In theaters this autumn
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Welcome back, old friend known as the fall movie season, your company will be much appreciated by moviegoers burrowed into their cinema seats between now and winter’s arrival.
The movie industry’s typical array of awards season fodder looks to be alive with strong potential this year. After a sweet summer for Hollywood, the autumn may offer more of the same. This year’s fall flicks don’t have many potential blockbusters on the way, making room for smaller, more intimate movies at the theater.
Here are a dozen of this reviewer’s most anticipated releases, a purely subjective list:
“Aquaman” (December)— Maybe it’s the Pisces in me, but Aquaman was always one of those superheroes who interested me as a youngster, which makes this DC Extended Universe installment intriguing for holiday popcorn fodder. James Wan as director (“Insidious,” “Saw”) is another reason, along with the likes of Amber Heard, Willem Dafoe and Dolf Lundgren along for the sea voyage.
“The Ballad of Buster Scruggs” (November)—An anthology film comprised of six vignettes, this buzz-producer just premiered at the Venice Film Festival. It’s a Coen Brothers spin through the mythology of the American West, stories about wildness at the frontier with Tim Blake Nelson, James Franco, Liam Neeson, Tom Waits and Zoe Kazan. The greatness of the Coens’ “True Grit” indicates this territory could be something special. This will get a Netflix and theatrical release.
“Beautiful Boy” (October)—A stirring, emotional, based-on-real-life drama with Steve Carell as writer David Sheff, whose son Nic (played by nascent superstar Timothée Chalamet) falls prey to drug addiction. It’s based on memoirs written by both father
and son. Amy Ryan (Academy Award nominee for “Gone Baby Gone”) and Maura Tierney (“ER,” “News Radio,” “The Affair”) join them.
“Bohemian Rhapsody” (November)—It’s hard to know what to make of this homage to the arena rock gods Queen and their charismatic leader Freddie Mercury, given the reported production kerfuffles and Sacha Baron Cohen, the original actor set to play Mercury, bailing on the project. But here’s to hoping the magic of Queen’s music comes through. Rami Malek certainly looks the part with the irrepressible Freddie.
“Can You Ever Forgive Me?” (October)—Based on the Lee Israel memoir about her literary forgeries, this potential gem stars Melissa McCarthy as Israel, who created fictitious letters supposedly written by various famous folk. Richard E. Grant, the great character actor, joins McCarthy in this film directed by Marielle Heller, whose indie flick “The Diary of a Teenage Girl” received critical acclaim three years ago.
“Fahrenheit 11/9” (September)—Donald Trump and all that the president represents gets the Michael Moore treatment in this new documentary from the provocative progressive and firebrand auteur, a director of such films as “Roger and Me,” “Bowling for Columbine” and “Fahrenheit 9/11.”
“First Man” (October)—Ryan Gosling as first man on the moon Neil Armstrong, Claire Foy (of “The Crown”) as the famed astronaut’s first wife and Damien Chazelle (“La La Land”) in the cockpit as director for this tense drama with Steven Spielberg as an executive producer all add up to make “First Man” an insanely attractive space epic and a perfect fall flick to conjure cosmic dreams. It’s getting solid buzz after its Venice Film Festival premiere.
“If Beale Street Could Talk” (November)—Barry Jenkins announced himself as a visionary director with “Moonlight” in 2016, the Academy Award winner for Best Motion Picture. “Moonlight” explored a young man’s growth into adulthood with issues like identity, self-awareness and sexuality at play. It was a touching film, full of compassion for its characters. Here, Jenkins directs an adaptation of the James Baldwin novel of the same name.
“On the Basis of Sex” (December)—Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was already the subject of the fine, critically-acclaimed documentary “RBG” earlier this year, and now her story gets the biopic treatment in a film directed by Mimi Leder (“Deep Impact,” “The Peacemaker”). Starring Felicity Jones in the title role, “On the Basis of Sex” explores Ginsburg’s extraordinary work fighting sex discrimination.
“Roma” (December)—Director Alfonso Cuarón follows his success in “Gravity” (and “Children of Men” and “Y Tu Mama Tambien”) with an altogether different sort of film, this time more personal as “Roma” explores family life in 1970s Mexico. Shot in black and white, this film will receive a theatrical and Netflix release. The trailer hints that this could be a positively luminous film.
“A Star is Born” (October)— The star born here may be Lady Gaga’s acting career, judging by the enticing trailer and advance word on her performance in this romantic drama that’s also Bradley Cooper’s initial foray into directing. It’s a tale of musicians and emotions. The soundtrack has a Texarkana connection with former Pilot drift member and Texarkanian Benjamin Rice doing production work on a few songs.
“Widows” (November)—Steve McQueen follows “12 Years a Slave” with a seemingly radical shift in filmmaking direction, the heist thriller “Widows,” which finds him partnering with “Gone Girl” scribe Gillian Flynn. When four men die in a failed robbery attempt, what’s left for the widows? They’ll decide. The ensemble cast includes Viola Davis, Michelle Rodriguez, Colin Farrell and Daniel Kaluuya.