With 2020 firmly in the rear-view mirror (thank the heavens for that!), we now shift our attention to 2021, where some of Hollywood’s heaviest hitters return. From Paul Thomas Anderson to Martin Scorsese, and even the return of Joel Coen, solo, stepping behind the camera for the first time without his brother Ethan. We’ve expanded our list to 35 titles this year because, quite frankly, with all the big 2020 movies postponed to 2021, this coming cinematic year looks completely packed to the rafters, that is if studios are willing to embrace streaming or, at the very least, have patience until things get back to normal by year’s end. So let’s roll through some of the possible must-sees of the year.
1) “Soggy Bottom”
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson (“Boogie Nights,” “The Master,” “There Will Be Blood”)
Paul Thomas Anderson’s next film, supposedly titled “Soggy Bottom,” wrapped up production just last month. As we’ve mentioned in the past few months, the latest, and highly-secretive, film from the director of “There Will Be Blood” and “The Master” takes place in Southern California during the 1970s and follows a kid actor’s teen years attending high school in the San Fernando Valley. There have been rumors pointing towards the character that Bradley Cooper plays being Jon Peters, the producer of 1976’s “A Star is Born,” leading to speculation that this could be about the making of the Streisand-Kristofferson film (cheeky kind-of-casting when you realize Cooper also wrote, directed and starred in his own remake of the film back in 2018). Based on leaked pictures from the secretive set, actress-musician Alana Haim does, in fact, look like she’s playing Barbra Streisand from the same era. Writer-director-actor-editor Benny Safdie, who will play real-life politician Joe Wachs, a Los Angeles Council member. Wachs was a closeted gay man with a larger-than-life personality who didn’t come out until the late ’90s. Phillip Seymour Hoffman’s son, Cooper Alexander Hoffman, has been cast in an undisclosed role.
2) “Killers of the Flower Moon”
Director: Martin Scorsese (“Goodfellas,” “Raging Bull,” “Taxi Driver”)
AppleTV+ and Martin Scorsese are teaming up for the upcoming movie, which Paramount is still set to distribute. Supposedly, the budget on ‘Killers’ had inflated to a worrisome $225M, and shelling out money for such a risky endeavor started to get Paramount a little too nervous about its commercial prospects. The troubled pre-production on the film resulted in Scorsese reaching out to countless studios including Netflix, Universal, and MGM. Ultimately, AppleTV+ won out the rights. The 77-year-old director of such classics as “Goodfellas,” “Raging Bull,” and “Taxi Driver” was set to shoot “Killers of the Flower Moon” in March, but production was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The film itself, an adaptation of David Grann’s grisly murder-mystery novel, is set to star Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro. The screenplay, written by Eric Roth, takes place in 1920s Oklahoma and tells the story of a corrupt FBI investigation on Osage Indians who suddenly start to get murdered. There is currently no release date for “Killers of the Flower Moon,” but one assumes the possibility of a fall 2021 release primed and ready for Oscar season.
3) “The Tragedy of Macbeth”
Director: Joel Coen (“Fargo,” “No Country For Old Men”)
Joel Coen goes solo for this re-telling of one of Shakespeare’s most famous plays. Although adapted countless times before, including only four years ago in an adaptation that had Michael Fassbender in the lead role, the presence of Coen, along with Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand, make this one to watch. But where’s Ethan? We don’t really know. In fact, we have plenty of questions about this one. Will it feel like a Coen movie? Or will Joel play this Shakespearean adaptation as straight-faced as they go? At the end of the day, my general rule stands: In Coen we trust.
4) “The French Dispatch”
Director: Wes Anderson (“The Grand Budapest Hotel.” “Rushmore”)
Will 2021 also be the year Wes Anderson returns on the big screen? Hopefully, with yet another brilliant, original piece. Described as a love letter to journalists, the story will apparently follow a journalist who fights hard to create a Magazine in 20th century France. Although not a great deal is known about the plot, the film does have a host of Anderson regulars and newcomers, including Frances McDormand, Timothee Chalamet, Bill Murray, Saoirse Ronan, and many more. This was supposed to be released last summer, with a Cannes world premiere set, but we all know how the year got upended by a pandemic. Rumor has it that Anderson’s film may attempt to premiere again on the Croisette this coming May.
