The New Year has come and gone, life is settling down, and I am making plans of fun things to do in the coming months as we face 2017!
One of my favorite things to do is head to the movies. It get to enjoy some seriously unhealthy but amazingly yummy theater popcorn, immerse myself in someone else’s “life” for a couple of hours, and spend time with someone that I love in a dark theater; normally holding hands.
If you’ve been following the blog for a while then you hopefully recall that 2016 was filled with great films and some fun travel opportunities for Pink Ninja. Some of the most fun that I had involved trips to Los Angeles to experience the movies, meet amazing talent, and spend time with some of my blogging friends.
Thanks to Focus Features, in 2016 Pink Ninja traveled to Los Angeles on three occasions. First, for the 3D computer-animated science-fiction action comedy Ratchet & Clank Press Event! Remember us sitting down with the talent of James Arnold Taylor and Bella Thorne? Next up, Kubo and the Two Strings … HOLY AMAZING! The talent behind this stop-motion animation is beyond anything I’ve ever seen before {Travis Knight is AMAZING!!}. Meeting Charlize Theron, Matthew McConaughey, and Art Parkinson was the icing on the cake. We rounded out our year with the Loving Press Event. Has your family seen this film yet? If not, they should. The artistry behind the film based on a true story was beautiful. The vision that Director Jeff Nichols brought to the film and the talent of Joel Edgerton, Ruth Negga, and Terri Abney was incredible. I don’t think anyone could have paid better homage to the Lovings.
To say that Focus Features was part of some marvelous movie making in 2016 would be an understatement! Keeping that word in mind … here is the Focus Features Movie Release line-up for 2017!
Raw
March 10, 2017
(released by Focus World)
When a young vegetarian undergoes a carnivorous hazing ritual at vet school, an unbidden taste for meat begins to grow in her.
Official RED BAND Trailer
THE ZOOKEEPER’S WIFE
March 31, 2017
Story: The real-life story of one working wife and mother who became a hero to hundreds during World War II. In 1939 Poland, Antonina Żabińska (portrayed by two-time Academy Award nominee Jessica Chastain) and her husband, Dr. Jan Żabiński (Johan Heldenbergh of “The Broken Circle Breakdown”), have the Warsaw Zoo flourishing under his stewardship and her care. When their country is invaded by the Nazis, Jan and Antonina are stunned – and forced to report to the Reich’s newly appointed chief zoologist, Lutz Heck (Daniel Brühl of “Captain America: Civil War”). To fight back on their own terms, Antonina and Jan covertly begin working with the Resistance – and put into action plans to save lives out of what has become the Warsaw Ghetto, with Antonina putting herself and even her children at great risk.
Director: Niki Caro (“North Country,” “Whale Rider,” “McFarland, USA”)
Writer: Angela Workman (“War Bride”),
based on the nonfiction book by Diane Ackerman
Cast: Jessica Chastain, Johan Heldenbergh, Michael McElhatton, and Daniel Brühl
Running Time: 126 minutes
THE BOOK OF HENRY
June 16, 2017 (select cities)
Story: The story of a single mother raising two boys, one of whom is a genius.
Director: Colin Trevorrow (“Jurassic World,” “Safety Not Guaranteed”)
Writer: Gregg Hurwitz
Cast: Naomi Watts, Jaeden Lieberher, Jacob Tremblay,
Sarah Silverman, Lee Pace, Maddie Ziegler, and Dean Norris
MPAA Rating: PG-13 Running Time: 105 minutes
THE BEGUILED
June 23, 2017 (select cities); June 30, 2017 (expansion)
Story: “The Beguiled,” adapted by Sofia Coppola from Thomas Cullinan’s novel of the same name, unfolds in a girls’ school in the state of Virginia in 1864. As the Civil War rages, The Miss Martha Farnsworth Seminary for Young Ladies has been sheltered from the outside world – until the day a wounded Union soldier is discovered nearby and taken in.
Director: Sofia Coppola (“Lost in Translation,” “Somewhere”)
Writer: Sofia Coppola, based on the novel by Thomas Cullinan
Cast: Colin Farrell, Nicole Kidman, Kirsten Dunst, Elle Fanning, Emma Howard, Oona Laurence, Angourie Rice, Addison Riecke
THE COLDEST CITY
July 28, 2017
Story: A high-stakes, global action-thriller that takes place in the city of Berlin, on the eve of the Wall’s collapse and the shifting of superpower alliances. Charlize Theron (“Mad Max: Fury Road”) portrays Lorraine Broughton, a top-level spy for MI6, who is dispatched to Berlin to take down a ruthless espionage ring that has just killed an undercover agent for reasons unknown. She is ordered to cooperate with Berlin station chief David Percival (James McAvoy of “X-Men”), and the two form an uneasy alliance, unleashing their full arsenal of skills in pursuing a threat that jeopardizes the West’s entire intelligence operation.
Director: David Leitch (“John Wick”)
Writer: Kurt Johnstad (“300”), based on the graphic novel by Antony Johnston and illustrator Sam Hart
Cast: Charlize Theron, James McAvoy, John Goodman, Sofia Boutella, Eddie Marsan, James Faulkner, Johannes Johannesson, Roland Møller, Til Schweiger, Bill Skarsgård, Barbara Sukowa, Toby Jones
VICTORIA AND ABDUL
September 22, 2017 (select cities); September 29, 2017 (add. cities)
Story: The extraordinary true story of an unexpected friendship in the later years of Queen Victoria’s (Academy Award winner Judi Dench) remarkable rule. When Abdul Karim (Ali Fazal), a young clerk, travels from India to participate in the Queen’s Golden Jubilee, he is surprised to find favor with the Queen herself. As the Queen questions the constrictions of her long-held position, the two forge an unlikely and devoted alliance with a loyalty to one another that her household and inner circle all attempt to destroy. As the friendship deepens, the Queen begins to see a changing world through new eyes and joyfully reclaims her humanity.
Director: Stephen Frears (“The Queen,” “Philomena,” “Mrs. Henderson Presents”)
Writer: Lee Hall (“Billy Elliot”), based on Victoria & Abdul: The True Story of the Queen’s Closest Confidant by Shrabani Basu
Cast: Judi Dench, Ali Fazal, Adeel Akhtar, Simon Callow, Michael Gambon, Eddie Izzard, Ruth McCabe, Tim Pigott-Smith, Julian Wadham, Olivia Williams, Fenella Woolgar
DARKEST HOUR
November 24, 2017
Story: Within days of becoming Prime Minister of Great Britain, Winston Churchill (Academy Award nominee Gary Oldman) must face one of his most turbulent and defining trials: exploring a negotiated peace treaty with Nazi Germany, or standing firm to fight for the ideals, liberty and freedom of a nation. As the unstoppable Nazi forces roll across Western Europe and the threat of invasion is imminent, and with an unprepared public, a skeptical King, and his own party plotting against him, Churchill must withstand his darkest hour, rally a nation, and attempt to change the course of world history.
Director: Joe Wright (“Atonement,” “Hanna,” “Pride & Prejudice,” “Anna Karenina”)
Writer: Anthony McCarten (“The Theory of Everything”)
Cast: Gary Oldman, Stephen Dillane, John Hurt, Lily James, Ben Mendelsohn, Kristin Scott Thomas
Which film are you most excited for? Let us know in the comments below!
Regardless of your choice, 2017 with Focus Features is shaping up to be movie-tastic!
WE’LL SEE YOU AT THE MOVIES!
Photos and video courtesy of Focus Features.
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