Now that the dust has settled from 2006, it’s time to start fresh, with a new crop of films to get excited about. Hollywood.com picks 20 films to watch out for in 2007.
The Number 23 (Feb. 23)
Cast: Jim Carrey, Virginia Madsen, Danny Huston; directed by Joel Schumacher
Somehow the story about how a man’s life unravels after he finds a book titled The Number 23, starts calculating all the events in his life, as well as historical events, and becomes obsessed with the fact everything in the universe adds up to that very number, seems ominously intriguing. Plus, Schumacher (Phone Booth) is a sucker for a tightly wound thriller, while Jim Carrey has proven he can play dark, if not manic.
Black Snake Moan (Feb. 23)
Cast: Samuel L. Jackson, Christina Ricci, Justin Timberlake; directed by Craig Brewer
It’d be a lot more exciting if crap movie magnet Jackson weren’t involved—which isn’t to suggest that he turns movies into crap but rather that he only seems to be drawn to crap. Crap talk aside, writer/director Brewer, who poured everything he had into Hustle and Flow, restores all faith lost by Jackson’s inclusion. Plus, the story, about a man (Jackson) who used to sing the blues but now lives them, sounds just as charged and redemptive as Brewer’s rookie effort.
Zodiac (March 2)
Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo, Robert Downey Jr., Anthony Edwards; directed by David Fincher
The cast, which isn’t even done justice by the few names listed above, is all well and good, but it’s all about Fincher (Fight Club). The stylistic director deliberates over any and all projects and thus doesn’t churn ‘em out as often as Woody Allen, so there’s good reason for excitement each time. His latest is about the San Francisco Zodiac Killer from the ‘60s and ‘70s, who was notorious for taunting police with his murders. Sounds a lot like Fincher’s Se7en—and that’s a very good thing.
Reign Over Me (March 9)
Cast: Adam Sandler, Don Cheadle, Saffron Burrows, Jada Pinkett Smith; directed by Mike Binder
There’s always some big upcoming Sandler flick that fulfills your mandatory guilty pleasure quota, and the frat god is hard to buy in a serious role as a man who has never fully grieved over losing family members on 9/11 until he runs into his old college buddy (Cheadle). The trailer, however, seems to dispel all of those concerns, as did Sandler’s surprisingly poignant turn in the 2002 Punch Drunk Love.
Sunshine (March 16)
Cast: Michelle Yeoh, Cillian Murphy, Chris Evans, Troy Garity; directed by Danny Boyle
Like most movies on this list, Sunshine’s director Boyle gives solid ground to an otherwise out-there premise about the sun dying and humanity with it, unless a team of scientists can reinvigorate the star. After a momentary lapse in fatalism with gleeful kids fare in Millions, Boyle seems to have returned to his roots of sci-fi doomsday (á la his 28 Days Later)—with help from Boyle favorite Murphy.
Grind House (April 6)
Cast: Danny Trejo, Kurt Russell, Fergie, Freddy Rodriguez, Rose McGowan and almost anyone else you wouldn’t expect; directed by Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez
Grind House is a genuine double feature: Planet Terror, akin to a zombie film, and Death Proof, something like a serial-killer flick, will be bridged by fake trailers. Would anyone else besides cinematic soul mates Tarantino and Rodriguez even have the balls to pitch this to a studio? Would a studio ever even give the time of day to anyone else who tried to pitch such an idea? Should you put this at the top of your list, WAY above every other movie this year? Hell yes! As long as you’re not a hemophobe.
Spider-Man 3 (May 4)
Cast: Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, Thomas Haden Church, Topher Grace, Bryce Dallas Howard, James Franco; directed by Sam Raimi
We’ve been waiting and waiting for this highly anticipated third Spidey installment, in which the statement “with great power comes great responsibility” apparently goes to Peter’s head a bit, jeopardizing his budding relationship with Mary Jane (Dunst) and eventually tempting Spidey to the dark side. Meanwhile, Spider-Man also has to contend with villains Venom (Grace) and Sandman (Church), while Harry (Franco) lurks in the corner, waiting to take HIS revenge. Ah, what a tangled web they weave.
