Posted by
Anthony Mango
- Wednesday, February 1, 2017
Welcome to another edition of 6 Flicks Picks, wherein I list all of the upcoming films that are scheduled to be released in the United States for the month which is about to begin and break down which ones I'll be watching in theaters, which ones I'll wait to rent at home, and which ones I'll be skipping out on entirely. After going through the list, I'll choose which six films stand out to me as the ones I want to see the most, even if there are more or less than six that interest me.
Note: The list below is based primarily off the expanded nationwide USA release dates on IMDB as well as some other random outlets if possible, so some information may be different. If I am missing some of the limited releases or the dates conflict in some fashion, please let me know in the comments below and any adjustments and corrections will be made!
Without further ado, another new month means another new set of films, so what's coming soon to theaters in February 2017?
RELEASE DATE: February 3, 2017
The Space Between Us
Synopsis: The first human born on Mars travels to Earth for the first time, experiencing the wonders of the planet through fresh eyes. He embarks on an adventure with a street smart girl to discover how he came to be.
Will I watch? = Yes
Rings
Synopsis: A young woman finds herself on the receiving end of a terrifying curse that threatens to take her life in 7 days.
Will I watch? = No
Journey to the West: The Demons Strike Back
Synopsis: A monk and his three disciples continue on their journey to battle demons.
Will I watch? = No
I Am Not Your Negro
Synopsis: Writer James Baldwin tells the story of race in modern America with his unfinished novel, Remember This House.
Will I watch? = No
The Comedian
Synopsis: A look at the life of an aging insult comic named Jack Burke.
Will I watch? = Maybe
RELEASE DATE: February 10, 2017
The LEGO Batman Movie
Synopsis: Bruce Wayne must not only deal with the criminals of Gotham City, but also the responsibility of raising a boy he adopted.
Will I watch? = Yes
Fifty Shades Darker
Synopsis: While Christian wrestles with his inner demons, Anastasia must confront the anger and envy of the women who came before her.
Will I watch? = No
John Wick: Chapter 2
Synopsis: The continuing adventures of former hitman, John Wick.
Will I watch? = Maybe
A United Kingdom
Synopsis: Prince Seretse Khama of Botswana causes an international stir when he marries a white woman from London in the late 1940s.
Will I watch? = No
RELEASE DATE: February 17, 2017
The Great Wall
Synopsis: European mercenaries searching for black powder become embroiled in the defense of the Great Wall of China against a horde of monstrous creatures.
Will I watch? = Maybe
Fist Fight
Synopsis: When one school teacher (Charlie Day) gets the other (Ice Cube) fired, he is challenged to an after-school fight.
Will I watch? = No
A Cure for Wellness
Synopsis: An ambitious young executive is sent to retrieve his company's CEO from an idyllic but mysterious "wellness center" at a remote location in the Swiss Alps but soon suspects that the spa's miraculous treatments are not what they seem.
Will I watch? = Maybe
Patient Zero
Synopsis: After an unprecedented global pandemic has turned the majority of humankind into violent "Infected," a man gifted with the ability to speak the Infected's new language leads the last survivors on a hunt for Patient Zero and a cure.
Will I watch? = No
Land of Mine
Synopsis: A young group of German POWs are made the enemy of a nation, where they are now forced to dig up 2 million land-mines with their bare hands.
Will I watch? = No
Everybody Loves Somebody
Synopsis: On the surface, Clara Barron seems to have it all: a job as an OB-GYN; a great house in LA; and a loving family. But, the one thing Clara doesn't have figured out is her love life. Pressured by a family wedding in Mexico, Clara asks a co-worker to pose as her boyfriend for the weekend festivities,- only to be caught by surprise when her ex- boyfriend (and family favorite) suddenly shows up after disappearing from her life completely. Torn, Clara must decide between going back to the past or open her heart to new and unexpected possibilities.
Will I watch? = No
RELEASE DATE: February 24, 2017
Get Out
Synopsis: A young African-American man visits his Caucasian girlfriend's mysterious family estate.
Will I watch? = No
Rock Dog
Synopsis: When a radio falls from the sky into the hands of a wide-eyed Tibetan Mastiff, he leaves home to fulfill his dream of becoming a musician, setting into motion a series of completely unexpected events.
Will I watch? = No
Tulip Fever
Synopsis: An artist falls for a young married woman while he's commissioned to paint her portrait during the Tulip mania of 17th century Amsterdam.
Will I watch? = No
Bitter Harvest
Synopsis: Set between the two World Wars and based on true historical events, BITTER HARVEST conveys the untold story of the Holodomor, the genocidal famine engineered by the tyrant Joseph Stalin. The film displays a powerful tale of love, honour, rebellion and survival at a time when Ukraine was forced to adjust to the horrifying territorial ambitions of the burgeoning Soviet Union. With an exceptional cast of established and rising stars, the film epically recreates one of the most dramatic and dangerous episodes in the history of 20th Century Europe.
Will I watch? = No
6 FLICKS PICKS
Which films make the cut?
6. The Comedian — I posted this last month as it was a limited release, but it's now opening up wider for showings, and I'll count it twice. Nothing in my own rules says I can't do that (haha). I'm not super thrilled to check it out, but given the pool of other choices, it makes the list.
5. The Great Wall — This looks so stupid, but it's February and that's not a stacked month, so by default, it becomes one of the better options. I'd rather spend 10 bucks on something I can laugh at and somewhat enjoy watching than something that is trying too hard to be emotional and powerful but doesn't resonate with me.
4. A Cure for Wellness — I have virtually no idea what this movie is about, but that's part of what intrigues me about it.
3. John Wick: Chapter 2 — I still haven't seen the first film, but when it came out, everybody was telling me to check it out. The main reason I haven't watched it is because I know what happens to the dog and I absolutely hate seeing that in movies, so I've just avoided it, but if this film turns out to be well-received, I think I'll bite the bullet and watch both of them. From what I've been told, John Wick is pretty much the most recent "awesome action movie" that hearkens back to a different era and sometimes, mindless action can be fantastic.
2. The Space Between Us — This was the other film I had written down for last month's limited release and it remains one of the movies I'm legitimately interested in watching. It looks like it could be one of those sappy dramas that packs a punch but isn't overtly sweet nor horribly depressing, like Phenomenon or City of Angels or K-PAX and when it comes to those types of films, I typically enjoy them enough to not feel like I wasted my time watching them. I haven't bothered to check any reviews whatsoever, so for all I know, it could be awful, but based off the TV spots and trailers I've seen, I'm up for the ride.
1. The Lego Batman Movie — While I don't think The Lego Movie was as good as everybody else makes it out to be, it still had some value to it. Batman was one of my favorite parts about it and since I'm a huge Batman fan in general, there's no way I'm skipping out on this movie.
Posted by
Anthony Mango
- Sunday, January 29, 2017
The 23rd annual Screen Actors Guild Awards will take place Sunday, January 29, 2017 on TBS and TNT to honor the best this past year in both the film and television industry. Below, you will find the full list of nominees as well as the results of the winners for the 2017 Screen Actors Guild Awards.
