Most Anticipated Movies of 2015

The New Year is here, and with it comes a whole new slate of films waiting to be released. How cool is that? There is a lot to look forward to, so allow me to save you some time and run down the list of movie that I'm most looking forward to. Because we all know that if I'm excited about it, you should be too! Let's take a look at what the coming year has to offer:

1. The Avengers - Age of Ultron. I mean, how can you not be excited? Superhero fatigue, maybe. But if you're a big fan of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, chances are that you're counting down the days until Age of Ultron hits theaters. The Avengers was a critical and commercial success, ranking third all-time in domestic box office gross -- so expectations are sky high for the follow-up. In the much-anticipated sequel, Tony Stark and Bruce Banner attempt to augment the Avengers' world-saving efforts -- in the wake of S.H.I.E.L.D. being dissolved -- with a cadre of custom robots, using artificial intelligence recovered in the aftermath of the Chitauri attack on New York City. But, as is often the case with this sort of thing, their creation turns on them and sets in motion a plan to eradicate mankind, forcing the Avengers to combat an unstoppable force of their own making. (May 1st, 2015)

2. Star Wars - The Force Awakens. Forget the prequels. George Lucas, for better or for worse, is no longer involved with the franchise that defined his career. Consider this a much-needed fresh start. J.J. Abrams is at the helm after resurrecting the Star Trek franchise, and he has assembled a strong cast with a bevy of fresh faces, including John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, and Max Von Sydow. Did I also mention that Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Princess Leia are back? Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Harrison Ford will be reprising their iconic roles for the first time since 1983's Return of the Jedi. The plot has been kept under wraps -- as is standard procedure with Abrams -- but excitement continues to build, even with some fans tempering expectations after the traumatic disappointment of The Phantom Menace. (December 18th, 2015)

3. The Hateful Eight. I'll watch anything when Quentin Tarantino is in the director's chair. The man has yet to disappoint, and I see no reason to doubt him now. There was concern that The Hateful Eight would never see the silver screen when a first draft of the script leaked onto the Internet and Tarantino responded with understandable outrage, threatening to shelve the film altogether. Fortunately for us all, Tarantino reconsidered, using his trademark talent for exceptional casting to bring together Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Walton Goggins, Demián Bichir, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, and Bruce Dern. Set several years after the Civil War, The Hateful Eight concerns a group of disparate rogues who find themselves holed up at a mountainside stopover during a blizzard -- where all of their own personal interests and agendas come to collide. (November 13th, 2015)

4. Tomorrowland. When the co-creator of Lost and The Leftovers (Damon Lindelof), the director of The Incredibles and Mission Impossible - Ghost Protocol (Brad Bird), and George Clooney all decide to join forces, I don't ask why. I just ask when and where I can start standing in line. The secretive production has flown under the radar for some time now -- Lindelof also subscribes to J.J. Abrams' devout belief in keeping the details of his films close to the vest -- but shares the same name as the popular Disneyland attraction, inspiring speculation that the film will feature a realized version of the futuristic theme land. George Clooney's Frank Walker is a grizzled inventor with ties to the film's version of Tomorrowland who decides to return to the world -- from which he was exiled long ago -- for reasons unknown with a young girl (Britt Robertson) in tow. (May 22nd, 2015)

5. Spectre. Daniel Craig is the best Bond. There, I said it. I know some of you are probably ready to leap out your chairs and champion Sean Connery or Roger Moore as the best, but after growing up with Pierce Brosnan's 007, I hopped on the Daniel Craig bandwagon after Casino Royale and haven't looked back since. Well, maybe a little. Quantum of Solace was, for all intents and purposes, a creative failure, in large part because of the writer's strike, but Skyfall managed to right the ship with director Sam Mendes behind the camera. Mendes returns for a second round of espionage and intrique, and the title would suggest that he is now bringing SPECTRE -- the sinister organization first introduced in 1962's Dr. No -- into the fold as well. Christoph Waltz, Léa Seydoux, Monica Bellucci, Andrew Scott, and Dave Bautista are among the exciting new additions to the cast. (November 6th, 2015)

