Note: All release dates mentioned are for the USA, for the sake of order. They are also, owing to their feminine nature, subject to change.

Larry Crowne
Comedy, Romance
Release date: July 1st

Tom Hanks directs and acts in this light-heart comedy about a middle-aged man who must go back to college to re-invent himself. As happens in movies, Julia Roberts teaches there. Watch it if only to see Tom Hanks back and doing a rom-com.

Horrible Bosses
Comedy
Release date: July 1st

An otherwise ignorable plot is now very interesting due to the excellent cast, and a fantastic trailer that hints this to just maybe make the comedy of the year spot. Kevin Spacey’s wickedness and Jennifer Aniston’s sexually-overcharged boss are trumped by bad boy Colin Farrell’s balding politically-incorrect sprawl. Giving them company is Farrell’s Miami Vice co-star Jamie Foxx as an angsty killer.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
Fantasy, Action, Adventure
Release date: July 15th

A decade long series of 8 movies comes to its finale with the second-half of the last book’s movie. The-boy-who-lived will face He-who-must-not-be-named one last time. One, none or both die but it is assured that Ralph Fiennes gets his nose back. While it will provide a closure to the emotional investment of millions around the world, I’m all in to primarily watch Alan Rickman’s Snape get his due.

Captain America: The First Avenger
Superhero, Action, Fantasy
Release date: July 22nd

Chris Evans is the man in the mask (or helmet) playing the Super Soldier with an “A” on the forehead. The movie is set during World War II, when Captain America was created. While there is no doubting Chris Evan’s ability to carry a movie on his charm, director Joe Johnston has been off-the-mark in recent years. But with the latest trailer, this movie seems to be on target to continue Marvel’s excellent run of critical and box-office wins this year.

Crazy, Stupid, Love
Comedy
Release date: July 29th

We have seen many comedies that tread the same plot as Crazy, Stupid, Love. What makes this different is the stellar cast: Steve Carrell, Julianne Moore, Kevin Bacon, Maria Tomei, Ryan Gosling & Emma Stone. I’d watch a movie with half that cast!

Rise of the Apes
Sci-Fi, Action
Release date: August 5th

Rupert Wyatt made an excellent directorial debut with The Escapist. He forays into big-budget territory here with an origin story for Ceaser, the ape that started it all. Andy Serkis hobbit-izes his gorilla act to play the mean monkey, while James Franco leads the Human cast. While the first trailer wasn’t too impressive, there’s hope with that director. And have you seen that brooding CGI ape?

30 Minutes or Less
Comedy
Release date: August 12th

Jesse Eisenberg signs out of Facebook to play a pizza-delivery boy forced to rob a bank, with loud friend Aziz Ansari for company. The howlarious trailer had me in splits, and a quick check on director Ruben Fleischer confirms his credentials for comedy (hint: he also made the excellent Zombieland).

Fright Night
Thriller, Horror
Release date: August 19th

Anton Yelchin vs Colin Farrell. Yelchin weilds an axe, Farrell has fangs (as in, he’s a vampire. Vampires suck blood, so they need fangs. You get the drift).

Conan the Barbarian
Action, Fantasy
Release date: August 19th

I do not know why I have this movie on the list. Considering Arnold Schwarzenegger has immortalized the Conan character, seeing anyone else play it is plain revolting. But many movie fans may not have seen the original and may yet be excited by the prospect of this hulking muscular man painting the screen red with his massive sword (!).

The Debt
Thriller
Release date: September 2nd

This thriller about the past catching up with now-retired Mossad agents stars Helen Mirren, Tom Wilkinson, and in an interesting bit, Sam Worthington as Wilkinson’s character in flashbacks. Looks like a taut thriller, owing to its writer: Matthew Vaughn (Kick-Ass, X-Men First Class)!

Apollo 18
Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller.
Release date: September 2nd

This movie has been pushed back to enjoy more marketing build up. Made in the style of “found footage” that was made popular by Blair Witch Project and Cloverfield, Apollo 18 is apparently what *really* happened with the 1970 mission to space that was supposedly cancelled. With Timur Bekmambetov producing, he of Wanted and Night Watch, expect good visuals at the least. I am more intrigued about how astronauts will try to escape from the creature hunting them (note the claw mark in above image). Will they bounce away?

Contagion
Sci-Fi, Action, Thriller
Release date: September 9th

Kate Winslet, Jude Law, Marion Cotillard, Matt Damon, Gwyneth Paltrow, Laurence Fishburne. (Just in case you hadn’t recognized those faces). All directed by Steven Soderbergh, who is great with ensembles – think Ocean’s 11 & Traffic. I wonder if we get a scene with all 6 in-frame together.

Moneyball
Drama
Release date: September 23rd

Brad Pitt and Philip Seymour Hoffman in one movie is gold enough for audience that love drama. If you’ve seen the trailer for this baseball-based movie, wait for the Brad Pitt-Robert Redford comparisons once it releases.

Killer Elite
Action
Release date: September 23rd

Jason Statham in an action movie? What else is new. Robert DeNiro too? Okay, interesting. Hang on, Clive Owens too! If it wasn’t for that last name, this would be another good action movie for Statham fans, but Clive Owens just ups the ante for everyone. Don’t miss this!

50/50
Comedy, Drama
Release date: September 30th

Joseph Gordan-Lewitt continues his exploration of 5s and 0s (seen 500 Days of Summer yet?), playing a young cancer patient. Equal parts funny and tear-jearker, it’s touted as an Oscar bait for its lead star. I’d watch it for the funny parts.

Dream House
Mystery, Thriller
Release date: September 30th

Newly married couple Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz star with Naomi star in this good old fashion mystery where a new resident and a local lady investigate a “solved” murder in a quaint town. Director Jim Sheridan is more than adept at such story-telling, and the stars are an added bonus. Sounds like the perfect post summer-madness movie.

Real Steel
Sci-Fi, Action
Release date: October 7th

“A robot fighter coached by Hugh Jackman”. That movie pitch has all the makings of a blockbuster. The wet blanket for me is director Shawn Levy, he of Night at the Museum, The Pink Panther and Cheaper by the Dozen fame. Blame him if this movie doesn’t work, but until then concentrate on this: Hugh Jackman + Robot Boxing. Feel’s good, right?

The Ides of March
Drama
Release date: October 7th

Another multi-starrer, this one has George Clooney, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, Ryan Gosling, Evan Rachel Wood and Marisa Tomei. It’s directed by George Clooney and if you have seen Good Night, and Good Luck, you know how good this can be. Clooney plays a presidential hopeful, but the movie focuses on his new aide, Ryan Gosling, and his crash course in dirty politics.

Puss In Boots
Animation, Comedy
Release date: November 4th

While Antonio Banderas gets his own spin-off for his character from the Shrek movies, the kitty on his side is the best voice match-up we could have hoped for: Salma Hayek. Humpty Dumpty has a confirmed presence, so expect lots more nursery rhyme and fairy tale jokes and references thrown in with all the swashbuckling. With Dreamworks Animation’s recent run being better than any of us expected, aren’t we glad it’s not a movie about Donkey?

