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What to watch...
January 6
-Underworld: Blood Wars
January 13
-The Bye Bye Man
-Monster Trucks
-Sleepless
January 20
-The Founder
-Split
-xXx: The Return of Xander Cage
-The Resurrection of Gavin Stone
-The Red Turtle
-Trespass Against Us
January 27
-A Dog's Purpose
-Resident Evil: The Final Chapter
January Releases
2017 is going to be off to a great start with the only major release of its first weekend being the fifth Underworld movie. I've never seen one and don't expect that to change.
The second weekend in January really doesn't look much better. The Bye Bye Man is a decent enough premise for a horror film but what a silly title it makes! Monster Trucks was apparently the idea of a studio executive's four-year-old son. Sleepless is the only one here that actually looks like it could be good.
The third week of January finally brings a few films I want to watch. I am a fan of some of M. Night Shyamalan's work and I know the guy has the potential to make great films. I hope Split is one of those. Michael Keaton's comeback keeps going with The Founder, which I hope is good. The real film that is going to be released this month that I want to see is The Red Turtle, which was partially made by Studio Ghibli and has no dialogue in the entire film. There are a few other wide releases (xXx: The Return of Xander Cage and The Resurrection of Gavin Stone) and a star-studded indie (Trespass Against Us) that are going to be released this weekend too.
The last week of January brings everything back to what is expected in January. I can't believe this month has both an Underworld film and a Resident Evil film. I'm equally excited for each. The only thing that looks worse is A Dog's Purpose. Have you seen this trailer? Please see it to understand how dumb this film's premise is.
January Preview
The first week of February is essentially a continuation of January. Both movies look like generic garbage.
The second weekend in February completely turns that around. Apart from Fifty Shades Darker, all of this week's releases get me excited. The first John Wick was surprisingly good, as was the first The Lego Movie. Both sequels genuinely good fun and have good reviews, so I'm looking forward to them. Add in A United Kingdom, which stars David Oyelowo and Rosamund Pike, who are both fantastic, and you have a stellar weekend.
And then we go right back to trash. Fist Fight might be fun, but is just so stupid I can't get excited for it. The Great Wall looks awful and deserves the whitewashing criticism it is getting. A Cure for Wellness is a horror movie in February, which produces red flags.
The last week of February looks to continue the streak of bad-looking films, starting with Collide. I don't think I can buy Nicholas Hoult as an action star. Rock Dog looks like one of the worst animated features I've ever seen. Last year it was Norm of the North. And then we come to Get Out, which, despite its "horror movie in February" red flags, actually looks terrifying.
February Releases
February 3
-Rings
-The Space Between Us
February 10
-John Wick Chapter 2
-The Lego Batman Movie
-A United Kingdom
-Fifty Shades Darker
February 17
-A Cure for Wellness
-The Great Wall
-Fist Fight
February 24
-Collide
-Get Out
-Rock Dog
What to watch...
February Preview
March Preview
What to watch...
March 3
-Logan
-Before I Fall
-The Shack
March 10
-Kong: Skull Island
March 17
-Beauty and the Beast
-The Belko Experiment
-T2: Trainspotting
March 24
-CHiPS
-Life
-Power Rangers
March 31
-The Boss Baby
-Ghost in the Shell (2017)
-The Zookeeper's Wife
March Releases
Logan was one of my most anticipated films of the year. I love the X-Men franchise and am very excited to see this film. The Shack looks dull but Before I Fall has some potential. At least, the time-travel/Groundhog Day fan inside me says so.
The second weekend in March completely sees the release of Kong: Skull Island, which apparently takes place within the same universe as 2014's Godzilla, which I really liked. I'm looking forward to this.
Why is Disney remaking Beauty and the Beast? At least with The Jungle Book the original was garbage. But Beauty and the Beast from 1991 is fantastic. I don't think this film could top it in any way. The fact that T2: Trainspotting exists is bizarre. The first film didn't seem like the type of film that would produce a sequel 21 years later. The Belko Experiment looks hilarious in all the wrong ways.