6. Chappie. Neill Blomkamp is one of the most promising directors working in Hollywood right now, after having burst onto the scene with 2009's District 9. Elysium, his follow-up effort, fell short of expectations, but I'm not going to hold a sophomore slump against him, especially when he continues to reserve roles for the magnificent Sharlto Copley. This time around, Copley is providing the voice and movements via motion capture performance for CHAPPiE, a self-aware robot whose mere existence is perceived as a threat to mankind -- provoking those in power to target him for extermination. Dev Patel is the idealistic young scientist who creates CHAPPiE, and Hugh Jackman is the man leading the charge to have him destroyed, for fear of what he might be capable of. Blomkamp is one to keep an eye on, and Chappie is the perfect place to start. (March 6th, 2015)

7. Jurassic World. Let's be honest: Chris Pratt can do no wrong. If you weren't already a fan when he was the lovable doofus Andy Dwyer on NBC's Parks And Recreation, then chances are you converted when he soared to instant stardom as Peter Quill (a.k.a. Star-Lord) in last year's surprise blockbuster Guardians of The Galaxy. So who better than Pratt to reboot the Jurassic Park franchise? Jurassic World picks up twenty years after the original film, with the dinosaur theme park now up and running but faced with declining attendance. In a bid to boost public interest, the park's higher-ups dig into their bag of bad ideas and decide to create a hybrid dinosaur -- which, naturally, causes all hell to break loose when it escapes confinement. I'm not 100% sold on the idea of rebooting Jurassic Park, but with Pratt onboard, I'm at least willing to take a chance on it. (June 12th, 2015)

8. Ant-Man. "Cautious optimism" is how I would describe my expectations for Ant-Man after writer/director Edgar Wright left the film during pre-production due to creative issues, despite having been attached the project for over 10 years. I'm a huge Edgar Wright fan, so you can understand my disappointment over his departure and the fact that Bring It On's Peyton Reed was hired as his replacement. Marvel Studios has had a few missteps here and there -- I'm looking at you, Thor - The Dark World -- but for the most part, their results have been solid to spectacular. So I'm not going to just give up on Ant-Man, especially with Paul Rudd in the lead role as two-bit thief Scott Lang and Michael Douglas cast as Dr. Hank Pym, the aging scientist and original "Ant-Man" who recruits Lang to steal back technology that has fallen into the wrong hands. (July 17th, 2015)

9. Jupiter Ascending. I'm going out on a limb here with this one, because the latest sci-fi epic from the Wachowskis is far from a sure thing. It was first positioned as a blockbuster tentpole last summer, before the release date was pushed back to February to allow more time for the special effects to be completed. That kind of a shift in a release date is never a good sign, regardless of the reasons that the studio provides, but I'm hopeful that this will be one of the pleasant surprises of 2015. Since re-defining the science fiction genre with The Matrix, the Wachowskis have not been afraid to be bold (see Cloud Atlas), even when the final product is less than stellar (see Speed Racer). Jupiter Ascending is another high-concept sci-fi epic, with Mila Kunis as an unsuspecting human who finds herself embroiled in an intergalactic struggle for power. (February 6th, 2015)

10. Crimson Peak. Guillermo del Toro is kind of a big deal. You want to know how cool he is? He served as a special visual consultant on Edge of Tomorrow, in addition to serving as an executive producer for the television series The Strain (adapted from his own trilogy of novels co-written with Chuck Hogan) and co-writing all three of Peter Jackson's The Hobbit films. That is just a microcosm of the work he has done over the past decade, but you get the idea. Del Toro is notorious for having over a dozen different projects in development -- from a sequel to Pacific Rim to a new film adaptation of Pinocchio -- so when he settles on one film to direct, that should be enough to grab your attention. With a cast that includes Mia Wasikowska, Tom Hiddleston, Jessica Chastain, and Charlie Hunnam, Crimson Peak is del Toro's much anticipated return to the horror genre. (October 16th, 2015)

I am not looking forward to The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.

Top 10 Movies of 2014

How could I not include this?

I should make clear that this is not a definitive ranking of the best movies of 2014. No such list exists. The movies you'll find on this list are the ones that stuck with me the longest. I don't have a specific criteria to determine which movies deserved a spot on this list. Heck, I can't even guarantee that you'll even like all of the movies on this list. Your own Top 10 might not even resemble this Top 10, and that is what makes moviegoing such an enduring pastime, in my opinion.

So why do I put this list together? I'm pretentious, and all self-respecting film buffs feel a compulsion to compile a Top 10 list at the end of each calendar year. And on the off chance that someone will read this and decide to check out a worthwhile movie that they might not have seen otherwise.

