Hello, and welcome to my Top 40 Albums list! This will be the eighth year I have done a Top 40 Albums list, but the tenth year in total I have posted a year-end on ATRL (2004 was Top 30 albums and 2003 was a top ??, as the majority of it was erased by the ever reliable ATRL server). So I guess this is the big tenth anniversary? Set your expectations low, then, as I have nothing planned, beyond posting my chart history later on. Maybe I will post some Google Image Searched 10th Year Anniversary banners at one point. Look out for that excitement!
For the people who aren't asking "who is this dirtbag in the year-end forum?" I hope you enjoy my list this year. I have scaled it back a bit (no music videos list, though I may post a couple of my fav videos later on. Just don't expect a full-on list), but i'm keeping the essentials. WHAT ARE THOSE ESSENTIALS? Well, i'll tell you, Robert Osborne!
- As soon as this thread is posted, I will post my Top 10 Singles of 2013 list.
- Next up, will be the Top 40 Movies of 2014. These are the movies that I am looking forward to in the coming year, and it's always one of my favourite lists to compile each year.
- After that, will be The Top 30-40 (I haven't decided on a number yet) TV Shows of 2013! It was an amazing year for television, and I can't wait to share my list with everyone.
- Then, sometime in January will be THE TOP 40 ALBUMS OF 2013! The main event! It may come a couple weeks after the previous lists, but I think i'll be posting nearly all of the albums at once, just like I did last year.
Were there better and more important hip-hop songs this year? Absolutely. That said, "Used 2" gave me so much joy this year, a late '90s NOLA/Cash Money rap throwback, that pays tribute to Juvenile's classic "Back That Azz Up." To complete that tribute, it was produced by one of the undisputed great hip-hop producers ever in Mannie Fresh, who produced "Back that Azz Up" and many of the Cash Money classics. It feels so great for Mannie to have a big comeback like this and his beat on "Used 2" is 90-95% of the reason why the song is charting. Fun fact about Mannie's beat for "Used 2": he made it on his iPad!! Incredible. 2 Chainz serves his purpose on the song, but like much of Chainz's work to me, he's more of a cipher than a memorable presence on the track. He definitely knows how to pick beats, though!
One other thing about "Used 2": watch the music video, which is embedded above. It was shot in New Orleans, and features appearances by Mannie, Juvenile, Turk, Lil Wayne, among others. It was directed by the same music video director who did "Back that Azz Up," and it definitely captures that feeling. It also serves as a fascinating tribute to the Hot Boyz, as every other person is sporting the classic Hot Boyz white tee, except Lil Wayne (who even was a member of the original Hot Boyz!). Hmm..... Very telling.
New Jersey indie rock lifers Yo La Tengo came back this year with an incredible album titled Fade. It's one of the year's best, and opening track "Ohm" is the perfect tablesetter to the mood of the record. "Sometimes the bad guys go out on top, sometimes the good guys lose, we try not to lose our hearts, not to lose our minds" is the opening line and it's one of my favourite openings this year. The track has a hypnotic quality, or should I say MEDITATIVE! I bet that hasn't been used before. *Googles* *Finds Out It Has Been Used Constantly* Well.... The song is amazing. I'll have more to say about Yo La Tengo's triumphant comeback in the Top 40 Albums list.
08. Brandy Clark – Stripes
Brandy Clark actually made my Top 10 Singles list last year, as she was one of the co-writers of The Band Perry's terrific "Better Dig Two." At this time last year, I was not familiar with Brandy Clark as an artist, so i'm glad that I can now say that I am this year. And what a talent she is! Her album 12 Stories will be making a showing on my Top 40 Albums list, but "Stripes" was the first song of her's that I heard, and it's great piece of writing and performance. It's just an infectious single (about a woman who catches her boyfriend cheating on her and wants to shoot him with a pistol, but "the only thing saving your life is that I don't look in orange and I hate stripes") the kind you always want to hear and replay over and over. And i'm not sure if I have heard a better lyric this year than "there's no crime of passion worth a crime of fashion." Just stellar stuff.