5) “Nightmare Alley”
Director: Guillermo Del Toro (“Pan’s Labyrinth,” “The Shape of Water”)
Having stepped away from the camera following his 2018 Oscar win for “The Shape of Water”, Guillermo Del Toro returns with an adaptation of William Lindsay Gresham’s novel. Starring Bradley Cooper in the lead role (which was at one point Leonardo DiCaprio) the story follows a con-man as he teams up with a psychiatrist (Toni Collette) to swindle people; however, all is not as it seems. The film recently wrapped up production with del Toro now headed to the editing room to complete his film. An Oscar-hungry fall release date seems to be set for this one; no surprise, as the cast, which also includes the likes of Rooney Mara, Cate Blanchett, and Toni Collette, is one of the greatest we’ve ever seen assembled for a single film.
6) “Blonde”
Director: Andrew Dominik (“The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford”)
Andrew Dominik hasn’t released a movie since 2012’s scathing indictment of America, “Killing Them Softly.” That movie has only aged better over time and whet our appetite for a new film from the New Zealand-born director. Enter “Blonde,” Dominik’s first film in over 8 years and a fictionalized chronicle of the inner life of Marilyn Monroe. The film has received major boosts in the wake of its star, Ana De Armas’, meteoric rise in popularity since the release of her star-making performance in “Knives Out”. And she is no doubt primed to deliver another killer role in Dominik’s re-imagining of one of Hollywood’s first megastars. Not many films have been made about the legend, born Norma Jean, but something tells us that what Dominik has in store will be very special.
7) “Amsterdam”
Director: David O. Russell (“American Hustle”)
David O. Russell’s last film was the 2015 movie, “Joy,” starring Jennifer Lawrence. And so, after a five-year break, Russell is planning a comeback. According to Deadline, Christian Bale is set to reunite with the writer-director on a new film. There’s no mention of a title and no plot specifics being given at the present time. No worries, just the news of a new Russell vehicle, not to mention bringing Bale along for the ride, is bound to be cinematic nirvana. Bale’s fellow Oscar winners Jamie Foxx and Angelina Jolie are also rumored for the movie, whereas Margot Robbie is the female lead to starring opposite Bale. Sources have told Collider that the project’s working title is Amsterdam, and that it will follow the unlikely partnership between a doctor and a lawyer. Want more good news? Cinematographer extraordinaire Emmanuel Lubezki is set to be in charge of the photography.
8) “Don’t Look Up”
Director: Adam McKay (“Step Brothers,” “Vice”)
What we know about Adam McKay’s “Don’t Look Up,” his upcoming return to comedy, is that it’s the story of two low-level astronauts who must go on a giant media tour to warn mankind of an approaching asteroid that will destroy Earth. It sounds politically-charged and it probably will be. McKay told Rolling Stone earlier in the year that his film was set to tackle a global catastrophe and a bumbling U.S. President who refuses to listen to his White House scientists advice. McKay has decided to bring in an all-star cast with him in the process, and that includes Leonardo DiCaprio, Meryl Streep, Timothee Chalamet, Jennifer Lawrence, Cate Blanchett, and Jonah Hill. Netflix is producing.
9) “Dune”
Director: Denis Villeneuve (“Arrival,” “Blade Runner: 2049”)
Any Sci-fi or indeed any Denis Villeneuve fans out there will be waiting with bated breath for the director’s adaptation of Frank Herbert’s famous novel. The story (to cut a long story short) follows the son of a noble family, played here by Timothee Chalamet in his first blockbuster role, as he is entrusted with the protection of the most valuable asset in the galaxy. Even for those not familiar with the novel, Villeneuve’s supremely stylized and creative touch, coupled with a stellar cast including, Oscar Isaac, Rebecca Ferguson, Zendaya, Josh Brolin, and Javier Bardem, to name but a few, make this one of 2021’s most exciting blockbusters. Originally scheduled for 2020, this is now set to be released, simultaneously, theatrically and via streaming platform HBO Max next fall.
