Mark looks forward to 2008
After a pretty reasonable 2007, all things considered - audiences were forced to endure The Nanny Diaries after all - the promise of a new year in film always has movie buffs excited at the potential for one or two truly wonderful films to reach them in the way they remember happened often when they were children.
There are already Australian release dates confirmed all the way through to this time next year, but here are a selection of those we can await with that familiar sensation of anticipation and dread!
 January
Sees the Australian release of I Am Legend (3rd Jan), the latest Will Smith vehicle that is receiving generally positive reviews. Based on the Richard Matheson novel from 1954, this is the third time it will hit the screens after two previous film versions. Given that the period of six to eight weeks prior to the Oscars is traditionally a huge one for Australian releases of Hollywood films, we can also expect American Gangster (10th Jan), Juno and The Jane Austen Book Club (17th Jan), and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street and Dan in Real Life (24th Jan).
 February
Often when competition from Oscar favourites heats up in Australia, but will be relatively quiet this year with the release of the highly rated There Will Be Blood (9th Feb) and The Great Debaters (28th Feb), and science fiction fans will have Jumper (14th Feb) to look forward to.
Valentine's Day releases include Definitely, Maybe which we will see the same day as those in the US.
 March
Usually is quiet after the pre-Oscar fuss, and 2008 looks to be no exception. Hey Hey It's Esther Blueburger (20th Mar) will open in Australia after its premiere at the Berlin Film Festival.
10,000 B.C. (6th Mar) will also open, Natalie Portman will return to our screens in The Other Boleyn Girl (13th Mar), and Jack Black joins Michel Gondry in Be Kind Rewind (20th Mar). The Alliance Française Film Festival will also offer an alternative.
 April
The biggest release will be The Spiderwick Chronicles, joining the long list of recent film adaptations of children's fantasy books. April also looks to be a big month for horror fans, with Prom Night and The Ruins (10th Apr), and thriller fans will see Untraceable (17th Apr).
Otherwise things will be a little quiet, as distributors hoard their advertising dollars in preparation for the US Summer Blockbuster season that will commence in Australia in early May, so perhaps get along to the Festival of German Films instead!
 May
Iron Man (1st May) starts things off with a bang for fans of comic books, Robert Downey Jr. or both. Joining in the big budget fun will be Speed Racer (8th May) and the biggest of blockbusters many of us are likely to be able to remember, the long-awaited release of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (22nd May).
Made of Honor (8th May) may satisfy a female audience desperate to see more of Patrick Dempsey, and those favouring foreign films will have their moment with the Spanish Film Festival.
 June
A big month! The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (5th Jun) will kick things off, before being usurped by other likely blockbusters The Incredible Hulk (12th Jun) and Kung Fu Panda (26th Jun).
Making the enormous move from small to big screen will be the four ladies of Sex and the City: The Movie (12th Jun). The Melbourne International Animation Festival will run 16-22 June, and the Sydney Film Festival will screen late in the month.
 July
Jessica Alba and Justin Timberlake join forces for The Love Guru but will have their work cut out for them fending off the challenge of Colin Firth and Meryl Streep in the screen version of Mamma Mia! (both 10th Jul).
Likely to leave both for dead, however, is The Dark Knight (17th Jul), the next installment in the Christian Bale as Batman era.
The Melbourne International Film Festival runs from late July to mid August.
August - DecemberWith release dates somewhat fluid, it is pointless to try to list when films will be released so far in advance. There are some major movie events to look forward to in the latter half of 2008, however, including Baz Luhrmann's Australia, which features homegrown superstars Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman, as well as a roster of local talent including David Wenham, Bryan Brown, Barry Otto, Bruce Spence, Jack Thompson, Ben Mendelsohn, Bill Hunter, John Jarratt, David Gulpilil and Ray Barrett.
Pixar will release WALL·E in September worldwide, with early trailers suggesting audiences will be in for a treat. The year will end with a rush, with Bond 22 and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince expected in November, and Madagascar: The Crate Escape, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and the J.J. Abrams helmed Star Trek all coming in December.
The latter half of the year usually features several film festivals worth checking out, and these will include the Russian Resurrection Film Festival and Lavazza Italian Film Festival in September/October.
As extensive as this list is, it doesn't even include the majority of independent, foreign and arthouse films that will be released, nor the retrospectives run at cinemas like The Astor or the Australian Centre for the Moving Image. With all this film goodness to look forward to, there's no need to feel sad at the passing of another year!
Here's to a great 2008!
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