Also, seems like I need to check that The New ****ographers video cause I only know "Your Hands (Together)"
And of course, a big yay! for Conversation 16.
Runners-Up:
John Carter (if the marketing material wasn’t so lacking, this would be a shoo-in to make it in the 40. I still have faith, though)
G.I. Joe: Retaliation (could be the FAST FIVE of 2012)
Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters (McKay/Ferrell production)
The Amazing Spider-Man
Skyfall
My Mother’s Curse
----------------------------------------------
40. Piranha 3DD
Release Date: TBA 2012
Directed by John Gulager
Written by Maniacs
Starring Ving Rhames, Paul Scheer, Christopher Lloyd, Danielle Panabaker, Gary Busey, David Hasselhoff, David Koechner, Katrina Bowden
The first Piranha (and by "first," I mean of this new reboot. Not the Joe Dante/James Cameron versions) was a lot of fun, with great actors being in on the joke, and just having fun with it. So, i'm happy to say that they are making another one called Piranha 3DD (I bet the writers high-fived after coming up with that title). This one is set in a water park run by David "Champ Kind" Koechner, which is so great. Also great: the return of cast members from the first one including Human Giant member/The League cast member Paul Scheer (who actually shot a death scene in #1, but it was never used, so he was allowed back in,) Christopher Lloyd, and Ving Rhames (who very clearly dies in the first one, which makes it even funnier). New cast members adding to the madness include David Hasselhoff (in full Baywatch gear), Katrina "Cerie from 30 Rock" Bowden, and Gary Busey. This **** is going to be bananas!
39. The Man with the Iron Fists
Release Date: TBA 2012
Directed by RZA
Written by RZA, Eli Roth
Starring RZA, Russell Crowe, Lucy Liu, Pam Grier, Jamie Chung, Cung Le, Dave Bautista, Rick Yune, Daniel Wu, Byron Mann
RZA's directorial debut! It's a martial arts movie (obviously), and he has assembled quite the cast. There's no way this thing can lose.
38. Casa de mi Padre
Release Date: March 16, 2012
Directed by Matt Piedmont
Written by Andrew Steele
Starring Will Ferrell, Gael Garcia Bernal, Diego Luna, Nick Offerman, Genesis Rodriguez, Mariann Gavelo, Efren Ramirez
This is why I love Will Ferrell: Instead of filming a big comedy post-The Other Guys, he decides to instead shoot a movie entirely in Spanish! The movie also stars the Y tu mama tambien/Rudo y cursi team of Gael Garcia Bernal and Diego Luna, to give the movie some legitimacy (which of course makes it funnier). I have no idea what to expect from this movie, and I think that's a great feeling to have.
37. Bullet to the Head
Release Date: April 13, 2012
Directed by Walter Hill
Written by Walter Hill, Alessandro Camon
Starring Sylvester Stallone, Jason Momoa, Christian Slater, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Sarah Shahi, Sung Kang, Jon Seda, Holt McCallany
The grand return of Walter Hill! The filmmaker behind The Warriors, 48 Hrs, Streets of Fire, The Driver, one of the originators of Alien (credited as a producer, as well as doing some uncredited rewrites on the first movie,) director of the pilot for Deadwood.... I mean, come on. This guy has decades of incredible work under his belt. So, it’s a real joy to see him return the big screen, directing Stallone in a pulpy action movie. I can’t wait.
36.Bachelorette
Release Date: Sundance 2012
Directed and Written by Leslye Headland
Starring Kirsten Dunst, Isla Fisher, Lizzy Caplan, Adam Scott, James Marsden, Rebel Wilson, Kyle Bornheimer
I think Adam McKay is one of the great minds in comedy. He’s one of the first comedy writers I knew by name, and he has shaped a lot of my comedic sensibilities. Why do I bring him up? Because when Adam McKay says that Leslye Headland is a great talent, and that Bachelorette is really funny (he’s credited as a producer on it, along with Will Ferrell,) I take him to his word. Apparently this is based on a play that Headland wrote, that got a lot of great notices (so if you think this movie is a Bridesmaids rip-off, it came long before it,) so the material is certainly there. I can’t wait to check it out.
35. The Bourne Legacy
Release Date: August 3, 2012
Directed by Tony Gilroy
Written by Tony Gilroy, Dan Gilroy
Starring Jeremy Renner, Rachel Weisz, Edward Norton, Joan Allen, Albert Finney, Oscar Isaac, Scott Glenn, Stacy Keach, Corey Stoll
Look, we all loved the Damon/Greengrass (with one Liman) movies. But if Damon/Greengrass can’t think of any new ideas to do with the character, then why should they continue? So, here we are with The Bourne Legacy, with Tony Gilroy directing/writing (he wrote on all the Bourne films, and directed/wrote Michael Clayton and the underrated Duplicity,) and Jeremy Renner as the star. What I like about what they are doing with Bourne Legacy is they aren’t rebooting it; Renner is playing Aaron Cross, and it follows the events of Bourne Ultimatum. It’s a nice way to continue making Bourne movies, but also leaving the door open for Damon to return at any point. If Bourne Legacy is successful, maybe we could have Damon and Renner team-up? How cool that would be???
34. Hyde Park on Hudson (A.K.A. Bill Murray as FDR)
Release Date: TBA 2012
Directed by Roger Michell
Written by Richard Nelson
Starring Bill Murray (AS FDR!), Laura Linney, Olivia Williams
BILL MURRAY AS FDR BILL MURRAY AS FDR BILL MURRAY AS FDR. The movie itself may not be good, but it will have BILL MURRAY PLAYING FDR. It will be the best portrayal of the president since Chris Elliott did his one man show about FDR in 1988. I hope they at least give Elliott a cameo.
33. Magic Mike
Release Date: June 29, 2012
Directed by Steven Soderbergh
Written by Reid Carolin
Starring Channing Tatum, Alex Pettyfer, Matthew McConaughey, Matt Bomer, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Olivia “The Worst” Munn, Kevin “Vinnie Vegas” Nash, Betsy Brandt, Gabriel Iglesias, Cody Horn
AKA: The Male Stripper Movie, Based On Channing Tatum’s Personal Experiences As A Stripper At 19 Years Old. Too long a title, clearly, which is why they went with Magic Mike.
Soderbergh is one of my all-time favourite filmmakers, and that is a huge reason why this movie is charting. I love the weird cast assembled for this, and the idea of a Saturday Night Fever with male strippers sounds really interesting and different to me.
Sidenote: Soderbergh also has HAYWIRE , which is released January 2012. I charted it last year, and I am still very much looking forward to it, but I didn’t chart it since it’s out very soon.
32. The To-Do List
Release Date: TBA 2012
Directed and Written by Maggie Carey
Starring Aubrey Plaza, Donald Glover, Connie Britton, Rachel Bilson, Alia Shawkat, Bill Hader, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Andy Samberg, Scott Porter, Clark Gregg, Adam Pally, Johnny Simmons, Nolan Gould, Sarah Steele, D.C. Pierson, Dominic Dierkes
Look at that cast! This is an indie-comedy directed and written by Maggie Carey (who also happens to be married to co-star Bill Hader), about.... well, i'll just let Bill Hader explain the movie to you:
Quote:
a "type-A, studious girl who graduates high school [Aubrey Plaza] and hasn’t done anything with a guy. The summer before college she decides that she has to find out how to do everything in order to be properly prepared, so she makes a very serious bullet list of everything, like… hand-job, titty-****, blow-job, fingering, and just kinda checks one off every time she does it. She’s being the aggressor and is very straight-forward about it, like ‘Okay, so I’m going to give you a hand-job now.’ And the guys are very taken aback about it, especially her straight-laced friends.”
