2014 has been a great year at the movies, but 2015 has the potential to be even better.
After 2013 brought incredible smaller films but perhaps a lackluster number of quality blockbusters, 2014 was a change of pace that brought about incredibly satisfying blockbusters like Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Guardians of the Galaxy but maybe not as many smaller films that reached the heights of 2013 counterparts, though films like Boyhood and Gone Girl would play well in any year.
2015 looks like it will have high quality blockbusters and smaller films.
In years past, I’ve attempted to make this list a please-all and have been wholly unsuccessful in the process, so this year this will be a personal list of my 15 most anticipated films of the year. I invite you to take to the comments to contribute your own personal selections.
15. ‘Jurassic World’
I haven’t watched the Jurassic World trailer and have only heard mediocre things about it, but I’m still incredibly excited for the film.
Much of this is due to how much I enjoyed Safety Not Guaranteed, the first movie from director Colin Trevorrow, written by Derek Connolly. The film had a number of elements that will undoubtedly carry over quite well to this universe, but what truly made it special was its great use of character. Trevorrow and Connolly wrote the Jurassic World script together, so hopefully the much bigger film will be able to capture some of the smaller qualities of their prior film. And, of course, it’s a Jurassic Park sequel that looks to be very much in the vein of the original. It’ll be a success if it can avoid some of the other sequels’ pitfalls.
Jurassic World‘s promising cast includes Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Jake Johnson, Judy Greer, Nick Robinson, Ty Simpkins, Katie McGrath, Vincent D’Onofrio, Lauren Lapkus, Omar Sy, and Jurassic Park vet BD Wong. I’ll be interested in hearing Michael Giacchino’s score and see how much he borrows from John Williams’ iconic themes.
Be welcome to ‘Jurassic World’ on June 12
14. ‘Trainwreck’
Amy Schumer is hilarious, and her first film likely will be too.
Judd Apatow is a director, but first and foremost he’s a writer. That makes it very interesting that Trainwreck will be the first film he’s directing in which he’s not credited as a screenwriter. The sole credited screenwriter on Trainwreck is Amy Schumer, who also stars in the film. Not much is known about the film’s plot, but Apatow taking it on without working on the script himself is a sign that it’s sure to be hilarious. Given Inside Amy Schumer, this is a fairly safe bet. Schumer has said in interviews that the film is somewhat autobiographical, making it fitting for her to make her leading role big screen debut.
Bill Hader has Trainwreck‘s second lead role, LeBron James has a pivotal role, and the cast also includes Daniel Radcliffe, Brie Larson, Tilda Swinton, Marisa Tomei, Ezra Miller, Vanessa Bayer, Method Man, Mike Birbiglia, Katy Mixon, and Randall Park, among others.
Watch a major ‘Trainwreck’ on July 17
13. ‘Silence’
Martin Scorsese has been wanting to make Silence for more than a decade, and it’s finally happening.
This passion project of Scorsese’s is based on the novel of the same name written by Shusako Endo. It takes place in the 17th century and follows two Jesuit priests facing violence and persecution when they travel to Japan to locate their mentor and spread Christianity. It’s definitely a far cry from any of Scorsese’s recent projects like The Wolf of Wall Street, Hugo, Shutter Island, and The Departed. The film currently has no release date, but Paramount is tentatively planning to release the film in November, right in the heart of Oscar season where it will likely do very well.
Silence will have a terrific cast that includes Liam Neeson, Andrew Garfield, Ken Watanabe, and Adam Driver. The script is from Scorsese’s Gangs of New York scribe Jay Cocks. There’s currently no footage available from the film, so in lieu of a trailer I’ve included a completely unrelated but absolutely terrific video essay from the YouTube channel Every Frame a Painting about Scorsese’s use of silence throughout the years.
Experience the ‘Silence’ this fall
12. ‘Joy’
Jennifer Lawrence is re-teaming with David O. Russell again, and this project sounds very unexpected.
In Joy, Lawrence will play the role of Joy Mangano, inventor of the Miracle Mop. It sounds like a very different project than Silver Linings Playbook and American Hustle, Lawrence and Russell’s previous two collaborations. Since The Fighter, Russell has used a small number of actors which will continue with Joy. Robert De Niro has signed on to play Lawrence’s father in the film and Russell is writing a role for Bradley Cooper as well. Russell has utilized them in three subsequent films now. With no footage from the film due for some time, I’ve included one of Lawrence’s great scenes in her Oscar winning performance.
“It’s the story of a certain woman, what’s going on inside her from a young girl, broke, to when she becomes a bit of a mogul, a bit of a power broker,” Russell explains of Lawrence’s Joy Mangano role. “And the people she’s surrounded by are extremely … she has very complicated, deep, personal family relationships, which are the bane of her and the reason she is who she is.”
Cry out in ‘Joy’ on December 25
11. ‘Inside Out’
After a year off, Pixar is back with Inside Out.
And it’s back with a film from Pete Docter, one of their best minds. Docter has directed Monster’s Inc. and Up, easily two of Pixar’s best, and contributed as a writer on Toy Story, Toy Story 2, and WALL·E. He’s the sole writer and director credited to Inside Out, so the film will be entirely a product of his imagination. And the film sounds really interesting. Set inside the mind of a girl who has just moved to San Francisco, the film follows the five emotions emotions – named Sadness, Joy, Fear, Disgust, and Anger – inside the control center of her mind where they conflict on how to best navigate through her new life.
As usual in Pixar films, Inside Out has a terrific voice cast. Amy Poehler voices Joy, Mindy Kaling voices Disgust, Bill Hader voices Fear, Phyllis Smith voices Sadness, Lewis Black voices Anger, and Kaitlyn Dias voices Riley, the girl whose head the emotions live in. It has yet to be confirmed, but John Ratzenberger will assuredly voice a character.
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