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My most anticipated films of 2012

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        I may not have yet seen all of the films of 2011 that I wanted to have seen by now in order to make my "Favourite Films of 2011" list, and that is because many of the big films haven't yet been released in my country, but 2012 is here and new films are about to be released all around the world. Many can be considered "big" films and others a little bit smaller but all of them sound really interesting. So this is my list of the 23 films I honestly can't wait to see in the upcoming year. Hit the jump for the list:

23. Cogan's Trade

The director of the marvellous The Assassiation of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, Andrew Dominik reunites with Brad Pitt in this film which is based on the novel by George V. Higgins and follows a professional enforcer who investigates a heist which took place during a mob-protecter poker game. Additional members of the cast are Sam Rockwell, Richard Jenkins, Ray Liotta and James Gandolfini.






22. The 5-Year Engagement

Nicholas Stoller, the director of the sweet Forgetting Sarah Marshall and writer of Fun with Dick and Jane, Yes Man and The Muppets reunites with Jason Segel, who also co-writes this film, and teams up with Emily Blunt and Chris Pratt and brings us this alternate romantic comedy. Here the question isn't if "the boy will get the girl" but if they'll finally manage to have a wedding when the girl   is always postponing the reception due to her career. The trailer looks promising enough while Jason Segel and Emily Blunt are very lovable, so I hope this ends to be good.


21. Cloud Atlas


The Wachowski Siblings (The Matrix Trilogy) return and team up with Tom Tykwer (The International, Run Lola Run) for an adaptation of David Mitchell's novel which consists of six stories that take place in a post-apocalyptic future. No further details are known of this production and I haven't read the book so I don't know what's going to happen. However the material seems promising and the cast that has been gathered for this movie is astonishing: Tom Hanks, Ben Whishaw, Hugo Weaving, Susan Sarandon, Jim Broadbent, Jim Sturgess, Hugh Grant, James D'Arcy and Halle Berry. The film is expected to be released in October.

20. Only God Forgives



Nicolas Winding Refn, the director of this year's exceptional film Drive, writes this film which reunites him with his Drive star Ryan Gosling and tells the story of a Bangkok police lieutenant and a gangster who decide to settle their differences in a Thai-boxing match. It might sound bizarre but I really want to see this next effort of Refn's. 





19. The Gangster Squad

The director of Zombieland, Ruben Fleischer brings to life the story of the LAPD which fights to keep the East Coast Mafia out of Los Angeles in the 40s and 50s. The main character is mob-king Mickey Cohen (Sean Penn) who "runs" the city and gains from all the prostitutes, guns, drugs and bets. He does all this while being protected by the police. Only a small crew of the LAPD, led by the characters of James Brolin and Ryan Gosling, stand up to Cohen and try to tear his world apart. The film is based on the "Tales from the Gangster Squad" series of articles by Paul Lieberman. The cast also includes Michael Pena, Emma Stone, Nick Nolte, Giovanni Ribisi, Robert Patrick, Anthony Mackie, Mireille Enos and Troy Garity. Seems good.

18. Seven Psychopaths

If you've seen In Bruges you've probably loved it. If you've loved it as much as I have, then, you can understand why I can't wait to see this film. Martin McDonagh writes and directs this black comedy which stars Colin Farrell, Woody Harrelson, Abbie Cornish, Sam Rockwell, Christopher Walken, Olga Kurylenko, Gabourey Sibide and  Tom Waits. The story follows a struggling writer who wants to find a little inspiration for his screenplay "Seven Psychopaths" and gets drawn into his friends' dog kidnapping schemes. Crazy enough for you? Oh, I can't wait!

17. The Vow

I know this isn't really impressive but I'm a female and I like good romantic films. Notice the emphasis on "good". If they're not good enough, I consider my time wasted and try to make up for it, but if they are nice, original and sometimes thought-provoking, then, yes, I love them. Judge all you want! 
Now, this one seems to be interesting and somehow touching. You see, it's about a married couple in love but when an accident puts the woman in a coma everything changes. And when the woman wakes up, she doesn't remember her husband which brings him in the strange position to try and make his wife to fall in love with him once more. Let's hope it's not too namby-pamby. And it stars Rachel McAdams whom I love.

16. Brave

Pixar, one of the greatest studios of animation, returns in 2012 with their first female heroine ever: Princess Merida (voiced by the wodnerful Kelly MacDonald) who must defy all the customs of her kingdom and must rely on her bravery and her archery skills to undo a beastly curse. 
Pixar's choices are almost never a miss and even though the animation of this film reminds me a little bit of How to Train your Dragon (which reached number 6 of my 2010 favourites list) one must have faith in Pixar which has yet to disappoint. 


15. Being Flynn


Just by the name Robert DeNiro you either want to see this film or you don't. I know that DeNiro hasn't made many good choices in the last years and that he should probably choose more wisely and not participate in every single film he is offered but I will always remain one of his biggest fans. On the plus side, this is a film written and directed by Paul Weitz (director of American Pie, In Good Company, About a Boy), the cast includes Paul Dano and Julianne Moore and the trailer looked fine, so all we have to do is watch it and judge for ourselves. I just hope this is not a repeat of Good Will Hunting or Finding Forrester because we've had enough of that.


