What to Watch: fall movie preview
With summer over and the leaves changing, film reviewer Mikiah Marino has all the must-watches for the fall.
Courtesy of Preston Steger, Social Media Manager
Say goodbye to high-octane, brightly lit summer blockbusters, and say hello to the harrowing horror films and dazzling fall dramas looking to create buzz for the upcoming awards season.
The fall movie season is always my favorite time of the year and frequently sees the release of many of the year's best films. Since not everyone can keep track of every movie coming out, this list serves as a layout of the major releases. I have also highlighted 11 noteworthy films coming out from now through Thanksgiving.*
*For the sake of this list, I will only be including nationwide theatrical releases and no limited or special releases.
October
“A Star is Born” - Oct. 5
Genre: Music, Drama
Starring: Bradley Cooper, Lady Gaga
Rated R
This oft-remade tale of the struggles of stardom is the first big awards contender to come out this fall. The directorial debut of Bradley Cooper, who also stars alongside an atypically toned-down Lady Gaga, has gotten massive buzz coming out of the major fall film festivals.
“Venom” - Oct. 5
Genre: Action, Sci-Fi, Horror
Starring: Tom Hardy, Michelle Williams, Riz Ahmed
Rated PG-13
The latest Sony attempt at a Spider-Man franchise has taken an odd turn, given the complete lack of, you know, Spider-Man. The studio is instead focusing on one of the web-slinging hero’s most popular villains. “Venom” seems to be going for a darker approach to the superhero formula that has been so dominant in recent years. Will it be a fresh take? Or is it yet another ill-advised attempt at creating a successful franchise out of the Spider-Man IP? We'll know soon enough.
“Bad Times at the El Royale” - Oct. 12
Genre: Mystery, Thriller
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Jeff Bridges, Dakota Johnson, Jon Hamm
Rated R
Drew Goddard has been doing good work for years as a writer, most recently getting an Oscar nomination for his fantastic script for “The Martian” (2015). His first and only work directing a feature film was “The Cabin in the Woods” (2012), which is a terrific send-up of the horror genre. If he can bring that level of sharp wit and genre awareness to “Bad Times,” then we're in for a wicked ride.
“First Man” - Oct. 12
Genre: Biography, Drama, History
Starring: Ryan Gosling, Claire Foy
Rated PG-13
After making two killer films and becoming the youngest person ever to win the Best Director Academy Award for “La La Land” (2016), Damien Chazelle has become one of the premier film directors in just a few years. With “First Man,” he has re-teamed with Ryan Gosling to bring to life the Neil Armstrong story. "First Man" looks to pair the high-stakes intensity that Chazelle brought to jazz drumming in “Whiplash” (2014) with the heart-wrenching spectacle of “La La Land.” The strong buzz at festivals has sent my anticipation into the stratosphere.
“Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween” - Oct. 12
Genre: Family, Fantasy
Starring: Jeremy Ray Taylor, Caleel Harris
Rated PG
“Halloween” (2018) - October 19th
Genre: Horror, Thriller
Starring: Jamie Lee Curtis
Rated R
The iconic slasher franchise returns, but this time, it's going back to its roots. This film is ignoring every mishandled sequel and reboot, instead acting as a follow-up to John Carpenter’s genre-defining 1978 original. Jamie Lee Curtis returns as Laurie Strode, the babysitter who survived the murderous Michael Myers. When he breaks out of prison 40 years later, she’s ready for him. I’m not overly fond of the horror genre, but I love the 1978 original. Luckily for me, this one looks to be recapturing that magic. John Carpenter coming back to provide the iconic score is just the icing on top.
“Serenity” - Oct. 19
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway
Rated R
“Hunter Killer” - Oct. 26
Genre: Action, Thriller
Starring: Gerard Butler, Gary Oldman
Rated R
“Indivisible” - Oct. 26
Genre: Christian, Drama, War
Starring: Sarah Drew, Justin Bruening
Rated PG-13
“Johnny English Strikes Again” - Oct. 26
Genre: Action, Comedy
Starring: Rowan Atkinson, Emma Thompson
Rated PG
November
“Bohemian Rhapsody” - Nov. 2
Genre: Biography, Drama, Music
Starring: Rami Malek, Lucy Boynton, Mike Meyers
Rated PG-13
Despite numerous behind-the-scenes change-ups and production issues that should have me worried, a fantastic trailer and the promise of the spectacle of Queen in their prime assures me that this will be a standout film. At the very least, this will shape up to be a feature length Queen music video, which would still be a win as far as I’m concerned.
