10 — GI JOE: Retaliation (March 29)
I should have been enjoying this movie over Christmas on my Blu Ray player. Instead, Paramount pulled the picture weeks before release to post-convert it into 3D and expand the storyline of Duke (Channing Tatum). The only real reason it made this list is that it comes out on my birthday, it really was borderline.
9— Monsters University (June 21)
I was never a Disney kid growing up. GI Joe, Transformers, Thundercats, and Ninja Turtles were my animated fare of choice. It wasn’t until I started dating my wife that I became more exposed to the Disney/Pixar offerings, and this was the one that did me in. I’m really digging the marketing campaign they have put together for this one, and I’m very excited to see the college days of Mike and Sully.
8 — Oblivion (April 19)
Tron: Legacy’s Joseph Kosinski returns with an original science fiction tale starring Tom Cruise as one of the last humans left on a ravaged future Earth. I featured the trailer here not too long ago, and while it’s received some criticism for Tom Cruise’s “everyman” character being a little contrived; however I can’t but be impressed by the visual style of Kosinski.
7 — Man Of Steel (June 14)
I wasn’t sold on this one until I saw the trailer running in front of The Hobbit. As much as I feel that Zack Snyder has gotten wrong of late, it looks like he got Kal-El pegged in this re-reboot of Superman Returns.
6 — Pacific Rim (July 12)
Guillermo Del Toro. Giant Robots. Giant Monsters. Idris Elba. You can have my $12.00 because there is no way I am not seeing this. If anything I hope Pacific Rim gets the studios to allow Del Toro to make his long in gestation adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft’s At The Mountains of Madness.
5 — The World’s End (October 25)
I’m sure this an unexpected pick here, but there are few things in this world that get me as giddy as Simon Pegg and Nick Frost in a movie together. As much as I wasn’t a fan of Wright’s last venture Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World, this capstone to his loose trilogy of Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz.
4 –The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (December 13)
Peter Jackson has yet to do me wrong with his cinematic adaptation of JRR Tolkien’s tales of Middle Earth, so why would I doubt him now? I’m all in on this new trilogy.
3 — Iron Man 3 (May 3)
Director Shane Black reunites with Robert Downey Jr. as the Iron Avenger squares off against The Mandarin (as played by Sir Ben Kingsley). Based on the trailer it looks as though we are going to see a more human side of Tony Stark, who is dealing with the after effects of the Battle of New York from The Avengers.
2 –Star Trek Into Darkness (May 17)
Despite the success of Star Trek (2009) JJ Abrams remains a divisive talking point among Star Trek fans. That fervor was renewed with the release of the full trailer for Star Trek Into Darkness which features a character that may or may not be Khan (or associated with Khan in some way) and the USS Enterprise hiding out underneath an alien ocean.
1 — Anchorman: The Legend Continues (December 20)
The long anticipated sequel to what is undoubtedly the funniest movie of all time. And this could be the greatest Christmas gift of all time, eclipsing the birth of Jesus himself. I have lofty expectations, but considering this is the franchise that gave us Sex Panther and the true German translation of San Diego and I know it can deliver.
Honorable Mentions: World War Z, Riddick, Fast & Furious 6, After Earth, Thor: The Dark Worlds, A Good Day To Die Hard, This Is The End, & The Wolverine