- From: The Sunday Mail (Qld)
- January 02, 2012
After a two-year production delay forced Guillermo del Toro to quit this project, only one man could take his seat in the director's chair - Peter Jackson, the New Zealand filmmaker behind J.R.R. Tolkien's other series, Lord of the Rings.
This two-part prequel to LOTR introduces fans to a much younger Bilbo Baggins who must reclaim the lost Dwarf kingdom of Erebor from the dragon Smaug. Familiar faces like Cate Blanchett, Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen and Orlando Bloom all reprise their roles, while newcomers Evangeline Lily (as elf Tauriel) and Sherlock's Martin Freeman (as Baggins) are fresh additions. My precious.
2. The Dark Knight Rises
Following the success of Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, the Nolan brothers are back (Christopher as director, Jonathan as writer) to complete their trilogy of Batman flicks based on the infamous black-suited DC Comics hero.
This third instalment takes place eight years after the events of The Dark Knight where, following the death of district attorney Harvey Dent, Batman (Christian Bale) is being hunted for Dent's crimes. But he must also discover the truth of the mysterious Selina Kyle, or Catwoman (Anne Hathaway).
3. Les Miserables
If Gerard Butler managed to belt out a few tunes in The Phantom of the Opera, then it should be a piece of cake for Broadway star Hugh Jackman and fellow Aussie Russell Crowe (who fronts his own rock band, 30 Odd Foot of Grunts) to show off their vocal talent in this latest West End screen adaptation.
Directed by Oscar winner Tom Hooper (The King's Speech), the film has retained Boublil and Schonberg's hauntingly beautiful score, featuring classics such as I Dreamed a Dream and Castle on a Cloud, while following Fantine, Cosette, Eponine and Valjean during 17 years of revolution in France, culminating in the 1832 June Rebellion. Epic.
4. The Hunger Games
The Hunger Games is the latest literary franchise to be given the blockbuster-movie treatment, and this first part of the trilogy establishes a new world - a future in which North America has been destroyed, only to be replaced by a nation called Panem.
Every year, as punishment for crimes, one boy and one girl between the ages of 12 and 18 are selected by lottery to compete in the Hunger Games, a televised event in which participants fight to the death. Chilling but addictive. Starring Jennifer Lawrence, Liam Hemsworth, Elizabeth Banks and Lenny Kravitz.
5. The Amazing Spider-Man
When Tobey Maguire failed to sign on for a fourth Spiderman movie, the studio decided to give the whole franchise a reboot.
Casting then-unknowns Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone as the new Peter Parker and Mary Jane seemed like bold choices at the time, but has since paid dividends - Garfield created much buzz in The Social Network and Never Let Me Go, while Stone has established herself as the fastest-rising Hollywood starlet, thanks to roles in Crazy Stupid Love and The Help. Martin Sheen and Sally Field play Parker's beloved aunt and uncle, while Rhys Ifans plays the evil Dr Curt Connors, a.k.a. the Lizard.
6. Skyfall
The 23rd James Bond film sees Daniel Craig return for his third stint as 007, this time teaming up with American Beauty director Sam Mendes for a deeper look into Agent M's past after MI6 comes under attack. Also stars Judi Dench, Javier Bardem, Ralph Fiennes and Berenice Marlohe.
7. Brave
From the Pixar studios - the bubbly creators of hits such as the Toy Story series, Cars, Monsters Inc and Finding Nemo - comes their very first fairytale, Brave. Set in the Scottish Highlands, the animated fantasy adventure follows a young woman archer who unleashes chaos on the kingdom and becomes cursed.
8. Prometheus
Is it a prequel to Alien?
Whatever, Prometheus is a welcome return to the sci-fi genre for Ridley Scott, director of Gladiator and Black Hawk Down, who hasn't played with the extraterrestrial since his original Alien hit screens in 1979.
Here, Charlize Theron, Noomi Rapace and Michael Fassbender star as a team of explorers who discover a clue to the origins of mankind on Earth. Cannot wait.
9. Snow White and The Huntsman
This is one of two Snow White flicks slated for the big screen next year - the other, Mirror Mirror, is a colourful family tale starring Julia Roberts and Lily Collins - but it is this bleaker, beefier version that paints Snow White as a trained warrior (played by Twilight's Kristen Stewart) that has everyone so excited.