10) “Red Rocket”
Director: Sean Baker (“Tangerine,” “The Florida Project”)
A new film by Sean Baker? Automatic top 10 inclusion. This neo-realist visionary sets his sights again on marginalized Americana in this secretly filmed, during the pandemic no less, project. Details surrounding this new movie are hush-hush, but, based on the little that we do know, a dark comedy starring Simon Rex and first-time performers awaits us. Shot by gifted DP Drew Daniels (“Waves,” “Euphoria”), “Red Rocket” still needs to find a distributor, but, given it will likely be a breeze for Baker to find an indie studio willing to leap to the great blue with him, a Cannes premiere may very well await this film.
11) “Last Night in Soho”
Director: Edgar Wright (“Baby Driver,” the Cornetto Trilogy)
Edgar Wright. Psychological Horror. Set in the ’60s. Starring Thomasin Mackenzie and Anya Taylor-Joy. We don’t know much else, but sign us up. What You Need To Know: If Edgar Wright’s kinetic, bullet-riddled live-action jukebox masterpiece “Baby Driver” saw the director riffing on the cinema of Walter Hill and Michael Mann in his own inimitable key (and somehow managing to turn Ansel Elgort into an action-movie star), then “Last Night in Soho” will see the British director tipping his proverbial caps to milestones like Nicolas Roeg’s “Don’t Look Now” and Roman Polanski’s “Repulsion.” Not much is known about the plot particulars at this time, except that the film will reportedly involve an element of time travel that sees at least one of the characters being transported back to the freewheeling London of the ’60s, but we are certainly tickled by the prospect of this ingenious director working in a more potentially wicked register.
12) “The Northman”
Director: Robert Eggers (“The Witch,” “The Lighthouse”)
I have been a major advocate of Eggers’ filmmaking skills, at least ever since I saw “The Witch” at Sundance 5 years ago. He’s the real deal, even if I thought “The Lighthouse,” a compulsively watchable film, was a tad beneath Eggers’ skills as a filmmaker. “The Northman,” which just finished production, stars Nicole Kidman, Alexander Skarsgård, Anya Taylor-Joy, Bill Skarsgård, and Willem Dafoe. There is no word yet on what the plot is about, and I doubt, much like withhis other films, we will get plot detail before it is actually seen. This has a screenplay co-written by Icelandic novelist and poet Sjón Sigurdsson. Expect ambiguously spooky storytelling.
13) “Annette”
Director: Leos Carax (“Mauvais Sang,” “Holy Motors”)
Leos Carax will bring us one of the year’s most intriguing films in the shape of this story set “all in songs”. With no dialogue, but instead, a story told through music, the film follows Adam Driver as a stand-up comedian and Oscar winner Marion Cotillard as his Opera-singer wife, as the two discover their daughter has a unique gift. Could we very well be seeing Driver nab his third Oscar nomination? Early buzz is very strong on his performance. Carax also hasn’t released a film since his 2012 groundbreaker “Holy Motors,” suffice to say, Cannes awaits this new film with open arms.
14) “Memoria”
Director: Apichatpong Weerasethakul (“Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives,” “Cemetery of Splendor”)
Thai director Apichatpong Weerasethakul will bring us this Tilda Swinton led drama about a Scottish woman traveling in South America who begins to notice strange sounds and wonders about their appearances. Not a lot to go on, I know, but all I can find at this point. Weerasethakul is once again being included in best-of-decade lists for his masterful “Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall Past Lives.” Back in the Aughts, his indisputably great “Tropical Malady” was being cited as a decade influencer as well. There is no reason not to believe he will shape this coming decade of cinema as well. It’s also his first non-Thai, English-language film.
