The A-Team
Release Dates: June 11 (US), July 30 (UK), June 10 (AU)
If the new trailer is any indication, then director Joe Carnahan's The A-Team looks to be one of the better tv-to-film adaptations ever made.
This epically long-in-development project looks to find a balance between being loyal to its source material and delivering kick-ass entertainment. Liam Neeson headlines as the team's leader, Col. "Hannibal" Smith, and is joined by Bradley Cooper, District 9's Sharlto Copley and Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson as (drum roll, please) B.A. Baracus, AKA the roll that made Mr. T., well, Mr. T. Fans of the series will be proud to know that the GMC van and the theme will get the widescreen treatment. And if things going explodey wasn't enough, there's Jessica Biel. We love it when a plan comes together.
Alice in Wonderland
Release Dates: March 5 (US & UK), March 4 (AU)
Disney is prepping another Alice in Wonderland film, though we're hard-pressed to imagine a project more different from the 1951 animated classic. This new version is a blend of live-action and stop-motion effects. But we'd expect nothing less from Tim Burton, who has previously dabbled with stop-motion in A Nightmare Before Christmas and The Corpse Bride.
Mia Wasikowska (Amelia) stars as a slightly older Alice who is called back to Wonderland by the White Rabbit. Unfortunately for all involved, she doesn't remember her previous misadventures there. With Burton directing, it should come as no surprise that Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter are along for the ride. Depp plays the Mad Hatter while Bonham Carter plays the Red Queen. Also starring are Anne Hathaway as the White Queen, Michael Sheen as the White Rabbit, and Alan Rickman as the Caterpillar. The last one seems an especially apt casting choice.
We're always eager to see the twisted films that come from the mind of Burton. This Wonderland flick looks to be very stylish and sufficiently different from the numerous ones that have come before. The cast alone should make this a movie well worth watching.
Clash of the Titans
Release Dates: March 26 (US and UK), April 30 (AU)
Three words: Release the kraken.
Gone are Harry Hamlin's loin cloth and Pantene-Plus hair, and in its stead is Sam Worthington wielding a sword at CG Medusas, scorpions and the aforementioned sea beast straight from Poseidon.
Director Louis Leterrier follows up his above-average The Incredible Hulk reboot with this uber-expensive remake of the 1980s fantasy epic. The trailer is all sorts of flashety flash cutting between set pieces and more set pieces, so the verdict is still out on whether or not this movie will deliver on story. But 300 fans and fans of the original film should be entertained to see Titans get a 21st Century remake treatment. Liam Neeson's Zeus squares off opposite Ralph Finnes' Hades, and Worthington gets his third shot at blockbuster leading man status. A lot is riding on this March release to deliver – IGN will be in the front row waiting to see if it does.
The Expendables
Release Dates: August 13 (US), TBD (UK & AU)
No, this isn't a remake of the obscure Vietnam War film. The Expendables is a tribute to every cheesy action movie the '80s ever gave birth to. The plot, such as it is, sees a team of trigger-happy soldiers sent to oust a South American dictator. In true B-movie fashion, a few good men and a lot of explosions are all that's necessary to fight off hordes of faceless bad guys.
The premise may be simple, but the casting is where things get really interesting. Sylvester Stallone directs and stars in The Expendables. Joining him are a Who's Who of action movie giants, including Jet Li, Jason Statham, Dolph Lundgren, Micky Rourke, Bruce Willis, and even the Governator himself, Arnold Schwarzenegger. How could you not want to see a movie with those names attached? If you need a testosterone boost this summer, we bet The Expendables will send you to the emergency room with a serious overdose.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
Release Dates: November 19 (US & UK), TBD (AU)
The Harry Potter literary saga finally came to a close in 2007 with the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Now the movies are following suit as the final chapter is currently in the full throes of production. After 10 years of fans complaining that too much Potter material was left out of the films, WB is offering a new solution. Deathly Hallows will be released as two films, with the first debuting late this year.
For once, that means nothing should be left out. And there's certainly plenty to explore in this final story. Unlike past films, Harry, Ron, and Hermione aren't confining their adventures to Hogwarts. The trio set out into the world to hunt down Voldemort's remaining Horcruxes and hopefully, maybe, rid the world of its greatest magical nemesis.
Deathly Hallows is easily one of the best Potter books, so we're certainly eager to see how it plays out on screen with ample running time. That said, we are a little concerned about where this first half will end and whether Deathly Hallows really can function as two separate stories. But even if the ending does fall flat, at least we'll only have another six months to wait for Part 2.
Iron Man 2
Release Dates: May 7 (US), TBD (UK), April 29 (AU)
The first Iron Man taught us that Tony Stark can fly. The second film looks to show us that he can blow s*** up with the best of them. Iron Man 2 ups the ante by introducing several new armored characters and proving that it isn't always easy being the world's premier billionaire playboy superhero.
Robert Downey Jr. returns as Stark, as do Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts and Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury (in what will hopefully be more than a brief cameo this time). The biggest bit of casting news is that Don Cheadle is taking over as James Rhodes. If the tailer is any indication, Rhodes will spend plenty of time suited up as War Machine.
