Fall Movie Preview: Films in 2019

Summer is officially over. I know, I know, you might still have some grilling to do, or the kids haven’t yet gone back to school; even scientists will tell you, technically, autumn doesn’t begin for a few more weeks. But the days are already getting shorter, the weather is beginning to cool, and movies are in transition from blockbuster season to a seemingly endless awards one.

But that last bit should be happy tidings for moviegoers. Fall is a chance to recharge and cleanse the palate with some more adult-oriented fare while still enjoying big holiday entertainment for the whole family. Hollywood is gearing up to release what it considers to be its heavy-hitting dramas, starting with September’s major film festivals in Venice, Toronto, and New York. Yet looking ahead, you’ll find a variety of enticing projects for every type of moviegoing taste. So without further ado, let’s preview what tricks and treats 2019 has left for us at the movies.

It Chapter Two

September 6

Halloween comes a little early with this sequel to the highest grossing horror movie ever. Adapting the other half of Stephen King’s magnum opus about collective childhoods and the troubled adults they damage, It Chapter Two jumps to the present day where the Losers’ Club is comprised of strangers forced to traumas better left forgotten 27 years later. With a cast led by the likes of Bill Hader as Richie Tozier, the Losers must continue their multi-generational battle against Pennywise the Dancing Clown (Bill Skarsgård) in epic fashion.

read more: Fall 2019 TV Preview

Reportedly spanning a sizable 165-minute running time, It Chapter Two is ion project for director We talked in detail with Andy about the film right here.

The Goldfinch

September 13

In a movie that will undoubtedly resonate with the world right now, John Crowley’s The Goldfinch appears to be an affecting human drama about the grief left behind in the wake of sudden violence. The film is the story of Theodore Decker (first Oakes Fegley and then Ansel Elgort), a young man who loses his mother in a terrorist bombing of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The attack is fictional, but the consequences were quite real and raw in Donna Tartt’s novel, which is the basis of this film adaptation that also stars Brooklyn (2015), it is one to keep an eye on.

Hustlers

September 13

Often movies about Wall Street too eagerly show young women, be they exotic dancers, escorts, or partygoers, being eagerly exploited by finance bros. It’s nice to then have a film that’s ready to turn the tables on white collar crooks. Written and directed by Lorene Scafaria, who created the very underrated Hustlers adapts a true story about strippers who picked the pockets of Wall Street elite. And with a cast that includes Jennifer Lopez, Constance Wu, Lili Reinhart, Cardi B, Keke Palmer, Julia Stiles, and Lizzo, this will hopefully be able to make it rain.

3 From Hell

September 16

There are some who would call 3 From Hell asks… what if they didn’t?

In the surprise trilogy closer of Rejects and House of 1000 Corpses (2003), Zombie picks up the narrative of Captain Spaulding (Sid Haig), Baby Firefly (Sheri Moon Zombie), and Otis Firefly (Bill Moseley). Miraculously surviving being shot dozens of time, the triumvirate has lived on as Charles Manson-inspired celebrity serial killers in prison… until they escape and start killing again. This exploitation horror movie is only being released as a Fathom Events special presentation on 900 screens between Sept. 16 and Sept. 18.

Ad Astra

September 20

The last decade has seen a renaissance of hard-hitting science fiction, but 2019 looks to bring an intriguing nightcap via Ad Astra. It’s a mysterious project from writer-director James Gray. Cryptically about an astronaut (The Lost City of Z, returning to that theme in a science fiction follow-up is too appealing an offer not to board.

Rambo: Last Blood

September 20

When Logan. Will it succeed? We’ll know soon enough!

Downton Abbey

September 20

Better break out the good china and white tablecloths, because Downton Abbey is back, and they’re bringing the Queen of England with them! In a cinematic continuation of the loved—in some circles—PBS and ITV series about upstairs and downstairs melodrama, the Crawley family is back and the stakes have never been higher with the Queen of England en route for an afternoon luncheon at their regal English estate. It’s such a momentous occasion that butlers are coming out of retirement, early 20th century decorum is turning draconian, and surely Maggie Smith’s Dowager Countess will be working on her cutting putdowns. Brace thyself.

The Death of Dick Long

September 27

From Daniel Scheinert, director of Swiss Army Man, and A24 comes this intriguing new dramedy/possible horror movie? Yeah, it doesn’t appear to be easy to categorize, but that might be the charm of The Death of Dick Long, a film set in small town Alabama where the cryptic death of a friend leads to all sorts of hijinks. And given the film wears Tarantino references on its sleeve, we have to assume that Dick will not be the only one going into that long goodnight.

