2015 HIGHLIGHTS

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S T H G I L H G I H

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FILM MUSIC

FIFTY SHADES OF GREY Love them or loathe them, EL James’ novels are an undeniable sensation. And with Turner Prize- nominated artist and Nowhere Boy director Sam Taylor-Johnson on board alongside The Fall’s Jamie Dornan, this may even intrigue serious i lm enthusiasts. General release from Fri 13 Feb.

MOMMY We were lucky enough to catch French-Canadian wunderkind Xavier Dolan’s latest at the London Film Festival. Anne Dorval and Antoine-Olivier Pilon are heartbreaking and hilarious as they play a joyfully anarchic mother and son. We awarded it the full complement of stars and it really is that special. Selected release from Mar.

STILL ALICE Many of the year’s Academy Award contenders are covered in this very magazine, but one of the frontrunners for 2015’s best actress Oscar is Julianne Moore in Still Alice. We’ve seen this one, and Moore playing a linguistics professor diagnosed with Alzheimer’s is indeed extraordinary. General release from Fri 6 Mar. AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON With Avengers Assemble’s box-ofi ce haul standing at a staggering £1.5bn, expectations couldn’t be higher for the sequel. Fan favourite Joss Whedon returns as writer-director and so, hopefully, does his brand of humour. With Scarlett Johansson (pictured). General release from Fri 24 Apr.

STAR WARS: EPISODE VII THE FORCE AWAKENS

BELLE & SEBASTIAN Cue euphoria for fans of Glasgow’s indie twee-pop superstars (pictured); they return in January with their ninth album, Girls in Peacetime Want to Dance (Matador), before playing a hometown arena gig in the summer, joined by the Scottish Festival Orchestra. Girls in Peacetime Want to Dance is out on Mon 19 Jan; SSE Hydro, Glasgow, Fri 22 May. GODSPEED YOU! BLACK EMPEROR Rejoice: and lift your skinny i sts like antennas to heaven. Montreal’s post-rock overlords return, bringing with them their usual unsettling, symphonic vibes; or so we presume as, true to form, the notoriously private Canadians are keeping schtum, so far, about what they’re up to. 02 ABC, Glasgow, Sun 19 Apr.

TECTONICS After branching out this year with a Tel Aviv Tectonics festival, curator / conductor Ilan Volkov and the BBC SSO return in 2015 with another Glasgow edition. Expect adventurous, avant-garde performances from Scottish musicians and others from around the world. Line-up announced in January. City Halls and Old Fruitmarket, Glasgow, Fri 1– Sun 3 May. ELECTRIC FROG Fingers crossed, the excellent Simple Things festival will come back again this year. Meanwhile, we know for sure that this six-year-old electronic / dance weekender will team up again with Pressure to help Glasgow let its hair down. Riverside Museum, Glasgow, Fri 29 & Sat 30 May.

The Star Wars franchise is back, this time under the creative control of modern sci-i master JJ Abrams (Star Trek, Super 8, Lost). Set approximately 30 years after Return of the Jedi, the seventh i lm brings the original trilogy’s stars together with newcomers including Oscar Isaac. Will the force still be strong? General release from Fri 18 Dec. KELVINGROVE BANDSTAND Six more shows are earmarked for the recently refurbished bandstand, as part of Magners Summer Nights. Last year the 2500-capacity venue staged outdoor shows from the likes of Teenage Fanclub. Kelvingrove Bandstand, Glasgow, Thu 6–Sat 8 Aug; Thu 13–Sat 15 Aug.

(Emma Simmonds) (Claire Sawers)

42 THE LIST 11 Dec 2014–5 Feb 2015