That sounds like a very winning concept for a comedy, and I can't wait to see how Aubrey Plaza plays it. She's wonderful on Parks and Recreation, but this could be the big break-out role that sends her into the stratosphere.
31. Seeking a Friend for the End of the World
Release Date: April 20, 2012
Directed and Written by Lorene Scafaria
Starring Steve Carell, Keira Knightley, Connie Britton, Melanie Lynskey, T.J. Miller, Patton Oswalt, Adam Brody, Gillian Jacobs, William Peterson, Derek Luke, Rob Corddry, Mark Moses, Amy Schumer, Jim O’Heir (Dammit Jerry!)
Look at that cast x2! This sounds like a really interesting movie, as it's written/directed by Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist screenwriter Lorene Scafaria. The logline:
Quote:
As an asteroid nears Earth, a man finds himself alone after his wife leaves in a panic. He decides to take a road trip to reunite with his high school sweetheart. Accompanying him is a neighbor who inadvertently puts a wrench in his plan.
An end of the world movie romcom! Fun! I'm there.
30. Seven Psychopaths
Release Date: TBA 2012
Directed and Written by Martin McDonagh
Starring Christopher Walken, Colin Farrell, Woody Harrelson, Sam Rockwell, Abbie Cornish, Olga Kurylenko, Gabourey Sidibe, Tom Waits, Kevin Corrigan
McDonagh returns! The director/writer behind the wonderful In Bruges returns with Seven Psychopaths! And, i've said this a lot already, but look at that cast!!! I'm not entirely sure what this movie is about, but i'm not going to look it up. That talent, in front and behind of the camera, is all I need to get excited about it.
29.Wreck-It Ralph
Release Date: November 12, 2012
Directed by Rich Moore
Written by ???? (Seriously. There's no writing credit to be found)
Starring John C. Reilly, Sarah Silverman, Jack McBrayer, Jane Lynch, Jamie Elman
This movie sounds like a love-letter to fans of video-games, past and present. To fully understand why it is, i'm going to paste the logline for this movie:
Quote:
Wreck-It Ralph (voice of Reilly) longs to be as beloved as his game's perfect Good Guy, Fix-It Felix (voice of McBrayer). Problem is, nobody loves a Bad Guy. But they do love heroes... so when a modern, first-person shooter game arrives featuring tough-as-nails Sergeant Calhoun (voice of Lynch), Ralph sees it as his ticket to heroism and happiness. He sneaks into the game with a simple plan -- win a medal -- but soon wrecks everything, and accidentally unleashes a deadly enemy that threatens every game in the arcade. Ralph's only hope? Vanellope von Schweetz (voice of Silverman), a young troublemaking "glitch" from a candy-coated cart racing game who might just be the one to teach Ralph what it means to be a Good Guy. But will he realize he is good enough to become a hero before it's "Game Over" for the entire arcade?
That it's also directed by a longtime The Simpsons/The Critic/Futurama guy means this movie should have the perfect tone of being hilarious and really quite sweet.
28. Lincoln
Release Date: December 2012
Directed by Steven Spielberg
Written by Tony Kushner
Starring Daniel Day-Lewis, Sally Field, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Gulliver McGrath, Tommy Lee Jones, David Strathairn, Lee Pace, Jackie Earle Haley, Gregory Itzin, Bruce McGill, Walton "The ****ing Best" Goggins, Gloria Reuben, Jared Harris, Wayne Duvall, David Oyelowo, James Spader, John Hawkes, Hal Holbrook, Tim Blake Nelson, Joseph Cross, David Costabile, Jeremy Strong, Dakin Matthews, S. Epatha Merkerson, Julie White
Once more: Holy ****, what a cast!!! i don't need to explain why this one is going to be good. Spielberg has been trying to make this movie for years, so this isn't something that has been thrown together. Liam Neeson was long cast as Lincoln, but departed due to him thinking he was too old to play the part. With the release of Abe Lincoln: Vampire Hunter also in 2012, I feel the people who cast that movie really screwed up by not casting Neeson in that role. He had researched Lincoln for years, and it would have combined his dramatic skills and his newly minted action hero status. But that's about that movie, which I don't really care about. Spielberg's Lincoln will be amazing, as DDL will almost certainly deliver.
27.Mud
Release Date: TBA 2012
Directed and Written by Jeff Nichols
Starring Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, Michael Shannon, Sarah Paulson, Sam Shepard, Ray McKinnon, Paul Sparks, Jon Don Baker, Tye Sheridan, Michael Abbott Jr., Stuart Greer
Jeff Nichols was the writer/director of one of my favourite movies of 2011 called Take Shelter, starring Michael Shannon. So I am instantly excited for whatever project he has coming up. I am happy that I don't have to wait long for it, as Mud comes out only a year later! Shannon returns, but this time in a supporting role, as Matthew McConaughey is the lead in this. I love that McConaughey is really trying to act again, and not just starring in disposable romcoms. He was great in the surprise-delight The Lincoln Lawyer this year, and he has plenty of other interesting movies in the pipeline (including the aforementioned Magic Mike).
26. Donny’s Boy
Release Date: June 15, 2012
Directed by Sean Anders, John Morris
Written by David Wain, Ken Marino, David Caspe
Starring Adam Sandler, Andy Samberg, James Caan, Leighton Meester, Susan Sarandon, Milo Ventimilglia, Will Forte, Rachel Dratch, Blake Clark, Colin Quinn, Todd Bridges, Ian Ziering, Vanilla Ice, Tony Orlando
My stance on Adam Sandler up front: By all accounts, he’s probably the nicest guy in show-business, and he seems like a really decent, funny dude. When I was young, I really enjoyed his ‘90s comedies (because all of his PG-13 comedies, whether from 1994 or 2011, are aimed at 8-13 year-olds). Since then, I liked the Robert Smigel/Judd Apatow-penned Zohan, and think he’s an incredibly talented dramatic actor (Funny People is his best performance, in my opinion, as it’s a great balance of his dramatic side, while also allowing him to be naturally funny). Movies like Grown Ups and Jack & Jill aren’t made for me, so I don’t harbour any ill-will towards them like most people.
That preamble aside, I am really looking forward to Donny’s Boy. It’s the first (non-Funny People) movie in many years that wasn’t directed by the inept Dennis Dugan (Dugan did Zohan, but anyone directing that movie could have made it good), and is instead directed by the writers behind the surprisingly funny Sex Drive (as well as She’s Out of My League, which I also hear was good). The script is also a knock-out of a credit, as it’s credited to David Wain and Ken Marino, as well as Happy Endings creator David Caspe. That, plus the idea of Sandler playing Andy Samberg’s dad seems way too perfect, and a recipe for a fun time. Having Will Forte in it (he’s on the shortlist for the Funniest Person Alive) also certainly doesn’t hurt.
25. The Silver Linings Playbook
Release Date: November 21, 2012
Directed and Written by David O. Russell
Starring Jennifer Lawrence, Bradley Cooper, Robert De Niro, Julia Stiles, Chris Tucker, Taylor Schilling, Shea Whigham, John Ortiz, Jacki Weaver
I am happy that David O. Russell had huge success with The Fighter, as I long felt he was very underrated. In 2012 he returns, with The Silver Linings Playbook, based on a popular novel, and it has quite the cast. Conventional wisdom would assume that, with O. Russell’s pedigree and the release date, that the studio is very confident in what they have, and think it could be an awards contender. I don’t doubt it, as I have yet to see a bad movie from him.
