2015's Most Anticipated: That's What You Get

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| Runner-Ups |

One of the funnier movies this year. And also one of the dumbest. But funny and not on my list.

There's been quite a few really good movies that don't show up on my list at all. I know, it's tragic, right? I think even when I do these lists that about half of my top 10 for the year end up not being on my list. I can already name a handful in contention this year - Whiplash, Birdman, Obvious Child. That's what you get when Hollywood pumps out about 150+ nationwide releases every year. I'm just grateful that I get a chance to see most of what I want to see every year. This isn't my job, if that's hard to believe. But I'm a movie junkie and I'm like a bottomless pit when it comes to movie viewing. I'll see anything. Except for those god-awful Broadway adaptations. Those are the worst.

2015's Most Anticipated: Drink It Up

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How I treat myself most mornings.

I'm getting a little delirious. I know that there's a lot of movies on this list and yes I am excited about all of these movies - some more than others. Duh, I mean that's why there's a numbering system. I love putting things in lists and at this point it's hard to rank something 40 as opposed to 30. I mean, really it's just semantics. But I actually had a lot of fun this time around because all of these movies are genuinely getting me amped up for next year. After writing up these next five films, I've realized that 2015 is going to be a helluva year besides all the sequels and prequels and reboots. There's some really, really good original movies and four out of the next five are showcasing that! Let's keep this groove train groovin'!

2015's Most Anticipated: All the Drama

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Let's be upfront. There's going to be some changes to this list eventually. There will be release date changes and with all the drama that goes on behind the camera even before production, it's inevitable that at least a couple of these movies will get pushed back to 2016. This year was pretty frustrating because it felt like a some movies that looked pretty good IMO, got shoved into 2015 because the studio has no faith in the finished product (Jupiter Ascending, Kingsman: The Secret Service). But that's Hollywood - at times they seem like they have things all together (case in point: the new Star Wars teaser) and then at other times they seem to really not know what they're doing beyond just making money (splitting up books into two or three movies - The Hobbit, Hunger Games). There's been a couple of drama-filled productions on this part of the list, I just hope they all come out this year. Mainly so that I don't have to re-write some of this list.

2015's Most Anticipated: Start Me Up

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Get your game face on, folks.

Let's be clear - it was a lot harder to figure out the bottom half of this list than it was to figure out the top 25. I don't think it's going to be that much of a surprise once I get down to the top 10. These first five movies are solid entries and I think a few of them could potentially be top 10 contenders next year, but without seeing any trailers or knowing very little, I can't really get too excited. But I'm excited nonetheless for these movies despite what little knowledge I have of them. Alright - let's get this party started!

2015's Most Anticipated: Warm Up

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| Runner-Ups |

This guy is psyched for 2015

2015 can’t come fast enough. I’ve been talking about 2015 for over a year now and I can’t believe we’re almost here. This is the year of the fanboy. There’s just so much to get through next year – the list runs the gamut of sequels, reboots and franchise movies and there’s something in 2015 for everyone – and I mean everyone. While the past two years have been ho-hum, 2015 is sure going to make up for it.

Movies from long dormant franchises return (Jurassic Park! Mad Max!), dead franchises get rebooted (Terminator! Fantastic Four!) and plenty of sequels all demand our attention. There’s also a lot of really interesting, new, original movies that seem like winners. Whether this translates to the biggest year at the box office is up to how well these movies are made.

It’s one thing to slap a recognizable name on a movie and call it a day, it’s another to seek out the best talent and creative minds to revitalize a franchise or keep the same spark going from the original movie(s). I plan on really delving deeply into next year, I hope you’re as excited as I am.

I usually try to find balance in my list – making sure that original titles get the same love as sequels and franchise movies. But this year is a little different. I’m embracing the sequel and going with how excited I am about some of these movies. I certainly hope that all of these movies are awesome, but I’m sure I’ll be let down more than once.

But before I get to the actual 50, here are 10 runner-ups (in alphabetical order) that I think deserve some attention. While they may not be worthy of opening day ticket stubs, they certainly have the potential be fun distractions next year.

Water Cooler Prep: November 17

Making sure you don't look dumb or out of the loop in front of your co-workers and friends when you are chit-chatting in the break room.