Shrek the Third (May 18)
Voices of: Mike Myers, Cameron Diaz, Eddie Murphy, Antonio Banderas, Justin Timberlake, Rupert Everett, John Cleese and a bunch of other voices
When King Harold (Cleese) falls ill, it is up to Shrek to find a suitable heir or he will be forced to give up his beloved swamp for the throne. He sets his sights on Fiona’s rebellious young cousin Artie (Timberlake), aka Arthur. Get it? Meanwhile, jilted Prince Charming (Everett) storms the city of Far, Far Away with an army of fairy tale villains to seize the throne. But they have a surprise because Fiona has drafted her fellow fairy tale heroines to defend themselves. Sounds like another wacky time in storyville!
Pirates of the Caribbean: At Worlds End (May 25)
Cast: Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley, Geoffrey Rush, Chow Yun-Fat, Bill Nighy, Naomie Harris; directed by Gore Verbinski
Remember what happened at the end of the smash hit Dead Man’s Chest? As Capt. Jack Sparrow heads into the Kraken’s gaping maw, swords a-blazin’, the Black Pearl is dragged by its tentacles to the depths below. Cut to the gang mourning Capt. Jack’s seemingly untimely demise when voodoo priestess Tia (Harris) says there might be a way to get Jack back—but they’ll have to sail off the edge of the map to do it. Enter Capt. Barbossa (Rush). Rescue mission afoot? Sounds like it. Will we be first in line to see it? You bet.
Ocean’s Thirteen (June 8)
Cast: George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, Al Pacino, Ellen Barkin and the rest of the guys; directed by Steven Soderbergh
A hunky cast, another impossible heist, and Vegas, baby—what can get better than that? Apparently this third installment thankfully gets back to the basics. Danny Ocean (Clooney) and his crew head back to Las Vegas to do a job for none other than their arch nemesis, Terry Benedict (Garcia), who wants to get even with a rival (Pacino). Meanwhile, Linus (Damon) gets a love interest (Barkin) this time. Aw, that’s sweet.
Hostel: Part II (June 8)
Cast: Lauren German, Heather Matarazzo, Bijou Phillips, Jay Hernandez, Jordan Ladd; directed by Eli Roth
It’s not encouraging that this sequel to last year’s surprise hit gore-or flick was originally slated for release at the end of ’06, but director (and writer…and producer) Roth probably just wanted to up the ante/body count at the last second–which, for all of the many fans of the original, is perfectly dandy. And luckily, this is isn’t one of those half-hearted attempts at opportunism, as Hernandez is back, along with a few fresh, likely decapitated, faces. All that really matters, though, is that the mastermind and Tarantino-endorsed Roth is on board.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (July 13)
Cast: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Ralph Fiennes, Imelda Staunton, Gary Oldman, David Thewlis; directed by David Yates (HBO’s The Girl in the Café)
Voldemort (Fiennes) is indeed back, as we head into the fifth Harry Potter installment. But no one at the Ministry of Magic believes Harry’s story about Voldemort’s rise from the ashes, especially Hogwarts’ new sadistic Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher (Staunton). No matter. The secret Order of the Phoenix will band together with Harry’s newly formed Dumbledore’s Army to try to stop Voldemort’s ascension to power. And we’ll be right there with them.
The Simpsons Movie (July 27)
Voices of: Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith; directed by David Silverman
Possibly the most highly anticipated movie in the history of the world, The Simpsons Movie logically won’t be able to meet expectations. Then again, there is a reason (or two)–besides the cameos, of which you can expect more in the movie, and sharp humor–that have kept the TV show as America’s longest-running sitcom and animated show: the geniuses behind the show, Matt Groening, James L. Brooks (and the lesser-known Sam Simon). Perhaps their biggest stroke of genius is the Movie itself, which took 11 writers and was reportedly in the works for several years, only to be effectively kept hush-hush—much like the plot is currently.