15) “Armageddon Time”
Director: James Gray (“The Yards,” “Ad Astra”)
James Gray is set to direct a new movie, this after his long-delayed “Ad Astra” finally hit theaters two Septembers ago to positive reviews. This new project, titled “Armageddon Time,” will bring Gray back to New York, after tackling the Amazon jungle in 2017’s “Lost City of Z” and space with ‘Astra.’ If you remember, Gray’s first 5 movies ( “Little Odessa,” “The Yards,” “We Own the Night,” “Two Lovers,” and “The Immigrant”) were all set in New York City. Gray will write and direct “Armageddon Time,” which stars Cate Blanchett in “an autobiographical drama about growing up in mid-1980s Queens, New York.” More intriguingly it seems as though Donald Trump and his late father Fred will be one of the characters involved in the story. We all know who Donald is, but his father Fred was a Queens-based real estate developer who mentored Donald into the eventual real estate mogul that he would become.
16) “The Power Of The Dog”
Director: Jane Campion (“The Piano,” “Top of the Lake”)
Benedict Cumberbatch and Kirsten Dunst star in Campion’s next film, the Netflix-produced “The Power of the Dog,” an adaptation of the Thomas Savage novel. A pair of brothers who own a large ranch in Montana are pitted against each other when one of them gets married. Legendary writer-director Campion hasn’t directed a movie since 2009’s “Bright Star,” since then, she’s mostly dabbled in creating the TV series “Top of the Lake,” which was quite wonderful, but didn’t come close to the landmarks Campion had created over her illustrious 25-year career. Those landmarks are, as far as I’m concerned, “The Piano,” “Sweetie,” and “An Angel at My Table.” I also have a great affinity for “The Portrait of A Lady,” and the now, thanks to gender studies classes in film schools nationwide, the newly-minted feminist classic “In the Cut” (a wildly uneven B-movie that is as fascinating as it is messy and frustrating).
17) The Last Duel”
Director: Ridley Scott (“The Martian,” “All the Money in the World”)
Here’s a film that was met with some disregard and a whole bucketload of hesitation upon its announcement. Written by Ben Affleck, Matt Damon and Nicole Holofcener, Ridley Scott’s new film is an adaptation of Eric Jäger’s similarly-titled novel, which entails a battle to the death between two friends following the accusation of rape by the wife of Jean De Carrouges (Adam Driver). It all sounds like a spiritual successor to Scott’s 1977 beauty “The Duelists.” The prolific UK-born director has been hit-and-miss his entire career, but when he hits the mark (“Blade Runner,” “Alien,” “Gladiator”), it turns out to be the kind of statement that changes the path of film.
18) “The Way Of The Wind”
Director: Terrence Malick (“Tree of Life,” “The Thin Red Line”)
Terrence Malick will follow up last year’s “A Hidden Life” by jumping straight back in with this biblical drama, believed to be the retelling of several episodes in the life of Christ. One thing that has been confirmed is Oscar winner Mark Rylance’s role as four different forms of Satan. production has been completed on the film, and now we’re all left to wonder how much time in the editing room Malick will be spending in 2021 — the legendary filmmaker is known to sit on a movie for years on end before it is finally released.
19) “The Card Counter”
Director: Paul Schrader (“First Reformed,” “Auto Focus”)
Earlier this decade, Paul Schrader had mentioned how he once considered Oscar Isaac for 2018’s “First Reforme.” if he’d been ten years older, alas, Ethan Hawke got it instead, but it turned out to be one of Hawke’s very best performances. It seems like water under the bridge then as Schrader has found another way to work with Isaac, casting the excellent actor as the lead for his upcoming “The Card Counter.” The plot has William Tell (Isaac), a gambler and former serviceman, setting out to reform a young man seeking revenge on a mutual enemy from their past. Schrader, a maverick if there ever was one in modern-day film, always goes by his own groove, never adhering to hip trends, we expect the same kind of statement with this latest film.