FILM AWARDS
Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
Captain Fantastic Fences Hidden Figures Manchester by the Sea Moonlight
WINNER = Hidden Figures
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role
Casey Affleck (Manchester by the Sea)
Andrew Garfield (Hacksaw Ridge)
Ryan Gosling (La La Land)
Viggo Mortensen (Captain Fantastic)
Denzel Washington (Fences)
WINNER = Denzel Washington (Fences)
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role
Amy Adams (Arrival)
Emily Blunt (The Girl on the Train)
Natalie Portman (Jackie)
Emma Stone (La La Land)
Meryl Streep (Florence Foster Jenkins)
WINNER = Emma Stone (La La Land)
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role
Mahershala Ali (Moonlight)
Jeff Bridges (Hell or High Water)
Hugh Grant (Florence Foster Jenkins)
Lucas Hedges (Manchester by the Sea)
Dev Patel (Lion)
WINNER = Mahershala Ali (Moonlight)
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role
Viola Davis (Fences)
Naomie Harris (Moonlight)
Nicole Kidman (Lion)
Octavia Spencer (Hidden Figures)
Michelle Williams (Manchester by the Sea)
WINNER = Viola Davis (Fences)
Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble
Captain America: Civil War Doctor Strange Hacksaw Ridge Jason Bourne Nocturnal Animals
WINNER = Hacksaw Ridge
TELEVISION AWARDS
Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series
The Crown Downton Abbey Game of Thrones Stranger Things Westworld
WINNER = Stranger Things
Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series
The Big Bang Theory Blackish Modern Family Orange Is the New Black Veep
WINNER = Orange is the New Black
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series
Sterling K. Brown (This Is Us)
Peter Dinklage (Game of Thrones)
John Lithgow (The Crown)
Rami Malek (Mr. Robot)
Kevin Spacey (House of Cards)
WINNER = John Lithgow (The Crown)
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series
Millie Bobby Brown (Stranger Things)
Claire Foy (The Crown)
Thandie Newton (Westworld)
Winona Ryder (Stranger Things)
Robin Wright (House of Cards)
WINNER = Claire Foy (The Crown)
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series
Anthony Anderson (Blackish)
Tituss Burgess (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt)
Ty Burrell (Modern Family)
William H. Macy (Shameless)
Jeffrey Tambor (Transparent)
WINNER = William H. Macy (Shameless)
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series
Uzo Aduba (Orange Is the New Black)
Jane Fonda (Grace and Frankie)
Ellie Kemper (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt)
Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Veep)
Lily Tomlin (Grace and Frankie)
WINNER = Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Veep)
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a TV Movie or Miniseries
Riz Ahmed (The Night Of)
Sterling K. Brown (The People vs. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story)
Bryan Cranston (All the Way)
John Turturro (The Night Of)
Courtney B. Vance (The People vs. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story)
WINNER = Bryan Cranston (All the Way)
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a TV Movie or Miniseries
Bryce Dallas Howard (Black Mirror)
Felicity Huffman (American Crime)
Audra McDonald (Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill)
Sarah Paulson (The People vs. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story)
Kerry Washington (Confirmation)
WINNER = Sarah Paulson (The People vs. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story)
Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble
Game of Thrones Daredevil Luke Cage The Walking Dead Westworld
Posted by
Anthony Mango
- Wednesday, January 25, 2017
Justice League Dark is the latest in the line of animated DC direct-to-video films. Is it worth the watch or it is something that should be skipped?
Justice League Dark—directed by Jay Oliva; written by Ernie Altbacker and J.M. DeMatteis; starring Matt Ryan (John Constantine), Jason O'Mara (Bruce Wayne / Batman), Camilla Luddington (Zatanna), Nicholas Turturro (Boston Brand / Deadman), Ray Chase (Jason Blood / Etrigan the Demon), Roger Cross (Dr. Alec Holland / Swamp Thing and John Stewart / Green Lantern), Colleen Villard (Black Orchid), Jerry O'Connell (Clark Kent / Superman), Rosario Dawson (Diana Prince / Wonder Woman), Jeremy Davies (Ritchie Simpson), Enrico Colantoni (Felix Faust), Alfred Molina (Destiny), J.B. Blanc (Abnegazar), Jeffrey Vincent Parise (Rath) and Fred Tatasciore (Ghast).
WARNING - SPOILERS BELOW
If you've checked out my review for Doctor Strange, then you know that I'm not a fan of magic. This extends to pretty much everything in pop culture, as even when I like a particular series that deals with the subject matter, it's still something I'm not super fond of. Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings are two examples of great stories that I appreciate greatly, but I can't geek out over in the same capacity as most people. Knowing that information ahead of this review gives you a frame of reference, as you'd tend to like this film more than I did if that's more up your alley.
That being said, no, I didn't particularly like this movie. One of the downsides to these films is always how short they are, which means practically everything feels rushed. When you introduce the majority of the characters for the first time and have to give them very quick backstories to catch the audience up, that comes off even more hastily thrown together.
Take for instance Swamp Thing. The only reason I have any idea what "The Green" is is because I've been a fan of DC Comics my entire life. Watching this film, I'd be pretty confused just what is going on. Even knowing this information, he's still an underwhelming character. Swamp Thing pops up in two scenes—one where he essentially says "What's up? You're a bunch of dicks. Here's that Felix Faust's house." and the other is when he dies. Some character development.
Boston Brand is fine, but feels like nothing more than hollow comedic relief. He's just there for a few chuckles and that's about it.
I was disappointed in Zatanna, as I enjoyed both the Bruce Timm and Young Justice versions of her character significantly more. I do like the romance angle between she and Constantine, though, and if this live action film ever takes place, I have a feeling that's where they'll go. Hopefully, in that movie, she's written to be more than just argumentative and snarky, as the more she does that, the more it takes away from Constantine's most noteworthy trait. His character, by the way, was fine.
"Fine" is something that sums up quite a bit, actually. None of it was good, most of it wasn't bad, and it just sort of exists.
I do have to praise the continued improvement of the animation style, which looks better than ever, as well as the super dark opening and the scene where Batman scares the very entities that take people to Hell, as that made me crack a smile, but in so many aspects of the movie, you can just check things off as being serviceable, such as the voice acting. I have no problems with it, yet I can't think of anything that stood out that I could really tout.
Random side note: these films have an ongoing continuity, which I love, but did I miss the explanation for how Martian Manhunter, Hawkman and John Stewart joined the team? Also, where was Shazam? They couldn't have drawn him in that scene? Most people had no lines, so it couldn't have been an issue of not wanting to pay the actor to voice the role.
The action in these films is usually better, and what hurts it this time is that it's a magic-based story. Typically, those movies and television shows consist of indistinguishable tentacled and toothy demon monsters snarling while our heroes (and our lame villains Felix Faust, Ritchie Simpson and Destiny) spout out a bunch of jargon about The Amulet of Kalamazoo and The Dark Heart of *mashes the keyboard to think of the next name* —aspects that I don't find endearing, but if you do, I'm sure you hate this review.
I would have much rather seen some other stories adapted instead of this film, like Crisis on Infinite Earths or Kingdom Come, but I can see why they chose to do something a little different as well. This should be an okay means to test whether or not there's much interest in making the live action film, and I do hope they pull that off eventually in the future, but just not at the expense of anything I'm more interested in.
Unless you are a completionist who wants to see all of these films or you're a fan of this subject matter or you have an hour to kill, I would recommend skipping this rather than making the time to see it. Go watch one of the films nominated for the Academy Awards this year instead.
Posted by
Anthony Mango
- Tuesday, January 24, 2017
The nominees for the 89th Academy Awards have been announced, so it's time for us to talk about some of the surprises, snubs and our predictions of which movies will take home an Oscar in 2017.
