Worst2First: My Most Anticipated Films of Winter 2023-2024

Worst2First:
My Most Anticipated Films of Winter 2023-2024

2023 will soon come to a close and usher in 2024, and along with it comes a slew of eagerly-awaited films from the critically acclaimed to the reimaginging classics to some exciting action films. Spanning from December 2023 to February 2024, here are my personal top ten films I'm most anticipated to see this winter.

**THERE WILL BE NO SPOILERS**
**DATES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE**

#10

Bob Marley: One Love

February 14

Musical biopics are a dime a dozen, and honestly it'll take a lot to make me think this will be anything more than a generic Wikipedia-esque journey through the life of one of music's most influential artists. Kingsley Ben-Adir (from "Barbie" and "Secret Invasion") stars as the titular Bob Marley, the reggae singer and songwriter who was also an accomplished activist who preached his gospel of love to the world even as he came under attack time and again. Ben-Adir looks more than capable for the role, and with Lashana Lynch playing his wife Rita, "One Love" might be that musical biopic I've been looking for to change the mold.

#9

Founders Day

January 19

I'm always a sucker for a good slasher (and honestly it'll be hard to top this year's surprise hit "Thanksgiving"), and "Founders Day" looks to quench my slasher bloodlust. The film focuses on a small town who's celebrating its tricentennial celebration while also dealing with a serial killer in its mist who wears a mask of one of the towns' founders. While he's no Eli Roth, directors Erik and Caarson Bloomquist look to serve up gore and violence set against the idyllic backdrop of small town America with an intriguing murder mystery enveloping it all.

#8

Silent Night

December 1

It seems it's not Christmas without some yuletide thrills. Last year it was David Harbour's Santa wreaking bloody mayhem in "Violent Night," and now it's Joel Kinnaman's turn in "Silent Night" (I can't wait for the third movie in the trilogy next year, "Holy Night"). The film follows Kinnaman's Brian Godluck, an ordinary family man who undergoes the worst trauma a father could endure - the brutal murder of his young son on Christmas Eve, which also left him unable to talk. He goes on a blood-soaked rampage to get revenge for his murdered son, killing anyone and everyone in his path. Famed action director John Woo returns to the directors' chair for the first time since 2017 to direct this revenge porn flick, and it looks to be a bloody good time and a modern day "Die Hard."

#7

Ferrari

December 25

There's nothing better to do on Christmas than to celebrate the biopic story of one of the wealthiest men in automotive history. Adam Driver completely transforms into Enzo Ferrari, the Italian founder of the Ferrari automobile and centering on a particularly dark moment of his life: following the loss of his young son Dino, his deteriorating marriage, and his possible bankruptcy, he enters his racing team into the 1957 Mille Miglia. Driver is a force of nature in film and there's no doubt he'll deliver a compelling performance, and alongside Penelope Cruz and Shailene Woodley it looks to be a stacked cast with a compelling narrative that'll hopefully give more insight into the mysterious Ferrari.

#6

The Color Purple

December 25

The original 1985 Steven Spielberg-directed film was an acclaimed visionary work of art that earned eleven Academy Award nominations is something that should never be re-done, but the 2023 version of "The Color Purple" is different. It's based more on the musical on Broadway rather than the film, and although Spielberg doesn't sit in the directors' chair, he serves as producer alongside Quicy Jones and Oprah Winfrey, whom received one of those Oscar nominations herself. Billed as a "bold new take on the beloved classic," this version centers on the lifelong struggles of Celie Harris-Johnson, an African American woman living in the South in the 1900s. Fantasia Barrino makes her big screen debut in the role she made her own on Broadway, and featuring a stacked cast including Taraji P. Henson, Danielle Brooks, Colman Domingo, Corey Hawkins, H.E.R., Aunjeanue Ellis and Halle Bailey, this version looks to deliver the same dramatic resonance as the 1985 film, filled with compelling performances and a story that demands to be heard all these years later.

#5

Godzilla Minus One

December 1

The Japanese kaiju Godzilla has been a cinematic mainstay since 1954, an icon in its own right that has brought about terror as well as hope as its behemoth size makes it the most imposing figure, but also at times it seems that it wants to help humanity more than hurt it. The Japanese film "Godzilla Minus One" unfortunately seems the former, as Godzilla again rises from the ocean to wreak havoc on Japan for some reason. Godzilla itself looks as frightening as ever, and this looks to be an intense action-packed film paying homage to Japan's most legendary creatures.

#4

Wonka

December 15

The famed writer Roald Dahl created the character of Willy Wonka in 1964, but most people recognize the famed chocolate founder in the Gene Wilder film "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory," which was supposed to be a family friendly film but in reality is a horror in disguise (don't tell me you don't have nightmares when you see their boat ride through hell). In 2005 the movie was remade by Tim Burton with Johnny Depp at the helm, and although most people didn't enjoy it, I found it pretty funny and lighter than the original - which is still the best hands down. Now its Timothee Chalamet's turn as the fabled Wonka in "Wonka," serving as an origin story as to how he garnered such a chocolate empire. The film looks to be as family friendly as they come, a mixture of "Paddington" (no surprise since it's directed by the same man), "The Greatest Showman," and Willy Wonka himself, filled with lavish colorful set pieces and a touching story. Throw in Hugh Grant as an Oompa Loompa, along with Olivia Colman, Sally Hawkins, Keegan-Michael Key and Rowan Atkinson, and you've got the makings of a great origin story that'll take you to a place of pure imagination.

#3

Argylle

February 2

Matthew Vaughn has a directing style all his own, as evident in his acclaimed "The Kingsmen" series. He illuminates the screen with lavish visuals and quick-witted humor that serves as a modern day James Bond hero. Now he's back with a new tale in "Argylle," featuring Bryce Dallas Howard as Elly, a reclusive author who writes fictional stories about a super spy named Argylle who finds herself thrust into the real world of espionage as it seems what she writes actually comes true, and there's some powerful men out there who want her to write the next chapter. Along with her beloved cat Alfie and Aiden, an undercover spy played by Sam Rockwell, Elly must confront her biggest fears and save the real world from real danger. As with Vaughn's other projects the film is loaded with A-list talent including Samuel L. Jackson, Henry Cavill, John Cena, Dua Lipa, Bryan Cranston and Ariana DeBose, and looks to be as action-packed as his other work.

#2

Poor Things

December 8

Yorgos Lanthimos is a unique director who's given some compelling films like "The Favourite," "The Lobster" and "The Killing of a Sacred Deer," and is known for his different stories that he tells. "Poor Things" looks to be his most outlandish yet his most spectacular, this different take on the Mary Shelley "Frankenstein" centers on Emma Stone's Bella, a young woman brought back to life by her guardian, Dr. Baxter (played by Willem Dafoe, so you know it's going to be good). She encounters the world for the first time and falls for lawyer Duncan Wedderburn (Mark Ruffalo) and experiences everything life has to offer free from the prejudices of humanity. This looks beautiful in its visuals and Emma Stone will undoubtedly slay as she always does, giving another fun, exciting tale by Lanthimos.

#1

The Iron Claw

December 22

I'm not a huge wrestling fan and really know nothing about the sport and most of its participants, but "The Iron Claw" really drew me in by the trailer. The film is going to center on the Von Erich family who was a family of professional wrestlers who invented the iron claw wrestling hold in the 1980s. More than just a family of wrestlers, they also struggle with their own familial curse that resulted in a string of unbearable personal tragedies that followed the family through their lives. Starring Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, Harris Dickinson, Maura Tierney and Lily James, "The Iron Claw" looks to be a dramatic true-life story of a family's passion and turmoil told with personal gravitas.