The Oscars are now long gone in the eyes of Hollywood and now we all look on towards the 2017 Oscars (AKA the 89th Academy Awards). Will there be a big change after the #OscarsSoWhite controversy and the cry for equality in film? Or will there be another All White nominees list?
My guess is that there’s going to be a big change and we can easily see that through the batch of dramas coming to us this year. Stretching from Sundance darling The Birth of a Nation to the romantic drama A United Kingdom, there are many fantastic films on the horizon starring minorities. This in my eyes correlates with the great movies we have coming up in this year ahead of us.
2015 was a brilliant year for movies producing fabulous films like The Martian, Ex Machina and Steve Jobs but it seems like 2016 just might have it beat. Read on to find out about my 10 most anticipated movies of 2016…
10. War Dogs
Starring Jonah Hill and Miles Teller, this satirical look at arms dealing tells the true story about two twenty somethings who went into business with the Pentagon selling hundreds of millions of dollars in arms to the US government creating a huge scandal. What looks like a buddy cop movie this could be the surprise of the year.
9. Loving Vincent
The first movie ever to be fully painted, Loving Vincent will look at the life of Vincent Van Gogh and the suspicious circumstances surrounding his death. With an incredible voice cast including Saoirse Ronan, Aidan Turner, Douglas Booth and Chris O’Dowd this is sure to be one of the most talked about movies of 2016. It wouldn’t be a big surprise to see it in Best Picture contention either.
8. Free Fire
Set in 1970’s Boston, Free Fire looks to be a bloody ordeal about two rival gangs that meet in a deserted warehouse and start a shootout, making this a game of survival. After Ben Wheatley’s fantastic High Rise it’s fantastic to see another movie of his coming out in the same year. With a brilliant cast that features Brie Larson (winning Best Actress at the Oscars this year), Jack Reynor, Cillian Murphy, Sharlto Copley, Sam Riley and Armie Hammer this is sure to be a great crime thriller to see.
7. The Girl on the Train
Based on the Gone Girl like thriller by Paula Hawkins the book is one of the best reads of this decade. Director Tate Taylor directed The Help one of the best of 2011 and the underrated Get on Up. The movie is in great hands and throw into the mix Emily Blunt who’s been on a roll, this is sure to be the thriller of the year. Expect this movie to have the biggest box office haul on this list.
6. Manchester by the Sea
Another Sundance hit Manchester by the Sea stars Casey Affleck as a man who’s brother dies and he has to go look after his brother’s son. Produced by Matt Damon and John Krasinski, this movie looks to be the dark horse of the 2017 Oscars. Kenneth Lonergan writes and directs this drama, which excites me considering he co-wrote the Gangs of New York and Analyze This screenplays. Keep an eye out for this… it will definitely be big, considering Amazon paid 10 million dollars for it at Sundance.
5. The Nice Guys
From the director of Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, The Nice Guys is the latest crime comedy from Shane Black. It’s a return to Shane Black’s best genre and is for sure to be on many people’s most anticipated list. Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling’s chemistry is phenomenal in the trailer and those two presenting at the Oscars was one of the highlights of the night. This could gain cult status alongside Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.
4. La La Land
Starring the perfect on screen duo, La La Land reunites Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone for a musical set in modern day Los Angeles which portrays a romantic relationship between Sebastian, a jazz musician and Mia, an actress. With J.K. Simmons co-starring this is this will be another hit from Whiplash writer/director Damien Chazelle. It’s release date was pushed back from July to December so it will definitely be in awards contention.
3. War Machine
Not to be confused with the Marvel superhero played by Don Cheadle, War Machine is a comedy war film starring Brad Pitt, Topher Grace, Ben Kingsley and Emory Cohen. It revolves around Stanley McChrystal (played by Pitt) who played a part in hiding the Pat Tillman friendly fire incident and was a controversial figure in the army, always speaking his mind. Beasts of No Nation was Netflix’s first high profile movie release but expect War Machine to be huge come later this year with its release.
2. Silence
The next movie from my favourite director of all time, Silence tells the story of two Jesuit priests (Andrew Garfield and Adam Driver) who go to Japan searching for their old mentor (Liam Neeson). Andrew Garfield and Liam Neeson look fantastic in early footage and responses so far have been staggeringly good. I can’t wait to see Scorsese step back from debauchery and see how he approaches a more serious and quiet theme. Last time he did one hell of a job (Hugo) so I have no doubt he’ll do it again.
1. The Founder
Michael Keaton is my favourite actor right now. He’s choosing all the right roles and has been in consecutive Best Picture winners. With Birdman he was the clear choice for Best Actor but the Academy chose wrong as they do sometimes and that was that. But with the McDonald’s biopic where Keaton plays Ray Kroc I have no doubt this might finally win him his Oscar. It’s a brilliant story, director John Lee Hancock is always reliable behind the camera and with Keaton in the form of his life Kroc is surely to be one of his best characters. Bring on the Happy Meals!
Where there any movies missing from my top 10? Check out my Honorable Mentions coming soon…
Also check out my top 10 most anticipated blockbusters of 2016 here
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