With the end of 2014 approaching faster than I could ever imagine, the season of good movies is upon us as well! I personally haven’t been looking forward to a lot of movies so far this year, but that is all about to change. Many of the best movies are saved for the end of the year, with hopes of garnering enough attention and acclaim to grab an Academy Award nomination. This year is no exception, and these are just a few of the movies that caught my eye that are being released in the next couple of months, so read on, watch the trailers, and get your popcorn ready!
1. “Unbroken”
Starring: Jack O’Connell, Domhnall Gleeson, Jai Courtney (directed by Angelina Jolie)
Release Date: December 25, 2014
Genre: Action, biography, drama
What It’s About: The true story of the life of Louis Zamperini, a young Olympic runner who was captured by Japanese forces during World War II and held as a prisoner of war. Based on the novel Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand.
Why It’s Interesting: Not only is this movie exciting and action packed, but it’s based on a real guy! Louis Zamperini was a Olympic runner, turned member of the United States Air Forces, turned World War II hero. Zamperini unfortunately passed away recently at the age of 97 on July 2nd of this year, but director Angelina Jolie visited him in the hospital to show him the film prior to his death. Zamperini will be portrayed in the film by relatively unknown British actor Jack O’Connell (you may know him if you watched the U.K. version of the show Skins) and based on the trailer, he’s perfect for the part and is going to do a great job of portraying the struggles and hardships Zamperini faced during his life.
2. “Laggies”
Starring: Chloë Grace Mortez, Keira Knightley, Sam Rockwell
Release Date: October 24, 2014
Genre: Comedy, romance
What It’s About: A woman visits her high school reunion and realizes that not much has changed in her life since graduation 11 years ago. She panics and decides she needs to take a week off from her life and spends that time staying at the house of a 16-year-old acquaintance and her single father.
Why It’s Interesting: While it may seem like a classic rom-com from the basic description, watching the trailer made me think that this movie has the potential to be really great. Keira Knighley and Chloë Gracë Mortez are a power duo and seem to have great chemistry together in the film. While it is a romantic comedy, this movie also touches on more serious issues a lot of adults face at some point in their life, such as feeling stuck in a rut and not being sure what direction they want to go with their life. While it could end up blending in with all the other rom-coms, I think the unique backstory and strong actors will make it stand out.
3. “The Theory of Everything”
Starring: Felicity Jones, Eddie Redmayne, Emily Watson
Release Date: November 7, 2014
Genre: Biography, drama
What It’s About: An in depth look at the early life and relationship between the famous physicist Stephen Hawking and his wife. Inspired by Jane Hawking’s memoir Traveling to Infinity: My life with Stephen.
Why It’s Interesting: This movie personalizes and brings to life the story of the well known physicist Stephen Hawking. While most people know Hawking for his genius in physics and his debilitating disease, his life before his fame is widely unknown. While the film does of course touch on Hawking’s work in physics, it’s largely the story of his relationship with Jane Wilde, the literature student he fell in love with while studying at Cambridge in the 1960s. Hawking has enthuastically approved of the film and even volunteered the electronic voice he uses in real life to be used in the latter part of the film!
4. “Big Eyes”
Starring: Amy Adams, Krysten Ritter, Chrisoph Waltz (directed by Tim Burton)
Release Date: December 25, 2014
Genre: Biography, drama
What It’s About: Centered on the painter Margaret Keane, her wildly successful career in the 1950s, and the legal battles she had with her husband after he claimed credit for her works in the 1960s.
Why It’s Interesting: How could a Tim Burton film ever not be interesting? That being said, based on the trailer that’s been released, this movie looks to be a lot different from Burton’s usual work (come on, there’s not even any Johnny Depp!), but I’m sure it will be a unique take on Margaret Keane’s art, life, and legal battles. The movie is already thought by many to be looking at at least one Oscar nom for Amy Adams’ performance as Keane.
5. “Gone Girl”
Starring: Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike, Neil Patrick Harris
Release Date: October 3, 2014
Genre: Drama, mystery, thriller
What It’s About: A man’s wife disappears from their home and the search for her draws the attention of the media and the nation. As the case progresses, it’s suspected that the husband may not be as innocent as he originally seemed. Based on the novel of the same title by Gillian Flynn.
Why It’s Interesting: I read this book recently and absolutely loved it, and I think this movie has the potential to be fantastic. It’s a really great mystery story with a totally unexpected plot twist that I won’t give away. It’s definitely going to be a movie that will have you on the edge of your seat the whole time and there are a lot of interesting characters that have more parts of them revealed to you as the story goes on.
6. “ The Sound and the Fury”
Starring: James Franco, Seth Rogen, Joey King (directed by James Franco)
Release Date: September 26 ,2014
Genre: Drama
What It’s About: Based on the critically acclaimed novel of the same title by William Faulkner, this film takes a look at the trials and tribulations of The Compson siblings, part of a wealthy family living in the south during the beginning of the 20th century.
Why It’s Interesting: Although The Sound and the Fury has already been made into a movie, James Franco’s take on it as both an actor and a director is sure to be entirely different. Franco is known for his eccentricity and creativity and to me, this is the perfect book for him to be working with. It will be really interesting to see how Franco portrays the book’s partial stream of consciousness narrative on the screen. Despite the fact that it’s coming out very soon, not much has been revealed about the movie; no trailer, no movie poster, and only limited information on who certain people are playing. Keeping the whole thing shrouded in mystery only makes the release more exciting!