BEST PICTURE
THOUGHTS: I'm not surprised about this at all, actually. These were the films that people have talked about for the longest time. As much as I enjoyed the film, I have no idea why people thought Deadpool had a serious chance at being nominated. If The Dark Knight wasn't given a nod a few years back, why would an even more genre-targeted comedy film be able to break the barrier? I've seen them all and enjoyed the majority of them, but my favorites of the bunch at the moment are Arrival and La La Land although I don't think Arrival has much of a chance. Moonlight will take that spot as the runner-up or possible upset win, although I still have to lean toward La La Land narrowly beating the former out. I don't seem to be the only one who thinks this race is down to those two horses, either, as IndieWire and other outlets appear to have the same opinion.
PREDICTION:La La Land
BEST ACTOR
THOUGHTS: Was there ever any doubt about this list? The only other names I've heard any buzz about were Andrew Garfield for Silence, Joel Edgerton for Loving, and Jake Gyllenhaal for Nocturnal Animals. Funny enough, none of those films are getting much love as all three of them only have one nomination a piece. With Garfield, my guess is everybody decided they didn't want to nominate him twice, so they picked their favorite performance of the two judged by the movie that has more critical acclaim at this time. He did a great job, but he's going to be overlooked as far as the win goes. This is going to either Denzel Washington or Casey Affleck, hands down. Viggo Mortensen and Ryan Gosling get their nominations as a pat on the back (which they should be extremely proud of. Garfield will just narrowly be taken out of the running because Affleck's performance is what sells Manchester by the Sea and Denzel Washington was the one championing the whole Fences film to begin with. Hacksaw Ridge, while definitely a Garfield-driven film, has the benefit of being based on a true story to hold up its foundation a bit more. I honestly can't even really pick between Washington and Affleck, as I think Affleck might win it just because Washington's won it before, but if I had to choose a personal favorite of the two, I preferred Washington.
PREDICTION: Casey Affleck (Manchester by the Sea)...although it's SUCH a narrow lead if Washington wins, I won't be shocked at all
BEST ACTRESS
THOUGHTS: Ooooh this one is tough. Isabelle Huppert won the Golden Globe, but that doesn't always translate. Both she and Ruth Negga were passed over for the Screen Actors Guild Awards in favor of Amy Adams (which is surprising) and Emily Blunt, so you can assume it's down to Natalie Portman, Emma Stone and Meryl Streep. Does the academy go with the newbie and give the award to Emma Stone, or do they have a repeat by going with Portman or Streep? What's odd is how Streep is kind of a 50/50 situation—she's almost certain to get a nomination every year, but because of that and her wins in the past, she's sometimes also an easy pick to just ignore because "oh well, she'll get it next time" in a sense. This is apparently a record-setting 20th nomination for her. Insane, but mostly deserved. Portman's film Jackie isn't nominated for anything else except Costume Design and Original Score, so that means her performance stands out quite a bit. I'm not confident in this prediction at all, because anything can happen, but right now, I'd have to go with Emma Stone. No love for Annette Bening's performance in 20th Century Women I guess, but I haven't seen the film, so I don't know if that is a miscalculation or not.
PREDICTION: Emma Stone (La La Land)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
THOUGHTS: It's a little strange that Aaron Taylor-Johnson won the Golden Globe for Nocturnal Animals, but Michael Shannon is the one being nominated here, isn't it? No Hugh Grant for Florence Foster Jenkins, which the Screen Actors Guild went with for a nomination instead of Michael Shannon. Clearly, Shannon is an outlier, which means I doubt he has much of a shot. Lucas Hedges was so good in Manchester by the Sea that I'm very happy to see him get a nomination, but I think that will have to suffice as good enough. Mahershala Ali is my current pick. After watching Moonlight, I wanted to see so much more of his character—which, funny enough, was the same reaction I had to him in Luke Cage. Jeff Bridges was charming but it doesn't stand out to me as a better performance. I've not heard much of any buzz about Dev Patel, nor do I think he deserves it.
PREDICTION: Mahershala Ali (Moonlight)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
THOUGHTS: This is probably a very unpopular opinion, but I don't think Michelle Williams deserves to be nominated here. She has what, four scenes basically? Sure, in the context of the film, she fit the bill, and I'm not knocking her acting chops, but I can't help but feel like there might have been a stronger candidate. Kudos to Janelle Monae for Moonlight, and I've heard great things about her in Hidden Figures as well, but no nominations for her. I actually liked her better in Moonlight than Naomie Harris, but of course, Harris had the more eccentric part to play so she gets noticed. I know there was some talk about Greta Gerwing from 20th Century Women, although that's lost on me as I mentioned I haven't seen that movie yet. I'd have to rule out Nicole Kidman and Naomie Harris because I haven't heard many people giving them praise in comparison to Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer. All in all, I think this is going to Viola Davis as the big award Fences takes home. Great performances all around, though, and I think Taraji P. Henson and Janelle Monae could have been nominated for Hidden Figures (and for the record, Monae could have been nominated for Moonlight as well).
PREDICTION: Viola Davis (Fences)
BEST DIRECTOR
THOUGHTS: Say what you want about Mel Gibson's past indiscretions, people love a redemption story. Is that good enough to justify giving him the award, though? I don't think so. This one has Damien Chazelle written all over it. He won the Golden Globe, his film has been nominated for more awards than anything else this year (and almost more than anything else in the history of the Academy Awards) and that all has to amount to something. Nearly across the board when it comes to this panel of experts from Goldderby, Chazelle is ranked as the top contender. No Martin Scorsese for Silence, which is a bit of a head-turner. The same goes for Garth Davis for Lion as that's nominated quite a bit here, along with David Mackenzie for Hell or High Water. Based off these nominations, it makes me think these are the five films that have the highest chance of winning Best Picture, so they will probably be the ones that have the most awards to their names by the end of the night.
PREDICTION: Damien Chazelle (La La Land)
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
THOUGHTS: Damn this is tough. Original Screenplay can often go to a film that can't quite win Best Picture because all of the elements aren't there, but they still want to give an award to. That being said, it frequently does go to one of the front runners in that division. I wouldn't be shocked at all to see something like Hell or High Water get this out of the blue and have that be its only award, but to play it safe, I'll go with La La Land...although Manchester by the Sea could creep in and take it. Screw it. I'll go with Manchester by the Sea instead.
PREDICTION:Manchester by the Sea
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
THOUGHTS: Pretty much copy and paste what I said about Original Screenplay and apply it here. Arrival is dead in the water. No. I liked it a lot, but it's not going to win this. The rest are a hard call. I'm going to guess this is a case where nominations are very much "good enough" for a couple of films like Fences and Hidden Figures and Lion, so I think the standout right now is Moonlight. Once again, I'm not surprised Deadpool didn't get a nomination, although for Silence and Nocturnal Animals to not be considered seems a little bit surprising to me.
PREDICTION:Moonlight
BEST FILM EDITING
THOUGHTS: I honestly found some of the editing in Hell or High Water and Moonlight to be annoying rather than endearing, so I don't understand why they are nominated. Perhaps that will be my downfall when it comes to predictions, as there might be something I'm not seeing and the voters feel the complete opposite, which means if I disliked it, they probably loved it. The nonlinear structure of Arrival could give it something that lets it stand out, but then again, La La Land toyed around with some different ideas. Oddly enough, action films don't seem to do bad here even if the quality of the script doesn't match up. For that reason and that reason alone, I'm going to say Hacksaw Ridge might take this, but I have to still pick La La Land just because it's been nominated for so many things and it would be a fool's game not to say it would win the majority of them.
