« Back to article

Print this article

The 20 Biggest English Films Of 2013

Besides fresh starts and renewed possibilites, a new year brings with it a new set of exciting films.

With at least 20 highly anticipated films scheduled to hit the marquee this year, 2013 sure holds a lot of promise.

We might be singing a different tune once these films are out, but for now, these are the Hollywood blockbusters I'm most thrilled about this year.

Pacific Rim

Guillermo Del Toro, director of Hellboy and Pan's Labyrinth, takes on gigantic robots in his next film, an epic starring Idris Elba, Charlie Hunnm and Rinko Kikuchi.

Expect to be visually overwhelmed.

Man Of Steel

Superman might be neglected by the box office these days, but that may well change with this Zack Snyder film.

Starring Henry Cavill in the title role, it's darker in tone, and we all have faith in the producer Christopher Nolan.

The Lone Ranger

Just because Johnny Depp has weird makeup and is working with Pirates Of The Caribbean director Gore Verbinski again doesn't mean they can't still do great stuff together.

For hope, look to Rango.

Stoker

Oldboy director Park Chan-wook makes his English-language debut with Stoker, a psychological horror thriller with, the title suggests, vampiric overtones.

And the man who made Thirst can deal with bloodsuckers.

Jack The Giant Slayer

Bryan Singer, the man behind The Usual Suspects and the first great X-Men films, takes on the fantasy adventure genre with a film about heroes and princesses and giants.

Ian McShane, Bill Nighy and Stanley Tucci all feature.

Oz, The Great And Powerful

A prequel to The Wizard Of Oz, this Sam Raimi confection is about how Oscar Diggs came to be the Wizard.

James Franco plays Oz, with stunners Mila Kunis, Michelle Williams and Rachel Weisz all playing Witches hailing from various directions.

The Incredible Burt Wonderstone

Steve Carell, Steve Buscemi, Alan Arkin *and* Jim Carrey all playing high-profile magicians?

Sign me up, please.

This one looks like one of the most outrageous comedies in a long while.

Iron Man 3

The coolest Avenger returns to the screen, this time directed by Kiss Kiss Bang Bang wise-ass Shane Black.

As if Robert Downey Jr's Tony Stark needed any more lip.

This one should be a big blast.

The Great Gatsby

Baz Luhrmann's take on the F Scott Fitzgerald classic looks to invariably be more visual than it will visceral, but then Leonardo DiCaprio as Gatsby should be quite the treat.

Plus there's a Bachchan cameo.

Star Trek: Into Darkness

JJ Abrams did a bang-up job with the first Star Trek film, winning over many a non-Trekkie.

This should be most enjoyable, not least because we'll get to see Benedict 'Sherlock' Cumberbatch as the villain.

Hangover III

The wolfpack is back.

And while things might have stagnated in Hangover 2, that gang and their predilection for pre-wedding shenanigans never quite gets old.

Just like bachelor trips never will.

Now You See Me

In this Louis Letterier film, Jesse Eisenberg is the leader of a group of magicians who've decided to take their extraordinary skills toward the fine art of bank heists.

For an audience.

Mark Ruffalo, Woody Harrelson, Melanie Laurent and Michael Caine also star.

World War Z

Based on the bestselling novel of the same name, Marc Forster's World War Z features Brad Pitt as a United Nations employee trying to stop a modern-day zombie pandemic.

Forster, promisingly enough, calls it a cross between the Bourne films and The Walking Dead.

The Wolverine

Walk The Line director James Mangold can shoot action well, as evidenced by his last film Knight And Day, and Hugh Jackman's commitment to the sideburned superhero is most impressive.

Can they come together and make a good Wolvie film?

They just might, because it's based on a truly terrific Wolverine comicbook saga set in Japan.

Rush

One of sport's most thrilling rivalries will be explored by Ron Howard in his next film, about the knife-edged rivalry between Formula One drivers James Hunt (played by Chris Hemsworth) and Niki Lauda (played by Daniel Bruhl).

Written by the wonderfully reliable Peter Morgan, this should be a ripper.

Sin City: A Dame To Kill For

Robert Rodriguez wowed us all the first time around with Sin City, and it's taken a good long while to get to this follow-up.

Rachel Weisz is in the lead role as Ava, and that's enough to get us excited.

Also, how long has it been since we saw Clive Owen in something good?

The World's End

After Shaun Of The Dead and Hot Fuzz, director Edgar Wright and actors Simon Pegg and Nick Frost return with the finale in what Wright calls his Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy.

This one's about a pub crawl, perhaps the most epic crawl of all.

Can't wait.

Thor: The Dark World

A TV director best known for his stellar work on Game Of Thrones, Alan Taylor takes on the blonde god's latest outing.

The Norse gang is all back, including the ever-entertaining Tom Hiddleston as Loki.

Anchorman: The Legend Continues

There isn't much we know at all about the new Anchorman film, but what we do know is that Adam McKay's got the loony gang back together.

All we can hope for is more Brick Tamland.

And several, several cameos from the Apatow alumnus.

The Monuments Men

George Clooney wears the director's hat again with this film about a group saving invaluable works of art before they're destroyed by a rampaging Hitler.

Based on a true story, this one has a mouthwatering cast: aside from Clooney, Daniel Craig, Cate Blanchett, Bill Murray and Jean Dujardin all star.