So Moana has retained the top position at the box office for the third week in a row, bringing in 18.5M$! That supersedes previous heavy hitters Doctor Strange and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, which is pretty impressive. Those last two have slowly dropped in the rankings. The only new film to hit the top five is Office Christmas Party, which settled into second with just under 17M$.

The new year is almost upon us, so let's take a look at some of the movies that Hollywood hopes relieves us of our hard-earned cash in 2017!

A Monster Calls (1/6/2017):

This movie looks amazing! I recall originally seeing the teaser trailer for this earlier in the year and it made me really curious. I love Liam Neeson's (A Christmas Star, Darkman) gravely voice. If you haven't gathered by now, I'm a pretty big fan; of Neeson in general, not just his sultry vocals...

A Monster Calls is sure to be a very emotional movie, as it deals with a young boy and his own personal struggle to deal with the ill-fate of his mother. It's filled with captivating visual effects that will help pound all the feels home and pull you in deeper into the character's world. Unlike the next movie discussed, the CGI and special effects are great and definitely don't distract from the story being told.

I'm really hoping this movie is as good as it looks and that it does well in theaters. I'm a little worried about it being pushed to 2017, but I haven't looking into the reasoning yet. It may have just been a better timeframe and nothing to do about its preliminary performance/screen-testing. Hopefully I have the chance to see this when it releases!

Lewis Macdougall (Pan), Sigourney Weaver (Finding Dory, Chappie), Felicity Jones (True Story, The Amazing Spider-Man 2) and Toby Kebbell (Ben-Hur, Fantastic Four) star in the film.

Monster Trucks (1/13/2017):

Hmm... I'm not really sure what to say about Monster Trucks, starring Lucas Till (Macgyver, Bravetown), Jane Levy (Don't Breathe, Fun Size), Rob Lowe (Sex Tape, I Melt with You), and Holt McCallany (Three Kings, Alien 3). The trailer isn't terrible, but a lot of the CGI moments look incredibly fake, whenever the actors are interacting with the alien entity. I feel it pulls you out of whatever semblance of immersion they attempt to produce.

While the trailer may not be exactly terrible, I can't help but feel the movie will be. Granted it's just not my cup of tea. It's obviously a kid/family movie and I am sure there will be plenty of zany, off-the-wall antics to keep children entertained throughout. I will have to pass, though, with the exception of possibly seeing it on Netflix. I'm curious how well this will do in theaters. I think it may have pulled in a larger audience if it were an animated feature.

Amy Ryan (The Infiltrator, Bob Funk) and Danny Glover (Almost Christmas, Day of the Mummy) also star.

Fast & Furious 8: The Fate of the Furious (4/14/2017):

So the Fast & Furious movies may be one of my guilty pleasures. I've enjoyed almost all of them aside from the second movie, which I thought was terrible and the worst of the franchise (though most feel that the third deserves that honor — I really liked Tokyo Drift). Despite the movies becoming more and more over-the-top, the latest having some downright ridiculous scenes (which this installment may outdo), I can't help but want to plug into all the high-octane action!

While I may be excited about the eighth movie (of which another or two are already planned), I think this trailer is definitely a minute and a half too long. It appears to go through almost the entirety of the movie, quite possibly in sequential order. Not that Fast & Furious films have some kind of deep, robust plot. I'd still like some surprises if possible. And this is just the first of potentially several trailers/TV spots/etc.

I was worried most about rumors of them attempting to keep Paul Walker's (She's All That, Meet the Deedles) character in the franchise, using similar methods to Furious 7 after the actor's passing. This made me cringe big time, but if it's restricted to things like photographs (as shown in one trailer scene) then I'm all good. Anything more than those types of utilization may not be well received. Plus the heartwarming tribute in the last movie was very emotional for many, and I'd hate to see that tarnished.

This is a movie I'll definitely be trying to catch on the big screen! I just hope they don't spoil everything, especially why Vin Diesel's (The Last Witch Hunter, Find Me Guilty) character has supposedly turned, before its release. There are so many actors involved in these films now, but I will attempt to list a majority of those starring like Dwayne Johnson (Race to Witch Mountain, Get Smart), Charlize Theron (The Huntsman: Winter's War, Mad Max: Fury Road), Jason Statham (Mechanic: Resurrection, Parker), Michelle Rodriguez (Turbo, Machete), Jordana Brewster (Annapolis, The Invisible Circus), Helen Mirren (Collateral Beauty, Woman in Gold), Tyrese Gibson (Ride Along 2, Waist Deep), Kurt Russell (Death Proof, Overboard), and Ludacris (Gamer, Max Payne).

Spider-Man: Homecoming (7/7/2017):

Just in case you were afraid there wasn't more Marvel on the way, Spider-Man finally gets his story told within the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU)! Making a brief, but very memorable, appearance in Captain America: Civil War, any fears I had about the new actor portraying the web-slinging hero (Tom Holland — Edge of Winter, In the Heart of the Sea) were quashed. He did a great job, and I think he really captures the personality of the character. I'm not too thrilled, however, that they've decided to reboot Spider-Man from scratch, once again being the high school teen learning to deal with his newfound powers. I'd really like to see them focus on the character after figuring all that shit out!

To be honest, though, I'm just thrilled that Sony and Marvel/Disney found a way to negotiate and play nice with the character licensing. It's a real shame FOX can't follow suit.

It appears that the Vulture will be the villain of the film, being played by the talented Michael Keaton (The Founder, Quicksand), who appears to be flourishing in the business once again. The Vulture is being modernized, of course, so I hope they don't overdo it. I thought they made an odd casting choice for Aunt May (Marisa Tomei — Love the Coopers, The Rewrite), whom I sorely hope avoids a romantic interest with Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr. — Chef, Lucky You) in the crossover shenanigans!

The trailer is well done, featuring a lot of small comedic scenes and builds up the plotline of Spider-Man attempting to come into his own as a superhero. I really enjoyed the first trilogy (okay, maybe not so much the third movie), but I never got around to seeing the following reboot. I'm hoping this solidifies the character and it progressively moves forward from here, avoiding any further unnecessary reboots. Spider-Man does eventually graduate high school after all!

Zendaya (K. C. Undercover, Frenemies), Donald Glover (Atlanta, The Lazarus Effect), and Jon Favreau (The Jungle Book, The Big Empty) also star.

War for the Planet of the Apes (7/14/2017):

I'm soooooo behind on the Planet of the Apes franchise. It's kind of tragic. I know I wasn't completely enthralled with the original remake, but it wasn't bad by any means. Even if I did think for some reason that their wouldn't be sequels made. I have to say, though, that a lot of the recent installments have looked really good! I'm not exactly sure why I haven't caught up yet. Considering this may be the final movie, I just may do that.

This is a great trailer, with the voice-over and the tension built up throughout. Considering I've not been following along and can't really recall the original movies (if these are even following suit), I'm kind of in the dark as to who the actual "good guys" are, if any. I'd lean more towards the apes, though... Mankind playing gods and then looking to destroy their creations and all.

War for the Planet of the Apes stars Judy Greer (Ordinary World, Ant-Man), Woody Harrelson (The Duel, Out of the Furnace), Andy Serkis (Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Death of a Superhero), and Steve Zahn (Captain Fantastic, The Ridiculous 6).

Did any of the featured movies interest you?