2015 was one of hell of a year for moviegoers. We were lucky enough to see a huge number of fantastic films hit the silver screen, and they were across nearly every genre imaginable. In December alone, we saw the new Star Wars movie, Quentin Tarantino's eighth film, The Hateful Eight, and the movie that might finally get Leonardo DiCaprio his first Oscar - The Revenant. That's just a quick snapshot of all the exceptional films made last year. Fortunately, it looks like 2016 is ramping up to be equally exciting for movie fans everywhere. Here are some of 2016's most highly anticipated features.
Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice
While superhero films have always been one of big movie studio's favorite cash-cows, there has been an explosion in this genre in recent years. With the immense popularity of the Avenger's franchise and the Marvel Universe, other comic books have been tapped for their shot at the big screen. In this latest effort from Zack Snyder, the director of such big-budget action flicks as 300 and Watchmen, we get to see Supes (played by Henry Cavill) and Batman (Ben Affleck) duke it out. This one has always been a dream for comic-book lovers everywhere, as it's loosely based off of Frank Miller's critically-lauded four-part comic-book series The Dark Knight Returns. Come March 25th, we'll finally get to see which of our two favorite superheros comes out on top.
Hail, Caesar!
Throughout their directorial career, Joel and Ethan Coen have made some of the most instantly recognizable films of the past 30 years: The Big Lebowski, Fargo, No Country For Old Men, and O Brother, Where Art Thou? to name a few. In their latest film, they assembled an ensemble cast including George Clooney, Josh Brolin, Jonah Hill, Scarlett Johansson, Tilda Swinton, and Channing Tatum to tell a story about a Rome-centric movie production halted by the disappearance of it's main star. This new comedy comes out next month, on February 5th.
Finding Dory
In 2016, we will finally get to see the return of some of Pixar's most beloved characters in Finding Dory. In this sequel to 2003's immensely popular Finding Nemo, the oft-forgetful Dory finds herself in search of her long-lost family. This animated feature is sure to be a hit with families everywhere when it's released on June 17th of this year.
Suicide Squad
In the second movie on this list based on a comic-book series, a team of supervillains is assembled by the government to execute a less-than-surefire mission. Not much is known about the film's plot quite yet, but the most interesting aspect of the film so far looks to be Jared Leto's grill-clad Joker performance. You can expect to see this one on the big screen on August 5th, later this year.
The Lobster
This film certainly has the strangest-sounding premise on the list so far. It's set sometime in the near-future, in a city where single people are given 45 days to find a partner - or they're turned into an animal of their choosing. Colin Farrell stars as a lonely man looking for the one in Yorgos Lanthimos' English-language debut. With a stack of pre-release accolades, The Lobster looks like one of this years more intriguing releases. Look out for this one on March 11th.
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
Between last year's fantastic The Force Awakens, and 2017's Episode VIII, Disney is releasing the first in a series of movies that will comprise the new "Star Wars Anthology" series. Rogue One serves to tell a story set between the end of Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope, about a group of Resistance fighters coming together in order to steal the plans for the original Death Star. Star Wars fans will have a wealth of new movies to get excited about over the next four years, and this is the next one closest to release. Rogue One is set for release almost a year to the day after The Force Awakens, on December 16th, 2016.
