Well the summer of 2022 is over and another summer movie season is in the books. 2022 was a little thin on franchise movies and summer blockbusters, and the last four months of the year aren’t looking much better. The truth is Hollywood’s life (like the rest of ours) will be complicated by the COVID-19 pandemic for years to come yet. Studios are being extra precautions with their release schedules to adapt to new business reality (plus there was a monster traffic jam at Hollywood’s special effects houses as every movie that had been postponed since 2020 was rushing for a new release schedule).
But there are still one or two hidden gems that will get me out to my local multiplex (and online since COVID-19 ushered in that new reality sooner than expected). Like the last few lists, this one is about a month late. But that allowed a few unnoticed gems to come to my attention at the last minute. So without further ado, here are the movies that have got me excited about 2022’s Fall and Christmas season. Hopefully their will be a few here that might get your attention (or already have) too.
10. Violent Night (December 2nd): A late addition to this list, I found myself asking how could I possible fail to include a hyper-violent, modern yuletide tale with Santa Claus channeling his inner John Wick/Punisher? Especially when the Santa dishing out the Season’s Beatings is the charismatic David Harbour? Let’s be honest, after the last couple of years we all have our own personal naughty lists and we’re all nursing that Christmas fantasy where St. Nicholas hands everyone on said list a moon sized chunk of coal. But Violent Night shows us what it would like if Jolly Old St. Nick handed out bullets, dismemberments and grenades instead. And I’m down for it (if I get to see a reindeer go old yeller on someone’s naughty ass, well that’s an even bigger holiday bonus).
9. Werewolf By Night (October 6th): I’m not sure what caught my attention and interest more; the fact that the MCU is doing a black and white horror movie based on one of its most obscure supernatural characters or the trailer that came straight out of left field just a few weeks ago. The MCU is in a state of transition (let’s be honest, if it wasn’t it would be growing stale and overly predictable and it looks like it’s planning on creating a serious paranormal arm. We’ve already got a taste of the new Blade (with his own solo movie scheduled for 2024), a glimpse of the Black Knight and we’ve even met Moon Knight. What better way to expand this part of the growing MCU and introduce a few more characters (is that Man-Thing?) then with a classic themed horror flick during the Halloween season? What’s even better, by putting it on DisneyPlus you can hand out candy to trick or treaters Halloween night before curling up, killing the lights and watching this in the comfort of your own home.
8. Smile (September 30th): The horror genre has served up plenty of supernatural and slasher movies the last few years, but none of them have looked quite this . . . creepy. Perhaps disturbing is more accurate. Smile definitely doesn’t look like your typical slasher fare and while definitely has to have some supernatural element to it, there doesn’t appear to be an abundance of dark magic. Early reviews claim its chalk full of genuine shock scares and even gory death scenes. Could this be the low budget, no name movie that kicks off a new horror genre? One that relies more on story and substance than special effects (we’ve been waiting for that forever)? Or will it suffer the fate of so many before it; full of potential but falls flat on its face. I’m looking forward to finding out.
7. Don’t Worry Darling (Sept. 23rd): My need to see this one can be summed up in two simple words; Florence and Pugh. I was late to board the Pugh fan train despite having seen her in a handful of movies. But her scene stealing turn in Black Widow made me a fan. And nothing against Jeremy Renner or Hailee Steinfeld, but the episodes of Hawkeye starring Pugh were gold and by far the best that show offered. I can’t wait to see her reprising her role and leading the MCU’s delinquents in Thunderbolts. But her ability to bring an elite comic book assassin to life aside, she has proven repeatedly that she can perform admirably in any medium and genre. I don’t care about the controversy hanging around Don’t Worry Darling’s neck like a stubborn anchor (seriously, what was Olivia Wilde thinking stirring that particular pot mere weeks before the movie’s opening?), but rather I consider it another episode in one of my new favourite shows; the Florence Pugh Career show.
6. The Woman King (Sept. 16th): This fall is pretty bereft of historical pieces and quality action movies look even more rare. But The Woman King is not only looking like an answer to both those questions, it may also be an Oscar contender next awards season. Based on a true story, it will be interesting to see how it deals with the nuanced story of American and European slavery (an atrocity many Western audiences would prefer never to be reminded of). Not only is the movie already being dogged by some controversy over its portrayal of an actual African nation, it is being besieged by the usual onslaught of racism and misogyny that accompanies any release that includes leads of colour and/or women these days. If it can be entertaining or deal satisfactorily with the obstacles facing it, it’ll be win. If it can do both it’ll be a home run.
5. Avatar: The Way Of Water (December 16th): I know, I know, this is pretty low hanging fruit. And truth be told, if Sony hadn’t pushed Spider-Man: Across The Multiverse back a full year and Warner hadn’t shoved the Shazam and Aquaman sequels back (again), Avatar: Way of the Water may not have made this list. But here we are and I freely admit that most of my interest in Avatar is pure curiosity. Let’s not fool ourselves, the allure of the original was its groundbreaking effects and pioneering 3D technology. Everything else, from the story to the characters to the dialogue, was pretty pedestrian. But those effects were unlike anything we had ever seen and Avatar was crafted from the ground up specifically to show them off. When I took my father to see it there was one point where he was practically sitting on the floor dodging the three dimensional spears leaping out of the screen.
