Arguably the most prominent of them all is The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 (20th November) but talking to in depth about this is probably a waste of time as anyone that will watch this movie probably already knows they want to. The Hunger Games is a massive franchise with a huge fan base and films that seem to be raising their game with each instalment and while it’ll probably end up being good is it going to be great? We’ll have to wait and see, though it is based on the dullest time in the books so that doesn’t raise much hope.
On the opposite end of the addition to a franchise scale Michael Bay’s new movie Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (17th October) isn’t one that seems like it would appeal to anyone really. The turtles are too gritty and serious looking to appeal to the young kids that the ninja turtles are meant to appeal to but the pure concept is to silly to be taking as a gritty and serious movie by anyone. It’ll probably end up somehow doing well in box offices, mainly down to Megan Fox playing the role of “girl” and the big name in the title but this one looks to be mindless and boring trash and you’d probably get more excitement investing your money into an actual turtle. And they’re dull pets.
It’s difficult to pin David Ayer’s Fury (24th October) down. It’s coming fresh from the director of last year’s excellent cop action flick End Of Watch so it’s in capable hands but the tone of the film is difficult to grasp from the trailers. On one hand it could be an attempt at bringing something gritty to Oscar season, maybe even a best supporting actor grab for Logan Lerman who until now has put on talented performances but not really found his footing as an actor. However, it could also end up being a mindless war flick that’s trying a little bit too hard to feed morals to it’s audience. The film will have to find out what message it’s trying to convey, war flick or powerful story of friendship between soldiers, if it’s going to succeed. Brad Pitt is currently having an unstoppable career so it can probably be predicted that he will put on a show as the man in charge of this platoon, a role that undeniably suits him. The weakness in the main cast is love him or hate him Shia Lebouf who could be using this as a comeback after all the press against him recently. It’s still difficult to argue against the idea of him playing a religious soldier in a tank squadron, especially after all his stuttering school boy roles he seems to have been grabbing, is an odd one.
Death seems to be a bit of a running theme this season with Book of Life (24th October) and Life After Beth (1st October) both addressing it. The former is an animation by filmmaking legend Guaellmo Del Toro about the Mexican festival of death and the latter being an addition to the zomromcom genre starring up and coming talents Dane Dehann and Aubrey Plaza. To be honest the animation seems the more appealing of the two with the trailers showing so much stunning content and giving off a similar vibe to movies such as Coraline and the Box Trolls, that genre of kids films that can mess a child up, teach them some important lessons and show them enough fun imagery to entertain them. Those are the best kids movies for the Halloween season and Book of Life looks set to deliver just that. Life After Beth on the other hand is this seasons Halloween date movie for the couples that don’t want to see an actual horror film and it could probably go either way. The cast are really good but the plot seems very dejavu, the idea of a girlfriend coming back from the date feeling like it’s been done before even if it hasn’t. For zomromcoms Shaun of the Dead and Zombieland are out on dvd people and they’re probably better investments.
A quick run through of other films coming out this season would include Interstellar (7th November), Christopher Nolan’s new movie. This is a man who always delivers something unique and interesting when he directs though the film does appear to be shooting for crazy heights in terms of plot and it’s a struggle to work out how all the content promised by trailers is going to fit in. Nevertheless Nolan will undoubtedly give it his best shot. The Judge (17th October) is a father son bonding story starring Robert Downy Jr, a man who’s career right now can do no wrong. It’s unclear as to whether the film will focus more on the parent/child relationship or the lawyer story that it’s based around but it’s definitely going to be well acted, that much is true. There’s also The Drop (14th November) starring Tom Hardy. This film is an old fashioned crime noir that has received nothing but positive press from the film festivals it’s showcased at so if crime is your thing it’ll probably be worth checking out.
Finally Gone Girl (3rd October) is the film to watch this season. It’s a psychological thriller of epic proportions based on the best selling book and nothing but good things have been said about it. The plot is still shadowed in mystery and intrigue and in that way it’ll keep you guessing until the final second. See this movie and then encourage your friends to see it just so you can talk to them about it, Gone Girl is this movie seasons must watch.