I didn't grow up with Power Rangers, so I don't really know what to expect from this big-budget film. The trailer for CHiPS cracked me up, so that might end up getting my money. That is, it might if Life wasn't out the same weekend. I like all of the actors in this film and the premise. I hope it's this year's space movie (following The Martian and Gravity from 2015 and 2014).
Did you say cheap-looking animation? I give you The Boss Baby. Weird-looking CGI? I give you Ghost in the Shell. Based-on-a-true-story-during-the-Holocaust? I give you The Zookeeper's Wife. Not terribly interested in any of them to be frank.
The first weekend in April is full of new releases. The wide releases feature a faith-based movie, a tired retirement movie, and a sequel to one of the worst animated franchises of all time. The limited releases are what pique my interest. Gifted is an independent movie starring Chris Evans. That alone should be refreshing; it's nice to see a big superhero movie star do a smaller movie. Your Name is one of the most critically acclaimed animated films ever to be released from Japan, and I've heard fantastic things about it.
I've only recently seen any of the Fast and Furious films, starting from the first one and going from there. So far, they're really bad, but in a fun way. Still, I haven't gotten to the real meat of the franchise yet so it's hard to know how I will feel going into The Fate of the Furious. But then we have Spark, a film that looks like another bad animated film.
Free Fire looks like it'll either be a blast or a confusing mess and reminds me of last year's The Nice Guys, which turned out to be the former. Phoenix Forgotten looks like a terrible horror film and Unforgettable looks like last year's When the Bough Breaks - what a disaster. The Promise is about the Armenian Genocide and, as such, has been very much discussed among my Armenian friends. It's a shame it seems to be about a love triangle, but I will probably see it anyway.
The Circle is based on a best-selling book and seems to be like a conspiracy-theory type of film. How to Be a Latin Lover actually looks pretty funny in a dumb kind of way, which I appreciate. Sleight actually has a lot of potential. I hope it's good.
April Releases
April 7
-The Case for Christ
-Going in Style
-Smurfs: The Lost Village
-Gifted
-Your Name
April 14
-The Fate of the Furious
-Spark
April 21
-Free Fire
-Phoenix Forgotten
-The Promise
-Unforgettable
April 28
-The Circle
-How to Be a Latin Lover
-Sleight
What to watch...
April Preview
May Preview
What to watch...
May 5th
-Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
May 12th
-King Arthur: Legend of the Sword
-Snatched
May 19th
-Alien: Covenant
-Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul
-Everything, Everything
May 26th
-Baywatch
-Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales
May Releases
It seems like everyone is avoiding the first weekend of May so as not to open against Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, which is expected to be a big hit. The trailers haven't exactly sold me yet, but the first one was a lot of fun. Hopefully this new one lives up to the first.
King Arthur: Legend of the Sword would be dead-on-arrival if its director wasn't Guy Ritchie, whose style I've always appreciated. 2015's The Man From U.N.C.L.E. was a surprisingly good time, so I have some hopes for his latest effort. On the other hand, Snatched does not look like my type of film. The only thing I've seen Amy Schumer in was Trainwreck, which had its moments but was about an hour too long.
Hollywood keeps returning to the Alien franchise, and, having just rewatched the original Alien, it's easy to see why. The landscapes, sets, and premise are some of the best ever. For that reason alone, I'm excited for Alien: Covenant. Still, I can't believe the other film going up against it is the fourth film in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid franchise. How is that possible? The title of the film Everything, Everything makes me wonder how the film got released at all.
Speaking of sequels to franchises I thought were dead, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales is the fifth film in the franchise. I really like the original film, and actually enjoy the mythology introduced in the second one (the third one went way overboard, no pun intended). The fourth one is an abomination against humanity. The only thing promising about this next one is Javier Bardem, who always brings a menacing screen presence. On the other hand, Baywatch comes out. It looks ridiculous. I have nothing else to say.
This is a stacked month that opens pretty strong with two movies I'm actually excited to see. The first is Wonder Woman, which will hopefully be the first good DCEU movie and the first good female-led superhero film. The stakes are pretty high on this one and I just hope it turns out great. The second is this movie about Captain Underpants, which just looks like the zaniness I love from some of Dreamworks' previous films. Could be great, could be terrible.
