By YOSEF IBITAYO/ Staff Contributor
- Dune: Part Two
Dune: Part Two, based off of the seminal 1965 science-fiction novel Dune by Frank Herbert, continues the story of 2021’s Oscar-winning Dune. Following the fall of House Atreides to the treachery of House Harkonnen in the first film, Paul Atreides (who is played once again by Timothée Chalamet) seeks to unite the native Fremen people of the planet Arrakis against their common foe.
The Dune franchise is not without controversy, however. As part of an attempt to bolster public interest in their new HBO Max streaming service, Warner Bros. released Dune simultaneously in theatres and on Max. The multi-platform release was not viewed positively by either Villenueve or long-time Warner Bros. collaborator Christopher Nolan, whose 2021 film Tenet also received the same treatment. In a December 2020 op-ed for Variety, Nolan wrote, “With this decision AT&T has hijacked one of the most respectable and important studios in film history. There is absolutely no love for cinema, nor for the audience here. It is all about the survival of a telecom mammoth, one that is currently bearing an astronomical debt of more than $150 billion.”
With the subsiding of the pandemic, this conclusion to Villenueve’s adaptation of Herbert’s epic seems set to make a much larger impact on the waning theatre industry than its predecessor. The ensemble cast, which already features such acting powerhouses as Zendaya, Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin and Stellan Skarsgård, has been expanded to include Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, Lea Seydoux, and Christopher Walken. Dune: Part Two releases March 1, 2024.
- Civil War
Civil War follows a group of journalists involved in “an adrenaline-fueled thrill ride through a near-future fractured America balanced on the razor’s edge.” It is the fourth film directed by Alex Garland and starring Kirsten Dunst, Jesse Plemons, Wagner Moura, and Nick Offerman. Civil War marks the second of Garland’s films to be distributed by A24 entertainment company following his Oscar-winning Ex Machina.
Garland, who was nominated for and won multiple awards for his work in writing and directing Ex Machina, has had a career of great significance in the film industry over the past two decades. As the screenwriter for 2003’s 28 Days Later, he helped to revitalize the zombie genre in the early 2000s, thus indirectly leading to the popularity of series like The Walking Dead, Zombieland, and The Last of Us. With 2012’s Dredd, he helped rehabilitate the general public’s perception of the titular character following 1995’s Judge Dredd. As a director, his work has been well-received, with his 2018 film Annihilation being one of former President Barack Obama’s favorite films of that year.
A24 has also had a noticeable presence in the film industry over the past 12 years. As one of the premier independent entertainment companies in modern Hollywood, the company has produced or distributed some of the most acclaimed films of the 2010s and 2020s, like Midsommar, Hereditary, and Uncut Gems. Two of their films, 2016’s Moonlight and 2022’s Everything, Everywhere, All at Once, have won Academy Awards.
Considering America’s tumultuous recent history, Garland’s film seems like an apt and possibly hard-hitting examination of the nation we live in today. Civil War releases April 12, 2024.
- Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, the fifth film in the Mad Max franchise, serves as a spinoff and prequel to 2015’s Academy Award-winning Mad Max: Fury Road. After being kidnapped by a Biker Horde, which is led by the Warlord Dementus (Chris Hemsworth), a younger Furiosa (Anya Taylor-Joy) finds a way back home through the Wasteland.
Beginning with 1979’s Mad Max, George Miller has directed and written every film in the Mad Max franchise, including Furiosa. As a first-time film producer, Miller envisioned Mad Max as “a montage film”, a style of filmmaking that gave him greater control over the film’s editing. This aspect of control is present throughout the franchise, as each subsequent film further explores Miller’s fascination with violence in film and “the three Ms – music, montage, and myth”. These elements of Miller’s work culminated with 2015’s Mad Max: Fury Road, which came out of a 28-year development nightmare to critical acclaim and hundreds of nominations and awards.
As a prequel to such a momentous film, Furiosa has big shoes to fill. However, given the skill and range of the actors attached to the film, it would likely be easier than for most other prequel films. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga releases May 24, 2024 in the United States.
- Deadpool 3
As both the sole Marvel Cinematic Universe film to release in 2024 and the last remnant of Fox’s X-Men film series left in existence, the as-of-yet untitled Deadpool threequel has its work cut out for it. Keeping in line with the average MCU film, plot details are scarce at present. However, the presence of actors like Hugh Jackman and Jennifer Garner suggests that the story will serve as an integral part of the ongoing Multiverse Saga of the MCU.
In contrast to the MCU’s four previous phases, a decent portion of Marvel Studios’ Phase Five offerings have not been received well. 2023’s The Marvels has the distinction of being both the lowest grossing and shortest MCU film, while Secret Invasion and Echo’s premiere seasons have critic scores of 53% and 74% on Rotten Tomatoes, respectively. Even Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is not without its misfortunes, as Jonathan Majors, who played the villain Kang the Conqueror in the film, was fired by Marvel Studios following his assault conviction. Thus, Marvel Studios has had to reevaluate their future plans regarding the character up to the previously-announced Avengers 5 (formerly Avengers: The Kang Dynasty) and Avengers: Secret Wars.
Regardless of this recent slump, however, Deadpool 3’s status as the potential hat trick for a highly acclaimed (and high-earning) trilogy warrants some attention and excitement. Both Deadpool and Deadpool 2 became the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time at the time of their respective releases, and have earned solid critical scores. With this trilogy capper, one can have hope that the future MCU will reclaim some of the pop-culture prominence it once held. Deadpool 3 releases July 26, 2024.
- Nosferatu
Some of Nosferatu’s cover imagery. Photo courtesy of imdb.com
2024’s Nosferatu, directed by Robert Eggers and starring Bill Skarsgård, Nicholas Hoult and Lily-Rose Depp, is the second remake of the 1922 German Expressionist silent film Nosferatu. The initial film, created by Henrik Galeen and F. W. Murnau as an unauthorized and unofficial adaptation of Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel Dracula, is consistently hailed as one of the foundational works of the horror film genre. The only other remake of the film, 1979’s Nosferatu the Vampyre, was directed by film legend Werner Herzog.
Compared to the other directors on this list, Eggers does not have nearly the same amount of documented filmmaking experience. However, all of his three prior films – 2015’s The Witch, 2019’s The Lighthouse, and 2022’s The Northman – have received Rotten Tomatoes critical scores of 90%.
Given such information, it is clear that Nosferatu’s 2024 remake is in one of the most capable hands in modern horror filmmaking. 2024’s Nosferatu releases Christmas Day 2024.
