28 Films to Watch in 2013

Last year was one of my favourite years for cinema: some extraordinary films were released and I was privileged to have seen them. The Hunger Games (highest-grossing action film of 2012), Skyfall, The Bourne Legacy, Avengers Assemble and, of course, my no.1 film – The Dark Knight Rises. 

But from Sunday’s 70th Golden Globe Awards, it’s evident that 2013 is set to supersede last year when it comes to film. For the South African circuit, many of 2012’s nominees will only open in the next few weeks, and thus I have included them as part of my 2013 selection below.

I hope you enjoy this year’s selection. (2013 release dates given from the American circuit; local release dates may vary).

Award Season favorites (releasing in early-2013)

1. Django Unchained: Written + Directed by Quentin Tarantino, starring Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio
2. Les Misérables: Starring Anne Hathaway, Hugh Jackman, Sacha Baron Cohen
3. Argo: Directed by Ben Affleck
4. Zero Dark Thirty Directed by Kathryn Bigalow
5. Lincoln Directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Daniel Day Lewis

2013 Releases

1.  A Good Day to Die Hard starring Bruce Willis. February 14th.
2. Oz the Great and Powerful directed by Sam Raimi, starring James Franco and Mila Kunis. March 8th.
3. Oblivion starring Tom Cruise. April 12th.
4. Iron Man 3 Starring Robert Downey, Jr. May 3rd.
5. The Great Gatsby directed by Baz Luhrmann, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Carey Mullligan, Isla Fisher, Amitabh Bachchan. May 10th.
6. Star Trek: Into Darkness. Directed by J.J. Abrams, starring Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana, Simon Pegg. May 17th.
7. After Earth Directed by M. Night Shymalan, starring Will Smith and Jaden Smith. June 7th.
8. Man of Steel Directed by Zack Snyder, starring Russel Crowe. June 14th.
9. Monsters University starring Billy Crystal. June 21st.
10. Kick-Ass 2 starring Nicolas Cage. June 28th.
11. Despicable Me 2 starring Steve Carell. July 3rd.
12. The Lone Ranger directed by Gore Verbinski, starring Johnny Depp. July 3rd.
13. Pacific Rim directed by Guillermo del Toro. July 12th.
14. The Wolverine starring Hugh Jackman. July 26th.
15. 300: Rise of an Empire written by Zack Snyder (300). August 2nd.
16. Elysium directed by Neill Blomkamp, starring Matt Damon and Jodie Foster. August 9th.
17. Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters starring Logan Lerman. August 16th.
18. Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones 3D directed by George Lucas. September 20th.
19. Gravity starring George Clooney, Sandra Bullock, directed by Alfonso Cuaron. October 4th.
20. Sin City: A Dame to Kill For starring Mickey Rourke, Jessica Alba. October 4th.
21. Thor: The Dark World starring Natalie Portman, Chris Hemsworth. November 8th.
22. The Hunger Games: Catching Fire directed by Francis Lawrence (I Am Legend), starring Jennifer Lawrence, Lenny Kravitz. November 22nd.
23. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug directed by Peter Jackson, starring Martin Freeman, Richard Armitage and Ian McKellan. December 13th.

I hope to watch all these films above this year, and you can be sure to read my thoughts on a select few of them right here on Pixelated Thinking.