So, without further ado, here it is:

*HONORABLE MENTION*

Interstellar. In my experience, high expectations, more often than not, lead to disappointment -- at least as far as movies go. Christopher Nolan, in particular, is the type of filmmaker whose films have become synonymous with high expectations, in large part because his past successes are held in such high regard. Nolan also believes in keeping the details of his films under wraps, and this practice, coupled with his reputation as one of the great director's of our generation, can lead to impractical expectations. His films -- Inception, for example -- often benefit from repeat viewings, because the audience is able to reset their expectations and appreciate the film for what it is. I'm kicking myself for not seeing Interstellar twice, because I'm curious how my perception of it would've changed. I have issues with certain aspects of the script -- in which Matthew McConaughey's widowed pilot leads a mission through a wormhole to find salvation for mankind -- but I'll also be the first to admit that the performances and the visuals are among the best Nolan has ever produced. For now, it will rank near the bottom of his work, but the drop-off between the top and bottom of that list is much smaller than you might think. Interstellar is one film I look forward to revisiting again in the future.

10. Boyhood. For those of you who don't know, Boyhood began filming 13 years ago. Every year for 12 years, director Richard Linklater would assemble the same group of cast members and take a couple weeks to shoot another portion of the film, with the idea being that the actors would age right along with their characters as the film follows the central character on his road to adulthood. Boyhood is the most authentic coming-of-age film that I've ever seen, but not solely because of the unique concept, difficult though it is to separate the film from that conceit. The interactions between the characters feel so intimate and real that I couldn't help but be drawn into this portrait of a young man trying to understand his place in the world, as it becomes clear that even the adults around him are as clueless as he is. There is no plot to speak of -- in real life, there never is -- so the weight of the film falls to Ellar Coltrane as the boy who grows up right before our eyes and Patricia Arquette and Ethan Hawke as his divorced mother and father. Although the considerable length and lack of excitement are certain to frustrate some viewers, the film is a warm slice of life for those willing to sit back and follow along.

9. Selma. I didn't grow up in the 1960's. I never experienced what is considered to be the most groundbreaking period of the civil rights movement -- even though more than a few people would argue that the fight is far from over. Memories have a terrible habit of fading, and the details of our past fade with them, until all that remains are the headlines. Films like Selma -- which follows civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. as he spearheads a series of contentious voting rights marches in the racial hotbed of rural Alabama -- are what fill in the gaps, allowing us to see and feel what we were never able to experience for ourselves. In that regard, Selma does as much for the civil rights movement as it does for King, daring to embrace him as more man than legend. King is depicted as a leader struggling to withstand the mounting pressures of the monumental task that has been laid at his feet, and David Oyelowo is astonishing in the challenging role. While its stark portrayal of King will garner much-deserved attention, Selma is also about remembering the horrors of our past in the hope that doing so will avert the need for drastic measures to provoke people into action.

8. Captain America - The Winter Soldier. Captain America had the potential to be the most boring member of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. His incorruptible altruism stands in stark contrast to the modern age of silver screen superheroes who toe the line between savior and scourge. But rather than fearing that this would handicap the character, Marvel instead embraced it as a breath of fresh air, reveling in the idea of dropping Cap and his resolute moral compass into the cobweb of lies and deceit that constitutes our current political arena. The Winter Soldier is as much a political thriller as it is a superhero film, with Captain America as the good soldier whose loyalties are tested when it appears that the people giving the orders have been compromised. Transplanted from the World War II-era 1940's, Cap has lost more than his loved ones -- the very ideals he once fought for have been twisted and warped to fit the dubious agendas of our leaders, all in the name of protecting our freedoms. Not since The Dark Knight has a comic book movie been so adept at appropriating the fears and realities of our current political climate and utilizing them for the realm of superheroes and villains.

7. Edge of Tomorrow. I'll be honest and admit that I had no intention of ever watching Edge of Tomorrow. Nothing in the trailers prior to its theatrical release convinced me that this was anything other than a bland sci-fi riff on Bill Murray's Groundhog Day. But appearances can be deceiving. At the behest of critics who praised the film and in spite of a lackluster domestic box office performance, I decided to take a chance on Edge of Tomorrow, and I can confirm that this is one of the most clever and entertaining sci-fi films I've seen in years -- bolstered by the spirited performances of its two leads. In the near future, Earth comes under siege by a race of advanced alien creatures, and the ensuing war scorches most of Europe. Tom Cruise, in a role that stands in stark contrast to the stoic heroes that have come to define his image and career, is a sleazeball public relations officer who has no problem leading the military's recruiting efforts, despite the lopsided results. He balks when his superiors force him to take part in a full-scale offensive intended to turn the tide of the war, and his brief stint out on the battlefield ends with his demise -- only for the day to start all over again.

