Which of these are you going to watch?

Now that we're done with Oscar season and 2019, we are finally getting into what 2020 has to offer.

Animation starts out strong this month, whether you prefer western or Japanese animation. Action also takes the hot seat, though not in the traditional sense with invulnerable killing machines kicking down doors and taking names.

Francophiles will also be enjoying the 19th edition of the Le French Festival that will be bringing in selected French titles. But that shouldn't take your support from our local productions which has managed to pack this month's schedule, with a few that we believe deserves your interest.

So before marching into our cinemas, these are the movies not to miss this March!

Guns Akimbo

Sometimes a movie writes itself and it certainly feels that way after watching the trailer for "Guns Akimbo". What if Daniel Radcliffe wakes up one day to find guns bolted to his hands and has to survive a death match streamed online? Radcliffe hasn't taken on many action roles (as helpless as they are), so it's already interesting to see him carrying a gun (more so if he can't take them off) and see where this will go. Directed by the New Zealander Jason Lei Hawden who last directed the cult favourite "Deathgasm", there will also be plenty of fresh faces from Natasha Liu Bodizzo, Samara Weaving and Ned Dennehy who will be looking to make their mark on the action genre.

General Release Date: 5 March

Necromancer 2020

Thai horror will be making a strong appearance this month by going both ends of the spectrum; comedy and horror. While a sequel to the comedy reboot of "Pee Mak" would naturally be the more anticipated one, we are more intrigued with our pick for this month "Necromancer 2020". Often in Thai horror, our characters are the victims of some dark magic and finding a way to break the curse. But "Necromancer 2020" centres on a character who falls into these dark practices. After his family was brutally murdered, Win learns the dark ways in order to overpower the murderers, each of them practicing dark arts that would ultimately bring all of them to ruin in the name of revenge. While it's good to enjoy a horror comedy once in a while, it's not always we get something that is gruesome enough for fans of the "Art of the Devil" series.

General Release Date: 5 March

The Invisible Man

Developed as part of Universal's monstrous cinematic universe, this retelling of the film series based on the H.G. Well's novel would not have been told after the gigantic flop of "The Mummy". It was only later decided that Universal wanted to focus on stand-alone retellings. Handing it over to director Leigh Whannell who had just made the impressive and small-budget tech-thriller "Upgrade" and previously "Insidious: Chapter 3", this new "This Invisible Man" may have benefited from the smaller scale and focus. Elisabeth Moss plays a woman who escapes from an abusive relationship, and when her ex suddenly kills himself, her sanity is slowly unravelled as she believes he has come back to haunt her, but no one can see him.

General Release Date: 5 March

Onward

After an Oscar-winning outing in 2019, 2020 might seem to be a Pixar-less year, but it's a pleasant surprise that Pixar has another in the tank to start off the next animation race. Based on director Dan Scanlon's own experience of not knowing his own father, "Onward" is set in a magical world where two elf brothers use a magic staff to bring back their dead father for 24 hours. When the casting of the spell goes awry, they have to go on a quest to bring back the rest of their father before time is up. Other than having a story that is anchored to pull heartstrings, "Onward" goes forth with an exciting voice cast, led by Tom Holland and Chris Pratt as the brothers, as they stumble upon friends played by Octavia Spencer, and Ali Wong.

General Release Date:5 March

Trolls World Tour

Pixar won't be the only player in the animation scene this year as Dreamworks will be following up with another instalment of their rather enjoyable adaptation of the Trolls toy property. After being made the queen of the Trolls, Poppy and Branch discover that they are only one of six other Troll tribes who live in their own land with their own taste of music. When the Rock trolls decide to kill all other forms of music, Poppy and friends are set for a new adventure in a larger world. Returning director Walt Dohrn will be sharing directing duties with David P. Smith, as well as Anna Kendrick, Justin Timberlake, Gwen Stefani, and James Corden will be sharing the vocal works with Rachel Bloom, Ozzy Osbourne, Mary J. Blige, Kelly Clarkson, Sam Rockwell for a new world of music.

General Release Date:12 March

Bulan dan Pria Terhebat

On a mission to save her sister who has been abducted by a human trafficking syndicate, Indonesia special forces trainee Bulan gets tangled with a Malaysian e-hailing driver, while under pursuit by assassins sent by the syndicate. After being taken off the "Polis Evo" series, director Ghaz Abdul Bakar is back with another action vehicle. While this isn't quite Malaysia's take on becoming the next "The Raid", but it's uplifting to see Malaysia attempting to have a female-centered action movie, starring Zahirah McWilson in her feature debut, and Maya Karin, with Zizan Razak as an added bonus.

General Release Date:12 March

Roh

Last year saw the launching of Kuman Pictures into the game of budget style Malaysian horror, starting out with James Lee's "Two Sisters", and this year we are seeing the second of its initial three offerings. "Roh" will be the feature debut of director Emir Ezwan after making the outstanding (and 'one-shot') short "RM10", centred on a family living in the woods who is approached by a young girl with deadly premonitions. From the trailers we see that "Roh" is using the best of every cent in their small budget for this small production. So having the cast of "Redha" is a real boon and we are looking forward to what could be another name to remember in the Malaysian scene.

General Release Date:19 March

Eye on the Ball

Malaysian para-athletes have been receiving some cinematic attention. Last year we had "Garang" to highlight the dramatic lives of the wheelchair racing team in a heavy-handed fundraiser. This year we have another cinematic treatment documenting our national blind football squad. Following the team after their victory at the 2015 ASEAN Para Games, director Chen Yih Wen highlights the passion and plight of the team to enter the World Cup for blind football, which not only has to overcome their disabilities, the challenges to their fighting spirit, but also the bureaucratic discrimination put against them and their sport. "Eye on the Ball" is giving us a look on a national team that probably deserves more support than they are given, and part of the proceeds of the documentary is pledged to the Pan-Disability Football Club.

General Release Date:19 March

A Quiet Place II

After finding out the weakness of the monsters but also knowing their home is no longer safe, it is up to Evelyn to take the Abbot children to find a new place to stay and survive. It was not surprising to see everyone clamouring for a sequel to silent hits of horror in recent years, so it's not surprising to see it get made as quickly as it was announced. John Krasinki may not be returning as daddy Abbot in the sequel but he will be continuing his directing duties to lead Emily Blunt, Millicent Simmonds, Noah Jupe, while also introducing new characters played by Djimon Hounsou and Cillian Murphy, who are sure to open up the wider world the Abbots find themselves in.

General Release Date:19 March

Mulan

Another year and another live-adaptation of a Disney cartoon. While 2019 was all about the animal kingdom, this time we are being taken to Disney's Asia. Directed by seasoned director Niki Caro as the second female director to oversee large project since Ava Duvernay's "A Wrinkle in Time", with the adaptation partly written by "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" screenwriters Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver, Disney is letting this take on a serious tone with a PG-13 rating which aligns with its wartime setting. The world will be introduced to Chinese young star Liu YiFei in the titular role, but she is in good company with some of the biggest Chinese stars like Donnie Yen, Jet Li, and Cheng Pei Pe, and as a new villain in a form played by a devilish Gong Li.

General Release Date:26 March