LOS ANGELES — We’re ready — ready to turn the page on 2024, ready for such time-tested voices as Terrence Malick, Ryan Coogler and Kelly Reichardt to remind us of why we love this art form so much. Hold your breath for the second half of “Wicked,” whirling into theaters in November. Until then, we’ve got another two dozen titles sure to keep things interesting.
- ‘Liza: A Truly Terrific Absolutely True Story’ (Jan. 31)
There aren’t too many legendary divas left who are recognizable by just one of their names: Barbra, Stevie, Mariah — and, of course, Liza. And yet somehow, none of these icons have yet to be the subject of a major documentary. That changes in January, when a feature film about Liza Minnelli hits theaters. The movie, which premiered to strong reviews at the Tribeca Film Festival in June, picks up immediately after Minnelli’s mother, Judy Garland, dies, and reportedly doesn’t shy away from discussing the subject’s four marriages or addiction struggles. The “Liza” doc is coming out on the heels of a high-profile production company optioning the rights to Minnelli’s forthcoming memoir (the book won’t even be published until 2026) to adapt into a Warner Bros. TV adaptation. Given that the film is only 105 minutes, it sounds like the perfect teaser for a full-blown — and long overdue — season of Liza obsession. — Amy Kaufman
- ‘Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy’ (Feb. 13, Peacock)
More than two decades after “Bridget Jones’s Diary” introduced Renée Zellweger’s saucy, salty book publicist to the filmgoing masses, I recently had occasion to rewatch the 2001 film on a plane, half expecting a cringeworthy collection of dated jokes and dodgy fashions. What I discovered instead was a freewheeling, foul-mouthed, genuinely funny studio comedy — and a heretofore untapped excitement for the fourth film in the franchise, “Mad About the Boy.” Rejoining Bridget as a single mother four years after the death of husband Mark Darcy (Colin Firth), the new film’s jumping-off point is a definite drag, but it puts our heroine, and us, right back where we want to be: torn between two handsome, charming love interests (Leo Woodall and Chiwetel Ejiofor), making a complete spectacle of herself. — Matt Brennan
- ‘Paddington in Peru’ (Feb. 14)
Come on; we’re all looking forward to seeing the Ben-Whishaw-voiced Paddington again, and while it’s difficult to imagine “Paddington in Peru” will top “Paddington 2,” which is, according to Rotten Tomatoes, the best-reviewed film of all time, at least this time we get to see our favorite bear in his native land. Taking his adopted family the Browns (minus Sally Hawkins who has been replaced by Emily Mortimer) to visit his beloved Aunt Lucy, Paddington is told that she is missing. Off they go to find her, with the aid of a potentially El-Dorado-related map and a nefarious river boat captain (Antonio Banderas). The film got mixed reviews when it debuted in the U.K. in November (no deliciously absurd Hugh Grant for one thing), but still it promises a rollicking good time the whole family can enjoy and there just aren’t enough of those these days. — Mary McNamara