PREDICTION:La La Land
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
THOUGHTS: This has to go to The Jungle Book...HAS TO. They created an entire photorealistic world out of nothing. How can you compare to that?! I don't even know what else to say on this subject matter. If it doesn't win, it's a travesty.
PREDICTION:The Jungle Book
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
THOUGHTS: When in doubt, go with La La Land. They had some of the visual effects flair with the dance numbers and that should distinguish it from the competition. Sure, some shots are beautiful in Moonlight and Arrival, but I don't think that will be enough to give them a win over this year's juggernaut.
PREDICTION:La La Land
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
THOUGHTS: I honestly forgot Hail, Caesar! was even a movie this year. Part of me thinks that this is going to win just because of that random choice. I don't think it will go to Arrival and I have to imagine the love affair with Harry Potter has passed a bit, so I'm ruling out Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them as well. Passengers probably gets the obligatory sci-fi nomination over Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and the other more "comic book movies" that could have made the list. Judging by the number of nominations it's received, though, I'm going to put my money on La La Land for this one.
PREDICTION:La La Land
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
THOUGHTS: There's a disconnect with me and the academy when it comes to Costume Design. I always tend to go straight to the more elaborate fantasy films because I think it takes more creative effort and work to come up with something out of thin air than it does to just replicate it from a different period in time where we have actual reference material to draw source from. That is why something like Jackie or Allied doesn't stand out to me, but just because I think that way doesn't mean the voters do. In fact, if you look at this list, they're pretty much all following that pattern instead of having Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and Captain America: Civil War and Doctor Strange and Star Trek Beyondin the midst. This is a crapshoot.
PREDICTION:La La Land
BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
THOUGHTS: Why the hell is Suicide Squad in this list of nominees? Have you seen Killer Croc? He looks beyond fake to the point where it took me out of every single one of his scenes. And The Joker was so ridiculous looking with those stupid tattoos and the grill! I've never heard of A Man Called Ove before and I'm tempted to go with that because it's such an oddball, but Star Trek Beyond has sheer numbers that might edge it out. This is a disappointing list for sure.
PREDICTION:Star Trek Beyond
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
THOUGHTS: I haven't seen Lion and Passengers yet, but I really, really hope this goes to La La Land. Name recognition won't get you anywhere this year unless you're Thomas Newman, but I don't think he'll be taking home the statue. I couldn't stand the music in Jackie, which I found actually annoying more than in any way endearing. Until I've seen the other two films, it's hard to make an informed decision, but "Mia & Sebastian's Theme" from La La Land is my favorite piece of score from any film I've seen this year and from that alone, I want this to win. Is this the first year we don't have John Williams in the mix, by the way?
PREDICTION: Justin Hurwitz (La La Land)
BEST ORIGINAL SONG
THOUGHTS: I want this to be "City of Stars" so bad as I loved that in the film (but not as much as "Mia & Sebastian's Theme"). The weirder choices can sometimes pull out a win, though, as it doesn't necessarily have to be the best film in order to win categories beyond Best Picture. I haven't heard three out of the five nominees yet, so more on this later.
PREDICTION: "City of Stars" from La La Land
BEST SOUND EDITING
THOUGHTS: No superhero films? Not Captain America: Civil War or Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice or even Doctor Strange? Odd. Even if some of them were pretty bad as far as overall movies go (click here for my ranking), it doesn't mean the sound design was awful. It's always so hard to guess where these will go because if you look at the list for Sound Mixing, three of these are the same and two are different. Why is Deepwater Horizon and Sully on this one, but Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and 13 Hours: Secret Soldiers of Benghazi on the other? The mechanics of the differences are lost on me as I'm not in the field and certainly have no expertise on the subject matter. My guess is this goes to whichever one also wins Sound Mixing.
PREDICTION:Hacksaw Ridge
BEST SOUND MIXING
THOUGHTS: Still no superhero films? Normally, this is kind of up in the air. As mentioned above, the difference between this and Sound Editing is so perplexing, which means I'm confused about why there are two films here that aren't on the other list. Whichever one wins Sound Editing will probably win this, but that's not a guarantee. I think it's down to Arrival and Hacksaw Ridge, so I'll hedge my bets.
PREDICTION:Hacksaw Ridge
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
THOUGHTS: I'm not surprised at all to see Sausage Party not on this list, but I'm kind of shocked to see that other people are. I love my puns, but it was just a series of crude humor jokes and plays on words more so than an actual solid good film. I haven't seen Sing or Trolls, but they seemed annoying as hell to me, so I'm glad they aren't on this list. Finding Dory was okay, but I can completely see why it wasn't nominated, as it felt like it didn't quite capture the magic of the first film. Out of nowhere in a sense comes My Life as a Zucchini and The Red Turtle. I don't think I've heard of the latter at all until these nominations were released and when it comes to Zucchini, that's something that I've only heard about in the context of these awards ceremonies, but nothing substantial. I don't think either of them are going to win, but the three choices that are left are SO hard to pick from. Kubo and the Two Strings has this vibe of being different, which could give it the advantage. Zootopia took the industry by storm earlier this year and that might convince people to look back fondly on it and be a little kinder to it than the others. I thought Moana was fine, but I would rather it not win. If it does win, it's not going to be some kind of an upset, but I don't know...I'm not too confident in this prediction and I might change my mind over and over again...
PREDICTION:Zootopia
THE REST OF THE CATEGORIES
Including:
Best Animated Short Film
Best Documentary Feature
Best Documentary Short Subject
Best Foreign Language Film
Best Live Action Short Film
THOUGHTS: These are the categories that I never know anything about. Everything listed is a completely foreign entity to me, so I typically go into the ceremony not having seen a single still image of the films. It's always a total shot in the dark as I basically either decide not to try to predict them at all, or I pick one at random. I have no idea which movies should have been nominated but weren't, which films should not have been nominated but were, or anything else like that. Essentially, I could put all of them up on a dart board and whatever I hit, those are my picks, and I'd probably do just as well as if I tried to guess blindly on my own merits. If you know anything about any of those films, feel free to enlighten me in the comments section so I can try to check them out if I can get access to any of them before the ceremony takes place.
OVERALL THOUGHTS
La La Land has tied the record of most nominations per year with 14. You'd have to assume it would win a good portion of those, but not every single one of them. I enjoyed the movie so much more than I thought I would, as I hate musicals, so I'm rooting for it in a lot of the categories, although I do think there are some stronger choices in some of those awards. Once again, I'm not surprised to see a lack of enthusiasm for the films that play up more to the geek culture side of things. While it seems like there are record numbers of black actors and such, I can't quite tell if there was a concerted effort to diversify things after the #OscarsSoWhite situation from last year or just a coincidence, because it seems like the nominees are pretty well deserved across the board. That is what I like to see—people being recognized for great achievements based on their skills rather than their ethnicity, background, political message or anything else that shouldn't be a factor either positively or negatively. For the first time in many, many years, I've seen many of these movies already and I didn't hate them, and I also am looking forward to checking out the ones I've missed out on. While almost none of them so far have been films I'd add to my collection to watch every year like Rogue One: A Star Wars Story will be, it's good to see that this isn't just pure Oscar bait trash that we get once in a while. The only downside to having so many movies which can compete with one another is that it makes predicting things so much harder, so don't bet your house on my choices here!