Eastern Promises (Sept. 14)
Cast: Viggo Mortensen, Naomi Watts, Vincent Cassel; directed David Cronenberg
The second collaboration between director Cronenberg and actor Mortensen—about a ruthless Londoner left shaken when he crosses paths with a woman (Watts)–doesn’t seem to be a huge drop-off in seriousness from A History of Violence. Thank goodness. Mortensen just isn’t cut out for the onscreen simple life, and Cronenberg doesn’t play by the rules of the Hollywood thriller. Throw in the mainstream-ish Watts, and we’ve got potential Oscar bait—that’s right, 2008 predictions!
The Seven Day Itch (Oct. 5)
Cast: Ben Stiller, Michelle Monaghan, Malin Akerman; directed by Bobby and Peter Farrelly
OK, so the Farrelly Bros.’ act has steadily declined since the days of There’s Something About Mary and Dumb & Dumber. But even though Itch is another “drama” by Farrelly standards—about a man who leaves his new wife for another woman while they’re honeymooning—following in the footsteps of Fever Pitch, it marks an encouraging reunion: Stiller, from the Mary days. Let’s hope it marks a creative reunion as well.
The Other Boleyn Girl (Oct. 26)
Cast: Scarlett Johansson, Natalie Portman, Eric Bana; directed Justin Chadwick (BBC’sBleak House)
Based on Philippa Gregory’s bestselling historical novel and adapted by The Queen screenwriter Peter Morgan, this lush story centers on the Boleyn sisters, Mary (Johansson) and Anne (Portman), who through their family’s political machinations, each have turns at winning the lusty heart of King Henry VIII (Bana). Of course, historically Anne proves to be the more cunning—but her doom is sealed when she can’t deliver a son as heir. With a spot-on cast like this, Boleyn should be Tudor soap opera at its best.
Bee Movie (Nov. 2)
Voices of: Jerry Seinfeld, Renee Zellweger, Ray Liotta, Chris Rock; directed by Stephen Hickner and Simon J. Smith
Prediction: Michael Richards won’t be the only Seinfeld alum in the headlines in ‘07—Jerry’s back. Not only did Seinfeld lay down the vocals for Barry, a bee who is having an existential crisis about his career of honey-making, he also wrote and produced the movie. Anything that he has this amount of passion for—it’s his first feature movie since the 2002 documentary Comedian—and that DreamWorks Animation (the team behind all Shreks and Madagascars) participates in must be worth our anticipation.
Fred Claus (Nov. 9)
Cast: Vince Vaughn, Paul Giamatti, Miranda Richardson, Kathy Bates; directed by David Dobkin
The idea Santa Claus has a slacker brother who has never amounted to much, due mostly to the rather large shadow his brother casts over him, is too priceless. To add insult to injury, the bitter Fred Claus (Vaughn) has to move in with his brother Santa (Giamatti) at the North Pole and help out during the peak season. Vaughn will excel, that’s a given and Giamatti has proven he can do anything–but the topper is Wedding Crashers director Dobkin at the helm. This is probably one you won’t want to miss.
Beowulf (Nov. 16)
Cast: Angelina Jolie, Crispin Glover, Anthony Hopkins, John Malkovich, Alison Lohman, Ray Winstone; directed by Robert Zemeckis
Based on the Old English legend, the film revolves around the Scandinavian warrior Beowulf (Winstone) who must fight and defeat the monster Grendel (Glover) who is terrorizing towns, and later, Grendel’s mother (Jolie), who begins killing out of revenge. A tale this old should be updated and in the hands of animation innovator Zemeckis (Who Framed Roger Rabbit, The Polar Express), it should be—at the very least–spectacular to look at.
Charlie Wilson’s War (Dec. 25)
Cast: Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams; directed by Mike Nichols
Based on the true story of how Charlie Wilson (Hanks), an alcoholic womanizer and Texas congressman, persuaded the CIA to train and arm resistance fighters in Afghanistan to fend off the Soviet Union, which ultimately lead to empowering the Taliban and terrorists, including Osama bin Laden. It’s seems odd Nichols would take on such a project, but it must only mean he’ll add his intimate style of directing to the proceedings. In fact, it could be an early Oscar contender—and you heard it here first!
