>> Speaker 1: 2013 was an incredible year for movies, and
we're hoping it wasn't just a flash in the pan.
Here are ten reasons we think 2014 could be even better.
These are the most talked about movies of 2014.
>> [MUSIC]
>> Speaker 1: Kicking us off at number ten, Inherent Vice.
Joaquin Phoenix has had a post-fake insanity revival
with virtuoso performances in The Master and last year's Her.
So we're excited to see him team back up with Paul Thomas Anderson,
the director of The Master and There Will Be Blood for
Inherent Vice, the story of a pot smoking detective's investigation into his
ex-girlfriend's disappearance in 1969 California.
PTA seems to be pretty much incapable of making a bad movie, so
we feel confident that Vice will be poetic, meditative and contain at least
one ridiculously long tracking shot, making it absolutely worthwhile.
>> Speaker 2: I wanna get into the war.
>> Speaker 3: Monuments Men.
>> Speaker 1: And number nine, The Monuments Men.
You won't have to wait long for this one.
It will be in theaters by the end of this week.
In The Monuments Men, a platoon of museum directors lead a special mission in Nazi,
Germany to rescue stolen art from the grip of Hitler before he destroys it,
erasing all record of Jewish culture in the process.
And while it's written, directed, and produced by George Clooney,
his behind camera presence is second to the electricity he
brings in front of the lens.
Combine that with a killer supporting cast and you're looking at possibly the most
fun World War II movie since Inglorious Basterds.
>> Speaker 4: If I asked you to take my virginity, would that be a problem?
>> Speaker 5: No, I don't see a problem.
>> Speaker 1: Number eight, Nymphomaniac.
You can count on Lars von Trier for controversial filmmaking.
>From a terrifying self mutilation and anti-Christ to two-dimensional sets of
Dogville, he's challenged audiences for decades.
His latest effort,
a five hour portrait of a self-proclaimed sex-addict sounds just as provocative.
You can expect actual sex, painfully raw performances, and
a perspective on filmmaking you're unlikely to find from anyone else.
We're not quite sure excited is the right word here,
but as with all of von Trier's work, we're very, very curious.
>> Speaker 6: Give me a 104.
>> Speaker 7: 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4, 1-2 >> Speaker 6: [BLEEP] Christ,
I did not know they allowed retards into Shafer!
>> Speaker 1: Number seven, Whiplash.
Whiplash is the emotionally violent story of a young jazz drummer and
his psychologically abusive music instructor and
the battles they fight with music, with each other and with themselves.
Miles Teller takes the lead as the drummer, Andrew, and
JK Simmons co-stars as the more drill-sergeant than teacher, Fletcher.
The film has already premiered at this year's Sundance, where it's made plenty of
noise, winning both the audience and Grand Jury Award, which is a pretty big deal.
Critics are tripping over themselves to keep praise on this movie,
described as unapologetically questioning how appropriate it is to suffer abuse for
the sake of perfection.
No release date has been set yet, but when the film hits theaters,
count it as a can't miss.
>> Speaker 8: 'Sup dawg?
>> Speaker 9: We're back.
>> Speaker 1: Coming in at number 6, 22 Jump Street.
Jonah Hill and
Channing Tatum are going back to college in the sequel to 2012 surprise hit 21
Jump Street which, by all means, should have been just another terrible reboot.
But instead it had a killer script, a spot on, self-reverential tone and
one of the best surprise cameos ever.
It's no wonder that they fast tracked the sequel and
all the major players are returning, the directors, the writers, and
even Rob Riggle and Dave Franco straight from prison.
We're just hoping they can pull off a repeat performance.
>> Speaker 10: He's going to destroy the world.
>> Speaker 1: At number five, Noah.
The story here needs no explanation, but the hype might.
This is no ordinary Biblical adaptation.
Darren Aronofsky, the director behind such ambitious projects as Black Swan, Requiem
for a Dream, and Pi has its biggest project ever, a massive $130 million.
And it will be very interesting to see what he's able to do with it.
It is about time for someone to make up for Evan Almighty, and
Aronofsky and Crowe might just be the pair.
>> [MUSIC]
>> Speaker 11: You haven't hurt people, Katniss.
You've given them an opportunity.
They just have to be brave enough to take it.
>> Speaker 1: Number four, the Hunger Games, Mockingjay Part 1.
You can bet on some serious buzz for
the next installment of the Hunger Games franchise.
Catching Fire was the biggest box office success last year.
And Francis Lawrence, the director, is back,
which is a good thing cuz he was a big part of the sequel hitting its stride.
Moving away from Gary Ross' nearly incomprehensible shaky cam and
orchestrating some very epic visuals.
And let's be honest, who didn't spend all of Catching Fire just waiting to see
Katniss stand up for her district?
This November we'll finally get to see her take up the mantle and
lead the districts in an overdue rebellion against the capital.
Closing in at number three, Gone Girl.
You probably know David Fincher from his string of brooding
thrillers like Fight Club, Seven, Zodiac and Social Network.
And with a track record like that, he automatically gets a spot on this list.
But Gone Girl looks good.
It's based on Gillian Flynn's best selling novel about a man,
played by Ben Affleck, whose wife mysteriously disappears, the postmortem
dissection of their relationship, and the burning question, did he kill her?
It will be dark, impeccably scored with the return of Trent Reznor, and although
the ending is rumored to have changed from the book, don't expect a happy one.
This is Fincher we're talking about.
>> Speaker 12: Why do you want to be a lobby boy?
>> Speaker 13: Who wouldn't?
At the Crown Budapest, sir.
>> Speaker 1: At number two, The Grand Budapest Hotel.
It's hard not to be excited about a new Wes Anderson movie, especially when you
combine his usual actors, like Owen Wilson, Jason Schwartzman, and of course,
Bill Murray with some fresh newcomers like Ralph Fiennes and Tony Revolori.
It's a hell of a cast, but that's to be expected from an Anderson film.
What we're really talking about is an opportunity to see Anderson
play around with multiple timelines and
a whole new decade full of wardrobe and set design choices.
Part 1920s, part 1960s and part unknown, in the Grand Budapest Hotel,
Monsieur Gustave and his protege, Zero, attempt to steal a priceless painting
as they evade the authorities when Gustave is framed for murder.
Be ready for the cameos, the charm, and
a whole lot of idiosyncracies when this film hits theaters in March.
And finally, Interstellar.
Not much is known about Christopher Nolan's latest project,
he's big on keeping secrets.
But what we do know sounds pretty awesome.
We know he's teaming up with Matthew McConaughey,
who is on such a heater, that we can only assume he got
all the bad movies out of his system by the end of Ghosts of Girlfriends Past.
We know the rest of the cast is equally talented.
We know that Chris Nolan makes movies in a pattern.
He's been alternating super hero movies with some pretty insane brain benders.
And if you remember Dark Knight Rises, you can guess what's coming next.
And that's the best part.
We also know that Interstellar has something to do with space explorers and
wormholes, which sounds like the perfect story fuel to
absolutely mind [BLEEP] everyone.
Which is why we think that it will be the most talked about movie in 2014.
So what do you think?
Are you talking about these movies or
is there another film you absolutely can't wait for that we forgot?
Let us know in the comments below, and subscribe to Cinefix for
more IndieWire
movie lists.
>> [MUSIC]