6. Dawn of The Planet of The Apes. Forget about Jason Clarke, Keri Russell, and Gary Oldman. The apes are the most compelling characters here -- and for once, that is not a criticism. With previous motion capture performances in Lord of The Rings, King Kong, and Rise of The Planet of The Apes, Andy Serkis has solidified his status as the pioneer of his craft, delivering yet another awe-inspiring performance as Caesar, the benevolent leader of the apes. Ten years after a pandemic has spread across the globe and caused most of civilization to crumble, Caesar attempts to avoid an all-out war as a group of humans, in a bid for survival, work to forge a tenuous truce with the apes. But antagonistic forces on both sides threaten to ignite a conflict that could annihilate one or both of their species. Serkis is the star here, but the usurper to his throne is Toby Kebbell in the role of Koba, Caesar's duplicitous second-in-command. Koba's past abuse at the hands of human overseers informs his contempt for mankind and drives him to commit horrific atrocities in the name of protecting his own species, setting the stage for a climactic showdown with Caesar that lives up to the billing.

5. Gone Girl. No more than 30 minutes into Gone Girl and I was floored. Having never read the hugely popular Gillian Flynn novel on which it was based, the marketing for the film had led me to believe that this would be a classic whodunit with one of those standard knocks-your-socks-off endings. I should've known better. The ending is more disturbing than it is shocking, and the events leading up to the unsettling conclusion are so packed with twists and turns that you'll be picking your jaw up off the floor once the end credits start rolling. The casting is pitch perfect, with Ben Affleck as Nick Dunne, the husband who finds himself living a nightmare after his wife vanishes from their home, and Rosamund Pike as Amy Elliott Dunne, his missing spouse. The media seeks to convict Nick in the court of a public opinion and the police collect mounting evidence that could seal his fate, but it becomes clear that the truth is far more complicated. David Fincher, with a directorial pedigree that includes Se7en, Fight Club and The Social Network, elevates the material from an above-average thriller to a brilliant and darkly humorous satire of marriage and our sensational media culture.

4. Birdman or (The Virtue of Ignorance). "A thing is a thing, not what is said of that thing." Michael Keaton (in perhaps the best performance of his career) is Riggan Thompson, a washed up actor feeling far removed from the superhero franchise that once catapulted him to stardom before the waning years of his career. In a last-ditch effort to salvage his artistic integrity, Riggan writes, directs, and stars in a stage production of Raymond Carver's What We Talk About When We Talk About Love. But his own self-destructive tendencies -- and frequent delusions of superhuman abilities -- threaten to derail the production before opening night, forcing him to confront his diluted sense of self-worth. Birdman is a technical marvel unlike anything I've ever seen before, in large part because director Alejandro González Iñárritu chose to present the film as one long continuous take, immersing the audience in a surrealistic nightmare from which there is no escape. But the captivating performances from everyone involved -- in particular Edward Norton, in a role that taps into his own reputation for being difficult -- are what put Birdman over the top, with this being the best role that Keaton has had in years.

3. Nightcrawler. Jake Gyllenhaal is a chameleon. With his latest role -- that of Louis Bloom, a sociopathic go-getter who recites corporate speak as if reading from an instruction manual and treats others as pawns in his climb up the news media ladder -- Gyllenhaal has delivered perhaps the most unforgettable performance of his career. Bloom is a wolf in sheep's clothing -- skillful, calculated, and ruthless as he navigates a business of ambulance chasers and the television producers willing to offer top dollar for their raw footage of human carnage. Nightcrawler never quite goes so far as to point the finger at Bloom, the media, or the insatiable masses clamoring for the best and bloodiest news coverage, but rather marvels at how Bloom is able to overcome the obstacles in his path with relative ease, even as his efforts to capture (and even produce) must-see footage become more and more brazen. Bloom is an opportunist taking advantage of a system that rewards those willing to abandon their sense of moral obligation. The title is more than apt, because the film -- and Gyllenhaal's haunting performance -- crawls under your skin and refuses to leave until long after the cut to black.

