Ladies and gentlemen, get ready for a winter of post-apocalyptic thrillers, crime stories, gothic romance and a Paul McCartney documentary.
While Santa didn’t quite deliver what Hollywood had wished for in terms of box office hits, a new year means new beginnings and hopes. Bigger financial questions surrounding the long and short-term viability of the movie industry are out of our hands, which means our only job as moviegoers is to pick and choose what we want to see.
So let’s commit to a New Year’s resolution to stop talking about movies in terms of box office. What’s happening on the screen is so much more interesting anyway.
‘28 Years Later: The Bone Temple’
Filmmaker Nia DaCosta’s interests as a director run the gamut, from horror (the “Candyman” remake) to popcorn films (“The Marvels”) to her recent update and reimagining of the play “Hedda Gabler.” She circles back to horror with this sequel to the post-apocalyptic “28 Years Later.” Ralph Fiennes leads the ensemble cast. In theaters Jan. 16.
‘The Rip’
Old pals Ben Affleck and Matt Damon team up on screen once again, this time in a crime thriller. Here’s the official description: “Upon discovering millions in cash in a derelict stash house, trust among a team of Miami cops begins to fray. As outside forces learn about the size of the seizure, everything is called into question — including who they can rely on.” Screenwriter Joe Carnahan says the idea came out of a “deeply personal experience that my friend went through, both as a father and as head of tactical narcotics for the Miami-Dade police department.” On Netflix Jan. 16.
‘Send Help’
A plane crashes and a woman (Rachel McAdams) and her jerk of a boss (Dylan O’Brien) are the only survivors, now stranded on a deserted island. Didn’t Anne Heche and Harrison Ford already do this in 1998’s “Six Days, Seven Nights”? Well, this one’s way more ominous, directed by “Spider-Man’s” Sam Raimi. In theaters Jan. 30.
‘Dracula: A Love Tale’
Director Luc Besson reimagines the vampire story as a tragic romance. The movie opened in Europe late last year, with one critic describing it as Dracula meets “Pride and Prejudice”: “While it almost certainly does not work on any narrative level, it remains compulsively watchable throughout thanks to writer-director Luc Besson‘s flair for the preposterous.” In theaters Jan. 30.
‘Pillion’
If you want the elevator pitch, this is Alexander Skarsgård’s gay biker romance, which premiered at Cannes last year, prompting this observation in Variety: “With lots of kinky gay BDSM sex scenes, elaborately choreographed orgies, full-frontal nudity and men in rubber, ‘Pillion’ has easily been among the most sexually graphic films of Cannes so far (and also one of its most warmly received).” According to co-star Harry Melling (as the submissive partner), the movie’s themes are “relatable and familiar, but maybe dealing with a subculture that people aren’t so familiar with. It’s how those two things interplay that I found so fascinating … taking romantic comedy tropes and subverting them.” In theaters Feb. 6.
