Ten Most Anticipated Films of 2006

I know, again it is March before I get around to my picks for the most expected films of 2006. But you know what, none of them came out in January and March, in fact nothing worth the slightest bit of notice has come out so far this year. But that is what January and February are for, dumping any films that you can’t form a decent marketing campaign around. But here are the films on the other end of the spectrum, the most hyped and highly anticipated films of 2006. Last year was a 50-50 mix, there were lots of disappointments. You will of course notice that most of these films are sequels; it just seems easier to build a juggernaut campaign for known quantities. Let’s see which films are going to be under the microscope this year.

1. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest - July 7th
I simply can’t wait for this film. The first movie was so well done it is hard to believe that the entire concept was inspired by a theme park ride. The characters still have plenty of life in them and the previews look wonderfully entertaining.
2. The Da Vinci Code - May 19th
I am still not sold on Tom Hanks as Robert Langdon and I still maintain that Angels & Demons was a far better book, but The Da Vinci Code is the must see film of the summer. I have faith that Ron Howard and Tom Hanks will do the material proud and I can’t wait to see a car chase around the streets of Paris featuring a Smart.
3. Poseidon - May 12th
Richard Dreyfuss goes back in the water. Yes it is a remake, but it is one of those cross section of humanity type stories like Stagecoach that just get better and better if given the right space. If not it will be an effects laden bore.
4. Lady in the Water - July 21st
Unlike many I have not yet begun to tire of M. Night Shyamalan’s unique vision of filmmaking. I look forward to his newest film with eager anticipation and I hope this gives Paul Giamatti the A-List fame he deserves.
5. Casino Royale - November 17th
The latest James Bond film seems to be stirring up an unusually large amount of controversy but I expect this re-envisioning of the first Bond story will be wonderful. New Bond Daniel Craig will provide plenty of eye candy for the audience.
6. Superman Returns - June 30th
The newest envisioning of Superman will draw from the recent trend of origin stories that have done so well to re-invigorate tired franchises like Batman. This one should be a big winner for the Fourth of July weekend.
7. X-Men: The Last Stand - May 26th
The third of the X-Men films this is billed as the final film but I will believe it when I see it. The cast is getting a bit bloated so it will be interesting to see which characters survive to the final credits.
8. Nacho Libre - June 2nd
Aside from the fact that this stars Jack Black as a Mexican wrestler I don’t know much about the film. What I do know is that the preview and the publicity still look intriguing and hysterical.
9. Mission: Impossible III - May 5th
I wouldn’t normally put this one on the list because I hated the first two Mission Impossible films. The first one was predictable and the second one stole whole scenes from Alfred Hitchcock’s Notorious but with less style. But J.J Abrams has had a great deal of activity on the super-spy front with the Alias television show and I am interested to see how this is reflected in a full-blown summer blockbuster.
10. For Your Consideration - September 22nd
This is probably the smallest and most out of the mainstream film on the list. But I really admire and enjoy Christopher Guest’s insular world view. The actors are all comfortable with Guest’s style and the films continue to be delightfully zany looks at other very insular worlds from talent shows to dog shows to folk shows. Guest should be able to mine plenty of material from the self-absorbed world of awards shows.

Runners up: The Breakup - June 2nd, Cars - June 9th, V for Vendetta - March 17th, The Benchwarmers - April 7th

Related posts:

1. Ten most anticipated films of 2005
2. Ten Most Anticipated Films 2007
3. Most Anticipated Films of 2005 Revisited
4. Best Bond Films
5. Worst Bond Films