The Help

It may not be subtle in it’s message, but The Help looks like it will make you feel both empowered and weepy all at the same time. With such a great cast that includes Emma Stone, Viola Davis, Jessica Chastain and Octavia Spencer this is definitely a film people should watch out for and go and see.

Hanna

Coming out in May is the modern day twisted fairy tale ‘Hannah’, directed by British Director Joe Wright and starring Eric Bana, Cate Blanchett and young ‘Atonement’ and ‘The Lovely Bones’ star Saoirse Ronan. The film centers around Ronan’s character Hanna and how she is trained by her father (Bana) to kill an intelligence agent (Blanchett).  From the trailer the film looks to be filled with action, but with such a great cast it is more than likely that there will be an exciting plot as well. Think ‘Bourne Identity’ except Jason Bourne is a 16 year-old blonde girl with more of a killer instinct.

X-Men: First Class

I am such a geek that I am so excited about this! It isn’t a re-boot of yet another franchise, but another one of Marvel’s origin projects that gives you more detail of the central characters from the original three. This time the origin story is of Magneto and Xavier, played by Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy. It appears from the trailer that it looks at how the two friends become enemies due to their different philosophies. The cast will also include a list of other mutants, some we have seen before with new faces ( Mystique is now played by Jennifer Laurence, Emma Frost by January Jones and Beast by Nicholas Holt), while other new mutants are introduced (Havok played by Lucas Till and Banshee playted by Caleb Landry). From the trailer and the fact that Matthew Vaughn is directing it certainly looks like it could help rejuvinate the franchise after the last two flops.

True Grit

This film is getting a lot of Oscar and reward buzz, and for good reason. Not only does the film combine the huge talents of the Cohen brothers, Jeff Bridges and Matt Damon, but it also introduces us to Hailee Steinfeld who has got an Oscar best supporting actress nomination for her first ever acting role; that is no mean feat. Add to that the fact it is a film about redemption, battling the odds and also a re-make of the 1969 film that John Wayne his only Academy Award and this is certainly a film that people should be excited to see.

Hereafter

At the end of January (28th january) legendary actro/director Clint Eastwood will release a movie that battles with death, the afterlife and the supernatural. This is certainly a new direction for Eastwood, but he has recruited favourite Matt Damon (who he worked on Invicitus with) to help him through the transition. LWith a screen play by the writer of ‘The Queen’ and ‘Frost/Nixon’ this has the potential to be an insightful and moving film.

Paul

It has been a while, but the great comic duo of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost are back, and this time they are in the States. Pegg and Frost are on a road trip to Area 51 where they bump into a real life alien (voiced by Seth Rogen) and they must help him find his way home. With gags galore and lots of alien film references Pegg and Frost are likely going to be on their A game!

Tangled

It is January, all the great winter celebrations are over and there is little to look forward to in the coming months but dropping temperatures and light daylight. In this dark time we can be thankful that Disney has decided to release its new film ‘Tangled’ on 28th January. As with their last motion picture Disney is sticking with the princess theme that it does so well and also reinventing an old story, this time it is Rapunzel. There will be singing and dancing, leading men and ladies and of course the clever animal companies. As with ‘Princess and the Frog’ and ‘Enchanted’ this film seems to make light of the golden age Disney mantra of air headed princesses who need to be saved and having this all in animated 3D will likely make it one of the most beautiful Disney films to date.

It’s Kind Of A Funny Story

Released soon in January (7th to be more precise) this looks like a real heart warming film. Adapted from the book of the same name it follows 15 year-old Craig Gilner as he spends some time in hospital to deal with his depression. With Zach Galifianakis playing his usual absurd role, but with a lot more heart we could see the actor that was promised after ‘The Hangover’. The film also has the young stars Kier Gilchrist ( from the US show ‘The United States of Tara) and Emma Roberts (from ‘The Wild Child’) who both seem, at least from the adverts, to really pull their weight.

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

It might not be out for a couple of months (18th May 2011), but this is a big deal so I thought I should put it up early. Now I wasn’t a huge fan of the last 2, but I loved the first one and the newest chapter seems to be going back to the old ways. Keeping just the best bits (Captain Jack and Barbossa) and replacing the rest with new faces means hopefully the franchise and feel new and original again.

Transformers: Dark of the Moon

It might not be out in the UK till end of June 2011, but the teaser clip for Michael Bay’s third Transformers movie should not be missed. This film will be released in 3D which might certainly help the movie gross a huge box office since it has lost one of its big selling points, the lovely Miss Megan Fox. However, she is being replaced by a British Victoria Secret’s model so it is not all bad.