The second weekend in June sees the release of The Mummy, which I am not excited for at all. It looks like a CGI mess. Megan Leavey is about a dog in the war, which might be good but likely won't be. It Comes At Night is the most interesting thing here. I saw the director's debut film last year and it was pretty decent. This thing looks terrifying in a psychological and grotesque kind of way.
The third weekend in June sees the release of the "please make up for Cars 2" Cars 3, which I didn't want to ever see but am still excited for because it will get me talking about Pixar again. After that is the film All Eyez on Me about Tupac Shakur. If Straight Outta Compton taught me anything, it's that movies about musicians I know nothing about can still be incredible, so here's to hoping this one is just as good. Rough Night and 47 Meters Down both look like generic garbage, and The Book of Henry is a movie to watch out for - keep it in the back of your head; it might just be great.
Transformers: The Last Knight actually made a pretty good trailer. I'm still not buying it though. What I think I'd rather see is the critically-acclaimed The Big Sick, a romantic comedy that likely comes with a message. The good reviews have me hoping it's not heavy-handed.
And in the last weekend of June we've got Despicable Me 3, which is hopefully a step up from the last few movies out of Illumination. Then we get the 8th movie (?) in the Amityville franchise. And then we get The House, a dumb Will Ferrell comedy.
June Releases
June 2nd
-Wonder Woman
-Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie
June 9th
-The Mummy
-Megan Leavey
-It Comes At Night
June 16th
-Cars 3
-All Eyez on Me
-Rough Night
-47 Meters Down
-The Book of Henry
June 23rd
-Transformers: The Last Knight
-The Big Sick
June 30th
-Despicable Me 3
-Amityville: The Awakening
-The House
What to watch...
June Preview
July Preview
What to watch...
July Releases
July 6th
-Spider-Man: Homecoming
-A Ghost Story
July 13th
-War for the Planet of the Apes
-Wish Upon
July 20th
-Dunkirk
-Girls Trip
-Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets
July 27th
-Atomic Blonde
-The Emoji Movie
While there may not be too many films coming out this month, they are of considerable expectation for me. July is the quality over quantity month. The first week sees the release of Spider-Man: Homecoming and I'm completely on board with Tom Holland as Spider-Man. He looks the part and was great in last year's Captain America: Civil War. This week also sees the release of A Ghost Story, which looks weird but has good reviews.
The second week of July sees the release of War for the Planet of the Apes. This is the third film in an underrated trilogy of films. I really enjoyed the first one and, though I thought the second was very predictable, really appreciated how great the visual effects were. Also making its way to the big screen this week is Wish Upon, which seems like an interesting idea that, of course, had to be made into a trashy-looking horror film.
The third week of July sees the release of Dunkirk, the latest from director Christopher Nolan. I have been slowly watching every film he's made over his nearly 20-year career and have been found a few gems. Definitely looking forward to this one. Girls Trip looks exactly like last year's Bad Moms and, more recently Rough Night. I actually heard those were both pretty funny so perhaps this is the one I'll actually see. And finally, we have Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets, which looks like a big-budget sci-fi mess of CGI and bad humor.
The final weekend of July is the most disappointing. Atomic Blonde looks like John Wick but with Charlize Theron and we know she can do action (I mean have you seen Mad Max: Fury Road?), so this might actually work. What likely won't work is The Emoji Movie. I hope it's not as bad as the trailers look.
The Dark Tower is finally coming out. It's been through production hell, and the trailer looks pretty bad. I might see it, but I don't expect much. I also don't expect much from Taken. Oh I mean Kidnap. The one film this weekend that I am looking forward to is Katherine Bigelow's Detroit, as it seems like a really dramatic movie with some great actors and a great writer. I wasn't the biggest fan of Zero Dark Thirty, but the trailers for this one look fantastic.
It's sequel weekend! Anabelle: Creation is the sequel to the much-maligned Annabelle, which itself was a spinoff of the much-acclaimed The Conjuring. I expect nothing. I also expect nothing from The Nut Job 2: Nutty By Nature. The only interesting movie coming out this weekend is The Glass Castle, which seems very similar to last year's Captain Fantastic. It stars Brie Larson and Woody Harrelson, both of whom I love. That's all I needed.