24. Untitled Todd Rohal Project
Release Date: TBA 2012 (but probably SXSW)
Directed and Written by Todd Rohal
Starring Patton Oswalt, Johnny Knoxville, Maura Tierney, Rob Riggle, Patrice O'Neal (RIP), Darrell Hammond, a bunch of kids
Another movie I saw this year that made me an instant fan of a director/writer was The Catechism Cataclysm, by Todd Rohal. His comedic sensibilities are very much in the David Gordon Green/Danny McBride/Jody Hill vein (all three of them produced Catechism,) which I adore. This upcoming movie stars Patton Oswalt and Johnny Knoxville, as two brothers that honour their ailing father’s wishes by taking a group of boy scouts on a camping trip. Things, as they say, go awry. I can’t wait to see how that happens.
23. Untitled Terence Malick Project
Release Date: TBA 2012 (but probably Cannes 2012)
Directed and Written by Terence Malick
Starring Ben Affleck, Rachel McAdams, Jessica Chastain, Rachel Weisz, Michael Sheen, Javier Bardem, Olga Kurylenko, Amanda Peet, Barry Pepper, Charles Baker
After years of tinkering/editing, The Tree of Life finally came out this year, and it was a really wonderful experience. With that movie off Malick’s shoulders, he has become sort of a workaholic, as not only does he has this untitled movie completed, he is getting ready to shoot two more movies in 2012 (both of them star Christian Bale, and many other wonderful actors). I love it! Keep the movies coming, Malick!
22. Dog Fight
Release Date: August 10, 2012
Directed by Jay Roach
Written by Chris Henchy, Shawn Harwell
Starring Will Ferrell, Zach Galifianakis, Jason Sudeikis, Dylan McDermott, Brian Cox, John Lithgow
Finally! Ferrell and Zach are doing a movie together! One major thing about this movie: Zach is shaving his beard!! He often does (like he did on SNL, or to play Seth Galifianakis,) but this is the first time he has done it for a major motion picture that he’s the star of. It’s about two rival politicians from South Carolina (I bet Ferrell uses his Ashley Schaffer voice) who are battling to become President of the United States. The script is co-written by Chris Henchy (who co-wrote The Other Guys,) and Shawn Harvell (a writer on the majority of the episodes for seasons 1 and 2 of Eastbound & Down,) which is a strong credit. I think this movie should be a lot of fun.
21. Prometheus
Release Date: June 8, 2012
Directed by Ridley Scott
Written by Damon Lindelof, Jon Spailhts
Starring Noomi Rapace, Charlize Theron, Michael Fassbender, Guy Pearce, Idris Elba, Kate Dickie, Ben Foster
Ridley Scott’s kinda-sorta-maybe prequel to Alien is pretty fascinating. It apparently began with Damon Lindelof (one of the two main guys behind Lost for its entire run) having a pitch for an original science fiction movie, and somewhere in there Ridley Scott got involved and brought the Alien stuff to it. I’m pretty murky on the details. The main point about this movie, though, is that after FOX’s huge success (both creatively and commercially,) with Rise of the Planet of The Apes this summer, they are maybe the best major studio in Hollywood today to make these major budget sci-fi movies. With that director, that screenwriter (not familiar with the second person credited,) and those people cast, this could be something quite special.
20. The Cabin in the Woods
Release Date: April 13, 2012
Directed by Drew Goddard
Written by Drew Goddard, Joss Whedon
Starring Richard Jenkins, Bradley Whitford, Jodelle Ferland, Jesse Williams, Chris Hemsworth, Anna Hutchinson, Keith David, Fran Kranz, Amy Acker
You know how long ago this movie was filmed? Chris Hemsworth wasn’t even cast (let alone filmed!) as Thor yet! The reason why the movie has yet to be released is a whole swarm of legal troubles with the studio MGM that are too boring to relay. The point: It’s actually coming out in 2012!!! The movie has had some early screenings this month, and the response has been rapturous. I really can’t wait to see what Goddard/Whedon did with this movie, though after watching the trailer that maybe showed a bit too much for my liking, I am going to avoid all future marketing, as it seems like it’s a movie that will be better experienced with knowing as little about it as possible.
19. Neighborhood Watch
Release Date: July 27, 2012
Directed by Akiva Schaffer
Written by Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg
Starring Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Jonah Hill, Richard Ayoade, Will Forte, Billy Crudup, Nicholas Braun, Rosemarie DeWitt, Joe Nunez
Similar to Donny’s Boy, this is another comedy that sounds like it can’t miss: Akiva “One Third of The Lonely Island, Director of Hot Rod” Schaffer directing a Seth Rogen/Evan Goldberg script, starring Stiller, Vaughn, Hill, UK comedy genius Richard Ayoade, Will Forte, and others. It just sounds like a good time at the movies.
18. Looper
Release Date: September 28, 2012
Directed and Written by Rian Johnson
Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis, Emily Blunt, Paul Dano, Jeff Daniels, Garret Dillahunt, Piper Perabo, Tracie Thoms
Rian Johnson, director of the movies Brick, and The Brothers Bloom (as well as the “Fly” episode of Breaking Bad, in addition to an episode of the beloved short-lived series Terriers,) is back with his third feature, titled Looper. It’s a time travel/sci-fi thing, in which a killer who works for “the mob of the future” (their words) recognizes that one of his targets is his future self. How wild is that??? Especially when it’s Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Bruce Willis playing the same person! There have been early test screenings of the movie, and people have been blown away by the movie, especially by the performances of Levitt and Willis. They apparently are really in tune to their mannerisms, and they make you believe that Joseph Gordon-Levitt would later become Bruce Willis. I’m all for intelligent and fascinating Sci-Fi on a big scale, so i’ll be there.
Sidenote: Shane Carruth, the director/writer/star of the 2004 indie sci-fi smash Primer (who hasn’t worked on a movie since then,) has apparently worked on Looper in some kind of capacity. Seeing as Primer also dealt with time travel, it’s very smart of Rian Johnson to tap into some of Carruth’s insight.
17. 21 Jump Street
Release Date: March 16, 2012
Directed by Phil Lord, Chris Miller
Written by Jonah Hill, Michael Bacall
Starring Jonah Hill, Channing Tatum, Ice Cube, Brie Larson, Ellie Kemper, Dave Franco, Rob Riggle, Jake Johnson, Johnny Simmons, Johnny Depp (cameo)
Let me break down the directing/writing credits for this movie:
Phil Lord, Chris Miller are comedy writers, who created the show Clone High, and wrote on How I Met Your Mother. Most recently, they wrote/directed the surprise hit Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, one of my favourite animated movies.
Jonah Hill: You know who he is.
Michael Bacall: While he started out as an actor, in recent years he has become a popular screenwriter. His best credit: Co-writing Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, with Edgar Wright.
OK, now are you excited? I think this movie is going to be really fun, as it looks like a mix between a John Hughes movie and Bad Boys.
16. Gravity
Release Date: November 21, 2012
Directed by Alfonso Cuaron
Written by Alfonso Cuaron, Jonas Cuaron, Rodrigo Garcia
Starring Sandra Bullock, George Clooney
You may look at that cast list and wonder why only two people are listed. Has the movie started shooting yet? It’s already completed. So, yes, there are only two people in the movie! And apparently Clooney’s part is fairly brief, too, so Bullock will be in the movie for the majority of the runtime by herself. This would be a gamble, if the amazing Alfonso Cuaron (making his long-awaited return to making movies, his first since Children of Men) didn’t write/direct it. Let me share a reaction of the movie from my close personal friend Guilleremo Del Toro (I wish):
Quote:
“I think what is incredible about what they did is, they talked to David Fincher, they talked to Jim Cameron… I connected Jim and Alfonso for that… And what Alfonso is trying, is so insane. And Jim said, ‘Well look, what you’re trying is about five years into the future.’ When James said that it’s too early to try anything that crazy… they did it.”