The plot of the film takes inspiration from comic storylines like "Armor Wars" and "The Five Nightmares". Stark's Iron Man tech is making its way through the balck market and around the world. He'll have to contend with a vengeful Whiplash (Mickey Rourke) as well as rival business tycoon Justin Hammer (Sam Rockwell). On the plus side,Stark receives some helpful assistance from the deadly and sultry Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson). And by the end, we'll be that much closer to the much-anticipated Avengers movie.
Jonah Hex
Release Dates: June 18 (US), TBD (UK), Aug. 12 (AU)
Josh Brolin with Harvey Dent scars and twin-mounted gatling guns? Megan Fox as an Old West prostitute? We can't wait to see this movie.
This DC character has long been in search of a movie able to do his world right, a world with equal parts horror and action. Having seen the trailer at 2009's Comic-Con, we think this western action picture, as the filmmakers describe it, will deliver on the supernatural without going overboard. And Josh Brolin cast as the titular character is spot on.
Here's hoping that Warner Bros. doesn't dump another Constantine on us, and stays a bit more true to the source material than it did in regards to Keanu as Hellblazer.
Kick-Ass
Release Dates: April 16 (US), TBD (UK & AU)
Hit Girl gets our vote for Best Bad Ass that can't quite ride all the rides at Cedar Point. The footage at Comic-Con and the recent trailer are home runs for the Matthew Vaughn-directed adaptation of Mark Millar's violent comic. If anything, Kick-Ass will be one of the first comic book adaptations made with its source material's tone and violence 100% intact, free of messy studio fingerprints.
Kick-Ass is one of the first major comic book films to hit theaters in 2010. The story? It's about a teen who dons a costume, fights crime, and becomes a YouTube sensation. Not only does he inspire a legion of copycat vigilantes, Kick-Ass attracts the unwanted attention of the New York mob.
Aaron Johnson stars as the titular hero. Also donning spandex are Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Chloë Moretz, and Nicholas Cage.
Let Me In
Release Dates: TBD (all)
Remaking one of the best vampire movies ever made can go one of two ways: Good or downright awful. Such is the task facing Cloverfield director Matt Reeves in his American remake of Let the Right One In. (And yes, we, too, prefer the original title over the new one.)
The movie stars Hit Girl Chloë Moretz as the tween vamp The Road's Kodi Smit-McPhee befriends in his apartment complex. Richard Jenkins plays the girl's keeper/father figure, and anyone who has seen the original knows it doesn't end well for him. We're not sure how exactly this remake will stack up, or how it could top the original's most satisfying (and bloody) finale. Like we said, this movie could turn out one of two ways and we hope the end result doesn't put Reeves in movie jail.
The Losers
Release Dates: April 9 (US & UK), TBD (AU)
2008 basically spoiled us when it comes to comic book and superhero movies. That one summer gave us Wanted, Hellboy II, and The Dark Knight. Hancock, too, but we won't hold it against 2008. While 2010 may have fewer big-name superhero movies, there are plenty of interesting comic book adaptations slated for release.
The Losers is one such project. Based on Andy Diggle's mature-readers re-imagining of the classic DC series, The Losers is a story about the titular band of CIA operatives. After getting screwed over during a mission in Bolivia, they return home gunning for some serious payback.
The cast is full of recognizable comic book movie names, including Jeffrey Dean Morgan (Watchmen), Chris Evans (Fantastic Four), and Idris Elba (Thor). If the film captures the special blend of revenge, violent action, and The Usual Suspects-esque mystery, fans and newcomers alike should have a lot to love.
Machete
Release Dates: TBD (all)
Danny Trejo. Swings from window to window. Using another man's entrails. Did we really, really expect anything less from Robert Rodriguez's movie, based on the Grindhouse fake trailer?
As if the plot for this movie really matters to those that will see it eleventy times: Machete is wronged by a crooked politician (played by Robert Frakkin' DeNiro) and that wrong's got to be righted using lots of bullets and machetes and intestinal Tarzan-ing from building to building. Lindsay Lohan and Jessica Alba add some eye candy to the mayhem. We're pretty sure Machete is now our Constant. If any movie was made for the IGN peeps, then this be it.
A Nightmare on Elm Street remake
Release Dates: April 30 (US), May 7 (UK), May 20 (AU)
Filed under For The Win: Jackie Earle Haley as the razor-gloved one. The people who gave us the kinda sorta okay Friday the 13th reboot resurrect Freddy Krueger by padding out the nocturnal murder spree with a (dare we say) dramatic origin story.
The teaser trailer hinted that Freddy will get the tragic figure treatment this time around, a treatment that will no doubt be undone by all the bloodletting he brings to the doorsteps of the poor bastards living on Elm Street. We hope the movie knows well enough to stay away from echoing (re: copying) too many of the original's iconic moments, such as a fountain of bloody Johnny Depp. The jury's still out on this reboot, but we hope it delivers better on the horror quotient than Jason's recent trip to Crystal Lake did.
