50. “Zola”
Director: Janicza Bravo (“Lemon”)
Cast: Taylour Paige, Riley Keough, Colman Domingo, Nicholas Braun
Synopsis: A stripper named Zola embarks on a wild road trip to Florida.
What You Need To Know: Janicza Bravo has remained one of the more idiosyncratic talents on the lo-fi comedy scene for some time now, mastering a form of defiantly uncomfortable cringe comedy with her Michael Cera-starring short film “Gregory Go Boom,” and also 2017’s unclassifiable man-child deconstruction, “Lemon.” Bravo’s next feature-film endeavor (she’s directed some great episodes of “Atlanta” and Netflix’s “Love”) will see her taking on a Rolling Stone article by David Kushner about an exotic dancer who embarks on a road trip to Florida with her bipolar boyfriend, a sex worker, and an unhinged pimp named X in tow. At one point, James Franco was slated to direct the film (and let’s be real, we’re all quite glad that didn’t happen), although “Goat” screenwriter Andrew Neel and playwright Jeremy O. Harris have remained attached. This is the kind of risky, button-pushing work we expect from an unusual talent like Bravo, and it should prove to be one of 2020’s stranger releases.
Release Date: TBD, but we’d guess late summer/early fall. – NL
https://twitter.com/ThePlaylist/status/1202347967786696705
49. “The Eyes of Tammy Faye”
Director: Michael Showalter (“The Big Sick,” “Hello, My Name is Doris”)
Cast: Jessica Chastain, Andrew Garfield, Cherry Jones, Vincent D’Onofrio, Sam Jaeger
Synopsis: Based on the 2000 documentary of the same name, the deeply controversial televangelist couple the Bakkers get the cinematic treatment, with a special focus looking to being given to Tammy Faye.
What You Need To Know: With HBO’s “The Righteous Gemstones” blazing television screens recently, we’re probably going to see a barrage of media dissecting the world of megachurches and televangelism. One of the most notorious cases comes with the Bakkers, whose patriarch, Jim, was a scoundrel, and matriarch, the much more noble Tammy Faye, one of the most fascinating figures to ever surface from the evangelical circle. She was in the second season of VH1’s “The Surreal Life,” if that gives you an idea of how this story does not follow in traditional footsteps. Chastain will play Bakker in what looks to be one of her roles since “A Most Violent Year,” and her empathy as an actress will serve the role well, one that deserves a lot of TLC. Garfield’s bombast will be a good fit for Jim Bakker, and Showalter has shown an ability to tell deeply human stories. This is sure to be one vying for awards next fall, and may it be a lightning rod of conversation for a story that’s beginning to become forgotten. Fox Searchlight distributes.
Release Date: Unknown, but a fall festival debut and/or late 2020 release makes sense, being that the film just started rolling cameras in October. – CW
https://twitter.com/ThePlaylist/status/1126902989371744256
48. “Stillwater”
Director: Tom McCarthy (“Spotlight,” “The Station Agent”)
Cast: Matt Damon, Abigail Breslin
Synopsis: A father travels from Oklahoma to France to help his daughter who has been arrested for murder.
What You Need To Know: When Tom McCarthy is on, you get a movie like “Spotlight,” one of the smartest and most gripping procedurals of recent years. When he’s not, you get something like his egregious, Adam Sandler-starring fantasy “The Cobbler.” McCarthy appears to be making an illustrious, post-“Spotlight” return to the world of prestige filmmaking with his latest effort, which is tentatively titled “Stillwater.” Matt Damon will star as an Oklahoma-born “oil-rig roughneck” who becomes determined to overcome cultural barriers when he travels to Marseille to exonerate his daughter for a crime she insists she is innocent of. This sounds like the kind of thoughtful human drama at which McCarthy excels, and the fact that the story has been called “complex, surprising, and emotional” is a great sign. Damon is a fine fit both for McCarthy’s world and also for this role, and we predict big awards season buzz from this project once it officially lands in U.S. theaters.
Release Date: Unknown. – NL
https://twitter.com/ThePlaylist/status/1152238948254486528
47. “The Card Counter”
Director: Paul Schrader (“First Reformed,” “Auto Focus”)
Cast: Oscar Isaac
Synopsis: A gambler and former serviceman sets out to reform a young man seeking revenge on a mutual enemy from their past.
