Affliction
Paul Schrader's film of the Russell Banks novel features Nick Nolte as the small-town police officer whose memories of his abusive father (James Coburn) have stunted his life. With Sissy Spacek and Willem Dafoe. February 19th
Angela's Ashes
Alan Parker's eagerly awaited film version of Frank McCourt's best-seller features Emily Watson as the much-suffering Angela McCourt struggling to raise her family in abject poverty during the 1930s and 1940s, and Robert Carlyle as her alcoholic husband. Autumn
Aprile
Nanni Moretti's witty, engaging film deals with his own experiences over three years beginning with the 1994 election of Silvio Berlusconi's right-wing party, which prompts Moretti to smoke a joint for the first time. April
Apt Pupil
Director Bryan Singer follows The Usual Suspects with this Stephen King story, a psychological horror movie with Brad Renfro as a bright, inquisitive high-school student and Ian McKellen as the Nazi war criminal he quizzes about his horrific past activities. May
Arlington Road
Mark Pellington's thriller stars Jeff Bridges as a professor and conspiracy theorist who suspects that his new neighbour (Tim Robbins) is a terrorist. With Joan Cusack and Hope Davis. February 12th
The Astronaut's Wife
After NASA loses all contact between a team of astronauts and Earth for two minutes, one of the astronauts returns home a very different person. He's played by Johnny Depp with Charlize Theron as his wife. Rand Ravich directs. May
Being John Malkovich
A puppeteer finds a portal that leads to John Malkovich's brain in this comedy directed by Spike Jonnze and featuring John Cusack, Cameron Diaz, Catherine Keener - and John Malkovich. Autumn
Best
Irish actor John Lynch doubles as screenwriter in this biopic of George Best, in which Lynch plays the footballer between the ages of 17 and 48. Mary McGuckian directs, and the cast includes Linus Roache as Denis Law, Ian Hart as Nobby Stiles, Jerome Flynn as Bobby Charlton and Ian Bannen as Matt Busby. Winter
Black Cat White Cat
This comedy-thriller from the Yugoslav film-maker, Emir Kusturica, returns him to the milieu of his Time of the Gypsies for a tale of double-dealing involving a petty criminal and the leader of a group of gypsy gangsters. May 7th
A Bug's Life
From director John Lasseter and his Toy Story team comes a computer-animated feature in which a greedy grasshopper (voiced by Kevin Spacey) attacks an ant colony, but in the tradition of The Seven Samurai, a mercenary band of insects comes to the rescue. February 5th
Bulworth
Warren Beatty co-wrote, produced, directed and starred in this caustic political satire in which he plays a US senator who, during a nervous breakdown, arranges his own suicide by hiring a hit man to assassinate him. January 22nd
Celebrity
No year would be complete without a new Woody Allen movie. This one is in black-andwhite, deals with fame and sex, and features Kenneth Branagh, Judy Davis, Winona Ryder, Melanie Griffith, and one Leonardo DiCaprio. June 18th
Central Station
This award-winning Brazilian road movie directed by Walter Salles deals with an embittered, former teacher (Fernanda Montenegro) who reluctantly takes the nine-year-old son of a recently deceased woman on a journey to find his father. March 12th
A Civil Action
In this factually based courtroom drama, John Travolta plays a Boston attorney who spent nine years fighting a toxic-waste lawsuit against two corporations. With Robert Duvall and William H. Macy. Steven Zaillian directs. March 5th
Conte d'Automne (An Autumn Tale)
The veteran French film-maker, Eric Rohmer, continues to charm with this story of two young women whose attempt at matchmaking for a friend falls apart at the seams. March 26th
Ed TV
The shadow of The Truman Show seems sure to hang over Ron Howard's comedy featuring Matthew McConaughey as a a video store clerk who volunteers to have his every waking moment filmed by a pushy television executive (Ellen DeGeneres). April 16th
Eternity and a Day