This next weekend in August sees the release of The Hitman's Bodyguard and Logan Lucky, which both look like fun, action-heavy movies. I hope to see both. The wildcard here is Patti Cake$, which could either be great or terrible. As I said before All Eyez on Me came out, Straight Outta Compton surprised the heck of out me in 2015. It could happen again.
This last weekend in August looks like it's going to end the summer with an unfortunate fizzle. All Saints looks like another over-dramatic Christian movie, Birth of the Dragon looks like it will spit on Bruce Lee's grave, and Leap! has some of the worst animation in a trailer I've seen.
August 4
-The Dark Tower
-Kidnap
-Detroit
August 11
-Anabelle: Creation
-The Nut Job 2: Nutty By Nature
-The Glass Castle
August 18
-The Hitman's Bodyguard
-Logan Lucky
-Patti Cake$
August 25
-All Saints
-Birth of the Dragon
-Leap!
August Releases
What to watch...
August Preview
September Preview
What to watch...
September Releases
September 1
-Tulip Fever
September 8
-It
-Home Again
September 15
-mother!
-American Assassin
September 22
-Kingsman: The Golden Circle
-The Lego Ninjago Movie
September 29
-American Made
-Flatliners
-Til Death Do Us Part
The first week of September is a sad one for movie releases. Tulip Fever is about a love triangle, and that's where it loses me. The cast is good but somehow Dane DeHaan has been cast in another romantic leading role, which spelled trouble for Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets earlier this summer.
The second week of September is where things are going to heat up, and in a big way. This weekend sees the release of It, the adaptation of Stephen King's famous novel. Even if the film isn't good, it will likely make a fortune. Home Again is also about a love triangle, full stop.
The third week of September features another interesting horror film in mother!, Darren Aronofsky's thriller starring Jennifer Lawrence and Javier Bardem. The trailers were creepy, so I have some hope. Also being released this weekend is American Assassin, which looks like a $5 version of John Wick.
The fourth week of September has two big releases in Kingsman: The Golden Circle and The Lego Ninjago Movie. Both are sequels to successful films, so both will likely do well commercially. The question will be about their critical success. I will likely see them both as a fan of their predecessors.
And the fifth week of September has a number of releases, none of which are particularly interesting. There's American Made, the latest Tom Cruise movie that seems to be channeling The Wolf of Wall Street. It stars Tom Cruise, who is at least will give a committed performance, so this might be the weekend's winner. Flatliners likely won't though, as it seems like a generic "trying to see the other side" horror film. Just watch the trailer. And Til Death Do Us Part looks just like When the Bough Breaks from last year, which turned out to be a huge critical bomb.
Even though September is typically the beginning of Oscar season, October this year is stuffed with films. It begins with Blade Runner 2049, the sequel to 1983's sci-fi classic Blade Runner, which I have watched recently and admire quite a lot. The selling point here is that the new film is directed by Denis Villeneuve, who has yet to make a bad film. The Mountain Between Us just makes me think that plane crashes and injuries are probably not the best place for romance. And then there's My Little Pony: The Movie, which looks like it features some of the worst animation I've ever seen in a film. Then Victoria and Abdul brings us back to Oscar season.
The Foreigner is Taken but with Jackie Chan and a straight revenge take - there is no saving this man's daughter. Happy Death Day is a terrible title but a fun horror twist on Groundhog Day. Marshall and Breathe are more Oscar films but I like the people involved in both.
Geostorm is another fear of Artificial Intelligence film, this time about weather-controlling satellites. Only The Brave is about people who fight against forest fires. I never thought I'd see a movie about these people but now that it's here, I might take a look. Same Kind of Different as Me feels like a Christian movie but isn't? The Snowman is another ridiculously titled horror film but with Michael Fassbender, one of my favorite actors. Will that tip the scales in favor of seeing it? Probably not. And I probably won't be seeing A Madea Halloween 2 since I haven't seen the first film or any of the Madea movies.
Now we get to Halloween weekend, which sees the release of Jigsaw, the eighth film in the Saw franchise (I've seen none of these films, not one for gorefests). All I See is You has an interesting premise (someone who has been blind her whole life suddenly has her eyesight restored) but seems to be going the thriller/romance route, which is strange. Speaking of strange genre blends, Suburbicon is like a crime comedy with Matt Damon. Thank You For Your Service is a film about PTSD and Amityville: The Awakening looks like another bad horror sequel.