WHAT DO YOU THINK WILL WIN? TELL US YOUR THOUGHTS IN THE COMMENTS BELOW!
The 89th Academy Awards will be hosted by Jimmy Kimmel and take place on February 26, 2017 at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, California, broadcast by ABC. Here are the following nominees announced. Tell us your predictions for the winners in the comments below!
Event Schedule
February 6, 2017: Nominees luncheon
February 11, 2017: Scientific and Technical Achievement Awards presentation
February 13, 2017: Final voting begins
February 21, 2017: Final polls close at 5:00 pm PST
February 25, 2017: Ceremony begins at 5:30 pm PST
BEST PICTURE
Arrival Hacksaw Ridge Hidden Figures Lion Moonlight Fences Hell or High Water La La Land Manchester by the Sea
BEST ACTOR
Casey Affleck (Manchester by the Sea)
Andrew Garfield (Hacksaw Ridge)
Ryan Gosling (La La Land)
Viggo Mortensen (Captain Fantastic)
Denzel Washington (Fences)
BEST ACTRESS
Isabelle Huppert (Elle)
Ruth Negga (Loving)
Natalie Portman (Jackie)
Emma Stone (La La Land)
Meryl Streep (Florence Foster Jenkins)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Mahershala Ali (Moonlight))
Jeff Bridges (Hell or High Water)
Lucas Hedges (Manchester by the Sea)
Dev Patel (Lion)
Michael Shannon (Nocturnal Animals)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Viola Davis (Fences)
Naomie Harris (Moonlight)
Nicole Kidman (Lion)
Octavia Spencer (Hidden Figures)
Michelle Williams (Manchester by the Sea)
BEST DIRECTOR
Denis Villeneuve (Arrival)
Mel Gibson (Hacksaw Ridge)
Damien Chazelle (La La Land)
Kenneth Lonergan (Manchester by the Sea)
Barry Jenkins (Moonlight)
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Hell or High Water La La Land The Lobster Manchester by the Sea 20th Century Women
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Arrival Fences Hidden Figures Lion Moonlight
BEST FILM EDITING
Arrival Hacksaw Ridge Hell or High Water La La Land Moonlight
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Deepwater Horizon Doctor Strange The Jungle Book Kubo and the Two Strings Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Arrival La La Land Lion Moonlight Silence
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
Arrival Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them Hail, Caesar! La La Land Passengers
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Allied Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them Florence Foster Jenkins Jackie La La Land
BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
A Man Called Ove Star Trek Beyond Suicide Squad
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Mica Levi (Jackie)
Justin Hurwitz (La La Land)
Dustin O'Halloran and Hauschka (Lion)
Nicholas Britell (Moonlight)
Thomas Newman (Passengers)
BEST ORIGINAL SONG
"Audition" from La La Land
"Can't Stop the Feeling" from Trolls
"City of Stars" from La La Land
"The Empty Chair" from Jim: The James Foley Story
"How Far I'll Go" from Moana
BEST SOUND EDITING
Arrival Deepwater Horizon Hacksaw Ridge La La Land Sully
BEST SOUND MIXING
Arrival Hacksaw Ridge La La Land Rogue One: A Star Wars Story 13 Hours: Secret Soldiers of Benghazi
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
Kubo and the Two Strings Moana My Life as a Zucchini The Red Turtle Zootopia
BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM
Blind Vaysha Borrowed Time Pear Cider and Cigarettes Pearl Piper
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Fire at Sea I Am Not Your Negro Life, Animated O.J.: Made in America 13th
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT
Extremis 4.1 Miles Joe’s Violin Watani: My Homeland The White Helmets
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Land of Mine (Denmark) A Man Called Ove (Sweden) The Salesman (Iran) Tanna (Australia) Toni Erdmann (Germany)
BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
Ennemis Intérieurs La Femme et le TGV Silent Nights Sing Timecode
WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE WIN? TELL US YOUR THOUGHTS IN THE COMMENTS BELOW!
Posted by
Anthony Mango
- Monday, January 23, 2017
Awards season is in full swing, but while the Golden Globes and Academy Awards celebrate the best of the year, the Golden Raspberry Awards poke fun at the worst movies to have come out over the past 12 months. The 37th annual ceremony will take place February 25, 2017. Here is the list of the nominees for the 2017 Razzies Awards.
WORST PICTURE
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice Dirty Grandpa Gods of Egypt Hillary's America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party Independence Day: Resurgence Zoolander 2
WORST ACTOR
Ben Affleck for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Gerard Butler for Gods of Egypt and London Has Fallen
Henry Cavill for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Robert De Niro for Dirty Grandpa
Dinesh D'Souza for Hillary's America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party
Ben Stiller for Zoolander 2
WORST ACTRESS
Megan Fox for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows
Tyler Perry (as Madea) for Boo! A Madea Halloween
Julia Roberts for Mother's Day
Rebekah Turner for Hillary's America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party
Naomi Watts for The Divergent Series: Allegiant and Shut In
Shailene Woodley for The Divergent Series: Allegiant
WORST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Nicolas Cage for Snowden
Johnny Depp for Alice Through the Looking Glass
Jesse Eisenberg for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Will Ferrell for Zoolander 2
Jared Leto for Suicide Squad
Owen Wilson for Masterminds and Zoolander 2
WORST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Julianne Hough for Dirty Grandpa
Kate Hudson for Mother's Day
Aubrey Plaza for Dirty Grandpa
Jane Seymour for Fifty Shades of Black
Sela Ward for Independence Day: Resurgence
Kristen Wiig for Masterminds and Zoolander 2
WORST DIRECTOR
Dinesh D'Souza for Hillary's America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party
Roland Emmerich for Independence Day: Resurgence
Tyler Perry for Boo! A Madea HalloweenAlex Proyas for Gods of Egypt
Zack Snyder for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Ben Stiller for Zoolander 2
WORST SCREENPLAY
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice - Chris Terrio and David S. Goyer Dirty Grandpa - John M. Phillips Gods of Egypt - Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless Hillary's America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party - Dinesh D'Souza and Bruce Schooley Independence Day: Resurgence - Dean Devlin, Roland Emmerich, James Vanderbilt, James A. Woods and Nicolas Wright Suicide Squad - David Ayer
WORST REMAKE OR SEQUEL
Alice Through the Looking Glass Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice Fifty Shades of Black Independence Day: Resurgence Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows Zoolander 2
WORST SCREEN COMBO
Ben Affleck and his BFF (Baddest Foe Forever) Henry Cavill in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Any two Egyptian gods or mortals in Gods of Egypt
Johnny Depp and his vomitously vibrant costume in Alice Through the Looking Glass
The entire cast of once respected actors in Collateral Beauty
Tyler Perry and that same old worn out wig in Boo! A Madea Halloween
Ben Stiller and his BFF (Barely Funny Friend) Owen Wilson in Zoolander 2
RAZZIES REDEEMER AWARD
TBD
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THIS LIST? TELL US YOUR THOUGHTS IN THE COMMENTS BELOW!
Posted by
Anthony Mango
- Thursday, January 19, 2017
On the latest edition of Trailer Reactions for Fanboys Anonymous, host Tony Mango gives his live response and overall thoughts about the latest trailer for Logan released earlier today. Make sure to subscribe and tell us in the comments what you think of the trailer!
