It’s Labor Day weekend and the summer is coming to a close. It was a pretty good summer at the theaters, capped by the amazing Guardians of the Galaxy. There aren’t as many nerdy movies coming out this fall, but there are still some heavy hitters including Tolkien, Katniss and Marvel.
Here’s a look at some of the nerdy movies coming out this fall.
The Maze Runner – September 19, 2014
I just watched the trailer for The Maze Runner. It looks like The Hunger Games mixed with Labyrinth, but without David Bowie. And, as most things in life, without David Bowie what’s the point? Alycia read The Maze Runner and I think that she liked it. I haven’t read it and don’t know if I plan on doing so. I’m sure 20th Century Fox is hoping they have another Hunger Games series and not another Eragon or City of Ember or Beautiful Creatures or Mortal Instruments: City of Bones.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AwwbhhjQ9Xk&w=560&h=315]
Dracula Untold – October 17, 2014
Hollywood has an obsession with origin stories. Every single super hero movie begins with an origin story, even if everyone knows that Peter Parker got his powers from a radioactive spider bite. Its obsession has gone beyond super hero movies, though, and now Hollywood is giving us unnecessary backstories for other well-known characters. This summer we got an origin for Maleficent and this fall we’ll get an origin story for Dracula. Dracula Untold doesn’t look like anything more than a by-the-numbers supernatural action movie. I don’t think I’ll see Dracula Untold and that’s only partially due to my irrational fear of vampires.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2aWqecTTuE&w=560&h=315]
Interstellar – November 07, 2014
I can’t wait for Interstellar. Christopher Nolan is a stellar filmmaker and I have loved all of his films, with the exception of Memento. Interstellar looks like big, beautiful science fiction. I love movies about aliens and crazy technology, but Interstellar looks like a throwback to more insightful science fiction. Instead of depending on lasers and explosions, Interstellar looks set to focus on the human condition and our unquenchable drive to keep moving forward. Now that Guardians of the Galaxy has been released, I think I am most looking forward to Interstellar.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePbKGoIGAXY&w=560&h=315]
Big Hero 6 – November 07, 2014
I may have to double up on movies the weekend of November 07. Along with Interstellar, another movie that I really want to see is getting released. I’ve already written a little bit about Big Hero 6, Walt Disney Animation’s follow up to Frozen. Big Hero 6 is based off of a Marvel property but not being advertised as such. I read that Marvel’s name is absent from all marketing because Marvel has no plans to create any new Big Hero 6 comics. If Baymax finds half the success of Elsa, though, Marvel might change its mind.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3biFxZIJOQ&w=560&h=315]
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 – November 21, 2014
I’ve really enjoyed the first two Hunger Games movies. Seeing as how Mockingjay was my favorite book in the series, I’m more excited for this next installment than I was for either of the others. Mockingjay is much more focused on the politics of Panem, including the secret District 13. The movies have been pretty faithful to the books so I’m hoping that the political themes carry over from the page to the screen. I’ve also appreciated that the producers invested some money in The Hunger Games movies; they never looked cheap like the Twilight movies. Some people are upset that Mockingjay was split into two movies. I don’t really care; I just want to correctly predict where they split the movies.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JzcYyzCZdiM&w=560&h=315]
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies – December 17, 2014
I appreciated the comments of faithful reader and commenter Mike when the trailer for The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies premiered. On Facebook Mike expressed his disappointment that “The Defining Chapter” of the Lord of the Rings saga was taking place in a large battle instead of on the margins where normal people lived normal lives. I agree with Mike that The Hobbit movies have gotten away from the smallness and intimacy that made The Hobbit book so enjoyable. Lord of the Rings was a sweeping epic, but The Hobbit was a more personal tale about the impact one person could have on the world. That being said, I’ve enjoyed The Hobbit movies for what they are. I really liked The Desolation of Smaug, especially the parts that had nothing to do with the book. I’ll see The Battle of the Five Armies for its grandness and scale, and then read The Hobbit again for its smaller, more intimate story.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZSzeFFsKEt4&w=560&h=315]
I’d say that the fall isn’t as exciting as the summer for nerdy movies, but I only saw five movies this summer. There are at least four movies on this list I know that I’m going to see and it won’t be 95 degrees when I get out of the theater.
What movies are you looking forward to this fall?
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