Tower Heist
Comedy, Crime
Release date: November 4th

Don’t let the fact that this stars Eddie Murphy put you off. Don’t even let the director (Bret Ratner) have you run the other way. The movie also stars Ben Stiller (genius!) and Casey Affleck – it is about a bunch of victims who plan to rob the high-rise residence of a conman.

Immortals
Fantasy, Action, Adventure
Release date: November 11th

Forget Clash of the Titans. This is what a movie based on Greek Mythology should be like. Directed by visualist-par excellence Tarsem Singh (The Cell, The Fall) and starring the likes of Mickey Rourke and John Hurt, this movie tracks Theseus, played by the newly announced Superman Henry Cavill, as he stops King Hyperion and his army from unleashing the Titans. Thankfully missing: the Kraken.

Happy Feet 2
Animated
Release date: November 18th

Those cutesy penguins with the voices of Robin Williams and Elijah Woods are back, this time accompanied by the voices of Brad Pitt, Matt Damon and Pink. In 3D. C’mon, there’s no way you can say no to any animate character voiced by Robin Williams!

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
Thriller
Release date: November 18th

Watch this for one, and one reason alone: the movie is touted as a tour de force for Gary Oldman. Also stars Colin Firth, Tom Hardy and Mark Strong, this adaptation of the immensely popular thriller novel is the first English-language movie by acclaimed Swedish director Tomas Alfredson (Let The Right One In)

Hugo Cabret
Drama, Mystery
Release date: November 25th

Martin Scorcese. Enough said. Trivia: This is Scorcese’s first movie this century that does not star Leonardo DiCaprio.

The Muppets
Drama, Mystery
Release date: November 25th

Kermit The Frog is back! And he must round up the gang if he has any hopes to do whatever he wants to do. Who cares, as long as we have Kermit, Miss Piggy and the gang! And for the skeptics, there’s also Amy Adams. (For marketing fanatics, look at the excellent work they’ve been doing in the US and over the net for this movie).

Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol
Action
Release date: December 16th

While being Brad Bird’s (The Incredibles) first live action movie is the best possible reason to watch this movie, there’s also the rumor that this may be Tom Cruise’s last “mission”, before handing over the franchise to Jeremy Renner. Then there is the much publicized shoot around Dubai, including at its world’s tallest tower. I’d like to see Ethan Hunt jump from there and stop 5 inches above ground.

The Descendants
Drama
Release date: December 16th

George Clooney plays a land baron and an estranged father who tries to reconnect with his daughters, in Alexander Payne’s first movie since 2004’s Sideways. Expect a sublime drama.

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Drama, Thriller
Release date: December 23rd

David Fincher, it is said, can make a good movie out of a phonebook. Here, he gets an award-winning crime novel as his source. Fresh of his excellent facebook movie (The Social Network), Fincher goes back into Se7en territory – the movie deals with a murder investigation that goes much further and deeper than the investigators thought. What is very interesting is this: the book that this movie is based on is the first part of a multiple-award winning trilogy. Might we just have a trilogy from Fincher? If you’ve seen the anti-holiday trailer, you don’t need any convincing. If you haven’t, I don’t know you.

The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn
Animation, Adventure
Release date: December 23rd

Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson join hands to bring this beloved Belgian character and comic book to life in the first of three Tintin movies. While Spielberg directs this, Jackson will direct the second (Dunno yet about the third). They’ve picked one of the best Tintin books to start with, and if the initial production stills are anything to go by, this just might be the animated movie of the year.

Tree of Life
Drama
Release date: Who knows?

Auteur Terrence Malick’s fifth movie in 38 years (read that again), there is no doubting how astounding this movie will be (It already has the critics split, some calling it the greatest work of the decade while others calling it the major act of self-indulgence). But the fact is, this is Terrence Mallick. Heck, the trailer to this movie is better than what directors manage to try to achieve in their whole careers. But if you don’t care for that name, get your head around this: Brad Pitt plays Sean Penn’s father.

With only five more sequels/prequels/spin-offs in these six months, there’s hope that 2011 may yet be a very good year for movies. Enjoy your popcorn!

Note: All release dates mentioned are for the USA, for the sake of some order. They are also, owing to their organic nature, subject to change.

Apollo 18
Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller.
Release date: March 4^th

Made in the style of “found footage” that was made popular by Blair Witch Project and Cloverfield, Apollo 18 is apparently what *really* happened with the 1970 mission to space that was supposedly cancelled. With Timur Bekmambetov producing, he of Wanted and Night Watch, expect good visuals at the least. I am more intrigued about how astronauts will try to escape from the creature hunting them (note the claw mark in above image). Will they bounce away?

World Invasion: Battle LA
Action, Sci-Fi
Release date: March 11^th

Since Independence Day, we’ve not seen an alien invasion movie that has really worked at that scale (yes, I remember War of the Worlds). But if the trailer of Battle: Los Angeles, now renamed to World Invasion: Battle LA to sound more like a video game, is anything to go by, we might be in for a worthy effort. Here’s a more important reason for guys and girls alike: Michelle Rodriguez is in it, and in uniform. Yay!

Red Riding Hood
Thriller
Release date: March 11^th

Take a familiar children’s fairytale and give it a grown-up treatment. You either get a comedy or a horror/thriller. Thank God this is not a comedy. Amanda Seyfried stars as the not-little Red Riding Hood who loves an orphaned wood-cutter. Considering Catherine Hardwicke (of that sparkling vampires franchise) is directing, it’s not surprising that the wolf is, in fact, a werewolf. Were it not for the moody trailer and the presence of one Gary Oldman, I’d not have given this a second look. Plus, it also brings back memories of when Mr Shyamalan (*cough* The Village *cough*) used to be a good director.

Sucker Punch
Action, Fantasy
Release date: March 25^th

A young girl retreats into an imagined alternative reality to plot and execute her escape from a mental facility for young girls. Imagine that plot in the hands of Zack Snyder, director of 300. Babes instead of abs works for me! Note: Keep an eye out for Jon Hamm (of TV series Mad Men). He just might be joining this same director in the next Superman movie.

Source Code
Sci-Fi, Thriller
Release date: April 1^st

Jake Gyllenhaal stars as a soldier who is hooked up to relive the last 8 minutes of a train-bombing repeatedly until he discovers the person responsible. Director Duncan Jones (son of David Bowie!) made a non-spectacular debut with the sci-fi Moon, but he did get the psychology of a lonely man in space right. Here, he puts Jake’s character through multiple and inevitable deaths. I’d like to see how Jones handles this.

Scream 4
Horror, Mystery
Release date: April 15^th

What’s your favorite scary movie? Yes, Ghostface is back! And also back is director Wes Craven with the original trio of Neve Campbell, Courtney Cox and David Arquette. Famous cameo/deaths confirmed: Anna Paquin, Kristen Bell, Emma Roberts, Hayden Panettiere, Rory Culkin. I wish they also include Justin Beiber for the opening kill. I’d certainly pay to watch that!

Haywire
Action, Thriller
Release date: April 22^nd

Steven Soderbergh (Oceans 11, 12, 13 among others) picked real-world mixed martial arts fighter Gina Carano as the action heroine of his new film. The movie also stars Ewan McGregor, Michael Douglas and Antonio Banderas. Let’s hope this woman can hold her own opposite these men. After all, it’s about time Hollywood gets a good female action star apart from Angelina Jolie.

