Fourth-day Universe's 2014 Movie Watchlist
All the sci-fi, fantasy, animated, horror, and comic book movies we plan on watching, reviewing, and otherwise highlighting this coming year. Think we need to include more?
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- DirectorChristopher LandonStarsAndrew JacobsJorge DiazGabrielle WalshWhen a young man becomes the target of a malevolent entity, he must uncover its true intentions before it takes complete control of him.Kicking off the New Year with a haunted house film, the latest in the found footage phenomenon. Here is the link to our review: http://fourthdayuniverse.com/reports/2014/01/why-paranormal-activity-the-marked-ones-almost-made-me-sick/
- DirectorRenny HarlinStarsKellan LutzGaia WeissScott AdkinsThe origin story of the mythical Greek hero. Betrayed by his stepfather, the King, and exiled and sold into slavery because of a forbidden love, Hercules must use his formidable powers to fight his way back to his rightful kingdom.This "origin story" for Hercules doesn't have Dwayne Johnson or John Hurt in it, but it doesn't have Brett Ratner directing either, so neither movie really has an edge, at this point. Here is our review: http://fourthdayuniverse.com/reports/2014/01/movies-you-can-watch-instead-of-the-legend-of-hercules/
- DirectorMatt Bettinelli-OlpinTyler GillettStarsAllison MillerZach GilfordSam AndersonAfter a mysterious, lost night on their honeymoon, a newlywed couple finds themselves dealing with an earlier-than-planned pregnancy.You'd think horror wouldn't exactly lend itself to the found footage genre. After all, who stops to video record their gruesome and grisly deaths? And yet, in the first month of the year, we have not one but two entries from the genre. Here's our review: http://fourthdayuniverse.com/reports/2014/01/devils-due/
- DirectorPeter LepeniotisStarsWill ArnettBrendan FraserLiam NeesonAn incorrigibly self-serving exiled squirrel finds himself helping his former park brethren survive by raiding a nut store, a location that also happens to be a front for a human gang's bank robbery.The animated movie year is off to a...nutty start with this film about a squirrel who plots to rob a nut store. Will Arnett is definitely developing his voice acting resume, as he'll move on from this to play Batman in "The Lego Movie".
- DirectorStuart BeattieStarsAaron EckhartBill NighyMiranda OttoFrankenstein's creature finds himself caught in an all-out, centuries-old war between two immortal clans.Aaron Eckhart stars in this decidedly Underworld-esque vision of what happened to Frankenstein's monster centuries after he was brought (back) to life. Its first trailers and images have drawn a certain amount of scorn, but what happened to just having a fun, action-filled adventure movie? Isn't that what kept the "Underworld" franchise alive (so to speak) for so long?
- DirectorPhil LordChristopher MillerStarsChris PrattWill FerrellElizabeth BanksAn ordinary LEGO construction worker, thought to be the prophesied as "special", is recruited to join a quest to stop an evil tyrant from gluing the LEGO universe into eternal stasis.Before 2015, we'll get to see Batman and Wonder Woman on the screen at the same time, and that alone would be enough to get me to the movies. This looks absolutely hilarious.
Read our review of the movie here: http://fourthdayuniverse.com/reports/2014/02/buried-in-layers-of-legos-or-is-everything-awesome/ - DirectorJosé PadilhaStarsJoel KinnamanGary OldmanMichael KeatonIn 2028 Detroit, when Alex Murphy, a loving husband, father and good cop, is critically injured in the line of duty, the multinational conglomerate OmniCorp sees their chance for a part-man, part-robot police officer.The themes of the original film, including corporate greed run amok, seem to be taking a backseat to "man versus machine". As much as I enjoyed the original, I think RoboCop is the perfect character to examine that sort of story. How much of the human body can you replace until you're no longer human?
Read our review of the movie here: http://fourthdayuniverse.com/reports/2014/02/robocop-repurposed/ - DirectorMark WatersStarsZoey DeutchLucy FryDanila KozlovskiyRose Hathaway is a Dhampir, half human-half vampire, a guardian of the Moroi, peaceful, mortal vampires living discreetly within our world. Her calling is to protect the Moroi from bloodthirsty, immortal Vampires, the Strigoi.Young adult literature movie adaptations have a (mostly) undeserved reputation for being...well, kind of not very good at all, no matter how good the books are. With no more "Twilight" movies in the queue and with "The Hunger Games" becoming such a powerhouse, the general attitude towards these movies may, in fact, be shifting in favor of YA movies. "Vampire Academy", more than just needing to give its own franchise an excuse to thrive, could help raise an entire genre to a new level; or, it could confirm THG as a one-hit wonder.