“I think he would kill me if I reveal, and in time it will be so publicized, but I think that in the way that he pushed the narrative on Children of Men… now in the lexicon of filmmaking some people say, ‘let’s do aChildren of Men’ and you know what they’re talking about. Alfonso and Emmanuel Lubezki are absolutely pushing a new boundary in filmmaking: completely mind-blowing. And the way they’re making that movie I think will forever change certain types of productions. The engineering and the ingenuity of the machines they’ve created to film that way is fantastic.”
So, yeah. That’ll be good #understatement.
15. Brave
Release Date: June 22, 2012
Directed by Mark Andrews, Brenda Chapman
Written by Brenda Chapman, Irene Mecchi
Starring Kelly Macdonald, Emma Thompson, Kevin McKidd, Robbie Coltrane, Julie Walters, Billy Connolly, Craig Ferguson
Pixar is finally back to making original movies again! We all loved Toy Story 3, but the reason why Pixar has the reputation that it does is because of its wonderful movies, based on original concepts, made by some of the best filmmakers around today. Brave looks like it will definitely continue that trend (despite a shake-up mid-way through filming where Brenda Chapman was fired, and replaced with Mark Andrews,) and I can’t wait to see it.
14. Marvel’s The Avengers
Release Date: May 4, 2012
Directed and Written by Joss Whedon
Starring Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Samuel L. Jackson, Tom Hiddleston, Cobie Smulders, Clark Gregg, Stellan Skarsgard
What is there to say about The Avengers? You know what this movie is. The people who are already looking forward to it are very excited for it. If you aren’t excited for it at this point, you never will be. I think Marvel hiring Joss Whedon to direct/write it is a bold choice, and a very exciting one. He has had hours of experience writing some of the best genre entertainment of the past 15-20 years, and he’ll be taking the job of The Avengers very seriously. I look forward to seeing what he did with the material.
13. Gangster Squad
Release Date: October 19, 2012
Directed by Ruben Fleischer
Written by Will Beall
Starring Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, Sean Penn, Josh Brolin, Anthony Mackie, Giovanni Ribisi, Michael Pena, Nick Nolte, Robert Patrick
I like Ruben Fleischer a lot, and I think he’s one of the most exciting directorial talents around. His first two movies (Zombieland, 30 Minutes or Less) are two movies that are very fun, brisk, funny, and less than 90 minutes. Gangster Squad is without a doubt his biggest task to date, because I mean. Look at that cast! I think the world of the four main guys from 30 Minutes or Less, but this cast is a huge step up, in the prestige department. Fleischer did some really fun action sequences in his first two movies, but those were practice for this thing. On paper, it looks like this movie can’t lose, and will be a fun time at the movies. I’m rooting for Fleischer.
12. The Dark Knight Rises
Release Date: July 20, 2012
Directed by Christopher Nolan
Written by Christopher Nolan, Jonathan Nolan (story by David S. Goyer, Christopher Nolan)
Starring Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Anne Hathaway, Tom Hardy, Marion Cotillard, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Morgan Freeman
Hey! Has anyone heard about this movie???? I had to do some real digging to find any information about it. It sounds pretty neat!
In all seriousness, i’ll be seeing the Prologue (which is playing in front of IMAX showings of Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol) on Saturday night, and I can’t wait for my first look at this movie.
11. Argo
Release Date: September 14, 2012
Directed by Ben Affleck
Written by Chris Terrio
Starring Ben Affleck, Bryan Cranston, John Goodman, Kyle Chandler, Alan Arkin, Kerry Bishe, Taylor Schilling, Tate Donovan, Michael Parks, Richard Kind, Clea DuVall, Chris Messina, Adrienne Barbeau
Hey! Remember when people made Ben Affleck jokes??? Those were dumb days.
I like Affleck as a director a lot (even though the very end of The Town still bothers me, as something that didn’t need to be shown,) and I look forward to whatever project he has coming up. Next up is ARGO, a movie set during the Iranian hostage crisis in which the US/Canada partnered to rescue six U.S. diplomats who were held hostage in the Iran embassy. The government was able to convince Iran that the hostages were part of a camera crew, scouting for a fictional film called, yep, Argo. It’s a pretty fascinating true story that should lend itself to a pretty great movie. What also helps: That the starring cast is SO DAMN GREAT. Affleck! Cranston! Goodman! Chandler! Arkin! Are you kidding me???? That cast shows that Affleck loves all the same cable dramas that I do!
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NEXT UP: 2012 MOVIES 10-01
Sorry for the delay. I've been having some weird computer problems that should hopefully resolve themselves very soon.
Awesome x29!!! Can't even express my thoughts, as there is too many and it would look like this "BATMANHOLYIRONMANEIJTU2H984Y5UEH45J4JW4I4W37834WY 4W84W43J4EWILL FERRELL!!"
I respect your taste in movies so much that, screw it, I'm going to do a full 40-11 RUNDOWN!
#40:
Quote:
Also great: the return of cast members from the first one including Human Giant member/The League cast member Paul Scheer (who actually shot a death scene in #1, but it was never used, so he was allowed back in,) Christopher Lloyd, and Ving Rhames (who very clearly dies in the first one, which makes it even funnier).
This blatant disregard of death scenes makes me wonder why I haven't seen the original Piranha 3D yet.
#39: The RZA, Russell Crowe...and Dave Bautista. Sure, why not?
#38: Casa de mi Padre is going to be really good or really bad, I have a feeling. Hope it's the former.
#37: Jesus, Walter Hill is back! AND he's directing a Stallone action film!
#36: I hope that Adam is right.
#35: My thoughts exactly. If it's not a recasting of Jason Bourne, then why are some people so up in arms about another Bourne movie? Because it has Bourne in the title? Who cares?
#34: BILL MURRAY AS FDR! BILL MURRAY AS FDR!
#33: Kevin Nash totally should have been referred to as "The Best" to offset Olivia.
#32: Jesus, a star-making vehicle for Aubrey and Donald? SIGN ME UP.
#31: Jesus, that's a couple of movies in a row with an insanely awesome cast, and Keira and Steve is a combo that we HAVEN'T seen before, so it should be interesting.
#30: Hell, he could make In Bruges 2.0 and I'd be there if only because Christopher Walken is involved in this one.
#29: Holy ****, how have I not heard about this piece of awesomeness before? And it's being directed by ****ing RICH MOORE? **** ME.
#28: Lincoln has the most impressive cast that I've seen so far. And, of course, DDL as Lincoln. I mean, it will be the surprise of the century if he doesn't deliver an Oscar-worthy performance.
#27: I haven't seen Take Shelter, but I'm still excited about this one just because you recommended it.
#26: Adam just seems to make very inconsistent film choices, in my eyes. It's not that I actively hate him or anything, I just think that he could be doing (and has been doing) so much better. This film looks like one of his better choices.
#25: Could very well be an Oscar contender, and I'm now interested in anything Jennifer Lawrence is in after seeing Winter's Bone (finally).
#24: Knoxville and Oswalt in a film together. This is the stuff that dreams are made of.
#23: Wow, after it took FOREVER to get Tree off the ground, it seems like he's trying to make up for that by making a ton of movies in rapid succession. I'm not complaining, though.
#22: Will vs. Zach: Finally, we will determine who the funniest man alive REALLY is.
#21: And we get to the first of my many Most Anticipated films. There is NO EXCUSE WHATSOEVER for this if it fails to deliver. None.
#20: Haven't seen the trailer, but I've only heard GREAT things. And hey, Richard Jenkins! I'm there just for him.
#19: Well, this one WASN'T on my Most Anticipated list before, but with a combination of THAT director with THAT writing team and THAT cast, how can it not be?