Judy

September 27

Judy Garland is still a beloved icon for her fans. Having ed away 50 years ago, she remains treasured by each generation for her effervescent performance and singing in The Wizard of Oz (1939). She also starred in a slew of other classics, but the new biopic Judy is more interested in the later period of her life. On the precipice of her final downward spiral, Judy (Rene Zellweger) is middle-aged, regretful but still a star. The film likewise features Jessie Buckley, star of the incredibly underrated Wild Rose.

Joker

October 4

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One of the most debated movies of the year kicks October off with a nice big smile. Warner Bros. and director Todd Phillips (The Hangover) reimagine comicdom’s greatest villain by way of The Dark Knight.

AJoker imagines its eponymous villain as Arthur Fleck, a would-be nice guy who at middle-age cannot figure out why he is always finishing last. Enjoying a relationship with his mother (s Conroy) that would give Freud a field day, Arthur eventually snaps in the face of societal decay in 1980s New York Gotham City. And now, he just wants to put a smile on your face, even if it kills you.

Lucy in the Sky

October 4

Dan Stevens, Zazie Beetz, and Nick Offerman, we are excited to unlock its mysteries soon.

Pain and Glory

October 4

Writer-director Pedro Almodóvar’s first film with Penélope Cruz for a project that looks decidedly wistful and intriguing.

Gemini Man

October 11

Once upon a time, Will Smith was the biggest movie star on the planet. When he appeared in an action movie in his 20s, it was going to be a big deal. And it might be again in Mary Elizabeth Winstead, hopefully foretells a sci-fi thriller of more cutting edge stuff.

The Addams Family

October 11

Charles Addams’ New Yorker cartoons about a ghastly family have proven as un-killable as, well, little Pugsley Addams whenever he falls into another of sister Wednesday’s murder traps. It’s been an amusing 1960s TV series, a wickedly entertaining pair of ‘90s movies that launched the career of Christina Ricci, and a slew of other comics, TV, and film projects. The latest is an animated film from MGM that looks like it may lean a little too heavily on pop culture references and celebrity casting, but that casting is ittedly on point with Charlize Theron as Morticia, Oscar Isaac as Gomez, Chloe Grace Moretz as Wednesday, Finn Wolfhard as Pugsley, and Nick Kroll as Uncle Fester. Here’s hoping The Addams Family (2019) can find their snap in the timeless material.

Parasite

October 11

Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite has been heralded as a masterpiece by nearly every critic whose watched it. After making some of the finest genre-bending cult classics of this decade, the Korean filmmaker has elevated his social satire into a picture he describes as a “tragi-comedy.” It also won the Palme d’Or at Cannes and is a coveted must-see at TIFF and the New York Film Festival later this fall.

Parasite begins as a potential comedy about one struggling family at the bottom of society latching itself, piece by piece, to the oblivious affluence of upper-middle class. It begins by the impoverished children pretending they don’t know each other as they become tutors for the richer family, but as with any story of haves and have-nots, there are apparently some grim twists when it becomes inescapable that those class lines can never truly blur. Considered by many to be the best film the director of Okja has ever made, we can’t wait to see it with our own eyes.

Jay and Silent Bob Reboot

October 15

Chris Hemsworth, and more. We’ll have to wait to see if this reunion is filled with new creative energy or just nostalgia, but until then…snoochie boochies.

Zombieland: Double Tap

October 18

Ten years is a long time. Most had given up on a sequel to 2009’s delightfully odd Emma Stone’s case)? It certainly makes for catchy marketing as the now A-listers are still competing for Zombie Kill of the Week.

The sequel finds Stone, Woody Harrelson, and Abigail Breslin up to their old tricks, this time crashing at the White House for the winter. But hijinks threaten to turn into high drama as Breslin’s Little Rock sets off on her own and they begin meeting new and tenacious survivors. With the whole creative team in front of, and behind, the camera back, now’s a good time to start working on your cardio.

The Lighthouse

October 18

After writing and directing one of the seminal horror movies of the decade, Robert Eggers (The Witch) returns to New England folklore for his sophomore effort, though with a decidedly more recent, nautical vibe. Set at the turn of the 20th century the movie finds two lighthouse keepers spending their winter in grim weather and even grimmer company.

