2012 Movie Preview

If there's anything that film enthusiasts do best, it's anticipate movies. This involves in-depth analysis of spoilers, impassioned criticism of leaked photos, and opening night costume preparation, all for a movie that doesn't open for several months. If this sounds like a regular afternoon, what follows will tell you nothing new. But if your first knowledge of every movie comes from the first trailer, read on to see what the hype is, and will be, all about. 

The Avengers, May 4

If ever there was a reason for fanboys to camp out, it couldn't be any better than The Avengers. Geek god Joss Whedon (Firefly, Buffy) assembles Marvel's greatest heroes—Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Hulk, Black Widow, and Hawkeye—in film history's most epic cross-over ever. The comic-book-slash-movie-company has been riding its most successful wave and this could be its tsunami, but hopefully it still has more to deliver in the future. 

Skyfall, November 9

If you saw Quantum of Solace, I understand your reservations about another James Bond flick. Fortunately, Daniel Craig and the producers felt the same way. That's why they recruited Oscar-winning director Sam Mendes to craft a character-driven story and Javier Bardem and Ralph Fiennes to add some real gravity to the villains. And in case the ladies were going to bow out, I hear Daniel Craig takes his shirt off, again. 

Django Unchained, December 25

This is the only completely original film on the list, but what do you expect from Quentin Tarantino? After blowing our minds by rewriting history and putting together an amazing cast for Inglourious Basterds, he's out to do it again, this time in the slave-owning South. Jamie Foxx plays a former slave who trains with bounty hunter Christoph Waltz to take back his wife, Kerry Washington, from Leonardo DiCaprio. Whose right-hand man is Samuel L. Jackson. Mind blown yet? 

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, December 14

It felt like Peter Jackson tortured us for ages by avoiding the prequel to his monolithic Lord of the Rings trilogy. Not only is he finally making The Hobbit, but he's spoiling us with two installments. The trailer, promising Gandalf's backstory and much dwarf chanting, sent chills down my spine. The real challenge, however, will be to balance the book's innocent fun with the LOTR films' dark and brooding tone.