Predators
Release Dates: July 7 (US), TBD (UK & AU)
Apparently Fox had to strike out twice with the AVP experiment before they realized that the best way to treat the Predator is to go back to the beginning…ish.
Long before he became Mr. Spy Kids Sin City, Robert Rodriguez wrote a script for a sequel to 1987's "Get to the choppuh!" Predator, which followed a motley crew of hard-to-kill humans trying to survive as game for the ugly muddafu@#ers. Now, years later, the project is shooting as you read this, with, er, Adrian Brody opposite the Predators. Seriously? We hope this plays better on the screen than it reads on paper.
Expect all sorts of alien-on-human violence with this movie, as we recently learned that Predator-Falcons and other alien beasties take part in the bloodhunt. This movie needs to happen now. And we hope "Painless" can make a cameo.
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
Release Dates: May 28 (US & UK), May 27 (AU)
The film industry is full of proposed videogame adaptations that sound exciting but never come to fruition. Peter Jackson's Halo and John Woo's Metroid are just two examples. Luckily, Jerry Bruckheimer's Prince of Persia has proven to be one of those rare exceptions that doesn't peter out midway through development. Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time will help kick off the summer movie season this May.
The film is being distributed by Disney, who hope that the franchise can draw in the same numbers as the Pirates of the Caribbean films. It certainly looks to capture the same blend of over-the-top action and swashbuckling charm. Jake Gyllenhaal stars as Prince Dastan, and Gemma Artenton plays his female companion, Princess Tamina. Ben Kingsley fills the role of antagonist. As the movie's subtitle suggests, the film is at least loosely based on the events of the like-titled videogame.
If Sands of Time is as successful as Disney hopes, we can probably expect a string of sequels in the coming years. It should be interesting to see if those sequels follow the course of the games or set out on their own.
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
Release Dates: TBD (all)
No guy enjoys meeting his lady's ex-boyfriends. But Scott Pilgrim has made it his life's mission to track down each of the seven men who dated the current apple of his eye, Ramona Flowers. Only by defeating these evil ex-boyfriends in combat can Scott truly lay claim to Ramona's heart.
As if it weren't apparent already, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is no ordinary comedy starring twenty-something slackers. For one thing, the film is directed by Shaun of the Dead's Edgar Wright. For another, it features several high-energy animated sequences to replicate the zany nature of the graphic novels. Michael Cera plays Scott and Mary Elizabeth Winstead plays Ramona. Our only fear is whether Cera can display a greater range than he's shown in his past roles. Scott Pilgrim is no George-Michael Bluth, after all. Still, we're eagerly looking forward to Scott's late-summer release.
Toy Story 3
Release Dates: June 18 (US), July 23 (UK), June 24 (AU)
Pixar isn't a studio known for pushing out pointless, money-grubbing sequels. So far, the only time Pixar has revisited one of their CG animated movies was with Toy Story 2, and that sequel was arguably superior to the original. So the thought that 2010 will see the return of Woody, Buzz, and the rest of the gang once again has us mighty excited.
If you've seen the new trailer, you know what to expect in terms of plot. Andy has grown up in the years since the first Toy Story, and his toys are being shuffled off to what passes for a retirement home – a children's daycare. As usual, expect plenty of antics as the toys fight to return home, and also some heart-warming scenes of sentimentality. Luckily, the entire voice cast are back to reprise their roles.
Normally, movie franchises tend to fall apart in their third installments. We see no reason to believe that will be the case for Toy Story 3.
Tron Legacy
Release Dates: December 17 (US), TBD (UK & AU)
The cast of The Simpsons may be embarrassed to admit their love for Tron, but we aren't. As one of the earliest examples of what computers could do for special effects technology, the original Tron is cheesy and hugely dated, but still a lot of fun. This year we get our chance to see how Tron will fare with a little more horsepower under the hood.
Set 25 years after the original, Tron Legacy teams original lead hero Kevin Flynn (once again played by Jeff Bridges) with his son Sam (Garrett Hedlund) in another adventure. That means plenty of disc-throwing and Light Cycle riding. As should be expected, the visuals have received a very hefty upgrade. Expect Tron Legacy to be this years answer to Avatar, as the entire movie was filmed in 3-D. Will it bring Disney the big bucks like Avatar did for Fox?
The Wolfman
Release Dates: Feb. 2 (US & UK), Feb. 25 (AU)
Wow, has this movie been forged in all levels of Development Hell. First, the original director, Mark Romanek and Universal couldn't agree on a tone to bring back the classic movie monster – so enter vanilla director Joe "Jurassic Park III" Johnson. Then, reshoots and rumors of post-production troubles persisted across the interwebs. And a second, more scary trailer was quickly dropped into theatres to make up for the meh sell the first trailer provided. The transformation effects look like the best since American Werewolf in London, which is a plus seeing as how Rick Baker supervised the wolfing outs on both projects.
We're at about a six on the Excitement-meter on this one. We hope Benicio Del Toro and Anthony Hopkins can pull this off.
source: http://movies.ign.com/articles/106/1061492p1.html