Winner of the Palme d'Or at Cannes last year, the latest film from Greek director Theo Angelopoulos features Bruno Ganz as a middle-aged poet beset with regrets. April 23rd
eXistenZ
David Cronenberg's science-fiction thriller is set in the near future where Jude Law and Jennifer Jason Leigh participate in an interactive game which turns into a matter of life and death. Winter
Eyes Wide Shut
Filmed in complete secrecy and finally completed after a marathon 15-month shoot and several casting changes, Stanley Kubrick's first film since Full Metal Jacket in 1987 apparently deals with psychiatrists, played by Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman, getting caught up in voyeurism and a me- nage a trois. August 27th
Felicia's Journey
Atom Egoyan follows The Sweet Hereafter with a William Trevor adaptation starring Elaine Cassidy as a young Irishwoman who travels to England in search of the man whose child she is carrying. With Bob Hoskins and Peter McDonald. Autumn
Festen (The Celebration)
From Denmark, Thomas Vinterberg's corrosive drama is set at a patriarch's 60th birthday party when the atmosphere suddenly sours as one of his sons exposes the sexual abuse inflicted on him and his twin sister. March 5th
Gods and Monsters
Ian McKellen is on sublime form as the English film-maker, James Whale, in Bill Condon's fine film set in California in 1957, as the openly gay Whale falls for a muscular, heterosexual young Korean war veteran (Brendan Fraser). April
Happiness
Writer-director Todd Solondz lays bare the secret lives of interconnected protagonists in this strong, controversial drama featuring Lara Flynn Boyle, Jared Harris, Philip Seymour Hoffman and, as a psychiatrist revealed as an unrepentant paedophile, Dylan Baker. April 16th
Hilary and Jackie
Emily Watson vividly plays the English cellist, Jacqueline du Pre, who died of multiple sclerosis in 1987 at the age of 42. Rachel Griffiths is equally effective as her older sister, Hilary, in this uneven biopic directed by Anant Tucker. February 12th
The Hi-Lo Country
In this western set in the 1940s and directed by Stephen Frears, Woody Harrelson and Billy Crudup play brothers struggling to maintain their traditional way of life while fighting for the affections of the same woman (Patricia Arquette). March
Holy Smoke
The new Jane Campion film reunites her with Harvey Keitel (from The Piano) who plays an American "cult buster" who finds himself compromised when he falls for a young client (Kate Winslet). With Pam Grier. Autumn
Hurlyburly
David Rabe's adaptation of his own stage play, directed by Anthony Drazan, is a dark comedy which deals with insecure male friends working in the film industry. The cast features Sean Penn, Kevin Spacey, Robin Wright-Penn, Garry Shandling and Meg Ryan. Autumn
In Dreams
The new Neil Jordan film is a psychological thriller set and shot in Massachusetts and starring Annette Bening as a woman whose dreams are the portent of real-life nightmares. With Aidan Quinn, Stephen Rea and Robert Downey jnr. June 18th
The Last September
Theatre director Deborah Warner makes her film debut with John Banville's adaptation of the Elizabeth Bowen novel set in early 1920s Ireland. It features Fiona Shaw, Maggie Smith, Jane Birkin and Michael Gambon. Autumn
La Vita E Bella (Life is Beautiful)
Actor and director Roberto Benigni is on fine form as a seriously accident-prone bookshop owner in late 1930s Tuscany in this comedy which starts out as slapstick humour and turns to pathos when he and his young son are sent to a concentration camp. February 12th
Little Voice
Jane Horrocks is remarkable as a painfully shy young Lancashire woman with a stunning ability to impersonate Marilyn Monroe, Judy Garland and Shirley Bassey. With Michael Caine, Brenda Blethyn and Ewan McGregor. February 19th
The Lost Son
Lighting cameraman Chris Menges returns to directing with this story of a French private detective (Daniel Auteuil) asked to find the missing son of a wealthy couple. With Nastassja Kinski and Katrin Cartlidge. Autumn
Mad About Mambo
