Whether you were comfortable enough with returning to theaters or continued to stay at home, movie fans were treated with the luxury of having a relatively normal summer movie slate to work through this year. Even if it didn't feel especially nice to get the chance to watch so many big new movies after being deprived of that opportunity in 2020, the May-August 2021 period would go down as a season of note. The Suicide Squad provided the greatest evidence to date as to why a filmmaker's artistic vision is more important to a superhero film than how an individual title fits into a broader franchise. A Quiet Place Part II proved that even sequels that don't feel necessary on paper can come along and not only justify their existence, but match or even exceed the quality of its beloved predecessor. Zola reinforced why nothing good ever comes out out of spending time in Florida.
So what does the final act of the 2021 cinematic year have in store for viewers outside of the renewed threat of COVID wreaking havoc on the intended release schedule? Some more long delayed blockbusters (No Time to Die, The King's Man, Top Gun: Maverick) and high-profile Netflix releases (Don't Look Up, Red Notice, The Harder They Fall). A busy theatrical awards slate (Spencer, Nightmare Alley, The French Dispatch, A Journal for Jordan, King Richard, Cyrano) that may prove to be the greatest sign of a return to normalcy in Hollywood to date. And of course the feature attraction: A pair of Europe-set Ridley Scott movies (The Last Duel, House of Gucci) featuring American actors doing hilariously cartoony accents. Here are the 10 movies I'm most looking forward to watching (if I'm given the chance to) from September through December.
(Updated on September 1st as a response to the delays of Jackass Forever and Top Gun: Maverick)
10.Prisoners of the Ghostland (September 17th)
Nicolas Cage and Sion Sono are a depraved oddball B-movie dream pairing and Cage declaring that Prisoners' of the Ghostland-which centers around a notorious bank robber (Cage) whose tasked by a local crime lord (Bill Moseley) to retrieve his daughter (Sofia Boutella) from a cursed wasteland that's ruled by ghost samurai- is the "wildest movie he's ever made" is one hell of a proclamation for a man with his resume to make.
9.Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (September 3rd):
Not even the pretty severe bout of Marvel fatigue I'm currently dealing with can ruin the excitement I have towards watching a martial arts/superhero hybrid that's co-written and directed by the great Destin Daniel Cretton (Short Term 12, Just Mercy), shot by the legendary Bill Pope (The Matrix trilogy, Baby Driver) and had an elite stunt team (Mark Ginther, Lu Junchang, Kyle Woods, Andy Cheng, Christopher Clark Cowan, Yung Lee, Guillermo Grispo, the recently deceased Brad Allan) work on its action sequences.
8.Kate (September 10th):
After turning in a scene-stealing supporting performance as Huntress in Birds of Prey last year, Mary Elizabeth Winstead gets a much deserved chance to lead a hard R-action movie. While the sketchy pedigrees of both director Cedric Nicolas-Troyan (The Huntsman's Winter's War) and writer Umair Allem (the 2015 Bruce Willis and Gina Carano-led VOD trashpile Extraction) certainly opens the door for this to underwhelm, the slick atmosphere teased in the trailer, simplicity of its plot (Winstead plays a Tokyo-based assassin who was poisoned during a hit and now has 24 hours to track down the individual responsible before she dies) and featured presence of John Wick trilogy stunt/fight coordinator Jonathan Eusebio on the crew has me cautiously optimistic that Winstead's 1st taste of being a top-billed badass will be worthwhile.
7.Dune (October 22nd):
Dune's reputation as an extremely complex, dense novel that's only geared towards the most hardcore sci-fi fans had scared me off of the latest film adaptation for a very long time. Then that epic final trailer dropped in late July and I suddenly was all-in. Do I have a firm handle on the specifics of the plot? Absolutely not. Is there still a very real possibility that it's just too damn much for my little brain to handle? Of course. Is there even a remote chance that I won't be excited to make a Denis Villeneuve-approved visit to a theater to watch Dune after being exposed to that enchanting, beautifully shot 3 minute clip full of A-list actors yelling about important space matters behind a majestic Hans Zimmer score? Nope.
6.Halloween Kills (October 15th):
2018's Halloween was a terrific slasher film that also featured a surprisingly resonant subtext about generational trauma and PTSD. The fascinating sequel concept of Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) organizing the people of Haddonfield to fight back against Michael Myers opens the door for a further exploration of those themes as well as the high likelihood of a lot more blood flowing through the suburban Illinois streets.