- DirectorAkiva GoldsmanStarsColin FarrellJessica Brown FindlayRussell CroweA burglar falls for an heiress as she dies in his arms. When he learns that he has the gift of reincarnation, he sets out to save her.Ah, a good old-fashioned love story for Valentine's Day, with a reincarnation twist. Even if it isn't that great, it'll be nice to have a "date night" alternative to "RoboCop" and "Vampire Academy".
- DirectorNoam MurroStarsSullivan StapletonEva GreenLena HeadeyGreek general Themistocles of Athens leads the naval charge against invading Persian forces led by mortal-turned-god Xerxes and Artemisia, vengeful commander of the Persian navy.Both a sequel and a prequel of Zack Snyder's adaptation of Frank Miller's graphic novel. Let's see how well the relative newcomer Noam Murro does as he directs this war epic.
- DirectorRob MinkoffStarsTy BurrellMax CharlesStephen ColbertSherman, a young boy, misuses a time machine made by his scientist father Mr. Peabody and causes the world history to go haywire. It is now up to Mr. Peabody to rescue his son and the world.Of all the time travel stories coming out this year, this one looks like the most fun, and not just because it's a cartoon. Ty Burrell, as the voice of the talking, time-traveling dog, leads an all-star voice cast with a script by the award-winning stage and screen scribe Craig Wright.
- DirectorNeil BurgerStarsShailene WoodleyTheo JamesKate WinsletIn a world divided by factions based on virtues, Tris learns she's Divergent and won't fit in. When she discovers a plot to destroy Divergents, Tris and the mysterious Four must find out what makes Divergents dangerous before it's too late."Divergent" is a different kind of adventure story, but one that addresses the central question of youth everywhere: What will I be when I grow up?
- DirectorDarren AronofskyStarsRussell CroweJennifer ConnellyAnthony HopkinsNoah is chosen by God to undertake a momentous mission before an apocalyptic flood cleanses the world.Can religion really be considered "fantasy"? By people who aren't members of that religion, the answer certainly seems to be yes. After all, we've had plenty of films based on Greek mythology, which used to be the religion of the Greeks. But what of biblical epics, or other films featuring "major" religious figures who are still regarded as such? Come March, we'll take a deeper look at the question. (We won't be reviewing February's "Son of God", since it seems that film will be treated more as a biopic than a fantasy film.)
- DirectorAnthony RussoJoe RussoStarsChris EvansSamuel L. JacksonScarlett JohanssonAs Steve Rogers struggles to embrace his role in the modern world, he teams up with a fellow Avenger and S.H.I.E.L.D agent, Black Widow, to battle a new threat from history: an assassin known as the Winter Soldier.Even before the first Captain America film was announced, people were saying a movie with him set in the present day would be the perfect movie for saying "this is what's wrong with America today". We'll get at least a little of that in TWS, which means, however the movie ends, there will be a large number of people dissatisfied with how he ultimately reacts to the modern world. Not that Marvel is afraid of controversial movie endings.
- DirectorCarlos SaldanhaStarsJesse EisenbergAnne HathawayJemaine ClementIt's a jungle out there for Blu, Jewel, and their three kids after they're hurtled from Rio de Janeiro to the wilds of the Amazon. As Blu tries to fit in, he goes beak-to-beak with the vengeful Nigel and meets his father-in-law.Blu and Jewel are no longer the only two of their kind, as they head to the Amazon to find Jewel's family.
- DirectorWally PfisterStarsJohnny DeppRebecca HallMorgan FreemanA scientist's drive for artificial intelligence takes on dangerous implications when his own consciousness is uploaded into one such program.If Johnny Depp is ever uploaded to a computer, then I'll just assume it's the end of the world. But, the first trailer for this head trip (pun intended?) of a movie promises more than just a ghost in a machine. What will happen when computers surpass humans in intelligence has been a staple of sci-fi films for decades, but we may just see the most imaginative interpretation of the "singularity" yet.
