Films to look forward to in 2009

Here’s my to-see list so far:

• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince – Required fanboy viewing.
  
• Star Trek – Simon Pegg and Zachary Quinto. Plus it looks pretty cool and Abrams has been slightly above par lately.
• Astro Boy – Will the big screen remake live up to the classic?
  
• X-Men Origins Wolverine – We all know he’s the coolest X-Man around.
• Terminator Salvation – They’re not robots. The correct term is “cyborg”.
• 2012 – Required Apocalyptica viewing.
• Knowing – A Beautiful Mind meets Armageddon? Required Apocalyptica viewing.
• The Unborn – Genuinely scary or just another Ringu knockoff?
• Dragonball: Evolution – OK, so it will probably be crap but come on, it’s Dragonball! And by the way, if it’s called Dragonball, shouldn’t Goku be like 5 or 6 years old?
• Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen – Required fanboy viewing.

Oh and while we’re on the topic, here’s what I thought of 2008:

Biggest disappointments:

• The Dark Knight. Look, I know it’s the 4th highest grossing film ever but I just felt deeply depressed while watching this. And the feeling hung around for about half a day. I will not watch it again.
• The X-Files: I Want to Believe.  Nothing like the epic first film. More like a long episode of Millennium, really, but without the suspense. In a word: forgettable.

Surprisingly good:

• WALL-E – There’s no dialogue for the first 20 minutes and I was in stitches. This film also made me realise (properly) why I don’t like Facebook. And it exemplifies why that stupid Toyota chair is a step backwards in the fight against obesity.

Worth watching

• Cloverfield – See earlier post
  
• Jumper – Cool powers, wormholes, ridiculous hair. What more could you want?
• The Spiderwick Chronicles – Kids discover hidden world. Always a good theme.
• Run, Fat Boy, Run – Required Simon Pegg viewing. Average romantic comedy.
• The Forbidden Kingdom – Kid discovers hidden world and learns Kung Fu (complete with training montage!) Monkey Magic meets Karate Kid.
• Iron Man – Meh, not bad. Could leave off this list and still sleep soundly.
• The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian – Kids discover hidden world – I’m seeing a pattern here.
• Wanted – Tries too hard to be Fight Club. But has cool powers and recruitment themes.
• The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor – Not as funny now they recast Evelyn’s character. Rachel Weisz was apparently “too busy.” Bitch.
• Eagle Eye – Great action/thriller. Slightly predictable, mostly believable. Without giving too much away, I was delighted to discover this fell into one of my required viewing categories!
• City of Ember – Perfect apart from the unrealistically fast scene involving a boat.

And….drumroll…my favourite film of 2008: Burn After Reading. Definitely check that one out. Destined for cult status.

Movies released in 2008 I have yet to watch but plan to: Never Back Down, Stop-Loss, Get Smart, Hancock, The House Bunny (Anna Faris), Disaster Movie, Bangkok Dangerous, How to Lose Friends & Alienate People (Simon Pegg), Saw V, Quantum of Solace, Bolt, Twilight, Waltz with Bashir.