“Nobody’s Fool” - Nov. 2
Genre: Comedy
Starring: Tiffany Haddish
Rated R
“The Nutcracker and the Four Realms” - Nov. 2
Genre: Adventure, Family, Fantasy
Starring: Keira Knightly, Mackenzie Foy, Morgan Freeman
Rated PG
“Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch” (2018) - Nov. 9
Genre: Animation, Comedy, Family
Starring: Benedict Cumberbatch, Rashida Jones, Angela Lansbury
Rated PG
“The Girl in the Spider’s Web: A New Dragon Tattoo Story” - Nov. 9
Genre: Action, Mystery, Thriller
Starring: Claire Foy, Sylvia Hoeks, Lakeith Stanfield
Rated R
“Overlord” - Nov. 9
Genre: Action, Horror, Mystery, War
Starring: Wyatt Russell, Pilou Asbæk
Rated R
“Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald” - Nov. 16
Genre: Adventure, Fantasy
Starring: Eddie Redmayne, Katherine Waterson, Jude Law, Johnny Depp
Rated PG-13
For those uninitiated, “The Crimes of Grindelwald” is the sequel to the 2016 film that takes place in J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World, in a time well before Harry Potter was even born. Despite being a huge fan of the Harry Potter franchise (books and films), the first “Fantastic Beasts” movie from Harry Potter veteran David Yates completely underwhelmed me. With this one, they seem to have redirected focus on more well-known characters and locations by going back to Hogwarts and bringing in Jude Law as a young Dumbledore. I’m worried that the film will take too many turns into fan-service, but I’m still hopeful this will put what is announced to be a 5-film series on a better path.
“Instant Family” - Nov. 16
Genre: Comedy
Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Rose Byrne, Isabela Moner
Not Yet Rated
“Widows” - Nov. 16
Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Starring: Viola Davis, Michelle Rodriguez, Elizabeth Debicki, Liam Neeson, Colin Ferrell, Robert Duvall, AND MORE
Rated R
Yet another film with significant festival buzz, “Widows” is the latest film from Oscar winning director Steve McQueen (“12 Years a Slave”) and stars a massive but exceptionally talented cast. The basic premise centers around four men who leave their wives with massive criminal debt when they die, whereupon the widows decide to take fate into their own hands. It looks fun and sharp, with a deep dramatic edge characteristic of exactly what I like to see in this genre.
“Creed II” - Nov. 21
Genre: Sport, Drama
Starring, Michael B. Jordan, Sylvester Stallone, Tessa Thompson, Dolph Lundgren
Rated PG-13
Its fascinating to look at the evolution of the Rocky franchise over the years. When “Creed” came out in 2015, it shocked everyone with how successfully it re-established the series. It was even in the conversation when it came to awards season, a first for the series since the Best Picture-winning original from 1976. A big reason for this was the vision and sheer directing prowess of Ryan Coogler; “Creed” was a passion project for the up-and- coming filmmaker. I’m cautious yet incredibly optimistic about “Creed II.” The absence of Coogler (he went on to direct “Black Panther” instead) is the primary concern, but also the return of Ivan Drago, the roided out Russian from “Rocky IV,” seems far-fetched given the new direction the series took with Adonis’ journey. That being said, it looks to be in good hands, and I’m very excited to see this story continue. For me, it's the movie to see this Thanksgiving.
“Green Book” - Nov. 21
Genre: Biography, Comedy, Drama
Starring: Viggo Mortensen, Mahershala Ali, Linda Cardellini
Rated PG-13
“Green Book” looks to be a fun story about an African-American pianist (Ali) and his driver (Mortensen) as they drive across the American South in the 1960s. Ali and Mortensen’s names alone are enough to pique my interest, but the festival buzz indicates a genuine crowd pleaser (it won the People’s Choice award at the Toronto International Film Festival), which makes this the perfect fit for the Thanksgiving holiday plans.
“Ralph Breaks the Internet” - Nov. 21
Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy
Starring: John C. Reilly, Sarah Silverman, Gal Gadot, Jane Lynch, Jack McBrayer
Rated PG
This is only the fourth animated sequel that Disney has ever theatrically released and the first of their new generation of computer animated films. It only makes sense based not only on the success of the original, but also on its potential to further explore its video game-centric concept. From what I can tell so far, this looks to be yet another fun adventure, this time exploring the vast world of the internet. It does worry me greatly that there appears to be a heavy meta focus on Disney properties within the world of the internet, but much like the original, I believe there’s more to this movie than its toyetic potential the ads are intent on showing.