5.No Time to Die (October 8th):
Daniel Craig is easily my favorite James Bond to date and based on the incredible trailers that have highlighted the insanely massive action setpieces and plethora of very talented new blood that was brought in this time around (director Cary Joji Fukunaga, Rami Malek as the main antagonist, Lashana Lynch, Ana de Armas and Billy Magnussen as Bond's new colleagues), it seems like there's a good chance that he'll get the triumphant swan song he deserves.
4.The King's Man (December 22nd):
Date reshuffling caused by Disney's takeover of Fox and COVID have shelved Kingsman prequel The King's Man for so long that Matthew Vaughn has already started production on his next spy action blockbuster (the Apple-backed Argylle-which boasts a stacked ensemble cast led by Henry Cavill, Sam Rockwell and Bryce Dallas Howard). Despite what will amount to a 25-month delay if it sticks to its current date, I'm excited to see how the franchise's signature over-the-top action/gadgetry and snarky comedy translates to an early 1900's setting with a completely new set of actors (Ralph Fiennes, Harris Dickinson, Gemma Arterton, Djimon Honsou, Rhys Ifans, Matthew Goode, Daniel Bruhl, Charles Dance, Aaron-Taylor Johnson, Stanley Tucci) .
3.The Harder They Fall (October 20th theatrical/November 3rd streaming):
Hyperstylized westerns make their long awaited (for me at least) return to the cinematic landscape with what has to be one of the most absurdly loaded ensemble casts (Idris Elba, Jonathan Majors, Zazie Beetz, Regina King, LaKeith Stanfield, Delroy Lindo, R.J. Cyler) in recent memory being tasked with bringing the slow motion-aided shootouts, stickups and horse chases to life. If the quality of the teaser trailer is any indication, The Harder They Fall is going to be a wild, bloody and intoxicating ride.
2.Last Night in Soho (October 29th):
An eerie, hallucinatory psychological horror project led by a pair of top-flight young talents (Thomasin McKenzie, Anya Taylor-Joy) is exactly the type of bold swing Edgar Wright is known for and considering its placement on the lineups at both the Venice and Toronto film festivals along with how striking its teaser trailer is, I'm very optimistic that the cult favorite British filmmaker has put together another uniquely winning project.
1.Don't Look Up (December 10th theatrical/December 24th streaming):
Hearing Adam McKay (The Big Short, Vice) describe Don't Look Up as the most comedic film he's made since Anchorman 2 is great news. The fact that McKay enlisted the likes of Jennifer Lawrence, Leonardo DiCaprio and about two dozen other performers of note to handle the delicate tonal balance that a dark comedy about a pair of astronomers (Lawrence, DiCaprio) and a scientist (Rob Morgan) who embark on a huge press tour to warn the American public about the impending arrival of an asteroid that's likely going to destroy Earth is bound to have to navigate is even better news.
Also Looking Forward To:
Wild Indian (September 3rd)
Worth (September 3rd)
The Card Counter (September 10th)
Malignant (September 10th)
Queenpins (September 10th theatrical/September 30th streaming)
Best Sellers (September 17th)
Copshop (September 17th)
Cry Macho (September 17th)
The Eyes of Tammy Faye (September 17th)
The Nowhere Inn (September 17th)
The Starling (September 17th theatrical/September 24th streaming)
Intrusion (September 22nd)
The Guilty (September 24th theatrical/October 1st streaming)
Titane (October 1st)
There's Someone Inside Your House (October 6th)
Mass (October 8th)
The Last Duel (October 15th)
Venom: Let There Be Carnage (October 15th)
Night Teeth (October 20th)
Passing (October 27th theatrical/November 10th streaming)
Antlers (October 29th)
Army of Thieves (October 29th)
Eternals (November 5th)
Spencer (November 5th)
Ghostbusters: Afterlife (November 11th)
Red Notice (November 12th)
King Richard (November 19th)
Top Gun: Maverick (November 19th)
Bruised (November 24th)
Encanto (November 24th)
House of Gucci (November 24th)
National Champions (November 24th)
Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City (November 24th)
The Unforgiveable (November 24th theatrical/December 10th streaming)
Nightmare Alley (December 3rd)
A Journal for Jordan (December 10th)
Violence of Action (December 10th)
Spider-Man: No Way Home (December 17th)
The Matrix: Resurrections (December 22nd)
Being the Ricardos (TBD)
C'mon C'mon (TBD)
Red Rocket (TBD)
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