LCHC Rewind: 20 Most Anticipated Films of 2013

This list was originally posted to Facebook on January 20, 2013. Since I have now referenced it on LCHC on at least two occasions, it seems overdue that I actually republish it here for record keeping purposes.

So as to hold myself accountable, and in order to share my take on those films listed that have already been released, my updated thoughts on each film also appear in RED below my original ranking.

My 20 Most Anticipated Films for 2013. Please note that the order here does not reflected expected quality, just my own level of excitement/curiosity with the project.

20: The World’s End: The finale to Edgar Wright’s “Cornetto” collection. The full trailer and early buzz continue to give me complete confidence that Wright and the gang have once again delivered a sharp, biting, and really funny film. Trying to manage my expectations but I don’t see why this won’t be one of the three best comedies of the year.

19. Don Jon’s Addiction: JGL’s directorial debut is set for Sundance. Seemingly a light, comic take on “Shame”, with a Casanova set to find a more fulfilling sex life (with Johansson, Julianne Moore, and…Tony Danza?) If we could judge a film’s worth based on its theatrical poster’s pull-quotes alone, this would appear to be a comedy that will do for porn addiction what 50/50 did for cancer comedies. The film has received very positive early reviews after playing at Sundance, and I still very much look forward to seeing what Mr. hitRECord has created with his first film as a director.

Check out the rest of the list in full detail, after the jump…

LCHC Power Rankings: Week of May 24th

The LCHC Power Rankings are our rating system for the top ten people, events, stories, and trends making moves in the world of sports and culture this week. Providing as a snapshot of the current cultural landscape, the Power Rankings offer a guide to hat mattered most in the cultural zeitgeist this week. They are put together every Friday by your humble committee (of one).

1. Game 7 Hockey Over Everything – The NHL Playoffs return to the top spot on this week’s ranking on heels of two Game 7s this week and the start of the Conference Finals about the kick off on Saturday. The visibility and publicity around this year’s postseason is certainly helped by the fact that major markets like LA, Chicago and Boston are still involved, and that “Face of the Game” Sidney Crosby is captaining the favorites to raise the Cup, but more than for any other reason, hockey’s playoffs lead the pack this week because they have provided the most compelling storylines, culminating in Seabrook’s thrilling OT winner on Wednesday night. That game is a classic example of proof that sports remains the home for the most compelling drama anywhere. When sport is at its best, no other narrative device – be it scripted film, literature, or reality television – can touch the raw emotions and catharsis created by sudden-death, ‘win or go home’ sporting events. Moments like Wednesday night are why we watch, and we are all just lucky that there are even more to come in the weeks ahead.

2. The Smiths, Lost in Space – A sampling of the critical response to After Earth: “Is “After Earth” the worst movie ever made?”; “After Earth is not as bad as The Last Airbender. Yes, you heard it here first: After Earth is not as bad as one of the worst big budget films ever released.”; “There is no small irony that this sci-fi action adventure is about surviving a serious crash. The scorched earth left behind by “After Earth” is sure to leave a scar on everyone involved.” Put it this way – the critical response to this film is worse than it was to A Good Day to Die Hard. Leading to a larger question: are we just about done with Will Smith, superstar? Yes, the film will make its money back overseas where he is still a draw, but here domestically it is just about guaranteed to be a flop. The mid-90s were a very long time ago after all, and between some truly terrible films and utterly pretentious interviews, I wonder how much longer until he becomes the Action equivalent to Adam Sandler as relic of another time in our culture. There are only so many times you can go to the Graham Norton/Fresh Prince Nostalgia Well, Big Willie.

#3-10 and Honourable Mentions, after the jump…

LCHC Power Rankings: Week of May 24th

The LCHC Power Rankings are our rating system for the top ten people, events, stories, and trends making moves in the world of sports and culture this week. Providing as a snapshot of the current cultural landscape, the Power Rankings offer a (subjective) guide to what mattered most in the cultural zeitgeist this week. They are put together every Friday by your humble committee (of one).

1. Dumb versus Dumber: The Memorial Day Box Office Showdown – This is a bit of misnomer on my part, because this is nothing close to an actual ‘showdown’. In one corner, we  have Hangover Part III, the (thankfully) final installment in the R-rated comedy franchise that has received truly awful critically and audience reviews so far and is coming off of one of the worst received comedy sequels in years (which is saying something). In the other corner, we have Fast 6, which is coming on the heels of its franchise’s most successful film both creatively and financially (which may be a relatively low bar, but I will be damned if Fast 5 doesn’t have fun knowingly embracing exactly what it is) and is already breaking records everywhere overseas with Universal’s biggest opening day in 22 different countries. Most box office observers had expected a somewhat close race between the two over the US long weekend; now, Dom and the gang are expected to easily outpace The Wolfpack’s final bow, with a four-day gross just short of $90 million (against $70M for TH3, which while still a great number for a R-rated comedy is less than half the $135M its predecessor opened to in 2011). Of course, the real winners here will be the audience, so long as something in F6 can come close to the brilliance of this scene. Ride or die, indeed.

Riker Sits Down, Internet Takes Note

Editor’s Note: With Into Darkness’ release now merely a week away, there is a strong chance the United Federation of Planets is about to get a lot of love here on the site.

By all accounts, Jonathan Frakes has lead a charmed life. He is responsible for the voice and characterization of one of the greatest supervillians of the 20^th century, Gargoyles David Xanatos (namesake of the Xanatos Gambit and general badass). He’s had a remarkably successful second career as television and film director. But, whatever other greatness Frakes brings us, he will always be remembered as Commander Will Riker.

Actors sometimes practice as technique whereby they give their character a secret only they are privy to that informs their performance. Based on the supercut that went viral this week, Frakes secret for Number One was that he had the meanest sitting game in Starfleet. As if that wasn’t enough, he made Riker’s swag next-level by making his standing-up manuever somehow even more bonkers (see 0:17). See the video after the jump…