John Forte's first feature stars William Ash as a West Belfast teenager who, dreaming of emulating his Brazilian football hero, takes Latin American dance lessons. With Keri Russell and Brian Cox. May 21st
The Mammy
Anjelica Huston directs and stars as a feisty widow who has seven children and gets a second chance at love, in Brendan O'Carroll's story which also features Marion O'Dwyer and Tom Jones. Autumn
Mansfield Park
Cinema's latest Jane Austen treatment is directed by the imaginative Canadian film-maker, Patricia Rozema, and stars Frances O'Connor, Embeth Davidtz, Jonny Lee Miller, Alessandro Nivola and Harold Pinter. Autumn
A Midsummer Night's Dream
Ally McBeal star, Calista Flockhart joins Rupert Everett, Kevin Kline, Michelle Pfeiffer and Stanley Tucci in the cast of Michael Hoffman's treatment of Shakespeare's romantic comedy. Summer
The Mummy
Not to be confused with The Mammy, this is a remake of the much-filmed old horror movie, with Brendan Fraser in the lead and Stephen Sommers directing. June 25th
The Ninth Gate Roman Polanski directs a supernatural thriller featuring Johnny Depp as a rare books specialist who gets caught up in a demonic plot when he tries to rescue three books on the occult. With Lena Olin. May 28th
Notting Hill
In Roger Michell's romantic comedy Hugh Grant plays a London bookshop owner whose life is changed forever when the most famous film star in the world walks into his shop and kisses him. She's played by Julia Roberts. June 4th
Ordinary Decent Criminal
The always reliable Kevin Spacey takes the leading role in Thaddeus O'Sullivan's Dublin crime movie, scripted by Gerry Stembridge, which also features Linda Fiorentino and Peter Mullan. September
Payback
Mel Gibson tries to step into Lee Marvin's shoes in this thriller drawn from the same source material as John Boorman's superb Point Blank. Brian Helgeland, an Oscar-winning screenwriter for L.A. Confidential, directs. April 23rd
Pleasantville
This clever comedy from Gary Ross deals with the chaos wreaked when a pair of present-day American teens (Tobey Maguire and Renee Witherspoon) are catapulted into the squeaky-clean world of a fictional 1950s TV series. With Joan Allen and William H. Macy. March 19th
Plunkett and MacLeane
Trainspotting stars Robert Carlyle and Jonny Lee Miller are reunited as highwaymen in this factually based 18th-century adventure which also features Liv Tyler, Ken Stott and Alan Cumming. April 2nd
Pola X
The first film selected to compete at Cannes in May is the eagerly awaited new movie from enfant terrible Leos Carax. Guillaume Depardieu and Catherine Deneuve take the leading roles. Winter
Pushing Tin
John Cusack, Billy Bob Thornton and Cate Blanchett head the cast of Mike Newell's drama involving two air traffic controllers whose intense rivalry threatens to wreck their careers and marriages - and the planes in their airspace. Don't expect to see this as an inflight movie. July 2nd
Ride With the Devil
The Taiwanese director, Ang Lee, follows The Ice Storm with an American Civil War drama featuring a young cast led by Skeet Ulrich, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Simon Baker Denny and singer Jewel. July 23rd
Run Lola Run
Tom Tykwer's exhilarating German movie powers along as the flame-haired Lola (Franka Potente) races through Berlin with only 20 minutes to save her inept minor criminal boyfriend from the wrath of mobsters. Summer
Rushmore
Wes Anderson's exuberant yet touching picture deals with the a precocious 15-year-old (Jason Schartzman) who falls head over heels for a new teacher (Olivia Williams). Bill Murray is hilarious as the boy's new benefactor. Autumn
Shakespeare in Love
In this romantic comedy scripted by Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard, Joseph Fiennes plays The Bard who, suffering from writer's block while writing Romeo and Juliet, finds inspiration in a young woman played by Gwyneth Paltrow. John Madden, who made Mrs Brown, directs. January 29th
A Simple Plan
