December’s must-see movies
One of the biggest blockbusters of all-time gets a sequel, Farrell and Gleeson reunite and a certain animated swashbuckling cat is back, writes
The impending festive season and the end of 2022 offer plenty of exciting options for movie fans. As well as a bunch of blockbusters, December’s lineup features some potential awards-season contenders.
For those keen on a trip to the movies, the British Film Festival is back after a two-year absence. Also, Hugh Bonneville narrates the documentary Never Forget Tibet (Wednesday).
Prime Video boasts rom-coms Your Christmas or Mine? (today), Something From Tiffany’s (December 9) and About Fate (December 16). Disney+ has animated sequel Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Roderick Rules (today), Shudder’s highlights include holiday horror The Apology (December 16) and Netflix’s vast array of new flicks includes Argentine rom-com The Marriage App, Chilean period drama Burning Patience (both Wednesday) and Italian comedy 7 Women and a Mystery (December 28).
However, after looking through the schedules, Stuff to Watch has come up with this list of the 12 movies we believe are most worth checking out.
Avatar: The Way of Water (December 14, Cinemas)
After a four-year wait, finally we’ll be able to see what James Cameron and his crew have been up to in their Wellington lair.
The first of allegedly four sequels to the 2009 box-office behemoth scheduled for release over the next six years, this continues the Pandora-set adventures of Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and Neytiri (Zoe Saldana), as an old threat forces them to leave home. Kate Winslet and Cliff Curtis are among the newcomers to the sci-fi franchise.
The Banshees of Inisherin (Boxing Day, Cinemas)
Much, much darker than Martin McDonagh’s last outing, Oscar-winning Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, this reunites In Bruges stars Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson for a tale of friendship gone awry and stubbornness that threatens to cast a pall over a whole village.
When Farrell’s Padraic is rebuffed by his old pal Colm (Gleeson) for their daily drink, the resulting fallout escalates beyond what either of them could have imagined. As well as making fabulous use of its remote setting, the movie also features terrific supporting turns from Barry Keoghan and Kerry Condon.
Emancipation (December 9, Apple TV+)
This year’s Academy Award winner for Best Actor, Will Smith, returns to action with this historical drama inspired by a former slave whose whipping marks were photographed and published around the world in 1863. Providing proof of the cruelty of American slavery, it helped galvanise the abolitionist movement. Antoine Fuqua directs.
Lady Chatterley’s Lover
The Crown’s Emma Corrin and Unbroken’s Jack O’Connell star in this latest version of DH Lawrence’s classic 1928 novel, the story of an unhappily married aristocrat who begins a torrid affair with the gamekeeper on her husband’s country estate.
‘‘A romantic, enthralling adaptation that boasts wonderful performances and an eroticism that has been missing from the romance genre lately,’’ wrote Screen Rant’s Mae Abdulbaki.
(Today, Netflix) The Lost King (Boxing Day, Cinemas)
Sally Hawkins headlines this ‘‘her-storical’’ dramedy about British amateur historian Philippa Langley’s determination (and growing obsession) to defy the academic establishment and uncover the more than 500-year-old remains of King Richard III. ‘‘An underdog story that proves a perfect vehicle for Hawkins’ reliably winning screen presence,’’ wrote The Observer’s Mark Kermode.
Matilda the Musical (Christmas Day, Netflix)
The Tony and Olivier award-winning stage adaptation of Roald Dahl’s beloved 1988 novel gets the full cinematic treatment. Still telling the story – but with terrific choreography and songs – of an extraordinary girl with a sharp mind and a vivid imagination, who decides to take a stand against bullying and injustice, the impressive ensemble includes Emma Thompson, Lashana Lynch, Stephen Graham and Andrea Riseborough.
Nanny
(December 16, Prime Video) Winner of a Grand Jury Prize at January’s Sundance Film Festival, this provocative and evocative thriller is the story of an immigrant child-minder whose attempts to forge a new life in New York City are tempered by a longing to be reunited with her own offspring.
Bosch and 24: Legacy’s Anna Diop and Echoes’ and The Path’s Michelle Monaghan star.
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
(Boxing Day, Cinemas)
Eleven years after his last cinematic outing, Antonio Banderas’ charismatic swashbuckling cat returns with an all-new animated feature, in which he discovers that his passion for adventure has taken its toll. Having burnt through eight of his nine lives, he now must set out on epic journey to reset the counter.
The sublime vocal cast also includes Florence Pugh, Salma Hayek, Ray Winstone, Olivia Colman and What We Do in the Shadows’ Harvey Guillen.
Sr. (Today, Netflix)
Marvel star Robert Downey Jr pays tribute to his late father in this documentary chronicling the life and eclectic career of Robert Downey Sr. As Chris Smith’s tale details, he was a fearless and visionary director who set the standard for countercultural comedy in the 1960s and 70s.
The Volcano: Rescue from Whakaari
(December 16, Netflix)
Releasing just after the third anniversary of the White Island tragedy that killed 22 people and injured 25 others, documentarian Rory Kennedy (Downfall: The Case Against Boeing) depicts the tragic moments of those caught in the eruption, the survivors and the people who came to their rescue, through first-hand video and audio.
‘‘It was very humbling to be a part of this process, and we were overwhelmed and moved by each and every person’s bravery and courage, both on the day of the eruption and two years later,’’ Kennedy recently told Filmmaker Magazine.
I Wanna Dance With Somebody
(Boxing Day, Cinemas)
After Elton John, Aretha Franklin and Freddie Mercury, Whitney Houston is the latest singing superstar to get the musical biopic treatment.
British actor Naomi Ackie (Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker) plays the beloved hit-maker and Moonlight’s Ashton Sanders essays her husband Bobby Brown.
White Noise
The opening night movie at this year’s Venice Film Festival, Noah Baumbach’s (Marriage Story) latest feature is an apocalyptic black comedy adapted from the 1985 novel of the same name by Don DeLillo. Adam Driver plays a father-of-four and professor of Hitler Studies, whose life is turned upside down by a cataclysmic train accident that releases toxic chemicals into the air across his town. Greta Gerwig, and Don Cheadle also play key roles.