What You Need To Know: Paul Schrader seemed lost in the woods in the earlier half of the 2010s, with diminishing efforts like the lurid, Bret Easton Ellis-penned “The Canyons” and the wily heist saga “Dog Eat Dog” offering teasing glimpses of what great writer/director was once capable of. That all changed with 2018’s “First Reformed“: a politically incendiary character study about a jaded, Drano-sipping man of the cloth that all but restored Schrader to the heights of his former glory. To hear that Schrader, one of cinema’s great screenwriters, is partnering with Oscar Isaac – one of our current era’s great actors – for a dirty, low-down revenge pic is quite a marvelous thing indeed. “The Card Counter” will see Schrader returning to the unscrupulous and illicit milieu where he’s most effective to tell a story of retribution, redemption, and gambling on fate.
Release Date: It’s not even a sure thing that this film will see a 2020 release, but… fingers crossed. – NL
https://twitter.com/ThePlaylist/status/1189188904852709378
46. “False Positive”
Director: John Lee
Cast: Justin Theroux, Ilana Glazer, Pierce Brosnan, Sophia Bush, Josh Hamilton
Synopsis: The plot details have not yet been revealed.
What You Need to Know: Is A24 intentionally attempting to overtake the market in 2020? If not, please make it so, because the world needs more projects like “False Positive.” Taking into account that John Lee previously directed episodes of “Wonder Showzen” and “Xavier: Renegade Angel” and the involvement of Ilana Glazer, who is best known for “Broad City,” “False Positive” might be the absurdist horror event of 2020. Or, on the other hand, “False Positive” could function as Glazer and Lee’s breakout from the comedy scene. It certainly worked for Jordan Peele, and even Chris Rock is involved with the “Saw” reboot set to appear in May. Regardless of its intentions, Justin Theroux and Pierce Brosnan are set to appear alongside Glazer in the film, meaning that whatever madness unfolds onscreen will be exponentially heightened by powerhouse talent. God bless you, A24.
Release Date: TBD – JC
https://twitter.com/ThePlaylist/status/1111649607434432513
45. “Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Always”
Director: Eliza Hittman (“Beach Rats”)
Cast: Sidney Flanigan, Talia Ryder, Theodore Pellerin, Ryan Eggold
Synopsis: Two teenage girls take a trip across New York City to deal with an unplanned pregnancy.
What You Need To Know: With “Beach Rats”, Eliza Hittman firmly proved her singular talent in the storytelling of a scowling young man grappling with his sexuality. The script was incisive and unafraid, the aesthetic raw, airy and seductive. By refocusing her viewpoint onto a story of two girls in rural Pennsylvania, Hittman offers a relatable but wholly specific narrative, further cementing her as a unique storyteller. When accepting the Sundance drama directing award for “Beach Rats,” she said, “I think there is nothing more taboo in this country than a woman with ambition, and I am going to work my way through a system that is completely discriminatory towards women.” She’s certainly on the right track – and ended by saying, “Hollywood, I’m coming for you.” Frankly, she can’t come soon enough.
Release Date: Unknown but production has wrapped, so a mid-year festival slot seems plausible. Maybe Sundance?– EK
Eliza Hittman wraps production on latest film “Never Rarely Sometimes Always” https://t.co/rnqmBaBH9l pic.twitter.com/xSHGr1DL1N
— Melissa Silverstein (@melsil) April 16, 2019
44. “Shirley”
Director: Josephine Decker (“Madeline’s Madeline”)
Cast: Elisabeth Moss, Michael Stuhlbarg, Logan Lerman, Odessa Young
Synopsis: A famous horror writer finds inspiration for her next book after she and her husband take in a young couple.
What You Need To Know: Josephine Decker isn’t a household name yet, but her unforgettable, rule-breaking experimental masterwork “Madeline’s Madeline” saw her very close to becoming one. While Decker’s next feature, “The Sky Is Everywhere,” will see her tackling another unconventional story about a young person coming into her own (likely shooting this year too), “Shirley” – possibly her highest-profile project to date, an adaptation of Susan Scarf Merrell’s novel – will see the director tackling a real-life subject. Said subject is Shirley Jackson, author of seminal novels like the horror touchstone “The Haunting of Hill House.” This sounds like the kind of out-there psychodrama that feels like a natural fit for Decker, as well as a chance for her to work with higher-profile actors like Elisabeth Moss, Michael Stuhlbarg, and Logan Lerman. Whatever “Shirley” ends up being, Josephine Decker has proven herself to be one of the more radical filmmaking talents of her generation, and we’ll follow her wherever she goes.