#18:
Quote:
It’s a time travel/sci-fi thing, in which a killer who works for “the mob of the future” (their words) recognizes that one of his targets is his future self.
That is one of the most badass ideas for any movie ever. And the stars are ****ing JGL and Bruce Willis, for god's sake!
#17: The pedigree is strong with this one. Johnny Depp having a cameo as Tom Hanson is just the icing on the top of the cake.
#16: Oh man, another of my most anticipated. Sandra! Clooney! ****ing Cuaron directing his first film since Children of Men!
#15: And yet another of my most anticipated. After the mess that was Cars 2, hopefully, this film will be the film that wipes our memory of that unpleasantness.
#14: Another of my most anticipated. Geez, we just KEEP ROLLING OFF THE HITS! Who ISN'T excited for this one?
#13: This could finally be the film that makes Ryan Gosling a major box office draw. Hell, even if it doesn't, I'll be there.
#12:
Quote:
Hey! Has anyone heard about this movie???? I had to do some real digging to find any information about it. It sounds pretty neat!
I bet it's just some comic book movie. Psh.
Look, I am REALLY looking forward to a film that will almost certainly be in the top ten of this very list. Badly looking forward to it. But this is the followup to THE DARK KNIGHT. It has Tom Hardy as ****ing Bane. It will be the last time we see Nolan direct a Batman film (probably). I would be surprised if it doesn't at least come close to breaking Potter's new opening weekend, also. My most anticipated film of 2012, and only one film can honestly come close...which we'll get to soon enough.
#11: Holy ****, they're finally going to make a film based on the Argo rescue! And it stars Ben Affleck and Bryan Cranston! Holy ****! Add yet another to my "Most Anticipated"list.
10. The Dictator
Release Date: May 11, 2012
Directed by Larry Charles
Written by Sacha Baron Cohen, Alec Berg, Jeff Schaffer, David Mandel
Starring Sacha Baron Cohen, Anna Faris, Jason Mantzoukas, Ben Kingsley
If this list was posted a week ago, The Dictator would have charted at around #7. Since then, there's been the release of an only-OK trailer (with the end gag being really funny). I know trailers mismarket comedies all the time, especially R-Rated comedies (since marketing departments that make trailers are of an entirely different branch from the filmmakers that made the movie itself). So, what excites me about this movie?
- First off, it's Sacha Baron Cohen, one of the funniest people there is, in his first major scripted starring vehicle (i'm pretending like Ali G In Da House doesn't exist). He'll be playing two roles in this movie (ala Eddie Murphy in Coming to America or Eddie Murphy in Anything), one as the Dictator from the title and poster, and the other as a goat herder.
- The movie is written by Sacha and three comedy writing vets: Alec Berg, Jeff Schaffer, David Mandel. All three of those guys wrote for multiple seasons on Seinfeld, and also are the chief producers (along with Larry David) of coming up with stories/directing episodes on Curb Your Enthusiasm. Schaffer also co-created the very funny FX fantasy football comedy The League, which shares some DNA with Curb/Seinfeld. So yeah, these guys are the goods.
- Larry Charles, another Seinfeld/Curb vet (he wrote many of my all-time favourite Seinfeld episodes, including the episode where George pushes the children out of the way when he thinks there's a fire in the building), directs the movie, his third with Sacha, as he also directed Borat and Bruno. Charles is a brilliant comedy force, so whether this movie starred Sacha or not, a new Larry Charles movie is an event, to me.
- While Anna Faris and Ben Kingsley are great talents, i'd like to focus on the other member of the starring cast: Jason Mantzoukas. To me, he's one of the funniest people in the world, and if the movie is good, it could be a major launching off point for his career. He's probably best known as playing the character of Raffi on Schaffer's The League, which is an insanely deranged and absurd character that never fails to make me laugh. He's done various other guest spots on TV shows (he had a small but very funny part on the latest episode of Parks and Recreation), and he's always done great work. There are many reasons why I am rooting for The Dictator to be great/be a hit, and certainly one of the chief reasons is for Mantzoukas.
So yeah. The trailer wasn't the best. The reasons listed above are the reasons why I still have hope for it, and why I am still anticipating its May 2012 release.
09. Cogan’s Trade
Release Date: TBA 2012
Directed and Written by Andrew Dominik
Starring Brad Pitt, Ray Liotta, Scoot McNairy, Richard Jenkins, James Gandolfini, Sam Shepard, Garret Dillahunt
Andrew Dominik. Who is that, you ask? Ohhhh, just the writer/director behind Chopper and The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. Those aren't just the highlights of his filmography; that IS his filmography! He got many Terrence Malick comparisons for Jesse James, but I guess he probably didn't realize that those comparisons would stick, especially in terms of his long process of getting another movie made. This one, Cogan's Trade, is based off a popular British crime novel, and has a cracker jack cast. I don't know much about it, beyond that (by purpose), but that's really all I need to know going in. There were rumblings months ago that this would be a February/March 2012 release, but the absence of any marketing probably means that won't happen. So, hopefully the summer? Winter, spring, summer or fall, all Andrew Dominik has to do is release this movie! I just did that to the tune of "You've Got a Friend". How stupid.
08. Twylight Zones (working title)
Release Date: October 19, 2012
Directed and Written by David Chase
Starring Jack Huston, John Magaro, Will Brill, James Gandolfini, Christopher McDonald, Brad Garrett, Lisa Lampanelli, Isiah “Sheeeeeeeeeeeee-it” Whitlock Jr., Molly Price
David Chase, mother****er! The creator of The Sopranos is BACK with his first project since that beloved series ended. It's a "music-driven coming-of-age story," centered on the lead singer of a teenage rock 'n roll band in 1960s New Jersey. The young cast includes John Magaro, Will Brill, and Jack "Richard Harrow from Boardwalk Empire AKA The Greatest Character Ever Invented" Huston. The cast is quite wild, as it also includes a Sopranos reunion with James Gandolfini, Christopher "Shooter McGavin" McDonald, Brad Garrett, and Lisa Lampanelli. You may look at that cast, and be like WHAAAAA? But then you have to understand that Chase cast Little Steven from the E-Street Band (who had 0 acting experience) in a pretty big role for the whole run of The Sopranos. He's got a good eye for these things.
Speaking of Little Steven! He will serve as an execitive producer, and music supervisor, which is pretty fantastic. Beyond his E-Street Band bonafides, he's got a great knowledge for garage rock that I imagine should suit this movie very well.
This movie is very much of an unknown quality, but Chase has a pretty fantastic track record, so you should never doubt him (especially on something that he both wrote AND directed).
07. Moonrise Kingdom
Release Date: May 25, 2012
Directed by Wes Anderson
Written by Wes Anderson, Roman Coppola
Starring Jared Gilman, Kara Hayward, Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, Bill Murray, Frances McDormand, Tilda Swinton, Harvey Keitel, Jason Schwartzman, Bob Balaban, Owen Wilson
Wes Anderson returns! I'm a huge fan of his, even when it's a movie I don't entirely love (Darjeeling Limited is probably my least favourite) there are still enough good things about it that I have never felt cheated after watching one of his movies. His last movie, Fantastic Mr. Fox, in my opinion stacks up with his very best, and has become an unofficial pretty fantastic Thanksgiving movie to get you in the spirit of the season.
Moonrise Kingdom is another movie set in the 1960s (trend!), about a part of young lovers (Jared Gilman, Kara Hayward) flee their New England town, which causes a local search party to go out and find them. Assuming the search party includes many of the amazing names above (I can't even picture Bruce Willis in a Wes Anderson movie, which is the reason why I love the casting so much), it should be very entertaining. Also, with the '60s setting and Anderson's track record, we should be getting a pretty killer soundtrack. Some Kinks and Rolling Stones songs, I would have to imagine.