07. The So So Glos – Son of an American
The first thing you hear on "Son of an American" is the voice of a young boy "Oh no, I guess he doesn't have a gun, do you think he has a gun? Yes he shot himself! We're listening to Nirvana, and as you know, Kurt Cobain ... POW!" Smashcut to the song proper, with the opening lyric "I was sitting, safe inside my bedroom walls, it wasn't 1990 at all, but the future scene to be. Just floating and everyday feel like the last, I think i'm living in the past, and the other half move too fast." Which leads into a RAHHH explosion of drums, guitars and punk greatness. The voice of the little boy belongs to So So Glos bass player Alex Levine, recorded when he was seven years old, and it's a really fantastic start to one of the year's best songs (and albums, since this is track one on their album Blowout). "Son of an American" draws parallels to Cobain, as Alex Levine said in an interview, saying "One reason we kicked off the the record with it was to illustrate the old "kill your idols" type of feeling. In a sense Kurt was kind of the ultimate Son of an American. A seven year old calling ******** on his hero seemed like a pretty So So Glo type of thing to do, so we threw it in." I was only just introduced to the band this year, and I feel like I have known them for much longer. They remind me of some of my all-time favourites, The Clash, Rancid, snotty punk that reaches for (and achieves) anthemic heights. It's why their album Blowout is one of the year's best, and why "Son of an American" is definitely one of the best songs I heard in 2013.
06. Pistol Annies – Hush Hush
One of the reasons why I love country music at its best is because Music City is filled with complete professionals at the top of their game, whether its singers, songwriters, session players, what have you. You might hate a lot of it (and I do hate my fair share of current country music), but all of it is so professionally done that you can't help but marvel at the Music Row machine. "Hush Hush" by the Pistol Annies is on the positive side of this, as it takes a straight-forward topic (attending family gatherings, while you try to keep something hidden or "Hush Hush"), and hammers it at every angle in delightful ways. Whether its Angaleena Presley's verse about "walking on eggshells" as a brother comes home from rehab, as they drink "eggnog instead of beer," Miranda Lambert's verse talking about how "daddy's reading propaganda, and he's talking about the end of days," or Ashley Monroe's hilarious verse about how she snuck "behind the red barn, and I took myself a toke. Since everybody here hates everybody here. Hell, I might as well be the joke," which culminates in her wanting to go dance on the table singing "This Little Light of Mine." It's just fantastic songwriting, and the performances by the three Pistol Annies (who wrote the song together) add a lot. Despite it coming out this year, it feels like a song that has always existed, a song that anyone can relate to.
05. Mikal Cronin – Weight
Mikal Cronin, who I talked about in my 2011 year-end as I had discovered his debut album too late for it to chart, finally released another album this year, his debut on the mighty Merge Records. He previewed the album with two wonderful songs, "Shout it Out," and the song that charts at #5 "Weight." The first time I listened to this song I was unbelievably moved, and i'm not even sure I could describe what I was feeling at the time. It was just a visceral reaction to hearing something beautiful. The piano intro, the fuzzed-out guitars, the "Take me from myself" falsetto, all amazing. Bittersweet power-pop greatness. I'll have more constructive things to say about Mikal Cronin's superb album in the Top 40 Albums list.
04. Ashley Monroe – Like a Rose
Ashley Monroe's Like a Rose is the best country album of 2013, and the title track is also the best country song of the year. Written by Monroe and living legend Guy Clark (who charts with his own "My Favorite Picture of You" in the Just Missed section of this list. Just scroll up a little bit and you will find it!), it tells the story of Monroe's beginnings, a sort of "Coal Miner's Daughter" for the new generation. It's just elegant songwriting, how, despite it all (how she was 13 when her father died, her mother drank, her "brother just quit trying," ran off with "what's his name" at 18, "Got me out of North Dakota but it did not change a thing." etc) she still "came out like a rose." Vince Gill's subtle production also lends a warmth to the recording, giving it a timeless quality. This song could be playing on a jukebox anywhere in North America, and you wouldn't know what year it came from. Like "Hush Hush" (which also features Monroe), it feels like it has always been there.
03. Neko Case – Night Still Comes
I first heard "Night Still Comes" in the bathroom of a Regal Cinemas in Spokane Washington. Why would I share that information? I don't know, beyond that it was weirdly the perfect place to hear it, with no one else in there, at around 10 AM. It took me aback. I have long been a Neko Case fan, but "Night Still Comes" just might be her new peak. "You never held me at the right angle" is as good as it gets. "If I puked out some sonnets, would you call me a miracle?" I mean. What is there to say? I can't put into words how much I love this song. Neko Case is one of our greatest singer/songwriters and we should treasure her.
02. Kurt Vile – Wakin on a Pretty Day
KV is the real ****ing deal. You press play on "Wakin on a Pretty Day" and the guitars wash over you instantly. He might be my favourite current guitar player, certainly the one I want to hear from the most. After 37 seconds, KV says his first line "Wakin at the dawn of day, I gotta think about what I want to say. Phone ringing off the shelf, I guess it wanted to kill himself." That phone line is one of my favourite lyrics of this year, I laugh everytime I hear it. That's who KV is, warm guitar playing that takes over your entire being, sly lyrics that instantly paint a picture. Then at around the 5:30 mark, the guitars take center stage, with KV only saying yeah's or wordless coos for the rest of the song (which lasts nearly 4 more minutes). It is so good. The entire song is just nearly 10 minutes of perfection. 2013 is a great year if only because it brought this song (and the tremendous album Wakin on a Pretty Daze) into my life. More on the album later! KV 4 LIFE!