2. Guardians of The Galaxy. Plucked from a supporting role as the lovable doofus Andy Dwyer in NBC's low-rated critical darling Parks & Recreation, Chris Pratt seemed an odd choice for the leading man in a sci-fi adventure as bold and daring as Guardians of The Galaxy. The film itself was a tremendous gamble for Marvel Studios, based on a comic book series that few mainstream audience members had even heard of before. But the finished product -- in which a group of spacefaring misfits band together to thwart the plans of a powerful fanatic bent on committing genocide -- is perhaps the finest achievement to have emerged from the Marvel Cinematic Universe thus far. Comparisons have been made to the original Star Wars, in large part because director James Gunn succeeded in building a new world that feels both fresh and lived-in, along with an ensemble csat of vivid characters more memorable and imaginative than even their top tier predecessors. Pratt, in particular, comes into his own as Peter Quill (a.k.a. Star-Lord), the roguish loser who aspires to be more than a common thief but instead finds himself thrust into a conflict where the fate of an entire race hangs in the balance.

1. Whiplash. For the triumphant and inspiring tale of a talented young musician and the tough but benevolent mentor who guides him to success, you'd be wise to look elsewhere. Whiplash is a vicious subversion of that cliche, delivering an unflinching portrayal of the physical and emotional casualties that come at the cost of pursuing perfection. Veteran character actor J.K. Simmons is sensational as the volatile Terence Fletcher, Shaffer Conservatory's top instructor. Shaffer is regarded as one of the finest music academies in the country, and to serve as a member of Fletcher's elite band is considered a surefire avenue to future success. But as Miles Teller's promising young drummer Andrew Neiman comes to discover, Fletcher is as brutal and unforgiving as he is respected and revered. Fletcher likens his harsh teaching methods to the hammering of clay, with the hope being that a true legend will emerge from the rubble of his psychological abuse. Whiplash is an all-consuming tug-of-war between teacher and pupil, featuring a star-making performance from Teller and a masterful one from Simmons that is certain to be remembered as the most riveting of his long but unheralded career.

Just A Bit Outside (in alphabetical order): 22 Jump Street, Godzilla, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Inherent Vice, The Interview, The Lego Movie, Snowpiercer, St. Vincent, and Top Five

Why, Oscars, Why? -- 2015 Edition

The nominations for the 87th Academy Awards were released this morning, and as per usual, everyone is outraged by the lack of recognition for their favorite films or performers. The nominations were a mix of pleasant surprises and disappointing snubs, but that is standard operating procedure when it comes to the Oscars. Expecting anything more is setting yourself up for disappointment.

With that said, disappointment is also inevitable, with hundreds of films and a limited amount of nominees for each of the categories. It is impossible to recognize everything. But there were a few glaring omissions and a couple awesome nominations that I thought I would talk about here.

THE BAD

Gone Girl, Best Adapted Screenplay. Gillian Flynn adapted her own best-selling novel for the big screen -- no small task -- and her script was as good as the original source material, serving as the baseline for another exceptional film from director David Fincher. I'm left wondering if the trashier elements of a script that veers into dark satire were what turned off voters.

Jake Gyllenhaal, Nightcrawler and David Oyelowo, Selma. I will admit that the Best Actor category was stacked this year and a reasonable argument could be made for each of the actors that were nominated. But to think that neither Gyllenhaal nor Oyelowo merited a nomination is mind-blowing to me. Nightcrawler was the perfect showcase for Gyllenhaal, and his unnerving performance as the sociopathic Lou Bloom stands as his best work to date. Oyelowo, on the other hand, was tasked with humanizing Martin Luther King, Jr. and bringing out the flaws in a man that history has come to remember as a saintlike crusader -- and he knocked it out of the park.

The LEGO Movie, Best Animated Feature Film. Let me be clear: This is the best animated feature film of the year. For it not to be nominated at all is a complete failure on the part of the voters. This could've been a 90-minute advertisement for LEGOs. Instead, writer-director duo Phil Lord and Chris Miller delivered a clever spoof of the overworked "chosen one" narrative, with a surprising amount of adult humor and an important message about embracing the limitless possibilities of imagination.

Selma, Everything. It collected a single win at the Golden Globes. Then director Ava DuVernay was left out of the Directors Guild of America Awards. The writing was on the wall, but I held out hope that the Oscars would come through in the end. Alas, it was not to be. Other than a pair of nominations, including Best Picture, Selma was left with almost nothing, and I'm struggling to understand why. Clint Eastwood's American Sniper appears to have fulfilled the role that was expected of Selma, and while I have yet to see that film, I have my doubts.

