As the definition of the typical blockbuster season continues to stretch, Hollywood is once again using March for the first unveiling of their big tentpoles of the year. Unfortunately in 2013, the options don’t seem too promising, so instead we’ve a batch of festival holdovers that we’re keeping on our radar this month. While they make take awhile to reach a theater near you, be sure to check your VOD outlets, as a few of them will pop up there. See our rundown below and let us know what you plan to watch this month.
Matinees: War Witch (3/1), Oz: The Great and Powerful (3/8) From Up on Poppy Hill (3/15), Somebody Up There Likes Me (3/15), Upside Down (3/15), Eden (3/20), The Croods (3/22), The Sapphires (3/22), Blancanieves (3/25), Welcome to the Punch (3/27), Starbuck (3/29)
10. Ginger & Rosa (Sally Potter; March 15th)
Synopsis: A look at the lives of two teenage girls – inseparable friends Ginger and Rosa — growing up in 1960s London, and the pivotal event the comes to redefine their relationship as the Cuban Missile Crisis looms.
Why You Should See it: Audiences have already seen Elle Fanning‘s talents in such films as Somewhere and Super 8, but now the actress will be in spotlight for this upcoming coming of age period piece. After premiering to strong reviews on the fall festival circuit, the next film from Sally Potter (Orlando, The Tango Lesson) also brings together Alice Engert, Timothy Spall, Alice Englert, Oliver Platt, Jodhi May, Alessandro Nivola, Christina Hendricks and Annette Bening.
9. Beyond the Hills (Cristian Mungiu; March 8th)
Synopsis: A drama centered on the friendship between two young women who grew up in the same orphanage; one has found refuge at a convent in Romania and refuses to leave with her friend, who now lives in Germany.
Why You Should See It: While this drama is said not to live up to Cristian Mungiu‘s harrowing Palme d’Or winner 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, I’m still extremely curious to see what he offers in his follow-up. At Cannes last year we said, “despite promising approach to a controversial issue, the film is a chore to sit through, reminiscent of a child bored in Sunday school.” With the film getting both a theatrical and VOD release this month, one can check it out for themselves.
8. Gimme the Loot (Adam Leon; March 22nd)
Synopsis: When a rival gang buffs Malcolm and Sofia’s latest graffiti masterpiece with a replica of the NY Mets home-run apple, they’re determined to get spectacular revenge – by tagging the real Mets’ apple.
Why You Should See It: After picking up the grand jury prize at South by Southwest Film Festival last year, this drama is coming to theaters thanks to the help of presenter Jonathan Demme. Judging from the promising trailer, newcomer Adam Leon looks to have crafted a lively, authentic work that signals even better things to come. Set for a VOD debut just a week after the start of its theatrical run, this one should be easy to find.
7. Reality (Matteo Garrone; March 15th)
Synopsis: Luciano is a charming fishmonger whose unexpected and sudden obsession with being a contestant on a reality show leads him down a rabbit hole of skewed perceptions and paranoia.
Why You Should See It: It’s been five years since Matteo Garrone‘s sprawling crime epic Gomorrah, and we are here to tell you the wait was worth it. One of our top-reviewed films at Cannes Film Festival last year, we said this “follow-up is decidedly more concentrated and deftly-paced, [as] the filmmaker [is] determined to explore the world of his anti-hero Luciano (the engrossing Aniello Arena), a family man living simply and happily in Naples who allows himself to fall apart in pursuit of his dream to be famous.”
6. Wrong (Quentin Dupieux; March 29th)
Synopsis: Dolph Springer wakes up one morning to realize he has lost the love of his life, his dog, Paul. During his quest to get Paul (and his life) back, Dolph radically changes the lives of others — risking his sanity all the while.
Why You Should See It: Seemingly a love it or hate experience (judging by some major distate shared on our recent podcast episode), I fall firmly into the former side, as the Rubber director has crafted one of the most delightfully absurd comedies of the year. There’s very little make sense here (nor should it) and the wild, surreal journey hit my funny bone in the perfect place. Now out on VOD, its a great option instead of the bottom of the barrel theatrical offerings this month.
5. Stoker (Park Chan-wook; March 1st)
Synopsis: After India’s father dies, her Uncle Charlie, who she never knew existed, comes to live with her and her unstable mother. She comes to suspect this mysterious, charming man has ulterior motives and becomes increasingly infatuated with him.
Why You Should See It: While I wasn’t enamored with the script, Park Chan-wook‘s visual mastery is more than enough of a reason to seek out his English-language debut. As I said in my Sundance review, “it’s difficult not to simply enjoy the feral, visceral events our director has concocted. Despite some missteps along the way in execution, Park Chan-wook has come to Hollywood in about the boldest way he can and his distorted vision is a welcome one in this terrain.”
4. Leviathan (Lucien Castaing-Taylor, Verena Paravel)
Synopsis: A documentary shot in the North Atlantic and focused on the commercial fishing industry.
Why You Should See It: Although this one will likely be the hardest film to track down on the list, if you’ve seen the stellar Sweetgrass (from co-director Lucien Castaing-Taylor), then you know why this is the first must-watch documentary of they year. Shot with a fly-on-the-wall aesthetic that is roughly one-part neorealism and two parts found-footage monster movie, our review states it is “shocking, innovative stuff, a visual-feast intertwined with social commentary, a comprehensive and ambitious statement on documentary cinema, and an audacious display of the power of sound as one equaling the power of images.”
3. Spring Breakers (Harmony Korine; March 15th)
Synopsis: Four college girls who land in jail after robbing a restaurant in order to fund their spring break vacation find themselves bailed out by a drug and arms dealer who wants them to do some dirty work.
Why You Should See It: Looking at the career of Harmony Korine, it’s difficult to believe the director would ever helm a crowd-pleaser, but it seems like his latest will fit that category. Despite the casting of Disney Channel icons Selena Gomez and Vanessa Hudgens, as well as James Franco in a criminal role, we said the film doesn’t indicate Korine is straying away from his odd style, rather he’s crafted a “tone poem on the emotions of youthful idiocy,” one that “penetrates the evil and melancholy lurking under pop surfaces to a point of terror and unbridled entertainment.”
2. Room 237 (Rodney Ascher; March 29th)
Synopsis: A subjective documentary that explores the numerous theories about the hidden meanings within Stanley Kubrick’s film The Shining.
Why You Should See It: This painstakingly-detailed exploration of Stanley Kubrick‘s The Shining goes through nine different theories and themes, opening up new wonders I never saw, even after many, many viewings of the horror classic. It is thoroughly thought-provoking and often hilarious, as director Rodney Ascher takes on everything from the inane to the plausible. Check out our Sundance review and make sure you have a copy of Kubrick’s horror film on hand, as you’ll want to pop it in directly after the credits hit on this documentary.
1. The Place Beyond the Pines (Derek Cianfrance; March 29th)
Synopsis: A motorcycle stunt rider turns to robbing banks as a way to provide for his lover and their newborn child, a decision that puts him on a collision course with an ambitious rookie cop navigating a department ruled by a corrupt detective.
Why You Should See It: High up on our list of our must-watch 2013 films we’ve already seen, Derek Cianfrance‘s Blue Valentine follow-up premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and it’s a major step up in terms of scope for this young helmer. We were in the positive camp, saying this “insanely ambitious,” sprawling family drama featuring Ryan Gosling and Bradley Cooper has Cianfrance “retaining the gritty authenticity of his lyrically heartbreaking [debut].”
What do you plan to watch this month?