Thor
Superhero, Action, Fantasy
Release date: May 6^th

Marvel’s God of Thunder and his Hammer! While more to do with introducing the character to the mainstream audience, so that he may be included in the eventual Avengers movie, this movie does benefit from Marvel’s generous budget for stars and special effects. Chris Hemsorth looks like the Norse God, but I cannot fathom what Natalie Portman is doing opposite him. Rebound from the after-effects of Black Swan maybe? Geek Alert: Will the movie stick to canon and show Thor flying, red cape and all?

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
Adventure, Action, Fantasy
Release date: May 20^th

Jack Sparrow is back! Wait, that’s Captain Jack Sparrow. This fourth Pirates not-always-in-the-Caribbean movie has a new director, Rob Marshal of musicals Chicago & Nine, and even has a new female lead: Penelope Cruz. While battling Blackbeard and mermaids, at least the choice of director will give Johnny Depp something to sway to.

Kung Fu Panda 2
Animation, Comedy, Adventure
Release date: May 27^th

2011 is the year of AWESOMENESS! If not the year, this date may as well be. A very much white Jack Black returns as the black and white Po, a Panda with an appetite (haha) for kung fu. With the original, Dreamworks Animation started their streak of getting-it-right. With The Furious Five also returning, I can’t wait to again see Po eating… err… fighting his way to victory.

The Hangover Part II
Comedy
Release date: May 26^th

Phil, Alan, Doug and Stu (dentist, not doctor) are headed to Thailand! This time, it’s Stu getting married. Expect more zaniness, weirder encounters and another ROFL time this summer. If you’ve been to Bangkok or know what can transpire there, you won’t doubt the extremes these boys can get into.

Tree of Life
Drama
Release date: May 27^th

Auteur Terrence Malick’s fifth movie in 38 years (read that again), there is no doubting how astounding this movie will be. In fact, the trailer to this movie is better than what directors manage to try to achieve in their whole careers. But if you don’t care for that name, get your head around this: Brad Pitt plays Sean Penn’s father. Didn’t I say this would be the year of awesomeness?

X-Men: First Class
Superhero, Action, Fantasy
Release date: June 3^rd

Too bad Bryan Singer is not directing this one, but the movie could not have gotten a better director than Matthew Vaughn. Ok, maybe it could have, but Vaughn is one helluva choice. For one, he made last year’s Kick-Ass. For another… well, if you still need another reason, you haven’t watched Kick-Ass.

Super 8
? ? ?
Release date: June 10^th

The last time J J Abrams kept a project under so much secrecy, we got Cloverfield. Apart from its nifty purpose-made teaser, we only know this takes place in the 1980s and has some connections to Area 51 (cue music). Btw, J J Abrams is the man behind Mission: Impossible III and 2007′s Star Trek.

Green Lantern
Superhero, Action, Fantasy
Release date: June 17^th

Ryan Reynolds dons the green and saves Earth, the Solar System, the Milky Way and our Universe. Guess we’ll have to discover more universes for him now for the sequels. But seriousness aside, this is DC’s big investment considering Batman is at the end of his Nolan line, and Superman hasn’t taken off yet. Disclaimer: do not let that image remind you of Bollywood’s Krrish.

Cars 2
Animation, Comedy, Adventure
Release date: June 24^th

Pixar.

Rise of the Apes
Sci-Fi, Action
Release date: June 24^th

Rupert Wyatt made an excellent directorial debut with The Escapist. He forays into big-budget territory here with an origin story for Ceaser, the ape that started it all. Andy Serkis hobbit-izes his gorilla act to play the mean monkey, while James Franco leads the Human cast. Speaking of James Franco, seen 127 Hours yet?

Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Sci Fi, Action (and maybe) Disaster
Release date: July 1^st

With the first and second Transformers movies, Michael Bay has made the best and worst movies of his career. Both made bucket loads of money. The third movie of this director’s trilogy will forever define his status among movie fans. Note: Megan Fox/Mikaela has been replaced by Victoria’s Secret model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley. Go on, google her.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
Fantasy, Action, Adventure
Release date: July 15^th

A decade long series of 8 movies comes to its finale with the second-half of the last book’s movie. The-boy-who-lived will face He-who-must-not-be-named one last time. One, none or both die but it is assured that Ralph Fiennes gets his nose back.  While it will provide a closure to the emotional investment of millions around the world, I’m all in to primarily watch Alan Rickman’s Snape get his due.

Captain America: The First Avenger
Superhero, Action, Fantasy
Release date: July 22^nd

Chris Evans is the man in the mask (or helmet) playing the Super Soldier with an “A” on the forehead. No teaser/trailer yet, but production stills look retro-cool – the movie is set during World War II, when Captain America was created. While there’s no doubting Chris Evan’s ability to carry a movie on his charm, director Joe Johnston has been off-the-mark in recent years. But I do have this feeling, the kind that helps me pick good orders off a new menu, that this just might be the Superhero movie of the year.

Dream House
Mystery, Thriller
Release date: September 30^th

Daniel Craig, Rachel Weisz and Naomi Watts star in this good old fashion mystery where a new resident and a local lady investigate a “solved” murder in a quaint town. Director Jim Sheridan is more than adept at such story-telling, and the stars are an added bonus. Sounds like the perfect post summer-madness movie.

Real Steel
Sci-Fi, Action
Release date: October 7^th

That there is a robot fighter being coached by Hugh Jackman. That premise and name has all the makings of a good movie. The wet blanket for me is director Shawn Levy, he of Night at the Museum, The Pink Panther and Cheaper by the Dozen fame. Blame him if this movie doesn’t work, but until then concentrate on this: Hugh Jackman + Robot Boxing. Feel’s good, right?

Contagion
Sci-Fi, Action, Thriller
Release date: October 21^st

Matt Damon. Kate Winslet, Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow, Laurence Fishburne, Marion Cotillard. (Just in case you hadn’t recognized those faces). All directed by Steven Soderbergh, who is great with ensembles – think Ocean’s 11 & Traffic. I wonder if we get a scene with all 6 in-frame together.

Puss In Boots
Animation, Comedy
Release date: November 4^th

While Antonio Banderas gets his own spin-off for his character from the Shrek movies, the kitty on his side is the best voice match-up we could have hoped for: Salma Hayek. Humpty Dumpty has a confirmed presence, so expect lots more nursery rhyme and fairy tale jokes and references thrown in with all the swashbuckling. Aren’t we glad it’s not a movie about Donkey?

Immortals
Fantasy, Action, Adventure
Release date: November 11^th

Forget Clash of the Titans. This is what a movie based on Greek Mythology should be like. Directed by visualist-par excellence Tarsem Singh (The Cell, The Fall) and starring the likes of Mickey Rourke and John Hurt, this movie tracks Theseus as he stops King Hyperion and his army from unleashing the Titans. Thankfully missing: the Kraken.

Hugo Cabret
Drama, Mystery
Release date: December 9^th

Martin Scorcese. Enough said. Trivia: This is Scorcese’s first movie in 9 years (since Gangs of New York) that does not star Leonardo DiCaprio.

Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol
Action
Release date: December 16^th

While being Brad Bird’s (The Incredibles) first live action movie is the best possible reason to watch this movie, there’s also the rumour that this may be Tom Cruise’s last “mission”, before handing over the franchise to Jeremy Renner. Then there is the much publicized shoot around Dubai, including at its world’s tallest tower. I’d like to see Ethan Hunt jump from there and stop 5 inches above ground.

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Drama, Thriller
Release date: December 21^st

David Fincher, it is said, can make a good movie out of a phonebook. Here, he gets an award-winning crime novel as his source. Fresh of his excellent facebook movie (The Social Network), Fincher goes back into Se7en territory – the movie deals with a murder investigation that goes much further and deeper than the investigators thought. What is very interesting is this: the book that this movie is based on is the first part of a multiple-award winning trilogy. Might we just have a trilogy from Fincher?

The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn
Animation, Adventure
Release date: December 28^th

Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson join hands to bring this beloved Belgian character and comic book to life in the first of three Tintin movies. While Spielberg directs this, Jackson will direct the second (Dunno yet about the third). They’ve picked one of the best Tintin books to start with, and if the initial production stills are anything to go by, this just might trump Pixar to be the animated movie of the year.

A Dangerous Method
Drama
Release date: TBA

Viggo Mortensen plays Sigmund Freud to Michael Fassbender’s Carl Jung. David Cronenberg, of all directors, analyzes the intense relationship between Frued and Jung that gave birth to Psychoanalysis. I wonder if anyone in their wildest dreams could have thought up a combination that includes Freud, Jung, Cronenberg, Mortensen and also Vincent Cassel and Keira Knightley. You might want to skip the popcorn on this one.

Also look out for: The Mechanic (Jason Statham doing action), Rango (Animated Western with Johnny Depp as a chameleon), Fast Five (5^th Fast & Furious movie but with Vin Diesel facing off Dwayne The Rock Johnson), Cowboys & Aliens (Daniel Craig & Harrison Ford in a mix of Western and Sci-Fi) and Spy Kids 4: All The Time In The World (no, really).

Enjoy the New Year!

The last day of the 7th Dubai International Film Festival included a disappointingly bad movie from a director who had impressed at DIFF earlier. It also included a generic drama that tried to be stylish. But thankfully the first and last movies of the last day made up for the middle two, and provided for a nice closing mixed bag.

Poetry (Shi)
Chang-dong Lee | South Korea | 2010
139 min

Chang-dong Lee’s Poetry is a strong and mature drama. It focuses on the life of Mija (Jeong-hie Yun), an old woman and guardian of her grandson, who works as a maid but yearns to write poetry. A happy woman who loves to chatter, she changes and becomes reclusive when she is told about her young grandson’s involvement in a violent crime. Unable to quite live with the shame, Mija withdraws into observing the world around her for her first poem that she will one day write. Poetry gives us a poignant view of life, built around an exceptionally well-written character and a fantastic performance by Jeong-hie Yun. Acting of this caliber perhaps comes with age and experience. Yun becomes Mija, and ensures to keep her distinct from Hye-ja Kim’ titular Mother (2009). Mija never goes to extremes with emotions, whether it be anger, sorrow or happiness. She stays composed through the situations we see here face, distracting herself with her poetic view of the world around her. Poetry is a movie to be sucked into, to take you on a bittersweet trip with a sad but sweet old lady for company.

40
Emre Sahin | Turkey | 2009
89 min

Three separate lives collide in 40, a theme that has grown increasingly popular in recent years. The first character is a taxi driver who also does odd-jobs of the wrong kind. The second is an illegal African immigrant who yearns to reach France. The third is a nurse who wants to take her daughter and leave her miserable husband. Shot hand-held, and seemingly deliberately made more shaky, the movie over-uses style without purpose. The style itself is not extraordinary, or even fresh. It seems thrown into he mix to make the movie more “cool”, which it fails at. The writing is shoddy, no explanation is given for the twists that push the story forward and character behavior id molded to the need of the story. 40 is, for its most part, a failure.

The Hunter (Shekarchi)
Rafi Pitts | Iran | 2010
90 min

After making the fantastic It’s Winter in 2006, Rafi Pitts takes a mis-step with The Hunter. A silent, brooding movie, the plot centers on a man who has lost his wife and daughter in a cross-fire between the police and insurgents. In vengeance, he kills a random cop and escapes into the jungle, pursued by two policemen. Although this may read as an action-thriller, the movie is neither. It observes the mostly silent man, played by the director himself, but does not make clear why we are observing him. Pitts performance does not let on anything, the story does not suggest anything either. The Hunter ends up becoming a string of sequences that, for all the beauty they are presented in, are detached and ineffective. The movie required a faster pace with more action/thrill sequence, or a more accomplished actor – one with a strong screen presence – to carry it off.

Corridor (Isolerad)
Johan Lundborg & Johan Storm | Denmark | 2009
80 min

A wonderful debut by directors Johan Lundborg & Johan Storm, Corridor would be at home in the “Alfred Hitchcok Presetnts” TV series. It is a suspense thriller that works right from the moment it opens until its last scene. Frank (Emil Johnsen) is a medical student who stays alone in an apartment block. When a new tenant moves in upstairs, Frank is kept awake at nights by the strange sounds from the apartment above – sounds that make him suspicious & nervous. At 80 minutes, the movie is short enough for the directors to hold the suspense. Unexpected close-ups and fast-cuts keep the thrills coming. But their trump-card is the lead-actor: Emil Johnsen. As the nervous student on the brink of paranoia, Johnsen’s Frank is a next-door neighbor or classmate that we have seen, and thus easy to identify with. His suspicions and fears, therefore, ring true. While evoking classic Hitchcockian themes: alone everyday guy, mistaken identities, set in and mostly experienced from within a room, etc., the movie does not burden itself by trying to emulate the master or recreate his work. The stakes get higher and Frank falls deeper into the plot, until the directors deliver a fitting, though expected, climax. It would be very interesting to have the directors and the actor re-visit this Frank for another chapter of his life.

7 Days and 22 movies later, the 7th Dubai International Film Festival has come to a close. As with each of the last festivals, it provided for some of the best movies I have watched this year – Honey, The King’s Speech, Confessions and many more. 51 weeks to go for the DIFF ’11. Let the countdown begin.

A comedy movie about suicide, an ultra-serious drama about a degenerate society and a highly-stylized combination of the western & samurai genres. The penultimate day of the 7th Dubai International Film Festival was a very good day – it held no bad movies for me!

Suicide Club
Olaf Saumer | Germany | 2010
96 min

Director Olaf Saumer’s graduation film, Suicide Club is a mostly humorous story about five individuals who meet one early morning on the roof of a high-rise to jump to their deaths. Once all arrive, one of the five locks their exit door and throws the key away – so that nobody backs out. As is expected of such a plot, not all goes as per plan. Suicide Club’s strength lies not in those five characters or developing their back stories or dilemmas, but in the goof-ups and situations they encounter during the course of the day. These situations that form the film are mostly comical, sometimes tender and rarely tedious. The film is not always logical and many times taking a turn more for convenience. However, Suicide Club is a feel-good film that manages to evoke laughter while it plays and a smile once it finishes.