06. The Five-Year Engagement
Release Date: April 27, 2012
Directed by Nick Stoller
Written by Nick Stoller, Jason Segel
Starring Jason Segel, Emily Blunt, Alison Brie, Chris Pratt, Rhys Ifans, Kevin Hart, Mindy Kaling, Jacki Weaver, Brian Posehn, Jim Piddock, Mimi Kennedy, David Paymer, Dakota Johnson
Nick Stoller and Jason Segel, fresh off the experience of co-writing The Muppets together could deservely take a break for a while, especially as Jason Segel films How I Met Your Mother for many months out of the year. Nope! Just as soon as The Muppets wrapped and Segel's HIMYM season ended, they got to work on shooting The Five-Year Engagement. Amazing!
The Five-Year Engagement is Stoller's third film as director (Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Get Him to The Greek), and it seems like this one will very much be in the same vein as Sarah Marshall (especially as Judd Apatow is on board as a producer). The concept behind the movie is something I can't seem to recall being done in a movie before (or at least to this extent), and it should lead to multiple very funny situations. The cast assembled is very strong, typical for an Apatow production, and come on, Alison Brie in a British accent. Look out The Dark Knight Rises! We have a movie that could beat you at the box office next year!
Segel/Stoller (the best song-writing team that never was) really have a great sense of what makes a romantic comedy actually funny, as opposed to being trite, and also a good sense of placing their characters in relatable situations. While i'm not entirely sure that it will reach Bridesmaids' highs at the box office, I think it could very likely come close, as it seems, judging by the trailer, that they have a potential big hit (both artistically and commercially) on their hands.
05. Wanderlust
Release Date: February 24, 2012
Directed by David Wain
Written by David Wain, Ken Marino
Starring Paul Rudd, Jennifer Aniston, Justin Theroux, Malin Akerman, Lauren Ambrose, Joe Lo Truglio, Kathryn Hahn, Alan Alda, Ken Marino, Jordan Peele, Kerri Kenney-Silver, Michaela Watkins, Ray Liotta, Todd Barry, Melissa Joan Hart, Reba McEntire
Hey! I placed this movie last year on the list! I typed A LOT about it, so let me just try to remember what I said:
Blah blah blah David Wain is one of the best comedy directors making movies today blah blah blah Paul Rudd is fantastic blah blah blah Judd Apatow and David Wain teaming up together seems like a natural fit blah blah blah Jennifer Aniston can be great if given good material (The Good Girl, Office Space) blah blah blah Great cast blah blah blah Paul Rudd seems the most comfortable with either Apatow or Wain, so to have him working for both should lead to some very winning results blah blah blah.
I really loved the trailer, and this is another comedy (like Apatow's The Five-Year Engagement) that I can't see disappointing.
04. The Master
Release Date: TBA 2012
Directed and Written by Paul Thomas Anderson
Starring Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Adams, Laura Dern, Kevin J. O’Connor, Jesse Plemons, Rami Malek
Hey! Look who's back! It's PTA!!
This movie filmed over the summer, and is currently in post-production work. Jonny Greenwood is composing the score to this one, reuniting with PTA after their very successful collaboartation on There Will Be Blood.
Early drafts of this movie were apparently a veiled take on Scientology, but I believe the current draft has removed much of that. Some sources say it isn't even called The Master anymore, so i'm not sure what to believe. The point: PTA shot a movie this year, with that cast (including Joaquin Phoenix's first major role since I'm Still Here), and The Weinstein Company plans to release it sometine in 2012. That's all I need to know.
BTW: PTA and Maya Rudolph: Great Couple or the Greatest Couple?
03. Django Unchained
Release Date: December 25, 2012
Directed and Written by Quentin Tarantino
Starring Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo Dicaprio, Kurt Russell, Kerry Washington, Samuel L. Jackson, Don Johnson, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Sacha Baron Cohen, RZA, Anthony LaPaglia, Gerald McRaney, Tom Savini, James Remar
Hey! Look who's back! It's QT!!
It's funny how it was timed out like this, as QT has given interviews where he said that he belives his main competition is PTA. The reason why Inglourious Basterds was so good? Because he saw There Will Be Blood, and wanted to top it. It's a friendly competition, between two of the best filmmakers we have currently. Funny enough, The Weinstein Company are releasing BOTH The Master and Django Unchained. So the point being, the real winner in all of this is Harvey Weinstein.
So! Django! You all likely know the story behind this one (A slave-turned-bounty hunter, with the help of his mentor, sets out to rescue his wife from a brutal Mississippi plantation owner), so I won't go on about it. Let's instead just marvel at this cast. Wow! It's such a weird and exciting cast, typical for a QT movie. I can't wait to see these actors interact with each other, spouting off QT dialogue. It just sounds like such a fun movie, similar in a lot of ways to Basterds.
The Christmas Day release also couldn't be more perfect (in fact, it's a callback to Jackie Brown, which Weinstein also released on Christmas Day 1997). I am so excited for this movie. I wish it was in front of my eyes right now.
02. Tim and Eric’s Billion Dollar Movie
Release Date: January 27, 2012 (Video on Demand), March 2, 2012 (In Theaters)
Directed and Written by Tim Heidecker, Eric Wareheim
Starring Tim Heidecker, Eric Wareheim, Will Ferrell, John C. Reilly, Zach Galifianakis, Will Forte, Jeff “Chef” Goldblum, Robert Loggia, Ray Wise, William Atherton, Michael Gross, A.D. Miles, Erica Durance
Hey! What happens when Tim and Eric make a feature-length movie?? Judging by the recently released trailer - magic happens.
This is going to be the most punk rock movie released in theaters next year. That Tim and Eric convinced their all-star buddies Will Ferrell, John C. Reilly, Zach Galifianakis, Will Forte, Jeff Goldblum, Ray Wise to join in on the action makes it even better! Then, they convinced some really wild names like Robert Loggia (what????), William Atherton (what?????), and Michael Gross (WHAT?????) to be in the movie is just the icing on the cake.
This movie will be released very soon (note the release dates above) which makes me so giddy. I've been a Tim and Eric fan since Tom Goes to the Mayor, and I think, while you see plenty of people imitating them nowadays in commercials and TV shows, no one has gotten it right. Tim and Eric's humor isn't just absurd **** happening at every second. As weird as it is to say, there's an actual heart behind what they do, and you buy into the characters that they have created. The short films that they did for HBO's Funny or Die Presents were a great dry-run for making the movie, as it was really absurdist stuff, mixed in with some really weird and touching character beats. Before making sketches and comedy shorts, Tim and Eric both went to filmschool, and wanted to make actual movies (with David Lynch as an obvious influence on them early-on). So , Tim and Eric's Billion Dollar Movie is a great culmaniation in everything that they have accomplished, and everything they have been striving for, since college.
01. This is Forty
Release Date: December 21, 2012
Directed and Written by Judd Apatow
Starring Paul Rudd, Leslie Mann, Albert Brooks, Megan Fox, Lena Dunham, Chris O’Dowd, Melissa McCarthy, Charlyne Yi, Robert Smigel, Annie Mumolo, John Lithgow, Wyatt Russell, Ryan Lee, Maude Apatow, Iris Apatow, Jason Segel (cameo), Graham Parker & The Rumour
Apatow Back, Apatow Back.
I don't think my choice for my #1 most anticipated movie for 2012 is a surprise to a lot of you, but yeah.
