4. The Birth Of A Nation – October 7th
In my personal opinion, slavery is not something that has been covered enough in film, particularly in the mainstream. The brilliant 12 Years A Slave highlighted the severe injustice that occurred during the time of the slave trade but it is the first serious blockbuster since Amistad to focus on what happened to millions of people.
The Birth Of A Nation is written, directed and produced by it’s leading man Nate Parker. Parker‘s directorial debut looks at the true story of Nat Turner, an African-American slave who led a rebellion in Virginia. The trailer alone looks like it is going to be a story rife with character and a real sense of the treatment of African-Americans in 19th century America. One of the more serious and poignant films on the list, The Birth Of A Nation is guaranteed to get people talking.
3. X-Men: Apocalypse – May 18th
The third film in the prequel series of the X-Men franchise, X-Men: Apocalypse looks to bring the world to an end at the hands of a mutant god. The beauty of the X-Men is that there are so many of them, with so many intertwining stories that believable and intricate stories can be applied to a multitude of films.
Apocalypse is a well known story (which has fallen upon criticism from early viewings) of one all powerful being wanting to cleanse the world of people to make it a better place. This destructive being is ancient mutant En Sabah Nur, played by Oscar Isaac whose plans are foiled by the X-Men, led by James McAvoy‘s Charles Xavier. This is a star laden production with Jennifer Lawrence, Michael Fassbender and Nicholas Hoult returning to their roles. The introduction of Sophie Turner, known for playing Sansa Stark on HBO’sGame Of Thrones, is a welcome addition to the already stellar cast.
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