2013's Coming Attractions

Cloud Atlas (The Wachowskis & Tom Tykwer) — 22 Feb
Based on the incredibly complex novel by David Mitchell (not that one), Cloud Atlas consists of six separate but interconnected plotlines with settings as varied as an 1850s remote South Pacific community and a post-apocalyptic dystopian future. With The Wachowskis and Run Lola Run director Tom Tykwer at the helm, spirits are high that this might be more Matrix (‘How did they?’) than Matrix Reloaded (‘Why did they?’). [David McGinty]

The Paperboy (Lee Daniels) — 15 Mar
Eerie walking doll Nicole Kidman entraps the kid off High School Musical in a plot to get hubby John Cusack out the jail in Lee Daniels’ dirty, sweaty and, by all accounts, utterly deranged southern gothic neo-noir. There’s psychosexual shenanigans aplenty, while Matthew McConaughey provides sleazy support and (presumably) taps-aff. Divided audiences at Cannes — as every film ever shown there has. [Chris Fyvie]

In the House (François Ozon) — 29 Mar
Kristin Scott Thomas’s increasing prolificacy with French-language cinema continues with François Ozon’s follow-up to camp-fest Potiche. A darkly comic story of suburban voyeurism, Ozon, also behind the film’s screenplay, looks to be taking major cues from Hitchcock and Polanski in what festival feedback suggests may be a return to form for the former enfant terrible. [Josh Slater-Williams]

The Place Beyond the Pines (Derek Cianfrance) — 12 Apr
Ryan Gosling modifies his Drive persona to play Luke, a motorbike stuntman driven to crime to provide for his illegitimate child, in Derek Cianfrance’s Toronto-wowing feature. In Blue Valentine Cianfrance experimented with improvisation, this time it’s reputedly plot in a three-part story that begins with a Gosling versus Bradley Cooper, good-versus-evil tale and ends with grown up versions of their sons still coping with the fallout. [Danny Scott]

The Great Gatsby (Baz Luhrmann) – 17 May
Who better to breathe life into F. Scott Fitzgerald’s gold-plated rendering of the Roaring Twenties than Luhrmann, a filmmaker with an aesthetic so florid he could turn a James Kelman novel into a riot of sequin and bubblegum pop. Leonardo DiCaprio, a beautiful Romeo for Luhrmann in the mid-90s, is now a jowly Gatsby; Carey Mulligan is Daisy, Gatsby's ebullient star-crossed lover and quintessential flapper. [Jamie Dunn]

Star Trek Into Darkness (J.J. Abrams) — 17 May
Prepare to beam back onboard the Enterprise. Following the enormous success of J.J. Abrams’ 2009 Star Trek reboot, the story of an orphaned space farmboy who – encouraged by an old wise man who knew his father –attempts to stop a spaceship that can destroy planets. All that remains to be seen is how closely Star Trek Into Darkness will resemble The Empire Strikes Back. (Spolier –  Benedict Cumberbatch is Lando!) [DM]

Man of Steel (Zack Snyder) — 14 Jun
Is it a bird? Is it a plane? WHO THE FUCK CARES ANYMORE? Zack Snyder reboots that most tiresome of superhero mythologies as insipid goody two-shoes Clark Kent discovers he’s really tough and has great responsibility and stuff. Henry Cavill is the new mopey Supes, Amy Adams his presumably bored love interest, Russell Crowe and Kevin Costner offer daddy issues, spandex gets applied. [CF]

World War Z (Marc Foster) — 21 Jun
Apocalyptic epic World War Z’s troubled production of re-writes and re-shoots suggests it’ll be, well, shit. The presence of the effortlessly charismatic Pitt as double-hard undead slayer and leader of the resistance, a beloved source novel and frenetic trailer suggest it may be quite fun. A section shot in Glasgow, allegedly providing work to thousands of real life stealth zombies, ensures local interest. [CF]

Pacific Rim (Guillermo del Toro) — 12 Jul
Guillermo del Toro’s latest directorial effort is heavily inspired by both ‘mecha’ anime series and ‘kaiju’ giant creature features. When an alien attack threatens Earth’s existence, humans piloting giant machines are deployed to prevent the apocalypse. If keeping in tone with its influences, this could prove quite the thrill, though the first trailer and released designs are curiously bland. [JS-W]

The World’s End (Edgar Wright) — 14 Aug
Depending on your view of Hot Fuzz it’s almost a decade since Simon Pegg and Nick Frost were last funny, in Shaun of the Dead. Next summer they will join director Edgar Wright to complete the so-called Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy. The World’s End is the titular final pub in a legendary crawl from five childhood friends’ youth. Reuniting for a middle-aged attempt at the booze up they slowly realise the world outside is facing total annihilation. [DS]

Alan Partridge: The Movie (Declan Lowney) — 16 Aug
Aha! Alan Partridge, Norwich’s premier broadcaster, finally finds a medium big enough to contain his considerable ego. Last heard languishing on North Norfolk Digital’s midmorning radio show, Partridge's big screen debut should be filed in the comeback hall of fame with John Travolta in Pulp Fiction and Mickey Rourke in The Wrestler. Question is, will he finally get together with his heaven-sent PA, Lynn? [JD]

A Glimpse Inside the Mind of Charles Swan III (Roman Coppola) — date TBA
Though Jason Schwartzman and Bill Murray have both frequented plenty of Wes Anderson films in the last ten years, they haven’t shared much actual screentime since Rushmore. The sight of them both on top zany form in the trailer for Roman Coppola’s A Glimpse Inside the Mind of Charles Swan III is whetting the appetites of indie-comedy fans everywhere. [DM]

The Grandmasters (Wong Kar-wai) — date TBA
Oft-delayed, the long-awaited new feature by director Wong Kar-wai sees both a return to his native Hong Kong and to action cinema. The story of martial-arts master Yip Man has been covered in a recent film series with Donnie Yen, but with regular actor-collaborator Tony Leung on board and a gorgeous-looking visual approach, a unique imprint on the material seems definite. [JS-W]

Like Someone in Love (Abbas Kiarostami) — date TBA
Anyone who pretended to like 2010’s Certified Copy to boost their intellectual cred’ will be upset to hear 2013 brings Kiarostami’s next feature. This time the ‘action’ moves from Tuscany to Tokyo as the Iranian director examines the relationship between an old-timer and a young call girl over the course of two-plus hours. Expect lots of Kiarostami’s trademark conversations in cars and the end credits when you least expect them. [DS]

The We and the I (Michel Gondry) — date TBA
Lo-fi genius Michel Gondry is the master of spinning unlikely scenarios (a romantic comedy about a couple having their memories wiped, Seth Rogen as a superhero) into whimsical cinema gold. He does the same here using only a New York City bus, a dozen acting greenhorns from the Bronx, a brace of Young MC LPs, some tinsel and buckets full of enthusiasm. [JD]