So the summer movie season of 2023 is now officially in the books. And it brought a lot of duds. But it also included some impressive surprises (did anyone see the impact of Barbenheimer? Put your hand down, you did not). The summer also included some important lessons Hollywood should have learned (but so far chooses to ignore) and saw both the writers and actors guild hit the picket line. And despite some cynical predictions these strikes would be over in a matter of weeks, Hollywood’s scribes and actors remain off the job. The business of movie making has been put on hold for the last two months with many studios pushing potions of their fall slate to next year when (hopefully) stars can help promote them again. Remember when Cillian Murphy, Matt Damon and Emily Blunt left halfway through Oppenheimer’s red carpet premiere because the Screen Actor’s Guild officially announced it was walking off the job? Even a lot of returning television shows have seen their fall premiere dates pushed back or their season lengths cut. Hollywood, for the time being, has been brought to its knees. As a result, my annual list has seen a lot of last minute juggling and revision. There’s a good chance my Spring and Summer lists of 2024 will be pretty anemic.
But with all of that out of the way, here are the ten titles I’m looking forward to the most this fall and Christmas. And here’s hoping by the movie and television business will be back on its feet and giving us lots of fodder to criticize and look forward to when 2024 rolls around.
10. Aquaman And The Lost Kingdom (December 20th): Yeah, yeah, the DCEU’s final chapter made this list. But don’t yell at me too much, remember a bunch of movies got bumped to next year which let a few fence sitters make this list. The first Aquaman was one of the few DCEU movies I enjoyed and I admit that I’ve been looking forward to seeing what James Wan and company had in store for a sequel ever since. The DC brand has been horribly, possibly irreparably damaged and WB-Discovery only just released its first trailer (hardly a good sign just a few months before release). At the very least WB finally confirmed that Aquaman 2 would indeed come out this year, quieting plenty of people (including yours truly) who wondered if the powers that be would shuffle Aquaman 2 to next year or maybe just move it to MAX. But it looks like Warner will bite the bullet and be done with both the Aquaman franchise and the entire DCEU. Will it bomb? The performance of DC’s other movies this year seem to predict it will, but Aquaman 2 arguably had more box office potential than any other DC title movie this year. It may also attract plenty of curious eyeballs as it officially lays the DCEU to rest and it looks like it has most of the holiday movie going season to itself. But there is also the Amber Heard question, with plenty of traditional DC fans lining up to boycott it because of her involvement (funny, they didn’t boycott the Snyder Cut of Justice League when she was brought back to shoot extra scenes). Regardless of its box office performance or my mixed feelings on DC’s movies as a whole, I just hope that the DCEU can end on a high note before riding into the sunset.
9. The Exorcist Believer (October 6th): Hollywood has a pretty lousy track record when it comes to remakes and reboots. And it would be generous to label attempts to resurrect The Exorcist-the standard setter for modern cinematic horror-as lacklustre. But this newest shot looks like it could succeed where others have failed miserably. Nothing will ever match the impact of 1971’s The Exorcist, it’s success was a perfect storm that included the timing of it’s release, but Believer looks like it may send more than a few shivers down more than a few spines. Coming out three weeks before Halloween makes it a perfect seasonal flick (it was originally scheduled to come out on Friday the 13th but was chased from that date by Taylor Swift’s Eras movie). Could it fall as flat as previous Exorcist sequels and reboots? It sure could. But I’m wiling to chance it and hope it scratches my Halloween horror itch, something that hasn’t happened at the multiplex for a few years.
  8. The Nun 2 (September 8th): This fall is like a Thanksgiving turkey stuffed with horror movies instead of bread. Three titles made this list and there are a handful who didn’t. The first Nun was a mediocre horror movie (I barely remember it outside of the scene where the priest was briefly buried alive), but the trailer for the sequel makes it look like it could be an upgrade (just in time for spooky season). Warner-Discovery’s Conjuring horror verse has lost some steam since it got rolling a decade ago (a decade? Seriously?) and the studio desperately needs a rejuvenated franchise in light of everything else falling from grace. Remember Matrix: Resurrected? Yikes. With a little bit of luck that will translate into quality on the screen. And how can you ignore a movie about a demonic nun haunting a convent that comes out a mere seven weeks before Hallowe’en? It could very well be another disappointment in both horror movies and Warner’s 2023’s offerings, but if it turns out it is worth a spot on this list it could be one my favourite horror movie of the year.
