Movie Preview: 10 Films to See in March

This month's notable theatrical releases

Below, our editors have selected 10 interesting films debuting this month, listed in alphabetical order.

. Buzzard Watch trailer(s)
NR Drama/Comedy | March 6 | Directed by Joel Potrykus

Ape writer-director Joel Potrykus’ second feature follows Marty (Joshua Burge), an office temp and small-time scam artist, as he flees his hometown to hide out in Detroit with nothing but a pocket full of bogus checks, his Freddie Krueger-like Power Glove, and a bad temper. With good early reviews, a spaghetti-eating scene that’s not to be missed, and a trailer well worth watching, Buzzard should please anyone who likes to watch someone try to give it to the man.

. Chappie Watch trailer(s)
R Sci-fi | March 6 | Directed by Neill Blomkamp

District 9 and Elysium writer-director Neill Blomkamp tries to rebound (before jumping into his Alien sequel) with this story of Chappie, a police droid stolen by Dev Patel’s rogue programmer and given new software to become the first robot with the ability to think and feel for himself. (He's voiced by Blomkamp regular Sharlto Copley.) This all happens in a near future world where robots have replaced the police force, and Hugh Jackman has developed a robot called the Moose (not unlike RoboCop’s ED-209) to hunt down Chappie at the request of the head of a weapons manufacturer played by Sigourney Weaver. And if that’s not enough, Yo-Landi and Ninja of South African rap group Die Antwoord play a role in Chappie’s life too. Has Blomkamp tried to tackle to much again, or will he strike the right balance of action and message as he did in his debut?

. Cinderella Watch trailer(s)
PG Fantasy/Adventure/Family | March 13 | Directed by Kenneth Branagh

In this live-action re-telling of the Cinderella story, Lily James (Downton Abbey) plays the title character, named Ella before her evil stepsisters change it, and Cate Blanchett is her evil stepmother. The role of the fairy godmother is filled by Helena Bonham Carter; Richard Madden (Game of Thrones) plays the prince, Derek Jacobi the King, and Stellan Skarsgård the Grand Duke. Scripted by Aline Brosh McKenna and Chris Weitz and directed by Kenneth Branagh, this latest Disney update of an animated classic has earned good early reviews even though it lacks the revisionist bite of last year's Maleficent.

. The Gunman Watch trailer #1 Watch trailer #2
R Action | March 20 | Directed by Pierre Morel

Can director Pierre Morel (Taken) do for Sean Penn what he did for Liam Neeson? He’ll have the help of an impressive cast (Javier Bardem, Idris Elba, Ray Winstone, Mark Rylance) in this adaptation of Jean-Patrick Manchette’s novel, The Prone Gunman. Penn stars as Jim Terrier, an international operative who finds himself battling his former organization. Jasmine Trinca plays his girlfriend, who is, not surprisingly, in peril. If your typical March at the movies means guns, explosions and plenty of scene chewing from actors who sound like they have phlegm in their throat, then this is the film for you.

. Insurgent Watch trailer #1 Watch trailer #2
PG-13 Action-Adventure/Sci-fi | March 20 | Directed by Robert Schwentke

The sequel to Divergent finds Tris (Shailene Woodley) and Four (Theo James) on the run in the ruins of futuristic Chicago, hunted by Jeanine (Kate Winslet), the leader of the Erudite faction. Luckily, they find new allies in the Factionless, led by Naomi Watts’ Evelyn. Robert Schwentke (RED, R.I.P.D.) takes over directing duties from Neil Burger, and Octavia Spencer, Suki Waterhouse, and Daniel Dae Kim join the cast while Jai Courtney, Miles Teller, Ansel Elgort, Zoe Kravitz, Maggie Q, and Ray Stevenson all return from the first film. Author Veronica Roth has already approved of the movie despite the departures it takes from the book, so fans of the novels can rest easy.

. It Follows Watch trailer(s)
NR Horror | March 13 | Directed by David Robert Mitchell

This horror film from director David Robert Mitchell (The Myth of the American Sleepover) has been steadily building buzz since it premiered at Cannes’ Critics’ Week festival last year, where The Telegraph declared it the “most exciting film in Cannes.” Maika Monroe (The Guest) stars as Jay, who, after her first sexual encounter, learns that something will follow her until she’s killed or until she passes it on to someone else through sex. What it is, nobody knows, but Jay and her friends try to find a way to escape it. Critic’s have raved that It Follows stands up to multiple viewings, so let's hope that the film gets an expanded release after its initial limited run.

. Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter Watch trailer(s)
NR Drama | March 18 | Directed by David Zellner

David and Nathan Zellner’s follow-up to 2012’s Kid-Thing tells the story of a Japanese “office lady” (Rinko Kikuchi of Pacific Rim and Babel) who becomes so obsessed with finding the briefcase of money buried in the snow by Steve Buscemi in the Coen brothers film Fargo that she flies to Minnesota to search for it. Kikuchi gives an almost silent performance in this examination of pop-culture obsession. At last year’s Sundance Film Festival, Kumiko earned very good reviews and was honored with a U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for its musical score by The Octopus Project.

. Welcome to New York Watch trailer
NC-17 Drama | March 27 | Directed by Abel Ferrara

Inspired by the case of former IMF director Dominique Strauss-Kahn's arrest for the sexual assault of a hotel maid, director and co-writer Abel Ferrara’s latest stars Gérard Depardieu as George Devereaux, an international banker whose insatiable appetite for drugs and sex leads to a shocking incident and his eventual arrest. Jacqueline Bisset plays Devereaux’s wife, Simone, who fears losing her cherished reputation thanks to her husband’s inability to control his sociopathic tendencies. Many early reviews see the film as a return to form for Ferrara and Depardieu.

. While We're Young Watch trailer(s)
R Drama/Comedy | March 27 | Directed by Noah Baumbach

In Noah Baumbach’s more mainstream follow-up to Frances Ha, the lives of documentary filmmaker Josh (Ben Stiller) and his wife Cornelia (Naomi Watts) take some unexpected turns after they befriend a hipster couple played by Adam Driver and Amanda Seyfried. Charles Grodin plays Cornelia’s father, a famous documentarian, and Adam Horovitz and Maria Dizza play a couple who have already embraced parenthood and encourage Josh and Cornelia to do the same. With very good early reviews and a more broadly comedic sensibility, the film should appeal to a larger audience than Stiller’s last film with Baumbach, Greenberg.

. White God Watch trailer(s)
NR Foreign/Drama | March 27 | Directed by Kornél Mundruczó

The latest film from Hungarian director Kornél Mundruczó (Delta) won the Un Certain Regard Prize at last year’s Cannes Film Festival. White God follows 13-year-old Lili as she’s forced to live with her father, who then gives up her beloved dog Hagen instead of paying the state’s mixed-breed tax on dogs. Abandoned on the side of the road, Hagen goes through a series of trials as Lili searches for him. Their difficult journey to find each other becomes even more dangerous when all the unwanted, unloved, and so-called unfit dogs rise up under their new leader, Hagen, resulting in a action-packed assault on humanity.

What do you think?

Which films are you looking forward to this month? Let us know in the comments section below. For a complete, updated listing of all upcoming film releases by date, including films arriving later in 2015, visit our Movie Calendar.