Ferrari, Anyone But You, The Color Purple and all the movies you need to see this December

It’s beginning to look a lot like a very merry Christmas for movie lovers. This December offers  romantic comedies, larger-than-life action adventures, topical satires, and not one but two based-on-a-true-story sport epics.. 

Here's a look at everything coming to theatres this month: 

Renaissance: A film by Beyoncé 

Starring: Beyoncé, Blue Ivy Carter 

Directed by: Beyoncé

Release date: December 1, 2023 

Who better to kick December off than the queen herself: Beyonce. Her new concert documentary Renaissance: A film by Beyoncé gives us an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at her Renaissance tour. 

Get an up close and personal peek into Beyoncé’s creative mind, work ethic, and involvement in every aspect of the production, as she moves with unshakeable purpose to create her legacy and master her craft. Received with extraordinary acclaim, Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour created a sanctuary for freedom and shared joy for more than 2.7 million fans. Bow down and get tickets to this one, Beehive. 

Silent Night 

Starring: Joel Kinnaman, Kid Cudi, Catalina Sandino Moreno 

Directed by: John Woo 

Release date: December 1, 2023 

From legendary director John Woo and the producer of John Wick comes a new anti-Christmas classic. This gritty revenge thriller follows a tormented father (Joel Kinnaman) who witnesses his young son die when caught in a gang’s crossfire on Christmas Eve. While recovering from a wound that costs him his voice, he makes vengeance his life’s mission and embarks on a punishing training regimen to avenge his son’s death. Full of Woo’s signature car chases, stabbings, shootings, and stunts, Silent Night redefines the action genre with visceral and thrilling storytelling. Come, all ye vengeful. 

Godzilla Minus One 

Starring: Ryunosuke Kamiki, Minami Hamabe, Yuki Yamada 

Directed by: Takashi Yamazaki 

Release date: December 1, 2023 

There have been a number of takes on Godzilla since the original 1954 movie, but this one’s different: writer/director Takashi Yamazaki’s takes the monster back to basics to reveal new and poignant truths about the original myth. 

Set during the  tail end of World War II, after the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings, Godzilla Minus One focuses on the devastated Japanese people who are suddenly mobilized back into action by the arrival of Godzilla. Kōichi Shikishima, a disgraced kamikaze pilot, is at the center of it all. Through his eyes, the director explores heavy themes of PTSD, survivor’s guilt, duty, hope, and collective consciousness. 

Lauded as “the best Godzilla movie in ages”, this Spielberg-esque retelling is definitely worth seeing—and on the biggest screen possible. 

The Boy and the Heron 

Starring: Christian Bale, Dave Bautista, Gemma Chan, Willem Dafoe 

Directed by: Hayao Miyazaki 

Release date: December 8, 2023 

From the brilliant mind of Studio Ghibli’s Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke, Ponyo) comes The Boy and The Heron—the first film Miyazaki has made in a decade. The story follows a young boy named Mahito, who, yearning for his mother, ventures into a world shared by the living and the dead. There, he meets a guide who is part-heron and part-man, who cunningly juggles lies and the truth. 

A semi-autobiographical fantasy about life, death, and creation, and a tribute to friendship, The Boy and The Heron is a philosophical animated film that will lead to deep thoughts and conversations with friends after seeing the film. 

Poor Things 

Starring: Emma Stone, Mark Ruffalo, Willem Dafoe, Ramy Youssef 

Directed by: Yorgos Lanthimos 

Release date: December 15, 2023 

Yorgos fans, this one’s for you. The king of surrealism is back with another over-the-top tale, this time following the evolution of Bella Baxter (Emma Stone), a young Victorian-era woman brought back to life by the brilliant and unorthodox scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter (Willem Dafoe).

Under Baxter’s protection, Bella is eager to learn. With an insatiable appetite for the world around her, she runs off on a whirlwind adventure with a slick and debauched lawyer, Duncan Wedderburn (Mark Ruffalo). Free from the prejudices of her times, Bella grows steadfast in her purpose to stand for equality and liberation.

Labelled by audience members as “Barbie on Absinthe”, Poor Things promises Lanthimos’ signature, deliciously absurd concoction of explicit sex scenes, extravagant set decoration, and sharp, foul-mouthed dialogue. 

Wonka 

Starring: Timothée Chalamet, Calah Lane, Keegan-Michael Key, Sally Hawkins, Rowan Atkinson, Olivia Colman, Hugh Grant

Directed by: Paul King 

Release date: December 15, 2023 

Based on the extraordinary character at the center of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl’s beloved children’s book, Wonka tells the wondrous story of how the world’s greatest inventor, magician and chocolate-maker became the beloved Willy Wonka we know today.

This irresistibly vivid and inventive big screen spectacle is written and directed by Paul King, who brought us the Paddington films and is produced by David Heyman (Harry Potter, Fantastic Beasts), which means it’s sure to be bursting with their trademark mix of magic, mayhem, heart and humor. 

