The first thing you notice about this film is that yes it is the latest film from Pixar which of course already makes you want to watch it as you know it'll be great. But lets backtrack abit as we all know 'Cars 2' wasn't the greatest of successes as the ratings for it were really low and showed that Pixar was indeed fallible when it came to filmmaking. I have to say that this film is the total opposite of 'Cars 2' and is going to be a definite hit with people as who can resist the comedy duo we all fell in love with in 'Monsters Inc' of Mike and Sully.
Obviously if you've lived under a rock you won't know that this is a prequel to 'Monsters Inc', set ten or so years before the duo even met you first see Mike as a youngster getting off a school bus on a school trip at the Monsters Inc scare factory. A wide eyed Mike then enters one of the doors and impresses a scare monster and gains a hat and vows to become a scarer.
Fast forward a few years and Mike is getting off another school bus but this time he is a college student and looking forward to learning how to be the best scarer in the monster world. As Mike and his room-mate Randall start classes they soon meet the ever so relaxed and all round party guy James P Sullivan who has the attitude that he's got nothing to worry about.
As situations take a turn for the worse Mike and Sully join forces with the campus rejects and join their fraternity Oozma Kappa to compete in the scare games. As the group of six misfit students take on the scare games they soon realise they have bitten off more than they can chew. With the relationship between Mike and Sully still not becoming anything but amicable the group must learn to take advantage of their skills and try to work together. Will the group pull together and help save Mike and Sully? what will happen to their friendship? and how does it all end for Oozma Kappa?
With an ending that definitely stays true to the Pixar ethos that has run throughout their films in the past it is a heart warming story of friendship and how to make the best of any situation. It's interesting to see how Mike and Sully became the best of friends and also see how other characters like Randall change and become evil. Seeing a young tiny Mike and how his and Sully's furr and skin change in colour and how they age is clever and interesting to see on a big screen.
The animation is of course beyond incredible and you can tell Pixar spend alot of time working on textures, liquids, reflection, shadow and brightness to really make the characters pop and impress. With the setting being at a college you are able to see so many new and varied monsters that live in the monster world and see how they develop over the film. Of course the only downside for me is that their is no mention or image of little Boo from the first 'Monsters Inc' film which is a shame but obviously she wouldn't have been born yet.
A clear triumph in my eyes from Pixar another strong emotive filled film that will have you hooked from the start. One downfall I think was a little bit too rushed and just thrown at the end is how Mike and Sully became to be at Monsters Inc and how they finally got their jobs working on the scare floor. A bit more consideration could have been taken into showing it abit more on screen as people might have thought it was the end credits.
When I look back at 2012 I realise that I have missed seeing some of the years best films at the cinema. SO this year is going to be different and I can happily say that there are plenty of varied films for you to go and watch.
So the list I made for my top films to see of 2013 came to a total of 51 films which is alot of films to hopefully go and see this year. But I have narrowed the list down and have come up with my top 10 films you should go and see this year.
My Top 10.
Les Miserables (Jan 11th) - I have to start with what is going to be one of the biggest films of this year and love it or hate it but it does look impressive. Directed by Tom Hooper whose previous directorial movie was the highly successful The Kings Speech shows that the film will be of a high calibre. The story of the film was of course made famous by the stage production that can still be seen in many different countries around the world. For the people who don't know the story of Les Mis it's a tale of fight, dream, hope and love set in a 19th Century France.
With the list of cast members including Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway, Amanda Seyfried, Eddie Redmayne, Sacha Baron Cohen and Helena Bonham Carter you can expect some truly inspiring and memorable performances. Of course with the story starting out on the stage expect plenty of singing and some great vocal performances from the star studded cast. I myself will admit I'm not much of a musical fan and at first I saw this as a film to avoid but take away the singing and you have a great story of fight, dreams, hope and of course love.
Gangster Squad (Jan 11th) - This has to be one of this years best gangster films, maybe the ONLY gangster film out this year. The film itself is based in the turn of the 1940's and 1950's where East Coast mobsters turned to living in the Los Angeles area and made the LA area their base for organised crime.
As East Coast main mobster Mickey Cohen (Sean Penn) arrives in LA he's met with opposition from a group of no holds barred cops including Sgt. John O'Mara (Josh Brolin) and Sgt. Jerry Wooters (Ryan Gosling). Cue the inclusion of the very cute and attractive moll of the film Grace Faraday (Emma Stone) and you've got a great gangster film with plenty of explosions, car chases and bullets flying.
Django Unchained (Jan 18th) - The new film by Quentin Tarantino and of course you can expect the usual Tarantino traits, plenty of blood, violence, a story of revenge and maybe even a mexican stand off. The story is based around Django (Jamie Foxx) who is saved from slavery by Dr. King Schultz (Christoph Waltz).
Django is trained as a bounty hunter and both are on the hunt for two brothers, instead they turn up at the plantation of Calvin Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio) where Django's wife is being held as a slave. With Leonardo DiCaprio playing a vicious plantation owner it'll be interesting to see how he plays a much nastier, darker side that he's not used to. So if your expecting a good old revenge blood fest then by all means watch Django Unchained as it'll be right up your street.
Lincoln (Jan 25th) - If their is one politically based film you have to see this year it has to be Lincoln, aptly about the sixteenth President of the United States of America Abraham Lincoln. A story of conscience as the President must choose one of two paths to either save thousands of lives, bring peace and end the American Civil War or end slavery?.
