“Darkest Hour”
Cast: Gary Oldman, Ben Mendelsohn, Kristin Scott Thomas, Lily James
Synopsis: Biopic following Winston Churchill immediately after his appointment as Prime Minister, as he agonises over whether or not to explore a negotiated peace treaty with the looming force of Nazi Germany on the eve of the Second World War. Expect a rousing call to arms.
What You Need To Know: Perhaps Britain’s most beloved Prime Minister, Winston Churchill is having a bit of a moment at the movies this year, following an earlier biopic this year, “Churchill,” with Brian Cox as the jowly leader and the stirring use of his “We shall never surrender” speech in Christopher Nolan’s “Dunkirk.” Hot on those heels comes Joe Wright’s “Darkest Hour” featuring an Oscar-baiting performance by the chameleonic Gary Oldman. Certainly, the release of the first still of Oldman in transformative makeup created a stir, yet it remains to be seen whether his performance moves beyond a good fake chin and Oldman’s increasing penchant for shouting all of his lines. One also hopes that Joe Wright is able to continue his post-“Pan” redemption arc with this project after a well-received episode of Netflix’s “Black Mirror.”
Release Date: November 22
“Molly’s Game”
Cast: Jessica Chastain , Idris Elba, Chris O’Dowd, Michael Cera
Synopsis: Molly Bloom, a young skier and former Olympic hopeful becomes a successful entrepreneur (and a target of an FBI investigation) when she establishes a high-stakes, international poker game.
What You Need to Know: There’s a lot riding on “Molly’s Game” and in large part this is due to it being Aaron Sorkin’s directorial debut for a feature film. Best known for his writing prowess and his screenplay for David Fincher’s “The Social Network” in particular, “Molly’s Game” will prove whether or not the screenwriter can make the natural transition to director as well. As of late he’s been rather divisive. Despite a well-respected turn with his screenplay for Danny Boyle’s “Steve Jobs,” one of the freshest product of his has been HBO’s “The Newsroom” which, began to rattle and annoy with its abundance of sanctimonious behavior quick. If Sorkin can rein in his lesser instincts however and keep his script lean and his direction removed from indulgence, we could be in for a treat. Especially with the all-star, eclectic cast that includes everyone from Jessica Chastain, Kevin Costner to Michael Cera.
Release Date: November 22
“Call Me By Your Name”
Cast: Timothée Chalamet, Armie Hammer
Synopsis: Based on the eponymous novel by André Aciman, “Call Me by Your Name”depicts the ardent and complicated relationship between Elio (Timothée Chalamet), an Italian boy, and Oliver (Armie Hammer), the 24-year-old graduate student who comes to stay with Elio’s family.
What You Need to Know: Already boasting 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, this Sundance premiere by Luca Guadagnino dazzled and devastated critics earlier this year. On August 1, Sony Pictures Classics released a seductive, heartbreaking trailer that already has fans excited for more. Continuing on the legacies of gay intimacy in films like “Brokeback Mountain” and “Moonlight,” “Call Me By Your Name”is said to personalize and deepen the summer romance subgenre. With a shatteringly honest score by Sufjan Stevens and Sayombhu Mukdeeprom’s breathtaking cinematography, this love story looks like it could score some major awards in the coming months — including Best Actor nominations for leads Chalamet and Hammer. The film will screen again at Telluride before its wide release later this fall.
Release Date: November 24
“The Current War”
Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Michael Shannon, Tom Holland, Katherine Waterston
Synopsis: Electricity titans Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse compete to create a sustainable system and market it to the American people.
What You Need to Know: It’s almost surprising that it’s taken this long for Benedict Cumberbatch and Michael Shannon to star in a film together, both possessing such distinction in their performances. It was only a matter of time however before these two starsd collided and they’ve done so with Alfonso Gomez-Rejon’s follow up to the divisve “Me and Earl and the Dying Girl”. Making a pretty big pivot from the coming of age genre, here he’ll tackle something more in the biopic lane, perfectly befitting a The Weinstein Co. release. Playing at this years Toronto International Film Festival, make sure to keep your eyes peeled for this was as it may possibly be the distributors only real horse in this years Oscar race. Hopefully with it’s eclectic cast, rising director and intriguing premise it will rise above most biopic fare. However, as the screenplay is by a write whose only other writing credits include the HBO series “Vinyl” and the tragedy of “The Giver” adaptation, we might want to cross our fingers.
Release Date: November 24
“Wonder Wheel”
Cast: Kate Winslet, Justin Timberlake, Jim Belushi
Synopsis: On Coney Island in the 1950s, a lifeguard tells the story of a middle-aged carousel operator and his beleaguered wife. Expect love, passion, and betrayal.
What You Need to Know: Woody Allen usually reserves his movies for the summer, so the fact that “Wonder Wheel” is set for an awards season release says something — namely, that this film expects to contend. It will be the closing night film at the New York Film Festival and, based on Allen’s track record as well as the starring actors, this is definitely one to look out for.
