What We’re Looking Forward To In 2016

Let’s face it. January is the month where everyone catches up on the films from the previous year, be they smaller films going into wider release following a small, Academy Awards-qualifying run at the end of the previous year or films from earlier in the year that are just coming out on home video. But as this weekend brings the first movie of the new year that we are actually interested in – the Coen Brothers’ return to comedy with Hail Caesar! – we take a look ahead at the next eleven months and what we are excited to see in theaters.

Zootopia (March 4)

Disney’s in-house CGI arm has become on par with Pixar for the quality of its output, so any new film from them should be looked forward to. But then the trailer for this film hit…

…and looking forward to became eagerly anticipated. If the film is half as funny as that trailer, then it will be a laugh riot. -William Gatevackes

Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice (March 25)

I had the typical fanboy dread bout this film, but as the film gets closer, I have gotten more excited about seeing it. A lot of that change has to do with the way Wonder Woman is being portrayed on the screen. Being the father of a six year old girl, not only do I want a strong female character for my daughter to identify with, but also as a comic fan I want one of history’s greatest comic book characters get the chance to shine on the silver screen. -WG

I Saw The Light (March 25)

Hank Williams’ life story is one of the most tragic in all of music. So much talent and taken away so young. Tom Hiddleston is one of the most captivating actors working in film today. He seems just one role away from leaping from genre actor to Oscar-caliber thespian. This role might make that transition easy for him. – WG

Captain America: Civil War (May 6)

Okay, it’s a Marvel movie. Fans should look forward to it just for that. But you also get Captain America battling Iron Man, the first cinematic appearance of Black Panther, possibly the first Marvel Studios appearance of Spider-Man, and more heroes than you can shake a stick at. And it’s done by the Russo Brothers, directors of the best Marvel film to date – WG

Money Monster (May 13)

We don’t get enough Jodie Foster, either in front of or behind the camera, so the fact that she is directing this thriller starring George Clooney as a television financial analyst who is held hostage live on the air is reason enough to look forward to this. But the fact that the film is to unfold in real time is just icing on top of the cake. – Rich Drees

The Nice Guys (May 20)

If you haven’t seen writer/director Shane Black’s comic mystery Kiss! Kiss! Bang! Bang!, go watch that and then you will understand why we are looking forward to this new story in which Ryan Gosling stars as a private eye whose investigation of an apparent suicide of a fading porn star in 1970s Los Angeles uncovers a conspiracy in a neo-noir story punctuated with comedy and quirky characters.

The BFG (July 1)

Roald Dahl. Steven Spielberg. Walt Disney Pictures. The teaser trailer is right to play up these three legendary names involved in bringing this story to life. These three alone are a recipe for a magical movie experience, but add an adapted screenplay by the late Melissa Mathison, Spielberg’s screenwriter for E.T., you could have something truly spectacular. – WG

La La Land (July 15) –

Damien Chazelle’s follow up to the intense Whiplash is the musical romantic comedy La La Land sounds like an odd choice and that is precisely why we are intrigued. The film reunites Gangster Squad costars Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone, but rather than than place them in the 1940s, it places them in a 1940s-esque musical set in modern day Los Angeles as an aspiring actress and a jazz musician falling in love. – RD

The Magnificent Seven (September 23)

I’m of the school that remakes are bad. Remakes of remakes are even worse. So why am I looking forward to this remake of a remake? Four words: Denzel Washington and Chris Pratt. I believe Washington is good in anything, and Pratt is a superstar on the rise. They automatically give the western remake a chance at being awesome. – WG

Gambit (October 7)

This might be less a case of a film I want to see, but rather a film I want to see if it gets made. The project got jump started solely on Channing Tatum’s desire to play the title character. The project has been through two directors and at press time, production has yet to start on the film. Even if production starts on the planned spring 2016 date, there’s very little chance it will be ready for this release date. -WG

A Monster Calls (October 14)

There are films adapted from books no one wants to see, either because it could never do the text justice or the text itself wasn’t really all that great to begin with. This film might be an example of the former but definitely not the latter, because the children’s book the film is based on won a boatload of awards. It tells the story of a monster supposedly summoned by a 13-year-old’s bad dreams, but he’s there for a much more important reason. Why was he summoned? Well, that would be telling. But if it is done right, this film might be a new classic in the making.-WG

Doctor Strange (November 4)

Of all the new characters Marvel will be giving films in the next few years, Doctor Strange has the strongest chance of breaking out into an Iron Man-like success. His origin story is killer and the cast featuring Benedict Cumberbatch, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Tilda Swinton, Rachel McAdams, Mads Mikkelsen, Michael Stuhlbarg is phenomenal.- WG

Star Wars: Rogue One (December 16)

We know what a good Star Wars film looks like and we know what a bad Star Wars film looks like. But what does a Star Wars film without the Skywalker family, the force and Jedi Knights look like? We’ll find out when Disney unveils this very first of their Star Wars spinoff films, Rogue One.

Assassin’s Creed (December 21)

Films adapted from video games seldom do well at the box office. But films adapted from video games seldom have a cast as good as this. Oscar nominee Michael Fassbender stars as a man descended from a long line of assassins who is able to travel back in time through his bloodline in order to change history.  Oscar winners Marion Cotillard and Jeremy Irons star in supporting roles. -WG