Naturally, since we’re still at the very beginning of the 2013 season, the majority of the films that we’re excited for haven’t yet offered extended glimpses into what we can expect.
There are plenty of films that we’ve left off of this list, partially because they were films that we included in our Most Anticipated Films of 2012 piece from a year ago and have since been moved to new release dates, and some because, well, because we only wanted to choose thirteen movies and there are others that we’ve grown more excited about. Such was the case with films like The Great Gatsby and even the spectacular looking Gangster Squad.
In some cases, an elastic release date can mean great things for a movie, especially if it’s a push from Summer to the December awards season. In cases where a film is shoved sideways into January or the mid-Iron Man 3 season, it normally spells trouble. Don’t get us wrong, we’ll probably see both of these films on their opening day, but the anticipation has been slightly muted by that burdensome temptress, Lady Time.
‘The Wolverine’
Though easily confused with X-Men Origins: Wolverine, The Wolverine promises to be a more streamlined and realistic take on Wolverine’s training as he ventures to Japan to learn from a samurai warrior. This adaptation has undergone a little bit of controversy itself after the original director, Darren Aronofsky, detached from the project, leaving Walk the Line and 3:10 To Yuma director James Mangold to pick up the reins of this Wolverine solo story.
According to rumors, The Wolverine might also serve as a starting point for 20th Century Fox’s own cinematic universe. News that Josh Trank would be helming the new Fantastic Four reboot only adds fuel to this fire, as does the confirmation that Hugh Jackman will be reprising his original role (alongside Sir Ian McKellen and Sir Patrick Stewart) in the upcoming X-Men: Days of Future Past.
The Wolverine will evolve on July 26, 2013
‘Elysium’
Like Gravity, much of our anticipation around Elysium has to do with the director, Neill Blomkamp, whose directorial debut District 9 quickly became known as one of the best sci-fi films in recent years. Elysium begins 150 years in the future, in a world where the ultra-rich live on a pristine space station, leaving the poor to deal with living in a ruined planet Earth.
The film, which was originally scheduled for late 2012, but found itself pushed back to enjoy a proper end-of-Summer release, will follow a man (Matt Damon) who accepts a mission to bring equality to these worlds. With Damon in the lead and clear political undertones that ring akin to Blomkamp’s District 9, we don’t need a trailer to know we’re already excited to re-enter Neill Blompkamp’s science-fiction world in order to gain a better understanding of our own.
Elysium will hit Earth theaters on August 9, 2013
‘Gravity’
Most of us here on Hypable are fans of Alfonso Cuaron’s work for a very obvious reason, but his expertise in film-making extends far past the realm of Hogwarts. Cuaron’s Children of Men is not only an unparalleled dystopian sci-fi from a technical achievement standpoint, it also features a remarkably visceral story at its heart. It’s for this reason that we’re absolutely ecstatic about his upcoming space adventure Gravity, which promises to be equally as bleak, equally as thought provoking, and perhaps even more visually spellbinding.
Starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney, it follows two astronauts who have an accident aboard their space shuttle and are left drifting through space. The story follows their struggle to get back to earth, and we’ve heard it is a technical marvel, complete with a 17-minute long single take from Cuaron and cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki. Space, talented filmmakers, two stars up in the stars? We’re in.
Gravity will fall into theaters on October 18, 2013
‘The World’s End’
The first exposure that most of the world had to the brilliance of Edgar Wright was through his brilliant comedy-zombie masterpiece Shaun of the Dead, the first movie in what would come to be called his Blood and Ice Cream trilogy. The second feature, only related to the first by the inclusion of both blood and ice cream, was Hot Fuzz, and even though the director was able to squeeze in Scott Pilgrim VS. The World in between masterpieces, he has finally gotten around to writing and directing the final installment, The World’s End.
All that we know about the film so far is that it follows a group of friends, notably Simon Pegg, Nick Frost and Martin Freeman, as they attempt to recreate an epic pub crawl from their college year, ending at a pub called The World’s End. One can only assume that it will also take on the “end of the world” genre of films, much in the way that Shaun spoofed the zombie genre and Fuzz spoofed buddy cop films. Also, there will probably be blood and ice cream (probably cornettos) involved.