20) “Babylon”
Director: Damien Chazelle (“Whiplash,” “First Man”)
Said to take place during the transition from silent films to talkies, and featuring a mix of real-life and fictional characters, Damien Chazelle’s “Babylon” is set to star Emma Stone and also, rumor has it, Brad Pitt. [Via THR] Pitt would portray a fictional character that is a star of silent films who is unable to make the transition to the new era of Hollywood. The report claims that Pitt’s character is based on the real-life story of John Gilbert. Stone, on the other hand, would play Clara Bow, who is widely recognized as the first “It” girl of Hollywood. After his low-key debut “Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench,” Chazelle stormed the industry with 2014’s “Whiplash” and 2016’s “La La Land,” both of which got a Best Picture nomination. His subsequent film, the Neil Armstrong biopic“First Man,” was less successful, to my eyes and ears at least, but most definitely had its fans. Chazelle is one of the few filmmaking whiz kids to have come out of American cinema the last decade. Not many directors have broken out within the American studio with the kind of buzz he’s had. It will be very exciting to see what he does next with “Babylon.”
21) “Benedetta”
Director: Paul Verhoeven (“Robocop,” “Total Recall”)
Foreign language films have received huge boosts in the last two years, following the major critical and commercial successes of “Roma”, “Parasite” and “Portrait of a Lady On Fire,” Dutch director Paul Verhoeven will hope to add to that list with this adaptation of Judith C.Brown’s “The Life of a Lesbian Nun in Renaissance Italy.” Virginie Efira stars as Benedetta Carlini, a nun experiencing both religious and erotic visions, before entering a fiery relationship with Daphne Patakia’s Bartolomea. Sounds Verehoeven-esque and a clearcut return to the period-piece erotica theatrics of his underseen 2007 gem “Black Book.” A Cannes world premiere is almost a certainty.
22) “C’mon C’mon”
Director: Mike Mills (“Beginners,” “20th Century Women”)
Starring Joaquin Phoenix, “C’mon C’mon” is said to be about a documentary filmmaker working with his nephew on a project involving gifted children, all in the while dealing with his bipolar father’s struggles with the disorder. The film also stars Gaby Hoffman, Jaboukie Young-White, Woody Norman, and Elaine Kagan. Mills, whose last film was the excellent “20th Century Women”, will unite with Oscar winner Phoenix in this much-anticipated film that was ready for release in 2020 before being totally scrapped out of A24’s slate due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Mills’ career was ignited back in 2005 with his peculiar debut “Thumbsucker,” before going back to the snowy Park City mountains in 2011 with “Beginners.”
23) “Next Goal Wins”
Director: Taika Waititi (“Jojo Rabbit,” “Thor: Ragnarok”)
“Next Goal Wins” tells the true story of a soccer coach (Michael Fassbender) who gains control of the American Samoa national team and attempts to get them qualified for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Less than two years after his Oscar-nominated WWII satire “Jojo Rabbit,” Kiwi filmmaker Taika Waititi has this sports comedy prepped up and ready to go before embarking on his upcoming superhero epic “Thor: Love & Thunder.” Oh, and he directed the finale of this somewhat succesful Disnery series, “The Mandalorian. Suffice to say, Waititi is one of the most sought-after directors in the world right now.
24) “Petite Maman”
Director: Celine Sciamma (“Portrait Of A Lady On Fire”)
Céline Sciamma has become an overnight sensation in the American indie scene, but in France, her body of work has been well-known for close to a decade. Regardless, After debuting “Portrait of A Lady on Fire” at last year’s Cannes Film Festival, a sumptuously made 121-minute triumph which simmers with slow-burn until it breaks your heart, Sciamma has gained a much larger contingent of fans worldwide. The French filmmaker has started shooting her next film in Paris, this one titled “Petite Maman.” The film may involve two young girls, potentially twins, named Nelly and Marion, both aged 7-10-years-old. Plot-wise, we don’t know much else about this new project, but it is rumored to be another coming-of-age story in the same vein as her pre-’Portrait’ films (“Girlhood” “Water Lillies” and “Tomboy”).