October 6
-Blade Runner 2049
-The Mountain Between Us
-My Little Pony The Movie
-Victoria and Abdul
October 13
-The Foreigner
-Happy Death Day
-Marshall
-Breathe
October 20
-Geostorm
-Only The Brave
-Same Kind of Different as Me
-The Snowman
-A Madea Halloween 2
October 27
-Jigsaw
-All I See is You
-Suburbicon
-Thank You For Your Service
-Amityville: The Awakening
October Releases
What to watch...
October Preview
November Preview
What to watch...
November Releases
November 3
-Thor: Ragnarok
-Bad Moms Christmas
-LBJ
November 10
-Murder on the Orient Express (2017)
-Daddy's Home 2
November 17
-Justice League
-The Star
-Wonder
November 24
-Coco
Thor: Ragnarok opens this month with a colorful bang. The seventeenth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, I'm excited just because of the director, Taika Waititi, who directed one of my favorite films from last year - Hunt for the Wilderpeople. This first week of November also sees the really rushed release of Bad Moms Christmas. It was only last year that Bad Moms was released! This weekend also sees the release of Oscar hopeful LBJ, which also sees the return of famous director Rob Reiner.
The second weekend of November sees the release of the remake of Murder on the Orient Express. I actually got to see this film back in July and thought it was really over-dramatic. We'll see what other critics think but I won't be seeing this again. Also released this week is Daddy's Home 2, which now includes the granddads.
The third weekend in November sees the release of Justice League, which is somehow not getting as much attention as I would've thought. This is supposed to be DC Comics' version of The Avengers, which had so much more hype when it came out in 2012. Also being released this week is the terrible-looking animated film The Star and Wonder, which features my favorite actor from 2015: Jacob Tremblay.
The last weekend in November, around Thanksgiving, sees the release of Pixar's newest film Coco, which I pray is good because I used to love Pixar but their films this year and last year were disappointing and I just want them to be good!
The Disaster Artist is about the making of the hilarious bad The Room. Its trailer was incredibly funny so I'm pretty excited about this film. Also being released this weekend is Guillermo del Toro's new film called The Shape of Water. The trailer was certainly intriguing and it's been getting good reviews so I'm hoping this one's a winner.
Also released this weekend is Wonder Wheel, which is Woody Allen's newest film. Given all that's going on in the film industry right now, I think I'll pass.
The second week of December sees the release of Just Getting Started and I, Tonya. Just Getting Started unfortunately just looks like Morgan Freeman and Tommy Lee Jones phoning it in as rival country club men. I, Tonya, one the other hand, looks like an interesting story. It's about Tonya Harding, who was banned from figure skating after her rival was attacked.
The third week of December sees the release of Star Wars: The Last Jedi, which I am incredibly excited for. It's crazy that this movie is already here but I'm so ready for it. Also being released this week is Ferdinand, which is released by Blue Sky studios, notoriously one of the lowest quality animation studios. I just hope this film is good.
The fourth week of December is going to be right around the Christmas season so there are a lot of movies being released. There's the Hugh Jackman movie The Greatest Showman, the strange remake of Jumanji, the quirky Matt Damon film Downsizing, the film about Owen Wilson and Ed Helms finding their father, and Pitch Perfect 3. Not sure I'll get to all of them. I usually don't.
The last weekend of the year has perhaps one of the most interesting movies because of behind-the-scenes troubles regarding Kevin Spacey, who used to be in this film until he was removed due to sexual assault allegations made against him. Even though he had completed his scenes, they re-shot the scenes with Christopher Plummer. Wow. I want to see this movie just because it had the balls to do something like that.
December 1
-The Disaster Artist
-The Shape of Water
-Wonder Wheel
December 8
-Just Getting Started
-I, Tonya
December 15
-Star Wars: The Last Jedi
-Ferdinand
December 22
-The Greatest Showman
-Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle
-Downsizing
-Father Figures
-Pitch Perfect 3
December 29
-All the Money in the World