Whats coming up in 2008 January 10, 2008 Hoodwinked 2 – Hood vs Evil – A teenage Red Riding Hood trains in a distant land with a mysterious, covert group called Sisters of the Hood. She is then called upon by Nicky Flippers — head of the Happily Ever After Agency — who teams her with the Wolf to investigate the disappearance of Hansel and Gretel. SPRING There will be Blood P.T Anderson’s latest film, a partial adaptation of the Oliver Sinclair’s novel Oil! (and by his own admission a nod to the classic The Treasure of the Sierra Madre) is the story of the rise of a Texas prospector Daniel Plainview from his early days seeking oil to Citizen Kane-like status. Set in turn of the 20th century America, the film deals with money, fate, power and greed. In Bruges After a botched job in London, hit men Ray (Colin Farrell) and Ken (Brendan Gleeson) are ordered by their boss Harry (Ralph Fiennes) to Bruges. Very much out of their element, the two are placed in ever stranger encounters and forced to reconsider their life decisions along the way. In Bruges is Irish playwright Martin McDonagh’s first feature film after winning the 2006 Oscar for Best Film Short. The film is already tipped as an early favourite and was recently announced as the Opening Film for the 2008 Sundance Film Festival. Be Kind Rewind In his latest comedy, Jack Black plays Jerry, a junkyard worker who accidentally magnetises and erases every tape in his friend’s video store. In an attempt to keep the business afloat the two men go about remaking the lost films making everything from The Lion King to King Kong. While some of you may be sceptical and wonder ‘who is renting videos these days?’ you’ll succumb to the typical charm and whimsy that director Michel Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Science of Sleep) brings to his films. Cloverfield Some of you may have noticed an untitled film trailer in the later months of 2007. It has finally be confirmed as Cloverfield, the latest release from J.J Abrams (the executive producer of the always enthralling ‘what’s in the hatch this time’ Lost). Still very much under wraps, what is known about the film is that it centres on the lives of five New Yorkers as they throw a going-away party for their friend Rob (Michael Stahl-David). On that same night an unknown creature descends upon New York. The film is told from the perspective of their own video camera as they document their attempts to survive. Mister Lonely From the writer of the controversial ‘90s film Kids, Mister Lonely is the story of a Michael Jackson impersonator living in Paris who meets a Marilyn Monroe look-alike. Under her advice, he moves to a commune of impersonators in Scotland, where he discovers everyone preparing for the commune’s first-ever gala, including the Queen, the Pope, Madonna and Marilyn’s jealous husband Charlie Chaplin and their daughter Shirley Temple… SUMMER Indiana Jones and the King of the Crystal This latest and fourth instalment of Indiana Jones series takes place in 1957, nineteen years after The Last Crusade. Our hero is plucked from retirement and back to his adventures, this time pitted against the Soviet Union for the crystal skull. Indy’s journey takes him across New Mexico, Connecticut, Mexico City, and the jungles of Peru. Harrison Ford and Karen Allen revive their roles for the film and new to the series is Cate Blanchett as the villainous Russian Agent Spalko. Wanted A fantasy film loosely based on Mark Milliar’s graphic novel series of the same name, Wanted stars James McAvoy, Angelina Jolie and Morgan Freeman. After the murder of his estranged father, the seemingly joe-average Wes Gibson (McAvoy) is recruited by his father’s partner Sloan (Freeman) to follow in his footsteps as an assassin and seek revenge for the murder. Wall-E Pixar’s latest film takes place hundreds of years in Earth’s future. Pollution has caused man to leave the planet in the care of robots, in the hopes that it will one day be habitable again. After hundreds of years at this very task, WALL-E (short for Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth-Class) discovers a new purpose in his life when he falls in love with search robot EVE. WALL-E must cross the galaxy in search of EVE which sets into motion one of the most exciting and imaginative comedy adventures ever brought to the big screen. The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian One year has passed in our world since the first adventure ended, but in Narnia over a millennium has gone by. The tyrannical King Miraz prevents the rightful king, his young nephew Prince Caspian, from ruling the land of Narnia. Caspian uses Susan’s magic horn that was left in Narnia to summon the four Pevensies to help him and a small army of Old Narnians reclaim his rightful throne. Iron Man After being kidnapped and wounded in Afghanistan Tony Stark, played by Robert Downey Jr., is forced to build a devastating weapon for his captors. Instead he uses this time to create an armoured suit to escape to freedom. Once freed, Spark uses this suit to protect man-kind as Iron Man. The Incredible Hulk Bruce Banner is on the run from the United States Army and attempting to cure the condition which causes him to turn into the hulk. Banner comes close to a cure, but all is lost when a new creature emerges: the Abomination. Batman – The Dark Knight Christian Bale is once again the man behind the mask in this the follow on to Batman Begins. Our hero, with the assistance of Lieutenant James Gordon and district attorney Harvey Dent, is successfully combating crime in Gotham City but a new power is rising that threatens to destroy their work: the Joker. AUTUMN Valkyrie Taking a break from fantasy, director Bryan Singer recounts the true story of Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg and Operation Valkyrie, a plan orchestrated by several high-ranking German officers to assassinate Adolf Hitler and seize power of the military command in order to end World War II. Frost/Nixon Director Ron Howard adapts Peter Morgan’s play of the same name for the big screen, focusing on the post-Watergate television interviews between the two men. The film includes the original stage actors to play former US President Richard Nixon and British TV broadcaster David Frost (Frank Langella and Michael Sheen respectively). The International Directed by Tom Tykwer and starring Clive Owen and Naomi Watts, The International is the story of one agent’s efforts to expose the corruption of a high-profile financial institution. Get Smart Steve Carell and Anne Hathaway stars in this remake of classic comic spy television series, with Maxwell Smart (Carell) and Agent 99 (Hathaway) teaming up to battle the forces of KAOS. WINTER Bond – Quantum Of Solace Still in the early stages of production, Bond 22 sees Daniel Craig return as 007. Screenwriter Paul Haggis has hinted that the film will pick up just two minutes after Casino Royale ended. Revolutionary Road The stars of ‘Titanic’ Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet are reunited on screen for the first time in this epic adaptation of the 1961 novel by Richard Yates. This tale of lies and deception is directed by ‘American Beauty’ director Sam Mendes. Star Trek The original crew of the enterprise, albeit a new crew of actors, are assembled for this quasi-prequel to the series. Though little is known of Star Trek XI, it has been confirmed that Chris Pine will play the role of James T. Kirk with rumours that some of the original Star Trek actors may appear. The Day the Earth Stood Still A remake of the sci-fi classic, the alien Klaatu (Keanu Reeves) and his robot counterpart arrive on Earth with a warning to our leaders. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Based a short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald, this is the tale of a man who ages in reverse. As he moves through time getting progressively younger, Benjamin Button’s life becomes further complicated when he falls in love. In the works since 1994, this film has seen its share of directors’ attempt the project, finally Se7en director David Fincher has taken on the film, brining his own unique style to the project. The film stars both Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett in the lead roles.