With a new year means a new year of films, and to me that means a hard year of deciding which movies I should spend my money and see. Last year was one of the best years that the box office has seen in a long time with several huge successful movies being released. This list was extremely hard to make as 2014 looks like it matches, if not beats, 2013’s list of films. Give in mind this list has been based off of casting, directors, screenwriters and trailers that have been release as well as hype that is being built up for the release. It needs to be said, I’m not always right (I got 15 minutes into last years The Host before I switched it off and it had been on my 2013 must see list) but I am confident that most of these films will be amazing.

Honorable Mentions

I need to acknowledge that there were some movies that belong on this list, but I had no room to fit them. So I have given a few titles honorable mentions.

1) Edge of Tomorrow – June 6

Edge of Tomorrow is directed by Doug Liman, the director of The Bourne Identity (2002) and Jumper (2008), and stars Tom Cruise as a soldier fighting in a war with aliens who finds himself caught in a time loop of his last day in the battle, though he becomes better skilled along the way. The movie also stars Emily Blunt (Looper and The Adjustment Bureau) and Bill Paxton (Twister and Titanic).

2) Dawn of the Planet of the Apes – July 11

Back in 2011 I was completely surprised by how much I enjoyed Rupert Wyatt’s reboot of Rise of the Planet of the Apes, the movie was superb, bringing the popular classic franchise back to it’s former glory. And now Matt Reeves (Director of Cloverfield) is directing the sequel set years after the first film, following the survivors of the simian plague from the end of the first film, as they struggle to keep the peace as a war grows between humanity and Caesar (the chimp from the last film, played by Andy Serkis) as his forces grow. The film stars Jason Clarke (The Great Gatsby), Keri Russell (Mission Impossible III) and Gary Oldman (The Dark Knight)..

3) The Giver – Aug. 15

Based on the Louis Lowry novel of the same name, The Giver is set in a seemingly perfect community, without war, pain, suffering, differences or choice,where a young boy is chosen to learn from an elderly man about the true pain and pleasure of the “real” world. The movie stars Meryl Streep, Alexander Skarsgård, Katie Holmes, Taylor Swift and Jeff Bridges as The Giver. Unfortunately no posters or trailers for the film have been released yet.

14 movies to see in 2014

1) Monuments Men – Feb. 7

Monuments Men follows an unlikely World War II platoon that are tasked to rescue art masterpieces from Nazi thieves and return them to their owners. The films is directed by and stars George Clooney along with Matt Damon, Cate Blanchett, John Goodman and Bill Murray.

2) Winter’s Tale – Feb. 14

If you go to see any romantic film on Valentine’s Day this year, go and see Winter’s Tale. The story that follows a burglar (Colin Farrell) that falls for an heiress (Jessica Brown Findlay) as she dies in his arms. When he learns that he has the gift of reincarnation, he sets out to save her. After viewing the trailer for the film, several times, I decided I must see it. This tale of undying love also stars Matt Bomer, Will Smith, Jennifer Connelly, William Hurt and Russell Crowe.

3) Mr. Peabody & Sherman – March 7

Mr Peabody & Sherman is based on the 1950’s and 1960’s cartoon characters of the same name. Using his most ingenious invention, the WABAC machine, Mr. Peabody (a scholar and a dog, voiced by Ty Burrell) and his adopted boy Sherman (Max Charles), hurtle back in time to experience world-changing events first-hand and interact with some of the greatest characters of all time. They find themselves in a race to repair history and save the future. The film is sure to be family fun for all.

4) Muppets Most Wanted – March 21

The big return of the Muppets in 2011 was a huge success with a Rotten Tomatoes rating of 96 percent and a huge ensemble of big name actors like Jason Segel and Amy Adams, and now the sequel is finally coming out this year. The sequel follows the Muppets as they are on a grand world tour, when they suddenly find themselves wrapped up in a European jewel-heist caper headed by a Kermit the Frog look-alike and his dastardly sidekick.The movie is switching out the last film’s big year stars for a new roster which includes Ricky Gervais, Tina Fey, Ty Burrell, Tom Hiddleston, Salma Hayek, Stanley Tucci, Lady Gaga, Christoph Waltz, Danny Trejo and a return appearance of Hobo Joe, played by The Hangover’s Zach Galifanakis.

5) Divergent – March 21

The Hunger Games series hasn’t finished on the big screen yet, but it’s future successor is already arriving in theaters this year. Divergent, based on the book of the same name, follows Beatrice Prior, a teenager with a special mind, finds her life threatened when an authoritarian leader seeks to exterminate her kind in her effort to seize control of their divided society. The film stars Shailene Woodley (The Spectacular Now), Miles Teller (The Spectacular Now and Project X), Jai Courtney (A Good Day to Die Hard) and Kate Winslet (Titanic).

