Lots of movies come out every year. Some are good, some are bad, some are geeky fan services, but one thing remains the same, year after year: I am always surprised by something being better than I thought and something else being a letdown.
I’m not sure what will happen once the lights dim in the theatre this year, but I know that if it all works out, I’ll be seeing a good portion of these 17 movies in 2017, and I’m already preparing for this, with a big TV and the best compatible 65 tv stand so I can install the TV at my house.
This is my list, and it’s based on just my own thoughts and feelings. Will you be seeing any of these with me, and what will you be watching instead?
And now, on to the list, in chronological order.
1. Resident Evil: The Final Chapter (1/27)
“This January, it ends where it all began.”
“This January Evil comes home.”
Yes, there are some very cheesy taglines Sony is putting out with this film, but why not? The series was made in the same vein, so don’t stop now. Milla Jovovich is back as Alice, and – come on – we’ve all seen at least one of the prior five films or played the games, so I’m looking forward to seeing them end it all. This series had some ups and downs, and I know some will argue it never had any ups, but give it a chance. This is the last “new” Resident Evil you’ll get the chance to see.
2. John Wick: Chapter 2 (2/10)
Simply put, “the continuing adventures of former hitman, John Wick.” The first adventure was something special and really brought Keanu Reeves back to the action genre, and I would expect more of the same. This probably won’t suffer the same fate as other sequels, but I’m up for learning more about the difference between vengeance and justice, while it rains down bullets, blood, and brilliant chaos.
3. Logan (3/3)
Old Man Logan is coming to theatres, and it is going to be raw. This could be the last we see of Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine, so it’s really more than a standalone movie: it’s the end of that cinematic era of X-Men. Hopefully, the film will end Jackman’s run on a high note, because though lost in the success of the proper Marvel Cinematic Universe, the X-Men franchise was just as important to the breakthrough of superhero movies as anything else.
4. Kong: Skull Island (3/10)
Brie Larson, Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L. Jackson, John Goodman, John C. Reilly, and King Kong! Centered on the origins of our favorite Kong, this looks stunning. I only hope the script itself matches the on-screen visuals, because if it even comes close, this will be a very great movie.
5. Going in Style (4/7)
Zach Braff and Arthur Lewis direct Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, and Alan Arkin, reprising the roles of George Burns, Art Carney, and Lee Strasberg from the 1979 original with the same plot – three friends decide to organize a bank robbery. Based on the talent that has been assembled, the remake has a chance to be better than the original.
6. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (5/5)
I have just four words for you, “The Guardians are Back!”
And they’ve brought Awesome Mixtape #2 with them…
7. Wonder Woman (6/2)
Based on the trailer and Gal Gadot’s performance in Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice, this could be the box office success that is also well-received by critics and fans alike. That kind of success has been eluding Warner Brothers and their DC properties in building the DCU so maybe for DC that old saying holds true… “Never send a man to do a woman’s job.”
8. Cars 3 (6/16)
I didn’t see Cars 2, but Cars 3 has me intrigued. The teaser that was released as of the writing of this post appears to be more serious. Could it be that Pixar is targeting the audience that watched the first film 11 years ago? It certainly feels that way. We’ll see, but this could be an interesting direction for a series that was once targeted to younger children.
9. Transformers: The Last Knight (6/23)
Quietly, I’ve watched all of the live-action Transformers movies that Michael Bay has created, but this one… If Unicron shows up, that’s all I want to see. That hope is my sole reason for going to see this movie. That’s it.
10. Spider-Man: Homecoming (7/7)
The irony of the title “Homecoming” is not lost on most, with Spider-Man coming “home” to the Marvel Cinematic Universe where he belongs. And with Tom Holland’s performance in Civil War being what it was, I expect this to be a fun movie.
11. Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets (7/21)
I like the way Luc Besson does movies. I just do. I’m not familiar with the French comics on which the film is based, but it doesn’t matter. I’ll be seeing this.
12. The Dark Tower (7/28)
This film has a lot riding on it. It is a “quasi-sequel” to the The Dark Tower book series, because it follows the ending of The Dark Tower VII, but if it’s successful, we could see them dig into more of the series in the future.
You can’t build on a weak foundation, however, so it’ll be interesting to see what happens at the box office.
13. Kingsman: The Gold Circle (10/6)
I enjoyed the first one and I’m still looking for the time to dig into “The Secret Service” comic book written by Dave Gibbons and Mark Millar. But even if I don’t get into the source material, what they put on screen for the first film has me hooked enough to go to the theatre for this one.
14. Thor: Ragnarok (11/3)
It’s the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it’s Thor, and it’s probably some Hulk, too… I don’t have high expectations, as The Dark World was good but not great, but I’m hoping it will further build Marvel’s dominance in film, which is a tall order, because Guardians and Wonder Woman could cancel each other out, and this is coming out two weeks before Justice League. Either way, it’ll be fun to watch this MCU vs. DCU from the seat of your local theatre.
15. Justice League (11/17)
If this comes out in 2017, I will go see it. This movie has been pushed and pushed, and I’m not sure what that says about the studio’s confidence in the film, or the script. But the cast is there, we’ve seen glimpses of greatness, and with a potentially successful Wonder Woman film, this could be the year the DCU finally has a one-two punch of its own at the box office.
16. Star Wars Episode VIII (12/15)
I enjoyed what The Force Awakens set up, even if it was a rehash of A New Hope. But now, the setup is done, and I’m interested to know where we go from there. As the middle movies go, Empire was great and Clone Wars was not, so here’s hoping this is closer to Empire, because it would be disappointing to see it go the other way.
17. The Six Billion Dollar Man (12/22)
Wait, what happened to the Six Million Dollar Man? I guess, we’re adjusting for inflation… I’m curious to see where they take this classic character in the modern times. And how faithful they remain, while updating the technology. I mean, what does six billion dollars really buy today? We’ll find out in December.