HONOURABLE MENTIONS: Raya & The Last Dragon, Soul, A Quiet Place: Part II, The Last Duel, Wonder Woman 1984, The Eternals, Annette, Da 5 Bloods, Last Night In Soho, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, The Eyes Of Tammy Faye, The Woman In The Window, Tenet, Antebellum, Candyman, Birds Of Prey
There are rumours that Guillermo Del Toro's NIGHTMARE ALLEY starring BRADLEY COOPER, CATE BLANCHETT, WILLEM DAFOE, TONI COLLETTE AND ROONEY MARA is going to be released later this year. It is currently in production. Since I have seen no official confirmation of this, I'm not including it on the list. However, if it is released this year, it takes a spot in the top 5. No explanation required.
#10: THE FRENCH DISPATCH
The ensemble is SPECTACULAR. The newly released trailer looks like quintessential Wes Anderson. Everything just looks pitch-perfect. Timothée Chalamet is an utterly perfect fit with this auteur, and the rest of this ensemble - Bill Murray, Adrien Brody, Tilda Swinton, Frances McDormand, and SO many more HUGE names in seemingly glorified cameo roles - is simply delicious. I am most notably excited to see Murray and Brody return to the screen.
#9: WEST SIDE STORY
There's a few question marks surrounding this remake... there's the big question as to why it needs to exist, but this is Spielberg we are talking about, and while he hasn't delivered the best films over the past few years, he is still one of the absolute greatest of all time. The biggest attraction to this project, however, is Ansel Elgort. He is extremely talented and such a strong vocalist and it seems that, while it has taken him a while to be rid of the YA heartthrob reputation, he is slowly but surely being taken seriously. Baby Driver has seemed to be his stepping stone. He could become a true star if this version of West Side Story hits all the right points.
#8: NO TIME TO DIE
This really looks like Daniel Craig is going to leave with a bang. The footage so far is visually stunning, and if Billie Eilish's Theme Song is any indication, No Time To Die is going to be chilling, haunting, beautiful, dark and epic. Also, Ana De Armas (read on to find out more).
#7: HILLBILLY ELEGY
Ron Howard isn't exactly an auteur, but he has never not been a strong, reliable director, delivering solid films. Netflix's Hillbilly Elegy looks to be a strong awards contender, particularly in the acting categories. The two most-nominated actresses without having ever won the gold itself, Amy Adams and Glenn Close both star. Will they both put their losing streak to bed? I hope so. Amy Adams is often argued as the best actress of this decade, and I struggle to disagree. The story seems intriguing, based on a memoir dealing with themes of the American Dream (which is a thematic concept I will always be attracted to), but the sole reason this film is on the list is Amy Adams. In fact, I will include The Woman In The Window in this spot as well. I am just excited for her return in full-force. Will 2020 be on par with her show-stopping 2016?
#6: BLONDE
Keep your eye on this film. Ana De Armas began the year with a Golden Globe nomination for her role in Knives Out, and now will joining 007 as the next Bond Girl in No Time To Die, then co-starring in a thriller with Ben Affleck, and then playing the iconic role of Marilyn Monroe/Norma Jeane in Andrew Dominik's Marilyn Monroe biopic Blonde. 2020 is going to be an astonishing year for her, and I feel like everyone is going to know her name. She was excellent in Knives Out and I am so, so excited to see her portrayal of the quintessential starlet Marilyn Monroe. Upon viewing set photos, she looks absolutely stunning and perfect for this part. Remember her name.
#5: RED, WHITE AND WATER
The name 'Jennifer Lawrence' is enough for my anticipation for a film sky-rocket. Red, White & Water is an upcoming PTSD drama set in New Orleans in which Lawrence will play a soldier struggling to re-adapt to civilian life. It is the feature-debut for stage director Lila Neugebauer and the screenwriting debut for Elizabeth Sanders. This is also the first project ever produced by Lawrence's production company. It seems that general audiences have found Jennifer Lawrence's image to be going slightly stale, after the mediocre response to Red Sparrow, the extreme and divisive response to Mother!, the underwhelming overall performance of Passengers, and her not-so-committed portrayals of Mystique in her last two X-Men films, it is actually quite understandable. Whilst I adore Mother! and believe it is among her very greatest performances, the last few years haven't been as strong for Lawrence as her iconic 2012-2015 stretch. A new Hunger Games film every year, a new David O'Russell film every year, and with that, a new Oscar nomination every year. It was a good time. And now, after two years off (excluding Dark Phoenix), it seems that she's hitting reset, with this A24, low-budget indie drama. And I can't wait to witness her comeback.
#4: BLACK WIDOW
Not much explanation is required. After 10 years of Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanoff, the Black Widow, she is finally getting a solo film. In addition to being my favourite Avenger alongside Tony Stark, I am really looking forward to seeing where they take this film tonally, and whether director Cate Shortland and Johansson would choose to take this film to the realm of full-on spy thriller under the superhero umbrella, and they have done just that, and on an epic scale. Also, Florence Pugh. Johansson and Pugh, the two actors that ruled 2019, joining forces in 2020. It feels right.
#3: MULAN
Being one of my very favourite animated films of all time and one that had a tremendous impact on me as a child, everything about the idea of adapting the 1998 classic into a live-action, continuing their own trend, is perfect to me. This is the perfect opportunity to maximise on the potential of this utterly stunning and epic story, and thus far, everything I have seen has been complete perfection. The balance of honouring the nostalgia of the animated film and the sacred legacy of the ancient Chinese legend seems to be making for a true epic made for the big screen and looks to be perhaps one of the highest-grossing films of all time thanks to the appeal of American and Chinese audiences. I cannot wait to witness this come to fruition. It looks to undoubtedly be the greatest live-action remake so far.
#2: MANK
David Fincher directs the story of Herman J. Mankiewicz's tumultuous development of Orson Welles' iconic masterpiece Citizen Kane. Stars Gary Oldman, Lily Collins, Amanda Seyfried. That is all you need to know. End of story.
#1: DUNE
Take one of the most exciting and ceaselessly impressive directors working today, partner him with one of the most promising and sought after actors working today and give them the task to adapt what is considered to be the greatest Sci-Fi Fantasy story ever written, and we have Dune, directed by Denis Villeneuve and starring Timothée Chalamet, what looks to be the beginning of an epic new franchise that could be one of the defining film series of this new decade. This is the perfect next step for Chalamet, who has already conquered coming-of-age, historical drama, period romance, cerebral sci-fi and so much more. He has earned love from critics, Academy voters and cinephiles, but this is his big opportunity to break out into the mainstream and become the dominating force he is destined to be. Combine this with a Bob Dylan biopic and his career is already one that veteran actors could be jealous of. Denis Villeneuve has yet to make a misstep, and with this insanely talented ensemble with Chalamet at the centre, with Villeneuve's visionary eye and cinematic excellence, it would be an absolute shock if this were to go wrong.
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