Aquaman, Wonka, Ferrari among the top picks for your ultimate summer movie guide
December is traditionally blissful for movie fans. Leigh Paatsch has cast his eye over all the top releases coming this summer.
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Boxing Day traditionally ushers in a fortnight of pure bliss for movie fans, a period renowned for an abundance of riches not seen in cinemas at any other time of the year.
Leigh Paatsch navigates the maze of diverse new releases to find the movies that will be worth a look in the hazy, lazy weeks ahead …
THE CROWD PLEASERS
These are the sure-fire movie hits that tick every box.
TOP PICK: WONKA
Timothee Chalamet, Olivia Colman
Now Showing in General Release
Foreground: With dreams of opening his first ever shop, the young and poor aspiring confectioner Willy Wonka discovers that the lolly business is run by a cartel of greedy chocolatiers.
Background: Consider this fantastic family affair to be a prequel to the 1971 Gene Wilder-starring musical Charlie & the Chocolate Factory (and forget all about that Johnny Depp one). As a fresh origin story for Willy and also a musical comprised of all new (and insanely catchy) songs, this lively, funny and irresistibly imaginative movie just doesn’t put a foot wrong throughout.
Close-Up: This is the only quality release of the Christmas-New Year period that covers all entertainment bases for all ages. The same team behind those amazing Paddington movies bring all the visual flair and amusing storytelling you could hope for, and an admirably up-for-anything Timothee Chalamet (yes, he can sing and he can dance!) leads a great support cast in the right directions.
AQUAMAN AND THE LOST KINGDOM
Jason Momoa, Patrick Wilson
Opens Boxing Day
Foreground: Aquaman’s longtime enemy Black Manta re-emerges to avenge his father’s death. To defeat him, Aquaman must turn to his imprisoned brother Orm, the former King of Atlantis.
Background: The cinema business has a lot riding on this $300 million DC Comics blockbuster. While the first Aquaman movie grossed $1.5 billion, that was back in 2018, when superhero movies were invincible. The landscape is radically different in 2023, with many superhero flicks tanking due to audiences tiring of the genre.
Close-Up: If anyone can charm a would-be ticket buyer to part with their money, it is the ultra-charismatic Momoa. He has kept pushing hard to sell the movie, despite consistent rumours of studio interference and reshoots (production originally wrapped almost two years ago), and the controversy surrounding co-star Amber Heard.
FERRARI
Adam Driver, Penelope Cruz
Opens in early January
Foreground: In the summer of 1957, a broke and beleaguered Enzo Ferrari bets his entire company on success in the Mille Miglia, the most dangerous long-distance open-road race in Europe.
Background: Legendary director Michael Mann (Heat) has had the full blessing of the Ferrari company for this $160 million movie for quite a long time. Hugh Jackman was Mann’s first choice to play the iconic Italian motor car impresario until the Australian star’s enthusiasm cooled a year before shooting.
Close Up: Car nerds will have a field day studying the gripping Mille Miglia sequences. Mann’s team custom-built a 16-strong fleet of authentic Ferraris and Maseratis from the mid-50s exclusively for the movie. Both Driver and Cruz (as Mrs Ferrari) look primed to score Oscar noms for their fine work here.
THE BOYS IN THE BOAT
Joel Edgerton, Callum Turner
Opens in early January
Foreground: The true story of the 1936 University of Washington rowing team, an unheralded junior squad that rapidly rose through the ranks to compete for gold at the Summer Olympics in Berlin.
Background: Based on the best-selling book by Daniel James Brown (a ripping beach read if you’re in the market). This lavish drama has been in development for 12 years, with several filmmakers coming and going in that time. George Clooney coming aboard as director finally got things moving.
Close Up: If you have a soft spot for old-fashioned, inspirational yarns about sports underdogs overachieving, this is guaranteed to be your kind of movie. Edgerton deploys a rock-solid presence as the only ‘name’ actor involved, while Clooney’s creative team find exciting ways to liven up the visually static spectacle of rowing races.
ANYONE BUT YOU
Sydney Sweeney, Glen Powell
Opens Boxing Day
Foreground: After an amazing first date, a fiery attraction between two Americans turns ice cold – until they find themselves unexpectedly reunited at a destination wedding in Australia.
Background: You wouldn’t really pick it up from the advance advertising, but this raunchy rom-com is actually a (very) modern updating of the famous Shakespeare play Much Ado About Nothing. Plenty of locals in the support cast, including Bryan Brown and Rachel Griffiths.
Close Up: Filmed in and around Sydney at the tail of last summer, and Australia’s biggest city ends up looking just as good as its ultra-attractive leading couple. Speaking of whom, both Sweeney (a standout as the sullen daughter in series 1 of The White Lotus) and Powell (Hangman in Top Gun: Maverick) are certain to be major stars in coming years.
PRESTIGE PICKS
These are the movies that will suit those with refined tastes.
TOP PICK: POOR THINGS
Emma Stone, Willem Dafoe
Opens Boxing Day
Foreground: After suffering a tragic death at a young age, Bella Baxter is brought back to life by a brilliant and unorthodox scientist. Now she must learn how the world works all over again.
Background: This arresting adaptation of the Alasdair Gray novel is the work of maverick filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos (The Favourite), fast becoming a brand-name for flamboyantly designed movies that rival only those of Wes Anderson. Australian screenwriter Tony McNamara handled the screenplay.
Close Up: This is, without a doubt, the most original, challenging and downright strange major release of the summer. However, it is also highly accessible to audiences of all types, and is sure to be a major contender come Oscars time (particularly for Stone’s fearless and funny display).
