Looks like we are approaching the end of the year, and that means with the coming year-end school holiday season as well as the festive month (read: Christmas) just around the corner, this would be the best time to catch some of the exciting local and international movies in cinemas. So, mark your calendar and check out this list of 10 upcoming movies to watch for.
The first "Frozen" was no doubt one of the best and most popular Disney animated features in the recent memory. Besides, who could forget the Oscar-winning hit song "Let It Go"? Sure, the song has been overplayed since its release back in 2013 while characters like Elsa the Snow Queen, Anna and the talking snowman Olaf, have become an enduring fan favourite among many young and older moviegoers. Despite both of its critical and financial success, "Frozen" was more of a one-off movie. Anything beyond that would probably be dismissed as a cash-grab sequel... and yet, here we are. This time, "Frozen 2" follows Elsa's (voiced by Idina Menzel) journey along with her sister Anna (Kristen Bell) as well as Kristoff (Jonathan Groff), Olaf (Josh Gad) and the reindeer Sven, to uncover the mystery surrounding Arendelle's dark past. Like the first movie, expect soon-to-be-popular hit songs ("Into The Unknown" quickly comes to mind), breathtaking animation and engaging characters. And given the fact it arrives in a timely manner during the year-end school holiday, it's impossible to ignore "Frozen 2".
Anticipating has been mounting sky-high since the announcement of this locally-produced action movie, "Wira". Frankly, it's easy to see why: it boasts currently in-demand director Adrian Teh of last year's "Paskal" fame as well as reuniting with lead actor Hairul Azreen. And of course, we'll get to see Hairul squaring off against one of the renowned Indonesian martial-arts star Yayan Ruhian, who also happens to serve as the movie's fight choreographer.
This local animation needs no introduction, given its massive popularity among many kids and even adults since "Ejen Ali" successful television debut back in 2016. After running two critically-acclaimed seasons, fans will be treated with the first-ever "Ejen Ali" movie in the cinemas. Released just in time during the year-end school holiday, don't be surprised if "Ejen Ali" ends up becoming one of the biggest moneymakers at our local box-office.
In the age where Hollywood prefers to play safe with existing IPs from comic-books to franchise revivals, it has since becoming a rare sight to see a rom-com on the big screen. Instead, you are likely to see this age-old genre relegated to a streaming platform, like Netflix. Fortunately, there's an exception during this year-end holiday season as we'll be getting the festive-themed "Last Christmas" in cinemas. Directed by Paul Feig of "Bridesmaids" fame, the title itself is based from the late Wham!'s eponymous 1984 hit song in which the late George Michael sang alongside Andrew Ridgeley. It boasts a lovely onscreen pair of Emilia Clarke and our very own Henry Golding of "Crazy Rich Asians" fame. Not to mention it also has a stellar supporting cast including Michelle Yeoh and Emma Thompson.
This well-reviewed "Knives Out" has been making waves ever since it premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival back in September. The movie, which sees Rian Johnson returning to his indie roots following his critically-divisive "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" in 2017, pays homage to the classic film noir of the yesteryears and packed his twisty murder-mystery with easily one of the best ensemble casts of the year. Besides, how often you get to see an eclectic mix of old and young cast including the likes of Daniel Craig, Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis, Don Johnson and Michael Shannon?
Remember back in 2017 when a lot of people who idolised the late Robin Williams' "Jumanji" didn't exactly warm up with the idea of reviving the classic 1995 movie? Well, all that has changed now as Sony's "Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle" became a bigger-than-expected hit at the worldwide box-office. And given its enormous popularity, it comes as no surprise that we are getting another "Jumanji" movie with the same director (Jake Kasdan) and same set of cast (Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan and Nick Jonas). Whether or not it's going to be the same old formula, it remains to be seen here. But whatever it is, "Jumanji: The Next Level" will likely to be doing well during the year-end holiday season.
Two reasons: Chadwick Boseman and the Russo (Anthony and Joe) brothers. Never mind the fact that the latter only served as one of the producers (the directing task is given to TV vet Brian Kirk of "Game Of Thrones" and "Boardwalk Empire" fame). What makes "21 Bridges" an interesting hook is the premise itself, where Chadwick Boseman's NYPD detective Andre Davis is set to go all out by shutting down all 21 bridges of Manhattan to locate two cop killers (Stephen James and Taylor Kitsch). The kind of race-against-the-time thriller that is always entertaining to catch on the big screen and it does help to see Chadwick Boseman taking the lead role.
The previous "Star Wars" movie (read: "The Last Jedi") may have been angered and divided both die-hard fans and casual moviegoers. Whether it might hurt the chance for "Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker" of making big money in the box-office is another question altogether, but one thing is for sure, it will still ignite that curiosity for most people to turn out in droves to see how J.J. Abrams -returning to the franchise after 2015's "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" - is able to retcon and wrap up the divisive Skywalker saga once and for all.
Seriously, just how many "Ip Man" movies some of us need to watch? Not that the first three "Ip Man" movies were bad, in fact, they remained the quintessential "Ip Man" movies if compared to the rest of its like-minded competitors. But the real reason is because director Wilson Yip has made a fitting conclusion in the third movie. Still, it's nice to see Donnie Yen slip into his iconic Wing Chun grandmaster role for the fourth time, and this time, he gets to fight Scott Adkins, Chris Collins and Wu Yue (the latter two who previously appeared in Wilson Yip's "Paradox").
Taking a break from the usual animal-themed animations (see "Ice Age" and "Rio" franchise), it's nice to see the Blue Sky Studios offering a refreshing change of pace by introducing us to a super-spy human protagonist (voiced by Will Smith). Okay, not entirely since he ends up unexpectedly transformed into a pigeon later in the movie. Either way, this is exactly Smith's wheelhouse, given its familiar action-comedy vibe and the very idea of watching the otherwise cool-looking Will Smith turn into a pigeon would be a whole lot of fun. Besides, "Spies In Disguise" has got the ever-reliable Tom Holland voicing the sidekick role as the young scientist Walter Beckett.