With Steven Spielberg at the helm of the film you can expect a truly memorable and cleverly thought out film. With Daniel Day-Lewis playing the role of Abraham Lincoln it truly is scary at how much he looks like Abraham Lincoln. From the trailer you can see that the film will strike a chord with everyone to think about not just the film itself but also our own countries situation and maybe inspire a feeling of patriotism in us all.
Oz: The Great and Powerful (March 8th) - The award for the film which is the most visually spectacular it would have to be this. When I first heard about this film being in production I dismissed it and thought it would be a stupid concept. But from the trailer (below) you can clearly see that it is visually spectacular and the storyline and cast lineup is looking good as well. With the Spiderman Trilogy's Sam Raimi directing the film it see's his return to the big screen and what is looking like a great/alternative/fantasy film.
The story see's a stage magician Oscar Diggs "Oz" (James Franco) transported to the fantasy land of Oz where he meets three witches. The three witches Theodora (Mila Kunis), Evanora (Rachel Weisz) and Glinda (Michelle Williams) aren't convinced Oz is the real wizard of Oz everyone has been expecting. Drawn into the land of Oz he must find out and use his magic and illusions to find out who is good and who is evil before it's too late.
Byzantium (May 3rd) - Now this is probably a film that not alot of people will have heard of but I'm really excited by this film. The main reason is that it's a vampire film, I know you'll sigh but trust me this will be a return to how vampire films SHOULD be done. With the director of Interview with the Vampire (Neil Jordan) at the helm you can expect plenty of blood and an intricate storyline running throughout the film.
Of course the storyline of the film is based on two sisters Clara Webb (Gemma Arterton) and Eleanor Webb (Saoirse Ronan) who seek refuge in a deserted guest-house called Byzantium. As Eleanor befriends Frank (Caleb Landry Jones) she tells him their secret that they are 200 year old vampires. As the knowledge of their secret is spread their past finally catches up with them with deadly consequences.
With no official trailer being released for the film yet, check a blood filled scene out below of Saoirse Ronan's character quenching her thirst for blood.
The Great Gatsby (May 17th) - From visionary directory Baz Luhrman who brought us the modern day adaptation of Romeo and Juliet, Moulin Rouge and Australia comes his next film The Great Gatsby. An adaptation of F.Scott Fitzgerald's novel set in Long Island- New York it tells the tale of Jay Gatsby.
As Nick Carraway (Toby Meguire) a mid-westerner moves to Long Island he becomes fascinated with his neighbour, Jay Gatsby (Leonardo DiCaprio). As he gets into Mr Gatsby's inner circle he sees what his life is really like, full of obsession, madness and tragedy. The film itself does look extravagant and truly shows off the style, class and lavish lifestyle the people of the 1920's lived in New York.
Man Of Steel (June 14th) - This has to be one of the superhero films of the year that will be watched under a microscope and will be the big talking point in the Superman fandom. Not directly being called Superman but Man of Steel it has a feel of a new beginning for the superhero from Krypton. The story is of Clark Kent (Henry Cavill) who is sent to earth by his biological father Jor-El (Russell Crowe) after the destruction of Krypton. Adopted by Johnathan (Kevin Costner) and Martha Kent (Diane Lane) he struggles to understand who he is and hides his powers. As Earth is under threat from refugee Kryptonian's led by General Zod (Michael Shannon) he must use his extraordinary powers to protect and save Earth.
The main reason for people (including myself) to be excited about this films is because of the production team behind it. With Zack Snyder the director of Watchmen, Sucker Punch and 300 directing the film, Christopher Nolan of The Dark Knight Trilogy producing and co-writing the story with David S Goyer of The Dark Knight Trilogy it's a phenomenal trio. Lets hope that this trio and the cast make a film as memorable and long lasting like previous DC films but also re-invigorate the Superman franchise as well.
Pacific Rim (July 12th) - Considering their are over ten or more sci-fi films coming out this year alone, this one has definitely caught my attention. A film set in the near future, it shows how portals open up under the sea letting giant "kaiju" monsters through to attack Earth. Of course Earth builds giant robots "Jaegers" controlled by humans to fight off the monsters. But with the monsters coming through alot more frequently they employ a washed up Jaeger pilot Raleigh Becket (Charlie Hunnam) and his Jaeger to deal with the problem and head into the fight.
The visuals from the trailer clearly show that it is giving every sci-fi film a run for its money and what do you expect with Guillermo del Toro directing the film. Yes the Pans Labyrinth, Hellboy 1+2 director is directing what is to be his first ever sci-fi film so you can expect stunning visuals and an interesting maybe quirky storyline as well.
Monsters University 3D (July 12th) - The last film on my top ten list has to be the one animated film I'm really looking forward to. It is of course Pixars next outing the pre-quel to Monsters Inc it's Monsters University.
With the plot for the film still under wraps all we know about the film is what the trailer shows and part of the film will be about friendship. Set ten or so years before Monsters Inc Mike and Sully are part of the same fraternity at University aiming to graduate and become scarers. The pair are rivals at first but at some point the pair become best friends which obviously forms part of the plot of the film but how do they become best friends?.
This is obviously a Pixar film so you can expect to see something truly visually astounding, the storyline will be something either tragic or endearingly heart-warming. But from the pairing and friendship of Mike and Sully it will be a story of friendship and their will no doubt be plenty of laughs along the way.
So this is my list of recommended films you should go and watch over the course of this year. It is a list of mixed films from musical dramas, an epic sci-fi film to a superhero re-invigoration their are plenty of films out there for you to go and see.