Anyone But You 

Starring: Glen Powell, Sydney Sweeney, Alexandra Shipp, GaTa 

Directed by: Will Gluck

Release date: December 22, 2023 

Will Gluck, the director who gave us Easy A and Friends With Benefits, knows a thing or two about romcoms, and he’s giving us a new one with Anyone But You. In this edgy comedy, Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell might look like the perfect couple, but after an amazing first date, something happens that turns their fiery hot attraction ice cold – that is, until they find themselves thrust together at destination wedding in Australia.

So they do what any two mature adults would do: pretend to be a couple. Rock hard abs, scenic Australian beaches, classic enemies to lovers plot? Where do we get tickets? 

Migration 

Starring: Kumail Nanjiani, Elizabeth Banks, Awkwafina, Keegan-Michael Key 

Directed by: Mike White 

Release date: December 22, 2023 

From  acclaimed writer/director Mike White (The White Lotus, School of Rock) and the studio that brought us Despicable Me comes a new fun and feather-filled adventure: Migration.  

The Mallard family is in a bit of rut. While dad Mack (Kumail Nanjiani) is content to keep his family safe paddling around their New England pond forever, mom Pam (Elizabeth Banks) is eager to shake things up and show their kids—teen son Dax and duckling daughter Gwen—the whole wide world. After a migrating duck family arrives  on their pond with thrilling tales of far-flung places, Pam persuades Mack to embark on a family trip and fly South for the winter.  

Filled with subversive humor and authentic heart, unforgettable characters and a joyful soundtrack, this one is sure to cure your winter blues. 

Aquaman and The Lost Kingdom 

Starring: Jason Momoa, Amber Heard, Patrick Wilson, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Nicole Kidman 

Directed by: James Wan 

Release date: December 22, 2023 

Get ready for a deep dive into full-fledged fantasy. Director James Wan and Aquaman himself, Jason Momoa, return in the sequel to the highest-grossing DC film of all time: Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.

Having failed to defeat him the first time, Black Manta, still driven by the need to avenge his father’s death, will stop at nothing to take Aquaman down once and for all. To defeat him, Aquaman must turn to his imprisoned brother Orm, the former King of Atlantis, to forge an unlikely alliance, set aside their differences, and save their kingdom from irreversible destruction. Balancing all of that with a newborn, Aquaman’s got his work cut out for him.  

The Iron Claw 

Starring: Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, Harris Dickinson, Lily James 

Directed by: Sean Durkin 

Release date: December 22, 2023 

Based on the unbelievable true story, golden boys Zac Efron, Harris Dickinson and Jeremy Allen White star together as the inseparable Von Erich brothers, who made history in the intensely competitive world of professional wrestling in the early 1980s. Through tragedy and triumph, under the shadow of their domineering father and coach, the brothers seek larger-than-life immortality on the biggest stage in sports.  

The Zone of Interest 

Starring: Sandra Hüller, Christian Friedel, Freya Kreutzkam 

Directed by: Jonathan Glazer 

Release date: December 22, 2023 

Awarded this year’s Grand Prix at Cannes, Director Jonathan Glazer (Under the Skin) makes a grand return to cinema with The Zone of Interest, adapted from Martin Amis’ 2014 novel of the same name.

The film follows the domestic life of Rudolf Höss, who serves as a commandant of Auschwitz, and his wife Hedwig, as they strive to raise their family in a home nestled between train tracks and gas chambers. With its haunting score and chilling cinematography, The Zone of Interest offers a chilling new perspective on the Holocaust, and it’s the kind of horror you will never forget. 

The Color Purple 

Starring: Fantasia Barrino, Taraji P. Henson, Danielle Brooks, Colman Domingo, H.E.R, Halle Bailey 

Directed by: Blitz Bazawule 

Release date: December 25, 2023 

The newest reimagining of The Color Purple is here just in time for Christmas, and it’s everything we could wish for. How could it not be, with powerhouses like Oprah, Steven Spielberg, and Quincy Jones at the helm?

Directed by Blitz Bazawule, and starring Halle Bailey (The Little Mermaid), Colman Domingo, Taraji P. Henson, Fantasia and Danielle Brooks (Orange is the New Black), this iteration takes Alice Walker’s seminal novel about the life-long struggles of an African-American woman living in the south during the early 1900s and infuses it with star power, magical realism, and musical numbers from the beloved Broadway production.

Oprah called it “a revival for joy, a revival for hope, for forgiveness”, and you’re going to want to experience it on the big screen. 

The Boys in The Boat 

Starring: Joel Edgerton, Callum Turner, Peter Guinness 

Directed by: George Clooney 

Release date: December 25, 2023 

Based on the #1 New York Times bestselling novel, George Clooney steps back into the director’s seat for The Boys in the Boat. The film tells the remarkable true story of the 1936 University of Washington rowing team that competed for gold at the Summer Olympics in Berlin at the height of the Great Depression.

It centers around a group of underdogs with newcomer Callum Turner playing Joe Rantz, a broke and homeless engineering student as they are thrust into the spotlight and take on elite rivals from around the world, coached. This inspirational sports drama is a must-see for everyone.