01. Superchunk – Me & You & Jackie Mittoo
In my years of compiling this Top 10 Singles list, only once has an artist claimed #2 two separate times. That artist was Superchunk, who in 2010 charted at #2 with their life-affirming "Digging for Something" and also just last year with the new summer perennial "This Summer." I felt horrible slighting them out of #1 both years, as those are songs I go back to regularly to this day (which I can't say about every single I have charted over the years). So it is with great joy and excitement that I can say that Superchunk has finally and rightly reached #1, with their one minute 59 second ode to sharing unforgettable memories with people over music, "Me & You & Jackie Mittoo." The song opens directly with Mac's passionate yell "I hate music, what is it worth, can't bring anyone back to this earth, feeling the space between all of the notes, but i've got nothing else so I guess it here we go." The song then talks about the days spent together in the van with friends as they "put in the tape and put up the feet on the dash", spending a half hour at the Record Exchange, "we were always together, never the same." It's emotional, as it's about Mac's friend who passed away, but at the same time it reaches such joyous heights as they sing the title "ME & YOU & JACKIE MITTOO" (Jackie Mittoo was the founding member/keyboard player in The Skatalites). Superchunk have always been so great at painting vivid pictures and sharing relatable memories through music, as while I have (thankfully) never lost a friend who I have a deep bond over music with, the memories in the lyrics are so universal that I understand everything said in the song. I feel equal parts emotional and ecstatic every time I listen to the song. It's why Superchunk's "Me & You & Jackie Mittoo" is my #1 single of the year. I'll have even more to say about their album I Hate Music in my Top 40 Albums list. Can that also reach #1? We shall see.
Be sure to check out the embedded music video, as well. It was directed by the brilliant Phil Morrison, and does a nice job of visualizing the song. Plus, Jon Wurster’s expression at the end of the video is hysterical.
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Coming up later this week: Part 1 of the Top 40 Movies of 2014 list!
We really should just call 2003 a "Top ??". Oh, the days when ATRL did not have a reliable server. Wait...
If Johnald doesn't do a year-ender this year, yours is, was, and has always been the year-ender that I look forward to the most, and I'm AMAZED that you came back to do this again. And incredibly happy you did. Your blurbs are among my favorites in the entire forum. This thread is also a chance for me to catch up on everything I've missed, as well as look forward to other things next year.
Okay, let's start with the singles list. "Done" is a really, really good country song, and Arctic Monkeys and Vampire Weekend...nuff said. As for the top 10, well, this just makes me remember just how much I've missed out on this year. I knew there was a new Kurt Vile album, but I still haven't listened to it. Might as well just call me "Red(-y to Not Listen To Good Music In Time)". I've also heard nothing but good things about Pistol Annies, Ashley Monroe, and ESPECIALLY that new Mikal Cronin album. I'm also really enjoying the continuous love for Superchunk over the years. Will this finally inspire me to check them out? Probably...in 2014.
And up next...my favorite list on the entire forum. I am STOKED for this!
Yes! One of my favorite YECDs is here again, and that's not a cliche let me tell you. I hardly ever say things like that. We coincide on bands and songs I hardly ever see on other people's countdowns. This first update proves my point, as Ohm, Wakin On A Pretty Day and Me & You & Jackie Mittoo are tracks I have heard, liked; and in two cases, debuted on my weekly c/d. I'll be checking your blurbs as it gets later because things are a little bit noisy right now, haha.
Can't wait to see the rest! Oh, and that Kurt Vile song is just relaxing as hell... or should I say heaven?
you always have a unique taste, and it's really interesting
maybe i haven't heard all the top 10 songs, but soon i try to hear them
and too bad that Arctic and Vampire Weekend didn't make it
So many great bands and musicians in here! Vampire Weekend, Mikal Cronin, Neko Case and Yo La Tengo! I just hope the list were longer, but it's okay, sometimes the shorter the better.
I've heard about The So So Glos recently, not sure if they will make it in my countdown. I need to pay more attention to them.
Can't wait for your albums chart.
I was wondering why I hadn't heard of like half of these people... It's because of the country heaviness going on here lol. Still good songs though, that I would have never even given a chance if not for this thread. So thank you, Mr. Benjammin.