Dumb and Dumber To Rules the Box Office
Twenty years in the making, the Farrelly brothers capitalize on 90s nostalgia to take first place ahead of that cute robot movie.

The Fast and Furious Franchise is Hot and Cold
After telling us it's over after two more go-arounds, producers of the F&F series tell us they're never letting us go - kind of an epic Rick Roll there, fellas.

NEW TRAILERS!
50 Shades of Grey - I'm with John Oliver, Jamie Dornan is #NotMyChristian:



Insurgent - Possibly the worst live-action adaptation of Up I've seen:



Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 - Kevin James tries to recreate 2009 by bringing us the same jokes from the first movie:



The Cobbler - Adam Sandler tries to stay relevant with a depressing version of Freaky Friday:
 



Christoph Waltz Cast as Villain for Next Bond Film
You can't get any better villain casting than Waltz, the man who played a Nazi war criminal AND Green Hornet's nemesis.

Most Anticipated 2014: Muppets Most Wanted

16. Muppets Most Wanted (PG) - Runtime: 107 minutes
Starring: Tina Fey, Ricky Gervais, Ty Burrell
Director: James Bobin
Writers: James Bobin, Nicholas Stoller
With Jason Segal gone, there were some pretty big shoes to fill in this Muppet sequel. But thankfully, James Bobin came back to direct and Nicholas Stoller, one of the co-writers from the original is back as well. And while maybe somewhat of a disappointment, Muppets Most Wanted still hits the mark when it comes to an entertaining Muppets movie.

While the Muppets "reboot" movie had its fair share of awesome music numbers, I can't recall any of the songs from the new movie. So the music numbers aren't the best here, but I remember liking them while I was watching. Maybe just not as memorable as "Man or Muppet." But the plot is pretty good - better than I expected with lots of running jokes and gags that surprisingly don't wear out their welcome (Ricky Gervais' character, Dominic Badguy as the number two criminal in world - the Lemur, Ty Burrell's weird bromance with Sam Eagle are both pretty great).

There's really not much else to say! It's hard to not like the Muppets in this movie. It's not as flashy as the previous movie, but it's still fun and really funny. Kermit and the gang are hopefully back for good this time and I am looking forward to seeing more of them in the future.

RATING: MOST DEF WANT TO SEE THIS AGAIN

Snowpiercer

Snowpiercer (R) - Runtime: 126 minutes
Starring: Chris Evans, Tilda Swinton, Jamie Bell
Director: Joon-ho Bong
Writers: Joon-ho Bong, Kelly Masterson
I had heard a lot of really good things about this movie. And I like Chris Evans. And I like the director, Joon-ho Bong who was responsible for the amazing monster movie The Host (not that awful alien invasion movie). However, I was still hesitant to watch this movie, because, c'mon, it's a movie shot entirely on a train. How can this possibly be that good? I was so wrong. This movie was awesome. From the look and feel of the movie, to the bonkers-plot - Snowpiercer is just a fun action movie.

The movie is set in the future where the Earth has had a second ice age because the government wanted to combat climate change by putting chemicals in the air. What's left of the human race is surviving on a train that travels around the world. And this train is special - there's a whole ecosystem in place to keep everyone alive. But there's also a cruel ruling class that hangs out in the front of the train while the lower class tries to survive. Chris Evans plays Curtis, a man destined to lead a rebellion to get to the front of the train and take over the engine. His journey takes him through each car and along the way things become clear that things aren't quite normal.

I won't spoil anything else in this movie - it's just a joy to find out what lies behind the next car door that they open up. It's a neat set up that pays off so well in the end when all the different characters and plots come to collide in the climax. And speaking of characters, this movie has them in spades - from the weirdly pan sexual Mason (played brilliantly by Tilda Swinton), to the drug addict Namgoong and his daughter, Yona.

The movie does take a while to get going - there's a lot to set up in a movie like this - but once the rebellion actually starts - the movie finishes at a frantic pace. From the story, to the characters to the intense action, Snowpiercer is so much fun. This is by far one of the best movies this year.

RATING: IT PIERCED THE COLD SHELL OF MY HEART

Water Cooler Prep: November 10

 

Making sure you don't look dumb or out of the loop in front of your co-workers and friends when you are chit-chatting in the break room.