14. Snow White and the Huntsman


To tell you the truth, when I first heard about the "Snow White" films of 2012 (because in case you have't heard this is not the only one, Tarsem Singh is preparing another one) I wasn't really looking forward to any of them. However, the trailer with its daunting and mysterious atmoshere won me over and now I can't wait to see this new version of the classic fairy tale. Here, Snow White (Kristen Stewart) has been training in the art of war, along with the Huntsman (Chris Hemsworth) who was sent to kill her, in order to defeat the evil queen (Charlize Theron) who thinks that she is "the fairest of them all". I don't particularly like Stewart but this film seems epic, advennturous and rather different.


13. John Carter


I've already written about this film here, because I was really impressed by the trailer. As you probably know if you've read a couple of my articles, I am a sucker for science-fiction and fantasy. This film in particular is based on a very successful series of books that were published in the years 1912-1948 and were written by Edgar Rice Burroughs. While I was watching the trailer it reminded me a little bit of another series of science fiction books that I love: Dune. We'll see this upcoming March if this is good or bad. However, the crew is really promising with Andrew Stanton (Wall-E, Finding Nemo, A Bug's Life) directing while the cast includes Taylor Kitsch in the title role, Mark Strong, Willem Dafoe, Thomas Hayden Church and Samantha Morton. Let's just hope that it wont be to childish just because Disney is producing.


12. The Avengers


The Avengers is the big superhero film of 2012. Sure, we also have the -hopefully and most surely- blowminding The Dark Kight Rises and the reboot of Spiderman with The Amazing Spider-Man but this is the greatest bet Marvel has made. It is a movie 4 years in the making and it is finally here. I mean, if you are a superhero fan you're about to see this film. It brings together all the superheroes that we've watched seperately during the last years (Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Hulk) and it has an amazing cast including Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Mark Ruffalo, Jeremy Renner and Samuel L. Jackson. It's also written and directed by the much beloved Joss Whedon. I've showed repeatedly my love towards Whedon, and he is one of the main reasons why I have huge faith in the final result of this film. After all, he is an amazing writer with a unique style which shows even in the trailer. Let's hope that they won't disappoint.


11. The Woman in Black


Daniel Radcliffe stars in his first post-Potter film which is an adaptation of Susan Hill's thriller-fiction novel. Reviews of the book say that it tells a terrifying story about a a lawyer who travels to a small village where he discovers the vengeful ghost of a scorned woman who's terrorizing the locals. The trailer gives an eerie atmosphere which hopefully will exist in the movie too. It's been years since a good ghost story (I'm not a fan of the Paranormal films) has been released, so let's hope that this is going to be good. As for Radcliffe, I personally think he is a really good actor so I'm really looking forward to his next steps. February can't come soon enough.


10. The Hunger Games


I've already expressed my excitement over The Hunger Games here and I still have the same opinion. I have read the books, I enjoyed them very much and after having seen the trailer I can say without doubt that I have a lot of confidence on this project and I can't wait until March. The impressive cast includes Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Stanley Tucci, Woody Harrelson, Elizabeth Banks and Donald Sutherland. I just hope this will be the successor of Harry Potter and not of Twilight and I promise, this is the last time that I compare these two.




9. Anna Karenina


Joe Wright, the director of Pride & Prejudice (2005), Atonement (2007), The Soloist (2009) and Hanna (2011), returns in 2012 with Leo Tolstoy's extremely famous novel for which he re-teams once more with -my personal favourite- Keira Knightley. Not a single picture has been released from the movie, let alone a trailer, but this is one of my most anticipated films of this year. Pride & Prejudice and Atonement are among my favourite films and I really enjoyed Hanna, so I feel nothing but excitement for Wright's next project. The cast also includes Jude Law, Emily Watson, Kelly MacDonald, Matthew Macfadyen, Olivia Williams, Domhnall Gleeson and Aaron Johnson.


8. Lincoln


Steven Spielberg might not make films for a couple of years, but when he does he makes 3-4 all together. In 2011 he released The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn and Warhorse and in 2012 he returns with another epic story. This time he teams up with the extraordinary Daniel Day-Lewis and if this man alone is not a reason for you to anticipate this film, allow me to tell you some other members of the cast: Tommy Lee Jones, James Spader, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Jackie Earle Haley, Sally Field, Lee Pace, John Hawkes and David Strathairn. Spielberg is trying for many years to make this film, so now that he has finally started we can only hope for the best. He is one of my most favourite directors so my anticipation levels for this film are really high and that is why Lincoln takes the 8th spot on my list.

7. The Dark Knight Rises


The title alone must excite you too. This is the end of the amazing Batman trilogy that Christopher Nolan started in 2005 with Batman Begins and continued with amazing success and equal quality with The Dark Knight. To get even more excited maybe you need to know that Hanz Zimmer returns once more with the always jawdropping scores he composes, or that alongside the amazing Christian Bale you will get to see an impressive cast that includes Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman, Tom Hardy, Anne Hathaway, Marion Cotilliard and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Or maybe you need to (re-)watch the trailer. The greatest comic book -based film ever returns and concludes this summer.


6. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey


The Lord of the Rings trilogy is one of my most favourite films ever so this return to Middle Earth is greatly anticipated. I will be first in line to see the movie in December but the only reason why this film is not higher on my list is the feeling that The Hobbit won't be able to reach the epicness of the trilogy and that is because the book on which it is based was written for children and therefore the film won't manage to be "serious" enough. But, I have faith in Peter Jackson, his amazing crew and the most impressive cast he has brought together so all I have to say is "December can't come soon enough".


5. Les Miserables

I am a big fan of musicals. I literally love watching musicals, I adore singing along, I feel happy watching this alternate universe where eveyone is singing and dancing shamelessly. As for the famous musical Les Miserables, I've never had the good fortune of seeing it on stage. I know some of the songs and of course Victor Hugo's book is one of my most favourite books ever, so, naturally, this film is one of my most anticipated this year. And what a cast it's going to have! Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway, Russell Crowe, Helena Bonham Carter, Sacha Baron Cohen, Amanda Seyfried and Eddie Redmayne. Directed by the Oscar(R) winner Tom Hooper, director of The King's Speech, this is a film to be waiting for.

4. The Master

I am a major Paul Thomas Anderson fan since I first saw the incredible Magnolia and fell in love with his ideas, his direction and the performances he managed to get out of his terrific cast. Some other amazing films he has directed are the tremendous There Will Be Blood, Punch-Drunk Love and Boogie Nights with a great Mark Wahlberg in the leading role. The Master is set in the 50s and tells the story of an intellectual who has just returned from WWII and creates a belief system in order to catch on in America. His right-hand man is an alcoholic drifter. In the title role we find the always amazing and breathtaking Philip Seymour Hoffman. His right hand is Joaquin Phoenix. The rest of the cast includes Laura Dern, Amy Adams, Lena Endre, Jesse Plemons, Davic Warshofsky and Rami Malek, however the release date is unknown and it may probably come to cinemas in 2013.


3. Django Unchained


Quentin Tarantino. What more should I say? The genious (in my personal opinion) director of Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, Jackie Brown, Kill Bill Vol. 1 & 2 and Inglourious Basterds returns, this time with a western, and oh, boy, am I excited! The story follows a free slave (Jamie Foxx) who wants to find his wife (Kerry Washington) and during his journey he teams up with a German bounty hunter (Christoph Waltz) in order to kill a brutal Mississippi plantation owner (Leonardo DiCaprio). The amazing cast doesn't ennd there, though. It also includes Samuel L. Jackson, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Sacha Baron Cohen, Kurt Russell, James Remar, Don Johnson and James Russo. We just have to wait until Christmas.

2. Prometheus


For the two final spots of my list, I present to you two science-fiction films that I honestly can't wait to see. Being a science-fiction enthousiast, these two films are life a gift made especially for me (and every other single sciece-fiction junkie out there). Ridley Scott returs to the universe of Alien and this time his story follows a team of explorers who discover a clue to the origins of mankind to Earth so they make a journey to the darkest corers of the universe. There, they must fight a grand battle to save the human race. That's all the information I know and because I try to stay spoiler-free for this film I'm not writing anything else. However, if you'd like to know, there are many sites on the internet that have published some further information. Once more Ridley Scott manages to assemble a great cast that includes Michael Fassbender, Charlize Theron, Noomi Rapace (the original Girl with the Dragon Tattoo), Idris Elba, Guy Pearce and Patrick Wilson. If you're not sold yet, here's the trailer that will bring chills down your spine:



1. Gravity


Alfonso Cuaron is one of my most favourite directors and whenever he announces a project, I always get excited about the uniqueness of his ideas. This time he goes to space with a film he has been trying for a terribly long time to make. But as they say in my country "the good thing takes a long time to happen", so now that he has finally started shooting, prepare for awesomeness! I might sound like an obsessed fan but there is one more -qualified- person who shares my excitement and that is the amazing Guillermo del Toro who has said that,
Alfonso and (cinematographer) Emmanuel Lubezki are absolutely pushing a new boundary i filmmaking, and completely mind-blowing. The way they're making that movie, I think, will forever change certain types of productions. The engineering and ingenuity of the machines they created to film that way is fantastic.
The film is about a lone survivor of a space mission for the repair of the Hubble telescope, who desperately tries to find the way home and reunite with her daughter. Sandra Bullock and George Clooney star in this film and latest information is that Cuaron hasn't allowed them to wear make-up. So, space, 3-D, no make-up, groundbreaking technology, and the well-known long one-shots of Cuaron's. This is the number 1 film to wait for.


So, there you have it. This is my personal list of the 23 films which will hopefully make 2012 a very interesting cinematic experience for me. There are many many more that will come out and many of them haven't been announced yet but from what I can tell, this is going to be a very creative year. Enjoy!

Honorable Mentions:


















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