2010 could mark the beginning of decade where movies take advantage of the meteoric rise in advanced special effects that the noughties also heavily relied upon. It seems the big studios will make money (despite the ubiquitous recession) as long as there are super-hero graphic novels to pillage and tween vampire tales to tell. Unfortunately, this also means that the dearth of original ideas will continue to plague cinemas. Most mainstream movies today tend to be adapted from or are sequels of a book, movie, blog and/or a memoir. In fact, one upcoming movie is even about facebook! As many of us plan the year ahead — with resolutions, family, vacations, career, etc — we at WearetheMovies.com have shortlisted, from the 200-odd movies that Hollywood will unload on cinemagoers this year, a few of the more popular titles that we look forward to. The aim is to get you excited about what’s in store. Some of these may be postponed, even cancelled. Others may turn out to be total duds (Transformers 2, anyone), and yet others may surprise everyone, coming out of nowhere and stealing the limelight (like last year’s funny Hangover). The titles are sorted in ascending order of their US release dates.

Daybreakers
Michael Spierig | USA | 2009

In a world inhabited by vampires, who are running out of valuable blood supplies, Ethan Hawke leads a group of his kind to try and save vampires (and humans). What works in building intrigue is the movie’s sleek trailer, the presence of the Ethan Hawke, Willem Dafoe and Sam Neill and an apt rating of R (for Restricted kiddos). Daybreakers may finally give the grown-up boys a vampire movie to talk about after the Blade series. continue reading »»

Born in America, she is an independent filmmaker whose parents are from Palestine and Jordan. Cherien Dabis’ debut film Amreeka is a Dubai Film Connection project that went on to win the FIPRESCI award at the Cannes Director’s Fortnight, as well receiving great acclaim at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. Amreeka is being distributed by National Geographic Entertainment (via an arrangement with Imagenation Abu Dhabi). Even in limited release, it played to packed theaters across the United States and will be competing in the Muhr Arab Awards at the 2009 Dubai International Film Festival (screening times: Dec 12, at 10pm and Dec 15, at 2.15pm). In this open letter, Cherien Dabis talks about the immigrant experience in America: growing up as Arabs in a quaint little town in Omaha, Nebraska, and how that made her want to become a filmmaker:

Amreeka
by writer/director Cherien Dabis

It’s no wonder that Americans can relate to the universal immigrant themes in Amreeka. America is a country of immigrants after all, some who arrived centuries ago, others who are arriving as you read this. But despite where they came from and when they arrived, they all seem to understand what it means to struggle. And perhaps it’s precisely because they have their own coming-to-America stories that they’re inspired to ask me how autobiographical Amreeka is. The question usually goes something like this: “The story feels so personal. What inspired it? Is it autobiographical at all?” It’s a double question really, two questions that go hand-in-hand. And in order to best answer it, I’ll tell you my story. continue reading »»