MAESTRO
Bradley Cooper, Carey Mulligan
Now showing in selected cinemas; Streaming on Netflix from December 20.
Foreground: The complex love story of Leonard and Felicia Bernstein, a story that spans two engagements, a 25 year marriage, and three children.
Background: Actor-filmmaker Bradley Cooper took careful aim before selecting his directorial follow-up to the brilliant A Star is Born. He could not have chosen any more wisely: not only for the fascinating subject matter (Leonard Bernstein was a titan of 20th century music on several fronts), but also for the casting of a truly mesmerising co-star in Mulligan.
Close Up: After a successful limited run in Australian cinemas, the magnificent Maestro looks primed to reach a huge global audience when it bows on Netflix later this week. If watching at home, turn the volume up loud: the music heard here (especially when Cooper as Bernstein is seen conducting) is a majestic experience.
COUP DE CHANCE
Lou de Laage, Niels Schneider
Opens Boxing Day
Foreground: The perfect marriage of the perfect Parisian couple comes under severe duress when the wife reconnects with an old high-school friend without her husband’s knowledge.
Background: Just when everybody thought it was all over for Woody Allen, the once-lauded New York filmmaker comes storming back with his best movie in over a decade. Don’t let the fact it’s filmed completely in French put you off. This unorthodox thriller has several twists you won’t see coming.
Close Up: Reaction to the movie after successfully premiering at the Venice Film Festival has been universally strong. However, Coup de Chance will be released everywhere but Allen’s native USA, where his reputation has never recovered from allegations made by ex-partner Mia Farrow.
THE HOLDOVERS
Paul Giamatti, Dominic Sessa
Opens early January
Foreground: A cranky history teacher at a remote prep school is forced to remain on campus over the holidays with a troubled student who has no place to go.
Background: The great character Paul Giamatti (best known to many as the star of the hit series Billions) and acclaimed director Alexander Payne (Nebraska) have only worked together once before: on the smash-hit wine-weekend comedy Sideways. Therefore this re-teaming will prove most attractive to those who have longed for more of the same wit, wisdom and wisecracks.
Close Up: Immaculately acted and insightfully written, this excellent movie has traced a traditional film festival route to a gradual release and a slew of awards now coming its way. The ever-consistent Giamatti is considered a lock for a Best Actor nod, as is his rookie co-star Sessa (still a student in real life) for Best Supporting Actor.
FAMILY FRIENDLY
These are the movies perfect for both the young and young at heart.
TOP PICK: MIGRATION
Voices of Elizabeth Banks, Danny DeVito
Opens Boxing Day
Foreground: A family of Mallard ducks try to convince their overprotective father to go on the vacation of a lifetime, flying all the way from New York City to Jamaica.
Background: French illustrator Benjamin Renner is a big name in international animation circles (his 2012 work Ernest & Celestine is an all-ages delight) and his Hollywood directing debut has attracted a top-flight voice cast (including Awkwafina, Kumail Nanjiani and Wonka star Keegan-Michael Key).
Close Up: If the comic repartee seems a little cleverer than usual for a kids’ flick, it will be down to the fella who wrote the screenplay. Mike White is best known as the creator of the global series sensation The White Lotus and the family classic School of Rock.
WISH
voices of Ariana DeBose, Chris Pine
Opens Boxing Day
Foreground: A young girl named Asha wishes on a star, and gets a more direct answer than she bargained for when a mischievous talking star comes down from the sky to join her.
Background: It would not be the summer holidays without at least one title from the prodigious Walt Disney Animation Studios somewhere on the release schedule. This very expensive ($300 million) production has a high-end creative pedigree, led by the writing-directing duo behind the record-breaking Frozen.
Close Up: The lead role of Asha is played by the multi-talented actor, singer and dancer Ariana DeBose, whose screen career continues to go from strength to strength after her Oscar-winning breakthrough with West Side Story.
NEXT GOAL WINS
Michael Fassbender, Oscar Kightley
Opens New Year’s Day
Foreground: The true story of the American Samoa soccer team, who had already fielded some of the worst line-ups in World Cup qualification history when they appointed a new coach for the 2014 event.
Background: New Zealand-born filmmaker Taika Waititi (Thor: Ragnarok and Hunt for the Wilderpeople) used his clout in Hollywood to get this feel-good comedy made after watching a BBC doco about the ill-fated squad. The casting of the semi-retired Fassbender is a major coup.
Close Up: The American Samoan team’s worst-ever performance came in 2001, when our very own Socceroos trounced a befuddled line-up 31-0 (a world record for an international soccer fixture). Check out the highlights on YouTube (Archie Thompson scores a lazy 13 off his own boot!).
CHICKEN RUN: DAWN OF THE NUGGET
voices of Thandiwe Newton, Zachary Levi
Now streaming on Netflix
Foreground: After leading a legendary farm-wide breakout, Ginger and Rocky discover a new threat to chickens everywhere that demands they plan a daring break-in.
Background: Has it really been over 20 years since the original Chicken Run reimagined The Great Escape as an all-chook adventure for the ages? Netflix paid a pretty penny for what is an utterly charming, madcap sequel that little kids in particular will find irresistible.
Close Up: The endearingly bumpy signature style of famed British clay-animation masters Aardman Studios is very much to the fore here. New lead voice actors Newton and Levi are great replacements for Jane Horrocks and Mel Gibson as Ginger and Rocky.
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Originally published as Aquaman, Wonka, Ferrari among the top picks for your ultimate summer movie guide
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