Film File - This Year's Blockbusters
It was the 1980s film that defined the career of Arnold Schwarzenegger, and which is now updated and packed with whiz-bang special effects for the new sci-fi generation. This time around, Dubliner Colin Farrell takes on the role of Quaid - and given his relative success as an action man, cinema-goers can expect enough action and pace to keep them firmly transfixed. ___________________________________________________________ WETTEST COUNTY Many still credit director John Hillcoat and singer-songwriter-screenwriter Nick Cave's iconic chase film, 'The Proposition', as the best western of the last decade. The pair have teamed up together again in this adaptation of author Matt Bondurant's novel, 'The Wettest County in the World', set around liquor bootlegging in Depression-era Virginia. Starring Shia La Boeuf, Jessica Chastain, Guy Pierce and Gary Oldman, this could be one of the sleeper hits of the year. ___________________________________________________________ LOCK OUT Guy Pearce again - this time wrongfully convicted of spying on the US government. He is offered a one-time chance of freedom if he agrees to rescue the president's daughter from an orbital penal colony that's been taken over by its worst-of-the-worst criminal inmates. Co-written and directed by Luc Besson, who proved his chops for sci-fi in the dazzling 'The Fifth Element', expect plentiful eye-popping special effects and action a-plenty. __________________________________________________________ MOONRISE KINGDOM One of modern cinema's most innovative directors, Wes Anderson, follows up on 'Fantastic Mr Fox' with this tale of young love in a small New England town. It's the cast that really promises so much here, including Bruce Willis, Frances McDormand, Bill Murray, Jason Schwartzman, Tilda Swinton, Edward Norton and Harvey Keitel. Even on their worst day, this has to be one of the best film line-ups of the year. ___________________________________________________________ THE DARK KNIGHT RISES Nobody ever tires of the 'Batman' franchise, it seems, especially when director Christopher Nolan has promised an epic end to his trilogy. Expected to be one of the bigger movies of mid-summer, it features Tom Hardy, Anne Hathaway, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Marion Cotillard in a story that will doubtless be dark and deadly, and always as complex as Nolan's movies usually are. ___________________________________________________________ THE BOURNE LEGACY Deciding to get out while he was ahead, Matt Damon has, sadly, moved on from his excellent turn as Jason Bourne - the hero of those cracking Robert Ludlum novels. This time around, the role is being taken by Jeremy Renner, the man who made 'The Hurt Locker' and 'Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol' tick. Renner has a number of major performances in 2012, including 'The Avengers' and 'Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters'. ___________________________________________________________ SKYFALL After the dissapointment of the slow and ponderous 'Quantum of Solace', will this be the Bond that gets us all hot and bothered about 007? Chances are definitely yes to that, especially with Daniel Craig proving a different kind of hero in 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo'. Sam Mendes directs this classic thriller due out late in the year. ___________________________________________________________ PROMETHEUS 'Prometheus' is "a story about space travel and the origins of humanity" - an epic 3D saga from director Ridley Scott that's been the talk of Hollywood for the past year. Gigantic sets, an impressive concept and megamillions spent in the making - it's anyone's guess how this one will turn out, but expect serious entertainment. ___________________________________________________________ LINCOLN Steven Spielberg was everywhere in 2011 with 'War Horse' and 'The Adventures of Tintin' doing serious business in cinemas all over the world. But he's always been huge on the life story of one of America's most famous presidents, and this one definitely has the potential to be a major Oscar winner next February. Daniel Day Lewis as the 16th President of the United States? Get your acceptance speech ready. ___________________________________________________________ THE HOBBIT Director Peter Jackson gave himself a huge mountain to climb to top his huge 'Lord of the Rings' trilogy, and puts even more pressure on 'The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey' as one of the highly anticipated films of 2012. Based on JRR Tolkien's novel, which preceded 'The Lord of the Rings', it tells the story of Bilbo Baggins as he sets off on a journey with a group of dwarves to revisit Middle Earth, where strange adventures undoubtedly await. ___________________________________________________________ KILL BIN LADEN Timing is everything in life, and director Kathryn Bigelow and her 'Hurt Locker' writer Mark Boal had an massive stroke of luck as they started work on this film just weeks after US Navy SEALs killed the infamous al-Qaeda leader. Having reportedly gotten major access to classified government files on how the killing was engineered, this one should create big interest when it hits the big screen. ___________________________________________________________ THE GREAT GATSBY Director Baz Luhrmann's reunion with his 'Romeo + Juliet' star, Leonardo DiCaprio, in this legendary F Scott Fitzgerald novel adaptation will have thousands coming to the silver screen to see how this one compares to the Robert Redford star turn of decades ago. Carey Mulligan plays Daidy in front of an all-star cast. Expect a big romantic hit here.