The last two movie guide entries tackled the action-packed first half of 2014. Now this entry deals with my choices of movies in the latter half of the year which already have a UK release scheduled for 2014.
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Click the following two links for:
My Movie Guide: January 2014 - March 2014
My Movie Guide: April 2014 - June 2014
JULY
MY PICK:
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How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014)
Director: Dean DeBlois
Stars: Jay Baruchel, Kristen Wiig, America Ferrera, Jonah Hill
UK Release Date: 04/07/14
It's been five years since Hiccup and Toothless successfully united dragons and vikings on the island of Berk...
I was not expecting much from "How To Train Your Dragon" when I saw the trailer. While not surpassing the Pixar movies of that year, I still had a great time. Dean DeBlois who directed the first movie (as well directing the Disney movie "Lilo and Stitch") is returning to direct the sequel and I'm very interested to see what he does this time around.
(video link)
SOME OTHER INTERESTING ALTERNATIVES:
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Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014)
Director: Matt Reeves
Stars: Gary Oldman, Keri Russell, Andy Serkis, Kodi Smit-McPhee
UK Release Date: 17/07/14
Survivors of the simian plague trigger an all-out war between humanity and Caesar's growing forces.
I've seen every movie in the Planet of the Apes series, so unless this gets a really low rating on Rotten Tomatoes, I'll probably be checking this out in the cinema. (Ever since I ignored the Rotten Tomatoes score for the atrocious "Terminator Salvation" I've been disinclined to do so again.) However, I'm more than a little bugged to find that Rupert Wyatt isn't going to be making the follow-up to his game-changing reboot. I'm even more concerned now that Matt Reeves has been brought on board to replace him. Matt Reeves first film "Cloverfield" looked great, but had characters that annoyed the hell out of me. His next film after that was the lazy remake "Let Me In" which I absolutely hated. I don't have much hope for this sequel now, but at least it can't be worse than Tim Burton's reboot.
(video link)
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Jupiter Ascending (2014)
Director: Andy Wachowski, Lana Wachowski
Stars: Mila Kunis, Channing Tatum, Sean Bean, Eddie Redmayne
UK Release Date: 25/07/14
In a universe where humans are near the bottom of the evolutionary ladder, a young destitute human woman is targeted for assassination by the Queen of the Universe because her very existence threatens to end the Queen's reign.
I've seen most of the Wachowski Brothers' movies and was a huge fan of "The Matrix". (I was actually also a big fan of "The Matrix Reloaded", but that was because I thought "The Matrix Revolutions" was going to actually resolve the plotlines properly. Never give too much credit to the first half a movie, even if the first half is released as a stand-alone entry.) I couldn't finish "Speed Racer", I actively hated "Cloud Atlas" from last year, and while I enjoyed "Bound" there are some pretty daft bits in that too. Still, part of me always wants to give the Wachowskis the benefit of the doubt.
(video link)
AUGUST
MY PICKS:
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Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
Director: James Gunn
Stars: Lee Pace, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Zoe Saldana
UK Release Date: 01/08/14
A jet pilot gets stranded in space, and must unite a diverse team of aliens to form a squad capable of defeating cosmic threats.
I've been regularly following the Avengers series and I'm becoming a bit of a fan. Sure, talking racoons and trees sounds like the most ridiculous thing ever, but then again, I'm keen for the filmmakers to surprise me. I was sceptical of "Avengers Assemble" when the marketing was in full force for that, so I may well find myself proven wrong here too. I'm invested enough in this series now that I'm keen to be proved wrong and I've no doubt I will be finding out whether this bizarre premise really works in a cinema rather than on a DVD.
(video link)
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Sin City: A Dame to Die For (2014)
Director: Frank Miller, Robert Rodriguez
Stars: Jessica Alba, Mickey Rourke, Rosario Dawson, Joseph Gordon-Levitt
UK Release Date: 29/08/14
The town's most hard-boiled citizens cross paths with some of its more reviled inhabitants.