OFFICIAL TRAILER:
TRAILER REACTION:
In the near future, a weary Logan cares for an ailing Professor X in a hide out on the Mexican border. But Logan's attempts to hide from the world and his legacy are up-ended when a young mutant arrives, being pursued by dark forces.
Logan will be released in theaters March 3, 2017.
Directed by: James Mangold
Written by: Michael Green (screenplay), Scott Frank (screenplay), James Mangold (screenplay and story), and David James Kelly (story)
Starring: Hugh Jackman (Logan / Wolverine), Boyd Holbrook (Donald Pierce), Dafne Keen (Laura Kinney / X-23), Stephen Merchant (Caliban), Doris Morgado (Maria), Richard E. Grant (Dr. Zander Rice), Elizabeth Rodriguez (Gabriela) and Patrick Stewart (Professor Charles Xavier)
On the latest edition of Trailer Reactions for Fanboys Anonymous, host Tony Mango gives his live response and overall thoughts about the latest trailer for Power Rangers released earlier today. Make sure to subscribe and tell us in the comments what you think of the trailer!
OFFICIAL TRAILER:
TRAILER REACTION:
Saban's Power Rangers follows five ordinary teens who must become something extraordinary when they learn that their small town of Angel Grove — and the world — is on the verge of being obliterated by an alien threat. Chosen by destiny, our heroes quickly discover they are the only ones who can save the planet. But to do so, they will have to overcome their real-life issues and before it’s too late, band together as the Power Rangers.
Saban's Power Rangers will be released in theaters March 24, 2017.
Directed by: Dean Israelite
Written by: Ashley Miller, John Gatins (screenplay), Matt Sazama (story), Burk Sharpless (story), Michele & Kieran Mulroney (story)
Starring: Dacre Montgomery (Jason Lee Scott), Naomi Scott (Kimberly Hart), RJ Cyler (Billy Cranston), Ludi Lin (Zack Taylor), Becky Gomez (Trini Kwan), Bill Hader (Alpha 5), with Bryan Cranston (Zordon) and Elizabeth Banks (Rita Repulsa)
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is dominating the box office—as expected—so as we're riding the waves of Star Wars fever, Fanboys Anonymous is partnering up with Fun.com to hold a special contest where you can win a free Funko Pop! vinyl figure just for showing your support for our website!
The 74th annual Golden Globe Awards took place Sunday, January 8, 2017 at the Beverly Hilton on NBC, hosted by Jimmy Fallon. Here is a list of the winners from all the categories. Tell us your thoughts on the results in the comments below!
TELEVISION AWARDS
Best Supporting Performance by an Actress in a Series, Miniseries, or Television Film
Olivia Colman, The Night Manager
Lena Headey, Game of Thrones
Chrissy Metz, This is Us
Mandy Moore, This is Us
Thandie Newton, Westworld
WINNER = Olivia Colman, The Night Manager
Best Supporting Performance by an Actor in a Series, Miniseries, or Television Film
Sterling K. Brown, The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story
Hugh Laurie, The Night Manager
John Lithgow, The Crown
Christian Slater, Mr. Robot
John Travolta, The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story
WINNER = Hugh Laurie, The Night Manager
Best Performance by an Actress in a Miniseries or Television Film
Felicity Huffman, American Crime
Riley Keough, The Girlfriend Experience
Sarah Paulson, The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story
Charlotte Rampling, London Spy
Kerry Washington, Confirmation
WINNER = Sarah Paulson, The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story
Best Performance by an Actor in a Miniseries or Television Film
Riz Ahmed, The Night Of
Bryan Cranston, All the Way
Tom Hiddleston, The Night Manager
John Turturro, The Night Of
Courtney B. Vance, The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story
WINNER = Tom Hiddleston, The Night Manager
Best Miniseries or Television Film American Crime The Dresser The Night Manager The Night Of The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story
WINNER = The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story
Best Performance By an Actress in a Television Series (Comedy or Musical)
Rachel Bloom, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep
Sarah Jessica Parker, Divorce
Issa Rae, Insecure
Gina Rodriguez, Jane the Virgin
Tracee Ellis Ross, Black-ish
WINNER = Tracee Ellis Ross, Black-ish
Best Performance By an Actor in a Television Series (Comedy or Musical)
Anthony Anderson, Black-ish
Gael García Bernal, Mozart in the Jungle
Donald Glover, Atlanta
Nick Nolte, Graves
Jeffrey Tambor, Transparent
WINNER = Donald Glover, Atlanta
Best Performance By an Actress in a Television Series (Drama)
Caitriona Balfe, Outlander
Claire Foy, The Crown
Keri Russell, The Americans
Winona Ryder, Stranger Things
Evan Rachel Wood, Westworld
WINNER = Claire Foy, The Crown
Best Performance By an Actor in a Television Series (Drama)
Rami Malek, Mr. Robot
Bob Odenkirk, Better Call Saul
Matthew Rhys, The Americans
Liev Schreiber, Ray Donovan
Billy Bob Thornton, Goliath
WINNER = Billy Bob Thornton, Goliath
Best Television Series (Comedy or Musical) Atlanta Black-ish Mozart in the Jungle Transparent Veep
WINNER = Atlanta
Best Television Series (Drama) The Crown Game of Thrones Stranger Things This is Us Westworld
WINNER = The Crown
MOTION PICTURE AWARDS
Best Original Score
Nicholas Britell, Moonlight
Justin Hurwitz, La La Land
Jóhann Jóhannsson, Arrival
Dustin O'Halloran and Hauschka, Lion
Hans Zimmer, Pharrell Williams and Benjamin Wallfisch, Hidden Figures
WINNER = Justin Hurwitz, La La Land
Best Original Song
"Can't Stop the Feeling!" (Max Martin, Shellback and Justin Timberlake), Trolls
"City of Stars" (Justin Hurwitz, Pasek and Paul), La La Land
"Faith" (Ryan Tedder, Stevie Wonder and Francis Farewell Starlite), Sing
"Gold" (Stephen Gaghan, Danger Mouse, Daniel Pemberton and Iggy Pop), Gold
"How Far I'll Go" (Lin-Manuel Miranda), Moana
WINNER = "City of Stars" (Justin Hurwitz, Pasek and Paul), La La Land
Best Supporting Performance by Actress in a Motion Picture
Viola Davis, Fences
Naomie Harris, Moonlight
Nicole Kidman, Lion
Octavia Spencer, Hidden Figures
Michelle Williams, Manchester by the Sea
WINNER = Viola Davis, Fences
Best Supporting Performance By an Actor in a Motion Picture
Mahershala Ali, Moonlight
Jeff Bridges, Hell or High Water
Simon Helberg, Florence Foster Jenkins
Dev Patel, Lion
Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Nocturnal Animals
WINNER = Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Nocturnal Animals
Best Performance By an Actress in a Motion Picture (Comedy or Musical)
Annette Bening, 20th Century Women
Lily Collins, Rules Don't Apply
Hailee Steinfeld, The Edge of Seventeen
Emma Stone, La La Land
Meryl Streep, Florence Foster Jenkins
WINNER = Emma Stone, La La Land
Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture (Comedy or Musical)
Colin Farrell, The Lobster
Ryan Gosling, La La Land
Hugh Grant, Florence Foster Jenkins
Jonah Hill, War Dogs
Ryan Reynolds, Deadpool
WINNER = Ryan Gosling, La La Land
Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture (Drama)
Casey Affleck, Manchester by the Sea
Joel Edgerton, Loving
Andrew Garfield, Hacksaw Ridge
Viggo Mortensen, Captain Fantastic
Denzel Washington, Fences
WINNER = Casey Affleck, Manchester by the Sea
Best Performance By an Actress in a Motion Picture (Drama)
Isabelle Huppert, Elle
Natalie Portman, Jackie
Ruth Negga, Loving
Amy Adams, Arrival
Jessica Chastain, Miss Sloane
WINNER = Isabelle Huppert, Elle
Best Motion Picture (Foreign Language) Divines Elle Neruda The Salesman Toni Erdmann
WINNER = Elle
Best Motion Picture (Animated) Kubo and the Two Strings Moana My Life as a Zucchini Sing Zootopia
WINNER = Zootopia
Best Director, Motion Picture
Damien Chazelle, La La Land
Tom Ford, Nocturnal Animals
Mel Gibson, Hacksaw Ridge
Barry Jenkins, Moonlight
Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester by the Sea
WINNER = Damien Chazelle, La La Land
Best Screenplay, Motion Picture
Damien Chazelle, La La Land
Tom Ford, Nocturnal Animals
Barry Jenkins, Moonlight
Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester by the Sea
Taylor Sheridan, Hell or High Water
WINNER = Damien Chazelle, La La Land
Best Motion Picture (Comedy or Musical) 20th Century Women Deadpool Florence Foster Jenkins La La Land Sing Street
WINNER = La La Land
Best Motion Picture (Drama) Hacksaw Ridge Hell or High Water Lion Manchester by the Sea Moonlight
Posted by
Anthony Mango
- Thursday, January 5, 2017
Welcome to another edition of 6 Flicks Picks, wherein I list all of the upcoming films that are scheduled to be released in the United States for the month which is about to begin and break down which ones I'll be watching in theaters, which ones I'll wait to rent at home, and which ones I'll be skipping out on entirely. After going through the list, I'll choose which six films stand out to me as the ones I want to see the most, even if there are more or less than six that interest me.