Release Date: December 1
“The Disaster Artist”
Cast: James Franco, Alison Brie, Tommy Wiseau, Seth Rogan
Synopsis: Through James Franco’s polarizing eyes, audiences are taken behind the scenes (well kinda) of the making of what is considered the worst film of all time, “The Room.” Expect Franco’s best work yet and a spot-on reenactment of the most infamous one-liner in film history.
What You Need to Know: Although his name has been associated with numerous cinematic failures, James Franco’s career has had its applaudable moments (“127 Hours,”“Spring Breakers”). Needless to say, the 39-year-old has yet to supply a performance/direction on par with his unrelenting work ethic. With that in mind, a movie like “The Disaster Artist” was written in the stars for Franco — it’s a self-aware microcosm of his career thus far (maybe not as bad). Like Franco, actor Tommy Wiseau has put his entire being and soul into the art form — unfortunately, the results have been mostly abhorrent. Yet unlike Wiseau, Franco possesses potential and if the buzz surrounding his latest project bears any validity, then expect his ambitious love letter to the endearing Wiseau and laughable cult film to gain steam towards Oscar gold… “Oh hi, Mark.”
Release Date: December 1
“The Shape of Water”
Cast: Sally Hawkins, Doug Jones, Michael Shannon
Synopsis: A mute custodian at top secret Cold War-era government facility strikes up a romance with a captive merman. Expect a quirky modern fairy tale.
What You Need to Know: After a somewhat less successful detour to high Gothic with “Crimson Peak,” director Guillermo del Toro is back in “Pan’s Labyrinth” territory with his sure-to-be heartfelt, genre-bending latest effort. Key festival berths at TIFF and Venice tell us all we need to know: this offbeat love story is guaranteed to be a crowd-pleaser before its theatrical release in December, and Sally Hawkins is certain to win hearts in her starriest performance since Mike Leigh’s “Happy-Go-Lucky.” For fans of Del Toro’s monster work, Doug Jones’ merman promises to be the director’s most elaborate, emotive creature to date. Fox Searchlight could have an unexpected awards contender and box office hit on their hands.
Release Date: December 8
“All The Money In The World”
Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Kevin Spacey, Michelle Williams
Synopsis: A left-wing paramilitary organization in Italy hatches a massive kidnapping plot in the 1970s.
What You Need To Know: Director Ridley Scott does not sleep and at 79 years of age, the filmmaker is probably just going to go on until he drops. And while it seemed Scott might make a million “Alien” movies like James Cameron and “Avatar,” he’s already pivoted to a crime drama. And that makes two movies released in 2017 (with “Alien: Covenant” released earlier in the year). This one is based upon the historical events surrounding the kidnapping of John Paul Getty III (his father named Fortune magazine’s richest living American in 1957). Oscars anyone?
Release Date: December 8
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
Cast: Daisy Ridley, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, John Boyega
Synopsis: Rey continues her epic journey with Finn, Poe and Luke Skywalker in the next chapter of the saga.
What You Need to Know: I mean, how much more is there to say? If you aren’t yet a fan of the “Star Wars” saga there’s not much else that could convince you. Aside, from perhaps, the inclusion of master director Rian Johnson who just so happens to be helming the Episode Eight of the series. Having created some of the most original and intriguing films of the last decade with neo-noir, coming of age crossover film “Brick” and trippy time travel flick “Looper,” along with one of the best directed episodes of television of all time with “Breaking Bad,” ep “Ozymandias,” Johnson is the perfect visionary to take such an established world to new heights. Along with that we are going to be given more time to develop a bond with the new characters Rey, Finn and Poe along with newcomer Rose played by Kelly Marie Tran and learn more about what’s been going on with Luke following the decades since the original trilogy ended. However, no matter how big a fan you are, Johnson and his keen instincts for visual flourishes and artistic eye should be the real pull. From the trailer alone it looks to be simply the most beautiful “Star Wars” film we’ve gotten to date.
Release Date: December 15
“Downsizing”
Cast: Matt Damon, Kristen Wiig, Christoph Waltz, Laura Dern
Synopsis: A man and his wife join a community of miniaturized people after undergoing a process to shrink themselves.
What You Need To Know: With “Downsizing” marks the entering of legendary writer/director Alexander Payne back into the fold for the first time since “Nebraska”scored six Oscar nominations in 2013. The two-time Oscar winner (both writing credits for the spectacular “Sideways”and dark, fully-realized “The Descendants”) hopes to cash in once again with this social satire starring Matt Damon, featuring an ensemble cast that spans the big and small screen. The director has proved in the past there’s pretty much nothing he can’t do, his six previous features are all a mix of screwball characters, black humor and plenty of painfully authentic takes on life, mortality and family. While the plot for this one could seem a bit glib and dodgy, his scripts are always decidedly illuminating, with a knack at finding the nuance that brings characters to fully fledged, if not partially disturbed, life. He’s been one of the best artists we’ve had over the past two decades, and expect “Downsizing” to make a big splash come awards season.
Release Date: December 22