The World’s End will end the Blood and Ice Cream trilogy on October 25, 2013
‘Enders Game’
Yes. We’re a little science fiction heavy on this list. Big whoop. Wanna fight about it? Since Orson Scott Card’s novel took the world by storm in the mid eighties, it has captured the imagination of every child that stumbled across it. Now film technology has finally advanced to the point where it may be able to do justice to the space-adventure, and though the appointment of X-Men Origins: Wolverine director Gavin Hood has turned some heads, the names of the actors on the bill will be more than enough to attract interested parties.
Harrison Ford, Hugo‘s Asa Butterfield, True Grit‘s Hailee Steinfeld, Ben Kingsley, Viola Davis and Abigail Breslin has turned the upcoming Ender’s Game into a star studded show, and with source material as enchanting as Card’s original novel, there are only a few ways that this adaptation could go wrong.
Ender’s Game will take off on November 1, 2013
‘Catching Fire’
The Hunger Games series has effectively managed to pick up the pieces as the next name in YA-literature based blockbusters after the departure of the Harry Potter film series in 2011. It also has earned an identity as one of the most profound pieces of young-adult literature on bookshelves and best-seller lists today.
The fierce politics, the riveting story, and the action-based plot devices are what propel The Hunger Games above other books in its league, and it’s those same themes that have attracted A-level talent to the series of films.
Phillip Seymour Hoffman recently signed on to play the key role of the replacement game-maker responsible for formulating the Quarter Quell, a very special Hunger Games that happens every twenty-five years. On this very special occasion, Hunger Games winners of the past must again enter the ring, though the spark of revolution will prove to have explosive results.
Catching Fire will burn down theaters on November 22, 2013
‘The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug’
Nobody knows or really understands why the relatively simple tale of The Hobbit was fragmented into three films, but we don’t really care. What’s important is that there will be three films to quench our Tolkien-thirst and we’re ecstatically awaiting the next chapter, which promises to deal with the evil dragon Smaug, voiced and motion captured by Benedict Cumberbatch.
The Hobbit: There and Back Again will wrap up the journey with a number of moments from the appendices of Tolkien’s masterwork, but we suspect that The Desolation of Smaug will be where most of the magic will be held, and although we’ve seen precious little from the installment as of yet, the above image of Bilbo among Smaug’s gold only makes us more excited to actually see him interact with dragon…and dare we say it…the Necromancer?
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug will continue the Hobbit’s journey on December 13, 2013
‘Anchorman: The Legend Continues’
We’ve stayed classy for almost ten years now, and finally, Will Ferrell and Judd Apatow have announced that Anchorman’s Ron Burgandy will be making a triumphant return to the big screen. According to the filmmakers, the Action News Team will all be reprising their roles from the original, meaning that Will Ferrell, Steve Carell, Paul Rudd, and David Koechner will be returning, along with Christina Applegate.
No word yet on the status of all of the bit players from the original Anchorman, although the released plot synopsis has promised that the news team will encounter another dilemma regarding that old old wooden ship – Diversity – and that it may have something to do with ethnic reporters coming into the limelight for the very first time. As far as comedy sequels go, this one is kind of a big deal.
Anchorman: The Legend Continues will stay classy on December 20, 2013
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Hypable’s End of 2012 celebrations
There’s nothing quite like a good ‘Best of’ list, and no matter where your interests lie, Hypable has your back. Movies, music, TV – just what were the high points of 2012, and what could we have gone without? Check out our selection of 2012 wrap-up lists and the things we hope to see (or not) in 2013.
We have the top 10 movies as chosen by our two film gurus, Jeremy Baril and Kristin LeMunyon, plus the collected favourite films of the Hypable staff. For books, find out the 13 books to read in 2013, and don’t forget our 25 must-have Christmas songs for your holiday playlist.
Of course, we have to mention our Hot or Not list to recount what was going up in popularity and what was going down over the past year. And how could we forget our 12 sexiest men of 2012 post?!
If 2013 predictions are your thing, try these fun articles out:
Twelve headlines we do NOT want to see in 2013: Netflix closing, another Hobbit split, and more
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