Asides from Robert Rodriguez' children's movies, he's never really let me down. Frank Miller is here because, in the end, this is his property, but Rodriguez is the real mastermind here. Rodriguez and Tarantino have a close friendship and "Sin City" felt rather like Rodriguez's equivalent of "Pulp Fiction" (though I'd say that "Desperado" was still Rodriguez' best movie). Frank Miller has admittedly been going rather loopy in recent years. But so long as Rodriguez can keep Miller in check, this should be awesome.
(No trailer yet - imdb page here)
SEPTEMBER
No suggestions for September 2014
OCTOBER
MY PICK:
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The Book of Life (2014)
Director: Jorge R. Gutierrez
Stars: Channing Tatum, Zoe Saldana, Christina Applegate, Ron Perlman
UK Release Date: 24/10/14
An animated movie described as a Romeo and Juliet-inspired love story set during a Day of the Dead celebration.
A Pixar film set around the Day of the Dead celebrations. I can already imagine all sorts of possibilities for the imagery. I'm not entirely sure what to expect and that's part of the fun. Guillermo Del Toro's involvement as producer is an added bonus...
(No trailer yet - imdb page here)
ANOTHER INTERESTING ALTERNATIVE:
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Fury (2014)
Director: David Ayer
Stars: Brad Pitt, Logan Lerman, Shia LaBeouf, Jon Bernthal
UK Release Date: 24/10/14
A crew of Americans in Nazi Germany toward the end of World War II embark on a brave mission.
On the one hand it's David Ayer who directed "End Of Watch". On the other hand, Americans in WWII? Really? It doesn't help that David Ayer was responsible for writing "U-571" which changed a British mission into an American one. I mean, how about we mix it up and talk about what the Canadians did for a change, eh? Canada actually got involved in WWII during the first year and I know that there are plenty of real life stories to be told about their involvement. Anyway, I'm sure writer/director David Ayer will come up with a compelling story. Perhaps this time it will be based on actual American manoeuvres rather than giving Americans the credit for British successes.
(No trailer yet - imdb page here)
NOVEMBER
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MY PICK:
Interstellar (2014)
Director: Christopher Nolan
Stars: Anne Hathaway, Matthew McConaughey, Jessica Chastain, Michael Caine
UK Release Date: 07/11/14
A group of explorers make use of a newly discovered wormhole to surpass the limitations on human space travel and conquer the vast distances involved in an interstellar voyage.
Oddly enough I've generally been least impressed by Nolan's films with "Dark Knight" in the title. I'm a big fan of him as a director, I've seen every film he's directed and I'm hopeful that this will be on the same level as movies like "Memento" and "The Prestige" in the past. Plus it's sci-fi, yay!
(video link)
ANOTHER INTERESTING ALTERNATIVE:
![]()
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 (2014)
Director: Francis Lawrence
Stars: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Sam Claflin, Liam Hemsworth
UK Release Date: 21/11/14
Katniss Everdeen reluctantly becomes the symbol of a mass rebellion against the autocratic Capitol.
Actually, after the sequel "Catching Fire" I'm not terribly interested in this one anymore. I really enjoyed the first "Hunger Games" movie, but the sequel just felt like more of the same. Still, there's always the possibility that they can up their game for the final instalments. (Though I've heard that the third book in the series takes a downturn in quality.)
(No trailer yet - imdb page here)
DECEMBER
MY PICK:
![]()
The Hobbit: There and Back Again (2014)
Director: Peter Jackson
Stars: Evangeline Lilly, Luke Evans, Richard Armitage, Benedict Cumberbatch
UK Release Date: 19/12/14
The Company of Thorin has reached Smaug's lair; but, can Bilbo and the Dwarves reclaim Erebor and the treasure? And, if so, can they hold on to it?
The finale of "The Desolation of Smaug" rather lost its way, but this is still a really fun series of films and, by my reckoning, much more enjoyable than the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy. I am keen to see what they do with the battle between Gandalf and the Necromancer (now revealed to be Sauron), since that was an event relegated to a few measly lines in the original book of "The Hobbit" while being nonetheless vital to the continuity between "The Hobbit" and "Lord of the Rings". This story will be new to anyone who hasn't ploughed their way through Tolkein's appendices and I cannot wait to hear it.