- DirectorMike FlanaganStarsKaren GillanBrenton ThwaitesKatee SackhoffA recently released inmate from a mental asylum learns from his sister that the murders he was convicted of committing were actually orchestrated by a supernatural entity, the Lasser Glass mirror.You had me at Katee Sackhoff and Karen Gillan. An evil mirror also makes things interesting.
- DirectorJohn PogueStarsJared HarrisSam ClaflinOlivia CookeA university professor and a team of students conduct an experiment on a young woman, uncovering terrifyingly dark, unexpected forces in the process.What if someone deliberately set out to raise a supernatural being to haunt a girl with the intent to study it? After "The Woman in Black", I'm very eager to see how this film does.
- DirectorMarc WebbStarsAndrew GarfieldEmma StoneJamie FoxxWhen New York is put under siege by Oscorp, it is up to Spider-Man to save the city he swore to protect as well as his loved ones.Of all the superhero movies to come out in recent years, TASM2 seems to be the only one still following the old formula for superhero sequels, i.e., giving the hero multiple villains to fight. But, Sony seems to be learning from their previous run of Spidey films, establishing a larger universe for Spider-Man's villains, possibly even letting them have solo films. Are they doing the reverse of what Marvel did, letting the villains team up instead of the heroes? We'll know more in May.
- DirectorWill FinnDaniel St. PierreStarsLea MicheleKelsey GrammerDan AykroydShortly after a tornado rips through her Kansas home, Dorothy returns to Oz to save her friends from a villainous jester.With no more wicked witches to melt, Dorothy finds herself facing the Jester, a much more...colorful villain.
- DirectorGareth EdwardsStarsAaron Taylor-JohnsonElizabeth OlsenBryan CranstonThe world is beset by the appearance of monstrous creatures, but one of them may be the only one who can save humanity.It seems like Americans shouldn't try to build a Godzilla franchise, and not just because of Emmerich's 1998 outing with the iconic character/monster. Godzilla is intrinsically Japanese in origin, mythology, and development. It would be like a Japanese film company announcing they were working on a Superman film set in Japan; sure, technically he's not an American and his craft could have landed anywhere when it arrived, but it just feels wrong, all the same. Still, it is being developed in conjunction with Japanese filmmakers, and it's worth giving director Garth Edwards and a fairly thrilling cast a chance, especially on Godzilla's 60th anniversary.
- DirectorBryan SingerStarsPatrick StewartIan McKellenHugh JackmanThe X-Men send Wolverine to the past in a desperate effort to change history and prevent an event that results in doom for both humans and mutants.What plot could be enough to lure Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, and Ian McKellen to the screen together once more? What lies in the future (and the past) for our favorite mutant characters? How can time travel reboot the franchise without being (too) obvious about the fact that they're trying to reboot the franchise? Answers to all those questions and more this May.
- DirectorRobert StrombergStarsAngelina JolieElle FanningSharlto CopleyA vengeful fairy is driven to curse an infant princess, only to discover that the child could be the one person who can restore peace to their troubled land.So far, all we know is this is "Sleeping Beauty" from the sorceress' perspective. The script has seen more than a couple of pairs of hands, and the director, Robert Stromberg, is in the big chair for the first time (though the visual effects portion of his resume is quite impressive). Hoping for more details about the plot soon (and to see Angelina Jolie turn into a dragon).
- DirectorDoug LimanStarsTom CruiseEmily BluntBill PaxtonA soldier fighting aliens gets to relive the same day over and over again, the day restarting every time he dies.So, Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt play two soldiers who are stuck in a "Groundhog Day"-style time loop that, unfortunately, loops through a brutal battle that keeps killing them. But is there more to breaking this loop than just surviving the day (and getting the girl)?
- DirectorDean DeBloisStarsJay BaruchelCate BlanchettGerard ButlerWhen Hiccup and Toothless discover an ice cave that is home to hundreds of new wild dragons and the mysterious Dragon Rider, the two friends find themselves at the center of a battle to protect the peace.This sequel to the surprise hit of 2010 brings us more dragons, more characters, and more thrills as Hiccup leads his companions into a larger world that can only be seen from the back of a dragon.