The writer and actor strikes have thrown a necessary but still sad wrench into Fall Movie Season. What was filled with exciting stuff like Challengers and Dune 2 is losing steam fast, as more films continue to wait these strikes out.
Not all is lost though. Streamers and foreign films have kept the 2023 Fall Season at least a little exciting. But you know what’s most exciting? We might see two swan songs from two all time greats, who know they’re time is coming to an end. Exciting, but a little sad, like this whole fall movie season.
Happy (as can be) watching!
Some teases for you first:
Razzie Targets:
The Marvels: The MCU might be happier if no one promotes this one, not a great sign for their and this movie’s future.
Wonka: We all love Timmy Chalamet, but the trailer makes this look like a swing and a miss.
Who the Hell Knows?
Rebel Moon: Zack Snyder’s Star Wars movie. It could be great, it could also be another colossal piece of sh*t. Time will tell.
The Oscar Lurkers:
The Killer: Technical obsessive compulsive David Fincher making a serial killer movie, nice match.
Flora & Son: John Carney’s back to remind you why music brings people together
Poor Things: Early buzz is excellent, and Emma Stone and Yorgos Lanthimos seem like a fun, bizarre pairing.
The Creator: Great time for Gareth Edwards to make a scifi thriller about an AI takeover
The Bikeriders: Jeff Nichols returns to make his darker Easy Rider
The Sneaky Hit:
Anyone But You: Glen Powell and Sydney Sweeney’s intoxicating chemistry could make this a sleeper megahit Christmastime romcom
Now, see which foreign/streamer/swan song films have a real shot to be something special:
| 10 | Merry Christmas |
| This is not a sh*tty Hallmark film. It actually comes from India, a country I’m looking much closer at thanks to RRR‘s awesomeness last year. I don’t know much about the movie, but it’s directed by Sriram Raghavan. Raghavan’s last film was Andhadhun, one of the great modern films from India, so here’s hoping his latest is as awesome as his last. |
| 9 | All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt |
| I have one higher A24 film on my list, but this one has a real shot to be the best film I see all year. The movie looks like its going to be moving, living art about a black family living in rural Mississippi. The early buzz is excellent, the trailer is beautiful, and I cannot wait to be taken on an emotional lyrical journey through a part of America that doesn’t get enough publicity on the big screen. |
| 8 | Napoleon |
| This looks like one of those old school grand epics they don’t make anymore. Except Ridley Scott, that is. Joaquin Phoenix will play the petite French giant, who’s long overdue for a modern, gigantic tale about his life and exploits on & off the battlefield. |
| 7 | Anatomy of a Fall |
| The Palme d’Or Winner of the Cannes Film Festival usually ends up on this list somewhere. It lands at 6 this year. It’s about a family living in the remote Alps of France who’s husband/father suddenly is found dead. The French police then have to figure out if that death is a murder/suicide in court, a potent, exciting recipe for drama and thrills if I have ever heard one. |
| 6 | The Iron Claw |
| There are many legendary figures in the world of wrestling, but none as famous as the Von Erich family. Sean Durkin writes and directs some famous actors past and present (The Bear’s Jeremy Allen White, Zac Efron, among others) to play the famous brothers, who transformed wrestling into what it is today, but with a tragic cost to themselves: a nice mixture of compelling storytelling if you ask me. |
| 5 | Dumb Money |
| The minute I heard about the GameStop stock fiasco, I was hoping Michael Lewis would write about it. The sure handed Craig Gillespie is a solid 2nd choice, brave enough to rewrite Tonya Harding‘s story. At its best, this will be a great 2nd feature alongside the Big Short as a scathing indictment of the financial system and its ability to rig the game for their own profit. |
| 4 | Occupied City |
| It’s been a really mediocre year for documentaries, built around famous people or easy to film subject matter. Enter Steve McQueen, one of our most ambitious filmmakers working today, recently on a 5 movie magnum opus for Amazon. This one traverses over 4 hours(!) of history, between Amsterdam’s WWII occupation and modern day protests during the pandemic. It looks hella divisive, but I’m a McQueen believer, even at 4 hours long. |
| 3 | Hit Man |
| Anytime Richard Linklater is involved in a movie my head perks up a bit. Film festival buzz for this is electric, and the Linklater/Powell pairing is pure Texas charm incarnate. It’s also good to see Rick push himself into different genres, and apparently very successfully. I can’t wait for this one. |
| 2 | The Boy And the Heron |
| I would never have truly gotten into Asian cinema were it not for Hayao Miyazaki. He’s one of my 5 favorite directors of all time, building Studio Ghibli in Japan and giving us some truly incredible masterpieces. I was convinced he had retired for years now, content with my time watching his greatness onscreen. But lo and behold, he brings us this one, which he’s said is potentially his last film. If you’re at all a fan of animated movies, you should be there front and center like I will, excited to see what our greatest animator has in store for us maybe one last time. |
| 1 | Killers of the Flower Moon |
| Which brings us to Martin Scorcese’s long awaited epic. The rich tapestry and grand tale is one only Scorcese could direct, about Native Americans, power, greed, murder, and much more. Scorcese has made at least one incredible/all timer film each decade he’s been making movies (Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Goodfellas, The Departed, The Wolf of Wall Street). And while I liked The Irishman, Killers has a real shot to be his entry for the best of the 2020s. While even Steven Spielberg has lost his fastball, it looks like Marty can still rise to the occasion and give us something real special, which I expect this one to be. |