These Are the Movies We’re Most Excited for This Fall

Now that the credits have rolled on Summer 2019, the review of the season’s movies has to begin and end with “failure.” Overall, the box office totals were down 6.4% from last year. The top movie (The Lion King) grossed nearly $100 million less than last summer’s (Incredibles 2). And more importantly, artistically, it was a barren crop. Sure, there were some indie gems (The Farewell, Midsommar), a couple characteristically great works from old masters (The Dead Don’t Die, Once Upon a Time… In Hollywood), and a few blockbusters that didn’t disgrace their cinematic ancestors (John Wick: Chapter Three, Toy Story 4, Hobbs & Shaw). But the movies are supposed to be a respite during the summer months, the multiplex a cool and—crucially—enjoyable place to hide out from the heat. And this summer, there were more scorching days than worthwhile films. On most trips to the movies, you probably got burnt.

But with Labor Day now in the rearview, you can practically smell the sweet scent of high-grade cinema (that inky, auteurist musk that you imagine wafts through Noah Baumbach and Greta Gerwig’s home). Maybe it’s the festivals. Telluride just wrapped up, Venice is underway, TIFF is about to begin, and later this month comes New York Film Festival. There’s a lot of excited buzz all around—geographically, but also with regards to genre, style, and scale. The fall slate is packed with psychoactive concepts, wildly anticipated adaptations, long overdue returns, and plenty of fall haircut inspiration, too. There’s obvious awards material, and a separate group set to create its own awards (Best Bucket Hat goes to Meryl Streep in The Laundromat). Ultimately, it seems like there’s going to be a little something for everyone. And if enough of these movies pan out—and early reviews suggest they could—a great autumn might even redeem a rough first three quarters of the year. Here are 20 of the movies that might make The Year of Our Lord 2019 a good one for movies yet.

Hustlers (September 13)

If The Kitchen was bad Scorsese pastiche, Hustlers is superb Scorsese burlesque. Lorene Scafaria’s adaptation of Jessica Pressler’s real life strippers-as-Robin Hood story looks like a big drama with end-of-an-era socio-political implications, but it also appears to be a swanky movie that’s playfully in tune with contemporary culture (Cardi B and Lizzo are strippers, Usher shows up), one that knows what to do with J. Lo and a fur coat. If it’s the most fun you have at the movies all year, there’s nothing wrong with that.

The Goldfinch (September 13)

Though none of Donna Tartt’s previous novels have been adapted, the second The Goldfinch was released, with its epic arc and tragic-sexy worlds, it felt inevitable that it would become a movie. John Crowley comes at it with heavy Hopper shadows and a star-studded cast (led by Ansel Elgort, Nicole Kidman, and Jeffrey Wright) that promises something big, if not great.

Ad Astra (September 20) and Lucy in the Sky (October 4)

As film technology progresses, outer space seems to grow more beautiful every year. The respective trailers for James Gray’s latest and Noah Hawley’s debut look gorgeous—and would even if they didn’t feature Brad Pitt (Ad Astra) and Natalie Portman and Jon Hamm (Lucy). Could the awards race turn into a space race this year?

Loro (September 20)

Speaking of gorgeous, Paolo Sorrentino’s meditation on Silvio Berlusconi could—and does—make a sheep faint with its bright colors and grand sweep. It could use some trimming, but once it gets going—fueled by a tremendous performance by Toni Servillo as Italy’s controversial former Prime Minister—it’s, in typical Sorrentino fashion, a poem of a movie unlike just about anything.

Judy (September 27) and Dolemite is My Name (October 4)

Recent biopics have tended towards down-the-middle, PG-13 awards bait that reduces and cleans up the complicated lives of monumental figures. New ones about Judy Garland and Rudy Ray Moore might not turn out to be any stronger than Bohemian Rhapsody or Rocketman. But catching the return of the icons playing the icons (Eddie Murphy as Moore, Renée Zellweger as Garland) is worth the price of admission itself.

The Laundromat (September 27) and Uncut Gems (December 25)

Soderbergh and the Safdies. Streep and Sandler. Two crime capers that promise to move along at a Road Runner pace. What more could you possibly ask for? … Kevin Garnett?

Parasite (October 11)

Bong Joon-Ho’s latest is one of those thrillers that makes you not even want to watch the trailer for fear of not experiencing the film’s full impact. (Once the tone changed, I turned it off.) And really, Joon-Ho’s rep and the film’s tagline—a class drama involving an “unexpected incident”—should be enough.

The Lighthouse (October 18) and The King (November 1)

These films, from Robert Eggers (The Lighthouse) and David Michôd (The King), ostensibly don’t have anything to do with each other—except that, one way or another, you’ll experience them. It’s bound to be a bountiful fall (for memes and GIFs).

Motherless Brooklyn (November 1) and The Irishman (November 27)

Two and a half hours (the length of Motherless Brooklyn, and also nearly the time it takes to walk the length of Brooklyn) is too long for a movie… let alone three and a half hours (the length of The Irishman, and also roughly the time it takes to sail from Brooklyn to Ireland). But when it comes to mid-century crime flicks where Ed Norton goes for it, or where Scorsese works with De Niro and Pacino, what’s time really?

Waves (November 1)

Coming out of Telluride, this Trey Edward Shults (It Comes at Night) Florida-set drama centered around two teen love stories (starring Lucas Hedges and Sterling K. Brown) is the talk of the festival world right now. Expect to hear a lot more about the young director (Shults is only 30) in the coming months—and, yeah, probably, years.

The Report (November 15) and Marriage Story (December 6)

Every time you think Adam Driver might be done leveling up, he levels up again. Playing the lead in a Scott Z. Burns political drama (about the investigation into the CIA's post-9/11 interrogation program) and a Noah Baumbach domestic drama (about a divorce) this fall is the type of vintage movie star season that’s rare for any actor at this point. Long live Kylo Ren!

The Two Popes (November 27)

What’s better than a young pope and a new pope? … Maybe Two Popes?

Atlantics (November 29)

The debut feature director to watch out for this fall is Mati Diop, a French-Senegalese actor who you may recognize from Claire Denis’ 35 Shots of Rum or Antonio Campos’s Simon Killer. Atlantics, which premiered at Cannes and will play at NYFF, is set in Senegal, and centers around a 17-year-old’s doomed relationship.

Little Women (December 25)

Greta Gerwig is back. And though her talent—as an actor, director, and writer—is bona fide, her second feature as a director comes with questions: How will she fare with IP? What stylistic trademarks will emerge? And will Saoirse Ronan jump out of a horse-drawn carriage?

Originally Appeared on GQ