I think This is Forty is going to be a special movie. First, you have the pretty fantastic idea of it being a Knocked Up spin-off of sorts, in terms of following the charcters of Pete and Debbie (Rudd and Mann) years later after the events of Knocked Up. I think it's a smart idea, as the Pete and Debbie stuff really is the heart of Knocked Up, I think. The scene with Debbie outside of the club, after being kicked out by the bouncer, with her being sad that she's growing older, and the scene with Pete in the Vegas hotel on shrooms seem like the logicial points where This is Forty picks up on. I believe Apatow once said that the idea for the movie came from wondering how Paul Rudd got as happy as he did at the kids birthday party, after he had been depressed on shrooms in Vegas, as it isn't shown what happens in-between.
There's a lot of factors going into this movie. One, it follows Funny People underperforming (a movie in which I will debate for hours, as I think it's the best thing Apatow's ever done, and I get something new out of it each time I watch it,) which critics of the movie thought had too much drama and not enough comedy. As stated, I will debate that movie's merits for 3 hours if I have to, so I disagree with that, but I believe Apatow is trying to strike a balance between having the humor of Knocked Up, while containing the deep, emotional truths that Funny People had. I think the December release is very smart, as I think its the release date that Funny People should have had, as people then don't have the expectation that it's a light and breezy comedy.
Other interesting things of note about this movie: Bridesmaids' massive success signified a new chapter in the Apatow Productions line (as Rogen, Hill, Segel are all off making their own movies now), which means that Bridesmaids favourites Chris O'Dowd and Melissa McCarthy (as well as co-writer of the movie Annie Mumolo) are cast in the movie. Also, SNL writing vet Paula Pell (she was and still is a major force in the writers room on the show, from the Tina Fey era to today) is on board as a co-producer, which should shift away the criticism that Apatow's movies are too male-centric (a claim I also disagree with), as she was on set helping give a second opinion on where a scene should go/alt jokes.
Gosh, what else. Albert Brooks is playing Paul Rudd's father! Holy ****ing ****! Lena Dunham is cast in a pretty big supporting role, after Apatow exec-produced her upcoming HBO series GIRLS. Robert Smigel is acting in it! Megan Fox is continuing her comedic acting career (which I think is smart, as I think she's gotten a bad rap)! Charlyne Yi is returning as her Knocked Up character! Jason Segel is making a cameo as his Knocked Up character (which makes sense, since his character was so obsessed with Debbie in the movie). Seth Rogen, however, won't be making an appearance, which is probably for the best, as it further signifies the difference between the two movies.
I probably typed way too much about it, but this is what happens when you have a movie that's your #1 most anticipated. You know how people go scouring the internet for clues for The Dark Knight Rises? That's how I am with Apatow movies, such as This is Forty. Finding out about Jason Segel's cameo was MY Selina Kyle moment!
NEXT UP: Not sure! Maybe i'll finally start the Top 40 albums. Actually, I think that is def what will happen next.
Thanks for all the comments (especially Ryan, for his very comprehensive and very fun to read comment. It's nice to know someone reads these write-ups!).
Okay, since it wasn't mentioned, I'm just going to go on ahead and tell you my thoughts that I hinted at earlier with TDKR: The only film that can possibly come close to the hype that I am experiencing right now for TDKR is The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. I guess that I'm more surprised that it didn't even make the Runners-Up area, but c'est la vie. I mean, my god, it has Andy Serkis returning as Gollum and Ian McKellan returning as Gandalf! Martin Freeman as Bilbo Baggins! Richard Armitage as Thorin Oakenshield! Elijah Wood returning! Christopher Lee returning! Howard Shore is composing! And ****ing Peter Jackson is back in the director's chair! I CAN'T STOP USING EXCLAMATION POINTS! And really, when it boils down to it, the biggest reason I'm so stoked is because, finally, these characters will be back in my life again, if only for a couple of years. That is the greatest gift of all.
Alright, let's get to the actual top ten.
10) Borat and Raffi in the same film? MIND****. TOTAL AND UTTER MIND****. And THOSE WRITERS! If nothing else, I'm excited because of the writing team on board for this one.
9) This film's title really should be "The Assassination of Cogan's Trade by the Coward Insert Reason Here".
8) Chase and Gandolfini together again! Should be a really fun time.
7) That picture of Harvey Keitel alone has me super stoked. You didn't even need to say that Wes Anderson was directing, but that's the icing on the top of this Bruce Willis-esque cake.
6) Alison Brie with an English accent. ALISON BRIE...WITH AN ENGLISH ACCENT. Eat your heart out, Dark Knight Returns.
5) I wouldn't be able to separate #6 and #5, because they're both equally good-looking and both seem genuinely charming and not annoying. Tough call, and I'm amazed you were able to decide.
4)
Quote:
BTW: PTA and Maya Rudolph: Great Couple or the Greatest Couple?
I don't know, Mark Duplass and Katie Aselton is a pretty god damn great couple. I guess that couple is up there.
3) Another of my most anticipated. If nothing else, I cannot WAIT to see what Kurt Russell does with such a cruel and conniving role. If it's anywhere near his greatness in Death Proof, we are all in for a treat.
2) I, for one, am extremely behind when it comes to Tim & Eric, but that CAST, man. MICHAEL ****ING GROSS, TOO?! Given that he's one of the most critically underrated comic actors of his generation, that pleases me so much.
1) Yeah, I kind of figured this would be #1. Judd Apatow back in the director's chair, the film being a spin-off of one of the greatest comedies ever made, Jason Segel in the film with his Knocked Up character (easily one of the highlights of that movie), Albert ****ing Brooks is Paul Rudd's dad (which may just be one of the greatest and most logical casting decisions ever), and I'm even excited about Megan Fox's role in the movie, and I cannot STAND her. Another of my Most Anticipated, obviously.
Oh yeah, The Hobbit. I have nothing at all against the LOTR stuff, and I love Peter Jackson, but it's just not really my thing. It is almost certainly one of the big movie events of 2012, and every reason you listed is a legit big deal. It's just not in my wheelhouse. I hope it's a great movie and a big success for the fans who have been awaiting it. And yes, Duplass/Aselton are definitely one of the other great couples.
Reminder: This was the most difficult Top 40 Albums list I have put together in some time. Throughout this year-end i'll be posting the albums that just missed the cut, which is a good selection of at least 10 or so albums. And GREAT albums, at that!
Let's begin:
40. Coldplay - Mylo Xyloto
My #40 album shares a lot with my #39 album (no peeking!), in that if you like the bands’ previous albums, you will likely love their latest album. If you don’t, you won’t. Both bands have a ton of very vocal people who dislike them for being too “samey,” and not doing anything of merit. Hogwash, I say!
I like Coldplay, I always have. Of course there are plenty of other bands/artists that do more adventurous things, and I love them for that. But I know what i’m getting with a new Coldplay album, which is why I have loved every album they have put out.
Mylo Xyloto is a pretty great Coldplay album that experiments with some electronic elements. Brian Eno, who produced Viva la Vida, worked on Mylo Xyloto as well, but in a very different capacity: As a member of the band. That’s why when you look at the songwriting/composition credits, you see Eno’s name on every song on the album (credited as “Enoxification.”) Just the idea of Brian Eno working with Rihanna on a song is something I never would have predicted a year ago, but it works! That song, “Princess of China,” is the most overt-pop song on here (on an album full of overt-pop songs), and I think it’s a very strong pop record that gives equal time to both Coldplay and Rihanna. I also quite like the ballads on this album, such as “Us Against the World,” as they are these slow-building U2-like (which makes sense, as Eno has been a chief U2 collaborator since The Unforgettable Fire) things that pack a punch.
Mylo Xyloto is an album in which Coldplay have added maybe 4-5 concert staples to their repertoire for as long as they are a band making music. If only Greatest Hits were still a thing, as Coldplay have been building a pretty fantastic one for nearly a decade thus far.
