2020 Must-see films & TV
YOUR definitive guide to the best films over the year ahead.
Birds of Prey: And The Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn, February
EARLY front-runner for best title, this spin-off from the poorly received Suicide Squad sees Margot Robbie back as loopy super villain Harley Quinn. Her performance was the high spot of the original film. She forms a new team with Huntress and Black Canary to save a girl from a dastardly crime boss. Over-the-top stylish mayhem and frenetic superhero action. Also stars Ewan Mcgregor and Rosie Perez.
No Time to Die, April
BOND, Daniel Craig in his last outing, has left active service but is persuaded out of an easier life in Jamaica when old CIA friend Felix Leiter, played again by Jeffrey Wright, asks for his help. Bond is soon trailing a new villain who is armed with lethal technology. Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris, Ben Whishaw and Léa Seydoux all return and are joined by Ana de Armas and Bohemian Rhapsody star Rami Malek.
Black Widow May
SCARLETT Johansson’s wisecracking, super-cool superhero Black Widow may not have fared too well in Avengers: Endgame, but this much-anticipated standalone film dwells on her KGB training and subsequent freelance operations after the break-up of the USSR with special emphasis on her adventures in the time period between Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War. Robert Downey Jr is back as Tony Stark, while the top-notch cast also includes Rachel Weisz, Florence Pugh, Ray Winstone and David Harbour.
Wonder Woman 1984, June
WONDER Woman was a massive superhero hit back in 2017 and while final details of the plot of this muchanticipated sequel are not clear, we do know – as the title suggests – it’s set in the 80s and Diana Prince, aka Wonder Woman, is played by Cal Gadot. She is up against deadly super villain Cheetah, a regular rival from the Wonder Woman comic books, played by Kristen Wiig, who in previous films has handled comedy rather than superhero shenanigans. Also due to return are Chris Pine and Connie Nielsen.
Jungle Cruise, July
BASED on Disneyland’s muchloved theme park ride, this bigscreen adaptation is an all-action
period romp. It stars Dwayne Johnson as a swashbuckling river boat captain who reluctantly agrees to take travellers led by determined Lily Houghton, Emily Blunt, on a dangerous Amazon river trip through a jungle filled with deadly animals and mysterious enemies as she searches for a legendary tree with supposed healing powers. Also stars Paul Giamatti and Jack Whitehall.
Ghostbusters: Afterlife, July
WHILE little has been revealed about the plot of this latest re-boot of the 1984 supernatural comedy classic, we know original stars Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Annie Potts, and Sigourney Weaver are back to join a cast that includes Paul Rudd, Mckenna Grace and Carrie Coon and Finn Wolfhard.
Top Gun: Maverick, July
TOM Cruise returns as super-cool, super-arrogant, hot shot Naval aviator Maverick, still up there flying fast jets and getting into all sorts of trouble on the ground. Also due back is Val Kilmer as Iceman, with the cast also including Jon Hamm, Jennifer Connelly, Miles Teller, playing the son of Maverick’s late best pal Goose, Ed Harris and Monica Barbaro. An early trailer hinted at plenty of aerial action, full details of the plot are yet to be revealed.
Godzilla vs Kong, November
A TRUE battle of the titans as the giant King Kong squares up to the equally unstoppable Godzilla. Recent Kong and Godzilla films have been hits and these battling behemoths tend to do their bit to save humans they like. Cast also includes Rebecca Hall, Alexander Skarsgard and Millie Bobby Brown.
Dune, November
DIRECTOR Denis Villeneuve, who made Sicario, Arrival and Blade Runner 2049, has described his epic adaptation of Frank Herbert’s cult sci-fi novel as Star War for adults. Split into at least two films to sustain the story, the first follows Paul Atreides, played by Timothée Chalamet, a gifted young man destined to protect the most vital element in the galaxy as he travels to the spice planet of Dune. Rebecca Ferguson, Jason Momoa, Zendaya, Dave Bautista, Josh Brolin, Charlotte Rampling,
Javier Bardem also star.