2015 Looks to Be Banner Year for Movies

Written by Jon Williams

You’ve heard about it, and it’s finally here. Today, Fifty Shades of Grey opens in theaters, following months of anticipation and controversy. Based on the first of author E.L. James’s trilogy of novels, the film (itself the first of a trilogy) is expected to win the weekend’s box office handily, even against strong competition from Kingsman, another new release, plus holdovers SpongeBob and American Sniper.

Fifty Shades is the first really highly anticipated movie to open in 2015, but by no means is it the last. Looking at what’s in store for the year should have moviegoers feeling pretty excited. First up is a number of reboots, remakes, and reimaginings, including a live-action version of Cinderella, directed by Kenneth Branagh, hitting the screen one month from today. This summer, you can look for an update of the horror classic Poltergeist, as well as a new version of Fantastic Four, with Miles Teller, Kate Mara, Michael B. Jordan, and Jamie Bell as the titular superhero quartet. For Christmas, you can look forward to a remake of Point Break that features extreme sports in place of surfing in the original. And finally, if iconic characters are your thing, you won’t want to miss Mr. Holmes, which stars Sir Ian McKellan as the world’s most famous detective in his elder days and dealing with a failing memory. No U.S. release date has yet been announced, but it is expected to be out sometime this year.

If your favorite franchise isn’t getting a reboot, then chances are good that it’s getting a sequel, as there are a ton of those on tap for 2015. First on the docket is Insurgent, coming March 20, the second in the Divergent series based on the young adult novels by Veronica Ross. Staying in the dystopian future genre, this year will see the conclusion to the Hunger Games series, as Mockingjay Part 2 debuts in November. The summer a number of blockbusters will have viewers flocking to theaters for new installments of The Avengers (Age of Ultron), Jurassic Park (Jurassic World), and Terminator (Genisys). Daniel Craig takes another turn as super-spy James Bond in Spectre, the follow-up to Skyfall. There will also be new installments for The Fast and the Furious, Pitch Perfect, Ted, and Magic Mike as the year goes on. And in December, there’s that new Star Wars movie that has everyone all abuzz.

Of course, if original fare is more your cup of tea, there’s plenty to look forward to on that score as well. Later this month, Serena comes to the screen, starring Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence and based on the novel by Ron Rash. March 6 will see the release of Chappie, the story of a robot who gains intelligence and emotions, directed and written by Neill Blomkamp, known for District 9 and Elysium. Child 44, in theaters in April, tells a story of murder and intrigue in the Soviet Union, based on the bestselling novel by Tom Rob Smith. In May, look for Tomorrowland, the sci-fi fantasy from Disney starring George Clooney. Another Marvel movie, Ant-Man, comes out in July, with Paul Rudd playing the tiny superhero. And November looks pretty awesome, with releases including Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight, Disney/Pixar’s The Good Dinosaur, and the adaptation of Andy Weir’s acclaimed novel The Martian, starring Matt Damon.

Naturally, this is just scratching the surface of all the amazing films coming our way this year. As always, look to Midwest Tape for these films as they come available on DVD and Blu-ray, and let us know what you’re looking forward to seeing.