Big Hero 6 Beats Out Interstellar for Box Office

The Disney animated flick benefited from a dearth of family fare at the theater to take out the kinda, not really controversial Interstellar. with $56.2 million. Robots are cool, but inflatable robots? Way cooler.

Matt Damon Confirms Return to Bourne Franchise

Not to be outdone with the mediocrity of the Bourne Legacy, Damon is looking to cash in on Hollywood's favorite amnesia-ridden assassin with the tentatively-titled Bourne Betrayal. Set to film in 2015 and released in 2016, the movie will see director Paul Greengrass and Matt Damon reunite once more to give us the most headache-inducing action scenes ever.

Star Wars Wraps Principal Photography and Gets Official Title

J.J. Abrams will quickly go to work on getting lens flare into as many shots as possible in the newly christened "Star Wars: The Force Awakens."

Jared Leto Could be the Next Joker

Following his Oscar-winning turn as a transgender in Dallas Buyers Club, Leto is in talks to take on the Joker in the Suicide Squad movie announced earlier last month by Warner Bros. and DC Comics. Finally we'll get the answer to who was the better 90s teenage heartthrob: Heath Ledger or Jared Leto.

Hateful Eight Gets Full Cast List

In more casting news, Tarantino's new western, The Hateful Eight has revealed it's eight titular anti-heros: Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell, Jennifer Jason Leigh (Fast Times at Ridgemont High), Walton Goggins (TV's Justified), Demian Bichir (The Heat), Tim Roth (Pulp Fiction), Michael Madsen, Bruce Dern and Channing Tatum. Dayum, that is some good casting.

Toy Story 4 Announced

Because Toy Story apparently did not have the most perfect ending and because no one was asking for this sequel, we'll be seeing more of Woody and Buzz.

Warcraft Announces Cast and Characters

Scheduled for a 2016 release and directed by Moon's Duncan Jones, Warcraft has got an impressive cast including Paula Patton, Dominic Cooper, Ben Foster and Clancy Brown. Now the studio just has to make a compelling case as to why fans of the game should abandon their computers to see all of their favorite characters get ruined on the big screen.

John Wick

John Wick (R) - Runtime: 101 minutes
Starring: Keanu Reeves, Michael Nyqvist
Director: David Leitch, Chad Stahelski
Writer: Derek Kolstad
Well this came out of nowhere. What looked like a silly B-level action movie for a struggling star turns out to be one of the best movies this year. No jokes. Keanu Reeves as the titular hero, John Wick, blasts through thousands of bad guys at a blistering pace. And it is awesome.

Normally I am not a fan of these types of action movies - where there's a razor thin plot that is there just to provide an excuse for explosions, guns and lots of fighting. I have not even bothered to check out any of the Expendables movies simply because I don't think I could tolerate it. Not to say that those movies aren't awesome or something to be loved, I just cannot get into them. John Wick, however, held my attention throughout and was simply amazing.

Part of it has to do with the simplicity of the plot and characters: Wick's puppy from his dead fiance gets killed by some punk mafia kid and he's out for revenge and to serve justice to the people he once worked for. It's enough for the movie to keep churning. The movie kind of builds up to its first action scene and just becomes this nice fun rollercoaster of ups and downs. The pacing is perfect - there's nice "breathers" in between the action so that the audience never gets tired of it.

And speaking of the action - it's near perfect. Keanu is a badass in this movie and the things he does with the gun and choreography are simply stunning. It doesn't hurt that the directors are longtime stuntmen who know their way around a fight. The fighting is beautiful and honestly, there's never a dull moment in this film. On top of the action, there's this really cool layer of a fleshed out world that just gets touched upon by the movie. There's a kind of a league of assassins in the movie and they have a neutral site at a hotel that they all commune at. They have their rules they all abide by and their own currency. It never gets fully explained and the movie is better off for it, which leaves a little bit of mystery and fleshes out the background a little more.

I can't wait to see this movie again - I feel like I didn't expect the action to be so good - so I feel like I missed a lot of the intricacies in all the carnage on screen. Which is an amazing feat for a movie - to make the audience feel like they need to see it again to catch everything. This is a phenomenal film and I'll be catching this one again soon!

RATING: A WICK-ED GOOD TIME