But that was thirteen years ago and the FX that drove Avatar to become the highest grossing movie in human history have become commonplace. The road to box office hell has become paved with movies basing their financial success strictly on flashy special effects. And how much appetite can there be for a sequel after thirteen years? Except . . . the re-release of the original Avatar collected 30 million dollars in a single weekend, proving Avatar may still hold a lot of untapped fan interest. With James Cameron promising some twists in this version (as well as future sequels) and it looking increasingly like The Way of Water will have theatres all to itself this Christmas (and possibly a Chinese release), could we be looking at yet another perfect sequel storm a la Top Gun: Maverick? I’m looking forward to finding out.
4.Strange Worlds (Nov. 22nd): So the last few years have kind of sucked. Sure, there were a couple high points and a win here and there, but if we’re being honest 2020 and 2021 checked off as many boxes for downright misery as possible. And 2022 hasn’t exactly been a banger so far either. So anyone who judges my love of animation and quality family flicks can tuck their heads between their legs and kiss their fat, judgemental derriere. If I, or anyone, wants to escape into a harmless, animated romp while the world is reeling from a global pandemic, continues to seethe with rioting, political violence (both real and online), bleak economic news and countries slaughtering people while invading their neighbours, well consider our permission slips well and truly signed.
And Strange Worlds looks like pure, bright, imaginative fun. It’s a major node to the pulp sci-fi serials of the fifties (which influenced a generation of film makers, including the legendary likes of Steven Spielberg and George Lucas) with modern storytelling and sensibilities. So for a little while, I’m just going to hang my feet over the empty seat in front of me, shove some snacks in my face and remember what it’s like to be a carefree twelve year old again. And if anyone wants to judge me, they can take a stroll into traffic during rush hour.
3. Black Adam (Oct. 21st): I don’t really consider Black Adam a movie, but rather a litmus test for the new Discovery owned Warner Bros., and where that entity may be headed since it might get sold . . . again. Head honcho David Zaslav has spent months making headlines for slashing and cutting everything in his path and publicly announcing that DC desperately needs a new direction with a new creative voice at the helm (sorry Snyder fans). Which left many wondering what will happen to the projects completed before he took the corporate reins (to say nothing of recent news that this may be in preparation for yet another sale/merger). Black Adam is the first movie in the possibly walking dead camp. It will be fascinating to see if audiences ignore it, considering it a lame duck franchise right out of the gate, or if they embrace Dwayne Johnson as the near omnipotent anti-hero, thereby forcing WB and DC to integrate Black Adam into their long term plans (along with everything and everyone it introduces). If Adam is a box office hit, Zaslav and whoever he winds up installing as DC studios’ head simply won’t be able to ignore it. If it falls flat, it’ll get swept aside with all the other debris that they’ve been throwing in the corporate trash.
Make no mistake, I’m hoping to be entertained by a big budget, FX laden super hero flick starring the world’s biggest movie star. But watching the business side of things unfold will probably require just as much popcorn as watching the actual movie.
2. Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (Dec. 23rd): Knives Out was easily one of my favourite movies of 2019 (and one of the last movies I saw in theatre before COVID-19 forced the globe to go dark. MAN that seems like a lifetime ago). It was smart, stylish and even surly when it had to be. Its humour was both subtle and at times laugh out funny. It was refreshing to see a movie execute a nuanced plot that also included pitch perfect performances from an ensemble cast. So having said all that, I’m totally down for the sequel, especially with Rian Johnson resuming his writing and directing responsibilities and Daniel Craig returning as the charismatic detective Benoit Blanc. Given the nature of Knives Out, it won’t lose anything by moving from the big screen to the streaming one and it will be interesting to see if this finally allows Netflix to enjoy the same success with original movies that it already enjoys with original TV shows. Not to mention that this will also provide a peek at Craig’s post James Bond career. If this becomes a successful franchise (and Craig has said he’s in it for the long haul), this may be the most successful and seamless career transition in modern Hollywood.
Can Johnson maintain the storytelling quality? Can Craig continue to cook as Blanc? I’m excited to find out. If the answer to either of those questions is yes, then I’ll all have an early Christmas present.
1. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Nov. 11th): Black Panther is one of my favourite comic book characters (right up there with Batman, Wolverine and Wonder Woman) and I loved the first Black Panther movie (it was the rare movie I saw more than once in theatres). It was the most politically aware movie the MCU has ever made, Killmonger is one of the MCU’s best villains/anti-heroes and Chadwick Boseman was beyond outstanding as King T’Challa. I was genuinely thrilled to see Panther’s incredible box office performance (despite the mountains of overt and not so overt racism) and was sincerely saddened by Boseman’s unexpected and tragic death. If I still had functioning tear ducts, they would have been working overtime that day. But the show must go on.
It’s a good sign that writer/director Ryan Coogler and so many of the original cast are returning and they’re approaching Wakanda Forever as a tribute to Boseman instead of just another sequel. It gives me faith that they will balance telling a new story with paying respectful tribute to the late star. I was beginning to get worried lbecause Forever’s release date was fast approaching but we had seen precious little about it in a business that runs on hype and anticipation. But not only did the trailer Marvel released at Comic Con put my worries at ease, it also got the entire world talking as well. I am truly looking forward to a new chapter in the MCU, meeting a new version of a character I love and finally being able to say an honoured farewell to a pioneering presence. Those tear ducts may just get a new lease on life after all . . .