 7. Castlevania Nocturne (September 28th): Netflix’s Castlevania was a masterpiece. Combining top notch storytelling with high quality animation to reinvent a nearly obscure video game franchise could have gone sideways a hundred different ways. But somehow it worked. Free from censorship confines it revelled in the graphic nature of its story, fearlessly diving into whatever themes or characters assumed the spotlight. The violence and the sex were always tools to tell the story and develop the characters, and it was always just smart enough to avoid becoming gratuitous for the sake of being gratuitous. It was unlike anything Western audiences had seen and while it was a shame it ended, it called it quits precisely when it should have, concluding with satisfying efficiency. Now the question is can Netflix turn Castlevania into a franchise without watering it down? Without diluting what it made it fresh and novel, or getting stuck in the trap of being graphic for the mere sake of being graphic. We’ll soon find out with Nocturne, a story that takes place centuries later and focuses on Trevor Belmont’s (final?) descendant. From what I’ve seen it looks like it may just pull it off. If it can all our lives are better for it. If it can’t it will be a gigantic disappointment. But it could be a lot of fun finding out.Â
 6. Killers of The Flower Moon (October 20th): I threw a lot of shade Martin Scorcese’s way when he bashed comic book movies as fake cinema a few years ago. But the fact remains that he is still one of the best film makers of our generation. And Leonardo DiCaprio (a frequent collaborator of Scorsese’s) is one of the few remaining movie stars in the world. Reuniting them for a dramatic tale of this much importance (and timely given the morbidly gruesome discoveries made at closed Canadian residential schools in recent years) should be a home run. I haven’t had a chance to read the book that Killers of the Flower Moon is based on yet, but I’m hoping Scorsese doesn’t shy away from the uncomfortable truths the story demands. Or the horror that is human bigotry and greed. Oppenheimer was a fantastic summer drama and is of one of my favourite movies of the year so far (it has Oscar written all over it in both bold and italics) and I’m hoping Flower Moon is a strong dramatic follow up. Since this Apple’s first step up to the big screen plate, let’s hope they swing for the fences and hit a home run right out of the gate.
 5. A Haunting In Venice (September 15th): 2017’s Murder on the Orient Express wasn’t bad. 2022’s Death on the Nile wasn’t great. So how will Kenneth Branagh’s third Poirot movie go? Seeing how he faces off with forces of darkness, let’s hope it’s successful. Venice looks like a delicious clash of reason and the supernatural, plunging the calculating and brilliant Poirot into the twilight zone and forcing him to confront the limitations of his intellect. Most horror movies centre on truly stupid people trying to survive demons, monsters or serial killers. Watching the fiercely intelligent Poirot and come face to face with forces beyond even his formidable understanding could be a storytelling blast. The pessimist in me is convinced Venice will probably take the cheap way out to explain the supernatural elements in the film as some sort of ruse or easily dismissed conman’s trick. But the optimist in me is hoping it skillfully explores in on the conflict between the two opposing philosophies. It’s killer supporting cast alone justifies the price of admission. Even if the conflict of logic and the unexplained is a let down, the acting alone could be the biggest reason to park myself in a movie seat for a couple of hours.Â
 4. Invincible Season Two Part One (November 3rd): The MCU has stumbled of late and the DCEU is officially dead. That leaves precious little else for super hero fans who’ve gotten spoiled the last decade or two. Even Sony’s Valiant-verse fizzled out after the Vin Diesel starring Bloodshot dud a few years ago. Enter Amazon’s Invincible. Don’t get me wrong, Invincible didn’t make this list out of default because everything else in the super hero entertainment orbit seems to be crashing. It’s on this list because it’s genuinely a good time. It owns the absurdity of the genre, embraces all its storytelling tropes and cliches and then turns them on their head when you aren’t looking. The all powerful alien that comes to protect the Earth like a cosmic guardian angel. The struggle of secret identities (you think regular dating is hard in the real world? Try doing it while missing dates getting beaten within an inch of your life trying to save the world). Invincible doesn’t obey any rules and it isn’t afraid to flirt with questions the MCU or DC movies wouldn’t go near. What tough, sometimes borderline impossible choices does it take to save the world on a regular basis? What sacrifices must be made for the greater good? What happens when beings of incredible power and responsibility make mistakes, whether in the heat of the moment or in everyday life? What kind of emotional wear and tear do they suffer as a result? Can there truly be good and evil or is everyone doomed to live in the moral no man’s land between the two? Here’s hoping Invincible doesn’t stray from the brutal storytelling and question asking that made me fall in love with it.