Note: The list below is based primarily off the expanded nationwide USA release dates on IMDB as well as some other random outlets if possible, so some information may be different. If I am missing some of the limited releases or the dates conflict in some fashion, please let me know in the comments below and any adjustments and corrections will be made!
Without further ado, another new month means another new set of films, so what's coming soon to theaters in January 2017?
RELEASE DATE: January 6, 2017
Underworld: Blood Wars
Synopsis: Vampire death dealer, Selene (Kate Beckinsale) fights to end the eternal war between the Lycan clan and the Vampire faction that betrayed her.
Will I watch? = No
Amityville: The Awakening
Synopsis: A single mother moves her three children into a haunted house, unaware of its bloody history.
Will I watch? = No
A Monster Calls
Synopsis: A boy seeks the help of a tree monster to cope with his single mom's terminal illness.
Will I watch? = Yes
I, Daniel Blake
Synopsis: A middle aged carpenter who requires state welfare after injuring himself is joined by a single mother in a similar scenario.
Will I watch? = No
RELEASE DATE: January 13, 2017
Monster Trucks
Synopsis: Looking for any way to get away from the life and town he was born into, Tripp (Lucas Till), a high school senior, builds a Monster Truck from bits and pieces of scrapped cars. After an accident at a nearby oil-drilling site displaces a strange and subterranean creature with a taste and a talent for speed, Tripp may have just found the key to getting out of town and a most unlikely friend.
Will I watch? = No
The Bye Bye Man
Synopsis: Three friends stumble upon the horrific origins of the Bye Bye Man, a mysterious figure they discover is the root cause of the evil behind man's most unspeakable acts.
Will I watch? = No
Sleepless
Synopsis: A cop with a connection to the criminal underworld scours a nightclub in search of his kidnapped son.
Will I watch? = Yes/Maybe/No
The Comedian
Synopsis: A look at the life of an aging insult comic.
Will I watch? = Yes/Maybe/No
The Book of Love
Synopsis: Henry is an introverted architect. After the death of his wife in a car accident, he sets out to help Millie, a homeless teen, to build a raft to sail across the Atlantic.
Will I watch? = No
RELEASE DATE: January 20, 2017
xXx: Return of Xander Cage
Synopsis: Xander Cage is left for dead after an incident, though he secretly returns to action for a new, tough assignment with his handler Augustus Gibbons.
Will I watch? = No
Split
Synopsis: After three girls are kidnapped by a man with 24 duel personalities they must find some of the different personalities that can help them while running away and staying alive from the others.
Will I watch? = Yes
The Founder
Synopsis: The story of McDonald's founder Ray Kroc.
Will I watch? = Maybe
The Resurrection of Gavin Stone
Synopsis: A washed-up former child star, forced to do community service at a local megachurch, pretends to be a Christian to land the part of Jesus in their annual Passion Play, only to discover that the most important role of his life is far from Hollywood.
Will I watch? = No
The Red Turtle
Synopsis: The dialogue-less film follows the major life stages of a castaway on a deserted tropical island populated by turtles, crabs and birds.
Will I watch? = No
Kedi
Synopsis: A profile of an ancient city and its unique people, seen through the eyes of the most mysterious and beloved animal humans have ever known, the Cat.
Will I watch? = No
RELEASE DATE: January 27, 2017
Resident Evil: The Final Chapter
Synopsis: Picking up immediately after the events in Resident Evil: Retribution, Alice (Milla Jovovich) is the only survivor of what was meant to be humanity's final stand against the undead. Now, she must return to where the nightmare began - The Hive in Raccoon City, where the Umbrella Corporation is gathering its forces for a final strike against the only remaining survivors of the apocalypse.
Will I watch? = No
A Dog's Purpose
Synopsis: A dog looks to discover his purpose in life over the course of several lifetimes and owners.
Will I watch? = No
Bastards
Synopsis: Upon learning that their mother has been lying to them for years about their allegedly deceased father, two fraternal twin brothers hit the road in order to find him.
Will I watch? = No
The Salesman
Synopsis: Forushande (The Salesman) is the story of a couple whose relationship begins to turn sour during their performance of Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman.
Will I watch? = No
Un Padre No Tan Padre
Synopsis: When Don Servando Villegas (85), a good old fashioned Mexican patriarch gets expelled from his retirement home, his younger son Francisco takes him in. Don Servando is about to find out the truth about his son and his way of living.
Will I watch? = No
6 FLICKS PICKS
Which films make the cut? Well, this month is atrocious and I don't think I'll be seeing a single one of these in theaters.
6. Bastards — January is a dumping ground for films that studios don't think will make much money. This looks like as generic of a comedy as you can get and its placement at the beginning of the year means it probably has no laughs in it. But hey, compared to other movies listed here, I'd rather see a shitty comedy than to see a shitty horror film.
5. The Comedian — I hadn't heard that this was even a thing until I started writing up this article. The cast is the most enticing part for sure, and I'm always rooting for Robert De Niro to get back on track and to have another great movie. Maybe this is it? Either way, if there's some scenes where he and Danny DeVito trade shots, I'm at least somewhat interested.
4. Sleepless — Just as Bastards looks like a generic comedy, this looks like a generic action flick. Just as The Comedian has a great cast, so, too, does this. When you combine those elements, I think I could actually enjoy this for a 2-hour escape even if it might be one of those films I forget I had even seen in a few months. Maybe it's the next Collateral instead of the next...crap...what was that movie I'm thinking of?