Best Songs:
01. Major Minus
02. Us Against the World
03. Hurts like Heaven
39. Red Hot Chilli Peppers - I'm With You
Hey! It’s the other band that gets a lot of **** that I was talking about!
I can’t explain the appeal of RHCP to people who don’t like them. Everything that critics of the band slam them with (Anthony Kiedis’s ridiculous rapped lyrics, Flea’s funky-Phish-like bass, the amount of times they have done songs about California) sound bad on paper, but it really appeals to me. Could it because I have loved the band since 2000, and it brings nostalgia to me whenever I hear one of their songs/albums? Maybe.
Anyway, the case with I’m With You, is that this was the first album without long-time lead guitarist John Frusciante, and I was worried about this album because of that. I loved Frusciante’s guitar-work, and when Stadium Arcadium went on too long (ATRL member Omega “Calvin McHobbes” Red has often said that people would look back more fondly on the album if they released the two CDs separately with a gap in between, which I can’t disagree with), his insane guitar work definitely woke me up. So the new guy could not compete with Frusciante’s legacy with the band. The new guy (who I don’t even know the name of, though I could very easily look it up) tackles Frusciante’s workload by not just playing guitar, but also by playing the keyboard! It’s a new sound for the band, and it really works.
Again, like the Coldplay album, I think any fan of the band is guaranteed to love this album, and I would be confused to hear otherwise. Favourites on the album include “Even You Brutus?” a piano-based song with a killer groove and hook, the moving “Brendan’s Death Song” the joyous “Dance Dance Dance”, the trumpet (!!!) featured “Did I Let You Know”* If you’re a RHCP fan, there’s a lot to love on I’m With You. So, if you aren’t listening to the album, as you think Frusciante’s presence will be missed, i’d suggest you give the album a shot. I’d bet you end up liking it.
*My favourite part of the song (and maybe the album) is when that guitar solo just ROARS into the song, nearly scaring you, like a mountain lion on your car seat, ala Talladega Nights. That it’s followed 10 or so seconds after by Kiedis laughing “HA HA!”, as he is well aware of how badass this is sounding, makes it even better.
Best Songs:
01. Even You Brutus?
02. Did I Let You Know
03. Dance Dance Dance
38. Raphael Saadiq - Stone Rollin'
Raphael Saadiq: America’s premier R&B revivalist.
I really liked Saadiq’s last album, The Way I See It, which was similar to Stone Rollin’, in that it was a decidedly retro album. So, i’m happy that he has continued this wave of his career, as I feel he could do 50 of these kinds of albums, without breaking a sweat. Not only is Saadiq a great singer/songwriter/guitarist, but he produced Stone Rollin’, as well, which is pretty amazing. The sound of this album is unreal. I think you could have a bath in the production of “Go to Hell,” as it is so full-sounding, and transports you back to 1965 in an instant. However, Saadiq isn’t just Doc Brown, as his songwriting is clever and universal. Just because the sound of this album isn’t the current trend of R&B doesn’t mean that Hot 97 couldn’t play this, as they very well could and should.
One of my favourite music-related TV moments from 2011 was when Mick Jagger did a tribute for the late Solomon Burke at the Grammys, which included Saadiq backing him on guitar. Jagger had more energy than anyone else there, multiple decades younger than him, and it was such an electrifying performance. Similar to Stone Rollin’, it proved that you don’t necessarily need to jump on the latest trends to grab an audiences’ attention. If the talent is there, it could even be ragtime music! Saadiq, that’s your next assignment. Make ragtime hip again.
Best Songs:
01. Go to Hell
02. Heart Attack
03. Just Don’t
37. Kendrick Lamar - Section.80
Kendrick Lamar excites me. Here’s a Compton-based rapper that can rap his ****ing ass off, has an ear for making great songs, and is very of the moment. Sure, you could point to many rappers who follow the similar trajectory, but either they put out maybe one song a year (Jay Electronica) or the second they get a major label deal they turn pop and lose everything that made them special in the first place (B.o.B., J. Cole, Yelawolf, many, many other examples). I don’t sense this happening to Lamar, though.
For one thing, Section.80 (a “digital album,” which is half-way between a mixtape and an official album) is the album that has gotten him the attention and work. What attention? He was chosen by Drake to be one of his openers on his current tour (which also includes ASAP Rocky, which is a really tremendous line-up of what hip-hop looks like in 2011), and is also featured on Drake’s Take Care (which is coming later in the list). Probably the most significant thing, however, is that he was chosen by Dr. Dre to be one of the main featured rappers on Detox. Yes, this has happened to a lot of rappers in the past (Bishop Lamont is MIA), but the way Dre speaks about Lamar (as well as another upcoming rapper Slim the Mobster, who will also be featured on Detox) you can really hear the excitement in his voice. Whether Detox comes out or not, it certainly doesn’t hurt to have a connection to Dre in your career.
So, what about Section.80 itself? I think it’s the best starting off point to becoming a fan of his. As it really is an album of sorts, with plenty of wonderful songs. If you want to listen to one song, to hear how great of a rapper Lamar is, listen to “Rigamortis,” a rapping exercise that puts everyone else to shame. Other great tracks include “A.D.H.D.” a drug-fueled story that is simply an engrossing listen, and “Kush & Corinthians,” a song about justice and morals, with a smooth-as-**** beat.
Kendrick Lamar is set to release his major label debut (released by Dre’s Aftermath Entertainment) next year, so consider Section.80 your primer to get you prepared for his debut. It will almost certainly be one of hip-hop’s most anticipated releases of the next year.
This is a really nice album. Tell Me, the second album by Kent, Ohio singer/songwriter Jessica Lea Mayfield, is the first album of her’s that I have heard, but I guess I heard her years ago, without knowing who she was. She was the female vocalist on The Black Keys’ “Things Ain’t Like They Used To Be,” from 2007’s Attack & Release (the first guest vocalist to ever be featured on a Black Keys song). Her voice is also featured on Dan Auerbach’s beautiful song “When the Night Comes,” from his 2009 solo album Keep it Hid. With all these connections to Auerbach, it only makes sense that Auerbach would produce an album for her.
To Auerbach’s credit, it isn’t a Black Keys record with a female vocalist, as it’s very much Mayfield’s own thing (though Auerbach comes in with some backing vocals every once in a while). Standout track from the album “Our Hearts are Wrong,” is this really haunting little thing that just sticks with you. In an alternate universe, this would be a massive modern rock hit. I absolutely love her voice, as whether she’s singing about seeing blue skies again on, you guessed it, “Blue Skies Again” (a really tremendous pop song), or singing about how “she’s rather die young, than be forgotten” on “Somewhere In Your Heart,” her voice has this great weary sadness quality to it, advanced for her young age. I think she’s got plenty where this came from, and I can’t wait to follow her career in the coming years.
Best Songs:
01. Our Hearts are Wrong
02. Blue Skies Again
03. Nervous Lonely Night
NEXT UP: One more albums set of 5, very likely. Then I will begin the TV List. I’ll try to post the next albums set, and start the TV List before Saturday. No guarantees, though.
Thanks for everyone who has commented! And I wish I had berberocka’s time machine, as I would LOVE to watch Wanderlust!
I blame "Ethiopia" on my indifference with #39. That said, there are some definite highlights: "Brendan's Death Song", "Monarchy of Roses" and "Even You, Brutus?" are my clear favorite songs from IWY.
Quote:
My #40 album shares a lot with my #39 album (no peeking!), in that if you like the bands’ previous albums, you will likely love their latest album. If you don’t, you won’t.
My problem with Mylo is that it seemed like, in some cases, they were being complacent, and, in other cases, they were trying to do WAY too much. But when they just stuck to doing what they do best, it was, as always, very effective. (See: "Paradise".)