6) Noah – March 28

This film has me excited, not just because of its all star cast and awesome trailer, but also because of Darren Afronosky, who has directed huge films like Black Swan and The Wrestler. If you haven’t guessed what the films about from the title, it follows the Biblical Noah as he suffers visions of an apocalyptic deluge and takes measures to protect his family from the coming flood. The film has a huge cast including Emma Watson, Logan Lerman, Jennifer Connelly, Anthony Hopkins, Kevin Durand, Ray Winstone and Russell Crowe.

7) Captain America: The Winter Soldier – April 4

Okay, I’ll be honest from the start… Iron Man 3, the first Avengers film to release after 2012’s The Avengers, it sucked… like big time, but I have a different feeling about this film. Captain America: Winter Soldier follows Steve Rogers as he struggles to embrace his role in the modern world and battles a new threat from old history: the Soviet agent, and comic book favorite, known as the Winter Soldier. The film stars Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Cobie Smulders, Emily VanCamp, Robert Redford, Hayley Atwell, Sebastian Stan, Dominic Cooper, Samuel L. Jackson and new comer Anthony Mackie playing the newest addition to The Avengers, The Falcon.

8) Transcedence – April 18

There’s only two things you need to know to watch this film, Christopher Nolan produced it and that the guy sitting in the director’s chair, Wally Pfister, has been the the cinematographer for every Christopher Nolan movie. Still not convinced you should see it? Watch the trailer and see how good this film looks. It follows a terminally ill scientist (Johnny Depp) who downloads his mind into a computer. This grants him power beyond his wildest dreams, and soon he becomes unstoppable. The movie also stars Cillian Murphy, Josh Stewart, Paul Bettany, Rebecca Hall, Kate Mara and Morgan Freeman.

9) The Amazing Spider-Man 2 – May 2

In 2012 Marc Webb gave new life to everyones favorite webslinger, and now he’s bringing him back again. In The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield) faces a slew of supervillains that are all out to get him including, Electro (Jamie Foxx), Rhino (Paul Giamatti) and comic book arch nemesis, The Green Goblin. The film also stars Emma Stone, Sally Field, Martin Sheen and Dane DeHaan.

10) Godzilla – May 16

A remake of the classic monster flick, the new Godzilla is the same as it has always been, a giant radioactive monster called Godzilla appears to wreak destruction on mankind. The film includes big names like Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Elizabeth Olsen, Sally Hawkins and Breaking Bad star Bryan Cranston.

11) X-Men: Days of Future Past – May 23

After 2011’s X-Men: First Class and last year’s The Wolverine, I have hopes for the X-Men franchise, it has finally risen after 2006’s horrible wrap up to the Marvel mutant trilogy. This year we finally see almost all of our favorites from all the X-Men films in one of the biggest story lines from the comics. In this film the X-Men send Wolverine to the past in a desperate effort to change history and prevent an event that results in doom for both humans and mutants. This must see film stars Jennifer Lawrence, Nicholas Hoult, Michael Fassbender, Ian McKellen, James McAvoy, Patrick Stewart, Ellen Page, Shawn Ashmore, Game of Thrones star Peter Dinklage and Hugh Jackman, returning as Wolverine.

12) Guardians of the Galaxy – Aug. 1

On Aug. 1, we will see the newest addition to the Marvel/Avengers cinematic universe with a star cast of rogues that explore the stars. In the far reaches of space, an American pilot named Peter Quill (Chris Pratt, Parks and Recreation)  finds himself the object of a manhunt after stealing an orb coveted by the villainous Ronan (Lee Pace, Lincoln). The film stars Dave Bautista as Drax the Destroyer, a super strong human who has been reborn to seek vengeance for the death of his family, Zoe Saldana as Gamora, a deadly assassin with a villainous father, Vin Diesel as the voice of Groot, sentient tree-like creature, and Bradley Cooper as the Voice of Rocket Racoon, a talking racoon with a bad attitude and a skill for wielding guns. This film has been promised to be like nothing comic book film fans have ever seen and be filled with laughs the whole way through.

13) The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 – Nov. 21

Very little is known about the third instalment of the beloved Hunger Games series, only the release date and that the book is being split into two separate films. But this film has to be on this list, so the most vague description I can give is that Katniss Everdeen reluctantly becomes the symbol of a mass rebellion against the autocratic Capitol. The film has kept all of it’s origianal stars that have survived the past two films along with the addition of Robert Knepper, Stef Dawson, Mahershala Ali and Julianne Moore as President Alma Coin, the leader of the mysterious District 13.

14) The Hobbit: There and Back Again – Dec. 17

Another film that little is known about, but it has to be on this list. This year we will finally see the epic conclusion to Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit Trilogy. This film will see the Company of Thorin Oakenshield after their conquest into Smaug’s lair, Bilbo and the Dwarves will have to fight to reclaim Erebor and it’s dangerous treasure while also trying to keep it. The film stars the same cast from the previous films with the addition of Billy Connolly as Dain Ironfoot.