(No trailer yet - imdb page here)
Click the following two links for:
My Movie Guide: January 2014 - March 2014
My Movie Guide: April 2014 - June 2014
JULY
MY PICK:
How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014)
Director: Dean DeBlois
Stars: Jay Baruchel, Kristen Wiig, America Ferrera, Jonah Hill
UK Release Date: 04/07/14
It's been five years since Hiccup and Toothless successfully united dragons and vikings on the island of Berk...
I was not expecting much from "How To Train Your Dragon" when I saw the trailer. While not surpassing the Pixar movies of that year, I still had a great time. Dean DeBlois who directed the first movie (as well directing the Disney movie "Lilo and Stitch") is returning to direct the sequel and I'm very interested to see what he does this time around.
(video link)
SOME OTHER INTERESTING ALTERNATIVES:
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014)
Director: Matt Reeves
Stars: Gary Oldman, Keri Russell, Andy Serkis, Kodi Smit-McPhee
UK Release Date: 17/07/14
Survivors of the simian plague trigger an all-out war between humanity and Caesar's growing forces.
I've seen every movie in the Planet of the Apes series, so unless this gets a really low rating on Rotten Tomatoes, I'll probably be checking this out in the cinema. (Ever since I ignored the Rotten Tomatoes score for the atrocious "Terminator Salvation" I've been disinclined to do so again.) However, I'm more than a little bugged to find that Rupert Wyatt isn't going to be making the follow-up to his game-changing reboot. I'm even more concerned now that Matt Reeves has been brought on board to replace him. Matt Reeves first film "Cloverfield" looked great, but had characters that annoyed the hell out of me. His next film after that was the lazy remake "Let Me In" which I absolutely hated. I don't have much hope for this sequel now, but at least it can't be worse than Tim Burton's reboot.
(video link)
Jupiter Ascending (2014)
Director: Andy Wachowski, Lana Wachowski
Stars: Mila Kunis, Channing Tatum, Sean Bean, Eddie Redmayne
UK Release Date: 25/07/14
In a universe where humans are near the bottom of the evolutionary ladder, a young destitute human woman is targeted for assassination by the Queen of the Universe because her very existence threatens to end the Queen's reign.
I've seen most of the Wachowski Brothers' movies and was a huge fan of "The Matrix". (I was actually also a big fan of "The Matrix Reloaded", but that was because I thought "The Matrix Revolutions" was going to actually resolve the plotlines properly. Never give too much credit to the first half a movie, even if the first half is released as a stand-alone entry.) I couldn't finish "Speed Racer", I actively hated "Cloud Atlas" from last year, and while I enjoyed "Bound" there are some pretty daft bits in that too. Still, part of me always wants to give the Wachowskis the benefit of the doubt.
(video link)
AUGUST
MY PICKS:
Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
Director: James Gunn
Stars: Lee Pace, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Zoe Saldana
UK Release Date: 01/08/14
A jet pilot gets stranded in space, and must unite a diverse team of aliens to form a squad capable of defeating cosmic threats.
I've been regularly following the Avengers series and I'm becoming a bit of a fan. Sure, talking racoons and trees sounds like the most ridiculous thing ever, but then again, I'm keen for the filmmakers to surprise me. I was sceptical of "Avengers Assemble" when the marketing was in full force for that, so I may well find myself proven wrong here too. I'm invested enough in this series now that I'm keen to be proved wrong and I've no doubt I will be finding out whether this bizarre premise really works in a cinema rather than on a DVD.
(video link)
Sin City: A Dame to Die For (2014)
Director: Frank Miller, Robert Rodriguez
Stars: Jessica Alba, Mickey Rourke, Rosario Dawson, Joseph Gordon-Levitt
UK Release Date: 29/08/14
The town's most hard-boiled citizens cross paths with some of its more reviled inhabitants.