My Joy (Schastye moe)
Sergei Loznitsa | Ukraine | 2010
127 min

Although titled My Joy in its English translation, the literal translation of the title of the movie is “My Happiness”. In the context of the movie, it means its exact opposite. My Joy is a pessimistic look at the territories of the ex-Soviet union, where the value of life is little, and survival is paramount. People, identities and moralities become lost, while selfishness, violence and exploitation thrive. The story takes off with a good-at-heart truck driver on a delivery trip, but soon expands to include the people he encounters, their past and the deteriorating values of the general populace. The film is cold, bleak and humorless; director Sergei Loznitsa does little to pacify his audience. My Joy is an excellent movie but also very distinct. People un-seasoned in experimental or arthouse cinema will find little to appreciate here.

(Recommended reading: Faizan Rashid’s full review of My Joy.)

Bunraku
Guy Moshe | U.S.A. | 2010
118 min

Bunraku takes its name and inspiration from a 400-year-old form of Japanese puppet theater. Set in an undefined fictional era that is both, past and present, the movie is an odd mixture of a western and a samurai film – made quite obvious from its two protagonists: a man with no name (Josh Hartnett) and a Japanese swordsman Yoshi (Gackt Camui) without a sword. These two men are searching for the same person, who happens to be the most powerful man east of the Atlantic, played by the actor of genre movies: Ron Perlman. The movie is hyper-stylized and references pop-culture seemingly off the cuff, from movie to video game cliches, never taking itself seriously. A humorous narrator adds to the zaniness. While director Guy Moshe initially does a splendid work of mixing all his ingredients, the movie loses some of its team mid-way through, when the fun-factor is reduced and action is put into high gear. If only it had stuck to its wonderful first-half tone, Bunraku would have been an ideal movie to accompany your popcorn and soda.

With just one day to go, we are near the end of this year’s Dubai International Film Festival, and close to my burnout point. Of the films lined up for tomorrow, I hope the Iranian movie that I am scheduled to watch becomes the highlight of the day. But as with today’s My Joy, there is no saying what might surprise me. Look forward to my last daily DIFF ’10 update tomorrow!

Shariq Madani at DIFF 2010
Daily Festival Report: 16th December 2010 (Day #5)

Violence, intrigue, survival and despair were the order of the day. While there was not much new in the way the first two movies dealt with their respective subjects, the final two movies of the day brought me delight in the way they presented theirs. Here’s a lowdown on the four movies I watched on day# 5 of the Dubai Film Festival.

Outrage (Autoreiji)
Takeshi Kitano | Japan | 2010
109 min

Outrage is a Japanese gangster film, focusing on gang-wars between families of the yakuza. When the boss of one of the families makes a deal with a drug supplier for his territory, the yakuza chairman sets in motion an intricate plan; a bloody path that can only lead to an equally bloody end. As expected, the movie is heavy on violence. While the movie does not add anything new to the genre, director Takeshi Kitano manages to sustain the interest of the viewer with a constantly moving story. Unfortunately, too many characters and a predictable plot renders this mainstream endeavor stale.

The Father and the Foreigner (Il Padre e lo Stranie)
Ricky Tognazzi | Italy | 2010
110 min

In an unconvincing mash-up of genres, The Father & The Foreigner is part-drama and part-thriller. The drama: Diego Marini is unable to come to terms with the disability of his son, and hence lives a mechanical life that includes the occasional trip to his son’s special-needs clinic. On one such visit, he meets Walid, an Arab-Italian, who soon becomes a friend and opens his eyes to the wonder that being a parent is. The thriller: Walid is super-rich and seemingly connected in all the wrong places. When one fine day Walid disappears, Diego needs to get to the bottom of things, and thus begins a cat-and-mouse game between Diego, Walid, the Italian Secret Service and a few other entities left unexplained. Unfortunately, the movie spectacularly fails in both, re-hashing what movies of either genre have shown us a few dozen times each year.

127 Hours
Danny Boyle | U.S.A. | 2010
95 min

Among the best of contemporary film directors, Danny Boyle brings his visual energy and heroism theme to 127 Hours with renewed fervor. Inspired by true events, the movie is about one man’s 127 hour ordeal of being stuck in a remote canyon crevice with his right-arm trapped under a boulder. With only a few tools and objects at hand, and water to last him a few days, Aron Ralston (James Franco) prepares for the worst and records messages on his handy-cam for his parents. Using the real Aron Ralston recordings as inspiration, Franco and Boyle recreate his time of tribulation, yet make it entertaining enough for a good mainstream movie. While we have seen better work from Boyle, this is James Franco’s tour-de-force. The screen belongs to him, and he carries it through splendidly.

(Recommended reading:  Faizan Rashid’s full review of 127 Hours.)

Norwegian Wood (Noruwei no mori)
Anh Hung Tran | Japan | 2010
133 min

Norwegian Wood is an adaptation of a book of the same name by revered author Haruki Murakami. Beginning with the suicide of a 17 year old boy in 1960s Japan, the movie explores the complicated relationship shared by the boy’s girlfriend, Naoko (Rinko Kikuchi), and his best friend, Toru Watanabe (Ken’ichi Matsuyama) – both trying to cope with their sorrow. While Naoko’s pain consumes her, Toru finds it difficult to let go of his confused feelings for Naoko. Further confusing the two are Reiko, Naoko’s consular, and Midori, Toru’s outgoing classmate who likes him. The title of the movie (and the book) refers to the Beetles song. Its reference to the story is the emotional value it holds to one of the characters, and via her, to the others. This small detail is left out of the movie, leaving those not familiar with the novel a little confused about it. Many such details have probably been left out therefore making the movie a little unexplainable without assumptions by an uninformed viewer. So, for instance, when the female characters discuss sex with explicit detail, it comes as a surprise. Hence the overt usage of verbal sexual intimacy and loud musical cues suggests an exploitative intent within the confines of the movie. Norwegian Wood, although mostly about sorrow and despair, is neither heavy nor dreary. Mostly shot with picturesque locations as back-drops, the movie effortlessly glides on its themes of loss and sexuality – even romanticizing them. It is a wonderful journey about the sorrow of loss that comes from the death of a beloved. The characters use sex as a form of release from their inherent pain, while Toru understands and misunderstands the machinations of the great mystery that love is. In the way it deals with these emotions, Norwegian Wood is an excellent movie that, for its most part, succeeds.

(Recommended reading: Faizan Rashid’s full review of Norwegian Wood.)

Two days of DIFF left to go. 3 movies scheduled on day# 6. My report, tomorrow.

It is only at the Dubai International Film Festival where you get to watch a Cannes’ Palm d’Or winner, Berlin’s Golden and Silver Bear winners on the same day. And what an experience this day was. More on the four movies of the day below.

