While everyone might still be harping on about how big 2015 will be (thanks to The Avengers 2, Star Wars 7, Batman Vs Superman, Jurassic World etc), 2014 is also shaping up to be a fairly banner year.
But with all the films coming your way in the next 12 months, there's simply not enough headroom to get excited about them all. So we've done the noble thing and whittled it down to the 12 films that you need to be most bothered about. And here they are:
1. 12 Years A Slave
Already a clear front-runner for the coveted Best Picture Oscar, this profoundly moving true story of one man's harrowing journey from free man to slave has deservedly been getting some excellent reviews in the US. We've already seen it and we doubt there'll be a more powerful film in 2014. The superb cast includes Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Fassbender. Benedict Cumberbatch, Brad Pitt and Sarah Paulson. See the trailer here
Release date: January 10
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2. The Wolf Of Wall Street
Another awards contender here, from Martin Scorsese, that goes down a very different route from both Slave and Scorsese's previous work. It's a story of wild excess in the 80s with Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill, Matthew McConaughey and, ermmm, Joanna Lumley leading the cast. Early word suggests it's a doozy. See the trailer here
Release date: January 17
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3. Her
The return of Spike Jonze was always going to be something of note but his latest is already being spoken about as one of his best yet. It tells of the unusual love story between a lonely writer, played by Joaquin Phoenix, and his "operating system", the voice of Scarlett Johansson. We caught it recently and our black hearts were alternately warmed and broken. See the trailer here
Release date: February 14
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4. The Double
It's a face off next year between two films about doppelgangers. There's no confirmed release date yet for Enemy, where Jake Gyllenhaal encounters a dubious twin but The Double, the slightly more comic of the pair will be first out of the block in April. Jesse Eisenberg plays both himself and his double while The IT Crowd's Richard Ayoade steps behind the camera. See the trailer here
Release date: April 4
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5. Transcendence
We'd love to tell you all about this one but, despite the impending release, details are still scarce. It's the directorial debut of Wally Pfister, Christopher Nolan's cinematographer and stars Johnny Depp as a power-hungry scientist who strives to create a machine that possesses sentience. It also stars Rebecca Hall, Morgan Freeman, Cillian Murphy and Paul Bettany. We're expecting big things.
Release date: April 25
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6. Godzilla
After the slightly underwhelming Pacific Rim, you'd be forgiven for expecting a few years break before the next "giant monster destroys shit" movie but, hold up. Gareth Edwards, director of smart indie Monsters, is rebooting Godzilla and has assembled a fantastic cast (Bryan Cranston, Elizabeth Olsen, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Sally Hawkins, Ken Watanabe and Juliette Binoche) to help him. See the trailer here
Release date: May 14
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7. 22 Jump Street
When we sat down to watch a big screen reboot of an 80s TV show, we struggled to stay awake. Because, well, you know. But 21 Jump Street was one of the funniest films of recent years and so a sequel is actually extremely welcome, don't you know. This time, the pair are going undercover at, you guessed it, college. See the trailer here
Release date: June 6
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8. A Million Ways To Die In The West
After Ted became a monstrous hit, all eyes were on Seth MacFarlane for whatever his next project might be. Eyebrows were then raised when the words "western comedy" came out of nowhere. Excitement then grew when the cast was announced, bringing together Charlize Theron, Liam Neeson, Amanda Seyfried, Sarah Silverman and MacFarlane himself. The new Maverick, perhaps?
Release date: June 6
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9. Guardians Of The Galaxy
Okay so yes, another film about a team of Marvel superheroes trying to save the universe might sound a tad unnecessary but this time, the adventure is focusing more on space than on earth. The varied cast includes Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Karen Gillan playing a villain and Bradley Cooper playing, ermmm, a raccoon. It sounds a bit nuts but we managed to get on set earlier this year and, well, we're sold.
Release date: August 1
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10. Gone Girl
The book that everyone was talking about this year should, if all goes to plan, be the film that everyone's talking about next year. A twisty Hitchcockian thriller about a marriage that falls apart in explosive fashion, it stars Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike as the poisonous couple while David Fincher, he of all those films you love, directs. Has the potential to be huge.
Release date: October 3
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11. Interstellar
A new Christopher Nolan film is a reason for us all to be excited, because even in his lesser moments (The Dark Knight Rises), he still brings a hell of a lot to the table. His latest is also exciting because it's an original science fiction film, a rarity, which follows a group of explorers who dabble with space and time. The stellar (lol) cast includes Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain and Michael Caine. See the trailer here
Release date: November 7
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12. Foxcatcher
Originally set to open for Oscar contention in 2013, this was pushed back so the makers were allowed "more time to finish the film". While this is often code for "problems", we're holding strong on this one. Firstly, it's from Bennett Miller who brought us Moneyball, arguably the greatest film of 2011. Secondly, the story is fascinatingly odd (a true story of a wrestler who kills his brother with the help of a paranoid schizophrenic millionaire). Thirdly, the cast of Steve Carell, Channing Tatum, Mark Ruffalo, Sienna Miller and Vanessa Redgrave suggests great things.
Release date: TBC
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