Lights, Camera, Action

  Most Anticipated Films of 2024: The Penultimate Chapter (numbers 20-11) aka An Assortment of Carefully Selected Wine Pairings Preluding Tonight's Main Course 20.   Q ueer Director: Luca Guadagnino ( Call Me by Your Name , Bones and All )  Cast: Daniel Craig, Drew Starkey, Lesley Manville, Jason Schwartzman, and Henry Zaga. In addition to his penchant for sumptuous visuals, his handling of emotional complexity and the depth of unspoken feelings, and the sensuality he effortlessly builds from stories of desire and attraction, Luca Guadagnino is also no stranger to approaching the subject of queerness.  The third film in his self-dubbed "Desire" trilogy, Call Me by Your Name , revolves around the sexual awakening, self-discovery, and heartache of first love concerning its 17-year-old protagonist, and does so with honesty, tenderness, and poetry.  His HBO min-series, We Are Who We Are , explores similar subject matter to  Call Me by Your Name (but to less eff...

  Most Anticipated Films of 2024: Part IV (30-21) aka I Think I Can See a Light 30. Hard Truths Director: Mike Leigh ( Secrets & Lies , Topsy-Turvy )  Cast: Marianne Jean-Baptist and Michele Austin. Olivier Assayas isn't the only director with a pandemic-inspired drama this year.  Veteran auteur, Mike Leigh, finally received enough funding last year for his 15th full-length feature: a tragicomedy that explores relationships and human strengths and weaknesses in a post-pandemic world.  Leigh, who just turned 81, hasn't made a film since 2018's Peterloo , and despite his world-renowned reputation as one of Britain's most distinguished  and venerable filmmakers, his work has always struggled financially at the box office, and therefore, hindered his ability to get another project rolling the moment he's finished one.  His films usually employ a lot of improvisation (trying not to be too codependent  to the script, lest it lose a sense of grounded-ness...

  Most Anticipated Films of 2024: Section Three, Articles 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10. The Middle Portion aka "Now might be a good time to go to the bathroom, grab a quick bite, or make sure you are registered to vote." 40. EDEN   Director: Ron Howard ( A Beautiful Mind , Apollo 13 )  Cast: Ana de Armas, Vanessa Kirby, Sydney Sweeney, Jude Law, Daniel Brühl, Felix Kammerer, Toby Wallace, and Richard Roxburgh. So far on this list, there's already been a few directors featured who are veterans in the industry but have struggled to replicate the success of their earlier work (such as Burton and Scott.)  Ron Howard is another filmmaker who has sadly found himself in this group, however, I will say his track record has been a bit more dependable and consistent ( Hillbilly Elegy  notwithstanding.)  His next project, Eden (which is currently shooting in the Galápagos), has an exciting cast and an interesting premise that (if executed right) c...