Before I begin, I just want to address something. FAST SEVEN originally placed very high on my list, as I think The Fast & the Furious is one of the best and most satisfying franchises in modern movies. And Fast Seven was shaping up to be an excellent addition, with new cast members Jason Statham, Kurt Russell, Tony Jaa, among others, with new director James Wan at the helm. Due to the tragic death of Paul Walker, Fast Seven has understandably been pushed back indefinitely, probably not coming out in 2014 at all. My point in bringing this up is that I wanted to acknowledge the movie, as those movies were favourites of mine and I would have felt weird ignoring it as I continued with this list. I hope to see it one day, and I hope they figure out a way to honour Walker's legacy in a good (and not exploitative) way.
Now, on with the list:
Just Missed (in no order):
Magic in the Moonlight
The Amazing Spider-Man 2
Exodus
A Better You
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Edge of Tomorrow
Million Dollar Arm
Let’s Be Cops
Non-Stop
Unbroken
Happy Christmas
The Trip to Italy
41. Staten Island Summer
Release Date: TBA (a guess: premiere at SXSW 2014)
Directed by Rhys Thomas
Written by Colin Jost
Starring Graham Phillips, Zack Pearlman, Ashley Greene, Jackson Nicoll, Gina Gershon, Kate Walsh, Bobby Moynihan, Mary Birdsong, John Deluca, Jim Gaffigan, Method Man, Kellie Cockrell, Katie Cockrell
Staten Island Summer is a coming of age story, about two friends (Danny and Frank, played by Graham Phillips and Zack Pearlman) who spend the summer after high school working as lifeguards, as they try to figure out their future. What's original about that? Nothing, but it has a strong team behind it, all coming from SNL. Director Rhys Thomas currently directs fantastic shorts for SNL* and it was written by current SNL head writer Colin Jost, as it is based on his own experiences. On top of that, Lorne Michaels is producing it, who, say what you will about him, has a pretty stellar track record as a producer (just talking about movies, he last produced Hot Rod and MacGruber, two modern comedy classics). So while the premise may seem rote, you should never bet against a movie coming out of passion/personal experience (what you also shouldn't bet against, to quote Seth Meyers? The Lorne Machine).
*Some of his directorial work on the show: the Lincoln/Louie parody, the Wes Anderson horror parody, the British gangster film parody with Bill Hader from a couple seasons ago ("Don' you go Rounin' Roun to Re Ro"), and my favourite of them all, the brilliant History of Punk, featuring Fred Armisen as Ian Rubbish, the Margaret Thatcher-loving punk rocker.
40. Godzilla
Release Date: May 16, 2014
Directed by Gareth Edwards
Written by Max Borenstein
Starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Heisenberg, Elizabeth Olsen, Ken Watanabe, Juliette Binoche, David Strathairn, Richard T. Jones, Sally Hawkins
The reason why this is a top 41 list, as opposed to 40, is because of the Godzilla trailer that came out recently, which was so impressive, that I had to include the movie on this list. First off, that cast is insane. That's an arthouse cast! Not a big May tentpole cast. Plus, I really like Gareth Edwards' take on Godzilla. It's realistic, while playing up the horror of what would happen if a big green monster stomped through your city. The trailer genuinely frightened me, and it looks different from the other summer movies coming out.
39. Hits
Release Date: World Premiere at Sundance 2014
Directed and Written by David Cross
Starring Matt Walsh, Meredith Hagner, James Adomian, Derek Waters, Wyatt Cenac, Jake Cherry, Julia Stiles, Michael Cera, Dave Koechner, Amy Sedaris, Jason Ritter, Erinn Hayes, Russ Tamblyn
Hits is the directorial debut of Mr. David Cross and it has a great concept. I'm going to quote the official description from the Sundance film guide:
"Hits is a comedy about a paranoid municipal worker named Dave, his The Voice–obsessed 19-year-old daughter, a wannabe teenage rapper who has an unrequited crush on the daughter, and their neighbors in a small, working-class town in upstate New York. Dave finds fame when videos of his rants at City Hall go viral, and hordes of appallingly well-meaning hipsters from Brooklyn descend on their town to make sure Dave's rights aren't trampled by "the man."
A satire on fame in the internet era, Hits should be a really funny movie that is actually about something. I know Cross will pull it off and I hope it is released wide shortly after its Sundance premiere.
38. Dom Hemingway
Release Date: April 4, 2014
Directed and Written by Richard Shepherd
Starring Jude Law, Richard E. Grant, Demian Bichir, Emilia Clarke, Jordan A. Nash, Jumayn Hunter, Madalina Diana Ghenea, Kerry Condon, Nathan Stewart-Jarrett
This movie just looks like a lot of fun. Directed by the great Richard Shepherd (as a feature director, he is best known for The Matador, but most recently he has directed some of the very best episodes of HBO's GIRLS), Jude Law stars as Dom Hemingway, a safe-cracker who just got of jail after 12 years, who then goes back to the streets of London to get back what he's owed. Richard E. Grant looks to play his sidekick of sort, which should sell you a ticket right there. Law looks unrecognisable in the movie, with receding hair, mutton chops, and 30 pounds gained, he really looks to inhabit the seedy cockney thug that is Dom Hemingway. I have always found Law to be a compelling actor (especially in his work with Steven Soderbergh), and Dom Hemingway looks to be the best showcase for his talents yet.
