Who needs basketball when you have movies? Most sports fans associate March with the NCAA basketball tournament and spend their days glued to the television screen and panicking over brackets that seem to get increasingly complicated each year. But you know what’s more important than sports? Movies. And March is chock full of them! It’s time to dive popcorn bucket-first into the spring season and soak up all the exciting titles that are hitting the silver screen in a matter of weeks. Robert Pattinson is stepping into Batman’s boots for the first time, Guy Ritchie has another action adventure with Hugh Grant, and Brad Pitt swoops in to rescue…Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum? Plus, actor Caleb Landry Jones shines in the Palme d’Or nominated film Nitram.
Here’s your guide to March movie madness!
The Batman
Release Date: March 4
I’m Batman! Okay, actually Robert Pattinson is the latest star to don the cape and cowl. Directed and co-written by Matt Reeves, The Batman is the first film in the latest Batman franchise reboot. This iteration of the Dark Knight immerses us in what is quite possibly the grittiest and darkest Gotham City to grace the silver screen. The film features an impressive roster of villains, including the Riddler (Paul Dano), Penguin (Colin Farrell), and Catwoman (Zoë Kravitz), as well as Bruce Wayne’s mentor Alfred Pennyworth (Andy Serkis) and Officer James Gordon (Jeffrey Wright). The Batman will follow the Caped Crusader during his second year of fighting crime, with a particular focus on putting a stop to the Riddler’s serial kills. And yes, that really is Colin Farrell.
Operation Fortune: Ruse de guerre
Watch 'Operation Fortune: Ruse de guerre' Trailer
Release Date: March 18
Guy Ritchie is at it again, folks. The latest action movie from the director that brought you Sherlock Holmes and The Gentlemen is Operation Fortune: Ruse de guerre, an epic action thriller infused with a heck of a lot of charm. The film follows agent Orson Fortune (Jason Statham), who’s on a secret mission to stop Greg Simmonds (Hugh Grant), a billionaire arms dealer, from selling a new weapon technology. As a way to throw Simmonds off the scent of the undercover quest, Fortune enlists Simmonds’ favorite movie star Danny Francesco (Josh Hartnett) to spend time with the gun dealer. Chaos and laughs ensue as Fortune and his partners Nathan (Cary Elwes), Sarah (Aubrey Plaza), and J.J. (Bugzy Malone) tackle this complicated and expensive assignment.
The Outfit
Release Date: March 18th
Who knew that being a tailor could have such deadly consequences? Directed and co-written by Graham Moore, The Outfit follows Leonard (Mark Rylance) a world-renowned English tailor who opens a small shop in a dangerous section of Chicago. His eager employee Mable (Zoey Deutch) grows suspicious when she notices the level of secrecy surrounding his work and his customers. Things take a dark and bloody turn once mobsters from Santa Monica and Coney Island, who are part of a network known as The Outfit, send the Chicago gangsters a dangerous message. Leonard must use his sharp skills to manipulate and outdo the criminals that threaten him and his shop. Looks like he’ll be sewing more than fabric.
Alice
Release Date: March 18
Who doesn’t love a revenge story? Written and directed by Krystin Ver Linden and inspired by true events, the thriller Alice tells the story of Alice (Keke Palmer) a slave in 1800s Antebellum South who, after escaping from the hidden plantation run by the brutal Paul Bennet (Jonny Lee Miller), realizes it’s actually 1973. Tired, confused, and filled with rage, she’s rescued and guided by Frank (Common), a political activist who’s determined to right the wrongs of the past and help Alice adjust to modern day life. But before she tackles the real world, she is adamant about exacting revenge on and putting an end to her former owner. The film recently premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival.
Man of God
Release Date: March 21
Keep the faith. That’s the core message of Yelena Popovic’s biographical drama Man of God, an English-language Greek film that follows Saint Nectarios of Aegina (Aris Servetalis), a man who remains faithful to his beliefs and continues to spread the Word of God during his unjust exile and conviction of crimes without a jury. Nectarios was a popular and beloved clergyman among the people, and as a result, was disliked by his peers. Some clergy went so far as to defame his image and spread immoral rumors about him to prevent him from becoming the Patriarch of Alexandria. Once exiled from Egypt, he continued his work in Athens, quickly becoming revered in his new home. Popovic hopes that people of all backgrounds and interests come to see her film, saying, “I approached the story on a human level. I didn’t want to dramatize his sainthood. He had a life that was full of suffering and injustice. People would feel for him. I wanted to transmit something to the screen that was valuable and truthful. Saint Nectarios resonates on a human level.”
The Lost City
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Release Date: March 25
Coming up with ideas is hard, and reclusive romance novelist Loretta Sage (Sandra Bullock) knows that all too well. What’s even harder for the shy author, however, is engaging with fans on her book tour for her latest romantic adventure The Lost City of D. In the aptly titled comedy adventure film The Lost City, Loretta is kidnapped on her reluctant tour by Fairfax (Daniel Radcliffe), an out-of-the-box thinker and billionaire who puts her on an actual quest to find the real lost city and its treasure. She’s joined on her jungle expedition by Alan (Channing Tatum) the cover model on her books who takes his job and character Dash very seriously. Rather than become a punchline, he wants to prove that he's not a punchline and that he can be heroic both on and off the page. The trailer features a surprise silly cameo from Brad Pitt who plays a man coming to rescue Loretta. And if you’re wondering why he’s so handsome, it’s because his dad was a weatherman.
Everything Everywhere All at Once
Watch 'Everything Everywhere All at Once' Trailer
Release Date: March 25
A mid-life crisis like no other. Written and directed by Daniel Scheinert and Daniel Kwan (collectively known as Daniels), Everything Everywhere All at Once is an action comedy adventure with a dash of sci-fi that’s perfectly summed up by its title. The A24 film follows Evelyn Wang (Michelle Yeoh), an older Chinese immigrant who, according to A24’s website, “can’t seem to finish her taxes.” When she isn’t dealing with the heartless bureaucrat (Jamie Lee Curtis) who’s trying to keep her on track, Evelyn is in her own little world. That world, however, rapidly expands when she is inexplicably thrust into her own multi-verse. It’s up to her to deal with thousands of different Evelyns and bring an order to the chaos that’s suddenly consuming her life. Daniels has a knack for quirky adventure stories, as they also wrote and directed the 2016 fantasy film Swiss Army Man.
Nitram
Release Date: March 30
What is it about Nitram (Caleb Landry Jones) that makes him different from the rest? Written by Shaun Grant and directed by Justin Kurzel and based on true events, the recent Palme d’Or nominated drama Nitram follows the controversial and tortured life of a young man named Nitram (which is “Martin” spelled backwards, an indirect reference to Martin Bryant, the real-life perpetrator), leading up to his participation in the 1996 Australian Port Arthur massacre, the deadliest massacre by a single person in modern Australian history. Jones, who’s become known for his haunting performances in projects such as Get Out and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, wowed audiences at the Cannes Film Festival and earned himself the prize for Best Actor.
What will April bring to a theater near you?