5) The Village

Okay, so we're kind of suckers for a good storyteller. M. Night Shyamalan is openly trying to become the next Spielberg and whether you think that's a noble goal or not is up to you (he may also want to be Kubrick and Hitchcock -- he does nothing if not aim high). We'll take what we can get in that category, frankly, even as we flinch a bit at his hubris. In The Village, Shyalaman takes on the "Stranger in the Woods" genre and infuses it with his trademark claustrophobic and measured filmmaking and a maddeningly vague trailer. What we do know is this: a village in late 19th century Pennsylvania has lived in blissful tranquility for some generations, but has had an uneasy “truce” with some kind of creature outside its borders. They wake one morning to find ominous signs that this peace may be over and one villager goes into the woods to confront them. The whos, whats and whys are still to be revealed but consider our appetites whetted. Joaquin Phoenix plays the lead and has a fine supporting cast including Sigourney Weaver, Adrien Brody (replacing Ashton Kutcher, probably the first time Kelso and an Oscar winner were up for the same part) and John Hurt. However, the real pull here is Shyalaman, who with his last three films has grabbed our attention and won't let go. Love him or hate him, he knows how to make a compelling tale.

4) The Day After Tomorrow

Hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, tidal waves, floods and an impending Ice Age -- oh, my! Never one for subtlety, writer/director Roland Emmerich is all about the big-budget special effects and bombastic story. Frankly, that's just fine with us. There simply haven't been enough epic, global warming disaster movies and it's high time that void is filled. The presence of BOP favorite Jake Gyllenhaal doesn't hurt matters, either, but in the end, it's really the vicarious thrill of catastrophic experience that draws us in. If you find that hard to believe, just keep in mind that Universal Studios actually has an attraction based on the 1996 film Twister that puts attendees through the visceral emotions that occur during such moments of weather-related terror. It's a gripping reminder of exactly how randomly cruel Mother Nature can be.

3) The Bourne Supremacy

Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) woke up on a fishing boat in the middle of nowhere. The problem was that he did not know he was Jason Bourne. For that matter, he still is not certain that's his real identity. A victim of amnesia caused by the trauma of an assassination attempt gone wrong, the man spent the body of the first film on a voyage of self-discovery.

What does the man who answers to Bourne know? He was a military operative trained for wetworks assignments that high level American governmental and military officials need done. The problem men like Senator Ward Abbott faced in creating such super-soldiers was that plausible deniability was required in case things went wrong.

With Jason Bourne, things went very wrong.

Rather than allow a rogue agent to walk the world unecumbered, Abbott and new character Helen Landy (Joan Allen, who was been busted down from her rank of Commander-in-Chief in The Contender) attempt to frame Bourne. This is perceived as the only way to lure the man out of the island paradise existence Bourne was presumed to be living since the end of the first film.

BOP was one of the few mainstream sites that remembered The Bourne Identity during awards season. Seeing the film become the most popular rental of 2003 was quite satisfying to us, but that pleasure is nothing compared to the realization that we are only a few weeks away from a return engagement of the thinking man's action flick.

2) Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

So we already know that the first two films in the Potter series, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and the vastly superior Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, are among the highest grossing films of all time and neo-standards in the realm of family film. And we haven't even gotten to the good part of the story yet, as J.K. Rowling's craft really warms up once Harry, Ron and Hermione hit their third year of education at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. With a teaser that is almost chill-inducing and trailers giving evidence to the fact that director Alfonso Cuarón really understands all of the elements that make the Potter world so appealing both to children and adults, we're eagerly awaiting the arrival of Sirius Black, the Dementors and Hogsmeade (mmm, butterbeer). Something wicked this way comes, indeed.

1) Spider-Man 2

Spider-Man earned over $800 million in worldwide receipts. In the process, the movie became the first release to ever surpass the performance of a Star Wars title released the same year. Team Lucas Ranch had been four for four until Episode II got smoked by some $93 million in domestic receipts. Spidey's box office behavior was unquestionably the most impressive of the new millennium until Mel Gibson found religion.

Now, here's the scary thought. Spider-Man 2 looks better. A lot better.

Most of the complaints about the first movie involved the cheesy CGI of the Green Goblin. While The Hulk has shown that we retroactively owe Sam Raimi an apology for any derisive comments in this vein, the issue is now moot. The choice of Doc Octopus might have sounded ridiculous 18 months ago, but not now. The special effects on display in the most recent trailer are the best we have ever seen for a comic book character. After the X2 bamf-fest last year, that's no small feat.

As awe-striking as Doc Oc looks, though, the masterstroke is the casting choice. As far back as 1994, Alfred Molina demonstrated in Maverick that he was a born arch-villain in look and sound. With Spider-Man, Molina finds himself in a notable position famously occupied by Danny DeVito as he seeks to carry the dark side of the most anticipated comic book sequel in a dozen years.

Batman Returns was viewed as too strange due in large part to the icky nature of DeVito's Penguin. BOP expects Spider-Man 2 to have much better luck. The first film in this franchise did a much better job of leaving intriguing storylines unresolved than Batman did. The Shakespearean nature of Peter Parker's relationships with his soulmate and his best friend are reason enough for us to already be staking out Fandango for opening day seats to Spidey's return engagement.

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