THE GOOD

Michael Keaton (Birdman) and J.K. Simmons (Whiplash) were both locks for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor, respectively, but I'll give the Academy props for not dropping the ball there. Both delivered the best work of their respective careers and were more than deserving.

Nightcrawler, Best Original Screenplay. Jake Gyllenhaal is the star attraction of Nightcrawler, but he also benefits from a smart script that uses his character's rise through the ranks of news media to satirize both the television producers that thrive on footage of human carnage and the consumers whose insatiable bloodlust necessitates the unashamed exploitation of human suffering.

Rosamund Pike, Gone Girl. What a knockout performance. I can't talk much about what she brings to the table for fear of spoiling the film's second and third acts, but Pike steals the show as "Amazing" Amy Dunne, the wife whose disappearance causes the secrets of her eroding marriage to unravel. I was thrilled to see that she had been nominated for Best Actress.

Whiplash, Best Picture. Whiplash was not nominated in either Best Picture category for the Golden Globes, so I wasn't holding my breath that the Oscars would give the film its due. But lo and behold, the Academy proved me wrong. While the Best Picture Oscar appears to be Boyhood's to lose (with The Grand Budapest Hotel emerging as its chief challenger thanks to a late burst of momentum), I'm glad to see this film at least recognized as a nominee, because it is a sensational showcase for Miles Teller and J.K. Simmons that has largely flown under the radar.

So what was your biggest snub? What surprise nomination were you most excited to see? Comment below and speak your mind! The 87th Academy Awards will take place on Sunday, February 22nd. Be sure to tune in and be outraged!

5 Reasons To Watch The Premiere of FX's "The Strain"

Vampires are coming to FX.

When a plane lands at John F. Kennedy International Airport with the lights off, the doors sealed, and no outbound communications whatsoever, Dr. Ephraim Goodweather (Corey Stoll) of the Center For Disease Control is called in to investigate, along with his partner Dr. Nora Martinez (Mia Maestro). Goodweather boards the plane and discovers that, with the exception of four survivors, all four hundred of the plane's passengers are dead in their seats, with no visible sign as to who or what could have incapacitated everyone onboard. But when the bodies of the passengers disappear from the morgue and strange events begin to plague New York City, Goodweather is left scrambling to contain the spread of an ancient virus, brought forth by a centuries-old evil that threatens to consume mankind and plunge the Earth into eternal darkness. David Bradley, Kevin Durand, Jonathan Hyde, Miguel Gomez, Robert Maillet, Natalie Brown, and Sean Astin also star.

And if that plot synopsis for the pilot episode of The Strain, which is set to premiere on Sunday, July 13th at 9:00pm on FX, isn't enough to whet your appetite, allow me to elaborate with five important reasons as to why this particular television series is worth a watch!

5. Television is the new home of horror. Before The Walking Dead premiered on AMC in October of 2010, horror was a niche genre on television, relegated to the tween audiences of Supernatural on The CW and afternoon reruns of Buffy The Vampire Slayer on FX. Now, with the surprising success of The Walking Dead, shows like FX's own American Horror Story, NBC's Grimm, and FOX's Sleepy Hollow are being greenlit, opening up television to a whole new audience of viewers who have been clamoring for more horror on the small screen. And with the increasing production values for television shows and the shrinking limitations of cable television, you no longer have to leave the house to get your fix of high-quality horror. Guillermo del Toro, the co-creator of The Strain, first pitched the concept as a television series to several networks several years ago, but none were interested, prompting him to instead re-conceptualize the idea as a trilogy of novels with co-author Chuck Hogan. Now, The Strain has come full circle, being adapted to the format it was originally intended for and ushering in a new era of television horror.