Honey (Bal)
Semih Kaplanoglu | Turkey | 2010
103 min

Director Semih Kaplano?lu’s Honey, this year’s Golden Bear winner at the Berlin Film Festival, is the art-form of cinema at its best. A fantastic pre-credit scene, good enough to be a short film in itself, sets the tone for this beautiful movie that, from within the confines of a dark cinema hall, transports you into the lush green mountains of Turkey. A harmonious soundtrack of incidental sounds from nature lends depth to the visual artistry that the movie is composed of. Some single-take shots are simply breathtaking, elevating the movie over mere performance and story-telling. The final installment of the director’s “Yusuf Trilogy”, Honey is a portrayal of the early childhood days of Yusuf (Bora Alta?), a six year old boy and the son of a bee-keeper, focusing specifically on the days before and after his father Yakup’s death. Much like honey, the movie flows slowly but smoothly as we discover life with Yusuf: alone, when with both or either parent and some exceptional moments of Yusuf at school. Yearning for that elusive badge to make his father proud, Yusuf works hard to impress his teacher with his reading skills, feeling much embarrassed when he fails. Through the movie, and especially in these scenes, Bora Alta? shines as the little Yusuf. His unassuming and honest performance may very well be one of the best of the year. Combined with the movie’s brilliant aesthetics, it contributes towards making Honey one of the best movies of the year. For a more detailed review of the film, read what our very own Faizan Rashid has to say.

End of Animal (Jimseung Ui Kkut)
Jo Sung-Hee | South Korea | 2010
114 min

End of Animal is a post-apocalyptic movie like few others. A pregnant woman is in a cab going through a rural landscape to get to her mother’s house to deliver her baby. On the way, a blinding white light leaves her (and everyone else) unconscious, and also disables everything electronic. Unfortunately, like the movie’s lead character, the director just wanders lost around this setting not knowing where to go with it. Random references to religion and humanity aside, the movie neither offers an explanation for the cause of the event, nor uses the setting in any meaningful way. Scenes just seem to randomly unfold without merit. Showing God (or was it Satan?) in a baseball cap may be an acceptable artistic decision, but him having to physically carry a bicycle out of the way to drive by in a car seems just too limiting for someone who brought about the “End”.

If I Want To Whistle, I Whistle (Eu Când Vreau S? Fluier, Fluier)
Florin ?erban | Romania | 2010
94 min

If I Want To Whistle, I Whistle is set in a Romanian youth prison. Silviu (George Pi?tereanu) has two weeks left for his release when he learns that his mother has returned from Italy to take his younger brother back with her, something which Silviu will not allow. The movie depends on and primarily succeeds due to the performance of Pi?tereanu as the troubled youth. From suffering physical intimidation silently to retaliation at emotional pressure, Pi?tereanu conveys a realistic performance in Silviu. Although little physical violence is depicted on-screen, If I Want To Whistle… uses the constant presence of threat to its various characters to keep the movie’s tone aggressive. The movie breaks no new ground nor improves what has already been done, but possess a realistic and emotionally strong story, an efficient use of running time and a formidable central performance.

Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (Lung Bunmi Raluek Chat)
Apichatpong Weerasethakul | Thailand | 2010
114 min

Uncle Boonmee… is, for its most part, an abstract movie. It is the final part of a multi-platform art project that includes seven-part video installations and two short videos. As a stand-alone movie, Uncle Boonmee… is incoherent, aimless and beyond comprehension. It holds little merit in story, theme, performance or production within the confines of its 114 minutes – you need extra media to make any sense of it. It does not present any complete ideas, leaving this task to the audience to search for their own interpretations. While Auteurism may be used to defend or praise the movie, it by no means justifies the ineptitude of the work itself. Watch it if you have seen the director’s other works or the other attachments of the project this movie is a part of. Else, you may do well to stay clear.

While day#4 was about movies awarded at other Film Festivals, we kick into the high gear with day#5, which includes the most commercial movie I will see at this year’s Dubai International Film Festival, Danny Boyle’s 127 Hours, and a violent action movie from Japan, along with another Japanese movie and an Italian-Arabic feature. My report tomorrow!

Shariq Madani at DIFF 2010
Daily Festival Report: 14th December 2010 (Day #3)

Thick into the film festival by day 3, today was for movies from Asia and Africa. Three of the four movies I watched were testing and one was downright bizarre. Read more about each of these four movies below.

Autumn (Harud)
Aamir Bashir | India | 2010
99 min
Autumn is the story of one disillusioned youth’s aimless days during one autumn season in violence-ravaged Kashmir. The movie takes its time with the subject, perhaps too much time, but thankfully does not digress. With few dialogs and just incidental sounds, this quiet brooding film has some interesting subtle moments that make for a patient watch. The story is mostly by observation of and by the protagonist. Unfortunately, it suffers from a lack of good performances that make the movie difficult to accept as anything but an effort. The protagonist is correctly referred to by one of his friends as a zombie – he hardly emotes or speaks, waiting to be challenged to release his pent up frustrations. Aamir Bashir’s debut movie proves he may have an eye and feel for film, but he needs a more fluent cinematic language.

An Unfinished Letter (Iti Mrinalini)
Aparna Sen | India | 2010
130 min
Coming from an acclaimed director, Aparna Sen’s An Unfinished Letter is a letdown. The movie takes a look at an actress’ unrequited love from the start to the end of her career. Aparna Sen herself plays Mrinalini, the ageing actress while her daughter, Konkona Sen Sharma, plays a younger Mrinalini in the flashbacks that tell the bulk of the story. While providing an ample scope to perform for the two actresses who portray the central role, the movie tells a generic tale that seems worn-out, and has a conclusion that is at tangents to the rest of the story. At 130 minutes and lacking a strong narrative, An Unfinished Letter is too long to hold the interest of the viewer through to the end.

Confessions (Kokuhaku)
Tetsuya Nakashima | Japan | 2010
106 min
Made in a way that probably only the Japanese and Koreans can, Confessions is a revenge movie that leans towards the macabre. A teacher announces to her class that she knows the identity of the two killers who murdered her daughter – both students of the very same class. She gives out enough clues to make the identities of the killers obvious, and thus starts her cold and elaborate revenge. Skipping back and forth between ultra-violence and humor in a heartbeat, Confessions is an amusing yet chilling watch. Combining mesmerizing visuals with convoluted story-telling, director Tetsuya Nakashima makes Confessions fantastical – a movie that has to be watched for its face value only. Yet, after the movie, one cannot help but wonder at how desensitized today’s children (and adults) have become. For a more detailed review of the film, read what our very own Faizan Rashid has to say about the film.

A Screaming Man (Un Homme Qui Crie)
Mahamat Saleh-Haroun | Chad | 2010
92 min
In setting and tone, A Screaming Man is quite similar to director Mahamat Saleh-Haroun’s acclaimed previous film Dry Season. Also starring the same lead actor, Youssouf Djaoro, this movie is equally bleak and melancholic. Djaoro stars as Adam, who along with his son Abdel, works as a swimming-pool attendant at a hotel. Under new management, the hotel decides to keep just one attendant and Adam is shifted to gate-keeping duties. Distraught, Adam takes a decision that bears down on him as guilt. Djaoro, in his performance, broods his way through the story that may not be easy to identify with, but is realistic enough to sympathize with. Although the deliberate pace of the movie is required as a narrative tool, it can be a test of patience for many. Having watched Dry Season, it is not easy to appreciate A Screaming Man, for this movie is just more of the same. Faizan Rashid of wearethemovies though has a different opinion however, one which can be read in our detailed review of the film.

Day#4 brings us to the mid-point of the festival. My schedule for tomorrow starts with the Golden Bear winner of Berlin, continues with a Korean post-apocalyptic movie and the Turkish Silver Bear winner of Berlin, finally ending with the winner of the Palm d’Or at Cannes. Could anticipation of a day at DIFF be more than for tomorrow?

