“xXx: Return Of Xander Cage”
Synopsis: Xander Cage is left for dead, but secretly returns to action for a new, tough assignment with his handler Augustus Gibbons.
What You Need To Know: Vin Diesel knows better than to bite the hand that feeds him, so he’s returning to the part of Xander Cage for another go-round after leaving the sequel for Ice Cube back in 2005. With its increasingly outrageous stunts, ‘xXx’ could perhaps piggyback nicely off the ever increasing popularity of those damn ‘Furious‘ movies, coupled with an otherwise dull month in new releases. The ensemble seems to be crafted to appeal to every worldwide market possible, with Donnie Yen, Deepika Padukone, Toni Collette, Ruby Rose, Nina Dobrev, Tony Jaa, Samuel L. Jackson, Neymar Jr., and more among the cast. And it’s directed by journeyman D.J. Caruso (“Disturbia,” “Eagle Eye“) so it shouldn’t be a problem to build set pieces around which Diesel can do big, dumb things.
Release Date: January 20th
“Gold”
Synopsis: An unlikely pair venture to the Indonesian jungle in search of gold.
What You Need To Know: Wait for it… Alright, alright, al-okay, maybe not. Though Matthew McConaughey has far from faltered after winning an Oscar three years ago, several of his high profile follow up films since have been poorly received (“Sea Of Trees” is a disaster probably everyone involved has already forgotten) or just plain underperformed (“Free State Of Jones“). But we should never count out the charming leading man, even if this latest, written and directed by fellow Oscar winner Stephen Gaghan (director “Syriana,” writer of “Traffic“), has failed to create much buzz in the last few months. But even if it’s not cut out for gold statues (the theme for this month?), perhaps it’s a decent enough time at the cinema. We just hope it’s at least a fun romp in telling the true story of the ambitious Kenny Wells, who strikes it rich in Indonesia, builds an empire, and watches it crumble.
Release Date: January 27th
“The Salesman”
Synopsis: A young couple living in Tehran move apartments, and are changed by a sudden eruption of violence.
What You Need To Know: “There is no greater chronicler of the minute but manifold disappointments and disillusionments of which irreparable rifts in relationships are made than Iranian director Asghar Farhadi. [His last four films] have proven Farhadi’s astonishing capacity to trace the ramifications of the incredibly ordinary — an unanswered door, a well-meaning white lie, a forgotten phone — as they unspool with tick-tock clockwork logic toward extraordinary climaxes, that feel both inevitable and unexpected. His new film, ‘The Salesman’, is entirely in that mold, though it’s less about a separation than a sundering, about a splinter that opens up a chasm in a marriage, that in turn exposes a gulf in Iranian society… It is as compelling as anything Farhadi has ever made.” That, according to our review from Cannes last year, perfectly sums up this latest from one of the most gifted filmmakers working today, and why you should be watching his films.
Release Date: January 27th (Limited)
“Staying Vertical”
Synopsis: A filmmaker has to raise a child by himself whilst looking for an inspiration for his new film.
What You Need To Know: Another Cannes competition title from last year, and though our review from the fest was more in the middle on this follow up from Alain Guiraudie, director of “Stranger By The Lake,” any cinephile following the latest in world cinema is sure to be ready for this one. “[It] feels very much like the film a blocked writer, trying to follow up his well-received previous title which was celebrated at least partially for its explicit depictions of sex, would make. It’s… an episodic picaresque that rambles loose-jointedly from absurdist encounter to vaguely fable-like incident, until the chance for an arrestingly graphic shot of a vagina occurs, or a scene of unsimulated childbirth, or a moment which is later, fairly accurately, reported in a newspaper as ‘Man Sodomizes Then Euthanizes Elderly Man In Front Of Baby’.” So, yeah, pretty damn curious what this is all about.
Release Date: January 20th (Limited)
“The Daughter”
Synopsis: Follows a man who returns home to discover a long-buried family secret, and whose attempts to put things right threaten the lives of those he left home years before.
What You Need To Know: This little movie got a good notice from us out of Venice 2015, and with a cast including Paul Schneider, Geoffrey Rush, Miranda Otto, Sam Neill and introducing a newcomer Odessa Young (who we called “excellent”) plus a feature length debut from actor/director Simon Stone, who tells a story about the tough differences between childhood and becoming an adult, “a sensitive and cinematic exploration of those differences, and a tale of fathers disappointing their sons and sons resenting their fathers, with the titular daughter,” we think that’s more than enough to highlight this one. We hope you’re open to seeking it out if it comes to your city, or look for it on VOD as well. Too many good movies like this get overlooked in the big pond out there.
Release Date: January 27th (Limited)
Honorable Mentions:
As mentioned at the top of this column, there are plenty of big titles that only got a brief NYC and/or LA run at the end of December for Academy qualification, and this month will expand much wider soon. So don’t sleep on the much loved “Toni Erdmann,” which has been riding a strong wave of critical adoration since its Cannes premiere all the way to Oscar glory (we hope). There’s other stuff from foreign auteurs as well, including “deeply moving fable” “A Monster Calls,” Almodovar‘s latest “Julieta,” Pablo Larrain‘s third film in a year(!) “Neruda,” and Palme d’Or winner “I, Daniel Blake,” from Ken Loach.
Perhaps most exciting is the return of Martin Scorsese, with his passion project several decades in the works, “Silence.” Literally counting the days for this one to come out. Mike Mills‘ lovely film “20th Century Women” is a great way to spend a few hours with wonderful characters. We’re big fans of that one in these parts, for good reason. And of course, one of The Playlist’s favorite films of last year, “Paterson,” from Jim Jarmusch, which we called “poetry for the pure of heart.” Yes, please.
Also be on the lookout for possible Oscar contender “Hidden Figures” starring Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monáe, Kevin Costner, Kirsten Dunst and many more, and directed by Theodore Melfi (“St. Vincent“), which tells the crowd-pleasing, little known story of the brilliant African-American women who helped win the Space Race. Oscars may also come calling for Ben Affleck who hopes his latest directorial effort, “Live By Night,” will get him back in good stead with critics (though we didn’t like it much).
The second of the two Peter Berg/Mark Wahlberg re-teams of the season and arguably the most intriguing of the two, “Patriot’s Day” (which follows the “Lone Survivor” pattern of a limited release in December before expanding wide in January) is another based-in-fact docudrama. This time, the disaster is of a terrorist nature, with Berg (working from a script co-written by “Bridge Of Spies” scribe Matt Charman) telling the story of the bombing of the Boston Marathon in April 2013, and the subsequent manhunt for the Tsarnaev Brothers who carried it out.
There’s climate change doc “Antarctica: Ice and Sky,” “Detour” as well as “The Ardennes” in terms of off-the-beaten-path titles. The rest of this section is mostly made up of dreck releases for January, which is commonly used as a dumping ground, so at least the movies are consistent on that vein. It’s on full display with the likes of “Underworld: Blood Wars,” “Monster Trucks,” “The Comedian” and “Bastards.” Choose wisely, folks.