Speculative Cinema in 2010: Part One

After.Life

Release Date: TBD

Anticipation: 6 out of 10

Summary: A young woman caught between life and death... and a funeral director who appears to have the gift of transitioning the dead, but might just be intent on burying her alive.

Commentary: Debut director Agnieszka Wojtowicz-Vosloo seems to have landed firmly on her feet with this modestly budgeted psychological thriller which wowed crowds during its brief tour of the film festivals in November of last year. Although a great deal of the hype behind After.Life has centered on a rather naked Christina Ricci, Liam Neeson and Justin Long have both been praised for their supporting roles. Despite its title, After.Life stands to attract quite the cult following.

Alice in Wonderland

Release Date: March 5th

Anticipation: 7 out of 10

Summary: 19-year-old Alice returns to the magical world from her childhood adventure, where she reunites with her old friends and learns of her true destiny: to end the Red Queen's reign of terror.

Commentary: The last Tim Burton film I enjoyed without reservation was Big Fish. Seven years and four variously disappointing films on, I have high hopes for Alice in Wonderland, but then, I always do. Although the haunting of Helena Bonham-Carter rather takes the edge of my expectations, the presence of British treasures such as Stephen Fry and Matt Lucas bodes well indeed, and what's been seen of the visual design to date looks spot-on. At best, this pseudo-sequel to Lewis Caroll's landmark novel could be the twisted adaptation of Alice in Wonderland we've all been waiting for, and right in time for my birthday; at worst, the new Burton could be a repeat performance of the abysmal Charlie in the Chocolate Factory, complete with Johnny goddamn Depp prancing around in another silly costume. Here's hoping for the former. 

Area 51

Release Date: TBD

Anticipation: 8 out of 10

Summary: A group of curious teenagers equipped with a camera stumble upon an area in the Nevada desert known for hosting an alien encounter.

Commentary: Having for some ungodly reason handed over the inevitable but nonetheless unnecessary Paranormal Activity sequel to the director of Saw VI, the second film from Mr found footage himself, Oren Peli, looks to be sticking closely to the formula established by his chilling Halloween '09 release, swapping out supernatural chills for sci-fi spooks. Early "script" reviews, and I use that word loosely, have been positive so far - with the caveat that Peli seems to be retreading some ground. If he can walk the line as effectively as he did in Paranormal Activity, however, I don't think I, for one, will mind. It'll be hard to miss this one come October, at a guess.

Beastly

Release Date: July 30th

Anticipation: 2 out of 10

Summary: A spoiled rich kid is cursed by a girl who turns him into a hideous figure. His only solution is for someone to fall in love with him, and he tries to force it by making the daughter of an addict he has power over live with him.

Commentary: This modern-day take on the Beauty and the Beast myth will either break out in the same way as the execrable Twilight films - that'd be the CW's great white hope - or it'll be lost amongst the shuffle of Summer blockbusters. One of the Olsen twins in a supporting role means gives the latter theory more credence, although a turn by Neil Patrick Harris, otherwise known as Evil League of Evil member Dr Horrible, could prove to be Beastly's saving grace.

Black Death

Release Date: TBD

Anticipation: 5 out of 10

Summary: Set during the time of the first outbreak of bubonic plague in England, a young monk is tasked with learning the truth about reports of a necromancer bringing people brought back to life in a small village.

Commentary: The Speculative Scotsman hates Sean Bean. With a passion. He spoiled the otherwise excellent Silent Hill adaptation and few things have pleased me more than to see his character die - much too slowly for my liking - in The Lord of the Rings. Despite my bias, however, I can see the appeal of this otherwise promising period piece, and director Christopher Smith has impressed me in the past with both Creep and Severance. Black Death even has frequent Derren Brown collaborator Andy Nyman in a supporting role - what's that about? Expect this historical thriller to be good, if not truly great.

The Book of Eli

Release Date: January 15th

Anticipation: 7 out of 10

Summary: A post-apocalyptic tale in which a lone man fights his way across America in order to protect a sacred book that could hold the secret to saving humanity.

Commentary: Yep, missed the boat on this one a bit - it's out already, even in Scotland, where cinemas like to give new releases at least three months to collect dust before thinking to play them. Still, I'm psyched to see the Hughes brothers' latest. I've heard good things and great things, with nary a complaint amongst them, though I'm going to stay skeptical until I get to a theatre and see for myself. If I took a single thing from their last effort, the disappointing but remarkably well shot From Hell, it's that The Book of Eli will certainly look the part. Fingers crossed this Denzel Washington vehicle has more than good looks on its side.

Centurion

Release Date: 23rd April (UK)

Anticipation: 8 out of 10

Summary: A splinter group of Roman soldiers fight for their lives behind enemy lines after their legion is decimated in a devastating guerrilla attack.

Commentary: With a fervour every bit the equal of my hatred for Sean Bean, The Speculative Scotsman loved The Descent. On the other hand, renowned Scottish director Neil Marshall has let me down on two other occasions: I didn't love Dog Soldiers the way I thought I would, and Doomsday just felt flat to me. All the same, a great cast of British thespians including The Wire star Dominic West and an intriguing premise means my doubts are firmly on hold. Although it has no Stateside release date as yet, Centurion could easily be among this year's greats.

The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Release Date: December 10th

Anticipation: 4 out of 10

Summary: Lucy and Edmund Pevensie return to Narnia with their cousin Eustace where they meet up with Prince Caspian for a trip across the sea aboard the royal ship The Dawn Treader.

Commentary: A passing fondness for The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe did not translate into anything but outright loathing for its pandering, overblown follow-up, though reliable sources and a knowledge that this is the best of the C. S. Lewis books have me expecting a great deal more from this second sequel. With Rome mastermind Michael Apted at the helm, that promise could even be true, but I wouldn't bet your bank balance on it; Disney certainly didn't.

Clash of the Titans

Release Date: March 26th

Anticipation: 7 out of 10

Summary: The mortal son of the god Zeus embarks on a perilous journey to stop the underworld and its minions from spreading their evil to Earth as well as the heavens.

Commentary: The Incredible Hulk director Louis Leterrier has the unenviable task of remaking a cult classic, but from the trailers released to date it looks like he's doing a fine job. Here we have Hollywood once again betting on Avatar star Sam Worthington, who for a number of reasons has yet to prove his acting mettle. The fate of Clash of the Titans won't likely be down to strong performances, however; this one's all about the epic fantasy battles, and from what The Speculative Scotsman has seen, it looks every bit the part. Potentially this year's 300.

Cracks

 Release Date: TBD

Anticipation: 6 out of 10

Summary: In a strict, all-girls 1930's English boarding school, a clique of students idolise their charismatic diving teacher Miss G. When a new Spanish foreign exchange student captures Miss G's fascination, the students grow more resentful and dangerous.

Commentary: This isn't speculative cinema per se, but I'm including it in the run-down because everything about it screams Picnic at Hanging Rock with the best Bond girl in recent memory. I didn't manage to catch Cracks during its limited release here in the UK, but I'll certainly be keeping my eyes open for the DVD, despite early reviews complaining that its story is something of a non-event. An interesting, if unenlightening factoid before we call a halt on this first installment of Speculative Cinema in 2010: Cracks marks the directing debut of Ridley Scott's daughter Jordan.

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Keep an eye out for the second part of The Speculative Scotsman's extensive rundown of the year ahead in genre film... a couple of days from now. Precise, I know!

For the moment: enjoy, discuss, and please, feel free to disagree. I am but a humble highlander, and I'd be interested to hear other perspectives on the landscape of speculative cinema stretching out before us.