After a few days of "is he in or is he out" speculation, The Hunger Games director Gary Ross finally made it official yesterday: he will not be returning to helm the second installment in the wildly successful YA (and now film) franchise, Catching Fire. This leaves the movie, which is set to begin filming in the fall for a November 2013 release date, without a guiding hand behind the camera. While Lionsgate will move to fill the director's chair quickly, the question of who will and should nab this plum assignment will be bouncing around Hollywood (and Hunger Games fan sites) for the next few days. Personally, we're excited at the prospect of seeing what another filmmaker might bring to the series because while Ross certainly deserves credit for getting the series off the ground -- and bringing the best out of Jennifer Lawrence -- based on what we saw in the first film, there's definitely room for improvement. Here's our own personal wish list for Catching Fire's helmer:

It might have been easier to feel more enthusiastic about American Reunion if this was the first time we had seen Jim, Stifler and the rest of the American Pie crew since the first movie became a breakout hit back in 1999. Thirteen years on, the original holds up quite nicely; dated soundtrack aside (the fact that both "One Week" and "Flagpole Sitta" are blasted without any hint of irony clearly makes it a late '90s period piece), the jokes still land, the characters remain endearing and there's a genuine sweetness beneath the raunch that gives the film heart as well as humor. A sequel to that movie would be most welcome, in the same way that Richard Linklater took his time following up Before Sunrise with Before Sunset. Unfortunately, in between American Pie and American Reunion, the brand name was tarnished by two mostly terrible sequels (2003's American Wedding was particularly dire) and a line of flat-out awful direct-to-DVD spin-offs (which, to be fair, didn't feature any of the original cast, with the exception of Eugene Levy). As a result Reunion arrives in theaters appearing less like a triumphant homecoming than the last gasp of a flatlining franchise.

Pity poor Wrath of the Titans; arriving in theaters a week after The Hunger Games stormed the box office with its youthful heroine, stripped-down action sequences and pointed social commentary, that film makes this overproduced, underwritten F/X extravaganza look about as ancient as the Greek myths it's (very loosely) based on.

In just two short years, 3D has gone from being the perceived savior of the theatrical experience to the favorite whipping boy of critics (myself included) and Hollywood analysts. Blame the high surcharge that 3D places on the cost of a movie ticket, blame the glut of 3D movies in the marketplace, but most of all blame the studios for churning out such relentlessly unappealing 3D fare. Terrific examples of the format like Coraline and, of course, Avatar have largely given way to shoddy conversion jobs (Clash of the Titans, The Last Airbender), obvious cash-grabs (the upcoming 3D re-releases of the Star Wars movies) and films that don't actually seem to make use of the extra dimension (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, Captain America: The First Avenger). Since James Cameron kick-started the new 3D boom, the only dimensionally-enhanced movies that didn't feel like complete rip-offs were Jackass 3D and Piranha 3D, neither of which could be accurately described as "artistic triumphs." For that matter, neither could A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas, but that doesn't change the fact that the latest installment in one of the young century's most unlikely franchises is also the first post-Avatar production that needs... nay demands to be seen in 3D for maximum enjoyment.* Here are five reasons why:

This Friday, bumbling British "super" spy Johnny English (played by British comic Rowan Atkinson) returns to theaters for his second mission, Johnny English Reborn. Don't remember the original Johnny English outing? That's okay... it came out eight years ago -- an eternity in movie years. Still, that's not the most excessive lag time between the first and second installments in a franchise. The wait was even longer between the following Parts 1 and 2. [Note: We're omitting sequels that went the direct-to-DVD or made-for-TV route, so don't go looking for Cinderella II or The Birds II.]

It's been eight years since those resourceful Spy Kids last saved the world from an overacting mad-man, but this Friday they're back in theaters in the Robert Rodriguez-directed fourth chapter Spy Kids: All The Time in the World (now in 4D!). Actually, the original kiddie spies -- Alexa Vega and Daryl Sabara -- aren't the stars of this particular outing, since, you know, they're not actually kids anymore. (They do both make cameo appearances though.) Instead, there's a new pair of pint-sized action heroes in town, played by Rowan Blanchard and Mason Cook. Other new-to-the-series actors include Joel McHale as the duo's father and Jessica Alba as their stepmom, a retired agent that introduces them to the spy game. Spy Kids 4 is far from the first film to try and restart a dormant franchise with an infusion of fresh faces playing new characters. Here's a look back at some of the other series that have attempted similar relaunches and whether or not they succeeded. (Hint: The answer is usually, "No.")

In the run-up to the release of Transformers: Dark of the Moon, the third entry in the feature film franchise based on the old Hasbro toy line, director Michael Bay has been telling anyone who'll listen that the new film won't commit the sins of its predecessor, the widely loathed Revenge of the Fallen. From where I sat though, Dark of the Moon played like more of the same: a largely incoherent assembly of eardrum-shattering, chaotically-choreographed action sequences that are occasionally interrupted by hilariously campy dramatic moments and painfully unfunny bits of "comedy," as well as a few randomly inserted slow-mo money shots of one of the interchangeable CGI-robots actually transforming in a desperate attempt to make the audience think they're having a good time.

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, the second film in the Transformers trilogy, may be the least-liked movie ever to gross over $400 million at the box-office. Critics hated it, most viewers hated it and even its director, Michael Bay, seems to bad-mouth it every chance he gets. In fact, Bay has sworn that the (alleged) final film the series Dark of the Moon will be nothing like its predecessor... except for all the explosions, slow-mo heavy action and slobbery, soft-core shots of its leading lady (Rosie Huntington-Whiteley in for Megan Fox), of course. The early word on Moon is that it is indeed superior to its predecessor, which allows it to join the exclusive group of Part Three's that are better than the Part Two's they follow. Here's what else is in the club: