10 Most Anticipated Films of 2014
It’s a new year, and that means new films, right? 2013 gave us some truly wonderful films, but amongst catching up on those that we missed and all the Oscar buzz, we’re also thinking about what’s on offer this year. Narrowing these films down to just a few was an incredibly difficult task, as not only are there so many films set to come out, but some are so clouded in mystery that you just don’t know where to start. Nevertheless, we have selected 10 films that we’re looking forward to the most in 2014, and they come from just about every genre. Let us know if there are any you think we missed, but as far as just these 10 are concerned, the anticipation is killing us.
10 Most Anticipated Films of 2014
Gone Girl
David Fincher makes the movies I love to see. The man seems to have a knack with twisty tales, whether they be completely crazy endings (like Se7en or Fight Club) or characters you love to hate (like The Social Network or Netflix’s House of Cards). Having read the novel, I know Gone Girl has both. And with a great cast that includes power-hitter Ben Affleck playing Nick Dunne, the husband who is unexpectedly thrown into the national spotlight when his wife goes missing, my expectations are pretty high for the film adaptation. Casting for the lead part of Amy, the housewife-gone-missing, took some time to be solidified, with several major actresses in consideration. But Rosamund Pike was finally chosen, which has me quite curious. Pike has played some really soft roles in the past and, without giving any of the story away, Amy is the sort of character that could either show off Pike’s versatility or ruin the whole thing. The book is known for it’s major plot twists and I for one can’t wait to see Fincher put his own mark on the visuality of the story. Slated for an October release, it should be exactly the sort of chilly Fall tale we’ll be craving. [Ananda]
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Wes Anderson is famous for his distinctive visual and narrative style in such films as Moonrise Kingdom, Fantastic Mr. Fox, and The Darjeeling Limited, and will be releasing his latest quirky comedy The Grand Budapest Hotel in March of this year. The film follows the adventures of an infamous concierge at a well-known and well-frequented European hotel. Their experiences are shared with an all-star cast, most of which have worked with Anderson in the past; Jude Law, Bill Murray, Tilda Swinton, Willem Dafoe, Owen Wilson, and Adrien Brody. The Grand Budapest Hotel looks to be quite the dramatic comedy with the charm and flare we all know Wes Anderson films to behold. [Amy]
While We’re Young
Last Year my faith was restored in Noah Baumbach as a filmmaker to be vigilant of again after supplying his delightful indie comedy Frances Ha, a film that landed the #2 spot on our Best Films of 2013. Reuniting with the director again for the first time since 2010’s Greenberg is Ben Stiller, playing the part of a middle-aged filmmaker whose marriage gets more tranquil after making friends with a young free-spirited couple. Joining Stiller as part of the cast are Amanda Seyfried, Naomi Watts, Adam Driver, and Brady Corbet. It will be interesting to see if While We’re Young plays out to be more like his earlier work (The Squid and the Whale), or more like his re in nt work (France Ha). Though a happy medium between the two could be in order. Either way, we are glad to see the uptick in frequency which Baumbach is making films as of late, he even has another film in post-production at the moment. [Dustin]
Nymphomaniac
At this point it’s hard to find someone who doesn’t know about Nymphomaniac. Split into 2 films, and running for 4.5 hours total, Nymphomaniac is Lars Von Trier’s newest film. It tells the story of Joe (Charlotte Gainsbourg), the titular sex addict who explains her life story to a stranger (Stellan Skarsgard) after he saves her life. The eclectic cast includes Shia LaBeouf, Uma Thurman, Christian Slater, Willem Dafoe, Udo Kier and Jamie Bell, just to name a few, and it`s already been widely reported how porn actors were used as doubles for the film`s hardcore sex scenes. The film`s marketing, including ‘appetizer’ teaser clips and a provocative series of character posters, have helped make Nymphomaniac the arthouse event of 2014. The film will be out in theatres and on VOD in March, but Lars Von Trier purists might have to wait even longer. The theatrical version wasn’t put together by Von Trier, and he’s already preparing a 5.5 hour director’s cut that will presumably come out later this year (Volume 1 of the “uncut” version is set to premiere at Berlin, and it won’t be a surprise if Volume 2 pops up at Cannes). [CJ]
Knight of Cups
Just as Flaubert and Joyce understood the need for literary revolution in the face of an unstable society, so did certain filmmakers understand cinematic development as part of a larger social reality: Griffith, Welles, and Hitchcock to name a few, and now, Terrence Malick. Some people are just game-changers, and there is no denying that Malick has changed the world of cinema irrevocably. I could wax lyrical for hours about his conceptualisation of film – his work is nothing short of a feast for the eyes and indeed the very soul – but truly, all you need to do to understand is watch some of his work. His recent association with Brad Pitt and Sean Penn in The Tree of Life brought mainstream audiences just a little closer to Malick’s world, so it’s incredibly exciting to think of what he could have in mind to really show audiences what he is capable of. Knight of Cups is in post-production and has been for a while now; while we’re still not entirely certain it will come out this year, we can but hope. With names like Christian Bale, Natalie Portman and Teresa Palmer on the bill, there’s no doubt Malick has something breathtaking in store for us – I’m certainly going to keep my eyes peeled for this one. [Pavi]
Interstellar
It’s time to let him off the leash again. Christopher Nolan has proven he can sell a movie ticket or two with his Dark Knight trilogy, which has earned him the freedom (granted by big studios like Paramount) to make movies and tell stories on his terms. Based on the theories of relativity physicist Kip Thorne, Interstellar looks to excite the senses and tickle the imagination in the same way Inception did. The film follows a group of scientists who, with their home planet drying up, travel to different dimensions in search of a place to grow crops so that their people can endure. Boasting a killer ensemble cast featuring Michael Caine (surprise, surprise), Anne Hathaway, Casey Afleck, Matthew McConaughy, Ellen Burstyn, Wes Bentley, Jessica Chastain, David Oyelowo, John Lithgow, Bill Irwin, and Mackenzie Foy, Interstellar is sure to get sci-fi geeks all hot and bothered leading up to its November release. Plus, Nolan strapped an IMAX camera to the nose of a freaking learjet. Hold on to your butts! [Bernard]
Journey to the West
Back in September at the Venice Film Festival Tsai Ming-Liang publicly stated that he hoped Stray Dogs would be his last film. The news was disappointing, especially since Stray Dogs was his best film in years (it went on to win the Grand Jury Prize at Venice). It came as a surprise, then, that the Berlin Film Festival announced a new Tsai Ming-Liang film would be premiering in February. There isn’t much information out there on Journey to the West, but from what we know it’s going to be a loose adaptation of the classic Chinese tale. Knowing Tsai’s style, this will probably be a very loose adaptation, but regardless it’s exciting to see him continue to work. Tsai is one of the most distinct filmmakers working today, and while his style may not appeal to everyone (the last two shots of Stray Dogs combined come close to breaking the 30 minute mark) it’s undeniable that no one out there is making films in the same way. [CJ]
Jupiter Ascending
While Cloud Atlas was not the return of the Wachowskis I had hoped for, I’m giving them the benefit of the doubt that it’s because they were working with someone else’s writing, and an incredibly complex novel at that. This time Andy and Lana are back to writing a story of their own, and hopefully tapping into the vein that brought us the complex and sci-fi world of The Matrix. Granted, it has Channing Tatum, and he’s wearing eyeliner. But if there’s anything the trailer proves, it will definitely be up to par with the visual grandeur that we’ve come to expect from the Wachowskis. Similar to The Matrix, Jupiter Ascending is the tale of a girl with a genetic destiny, Jupiter Jones (Mila Kunis). Destined to overthrow the Queen of the Universe, Jupiter is rescued from her life of toilet cleaning by Tatum’s genetically engineered hunter. She discovers the vastness of the universe she lives in and that she has an important place in it. Who doesn’t love a good tale of comeuppance, on an intergalactic scale? Even if it’s got a bit of cheese, it comes out in July when we’ll all be glad for an excuse to escape to the theater, and I for one will gladly splurge to see the Wachowskis first 3D endeavor. [Ananda]
The Double
Richard Ayoade began his career as a comedy actor starring in relatively popular television shows such as The IT Crowd and he Mighty Boosh, before making his incredible feature directorial debut with Submarine. The Double is Ayoade’s sophomore film that stars Jesse Eisenberg as a man who goes crazy after running into this doppleganger. The film already premiered last fall at the Toronto International Film Festival and received a lot of praise for its trippy mind games and quirky comedy–which is exactly the kind of films we kind to enjoy here at Way Too Indie. Make sure that The Double is on your list of films to catch in 2014. [Dustin]
Inherent Vice
Set in 1970s Los Angeles, Paul Thomas Anderson’s Inherent Vice follows the fuck-ups and follies of druggy detective Larry “Doc” Sportello (Joaquin Phoenix), who’s surprised to find that the kidnapped girl of a case he’s investigating is his ex-girlfriend. What’s most exciting to me about the project (aside from the obvious fact that ol’ PT never fails) is that Anderson is reuniting with director of photography Robert Elswit, who helped him make There Will Be Blood look so damn pretty. As per usual for Anderson, everything will be filmed in 35mm film stock. The cast is stacked, with Phoenix being joined by Josh Brolin, Martin Short, Benicio Del Toro, Jena Malone, Reese Witherspoon, Owen Wilson, Kevin J. O’Connor, Maya Rudolph, and more. [Bernard]