37. Birdman
Release Date: TBA 2014
Directed by Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu
Written by Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Nicolas Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Armando Bo
Starring Michael Keaton, Emma Stone, Edward Norton, Naomi Watts, Zach Galifianakis, Amy Ryan, Bill Camp
I don't even know what this movie is. It is charting mainly because of all the disparate things going on with it. First, it was directed by Inarritu, who is known for directing Biutiful, Babel, and 21 Grams. Then there's that cast, which is kind of amazing. And then there's the plot ("A washed-up actor who once played an iconic superhero must overcome his ego and family troubles as he mounts a Broadway play in a bid to reclaim his past glory"). A comedy!! From the ****ing guy who did BABEL! Starring Keaton, Zach, Emma Stone, etc. WHAT IS GOING ON. At the very least, this should be an interesting one to look out for. I don't know when it will premiere, probably at a film festival? I look forward to tracking the progress of this nutty thing.
36. Chef
Release Date: May 9, 2014
Directed and Written by Jon Favreau
Starring Jon Favreau, Scarlett Johansson, Sofia Vergara, Robert Downey Jr., Bobby Cannavale, Dustin Hoffman, Amy Sedaris, Garry Shandling, John Leguizamo, Oliver Platt
I have to give props to Jon Favreau. After years in the big 100 million+ movies game, he has decided to return to his indie Swingers/Made roots. Favreau Louis CK's it, as he directs, writes and stars in Chef, a movie about "a chef who loses his restaurant job starts up a food truck in an effort to reclaim his creative promise, while piecing back together his estranged family." Now, to me that plot reads like a very obvious metaphor for Favreau's directorial career, and Chef is his food truck. Because of that, Chef could be something special, and he has certainly called in some favours, by getting some big names in his small budget movie. That cast is insane! Despite it being a small-scale movie, it will be released in the heat of the summer movie season. So whether it's Iron Man or Chef, Favs can't escape the early May release date!
35. Sex Tape
Release Date: July 25, 2014
Directed by Jake Kasdan
Written by Kate Angelo
Starring Jason Segel, Cameron Diaz, Rob Lowe, Ellie Kemper, Rob Corddry, Jack Black, Randall Park, Melissa Paulo
Sex Tape comes from director Jake Kasdan, an underrated director who I hold in high regard*. Kasdan's movies have mainly faltered at the box office, despite them all being great (especially Walk Hard, one of the great pure silly comedies of the past ten years. It's the closest thing to a modern day Zucker Brothers movie). That all changed with Bad Teacher, which was a huge hit at the box office. Bad Teacher is not a movie I would fully endorse, but I believe that the reason why it was better than expected was because of Kasdan. Which now leads into Sex Tape, another movie that on paper doesn't sound super exciting (Segel and Diaz play a married couple who film a sex tape. That sex tape then evidently gets lost, as they go on a search to find it), but I have high hopes for due to Kasdan and the cast assembled. I am particularly excited to see Jack Black in a supporting role, as he will reunite with his Orange County director Kasdan. I think Black is such a great talent, but he can be hit-and-miss in the starring vehicles (though he was tremendous recently in Richard Linklater's Bernie). Orange County is one of Black's best performances, so I hope to see him return to that kind of energy.
*his credits: Zero Effect, Orange County, The TV Set, Walk Hard, Bad Teacher. On the TV side, he directed the pilots + subsequent episodes for Freaks and Geeks, Undeclared, New Girl, and Ben & Kate.
34. The Monuments Men
Release Date: February 21, 2014
Directed by George Clooney
Written by George Clooney, Grant Heslov
Starring George Clooney, Matt Damon, Cate Blanchett, Bill Murray, John Goodman, Jean Dujardin, Bob Balaban, Hugh Bonneville
This movie placed on last year's list at #18. Why is it so low this year? No reason, really. I am looking forward to it just as much, despite the placement. I have enjoyed the trailers, and the cast remains impressive. I also think Cloons (sorry, that's what I call him when I see him in social situations) is an underrated director. The reason for the push was apparently because they didn't want to rush it, as the effects wouldn't have been ready in time. And for a war movie to be released with shoddy effects would have been disrespectful to the true life story that the movie is portraying.