Asides from Robert Rodriguez' children's movies, he's never really let me down. Frank Miller is here because, in the end, this is his property, but Rodriguez is the real mastermind here. Rodriguez and Tarantino have a close friendship and "Sin City" felt rather like Rodriguez's equivalent of "Pulp Fiction" (though I'd say that "Desperado" was still Rodriguez' best movie). Frank Miller has admittedly been going rather loopy in recent years. But so long as Rodriguez can keep Miller in check, this should be awesome.
(No trailer yet - imdb page here)
SEPTEMBER
No suggestions for September 2014
OCTOBER
MY PICK:
The Book of Life (2014)
Director: Jorge R. Gutierrez
Stars: Channing Tatum, Zoe Saldana, Christina Applegate, Ron Perlman
UK Release Date: 24/10/14
An animated movie described as a Romeo and Juliet-inspired love story set during a Day of the Dead celebration.
A Pixar film set around the Day of the Dead celebrations. I can already imagine all sorts of possibilities for the imagery. I'm not entirely sure what to expect and that's part of the fun. Guillermo Del Toro's involvement as producer is an added bonus...
(No trailer yet - imdb page here)
ANOTHER INTERESTING ALTERNATIVE:
Fury (2014)
Director: David Ayer
Stars: Brad Pitt, Logan Lerman, Shia LaBeouf, Jon Bernthal
UK Release Date: 24/10/14
A crew of Americans in Nazi Germany toward the end of World War II embark on a brave mission.
On the one hand it's David Ayer who directed "End Of Watch". On the other hand, Americans in WWII? Really? It doesn't help that David Ayer was responsible for writing "U-571" which changed a British mission into an American one. I mean, how about we mix it up and talk about what the Canadians did for a change, eh? Canada actually got involved in WWII during the first year and I know that there are plenty of real life stories to be told about their involvement. Anyway, I'm sure writer/director David Ayer will come up with a compelling story. Perhaps this time it will be based on actual American manoeuvres rather than giving Americans the credit for British successes.
(No trailer yet - imdb page here)
NOVEMBER
MY PICK:
Interstellar (2014)
Director: Christopher Nolan
Stars: Anne Hathaway, Matthew McConaughey, Jessica Chastain, Michael Caine
UK Release Date: 07/11/14
A group of explorers make use of a newly discovered wormhole to surpass the limitations on human space travel and conquer the vast distances involved in an interstellar voyage.
Oddly enough I've generally been least impressed by Nolan's films with "Dark Knight" in the title. I'm a big fan of him as a director, I've seen every film he's directed and I'm hopeful that this will be on the same level as movies like "Memento" and "The Prestige" in the past. Plus it's sci-fi, yay!
(video link)
ANOTHER INTERESTING ALTERNATIVE:
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 (2014)
Director: Francis Lawrence
Stars: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Sam Claflin, Liam Hemsworth
UK Release Date: 21/11/14
Katniss Everdeen reluctantly becomes the symbol of a mass rebellion against the autocratic Capitol.
Actually, after the sequel "Catching Fire" I'm not terribly interested in this one anymore. I really enjoyed the first "Hunger Games" movie, but the sequel just felt like more of the same. Still, there's always the possibility that they can up their game for the final instalments. (Though I've heard that the third book in the series takes a downturn in quality.)
(No trailer yet - imdb page here)
DECEMBER
MY PICK:
The Hobbit: There and Back Again (2014)
Director: Peter Jackson
Stars: Evangeline Lilly, Luke Evans, Richard Armitage, Benedict Cumberbatch
UK Release Date: 19/12/14
The Company of Thorin has reached Smaug's lair; but, can Bilbo and the Dwarves reclaim Erebor and the treasure? And, if so, can they hold on to it?
The finale of "The Desolation of Smaug" rather lost its way, but this is still a really fun series of films and, by my reckoning, much more enjoyable than the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy. I am keen to see what they do with the battle between Gandalf and the Necromancer (now revealed to be Sauron), since that was an event relegated to a few measly lines in the original book of "The Hobbit" while being nonetheless vital to the continuity between "The Hobbit" and "Lord of the Rings". This story will be new to anyone who hasn't ploughed their way through Tolkein's appendices and I cannot wait to hear it.
(No trailer yet - imdb page here)