Release Date: TBD. – NL
https://twitter.com/ThePlaylist/status/997472891955367936
43. “Wonder Woman 1984”
Director: Patty Jenkins (“Wonder Woman”)
Cast: Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Connie Nielsen, Robin Wright, Kristen Wiig
Synopsis: Years after the World War I events that powered the first film, Diana Prince faces a new enemy in the same of the Cheetah, in the throes of the Cold War.
What You Need To Know: Following the heft both financial and cultural that came with “Wonder Woman,” a sequel was inevitable – and not unwelcome. Patty Jenkins wields an astronomical budget once more to outline the character of one of our finest female superheroes, the immortal demigoddess and Amazon princess Wonder Woman. Plot details remain scant, but considering the vibrant action, comedy and confidence that came with the first film – as well as some sprinklings of romance with arguably the best Chris of all the Chrises [ed. note: Chris Evans is, clearly, the best Chris], Chris Pine – things can only keep rising to greater things. It’ll be a treat to see Kristen Wiig reprising a larger than life character, arguably her most high-stakes role since something like “Bridesmaids” if this delivers as well as the first film did.
Release date: June 5, 2020, via Warner Brothers – EK
https://twitter.com/ThePlaylist/status/1201235617910317057
https://twitter.com/ThePlaylist/status/1136358166810189824
42 “Untitled Lila Neugebauer Project”
Director: Lila Neugebauer
Cast: Jennifer Lawrence, Samira Wiley, Brian Tyree Henry
Synopsis: A U.S. Soldier suffers a traumatic brain injury while fighting in Afghanistan and struggles to adjust to life back home.
What You Need to Know: Regarded within certain circles as the MCU for arthouse kids, A24 is automatically associated with cinematic excellence. Even if you are not a fan of their entire output—please stop being a contrarian by denying the studio’s efforts to keep film alive—one should at least respect the company’s body of work. And in 2020, newcomer Lila Neugebauer will join the A24 roster when she releases her currently untitled feature film. Known primarily for her directorial work in theater (the director also helmed an episode of “Room 104”), Neugebauer’s cinematic introduction apparently harbors enough clout to attract the likes of Jennifer Lawrence and Brian Tyree Henry, which is enough to raise the eyebrows of any film buff. Details are scarce, although the available synopsis appears to share traits with likes of “Brothers,” “Stop-Loss,” and “In the Valley of Elah,” mid-2000s films that focus on the stateside aftermath of soldiers who served overseas in the Middle East. Make sure you keep an eye out this drama when it—hopefully—rolls around next year.
Release Date: TBD, maybe Sundance? – JC
https://twitter.com/ThePlaylist/status/1118215490441076738
41. “Candyman”
Director: Nia DaCosta (“Little Woods,” Netflix’s “Top Boy”)
Cast: Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Teyonnah Paris, Colman Domingo, Tony Todd
Synopsis: A “spiritual sequel” to the 1992 horror film “Candyman” that returns to the now-gentrified Chicago neighborhood where the legend began.
What You Need To Know: Bernard Rose’s original “Candyman” is a certifiable cult classic of 90’s horror: a deeply creepy movie that’s as much about urban legends as much as it is about the white occupation of African-American neighborhoods. It’s a memorably nasty piece of genre termite art that possesses an unmistakable social undercurrent. In this regard, it makes sense that Jordan Peele – who filtered social anxieties through the prism of full-force horror in both “Get Out” and “Us” – would want to resurrect the “Candyman” legend for a new generation. We’re confident that director Nia DaCosta will do justice to the majesty of the O.G. “Candyman,” and the fact that the legendary Tony Todd will be reprising the iconic namesake role only sweetens the deal. “Candyman” won’t be dropping on Halloween (it would have to compete with the B.O. juggernaut that is “Halloween Kills”), but a mid-summer release spells promising things for this resurrected property.
Release Date: June 12, via Universal. – NL
https://twitter.com/ThePlaylist/status/1067790985155903488
