Sunday, December 31, 2017

End of Year 2017

Today is the last day of 2017, thank God.  This has been an absolute shitshow of a year and I will be happy to put it in my rearview.

Thanks to various commitments, I was only able to watch 19 new movies this year.  Overall, I saw less than 150 films, which is the second fewest annual number since I started this blog.  I'd like to think that I only spent my precious free time on movies worth seeing, however, and it was surprisingly difficult to rank this year's favorites.  Let's start at the bottom and work our way up.

10.  The LEGO Batman Movie - My one animated film for this year.

9.  Star Wars Episode VIII:  The Last Jedi - This was a great addition to the franchise.  I don't care how many petitions people sign.

8.  Annabelle:  Creation - I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this.  It was so much better than it had any right to be.

7.  Spider-Man:  Homecoming - I really didn't think we needed another Spider-Man movie but this won me over.

6.  Wonder Woman - This would have been much higher on the list if it hadn't been so reminiscent of Captain America.

5.  Atomic Blonde - This movie was so badass.

4.  Guardians of the Galaxy 2 - Now that some time has passed, the Ego storyline just leaves me kind of bleh.

3.  John Wick 2 - I strongly debated with myself over whether or not this deserved the first or second spot but I just couldn't displace the ones I already decided.

2.  Thor:  Ragnarok - For sheer fun, this was the greatest experience I had at the movies this year.

1.  Logan - Honestly, could it have been anything else?  This movie ripped my heart out and left me to die in the woods.

I don't rank TV shows but if you haven't seen American Gods or Legion, you're depriving yourself.

Now we can safely put 2017  behind us and look ahead to movies coming out in 2018.  All dates are subject to change.

Proud Mary - January 12 - January is traditionally a dumping ground for movies studios have little to no faith in, but this one stars Taraji P. Hensen as an assassin so I'm going to give it a shot anyway.

Mary and the Witch's Flower - January 18 - This is made by the spiritual successor to Studio Ghibli so I'm interested.

Black Panther - February 16 - Aw yiss.  Just in time for Valentine's Day.

Annihilation - February 23 - This looks really cool and it's by the same guy that wrote Ex Machina so it'll probably be terrifying.

Red Sparrow - March 2 - Jennifer Lawrence stars as a ballerina-turned-spy for Russia in what could have easily been the Black Widow origin story.

A Wrinkle in Time - March 9 - This is getting a lot of marketing already.  It's been so long since I read the book, though, I don't know if I want to see it.

Tomb Raider - March 16 - I'm torn.  Video game adaptations almost always suck but Alicia Vikander is awesome.

Pacific Rim Uprising - March 23 - Apparently, people really hated the original Pacific Rim.  I thought it was fun and I'm hoping the sequel is also fun.

Isle of Dogs - March 23 - This is another stop-motion animation from Wes Anderson, like The Fantastic Mr. Fox.  Some of his shit is a little too quirky but I have high hopes for this one.

Ready Player One - March 30 - I'm not totally on board with this but I feel like it might be too big to miss out on.  It's a Spielberg.

The New Mutants - April 13 - Oh hell yes.  Give me some mutant horror.

Overboard - April 20 - It actually hurt my soul to hear they were remaking this movie but I'm hoping it will be different enough to not ruin my memories.

Avengers:  Infinity War - May 4 - I feel sorry for any other movie trying to compete on the same weekend.

Slender Man - May 18 - Is this a thing?!  Really?  And in blockbuster season, not the dead days of winter?  Huh.

Solo:  A Star Wars Story - May 25 - Honestly, I don't know how this could possibly be good.

Deadpool 2 - June 1 - Just take my money, already.

Ocean's 8 - June 8 - Maybe this will be good?  I'm not holding my breath.

Incredibles 2 - June 15 - I have waited so long for this movie.  Damn.

Jurassic World:  Fallen Kingdom - June 22 - Okay.  Sure.  I'm down for this.

Ant-Man and the Wasp - July 6 - Marvel's back at it again.  This is the third entry this year, though, and I'm worried that by now people will be superheroed out.

The Nun - July 13 - This is another entry into the Conjuring-verse.  Now I just don't know what to think, after I was so pleasantly surprised by Annabelle 2.

Mission:  Impossible: 6 - July 27 - Yeah, I'm going to see it.  I kind of hate myself a little, though.

The Happytime Murders - August 17 - This looks fucked up and hilarious.

Robin Hood - September 21 - Do we really need another origin story?  Seriously?

Venom - October 5 - It's a Spider-Man villain without Spider-Man but with Tom Hardy.  I'm on the fence.

X-Men:  Dark Phoenix - November 2 - Dark Phoenix was my favorite storyline.  I really hope they don't fuck it up.

The Nutcracker and the Four Realms - November 2 - I don't even know why this movie exists.  Who needed a backstory on The Nutcracker?  It better be fucking gorgeous.

Mary, Queen of Scots - November 2 - This looks like a prestige film but it's got such a good cast that I'm interested.

The Grinch - November 9 - Are you shitting me?!

Fantastic Beasts:  The Crimes of Grindlewald - November 16 - I'm not big on Harry Potter but I quite enjoyed Fantastic Beasts.

Wreck-It Ralph 2:  Ralph Breaks the Internet - November 21 - I hope this doesn't suck.

Mortal Engines - December 14 - This looks kind of gonzo but it's written by and produced by Peter Jackson.  Could be a hot mess, could be brilliant.

Aquaman - December 21 - DC's only entry for the year.  Here's hoping it's a Wonder Woman, not a Justice League.

Bohemian Rhapsody - December 25 - Biopic of Freddie Mercury.  Yes.

Mary Poppins Returns - December 25 - I'm a little terrified, a little curious, and a little infuriated.

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