33. The Muppets Most Wanted
Release Date: March 21, 2014
Directed by James Bobin
Written by James Bobin, Nick Stoller
Starring Ricky Gervais, Tina Fey, Ty Burrell
The first Muppets movie (meaning of this current revamp. Not The Muppet Movie!) had a lot of high expectations placed on it. If it failed, The Muppets would be sent back to Hollywood jail for another decade+ without a movie made. Luckily, it was a huge success both commercially and critically, and 2014 will see the release of sequel The Muppets Most Wanted! I like what I have seen from the trailers, as there's now no pressure on reintroducing the gang. It just looks like a silly and fun Muppet movie, which is all I want! Director James Bobin and co-writer Nick Stoller return from the first movie, with Jason Segel not involved with this one. The main starring cast is an interesting group. I particularly like what I have seen from Tina Fey in the trailers. She has always been an underrated comedic actress, and to see her going all-out as a wacky character brings her back to her Second City days. She is going to be fantastic in it.
32. Stretch
Release Date: March 21, 2014
Directed and Written by Joe Carnahan
Starring Chris Pine, Patrick Wilson, Ed Helms, James Badge Dale, Jessica Alba, Ray Liotta, Brooklyn Decker, David Haselhoff
Stretch is an interesting movie. Not just that it's a movie directed by Joe Caranhan (who last did the incredible The Grey), and that it has such an intriguing and weird cast, but it is a micro-budget movie! Meaning, it was produced by king of the micro-budget Jason Blum, known for the Paranormal Activity movies, The Purge, Insidious, etc. Unlike those movies, Stretch isn't a horror movie (it's an action/comedy about a chauffeur who takes a job from a billionaire who makes his life a living hell), so this is a new direction for Jason Blum's Blumhouse Productions. I am very excited to see how Carnahan and the actors work in this environment.
31. Squirrels to the Nuts
Release Date: TBA 2014
Directed by Peter Bogdanovich
Written by Peter Bogdanovich, Lousie Stratten
Starring Owen Wilson, Jennifer Aniston, Imogen Poots, Rhys Ifans, Lucy Punch, Kathryn Hahn, Will Forte, Cybil Shepherd, Tatum O’Neal, Austin Pendleton, Richard Lewis, Jake Hoffman
The first feature film that Peter Bogdanovich has directed in 12 years! One of the legendary figures in '70s filmmaking, Bogdanovich's Squirrels to the Nuts is about "A married Broadway director falls for a prostitute-turned-actress and works to help her advance her career." It has a great cast (Will Forte!), and was produced by Wes Anderson and Noah Baumbach, two writer/directors who look up to Bogdanovich as a mentor. I'm not sure when it is set to come out, but I will be excited to learn more about it in the coming months.
30. Welcome to Me
Release Date: TBA 2014 (possible SXSW 2014 premiere?)
Directed by Shira Piven
Written by Eliot Laurence
Starring Kristen Wiig, Linda Cardellini, Will Ferrell, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Joan Cusack, Alan Tudyk, James Marsden, Tim Robbins, Wes Bentley, Thomas Mann, Kulap Vilaysack
Welcome to Me is a very intriguing-sounding movie. It's about "A year in the life of Alice Klieg (Kristen Wiig), a woman with Borderline Personality Disorder, who wins the Mega Millions, quits her meds and buys her own talk show." Now you understand the title! Kristen Wiig is perfect casting for the part, as I can already picture her as the character described. It was produced by Adam McKay and Will Ferrell, and directed by Shira Piven (McKay's wife). The only reason why I lead with McKay/Ferrell as producers is because I haven't seen Piven's first feature film Fully Loaded. Otherwise, if I saw it and loved it, I would be excited about Welcome to Me because it's the new Shira Piven movie. Since I haven't, I am excited about this movie by its concept, its great cast, and my undying love of McKay/Ferrell. I'm sure Piven will direct the **** out of it and I look forward to becoming a fan of her's.
29. St. Vincent De Van Nuys
Release Date: April 11, 2014
Directed and Written by Theodore Melfi
Starring Bill Murray, Melissa McCarthy, Chris O’Dowd, Naomi Watts, Terrence Howard, Nate Corddry, Scott Adsit, Kimberly Quinn
First time director/screenwriter Theodore Melfi's St. Vincent de Van Nuys is a comedy/drama, about "a young boy whose parents just divorced finds an unlikely friend and mentor in the misanthropic, bawdy, hedonistic war veteran who lives next door." Yep, that's who Bill Murray is playing! Compared to movies like As Good as It Gets and Silver Linings Playbook in the way they mix comedy and pathos, Melissa McCarthy plays the single mother, and it sounds like a really promising project. Outside of Wes Anderson's movies (which are their own genre) Murray hasn't really starred in a comedy in many years (though this one will have dramatic elements, so it's not a pure comedy like his movies in the '80s). On that alone this movie is exciting, but then you add the great Melissa McCarthy, Chris O'Dowd, and the rest of the great cast, and you have a real promising movie. The Weinstein Company is putting it out in April, and I look forward to checking it out.
