Ten top flick picks for fall
Autumn and films go together in a big, bold, beautiful way, and this year looks like another grand one for a thoughtful few hours at the cinema.
Here’s a highly personal list of the flicks I’m looking forward to seeing the most. In a weird and turbulent world, movies keep our souls sane. Here’s 10 to see:
“Raise Hell: The Life & Times of Molly Ivins” (Sept.) — The iconoclastic, fiery wit and unvarnished political wisdom of the late Molly Ivins, who was a bona fide, unapologetic Texas liberal, receives documentary treatment in this Magnolia Pictures release with Janice Engel as director. At a time when journalism is so disrespected, it’s affirming to see one of the best get her due. Even if you don’t fancy her politics, Ivins can make you laugh.
“Ad Astra” (Sept.) — This year’s Oscar-contending space film fare for the fall rests in the hands of Brad Pitt, who portrays astronaut Roy McBride sent to deep space to find his father (Clifford McBride, portrayed by Tommy Lee Jones). Whatever is mysteriously happening in the vast expanse of outer space is a threat to the world. Ruth Negga, Liv Tyler and Donald Sutherland join them in a movie that looks like it has real depth to it.
“The King” (Nov.) — Timothée Chalamet portrays Hal/ King Henry V while Joel Edgerton is Hal’s equally infamous bad-boy buddy Falstaff in this adaptation of the Shakespeare history plays. David Michod directs this Netflix release, which he and Edgerton co-wrote. Ben Mendelsohn, Robert Pattinson and Lily-Rose Depp also join what looks like a dark, brooding spin on this troubled young king’s ascension.
“The Report” (Nov.) — Adam Driver’s best work isn’t being done for “Star Wars” movies, although he’s an attractively enigmatic villain there. In this film, Driver portrays a U.S. Senate staffer investigating the secret U.S. torture program enacted after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Amazon distributes this Scott Z. Burns film with Steven Soderbergh as a producer. Burns wrote screenplays for Soderbergh projects “Contagion” and “The Informant!”
“Motherless Brooklyn” (Nov.) — Based on a novel by excellent American novelist Jonathan Lethem (go read “The Fortress of Solitude”), this crime flick features Edward Norton as both director and lead. He’s a private eye with Tourette syndrome. Advance word singles out the moody 1950s New York City streetscape evoked in the film. Add to that is the intriguing cast of Bruce Willis, Willem Dafoe, Emmy-winner Bobby Cannavale and English actress Gugu MbathaRaw. Looks like a sleeper winner.
“Queen & Slim” (Nov.) — Daniel Kaluuya (“Get Out”) is one of the most exciting young actors working today, so seeing him in a lead role again fires up my anticipation for this Melina Matsoukasdirected romantic thriller. In the film, Slim and Queen’s first date suffers a dramatic twist that puts them on the run from police violence. It’s the first film for acclaimed music video director Matsoukas (Rihanna, Beyoncé) with a screenplay penned by Lena Waithe (“Master of None,” “The Chi”).
“The Aeronauts” (Dec.) — What happens when you pair a top balloon pilot with an ambitious scientist for the 19th century flight of a lifetime? Well, apparently, it’s this film starring Felicity Jones and Eddie Redmayne, two of my favorite young English actors here on a wild ride in the sky. Sure, there appears to be a bit of goofy, syrupy, aw-shucks idealism here, but this Victorian adventure looks positively charming and worthy.
“1917” (Dec.) — There’s so much that makes this World War I film look appealing: Benedict Cumberbatch and Colin Firth in a historical war drama, Roger Deakins as cinematographer, and a tension-packed premise about what looks like an improbable task to fulfill. Same Mendes (“American Beauty,” “Skyfall”) directs. World War I may not get quite the cinema glory of WWII, but great films have been set during that tragic time — “All Quiet on the Western Front,” “Paths of Glory,” “Gallipoli” and “Lawrence of Arabia.” Will “1917” join that list?
“Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” (Dec.) — Will J.J. Abrams bring this beloved space opera’s latest trilogy to a close in a stylish and thrilling manner, while he pleases an often testy, fickle fan base? Odds are beyond solid, I’d say, that Abrams pulls it off with aplomb and answers so many of the fierce questions that popped after “The Last Jedi.” At the movie’s core, though, is how the Force, the name Skywalker, our orphan hero Rey (Daisy Ridley) and villainous Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) all manage in this new “Star Wars” world. The return of Lando (Billy D. Williams) will be a welcome sight.
“Clemency” (Dec.) — The stark reality of the death penalty grips a prison warden (national treasure Alfre Woodard) in this movie from Chinonye Chukwu. This drama, which earned the U.S. Dramatic Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival early this year, sounds like heady, intense fare. Chukwu, who also penned the screenplay, became the first black woman to direct a movie earning that top honor at Sundance.