Written by Fionna McLauchlan | 29 January 2012
Posted in Features - News

Blockbuster smashes, franchise cash-ins, comic book heroes, rowdy bridesmaids, a silent film, an astounding Iranian drama, and the final Harry Potter; 2011 was indeed a varied year in film, despite the overarching success of big blockbuster follow-ups. So, what should cinema fans expect for 2012? Should we expect much of the same from the cinematic delights that will be on offer in the up-and-coming year? From revamped comic books heroes to an unexpected adventure, here is a guide to some of the most anticipated films of 2012.

Photography: Warner Bros. Entertainment

Comic Book Adaptations

2011 was bursting with films based on comic books, but in 2012, it is the big guns of comic book hero films that will be making an impression. In July, the conclusion to Christopher Nolan’s Batman series, The Dark Knight Rises, will be hitting the cinemas across the UK. Following in the footsteps of the first two films, and Nolan’s success with Inception, the Batman conclusion will be a certain hit and a definite must-see.

The adaption of the marvel comic superhero team The Avengers will also be released this year at the end of April. A cross-over of several Marvel superhero films, the film brings together Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, and Chris Evans as Captain America amongst others in what looks to be an explosion-filled feature film of fun.

However, the comic book hero film to watch in 2012 has to be the revamped, rebooted Spiderman. Choosing the same name as the marvel comic, The Amazing Spider Man sees Andrew Garfield stepping into the role of the web-shooting hero ten years after Tobey Maguire donned his spidey-suit in 2002. Claiming to go ‘back to basics’, with apparently a new plot, a new love-interest and better stunts, will it prove to have been worth the remake?

Action/ Thriller

2012 is looking to be a big year for action movies, with Skyfall, the next instalment of Daniel Craig as James bond, topping the bill as one of the most anticipated films of the year. With Sam Mendes (American Beauty, Jarhead, Revolutionary Road) at the helm as director, and Javier Bardem cast as the Bond villain, there is no doubt that it will be a must-see film this year.

If it is martial arts action films that float your boat, then 2012 will not disappoint. Hong Kong’s Wong Kar-Wai has made The Grandmasters, a film about Ip Man, the man behind the training of martial arts legend Bruce Lee, and Hou Hsiao-hsien (a leading figure in the Taiwanese New Wave movement) has directed The Assassin, which according to rumours, will be about a female shape-shifting assassin.

Yet, the most-discussed action/thriller of the year is without doubt going to be the next film from the American master Quentin Tarantino. After having tackled the Holocaust in Inglourious Basterds, Django Unchained will deal with slavery and prostitution in what Tarantino has described to be a ‘spaghetti western’ about a slave who takes revenge on his master. Critics are already questioning whether he will be able to avoid bad taste with this daring premise.

Photography: Lionsgate

Sci-fi

Ridley Scott’s highly anticipated Prometheus will be hitting the screens in June. This will be the first sci-fi film from the veteran director since the release of Bladerunner in 1982. Rumours have been flying that the film is to be a prequel to the Alien series, but as the director has been wholly secretive about the project from the beginning, Ridley devotees will just have to wait patiently.

In the mean time sci-fi fans will be able to catch The Hunger Games, a futuristic sci-fi action drama based on the novel of the same name. As the books are a trilogy, it would not be surprising if the films become a successful franchise.

Mexican director Alfonso Cuarón is also set to release his next sci-fi since his adaptation of P.D James’ novel Children of Men in 2006. Gravity, starring George Clooney and Sandra Bullock as stranded astronauts, looks to be promising.

Photography: Warner Bros. Pictures

Fantasy

It would be impossible to put together a run-down of the most anticipated films of 2012 without taking about Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit: An unexpected journey, set to be released in the UK in December. With Martin Freeman as Bilbo Baggins and Ian McKellen returning as wizard Gandalf, it remains to be seen whether Jackson’s adaptation of Tolkien’s children’s classic will match the mammoth success of the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

Another exciting release of 2012 will be Tim Burton’s Frankenweenie, a black and white stop-motion animation homage to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. Originally a short that was banned by Disney in 1984, the Frankenweenie of 2012 looks to be an interesting watch, and knowing Burton’s prowess of beautiful animation, it will no doubt be a treat to the eye.

But, if your kind of fantasy film verges more to the horror genre then fret not, as in late 2012 Marc Forster is to make World War Z, a post-apocalyptic zombie film based on the book of the same name by Max Brooks. With Brad Pitt as the lead and bidding wars having already taken place between Leonardo Dicaprio and Brad Pitt’s production companies to secure rights to the novel, it suggests to be an interesting premise.

Comedy

In 2012 it is still all about bridesmaids as Kirsten Dunst and Isla Fisher star in the Sundance festival-tipped comedy Bachelorette, the story of childhood friends taking on bridesmaid duties. The premise is unsurprisingly already being compared to that of 2011’s Bridesmaids, but whereas it was all about audacious and somewhat crass humour, Bachelorette is all about drug addiction, alcohol and jealousy; a very different kind of comedy.

Speaking of a different kind of comedy, were you a fan of Borat or Brüno? The Dictator, the latest Larry Charles/Sacha Baron Cohen film will be in UK cinemas in May. This time based on a dictator in exile, there is no doubt, considering current world events, that it will prove to be yet another cringe-galore fest of semi-offensive material that will no doubt prove to entertain in the same way as their previous movies.

Alternative/Arthouse

Fans of alternative cinema will be pleased to know that Amour, the latest film from Michael Haneke, the king of bleak yet insightful cinema, is set to be released in autumn 2012. Focusing on an elderly French couple whose relationship is strained after one of them suffers from a stroke, Haneke explores the ageing process in his usual probing and philosophical manner.

The equally philosophical Terrence Malick will also be releasing a film in 2012. Believed to be called The Burial (title subject to change) and to star Ben Affleck, Rachel McAdams, Rachel Weisz, Olga Kurylenko, and Javier Bardem, this is all that is known about the project so far.

The next release from veteran Iranian director Abbas Kiarostami also looks to be a hit. Following Certified Copy, the first film he made outside of his native Iran, The End set in Japan, looks to be another great art film from the Iranian master that is sure to engage with fans of arthouse/alternative cinema.

Literary Adaptations

The cinematic horizon of 2012 is chock-a-block with big-budget literary adaptations. Ang lee is taking on Yann Martel’s Life of Pi, Walter Salles is bringing to the screen Keraouac’s beat-generation classic On the road, and Baz Luhrmann is attempting what will surely be a glamorous adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby.

Even the Wachowkis and body horror master David Cronenberg are directing adaptations of novels this year. Along with Tom Tykwer, the Wachowkis will be releasing an adaption of David Mitchell’s novel Cloud Atlas, and Cronenberg, with Robert Pattinson cast as lead, is digging into contemporary American culture with a film based on Don DeLillo’s post 9/11 novel Cosmopolis.

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