4. FX is one of the best networks on television. Since the debut of the groundbreaking cop drama The Shield in 2002, FX has quietly built one of the most impressive track records of original programming on both broadcast and cable television. Even with American Horror Story and Sons of Anarchy experiencing mixed critical reactions of late, both shows completed their most recent seasons on a high note, with Sons of Anarchy scoring the most-watched finale of its six season run and American Horror Story finishing as the third-highest rated show on cable. The network also boasts critical favorites Justified and The Americans and has shepherded promising newcomers Tyrant, which premiered back on June 13th, and The Bridge, which returns for a sophomore season on July 9th. In spite of its former reputation as the channel that reruns Mr. And Mrs. Smith on an endless loop, FX has reinvented itself as a force to be reckoned in the arena of original cable television, rivaling the premium content of its chief competitors AMC, Showtime, and even HBO. The network has had its fair share of misfires over the years, but their recent streak of success speaks for itself, and I have a hard time believing that The Strain will be the exception.

3. You'll get a beginning, a middle, and an end. While AMC CEO Josh Sapan has admitted that he plans to milk the network's cash cow, The Walking Dead, for all its worth, FX CEO John Landgraf has no desire to drag The Strain beyond its expiration date. Because the show is based on a trilogy of novels, Landgraf insists that the series' run will consist of 3 to 5 seasons, with the first book serving as the basis for the first season, allowing the writers the option of splitting the final two books into two seasons each, if need be. I stopped watching The Walking Dead after its schizophrenic third season, when it was clear that the show was spinning its wheels and the network execs had no interest in maintaining a clear and consistent creative vision, forcing out creator Frank Darabont and his replacement Glen Mazzara in successive seasons. FX has succeeded with its original television programming in large part because of the network's hands-off approach, allowing the writers to build their shows with little interference from the higher-ups. And with The Strain, Landgraf appears content to let Guillermo del Toro and his creative team work their magic, with the books providing a complete framework for them to operate within.

2. Guillermo del Toro co-wrote and directed the pilot. As the director of Mimic, Hellboy, and Pacific Rim, Guillermo del Toro knows a thing or two about how to make a monster. In addition to co-writing the original trilogy of novels with author Chuck Hogan, del Toro co-wrote the show's pilot episode with Hogan and also directed it, and will serve as an execute producer for the show. If you're unfamiliar with his work, 2002's Blade II, the sequel to the 1998 film about a vampire-human hybrid who protects mankind from vampires, would be a good starting point, with the film's new species of bloodsuckers serving as an appetizer for the creatures of The Strain. One of del Toro's most defining qualities is his limitless imagination, crafting some of the most memorable monsters ever put to film with his creative work on Hellboy and Pan's Labyrinth, and I have no doubt that the vampires of The Strain will rank right up there with even his most terrifying creations. Carlton Cuse (Lost, Bates Motel) will also serve as showrunner for the series, with an impressive staff of writers that includes Gennifer Hutchison (Breaking Bad), Regina Corrado (Deadwood, Sons of Anarchy), and writing partners Bradley Thompson and Eric Weddle (Battlestar Galactica, Falling Skies).

1. The vampires are scary again. Gone are the Twilight vampires that sparkle when exposed to sunlight, feed off the blood of animals rather than humans, and long for the affections of teenage girls. Recent pop culture has defanged vampires and reduced them to romantic creatures with teen fare like Twilight and The CW's The Vampire Diaries, but the vampires of The Strain are creatures to be feared, not loved. What Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan have done is taken vampires back to their roots and crafted a new breed of bloodsuckers that are the stuff of nightmares. Much of the horror from the original novels comes from observing the dramatic physical metamorphosis that the human hosts are forced to undergo once infected, their bodies reduced to bloodlusting husks as the virus reconfigures their vital organs and transforms them into something less than human. With an insatiable thirst for blood that is never satisfied, romance is the last thing on the minds of these monsters. And with FX committing $500,000 to the design and creation of the show's creatures, you can guarantee that these vampires will be unlike any that you've seen before.

The Strain premieres on FX on Sunday, July 13th at 9:00pm CST. Be sure to tune in!

HBO's "The Leftovers"

"Nobody is ready to feel better. They're ready to f*cking explode."

In an instant, they're gone. Two percent of the world's population. Mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, husbands and wives, and sons and daughters, all of them different in age, race, gender, sexual orientation, and religious background  -- not a single common denominator among them. Over 140 million people gone from the face of the Earth, without a trace and without explanation. If it was the biblical Rapture, then why weren't all of the departed Christians? Was it a random harvest? Those are important questions to be asking, but the most important question of all, according to The Leftovers, is: What of those left behind?