Day 2 of the festival featured two movies, one each from either side of the Atlantic. The first, although quite acclaimed, did not impress me much. The second movie helped bring balance to the day.

When We Leave (Die Fremde)
Aladag | Germany | 2010.
119 min
When We Leave is a laboriously paced German movie about one Turkish-German woman’s struggle for her freedom to live a peaceful life with her son, away from the cruelty of her husband and her own family. Unfortunately, the makers of the movie did not have much more than this central idea to work on, and hence resort to a deluge of predictable clichés. The struggle of Umay, the protagonist, is justified by having all supporting characters of Turkish ethnicity act with unbelievable malice towards her. This does the reverse of its intent: instead of sympathizing with Umay, it creates a curiosity to the kind of community and ethnicity she belongs to. Even with its over-the-top finale, the movie tries too hard to succeed, and fails miserably.

The Company Men
John Wells | U.S.A. | 2010
109 min
Focusing on senior executives who lost jobs due to the financial recession, The Company Men is an engaging contemporary drama that snuggles in that comfortable spot between being preachy and being grim. When pride deflates, reality sneaks in and effects men in different ways. The movie delves into this theme, exploring the lives of three victims of downsizing – Ben Affleck, Tommy Lee Jones and Chris Cooper. Effectively showing what men go through when they not only lose their job, but are not able to find a new one, it also provide that kindle of hope that such depressing times require. Riding on good performances by Affleck and Jones, The Company Men is a strong debut by John Wells.

Day 3 promises to be busy, with at least four movies scheduled to be watched, all from Asia or Africa. Stay around, as I continue my journey around World Cinema.

The seventh edition of the Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) started today, with a Red Carpet gala screening of The King’s Speech. Concurrently starts my daily coverage of the festival. In addition to the 10 Films You Must See At Dubai Film Festival ’10, look out for my annual day-by-day update of DIFF to tell you about movies to watch, those to steer clear of and some to simply take your chance with.

The King’s Speech
Tom Hooper | UK | 2010
118 min
In The King’s Speech, Colin Firth plays King George VI with a speech impediment in this historical yet personal drama about one man’s struggle with his weakness. From being the King’s son, then brother to the next king, and eventually reluctant king himself, the movie explores King George VI’s relationship and eventual friendship with his speech therapist that lead him to conquer his disability. In one of the most refined performances of the year, Firth plays the stammering monarch with such finesse that it is not too far-fetched to wager on his winning the coveted Oscar for his leading role. Lending him able support are Helena Bonham Carter as his wife and, in an excellent performance, Geoffrey Rush as the King’s speech therapist. Without letting the grandeur of royalty and impending war crowd the screen, the story stays mostly with these three characters, with occasional foray into their families and other historical figures of the time (Timothy Spall as Winston Churchill is priceless!). The King’s Speech is a must watch, not the least for its powerful central performance.

Our own Faizan Rashid, in his full review, calls the film “an inspiring, entertaining, feel good, crowd pleaser, one that’s actually very good and sustained in no small part by two performances that enthrall.”

The King’s Speech is a fantastic opening film to a festival that promises to enthrall. With enough enthusiasm to last me the week, I have drawn up my schedule for the next six days. Look forward to reading about movies of various languages and genres from across the world. And if you get the opportunity, try to watch some of them too!

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.

The Book of Eli
Albert Hughes | USA | 2009

Denzel Washington plays a messiah-sort in a desolate, post-apocalyptic America, where the only hope for humanity is the titular book. If Denzel Washington taking on a bunch of thugs by himself is not cool enough for you, Gary Oldman is back as the baddie. And he goes by the name “Carnegie”.

Legion
Scott Stewart | USA | 2009

God (the Jehovah version) is fed up of us sinners. So he initiates apocalypse by unleashing an army of angels, led by ever faithful Gabriel. But Michael has other plans – he believes Mankind can be salvaged by the messiah, except… the messiah must first be given birth to by a pregnant waitress in a desolate truck-diner, somewhere in Southwest America. Expect action, horror and fantasy to be combined in a way only seen before in Constantine. Paul Bettany plays the Archangel Michael.

Edge of Darkness
Martin Campbell | USA | 2009

007 helmer Martin Campbell directs this thriller about a homicide detective, Mel Gibson, out to find his daughter’s killer. After Rambo 4 and Die Hard 4, we know these old tough guys can still play action heroes and kick some serious ass. Last time Mel Gibson had a starring role, we got Signs. Last time Mel Gibson played a bad-ass, we got Payback.

The Wolfman
Joe Johnston | USA | 2009

The Wolfman is another retelling of the werewolf origin, this one right in time for Valentine’s Day. Normally, such a film would not draw much attention, but names like Anthony Hopkins, Benicio del Toro, Hugo Weaving and Emily Blunt arouse a level of interest. Although director Joe Johnston hasn’t given us much to enjoy lately, where this movie may have already hit the mark with the formidable promotional material (moody trailer and posters). Looks like a wonderful mix of horror and period-piece, and after Che, we’ll watch any movie with Benicio del Toro in it.

Shutter Island
Martin Scorcese | USA | 2009

Scorsese is back with his muse, Leonardo. There are a bunch of other big names thrown in, but what makes the film seem exciting is the sinister plot: Leo is a US Marshal investigating a disappearance at an asylum for the criminally insane, situated on a remote island. Not just is the movie based on another book by Dennis Lehane (Gone Baby Gone, Mystic River), it stars Ben Kingsley as a doctor. For the criminally insane. Oh yes.

Alice in Wonderland
Tim Burton | USA | 2009

Honestly, Tim Burton has by now become boring and redundant, beaten at his own game by the likes of visionaries such as Guillermo Del Toro. We’ve seen enough of Burton’s morphed reality to find his work unsurprising. But it seems he may have finally found a story that can work alongside his skewed perspective. Why the sudden optimism with his latest movie? For one, Alice is now a 19yr old girl, returning to Wonderland to face the Red Queen of Hearts. It’s also shot and released in Digital 3D under the Disney production house, giving us a chance to experience Burton’s bizarre visuals anew. Lastly, it stars Burton’s muse Johnny Depp, as the Mad Hatter. Some more inspired casting apart from the obvious: among others, Anne Hathaway as the White Queen, Crispin Glover as the Knave of Hearts and Alan Rickman as the Caterpillar.

Clash of the Titans
Louis Leterrier | USA | 2009

Louis Leterrier, the director of 2008’s Incredible Hulk brings us this FX heavy fantasy tale from Greek Mythology of Perseus’ epic sea journey. In his third masochistic outing, Sam Worthington (Terminator Salvation, Avatar) plays the hero who faces Medusa, Poseidon, Athena, Ares and a host of giant creatures. In an exciting match-up, Liam Neeson and Ralph Fiennes play the feuding brothers Zeus and Hades.

Kick-Ass
Matthew Vaughn | USA | 2009

When major studios did not approve Matthew Vaughn’s faithful adaptation of a gritty, violent comic book about a crime-fighting student, he decided to make the movie anyway – with his own company fully financing the project. It’s also rated R (rare for a comic book based film), though it is about teens in home-grown costumes fighting crime with no powers or skills.

Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps
Oliver Stone | USA | 2009

Greed is good again. Oliver Stone revisits his iconic 80s film. Shia LeBeouf continues his Hollywood apprenticeship under the tutelage of Michael Douglas. Charlie Sheen gets a shot at the big screen again. It should be a marvelous watch, especially with the recession having left such a sour taste. (Note: Make sure you’ve seen the first Wall Street)

A Nightmare on Elm Street
Samuel Bayer | USA | 2009

The new Freddy Kruger is played by Jackie Earle Haley. Who? He who played Rorschach in Watchmen and the creepy pedophile in Little Children. While it is an interesting casting choice, it could be hard to up the original and the role that Robert Englund defined so brilliantly. But… this is Freddy Kruger’s origin! Plus, the director made the music video for Metallica’s Until It Sleeps. Now that’s creepy.

Iron Man 2
Jon Favreau | USA | 2009

The title should be enough. To be sure, it has the same director and actor. Throw in Mickey Rourke as villain Whiplash and Scarlett Johansson as Russian spy Black Widow. Need I say more? Okay, here’s more. The trailer shows War Machine, in action. FTW!

Robin Hood
Ridley Scott | USA | 2009

Another movie about the Prince of Thieves, though to be more specific, this is Ridley Scott’s version. Expect a Gladiator style, swords & sandals epic, full of powerful speeches and an bloody remorselessness. The master filmmaker might be growing old but, in all probability, he still packs a solid punch. To add, Russell “Maximus” Crowe plays the hero.

Shrek Forever After
Mike Mitchell | USA | 2009

Shrek, Fiona, Donkey, Puss-in-Boots in an all-new adventure, this time in glorious 3D. It has been announced (for now) as the last Shrek movie. Rejoice!

Prince of Persia – Sands of Time
Mike Newell | USA | 2009

Yes, the same erstwhile 2D scrolling prince from the legendary video game. And while the effects look good, the trailer did not really do much. Yet, there is hope. This is from the studio that brought us the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, trying to repeat their formula. Jake Gyllenhaal plays the prince.

The A-Team
Joe Carnahan | USA | 2009

Joe Carnahan (Smokin’ Aces, Narc) brings to the big screen this extremely popular 80s TV show. If you didn’t know the series, you certainly knew Mr T. The success of this movie could start a race to adapt more TV series from its era. Notice the guy in the suit? That is Hangover’s Bradley Cooper.

Jonah Hex
Jimmy Haward | USA | 2009

Josh Brolin plays Jonah Hex, a scarred bounty hunter from the Wild West tracking a voodoo practitioner who wants to raise an army of the undead to liberate the South. The voodoo practitioner is John Malkovich. The female lead, corset, boots and all, is Megan Fox.

Toy Story 3
Lee Unkrich | USA | 2009

Pixar. Woody & Buzz. 3D.

Knight & Day
James Mangold | USA | 2009

From the director of Walk The Line & 3:10 to Yuma comes this big-star, action-comedy (think Mr & Mrs Smith) about a fugitive couple. Although Cameron Diaz has started to look like everyone’s oldest aunt, we will endure this, because… Tom Cruise is playing a spy!

The Last Airbender
M Night Shyamalan | USA | 2009

M Night Shyamalan’s name may not carry the “awe factor” it used to, but let’s not deny that he is a supremely talented craftsman. The Last Airbender benefits from a story already established through the popular animated TV series. With the Lord of the Rings cinematographer and a host of other eminent technicians in the crew, this looks set to become THE epic of the year. Have you seen the teaser trailer?!

Predators
Nimród Antal | USA | 2009

Robert Rodriguez leaves behind his children’s movie infatuation to return firmly back to guy-movie territory by producing this remake. Predators finds our favorite intergalactic hunters fighting a familiar enemy – humans! The elite human warriors include, among others, Laurence Fishburne and… Danny Trejo.

Inception
Christopher Nolan | USA | 2009

Christopher Nolan (Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, Memento, The Prestige) directs this big-Budget mind-bending thriller, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon-Levitt (remember that name), Ellen Page, Marion Cotillard, Cillian Murphy, Ken Watanabe & Michael Caine. Inception is based on an original story that has officially been summarized as “a sci-fi thriller set within the architecture of the mind.” It also has the best teaser & trailer of any 2010 movie so far.

Salt
Philip Noyce | USA | 2009

In this action thriller, Angelina Jolie plays an accused-spy on the run from the authorities to prove her innocence. Angelina Jolie doing action! Knockout!!

The Expendables
Sylvester Stallone | USA | 2009

Expendables, directed by Sylvester Stallone, is an 80’s style action movie, a tribute to the era & the genre. The line up reads like an action junkies wet dream – Sly himself, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Mickey Rourke, Danny Trejo,  Dolph Ludgren & (Stone Cold) Steve Austin. Look out for cameos by Bruce Willis & Arnold Schwarzenegger. Bliss!

Priest
Scott Stewart | USA | 2009

Paul Bettany is back in for the second this time year with the director of the year’s earlier major film, Legion. This time, he plays a priest disobeying the church’s orders to track down the kidnappers of his niece. Except, the kidnappers are… vampires. And one of them is Karl Urban.

The American
Anton Corbijn | USA | 2009

It’s fun to see George Clooney play suave and sophisticated characters. Even the sometimes Quirky, simple roles that he plays are fun. In The American, he is an assassin hiding in Italy for his final assignment. Expect the film to ooze cool charm, just like the man himself.

The Social Network
David Fincher | USA | 2009

David Fincher could make a movie about a phonebook and still make it interesting. So he does almost that – he’s making his next film on “facebook”. Little is known about the movie, but what we do know is that it stars Justin Timberlake as the founder of the popular social-networking site. Don’t doubt it – it still is David Fincher!

Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows: Part I
David Yates | USA | 2009

Finally, the last book of the Harry Potter series. But wait, it’s not the last movie yet – “Deathly Hallows” is a long book and detailed enough to be split into two films – Deathly Hallows I and Deathly Hallows II. Even so, if the sixth movie is any indication, these could be a good last couple of films, measured by the uneven standards of the Harry Potter film franchise. Interestingly, much of the setting is outside Hogwarts, in and around present-day London with the three main characters in hiding and on the run.

Rapunzel
Nathan Greno & Byron Howard | USA | 2009

Since Disney decided to come back to fairy tales with 2009’s Princess and the Frog, it was a natural step to adapt one of the famous princesses whose tale hasn’t been told to us yet – Rapunzel. The setting fits in perfectly well with the others of her ilk (Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, etc). The aim is to make the movie look as close to the Disney classics of yesteryears, as possible (hand-drawn water-paintings), but to do so using the latest pixel technology and in 3D.

Tron Legacy
Joseph Kosinski | USA | 2009

If you’ve seen the original Tron (1982), that should reason enough to get excited about this sequel. If you have not seen Tron (or even if you have), watch the awesome teaser:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1I7NW5bW-Oo

Note: This short-list of 30 movies is not meant to be a complete guide for what to watch out of Hollywood in 2010. It merely is an indication of the ones that have successfully aroused our interest. Look out for our views on these (and many more) as the year progresses. Happy watching!