Many of us are still trying to get bats, robots and all the cinematic triumphs of 2008 out of our heads (having long forgotten the not-so-successful). But a new year and a whole new batch of movies await, so let’s take a look at a selection of 2009 releases…
The latter half of January and February will yield the highly anticipated releases of the remaining awards season contenders. The Wrestler, a captivating story of an ageing champion, and Doubt, a drama concerning religion and morality, both open on January 15. These will be followed by Revolutionary Road (Jan 22), about the problems faced by a 1950′s family, and Milk (Jan 29), about California’s first openly gay elected official. Two of Hollywood’s leading ladies feature in February’s releases: Angelina Jolie in Changeling (Feb 5) and Kate Winslet in The Reader (Feb 19). Last Chance Harvey (Feb 26), essentially a love story, is the last release of the main awards season features.
The battle between animation giants Disney-Pixar and Dreamworks is set to get even bigger as the films from each studio are to be released in 3D. Dreamworks will get in first, with Monsters vs Aliens to be released on April 2, followed by Disney-Pixar’s Up, which is set for a June release. For the young and young-at-heart, a third chapter in the Ice Age franchise is likely to be released for the winter holidays. The tweens have the Hannah Montana movie (April 9) and Jonas Brothers 3D (June 4) to look forward to.
Hollywood continues its love affair with prequels and sequels next year. X-Men Origins: Wolverine (April 30) will take us back 20 years before X-Men to show how the young soldier Logan becomes Wolverine. The Star Trek franchise will receive another prequel in Star Trek XI (May 7), but expect some changes and a bit of a revamp. Angels and Demons, the sequel to The Da Vinci Code, will open May 14 with Tom Hanks reprising his role as Robert Langdon. Terminator: Salvation is set for release on June 4, but this time Arnie won’t be back. June 25 will bring the next film in the Transformers series, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. And after a longer than expected wait for fans, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, the sixth instalment in the phenomenally successful series will be released on July 16 (being a huge fan myself, I can’t wait!!!). Let’s just hope for more prequels/sequels in the vein of The Dark Knight and less like The Mummy’s latest sequel!
For those who loved Sex and the City (yes, I mean the movie!), two book-to-movie adaptations will prove very appealing. He’s Just Not That Into You will be released on February 12 (guys, just in time for Valentine’s Day), adapted from the self-help book about miscommunication in relationships. Confessions of a Shopaholic, the story of an aspiring journalist and fashionista, will open a month later on March 12. Films for the girls, but as SATC proved this year, the chick flicks can rake in the dollars!
Two interesting and much anticipated releases for the year will be Watchmen and Avatar. Watchmen (March 5) is based on a graphic novel about a group of superheroes investigating the murder of one of their own. Avatar, slated for a December release, tells the story of the discovery of a living planet and the ensuing battle for its treasures and for survival. Both could be very good films if they are done well.
That’s just a small selection of what is to come in 2009. At any rate, we can expect a rollercoaster ride of brilliant blockbusters, flops, prequels and sequels, critical successes, crowd favourites and surprise hits.
Happy New Year and happy film-watching from the team at Cut, Print, Review!!
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All film release dates correct as of 30/12/2008. For dates and further information, visit Greater Union’s Coming Soon page here.