While this inexplicable event -- which, in the context of the show, is referred to as the Sudden Departure -- is a global phenomenon, The Leftovers takes a small scale approach to the crisis, focusing on the denizens of Mapleton, a small suburban hamlet in New York. And although the opening scene of the pilot episode is a short glimpse into the actual Sudden Departure, the show leaps ahead three years, where the citizens of Mapleton are preparing to commemorate the departed with an ill-advised "Heroes' Day" parade on the event's third anniversary. The parade is a clear attempt at providing closure, but what it does instead is expose a community's festering wounds that have yet to heal, even three years later. With more questions than answers from both religious and scientific experts, the survivors are left to ponder the unknowable fate of those who disappeared -- and consider why they themselves were not granted the same fate.

The Leftovers is based on a novel by author Tom Perrotta, who is no stranger to adaptations of his work after 1999's Election and 2006's Little Children. Perrotta co-created the television series with Damon Lindelof, who served as co-showrunner for Lost with Carlton Cuse, the executive producer of FX's upcoming horror drama The Strain. Lost was criticized for asking more questions than it answered, with Lindelof himself drawing considerable heat from disappointed fans in the wake of the series' polarizing finale, and the fact that The Leftovers appears to have no interest in providing an explanation for the show's Rapture-like event could be perceived as Lindelof asking for trouble. But the decision to render this event as an unknowable phenomenon is what makes this show fascinating for me, at least, because it allows the writers the freedom to focus on the characters, rather than the mystery. Make no mistake, there are certain elements of the premiere that would seem to hint at unexplainable (or even supernatural) forces at work, but the heart of the show lies with the people of Mapleton in the aftermath of the Sudden Departure.

Kevin Garvey, Mapleton's beleaguered chief of police, is our central protagonist. Though he lost no one to the Sudden Departure, Kevin has felt the unfortunate ripples of the event firsthand, both as a police chief trying to maintain some semblance of order among the chaos and as a father whose family has been torn apart. His teenage son Tom Garvey has dropped out of college -- and out of contact -- to become the loyal disciple of a dubious, self-proclaimed prophet called Holy Wayne, and his teenage daughter Jill Garvey has seemingly lost all ambition in life. But the most painful departure has been that of his wife Laurie Garvey, who has abandoned her family to join the ranks of the Guilty Remnant, a secretive, antagonistic cult dedicated to ensuring that the people of Mapleton are reminded of the moral implications of the Sudden Departure. As his mental state begins to deteriorate -- much like his father before him, who was forced out as chief of police after a nervous breakdown -- Kevin mounts a desperate search for meaning, which feels especially bleak in a world where entire belief systems were rendered meaningless in an instant by a single event.

In case you hadn't picked up on it, The Leftovers is not a show about sunshine, rainbows, and puppies (although a pack of feral dogs do have a prominent role in the premiere episode). It's not a show that's going to provide temporary relief from the trials and tribulations of your own life with a few belly laughs. But it's one of the most compelling new dramas on television right now, and I say that having seen all of one episode. I liked Perrotta's novel quite a bit, but I read it with advance knowledge that it was being adapted into a television series. So while the novel ultimately left me wanting more, I never felt the pangs of disappointment, because I knew I would be spending more time with these characters in another medium. I would list the show's cast here, but I doubt you'd recognize more than one or two of the names, and that is not a detriment to the show. There is nothing extraordinary about these characters, other than the fact that they're ordinary people desperate to find a true north after an extraordinary event turns their lives upside down, and the show's casting choices reflect the need for actors that can be the people next door.

What Television Critics Are Saying...

"Many will hate it. But there will be viewers in whom it strikes a chord so deeply that they will feel themselves overwhelmed by it in the best possible way: not like they're drowning in the misery, but like it's teaching them a new way to breathe." - Alan Sepinwall, HitFix

"The first few episodes don’t showcase enough artistry to justify all the slogging and weeping, the bloodied faces and broken hearts. But I’d be lying if I said The Leftovers didn’t fascinate me. The totality of the suffering feels new. The scale of it overwhelms, so much so that nitpicking the dialogue, the performances, or the filmmaking seems petty." - Matt Soller Zeitz, Vulture

"But on the whole, it’s elegiac, ingenious television, unlike anything else on the air. It has elements of mystery, like Lost, and it has elements of satire, like [author Tom] Perrotta’s novels, but it’s also its own thing, a weird art film and character piece that also features large packs of feral dogs running wild." - Todd VanDerWerff, The A.V. Club

The Leftovers airs on HBO on Sundays at 9:00pm CST. You can watch the first episode online here.