3. The Founder — I've purposely not seen any trailers or TV spots for this movie as I have a feeling if I do check previews out, I might not want to see it. Right now, the story of the guy who created McDonald's isn't something I'm craving to check out, but if they attracted Michael Keaton to the project, there might be something worth paying attention to.
2. Split — I'm not a horror film fan, but when I saw a preview for this a few months ago, I wrote it down on my list to remember. The psychological thriller side of scary movies is something I enjoy a lot more than the slasher flicks, which means this has a better chance of being a motion picture I enjoy rather than anything else on the horror spectrum coming out in January. Naturally, I don't expect it to be good so much as interesting, but hey, why not give it a shot, right?
1. A Monster Calls — This is the only movie on the list that I might make it to the theater to actually see, although my interest in it is waning bit by bit. I had hoped that by now, I would have heard rave reviews, yet I haven't, which is making me think there's less to buzz about than originally thought. I'm hoping it's something like Big Fish where it melds the fantasy and coming of age elements together in a dark, but not too depressing tone.
Welcome to a special edition of 6 Flicks Picks to jump-start the year 2017!
Naturally, this breakdown won't be listing the releases of every single movie that will be coming out in the year—partially because that's too daunting of a task and partially because even the studios don't know all of those yet—but it will still follow the same format as far as the picks go. This will be much harder, as there are hundreds of films that will be coming out, but it still boils down to the same concept: if I had to pick only six movies that I could watch, which ones would they be?
Without further ado, let's take a look at what makes my cut for 2017!
6 FLICKS PICKS for 2017
This is so difficult, especially because I don't even know how many movies are going to come out that I'm completely unaware of. That being said, there are some huge films scheduled for the year, so I ended up sticking to some pretty standard choices. Even still, that in itself made this hard, because when this is based on a monthly list, they aren't in direct competition with one another. I actually got my list down to 10 and then got stuck.
What Didn't Make the List: There's some movies that I'm very intrigued about, but given the much more massive importance of the six below, they needed to be bumped off the list. It was so hard to take some of these and not include them, because I started off with a list of over 15 that were guarantees. Some of those names which didn't make the cut are God Particle, Dunkirk, The Mummy, Beauty and the Beast, Kong: Skull Island, The Lego Batman Movie and the fact that I have no idea what Pixar films are coming out but they're usually good. While I'm mildly intrigued when it comes to Transformers: The Last Knight, I've been burned 3 out of 4 times, and they're not getting my money this time. I wasn't a big fan of Blade Runner, so I'm not thrilled about Blade Runner 2049, but if I rewatch the original, maybe I'll have a different opinion about it and this will change as well. By far, though, the three hardest cuts I had to make were Logan, Wonder Woman and Thor: Ragnarok. The reasoning I have for Logan not making it is how I was disappointed with X-Men: Apocalypse and so far, while I've liked the teaser trailer, I'm not going ballistic like I am about some of the other films here. Thor: Ragnarok should be a super fun edition of the MCU saga, but I'm getting worried they're cramming in too much and the tone will be weird, making it disjointed and odd. I can't help but feel like there's a better movie that could be made if they didn't have half the elements they're claiming will be in the movie. With Wonder Woman, it's more so me having my reservations about the DCEU. Justice League is on the list below, but that is such a big film that it supersedes my hesitations. Plus, it has Batman in it, while Wonder Woman doesn't. I'm still very much looking forward to all these movies which were runner-ups, but the nature of the beast is that I can only pick six for the whole year. So which ones made the cut? Let's see...
6. Power Rangers — Do I think this will be good? Nope. Do I think it has potential? Ehhh...maybe. What this basically boils down to is nostalgia. I was a huge fan of the original series and when they announced that they would do a darker reboot, I immediately was on board to watch it and probably be disappointed. If I saw the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles film and I watch all these comic book movies, why wouldn't I also apply that to Power Rangers? This could really be a total catastrophe, but they'll get $15 out of me.
5. Kingsman: The Golden Circle — I LOOOOVED the first Kingsman film and I'm so happy the majority of moviegoers agreed with me on that. Typically, sequels are very black and white where they either improve on the first and go the Terminator 2: Judgment Day or The Empire Strikes Back route or they fall victim to just copying and pasting what came beforehand and they suck, so I hope we get the former rather than the latter, but based off how much I enjoyed Eggsy's adventure before, I think this is going to kick so much ass.
4. Spider-Man: Homecoming — So, so, so many things about this movie are making me concerned. I don't like Ned Leeds being Peter's friend, I don't like how we might not get Mary Jane OR Gwen Stacy in this (or if we do, we'll get a totally different version of MJ based on how Zendaya's attitude comes off in the first trailer). I don't like how there's no Harry Osborn, or how Flash Thompson doesn't seem like a true imposing bully, or a litany of other things, but it's still Spider-Man, and he's my second-favorite superhero of all time behind Batman. Having Iron Man in the film and casting Michael Keaton as The Vulture are elements I'm getting super excited about.
3. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 — Baby Groot should be enough said. I was shitting all over Guardians of the Galaxy before it came out, convinced it would ruin the MCU, and here we are with that being one of the best of the franchise. James Gunn has my total faith and everything we've seen so far has not made me worried, so this shoots up past some other contenders and gets the third to highest rank.
2. Justice League — It's Batman and Superman and The Flash and Wonder Woman and Green Lan...wait, why is Green Lantern not in this movie and Cyborg is? That's stupid as hell. And why are they fighting Steppenwolf instead of Darkseid or OMAC or something else? Damn it, don't screw this up, guys.
1. Star Wars: Episode VIII — Every year, Star Wars is going to be the top film I'm looking forward to, save for possibly Avengers: Infinity War. Get used to it. It's not going to change. We don't even know the name of Episode 8 yet but that doesn't matter, as I want some lightsaber action!
Posted by
Anthony Mango
- Friday, December 30, 2016
Every year, TorrentFreak takes all of the statistics from the past 12 months and compiles a list of the top 10 most pirated films and television shows downloaded through various sources from a worldwide perspective. The other day, the television list was revealed and today, the movie list has been released.
Here are the top 10 films to have been downloaded the most in 2016:
#10. The Revenant
#9. Finding Dory
#8. Suicide Squad
#7. Independence Day: Resurgence
#6. Warcraft
#5. X-Men: Apocalypse
#4. Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens
#3. Captain America: Civil War
#2. Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
#1. Deadpool
Per usual, it's no surprise to see that this list is dominated by comic book films. As I mentioned in my thoughts for the TV side of things, the types of people who torrent are typically crossing over with the audience that would watch these films to begin with. These movies also get much bigger publicity coverage and usually make the most amount of money in that year, which also begs the question: if they made hundreds of millions of dollars and shattered records, are these pirates really hurting the industry? I would have to imagine most of the people downloading these films are doing it after they've already seen the movie in theaters and they just don't want to spend another $20 to see it one or two more times. The only real surprise for me on the list is The Revenant, but that received so much Oscar buzz with Leonardo DiCaprio that I can also justify it being on the list without too much thought, nonetheless. It would have utterly shocked me if something like American Pastoral would have been downloaded more times than Suicide Squad even with all the problems the latter has.
What do you think of this list?
Which movies did you see in theaters, download or skip?
