Must-See Films Before 2007 Ends

There’s roughly three months to go before we bid 2007 adieu but a line up several highly anticipated films are yet to be released. A quick look at Wikipedia reveals the films that are set to premiere later this year. Here are my picks of must-see films before 2007 ends, in random order.

Beowulf – Anyone who passed through English Lit in high school or college will be familiar with Beowulf, the great Anglo-Saxon heroic epic poem. There have been previous movie adaptations of Beowulf’s story but this new film promises to be special because its screenplay is co-written by Neil Gaiman and will be directed by Robert Zemeckis (of Forrest Gump). Angelina Jolie’s portrayal of Grendel’s mother is also highly anticipated.

Elizabeth: The Golden Age – I’m a bit of a sucker for historical flicks and I really liked the first ‘Elizabeth’ film. It’s no wonder I’m looking forward to its sequel, ‘The Golden Age’. The new movie follows the Queen as she struggles to crush her enemies, secure her position and defend her empire from invasion while controlling her heart’s wills in the name of duty.

I think Cate Blanchett is perfectly cast as Elizabeth I. This early, she is already being tipped for another Academy Award nomination and a possible win, an honor that should have been given to her back in 1998. With the original cast, crew and director still intact, ‘Elizabeth: The Golden Age' might prove to be a winner as well.

His Dark Materials: The Golden Compass – I have yet to read Philip Pullman’s ‘His Dark Materials’ trilogy but I intend to do so before this movie adaptation of the first novel, The Golden Compass, is released. Earlier big screen adaptations of well-known fantasy novels such as ‘The Lord of the Rings’, the ‘Harry Potter’ series and the first ‘Chronicles of Narnia’ film have set quite a high standard for fantasy epic films.

I'd like to see how this film will fare given that it was made with a budget of $205M. ‘The Golden Compass’ stars Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig and newcomer, Dakota Blue Richards in the lead as Lyra Belacqua.

Alvin and the Chipmunks – Alvin, Simon and Theodore, the three lovable chipmunks are set to make their big screen debut in the new Alvin and the Chipmunks film. The film will be released just in time for Christmas, so this is perfect for kids and kids-at-heart.

I can already hear the three chipmunks' cute Christmas songs. Hehe. The poster implies that Alvin and his gang will go hip-hop this time around. That should be interesting.


Hitman – I used to play ‘Hitman’ so I was pleasantly surprised to see that a movie adaptation of it is slated to premiere later this year. Vin Diesel would have been ideal as Agent 47 but he backed out. Timothy Olyphant will play the role instead.

National Treasure: Book of Secrets – I thoroughly enjoyed the first National Treasure film’s Indiana Jones-esque style so I’d like to see what they will offer in the new sequel. The film is subtitled ‘Book of Secrets’, referring to an alleged document that holds all the nation’s secrets, for the President’s eyes only. I think the idea of the president of the most powerful country in the world keeping all his secrets in a ‘book’ is a bit far-fetched, but we’ll just wait and see if the film can pull it off.

The Other Boleyn Girl – Another semi-historical film, ‘Boleyn Girl’ tells a romanticized account of the life of Lady Mary Boleyn, rumored to be a one-time mistress of King Henry VIII who eventually married Mary’s sister, Anne. We already know what happened to Anne Boleyn and to her daughter, the future Elizabeth I. This film will throw light on the life of the Boleyns, although it is based on a controversial and semi-fictional historical novel. Mary and Anne will be portrayed by Hollywood babes Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman, respectively. That’s two more reasons to watch out for this film.

Sweeney Todd – I am not familiar with the award-winning musical on which this movie is based. But as this is the sixth collaboration between director Tim Burton and Johnny Depp, I expect the same magic that ignited their previous films such as Edward Scissorhands, Sleepy Hollow and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

Also in the cast is Helena Bonham Carter, who is always memorable in her roles (last seen as Bellatrix Lestrange in HP5), and Alan Rickman, more famous for portraying Severus Snape in the Harry Potter series. I am quite sure atomicgirl can't wait to see this one. hehe

These are just some of the films that stood out from the Wiki list, in my opinion. Of course, some of these films might turn out as duds after all. There's still quite a lot of big-name movies just waiting for the premiere date. Meanwhile, there may be a gem of a film in that list which, although hidden behind an unfamiliar title, cast and crew, may prove to be a hit when released.