28. X-Men: Days of Future Past
Release Date: May 23, 2014
Directed by Bryan Singer
Written by Simon Kinberg (story by Bryan Singer)
Starring Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Hugh Jackman, Anna Paquin, Shawn Ashmore, Ellen Page, Omar Sy, Halle Berry, Daniel Cudmore, Booboo Stewart, Fan Bingbing, Adan Canto, James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Nicholas Hoult, Peter Dinklage, Evan Peters, Josh Helman, Lucas Till
BOTH X-MEN CASTS TOGETHER / WHAT ELSE DO I HAVE TO SAY? *in the style of "We Didn't Start the Fire"*
27. Big Eyes
Release Date: TBA 2014 (maybe a Cannes premiere?)
Directed by Tim Burton
Written by Scott Alexander, Larry Karaszewski
Starring Amy Adams, Christoph Waltz, Jason Schwartzman, Terence Stamp, Krysten Ritter, Danny Huston, Jon Polito, Elisabetta Fantone
Big Eyes is Tim Burton coming back at his critics (or to use the modern term, "haters"), as it is NOT an adaptation of a movie/TV show/musical and it does not star Johnny Depp or Helena Bonham Carter. "WHERE ARE YOUR JOKES NOW, PUNK? HUH? WHERE ARE YOUR JOKES?" I don't know why Tim Burton turned into Dirty Harry in my imagined scenario, but i'll let it slide. Big Eyes is a biopic about Walter Keane (Christoph Waltz) , an artist in the ''50s and '60s known for his paintings of "large eyed waifs" and his then-wife Margaret Keane (Amy Adams). The movie is apparently about their divorce, wherein Margaret accuses Walter of stealing her paintings (apparently she painted the paintings, while all Walter did was add the signature). There's more on the story in the film, but I don't want to read up on it before I see the movie. It sounds like a really interesting story. Also, an exciting note about the movie: it was written by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski, who previously wrote ED WOOD for Burton, which some people consider to be Burton's best (I would personally say Pee-Wee's Big Adventure is Burton's best, but that's just me). Harvey Weinstein and The Weinstein Company are in charge of it, meaning it should be a major player in the Oscar race next year. I'm very excited to see Big Eyes, as I can't wait to see Burton engaged in filmmaking again. Oh ****, I think he heard me. Let me sneak out of here quietly, as I hear he has a knife....
26.Transcendence
Release Date: April 18, 2014
Directed by Wally Pfister
Written by Jack Paglen
Starring Johnny Depp, Kate Mara, Cillian Murphy, Morgan Freeman, Rebecca Hall, Paul Bettany, Clifton Collins Jr., Cole Hauser, Cory Hardrict
Whew, that was a close one. Anyway, Transcendence! The directorial debut of Wally Pfister, Christopher Nolan's long-time DP. Nolan is credited as an executive producer on Transcendence, which stars Johnny Depp as Dr. Will Caster, "an artificial intelligence researcher who strives to create a machine that possesses sentience and collective intelligence." He gets targeted by extremists who are against the technological advancement, which drives Caster, as his goal to "acquire knowledge becomes one to acquire power and he seems to be unstoppable." OOOOOOOOOOOOH. A great cast, a promising first-time director, and Depp looking completely normal makes this one to seek out in April.
25. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
Release Date: July 11, 2014
Directed by Matt Reeves
Written by Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver, Scott Z. Burns, Mark Bomback
Starring Andy Serkis, Gary Oldman, Jason Clarke, Kodi Smitt-McPhee, Keri Russell, Judy Greer, Enrique Murciano, Kirk Acevedo, Jocko Sims, Terrry Notary, Karin Konoval, Toby Kebbell, Nick Thurston
Love the cast. Loved the first movie in this new Apes reboot. Love Matt Reeves. Loved the first teaser. Love love love. All you need is Apes. Can't wait.
24.Rosewater
Release Date: TBA 2014 (possible TIFF premiere?)