Also stars Chris Hemsworth as the Huntsman and Charlize Theron as the evil queen.
10. Nero Fiddled
Woody Allen's 2011 hit, Midnight in Paris, took place in the French capital; now he's set his sights on Rome, where Allen returns in front of the camera in one of the film's four mini storylines, which mixes Hollywood veterans such as Judy Davis, Penelope Cruz and Alec Baldwin with newcomers Jesse Eisenberg and Ellen Page. Magnifico.
11. Rock of Ages
Hairspray director Adam Shankman is bringing his warmth to this hugely popular homage to the 1980s, adapted from stage musical Rock of Ages, where starcrossed lovers Drew (Diego Boneta) and Sherrie (Footloose's Julianne Hough) are chasing their dreams in Los Angeles.
There's a stellar supporting cast - think Tom Cruise, Mary J Blige, Russell Brand, Alec Baldwin and Catherine ZetaJones - and promises to be electric.
12. Gravity
Most of this sci-fi project has been kept under wraps, but what we do know is that Sandra Bullock and George Clooney play surviving astronauts in a damaged space station.
Directed by Alfonso Cuaron, the film has been elevated to superstar status, thanks to rumours such as a 20-minute opening shot and groundbreaking visual effects that left even James Cameron in awe.
13. Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Rooney Mara has already picked up a 2012 Golden Globe nomination for her portrayal of Lisbeth Sander, a young computer hacker with her own demons to fight, who joins forces with journalist Mikael Blomkvist to track a missing woman.
Directed by The Social Network's David Fincher, this English-speaking version of the bestselling Swedish series follows the success of the Swedish film trilogy, starring Noomi Rapace.
14. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Based on the 1974 British spy novel by John le Carre, this Cold War tale of espionage follows veteran agent George Smiley, who is forced out of retirement to uncover a Soviet mole within MI6. Stars Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, Tom Hardy and John Hurt.
15. The Great Gatsby
The New York-based tale, based on F. Scott Fitzgerald's 1925 novel, of nouveau riche bachelor Jay Gatsby (Leonardo DiCaprio), his unrequited love Daisy (Carey Mulligan) and Gatsby's Long Island neighbour Nick Carraway (Tobey Maguire) is destined to be great in the rich, colourful way that only Baz Luhrman knows how.
16. Django Unchained
Quentin Tarantino's latest project delves into a new genre for him, the Spaghetti Western, and features an intriguing cast - Leonardo DiCaprio, Samuel L Jackson, Kurt Russell, Jamie Foxx and Sacha Baron Cohen - in this 1800s story of a slave-turned bounty hunter who sets out to rescue his wife from a savage Mississippi plantation owner. Buckle up.
17. The Avengers
A "Best Of" movie to end all others, this film pulls all its favourite characters from the Marvel comic universe - Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, The Incredible Hulk, Hawkeye and Black Widow - in a bid to help save Earth from alien destruction.
Stars Robert Downey Jnr, Samuel L Jackson, Jeremy Renner, Chris Hemsworth and Scarlett Johansson
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18. Savages
Director Oliver Stone looks set to restore his credibility (badly injured after last year's sequel to his 1987 Wall Street original) with this gritty pearl about a couple of young marijuana growers who face off against the Mexican drug cartel after their shared hippie girlfriend, O (played by Gossip Girl's Blake Lively), is kidnapped. It marks John Travolta and Uma Thurman's third outing together, while Salma Hayek and Benicio del Toro also feature.
19. The Bourne Legacy
A spin-off from the Bourne universe, the fourth movie in the series comes without Matt Damon, instead centring around a different CIA operative, Aaron Cross (played by The Hurt Locker's Jeremy Renner) who encounters new characters, played by Rachel Weisz and Edward Norton.
20. Men in Black 3
Fifteen years after the dashing Will Smith first styled up the big screen as a secret alien watching agent, producers have come up with a way to inject new life into the third instalment of the MIB franchise - by taking Agent J (Smith) on a time-jump back to the 1960s where he must save a young Agent K (Josh Brolin). Also stars Tommy Lee Jones, Emma Thompson and Alice Eve.
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