The toast of Cannes, The Lighthouse features performances by Willem Dafoe as his elder, Thomas Wake. Its black-and-white vision evokes German Expressionist classics as much as tales of yore, as does the hinted Lovecraftian horror that waits for the men just offshore and below the surface.

Jojo Rabbit

October 18

Taika Waititi is a director as well known for his risk-taking as his idiosyncratic sense of humor, but he appears downright giddy about walking the line between hilarity and bad taste with his next effort, Jojo Rabbit. After all, it is Waititi under the tiny moustache and swastika as a rascally Adolf Hitler. An imaginary version of Hitler, to be clear.

In his latest writing and directing effort, Waititi, who is of Māori and Russian Jewish descent, plays the imagined BFF of a little boy named Jojo (Roman Griffith Davis), a lonely child growing up in Nazi . With no real friends, he creates a good-hearted one in the visage of the Führer. It’s a wacky premise made all the more intriguing with its ing cast that includes Scarlett Johansson and Sam Rockwell.

Maleficent: Mistress of Evil

October 18

For the first time since Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life in 2003, someone has convinced Chiwetel Ejiofor doing his House Mouse duty, but hopefully this all-new story will be better than the studio’s other listless live-action remakes from 2019.

The Current War

October 25

Before there was Google versus Apple, or Steve Jobs versus Bill Gates, the original tech war was fought over the electric lightbulb between Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse—with Nikola Tesla as the spoiler on the fringes who was likely smarter than anyone else alive. Their battle shaped the 20th century to come, giving us the invention that literally took away the darkness of night. Alfonso Gomez-Rejon’s movie about the trio has been a long time coming. After the Weinstein Company collapsed for very good reasons, The Current War unfortunately got lost in the fallout. Now the movie is finally getting its release by 101 Studios, and with a talented cast that includes TIFF in 2017, we’ll keep an open mind given the electrifying subject matter.

Terminator: Dark Fate

November 1

The Arnold Schwarzenegger, and interesting new talent like Mackenzie Davis ing their ranks, maybe this time the future is brighter.

Read our discussion about the movie with Miller, Hamilton, Schwarzenegger, and more right here.

Harriet

November 1

Harriet Tubman is supposed to be on our 20-dollar bills next year, but as with anything dealing with people of color, the current presidential istration couldn’t find the time to do its job. That doesn’t mean she can’t be on the big screen now. In a biopic about slavery that is blessedly not about white liberators ending it, Luke Cage’s Kassi Lemmons and features Tony winner Cynthia Erivo as Harriet. The film is also stacked with a cast that features Leslie Odom Jr., Janelle Monáe, and Joe Alwyn.

The Irishman

November 1 (limited), November 27 (Netflix)

Netflix.

Robert De Niro plays Frank Sheeran, a union official who apparently claimed that he personally offed his buddy Jimmy Hoffa (Al Pacino). It’s an American crime epic that spans decades, offering Scorsese’s unique lens on the gray area between some organized labor and organized crime—and how Sheeran allegedly eased the friction between the two with bullets.

Doctor Sleep

November 8

Somehow Warner Bros. and writer-director The Haunting of Hill House—and now he is taking on the challenge of adapting King’s sequel to his most personal novel, as well as a sequel to one of the greatest horror films of all time.

In Rebecca Ferguson as Rose the Hat, a woman older than she looks. And she has designs on a new shining child too.

Last Christmas

November 8

Despite being best known as the Mother of Dragons, Emma Thompson—an actor whose overlooked writing credits include definitive adaptations of Pride & Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility—Last Christmas follows Clarke as Kate, an aimless young woman working in a year-round Christmas store.

A love story about Clarke’s Kate and the Good Samaritan she meets named Tom (Henry Golding), the pair embark on a Yuletide romance that is supposed to have a major twist… one that the trailer might give away. Nevertheless, Golding is himself fresh off one of the best rom-coms in ages after Crazy Rich Asians last year, and he s this project alongside Michelle Yeoh and Thompson herself, promising a sweet holiday treat.

Midway

November 8

Director Patrick Wilson, Woody Harrelson, Aaron Eckhart, Dennis Quaid, Luke Evans, Mandy Moore, Keean Johnson, Ed Skrein, Darren Criss, Nick Jonas, and more, we wish them all luck that this is better than Emmerich’s last American war epic, The Patriot.

Honey Boy

November 8

A film we saw back at You can read our full review here.

