2015 is looking like a potentially good year for movies (though thankfully not quite the overstuffed smorgasbord of franchises it first appeared to be). Here are some of the films I'm most eagerly anticipating.
1. STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS
This one is likely at the top of most lists, even if many people are as apprehensive as they are excited. Will director J.J. Abrams bring us a new classic or just take more luster off of the venerable franchise? No matter what you expect, it's arguably 2015's most intriguing prospect.
2. UNTITLED COLD WAR THRILLER
This reunion between director Steven Spielberg and star Tom Hanks almost made my #1 spot, because I'm more certain of being fully satisfied with it than I am with The Force Awakens, especially when you add the Coen brothers writing the script which tells the story of attorney James Donovan (Hanks) negotiating with the Soviet Union for the release of downed U2 pilot Francis Gary Powers. SPIELBERG AND THE COENS TOGETHER is a prospect so exciting to me that I had to put in bold, underlined italic caps. And that's not something I take lightly.
3. JURASSIC WORLD
Admittedly the previous Jurassic Park sequels haven't been entirely satisfying, but the original is one of my favorite films, and director Colin Trevorrow impressed with his debut film Safety Not Guaranteed. A strong teaser trailer increases anticipation.
4. IN THE HEART OF THE SEA
Director Ron Howard re-teams with Rush star Chris Hemsworth for what promises to be a spectacular epic based on the voyage which inspired Moby Dick. I'm excited to see Howard directing a big adventure epic like Apollo 13 again.
5. THE WALK
Director Robert Zemeckis Back to the Future, Forrest Gump) brings us the story of Phillipe Petit's high wire walk between the twin towers of the World Trade Center, with a cast that includes Joseph Gordon Levitt and Ben Kingsley. In IMAX 3D this promises be an eye-popping and dizzying ride, but in his best films Zemeckis has shown a gift for using technology in service of story and character.
6. MR. HOLMES
Ian McKellan plays a 93-year old Sherlock Holmes dealing with the decline of his amazing intellectual powers. If that doesn't excite you, you are dead to me.
7. MACBETH
Michael Fassbender and Marion Cottilard star a Lord and Lady the Scottish Play in a new version of Shakespeare's tragedy which is said to actually play up the Scottish angle (a huge plus for a former babgpipe player with Scottish ancestry, like me)
8. THE AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON
Marvel and Whedon fans will be angry I didn't rank this higher, but as good as the Marvel films tend to be they just come too frequently to miss them. Still, this one is likely to be great fun, with Whedon's gift for dialogue adding a lot to the pyrotechnics.
9. INSIDE OUT/THE GOOD DINOSAUR
Two new Pixar films, and neither one is a sequel. Okay, Inside Out looks like Herman's Head, but actually funny.
10. SPECTRE
The same creative team behind Skyfall brings James Bond back, with Daniel Craig facing off against the same organization that plagued Sean Connery's 007. With a supporting cast that includes Cristoph Waltz and Ralph Fiennes, and Sam Mendes back at the helm, my expectations are high.
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