2008 Preview

originally published December 26, 2007

With only a handful of award-friendly films left to be released, my inner fanboy can begin breathlessly awaiting next year’s potential blockbusters. Assuming every film lives up to its promise (yeah, I know that won't happen), sequel-heavy 2008 is shaping up to be huge. Get those calendars out. Here is a countdown of the 10 movies you must see on opening day. Make sure you write in pencil as release dates are subject to change.

10. Rambo. Older, beefier, probably not much wiser, writer-director-star Sylvester Stallone returns to make the world safe for Reaganomics in the fourth installment of the most confusingly titled franchise of all time. (Jan. 25)

9. Speed Racer. The candy-colored trailer for the Wachowski Brothers’ live-action adaptation of the classic 1960s cartoon looks to have bottled The Matrix’s cool lightning. (May 9)

8. Hellboy II: The Golden Army. The first Hellboy verged on great. Here’s hoping Guillermo del Toro can squeeze a bit more from the sequel. Even if he doesn’t, a horned, red Ron Perlman is worth the price of admission alone. (July 11)

7. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. The next Potter film, directed by HP5’s David Yates, should continue the series’ successful maturation into dark, fantastical adulthood. (Nov. 21)

6. Iron Man/ The Incredible Hulk. Two A-list Marvel Comics heroes hit the big screen. One seeks fans; the other seeks redemption. Iron Man had zero cool points until director Jon Favreau signed recovering drug addict Robert Downey Jr. to play recovering alcoholic and billionaire weapons designer Tony Stark (May 2). The not-so-jolly green giant is back minus Angst Lee and Eric Banal. Actually I like the first film, but I do hope new director Louis Leterrier (The Transporter) ramps up the destruction. (June 13)

5. Cloverfield. “Lost” co-creator J.J. Abrams reconceptualizes the monster movie. The film’s enigmatic marketing campaign has generated the most buzz since the Wachowskis had everyone asking, “What is the Matrix?” in 1999. (Jan. 18)

4. Star Trek. J.J. Abrams also breathes new life into Paramount’s biggest franchise with the highly anticipated 11th film, Star Trek Babies, which chronicles Kirk and Spock’s days at the Starfleet nursery school…er, Academy. (Dec. 25, a date which seems more 2009 than 2008).

3. Bond 22. Not much is known about Daniel Craig’s second mission as 007 besides its director, Marc Forster (Finding Neverland, The Kite Runner), and still it’s my third-most anticipated film of the year. With a title, it might be number two. (Nov. 7)

2. The Dark Knight. Judging from the trailer introducing Heath Ledger’s creepy-as-hell Joker, filmmaker Christopher Nolan continues the series’ dark, realistic arc. (July 18)

1. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. I’ve been waiting 19 years for the greatest adventurer of all time to crack his whip one more time. Not even George Lucas can screw this up, right? (May 23)