Moonlight
This coming of age movie about a young, gay black man on the mean streets of Los Angeles has been getting absolutely glowing reviews out of every festival it screens at in America. When the film finally gets an Australian release on January 26, we’ll get to see what all the fuss was about.
Fences
Stop the Oscar race now. Denzel Washington and Viola Davis have the whole thing stitched up, in this masterful, gut-wrenching film. An adaptation of a Tony-award winning play – in fact, both Washington and Davis won awards for playing their roles on Broadway – the film follows a talented sportsplayer whose career was thwarted because of his race. Now, in his middle age, he’s a garbage collector, and struggling with allowing his son to step into the limelight. It features powerhouse, capital A Acting from Washington and Davis and it will blow your mind. February 9
Beauty and the Beast
We’re not going to lie, we’re in two minds about this movie. On the one hand, we worry that we might be at peak reboot, and can’t handle another live action adaptation of Disney’s beloved animated classics. But then, we watch that trailer and see Emma Watson spinning around in Belle’s iconic yellow gown and suddenly we start humming ‘tale as old as time’ under our breath. March 23
Their Finest
We’ll see any film with Bill Nighy in a starring role, so yes, we will be seeing this British comedy/drama about a group making a propaganda film during WWII. Nighy is the film’s erstwhile director, while Gemma Arterton and Sam Claflin play screenwriters with a growing attraction as the film progresses. Directed by Lone Scherfig – the Danish woman behind some of our favourite British films of recent years, including An Education and The Riot Club – this film’s release date on April 13 is already marked in our diary.
Furious 8
We’re not ashamed to own this: the Fast & Furious fims just might be the best cinematic franchise ever made. The action is unparalleled, the cast is diverse, the stunts are heart-racing and the heart is true. We couldn’t love this series more… Oh wait, yes we can, because Furious 8, out April 13, has added Helen Mirren and Charlize Theron in starring roles. Two Oscar-winning actresses duking it out in souped-up Dodge Chargers? Hell. Yes.
The Circle
When they announced an adaptation of Dave Eggers’ chilling sci-fi novel The Circle, we were already on the edge of our seat. Then they made the revelation that Emma Watson would star as heroine Mae Holland a new employee drafted into larger-than-life tech company The Circle, founded by enigmatic leader Tom Hanks. Boyhood star Ellar Coltrane and John Boyega (he of Star Wars fame) round out the cast as past and present love interests. May 25
Wonder Woman
For want of a better expression: Yes Queen, slay all day. This long-awaited, much-anticipated Wonder Woman movie starring Gal Gadot has been the top of our must-watch list since the movie was first announced in 2014. The more details we hear about this, the more excited we get, from the announcement of Robyn Wright Penn as Gal’s Amazonian comrade in arms, to the female director (Monster’s Patty Jenkins), to the fact that Chris Pine is taking his rightful place, slightly behind Gal, as the love interest mooning over at Wonder Woman as she saves the world. Yes. Queen! Out June 1
The Snowman
Nordic author Jo Nesbo is one of a group of authors who have shepherded our obsession with Scandinavian noir, thanks in no small part to his addictive series following Detective Harry Hole. Hole is that classic police procedural character: curmudgeonly, brilliant, unorthodox, at times both loved and despised by his colleagues in the Oslo Crime Squad. The Snowman is one of Nesbo’s most beloved novels in his Harry Hole series, and the long-awaited English adaptation – starring Michael Fassbender, Rebecca Ferguson, J.K Simmons, Chloe Sevigny and Charlotte Gainsbourg – has indie credibility wrapped in a blockbuster package. October 12
Murder on the Orient Express
Agatha Christie is in the middle of a resurgence right now – and why not? – with two biopics in pre-production (starring Alicia Vikander and Emma Stone respectively), several television adaptation of her works and now this, the piece de resistance, the cherry on top of the cake: Kenneth Branagh’s take on the Queen of crime’s most famous story. Branagh will write, direct and star as detective Hercule Poirot, with an incredibly star-studded supporting cast that also includes Judi Dench, Penelope Cruz, Michelle Pfeiffer, Johnny Depp and Daisy Ridley. November 23
Star Wars: Episode VIII
It seems cruel to make us wait almost two years from the release of Episode VII to see more of this galaxy far, far away. But there it is, a sound business decision no doubt, with mania slowly building among fans, waiting to see whether the force will still be with Rey, Finn and Poe Dameron this time around. Traditionally in epic franchises such as Star Wars, the second film is always the strongest. It was true of The Empire Strikes Back all those years ago. Only time will tell whether Episode VIII will live up to that reputation. December 14
Battles of the Sexes
Our girl Emma Stone tackles another great role next year, this time tennis champ Billy Jean King and the story of her historic matchup with Bobby Riggs (Steve Carrell). Sources from the set have told us that the film is a hilarious – and timely – investigation of misogyny in the workplace. We can already imagine the pictures of Serena Williams, fist-pumping Emma Stone, on the red carpet.
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