On The Horizon In 2008

Usually at this point in the year we only hear about the big releases coming out later in 2008. You know, stuff like Batman, Indiana Jones, and the next Chronicles Of Narnia installment. Some of the films I’m looking out for have been lost in the shuffle. Here is my attempt to change this.

The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
Director: David Fincher
No matter how many films David Fincher seems to do they still get little attention prior to their release. Zodiac came out of nowhere last year and managed to claim a spot in my top ten of 2007. The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button reunites Fincher with Brad Pitt for the third time since 1999’s Fight Club. Pitt plays Benjamin Button who is born old and ages inversely. As you would suspect this causes problems for Ben in the early and late stages of his life. Cate Blanchett (Babel, The Life Aquatic) and Tilda Swinton (Broken Flowers, Thumbsucker) are also featured in the film. If this doesn’t sound like an all-star cast I don’t know what does.

The movie is based off a short story written by F. Scott Fitzgerald. If you remember back to your high school English class you will recognize him as the author of The Great Gatsby. Eric Roth (Munich, Forrest Gump) has adapted the short story for the big screen. As of right now I can’t see how this formula could go wrong. It’s currently in post-production but look for the film in theaters November 26th.

Burn After Reading
Directors: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen Staring: Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Tilda Swinton
I figured this movie is an appropriate follow up to The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button since Brad Pitt and Tilda Swinton are both in starring roles again. The film is a dark comedic look at a former CIA agent (John Maklovich) who loses a disc containing his memoirs. It was stolen by his soon-to-be ex-wife, played by Swinton, and later picked up by two gym employees (Brad Pitt and Frances McDormand). George Clooney’s character is simultaneously having affairs and doing his Clooney-thing.

While last year’s No Country For Old Men is comparable to Fargo. Burn After Reading appears to be following in the footsteps of Raising Arizona or The Big Lebowski. I’m sure we can expect the usual outrageous characters and strange plot twists from the Coen brothers. There is one minor notable change up this time around, though. Roger Deakins, who has been cinematographer for the Coens since Miller’s Crossing, has been replaced by Emmanuel Lubezki (Children Of Men). I don’t know if there is reason backing the decision or not. I only have question at this point. How far up on my top ten list will it be?

Ponyo On A Cliff
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
After a four year hiatus Miyazaki returns with his ninth feature length film since Howl’s Moving Castle. The movie follows Ponyo, a goldfish princess whose main goal is to become human. In the process she befriends a five year-old boy named Sōsuke. The film is much different than Miyazaki’s previous works that include Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke. This time he used water colors to his animate his characters and everything will look like it has been hand painted.

I should mention this is more of a wish than a sure occurrence. It is set for a 2008 release in Japan but probably won’t see U.S. screens until 2009. This is a given since everything will have to be translated into English and it hasn’t casted any voice actors for the U.S. version yet. I’m hoping that information will surface by this summer. Until then, we’ll just have to wait.

Wall·E
Director: Andrew Stanton Staring: Fred Willard, Jeff Garlin
At this point you could say Wall·E is the biggest departure that has ever come out of Pixar studios. This is something that normally would have been a Pixar short instead of full length film. Fortunately for us they decided to put the money behind the film. If you were watching the Super Bowl this year you even got to see a commercial for the film. The director, Andrew Stanton, is known mostly for his involvement in 2003’s Finding Nemo and being the co-director of A Bug’s Life. Both have met critical acclaim but Wall·E is going to be his true test.

The story follows the sole surviving robot on Earth. His job is to make the planet habitable again. The film ends up becoming a love story when Wall·E falls in love with EVE, a robot sent down to check up on the progress being made. With the exception of a few minor characters, all of the voice acting is conducted by computers that combine mechanical noises so that they resemble voices. The trailer can be viewed here, it will arrive in theaters June 27th.

Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Director: Nicholas Stoller Staring: Jason Segel, Kristen Bell
Producer Judd Apatow will attempt to recover from the financial failure of Walk Hard with four films this year. Forgetting Sarah Marshall is slightly ahead of the Pineapple Express as my most anticipated for one reason, Jason Segel. This is his first leading role and it seems to be a perfect fit. He has a record of playing the desperate player/boyfriend in previous movies and TV shows and now he gets to show it off. One put off is that this is Nicholas Stoller’s directorial debut. It could be either really bad or really good - I’m leaning towards good.

At any rate, Jason Segel plays a recently dumped boyfriend named Peter. He decides to take a vacation but by some absurd circumstance his ex has decided to do the same with her new boyfriend. Other Apatow favorites, Jonah Hill and Paul Rudd, also make appearances in the film. The trailer is already out for you to judge while the film is set for an April 18th release.