Island’s prison for the criminally insane.

Buzz: Red flag alert! Why on earth did this get pushed from Oscar season 2009 to the box office and Oscar graveyard of February, especially when it is testing so well? Paramount claims that they do not have the money to push the film for awards; maybe they feel The Lovely Bones and Up in the Air have better chances. Either way, and regardless of the reasons, Shutter Island looks like a fantastic psychological thriller; it is Martin Scorsese teaming up with DiCaprio again, strong track record there (Gangs of New York aside).

3.) Cemetery Junction

Director: Ricky Gervais & Stephen Merchant

Starring: Ralph Fiennes, Emily Watson, Matthew Goode, Ricky Gervais, and Stephen Merchant

Release: Fall 2010

Plot: A comedy set in the 70s about professionals working at an insurance company.

Buzz: Writer/directors of The Office and Extras return with their first feature film together (Gervais co-directing The Invention of Lying with Matthew Robinson). For fans of Gervais and Merchant, just the mere mention of their names is enough to make this a highly anticipated project. Throw in talent like Ralph Fiennes and Emily Watson and just start to wonder, “how great is this going to be!” Gervais has stated that he wants to do more drama, which can be seen in The Invention of Lying. Will Cemetery Junction cross into mostly drama with some comedy thrown in territory? Whatever form the film takes, just looking at who is involved is enough to have high expectations (teaser trailer!).

2.) Inception

Director: Christopher Nolan

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Ken Watanabe, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Marion Cotillard, Ellen Page, Tom Hardy, Cillian Murphy, Tom Berenger, Michael Caine, and Lukas Haas

Release: July 16

Plot: A sci-fi film about a CEO who is blackmailed set within the architecture of the mind.

Buzz: A toss up between this and Death Hallows for the top spot, just consider them both number ones, if that helps. Is there a better working director today than Christopher Nolan? Since 2005 he has made Batman Begins, The Prestige and The Dark Knight. Can you name any director (maybe Clint Eastwood) that has made three movies released since 2005 with the same overall quality as those three (all of which were my film of the year in their respective years). It really does not even matter who is in this film, behind the camera is Nolan and Wally Pfister with music by Hans Zimmer, it could be stick figures and still be in the top 10 films of the year, so add the remarkable cast to the equation and you have a strong contender for another film of the year.

1.) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1

Director: David Yates

Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Bonnie Wright, Tom Felton, Evanna Lynch, Clemence Poesy, Stanislav Ianevski, James Phelps, Oliver Phelps, Matthew Lewis, Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter, Alan Rickman, Bill Nighy, Jamie Campbell Bower, John Hurt, Jason Isaacs, Rhys Ifans, Robbie Coltrane, Maggie Smith, Miranda Richardson, David Thewlis, Brendan Gleeson, Julie Walters, Warwick Davis, Ciaran Hinds, Helen McCrory, Timothy Spall, Rade Serbedzija, Imelda Staunton, David O’Hara, Natalia Tena, Richard Griffiths, Toby Jones (voice), Dave Legeno, Simon McBurney (voice), and Mark Williams

Release: November 19

Plot: Harry and company fight to stop Voldemort once and for good, the thrilling conclusion (part 1).

Buzz: For all that saw Order of the Phoenix and Half-Blood Prince, David Yates can make one heck of a good Potter film, and he says the audience has not seen anything yet! Just about everyone behind the camera is back, Yates, editor Mark Day, production designer Stuart Craig, and screenwriter Steven Kloves, new to the team is cinematographer Eduardo Serra (picking up from the absolute master job done on the last two by Slawomir Idziak and, especially, Bruno Delbonnel, respectively). His work is also very good (see Girl with a Pearl Earring for reference). The Potter films have also featured maybe the greatest cast of British actors ever assembled, and now the stupendous Bill Nighy joins the cast along with the also very good Ciaran Hinds (if only they could squeeze Peter O’Toole in there somehow). If there is only money and time enough for one movie to see this coming year (sneak into, and make time for, Inception too), Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 is it. For those who wonder, part 2 is scheduled for July 15, 2011.