Ford v Ferrari

November 15

In 1966, the idea of an American made car beating European engineering at the 24 Hours of Le Mans seemed incredulous. It still does. Yet this grease-and-bolts Cinderella story really occurred, and is the subject of an old-fashioned Hollywood epic—one of the last from a pre-Disney 20th Century Fox. Directed by Christian Bale and Matt Damon as the stateside driver and engineer gutsy enough to accept Ford’s offer to beat Ferrari at their own game. We’re more than ready to ride shotgun on that road trip.

Charlie’s Angels

November 15

The Elizabeth Banks who both directs and appears in the film as Bosley, an apparent relative of previous Bosleys who include no less than Bill Murray and Bernie Mac. Indeed, Charlie’s Angels (2019) seems to posit the idea that it’s all canon, and the Angels are now international.

The trio we’re following in this one are Sabina Wilson (Kristen Stewart), Jane Kano (Ella Ballinska), and Elena (Naomi Scott). Actually, the film is in part about the recruitment of the latter, as she is responsible for the creation of a MacGuffin… but the real point is to update this fantasy for a more empowering and less leering version of badassery. Angels assemble.

Read more about Charlie’s Angels (2019) right here.

The Lodge

November 15

Another winner we saw out of Sundance, The Lodge is chilling in multiple ways as the directors of You can read our full review here.

The Report

November 15

This Amazon Studios original was one of the most talked about films at Sundance and is generating Oscar buzz around both Adam Driver and Annette Bening, as they play real-life Senate staffer Daniel Jones and U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein. Set just after the end of the Bush istration, Jones was assigned by the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence to look into the CIA’s Detention and Interrogation program instituted after the horrors of 9/11. In other words, it examined and would bring to light how the United States government tortured prisoners and “enemy combatants” during the War on Terror from 2001 to 2006. However, the film is as much about the struggle to bring that report to the public in the face of monumental opposition–including by the Obama White House–and exacting political pressure. It is going to be a major awards contender.

Frozen II

November 22

When Kristen Bell) travel north of Arendelle and into an autumn-bound land wherein answers to Elsa’s past (and perhaps their parents’ fate?) reside. The whole cast of transcendent talent is back, as are directors Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck, and Oscar-winning songwriters Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez. Better be ready to hum tunes from this one until well after 2020.

Read more about Frozen II right here.

21 Bridges

November 22

The kind of old-school dramatic thriller that used to be part and parcel for Hollywood, there is something refreshingly retro about 21 Bridges. It’s a police thriller where one detective attempts to stop the escape of a criminal crew who murdered eight cops. Chadwick Boseman makes quite the dashing detective, indeed, as he closes down all 21 bridges and tunnels into Manhattan to thwart their escape. But we doubt that will be enough in this action throwback that was produced by the Russo Brothers.

Read more about 21 Bridges right here.

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

November 22

Can You Ever Forgive Me?—has us happy to put on a cozy sweater and swing by the neighborhood.

Read more about A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood right here.

Knives Out

November 27

Daniel Craig.

Read more about Knives Out right here.

Portrait of a Lady on Fire

December 6

Céline Sciamma’s highly anticipated Portrait of a Lady on Fire is a provocative story about art, desire, and everything in between. Set in Brittany at the end of the 18th century, the film centers on Marianne (Noémie Merlant), an artist who takes an illicit commission to secretly paint a portrait of Héloise (Adèle Haenel). Héloise’s wealthy family wishes her to marry and needs a portrait in order to entice suitors, however Héloise has no wish to be married, period. So Marianne introduces herself as a maid and potential friend to along the coast where her subject likes to take her morning walks, all while quietly surveying her new friend’s face for portraiture. But as she finds herself becoming attracted to Héloise, things start getting… complicated. Roundly hailed as one of the best movies of 2019 by all who’ve seen it, it is one to keep an eye on.

Jumanji: The Next Level

December 13

Before its release, Dwayne Johnson was ready for it to be so warmly received that it had better legs than The Last Jedi, knocking it out of #1 spot at the box office for all of January 2018. Now the revived franchise returns along with a winning cast that includes Johnson, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, and Jack Black. But this time Johnson and Hart are essentially new characters, playing video game avatars of grandfatherly Danny DeVito and Danny Glover instead of teenagers. Yeah, we’re already smiling.

Read more about Jumanji: The Next Level right here.

Black Christmas

December 13

Blumhouse Productions has remade Black Christmas. While not the first production company to do so, hopefully they’ll be the most successful at updating that 1974 cult classic which many would argue inspired Halloween (1978). It probably helps the remake is actually set in ’74 as well, following the same infamous narrative about a group of college students being stalked by a stranger during Christmas break. This new take on Black Christmas is co-written and directed by Sophia Takal, and stars Imogen Poots, Brittany O’Grady, and Cary Elwes.