Very well received by the US critics, Sam Raimi's psychological thriller features Bill Paxton and Billy Bob Thornton as brothers who discover a crashed aircraft and a bag containing more than $4 million. February 19th
Snow Falling On Cedars
David Guterson's best-selling novel, a courtroom drama and love story set in the 1950s, is directed by Scott Hicks, who made Shine, and features Ethan Hawke, James Cromnwell, Youki Kudoh and newcomer Rick Yune. May 28th
Star Wars Episode I - The Phantom Menace
Hardcore fans have been paying $9 just to see the trailer of the heavily anticipated first prequel to the series which marks the return of George Lucas to the director's chair. Ewan McGregor is the young Obi-Wan, Liam Neeson is the main Jedi Knight, and Jake Lloyd is the young waif who will grow into Darth Vader. June
The Straight Story
The latest offering from David Lynch sounds characteristically quirky: A man decides to visit his brother by making the 317-mile journey on his lawnmower. With Richard Farnsworth and Sissy Spacek. Winter
Sweety Barrett
This engagingly offbeat morality fable directed by Stephen Bradley is set in a run-down port populated by eccentrics. Brendan Gleeson plays one of life's innocents, who clashes with a ruthless, corrupt detective (Liam Cunningham). Autumn
The Talented Mr Ripley
Anthony Minghella follows his multiple-Oscar-winning The English Patient with a new screen treatment of the Patricia Highsmith novel, featuring an attractive young cast led by Matt Damon, Jude Law, Cate Blanchett and Gwyneth Paltrow. Autumn
Tea With Mussolini
Franco Zeffirelli's autobiographical story of a young boy's wartime experiences in a housefull of women in rural Italy features Cher, Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, Joan Plowright and Lily Tomlin. February 26th
The Thin Red Line
Terrence Malick, who made two of the best films of the 1970s in Badlands and Days of Heaven, returns to film-making after a 20year hiatus with this war movie based on the James Jones novel and set during the battle between US and Japanese combat troops on Guadalcanal. It features Sean Penn, Adrien Brody, Ben Chaplin, Nick Nolte, George Clooney, John Travolta and John Cusack. March 5th
Titus
Julie Taymor, the Tony-winner director of The Lion King on Broadway, makes her feature film debut with this treatment of Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus which stars Anthony Hopkins, Jessica Lange, Alan Cumming and Jonathan Rhys Meyers. Winter
Very Bad Things
Peter Berg, who plays Dr Billy Kronk in Chicago Hope, turns director with an exceptionally black comedy which follows the consequences of a stag party in Las Vegas during which a prostitute is accidentally killed. The cast features Christian Slater, Cameron Diaz, Jeremy Piven and Jon Favreau. January 29th
The Wild, Wild West
Will Smith, Kevin Kline and Kenneth Branagh team up for a lavish big-screen treatment based on a 1960s TV series. Barry Sonnenfeld directs. August 6th
The Winslow Boy
David Mamet directs this new screen treatment of Terence Rattigan's play in which a retired bank official tries to clear his son's name. With Nigel Hawthorne, Gemma Jones, Rebecca Pidgeon and Jeremy Northam. February 26th
The World Is Not Enough
James Bond returns, played once again by Pierce Brosnan, with Michael Apted directing. The movie hasn't actually started shooting yet, but it's got a release date already: Nov 19th
Your Friends and Neighbors
Writer-director Neil LaBute follows In The Company Of Men with an even more coruscating picture of the sex lives of misanthropes. With Jason Patric, Ben Stiller, Nastassja Kinski and Amy Brenneman. February 12th
You've Got Mail
The Sleepless in Seattle team of director Nora Ephron and stars Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan are reunited for this updated remake of Ernst Lubitsch's 1940 The Shop Around the Corner. Hanks plays a bookstore mogul who falls for Ryan in an Internet chat room - unaware that she owns the small bookstore he's putting out of business. February 26th
Release dates given are subject to change