1- INDIA JONES & THE DIAL OF DESTINY: I think we all know that this movie won't be as good as "Temple of Doom," yet here we are. I'm probably the only one on Earth that actually enjoyed the last "Indiana Jones" film. Sure, it wasn't as good as the first 3, but it was entertaining. This new one has a different director, though. Even Spielberg couldn't handle the backlash at doing another one of these. James Mangold, who directed the last two Wolverine films, is at the helm. The script was co-written by Jez Butterworth, who's written some good plays (like "The Ferryman," which I saw in NYC in 2018). It has Antonio Banderas, Mads Mikkelsen, and Phoebe Waller-Bridge in it. The one problem I have with this film is that in the trailer, all the backgrounds are special f/x. Would it fucking kill these cheap Hollywood idiots to actually go film the thing on a real location? That's what ruined the jungle truck chase in the last film.
2- DUNE: PART TWO: The first part was my favorite film of 2021. The big problem is that everything good in the book happened in part one. There will be the big, final fight scene at the end against who ever they got to play Sting's part (it's Elvis! Aka Austin Butler). As long it's as gorgeous and as epic as the first one, this'll probably be 2023's best film.
3- OPPENHEIMER: A new Christopher Nolan film is always a welcome event. Since the trailer already came out, it looks fantastic. Cillian Murphy plays Oppenheimer, the dude that helped create the atom bomb. Will this finally be the year Nolan wins his deserved Oscar?
4- BARBIE: I am so curious about this film. First off, it's not some dumb, kid's, Hollywood romp. Greta Gerwig directed it and Gerwig and Noah Baumbach wrote it. Margot Robbie is Barbie and Ryan Gosling is Ken. The story has the fictional characters entering our world. I can't even fathom the indie darlings, Gerwig & Baumbach, making a film about Barbie. Although I couldn't fathom the two making "White Noise" either and that turned out to be one of the best films of 2022 (that nobody liked).
5- WONKA: Timothee Chalamet stars as a young Willy Wonka when he first encounters the Oompa Loompas. Paul King directed this, and even though I never saw his two "Paddington" movies, they were universally loved. I did love "The Mighty Boosh," which he worked on. This sounds amazing.
6- THE HUNGER GAMES: THE BALLAD OF SONGBIRDS & SNAKES: This book was great, though I never heard too much about it since it was released. Did people not like it? Not care? It seemed like a money grab at the time. That, or the author was out of ideas and pushed into it by her publisher. Either way, the story is great and does include another Hunger Games. The cast is epic: Hunter Schafer, Peter Dinklage, and Jason Schwartzman? Give the casting director an Oscar! Rachel Zegler ("West Side Story") and Tom Blyth are the main stars. The director did the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th "Hunger Games" films. This movie is going to be awesome and everyone doesn't realize it.
7- THE KILLER: Nobody liked "Mank," David Fincher's last film. I don't know why, because it was excellent. This is his newest, based on a French comic book about a hitman that I've never heard of. It stars Michael Fassbender and Tilda Swinton. It sounds like it'll be akin to a great Michael Mann film, which don't exist anymore, sadly.
8- REBEL MOON: This is another Zack Snyder mega budget, balls to the wall action picture, this time set on a colony on a far away planet. It stars Charlie Hunman and Cary Elwes, who I don't think has been in a movie since "The Princess Bride." Apparently, Snyder filmed the sequel at the same time so we'll be getting two of these. Snyder's last movie, "Army of the Dead," was so much fun. I really don't understand why everyone hates this guy because his movies are always entertaining.
9- BEAU IS AFRAID: Ari Aster made two critically acclaimed, weird horror movies. Now he's making...a comedy? Huh? What? From the trailer, it looks like one of the weirdest movies ever made. It might also be terrible. Joaquin Phoenix stars as a man who is losing his mind. I loved "Midsommar," so I'm eagerly anticipating to see what the fuck this is.
10- GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 3: James Gunn is back writing/directing the latest installment of this Marvel franchise. His "Guardians of the Galaxy: Holiday Special" was a blast, so hopefully this'll be just as much fun. It might be Gunn's last forway with Marvel, too, since he's now the cheif architect or whatever it's called of the DC film universe now. If this is even half as entertaining as his "Peacemaker" TV show, it'll be great.
