2014 was quite a good year for cinema, and 2015 is shaping up to be as good, if not better. So, after picking my 15 must-read books for 2015, here are 15 movies I’ll be watching, come hell or high water:
01. Joy (01/14) – Jennifer Lawrence plays single mom Joy Mangano, whose invention of a special mop makes her one of the most successful entrepreneurs in the country. Jennifer usually knows how to pick ‚em, and I’m sure this one will be no exception. I love a good underdog story.
02. Project Almanac (01/29) – This is a time travel movie, a sci-fi sub-genre I’d love to see more of on the big screen. I’ve been waiting for this one to drop throughout 2014 and I’m glad it finally has a release date now. Who doesn’t love a good time-whimey time?
03. Kingsman: The Secret Service (02/26) – Director Matthew Vaughn adapts another Mark Millar comic to the big screen. After the awesomeness of Kick-Ass, I’m in. I expect solid wordbuilding, high-octane action and lots of good lines.
04. Mr. Holmes (February 2015) – Ian McKellan as a retired Sherlock Holmes haunted by the one case he could never solve? Sounds good to me. Anything with Sir Ian attached is worth at least a look, and this one probably deserves way more. I love the fact that Sherlock Holmes apparently couldn’t solve a case for once!
05. The Dreamer (04/03) – Based on the book Walt Before Mickey, this movie will explore the early days of Walt Disney’s illustrous career. As a huge fan of Disney in general and Walt as a creator/businessman, this is a must-see for me, and I hope to see a biopic focusing on the rise of the Disney company soon.
06. Avengers: Age of Ultron (04/30) – Without a dout, this is my most anticipated movie of 2015. It’s Marvel, it’s the Avengers, it’s the end of Phase 2. If you seriously need more reasons to watch this, go check out the trailer.
07. Terminator: Genisys (07/09) – As a casual Terminator fan who kinda stopped paying attention after the third one, this looks like mad fun, idiot „y“ in the title or not. Also, Arnie!
08. Ant-Man (07/23) – If anyone can make C-list superhero Ant-Man a movie star, it’s the think tank at Marvel Studios, and I actually have no doubt they will. At this point, anything with the Marvel logo on it is going to have my attention.
09. Paper Towns (08/06) – I’ve yet to read a John Green novel , and this adaptation seems like a good way to ease myself into it. The story about a missing girl and a group of friends who go looking for her certainly sounds like my kind of thing. Very Stand by Me.
10. 007: Spectre (11/05) – The three little digits in the title should be enough to tell you why this made the list. I never cared for Bond, honestly, but Daniel Craig changed that. Besides, I’ll watch just about anything starring Christoph Waltz, especially if he’s a villain.
11. A Hologram for the King (11/25) – A failed American businessman travels to Saudi Arabia to sell his ideas to a local monarch. May not sound like much, but this is based on a novel by Dave Eggers, whose The Circle was among my favorite books of 2014. Having Tom Tywker in the director’s chair and Tom Hanks in the lead role doesn’t exactly hurt either.
12. Star Wars – Episode 7: The Force Awakens (12/17) – Duh. This is the movie I honestly never thought I’d get to see, and now I will. This is an easy #2 behind Age of Ultron when it comes to my most anticipated releases of 2015.
13. Hateful Eight (ro release date yet) – There will never be a Quentin Tarantino movie that won’t make my watchlist the second it’s officially announced. If this was a ranked list, it would be at #3, even without a firm release date attached. So happy this is being made after all.
14. Woody Allen’s new film (no release date yet) – A college professor pursues a relationship with a student as Woody Allen teams up with Emma Stone and Joaquin Phoenix. The unqiue combination of those three names it all it takes to get me excited, title be damned.
15. Zeroville (no release date yet) – Directed by and starring James Franco, Zeroville is a book adaptation that deals with the power of film and the way films can influence people. I’m a meta guy — I love films about films, stories about stories, writers writting about writers.
And that’s my watchlist for 2015 (The release dates, by the way, are kind of a hodepodge of German, US & UK dates, so don’t trust them blindly!). If there’s anything else you think I ought to check out, please do let me know below!