25) “West Side Story”
Director: Steven Spielberg (“Schindler’s List,” “Jaws,” “Minority Report”)
Fans will have to wait until the very last month of 2021 to watch Steven Spielberg’s reimagining of the classic musical “West Side Story”. Starring Ansel Elgort as Tony and newcomer Rachel Zegler as Maria, Spielberg will look to return to top form, whilst Disney (who acquired the film in their takeover of Fox) will hope to cash in on the recent success of musicals since 2016. The film was originally slated to be released this month before being rescheduled due to the pandemic. You can bet on Spielberg, a cinematic purist, not allowing his film to premiere via streaming. The prolific director is coming off a decade where he released Oscar-nominated fare such as “Lincoln,” “War Horse,” “Bridge of Spies,” and “The Post.”
26) “Bergman Island”
Director: Mia Hansen-Løve (“Things To Come”)
Mia Hansen-Løve had a hard time with critics as the yet-undistributed-in-the-U.S. ”Maya” felt like a minor and disappointing work in her ever-growing career. Her next one sounds like something special though. “Bergman Island” stars Mia Wasikowska and Anders Danielsen Lie as filmmakers and romantic partners who travel to remote Fårö island, where Ingmar Bergman lived, to write their next screenplays. Rumors are saying this is a semi-autobiographical film, which is unsurprising — Hansen-Løve had her own relationship with a fellow filmmaker, Olivier Assayas end in similar circumstances. We know someone who has seen this film and says it is an absolute contender for next year’s Palme d’Or at Cannes.
27) “Stillwater”
Director: Tom McCarthy (“Spotlight,” “The Station Agent”)
Actor-turned-Director Tom McCarthy has turned into one of the great indie directors of his era. Before his Oscar-winning “Spotlight,” there was the delightful trio of “The Station Agent,” “The Visitor” and “Win-Win.” Yes, his disastrous Adam Sandler fantasy “The Cobbler” needs to be mentioned, but chances are “Stillwater” will be in prime award-season territory — McCarthy is set to tell the story of an Oklahoma rig worker (Matt Damon) who travels to France to try to exonerate his daughter, who’s been imprisoned there for a crime she claims she didn’t commit.
28) “Untitled Elvis Presley Project”
Director: Baz Luhrmann (“Romeo + Juliet,” “Moulin Rouge!”)
Austin Butler as Elvis Presley, Tom Hanks as his manager Colonel Tom Parke and Baz Luhrmann set to direct? Yeah, we’re more than just a little intrigued. The recent success of “Bohemian Rhapsody“ has made biopics of legendary musicians a hot priority and this biopic about Elvis, which stems from a script by “Fifty Shades of Grey” scribe Kelly Marcel (yikes) is notable due to the fact that Luhrmann hasn’t directed a feature-length film since 2013’s “The Great Gatsby.” Before it, he had a time-capsule-worthy bomb titled “Australia.” Remember that one? Regardless, there hasn’t been a big-screen depiction of Elvis’ life, only TV movies (released in 1979 and 2005).
29) “Deep Water”
Director: Adrian Lyne (“Fatal Attraction,” “Unfaithful”)
During the 80’s and 90’s, director Adrian Lyne molded the erotic thriller by making “Fatal Attraction,” “9½ Weeks,” “Flashdance,” “Indecent Proposal,” “Lolita” and “Unfaithful” — all featuring erotic sex and dark thrills. However, ever since 2002’s “Unfaithful” Lyne has been M.I.A. What happened? we’re not entirely sure, but 17 years after his last film, Lyne is back for, that’s right, yet another erotic thriller. “Deep Water” has the filmmaker adapting Patricia Highsmith’s novel of the same name, with Ben Affleck and Ana de Armas co-starring. The film is said to follow “a young married couple as their mind game with each other take a dark turn when bodies begin piling up. The couple avoids divorce by allowing each other to take on new lovers.” Sounds right up Lyne’s territory.