 3. Rebel Moon A Child of Fire (December 22nd): Remember last year when Netflix released Glass Onion (the sequel to Knives Out) just before Christmas? Well it looks like big holiday releases may become an annual tradition for the streaming juggernaut. I initially didn’t care about Rebel Moon (the whole Justice League saga left a bad taste in my mouth for all things Snyder, which was admittedly unfair to him but I can only take so much overdramatic nonsense). Then I saw the first trailer. Does it look like it could be an FX heavy rip off of Star Wars (word is this sprung from a rejected SW pitch Snyder and his camp made to Disney years ago)? Sure does. Could it wind up like many of Snyder’s previous efforts, all slick effects and beautiful visuals but with little substance? You bethca’. But could it be a breath of fresh science fiction air in a year without a Star Trek or Star Wars movie? I hope so. I’m not expecting a mind blowing epic but I am hoping to be reasonably entrained for two and a half hours. And if it turns out Rebel Moon is pretty good and a game changer to boot, it may force the two aforementioned sci-fi franchises to up their games. And that’s good for all fans. Plus, is everyone else happy to see Sophia Boutella return to movies?
 2. The Marvels (November 10th): Yep, get it out of your system now. After admitting that Marvel has been guilty of plenty of missteps lately (good Lord did Secret Invasion ever suck), an MCU movie not only made it onto this list but got as high as number two. But you let me get away with Aquaman 2, the official obituary of the DCEU, so you’re no allowed to complain now. The truth is I have always liked Captain Marvel and I enjoyed her solo movie in 2019 (it was effortless popcorn). I also liked the Ms. Marvel DisneyPlus show and thought Iman Vellani pulled off the young heroine with pitch perfect energy (the show had it’s warts but Vellani, who had zero acting experience previous to being but was cast as Kamala Khan because of her mad Ms. Marvel cosplayer skills, more than made up for it). And part of me is itching to buy a ticket for the same reason I decided to see Barbie; to vote against the inevitable campaign of misogyny that will be aimed at both the movie and its stars (I lost count of how many grown men lost their minds over Barbie). Having said all that could The Marvels be yet another letdown from the once mighty MCU? That possibility has at least even odds. But if it does hit I have a strong feeling it will be a home run Kevin Feige and Marvel desperately need. If it’s fun and entertaining I’ll be happy. If it can surf the massive box office tsunami Barbie created (and Taylor Swift’s Eras will probably ride as well) that will be an interesting story all on its own.Â
 1. The Creator (September 29th): In a perfect world both The Creator and Rebel Moon will be entertaining science fiction movies but for very different reasons. While I’m expecting/hoping Zack Snyder’s vision to be pure sci-fi spectacle, all explosions and starfighter dogfights and jaw dropping battles, I’m hoping The Creator looks like it could follow the likes of The Arrival, Interstellar and Ex Machina; a thought provoking science fiction story that makes you ask serious questions for days afterwards. We’ve been forced to take a long hard look at the reality of AI the last few years. More specifically the short and long term repercussions the growing prevalence and sophistication of the technology will have on our lives and humanity as a whole. The Creator would not be the first movie to look at this phenomenon, nor would it be the first handle it with style and intelligence (please oh please). But I am hoping it asks those questions and looks at the topic in a slightly different perspective given our much closer proximity to the advent of AI. The inclusion of intense action gives off some definite Matrix vibes, a smart and stylish science fiction movie ushered in a new sub genre and inspired a generation of conspiracy theorists (outside of some hardcore academia, nobody thought we were living in a giant computer simulation until they saw it in a Keanu Reeves movie). In a perfect world I’ll love both The Creator and Rebel Moon for different reasons, but right now I’m looking forward to being inspired to ask important questions more than I am to being mindlessly entertained. But at the end of the day I’ll settle for both.
Image via www.comicbook.com