Directed and Written by Uncle Jonny Stew
Starring Gael Garcia Bernal, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Jason Jones, Dimitri Leonadias, Haluk Bligner, Nasser Faris, Numan Acar, Ed Ward
This is definitely one of the big question marks of next year. We all love Jon Stewart, but can he direct a movie? We shall see! He has teamed up with mega-producer Scott Rudin to make Rosewater, a story in which he has a personal connection to, as it comes from Mazair Bahari's book about when he was detained and interrogated in Iran for more than 100 days. Bahari's detainment was connected to a mock interview he did in 2009 with Daily Show correspondent Jason Jones, in which Jones pretended to be an American spy. Bahari's captors showed him the interview as proof that he was in contact with an American spy. The great Gael Garcia Bernal will play journalist Bahari, and he is a great choice. The key to directing a great movie, especially a first feature, is when you have a personal attachment to the story. You feel like no one else can tell this story as well as you can. And in the case of Rosewater, Stewart definitely is in the position to do something great. I am rooting for him, and I hope it is a wonderful movie.
23. True Story
Release Date: TBA 2014
Directed by Rupert Goold
Written by David Kajganich
Starring Jonah Hill, James Franco, Felicity Jones, Gretchen Mol, Ethan Suplee, Robert John Burke, Maria Dizzira, Robert Stanton
The Jonah Hill As A Great Dramatic Actor renascence continues! I have yet to see The Wolf of Wall Street as I type this, but i'm hearing that Hill is fantastic in it. True Story is based on Michael Finkel's memoir, which is about "Finkel (Hill), who was a writer at the New York Times Magazine in 2002 when he learned that Christian Longo (James Franco) was captured in Mexico after a long stint on the FBI Ten Most Wanted List for killing his family. The strange part was that he had been living under the identity of Finkel. The very next day, the real Finkel was fired by the editors of the NYT Magazine, after they ran an editor's note declaring that he had falsified parts of an investigative article. His career seemed over, until Longo declared that the real Finkel was the only journalist he would talk to. That led to a surreal relationship with the accused murderer, who was trying to declare his innocence. For the real Finkel, it was an opportunity to unravel the mystery and perhaps redeem himself as a journalist." WOW. Now that's a movie! I don't think that is giving too much away, as I imagine all of that will be in the trailer, as that is where the actual driving force of the narrative should begin. I find so much of this movie to be intriguing, starting with it being a two-hander between Hill and Franco, in a drama! Who saw that coming? It's also a bit of Moneyball reunion, as Brad Pitt is a producer on the project through his Plan B production company. I'm not sure when this movie is supposed to come out, but it has long finished shooting, so we should see it sometime next year.
22. Untitled Cameron Crowe Project
Release Date: TBA 2014
Directed and Written by Cameron Crowe
Starring Emma Stone, Bradley Cooper, Rachel McAdams, Jay Baruchel, Danny McBride, Bill Murray, Alec Baldwin
What a cast! Holy smokes! I mean, I know Emma Stone and Bradley Cooper are the big boldfaced names in this movie, but i'm especially excited by the inclusion of Danny McBride and Bill Murray, two actors who you wouldn't expect to be in a Cameron Crowe movie. This is an interesting movie, as Crowe originally was set to do a Hawaii-based movie in the mid to late '00s called Big Tiki, starring Ben Stiller and Reese Witherspoon. That fell apart at the last minute for some reason. This untitled movie is ALSO set in Hawaii, and from what I understand the Big Tiki script was reworked into this current untitled project. The plot is apparently about "A celebrated military contractor returns to the site of his greatest career triumphs and reconnects with a long-ago love while unexpectedly falling for the hard-charging Air Force watchdog assigned to him." Very interesting, sounds like fun! Crowe deserves another great movie, as he is one of the best at making dramatic comedies, or hilarious dramas.
21. Noah
Release Date: March 28. 2014
Directed by Darren Aronofsky
Written by Darren Aronofsky, John Logan, Ari Handel
Starring Russell Crowe, Jennifer Connelly, Anthony Hopkins, Logan Lerman, Douglas Booth, Emma Watson, Kevin Durand, Dakota Goya, Ray Winstone, Marton Csokas, Madison Davenport, Mark Margolis
This is a swing. A mighty big swing. In Aronofsky I trust, I say, as this has long been his passion project. I never thought it was going to get made, but the huge success of Black Swan finally got him the leverage to make his 100+ million crazy Noah movie. The trailers for the movie aren't selling the crazy yet, but it's supposed to be really out there. The job right now for the studio is to get people in the theater, especially the church/religious groups. But will there be riots on March 28th? Possibly! There will be giant six-armed angels in NOAH!! This is not your straight retelling of the story. The cast is excellent, John Logan is co-writing (most recently known for writing SKYFALL), but most importantly it's Aronofsky. This is his baby. This will be one of the splashier (no pun intended) releases this year, as it will be making a lot of noise. I cannot wait. **** yeah Aronofsky!
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That's it for part one! I'll try to have the top twenty up within the next couple of days. Thanks to everyone who commented in the last section! I always love reading them. If I haven't commented on your year-end, give me a day or two! I will get to it, but I just haven't had the time to comment as thoroughly as I like.