30) “Rebel Ridge”
Director: Jeremy Saulnier (“Blue Ruin,” “Green Room”)
If you haven’t seen any films by director Jeremy Saulnier, then you’re missing out. He’s one of the very best up-and-coming directors around. His 2014 film “Blue Ruin” is a crime-thriller masterpiece and 2016’s “Green Room” was such a dark and nasty neo-Nazi revenge thriller that it felt like an avant-garde horror movie. Saulnier’s knack for visceral violence, in his films you feel every gunshot wound, every stabbing of the knife, every punch, is said to be raised to the extreme in “Rebel Ridge.” Described as “a high-velocity thriller that explores systemic American injustices,” little else is known about this crime drama, which stars John Boyega, but rumor has it pointing towards a Netflix premiere.
31) “After Yang”
Director: Kogonada (“Columbus”)
Elusive video-essayist-turned-filmmaker Kogonada blew me away with his 2017 debut “Columbus.” In the hotly-anticipated “After Yang,” Kogonoada teams up with A24 to adapt Alexander Weinstein’s short story “Saying Goodbye to Yang.” Boasting a cast that includes Colin Farrell, Jodie Turner-Smith, and “Columbus” beauty Haley Lu Richardson, “After Yang” is said to be a sci-fi movie involving a father and daughter who attempt to save the life of a robot family member after it stops functioning. The shoot wrapped in the summer of 2019, with a complex post-production process courting delays, but it is now officially ready. A rumored Sundance 2021 world premiere may be just what we need to kickstart the new cinematic year on a high note.
32) “Triangle of Sadness”
Director: Ruben Östlund (“Force Majeure,” “The Square”)
Swedish writer-director Ruben Östlund follows up his Palme d’Or winning “The Square” with “Triangle of Sadness” which depicts “a pair of models finding themselves at crossroads in their careers” and appears to be a depiction of the modern-day fashion industry’s superficiality. Nobody does squirm-inducing quite like Ostlund, and having Woody Harrelson as your lead actor probably doesn’t hurt either. There is no doubt in everybody’s mind that Ostlund will be back in competition at Cannes with this one.
33) “No Sudden Move”
Director: Steven Soderbergh (“Out of Sight,” “Traffic”)
What would a year be without a new Steven Soderbergh movie. This one has a stunning ensemble, Don Cheadle, Benicio Del Toro, Jon Hamm, Matt Damon, Julia Fox, Kieran Culkin, Ray Liotta, and Amy Seimetz. Wowza. The plot, according to IMDB, has to do with a group of criminals brought together under mysterious circumstances who have to work together to uncover what’s really going on when a heist goes awry. This sounds like Soderbergh going back to familiar “Oceans 11” and “Logan Lucky” territory and we’re not complaining one bit about it. An HBO Max premiere is set for late 2021. While we’re at it, this is a good chance to remind you to watch Soderbergh’s other HBO Max movie, the just-released “Let Them All Talk.”
34) “Gucci”
Director: Ridley Scott (“Alien,” “Gladiator”)
Patrizia Reggiani, the ex-wife of Maurizio Gucci, plotted to kill her husband, the grandson of renowned fashion designer Guccio Gucci. Director Ridley Scott, yeah him again, has decided to adapt this outrageous true crime story with the help of Adam Driver, Jared Leto, Lady Gaga, Al Pacino, Jeremy Irons, and Jack Huston And yes, having Lady Gaga in the lead is a risk, but having her trying to kill her husband (played by Driver) is enough to whet our appetites. Robert De Niro is rumoured to also be in this movie, and that would just be the cherry on top of the cake. A November 24, 2021 date is set for the film.
35) “Lockdown”
Director: Doug Liman (“The Bourne Identity,” “Edge of Tomorrow”)
Anne Hathaway, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Ben Stiller, and Ben Kingsley star in this drama about a couple that attempts a high-risk, high-stakes jewelry heist at a department store. Directed by Liman, who has been Hollywood’s secret go-to director for almost 20 years, a reliable, efficient, and incredibly well-seasoned filmmaker. This has a script by “Peaky Blinders” screenwriter Steven Knight, and none other than HBO Max bought the distribution rights.