Read more about the Black Christmas reboot right here.

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

December 20

Easily the most anticipated movie—excuse me, event—of the holiday season, all eyes are on The Last Jedi.

Disney and Lucasfilm are pulling out the big blasters, bringing J.J. Abrams back to the saga after successfully reviving it in Adam Driver) will find out where they all finally stand in the true balance of the Force.

Read more about The Rise of Skywalker right here.

Cats

December 20

Go on… it it. You’re morbidly curious, aren’t you? As a film that might be a testament to the maxim of “just because you can does not mean you should,” Cats is Tom Hooper and Universal Pictures’ lavish adaptation of the famed Andrew Lloyd Webber musical. And while performers on stage spent decades dressing as cats to quote T.S. Eliot’s witticisms about felines, the all-star cast of the movie have been computer animated into cat-human hybrids. It’s gaudy, arguably grotesque, but also goddamn intriguing. During these perilously formulaic times, a studio would invest in this?! Plus, the dance choreography should be nifty. Yeah, we know what curiosity did to the cat, but we’d be lying if we didn’t it we want to see exactly why someone thought this would be a good idea.

Read more about Cats right here. We dare you.

Bombshell

December 20

Roger Ailes ed away in 2017, but it’s safe to say we are very much living in the world he helped build. As the mastermind behind Fox News, which he ran from its inception and until he was forced to resign due to allegations of sexual misconduct, Ailes created cable news as we understand it, as well as the misinformation apparatus that still controls whatever the current President of the United States is thinking when he’s tweeting in the morning. This film from director Jay Roach (Trumbo, Game Change) recounts the women who put their careers on the line to expose Ailes and the toxic male culture he groomed at Fox News.

The cast includes Nicole Kidman as Gretchen Carlson, Alice Eve as Ainsley Earhardt, Allison Janney as Susan Estrich, Ashley Greene as Abby Huntsman, Malcolm McDowell as Rupert Murdoch, and John Lithgow as Ailes. It’s safe to say this is not going to win any fans at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue or its favorite news network.

Little Women

December 25

Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women is one of the formative novels in American literature, living on as one generation of young women es it down to the next. While the lives of the March sisters have been adapted masterfully to the screen before, but the fact that Lady Bird creates instant intrigue.

Apparently by focusing more on the second volume of the novel (originally published under the title Good Wives), Gerwig zeroes in on the forward-thinking of a book about young women navigating a professional world they weren’t expected to enter. Still the tale of four impoverished sisters in New England growing up during the Civil War, Gerwig’s Little Women also comes with an astounding cast, including Emma Watson, Laura Dern, and Timothée Chalamet.

Read more about Little Women right here.

1917

December 25

Director Benedict Cumberbatch, Mark Strong, Richard Madden, and Andrew Scott. This will surely add some adrenaline (and despair?) to your holiday season.

Read more about 1917 right here.

Spies in Disguise

December 25

Blue Sky Productions has made an animated film where Will Smith plays the voice of a James Bond-like character. While Blue Sky movies can be hit or miss, it could be an amusing premise for wee ones who have had enough of Star Wars or Jumanji. The movie also stars the voices of Karen Gillan, Tom Holland, Rachel Brosnahan, and Ben Mendelsohn.

A Hidden Life

December

Writer-director Terrence Malick’s latest movie will likely divide audiences and critics, as it’s already begun to do after Cannes. However, this more often than not tends to be the case with latter-day Malick, and A Hidden Life certainly features a premise far more compelling than anything he’s worked on as of late. Based on the true story of Franz Jägerstätter, an Austrian Catholic who refused to fight for the Nazis in World War II on moral grounds, the film goes behind the veil of the Third Reich to find the face of moral clarity in amoral times that left many feeling ambiguous and tempted into apathy. Could Malick be drawing any parallels to today? The film also marks the final performances of Bruno Ganz and Michael Nyqvist.

Little Monsters

TBA

A real delightful horror-comedy we caught back in Sundance, we are still waiting on a U.S. release date for this wicked good-time. Starring You can read our full review here.

Read more about Little Monsters right here.

Read and the Den of Geek SDCC 2019 Special Edition Magazine right here!

David Crow is the Film Section Editor at Den of Geek. He’s also a member of the Online Film Critics Society. Read more of his work here. You can follow him on Twitter @DCrowsNest.