It’s fall film festival season: aka the madness begins. It’s the season of Oscar players, adult dramas, and cool, left-of-field, auteur-driven arthouse and indie films. What was considered to be one of the best fall film festival seasons in ages has, so far, lived up to the immense hype. The Venice Film Festival and the Telluride Film Festival have already kicked off so you can read reviews about Alfonso Cuaron‘s “Roma,” Yorgos Lanthimos’ “The Favourite,” Bradley Cooper‘s “A Star Is Born,” Luca Guadagnino‘s “Suspiria“ with Dakota Johnson, Jason Reitman‘s “The Front Runner,” the Coen Brothers‘ “The Ballad of Buster Scruggs“ and many more (those links click to those reviews). But now, it’s time for the Toronto International Film Festival to shine.
55 Must-See Films: The 2018 Fall Movie Preview
Many of the aforementioned titles will be playing TIFF too (minus the Coens and “Suspiria”) and those are big titles you’ll obviously want to catch up on, but we wanted to mostly spotlight films we haven’t heard from yet. And it’s a really eclectic festival, per usual, even including a few horror surprises like “Halloween” and a big genre movie in “The Predator.” So, without further ado, our TIFF preview: 22 films must-see films you’ll want to try and catch in Toronto.
READ MORE: Venice Film Festival Preview: 20 Most Anticipated Movies
“If Beale Street Could Talk”
Cast: Kiki Layne, Stephan James, Regina King, Brian Tyree Henry, Dave Franco, Ed Skrein, Diego Luna, Pedro Pascal
Synopsis: A woman in Harlem desperately scrambles to prove her fiancé innocent of a crime while carrying their first child.
What You Need to Know: If fate continues to work in his favor, Barry Jenkins may go down as one of the most iconic filmmakers of his era. Although Jenkins previously helmed another film before his powerful Best Picture recipient — “Medicine for Melancholy” was shot on a budget of $13,000 — “Moonlight” established the Miami-born filmmaker as a rising talent to keep an eye out for in the coming years. And his latest project appears to continue that narrative. Based on the 1974 novel written by James Baldwin, “If Beale Street Could Talk” is sure to find Jenkins returning to the meditative pacing and thematic exploration of the struggles and complexities within the African-American community. Additionally, given the subject matter, ‘Beale Street’ could prove to be a timely response to the current political state in America while also functioning as one of the more artistically daring releases of the fall season — and hopefully garner some rightfully deserved Oscar buzz along the way.
Release Date: November 30 — Jonathan Christian
“High Life”
Cast: Robert Pattinson, Mia Goth, Juliette Binoche
Synopsis: A father and his daughter struggle to survive in deep space where they live in isolation.
What You Need to Know: Robert Pattinson is starring in a Claire Denis-directed sci-fi drama about alternative energies, human experimentation, and space criminals? Even if the movie turns out to be horrible — the chances of this happening are considerably low… right? — the concepts outlined in the plot sound positively genius. “High Life” will be Denis’ first venture into science fiction, as the French filmmaker is best known for her dramatic work, specifically the universally acclaimed “Beau Travail.” Surprisingly, the film has been a passion project of the director’s for nearly two decades, as Denis told Indiewire that she had originally envisioned Vincent Gallo and Philip Seymour Hoffman in the role before ultimately deciding to offer the leading role to Pattinson. Cerebral arthouse sci-fi sounds appetizing on any day, but “High Life,” in theory, holds the individual elements to a possible masterpiece. Let’s hope Denis can deliver on the hype.
Release Date: Awaiting Distribution — JC
“The Death and Life of John F. Donovan”
Cast: Kit Harrington, Thandie Newton, Jacob Tremblay
Synopsis: A decade after the death of an American TV star, a young actor reminisces the written correspondence he shared with him, as well as the impact those letters had on both their lives.
What You Need to Know: “The Death and Life of John F. Donovan” is the first English-language film with a star-studded cast, and the pressure is on for filmmaker Xavier Dolan, coming off the heels of his first real disappointment in his short yet prolific career with “It’s Always the End of the World.” That being said, Dolan also directed “Mommy,” “Laurence Anyways,” and “Tom at the Farm” so the concern, stemming from the long post-production time or Jessica Chastain’s character being cut, one blunder shouldn’t be enough to ruin any excitement for this film. Known for his unburdened vibrancy and an ability to make the film’s heart the central focus point, allowing our connections to the characters to feel immediate.
Release Date: Awaiting Distribution– Ally Johnson
“Beautiful Boy”
Cast: Timothée Chalamet, Steve Carrell, Maura Tierney
Synopsis: Based on two highly-successful memoirs, the film chronicles the relationship between a father and son, as the latter struggles with addiction.
What You Need to Know: There’s so much at play here that could turn out wildly successful. Timothée Chalamet is hot off the heels of his incendiary, star-making performance in “Call Me By Your Name,” while Steve Carrell, when making an appearance is more dramatic fare, does well when the roles are reactionary, rather than being the driving force. Based on a book written by Carrell’s character, “Beautiful Boy” goes beyond your standard awards season weepy with director Felix Van Groeningen at the helm. Having directed the soul-wrenching “The Broken Circle Breakdown,” he is no stranger to heavier subjects and with this raw material at his disposal, it’s safe to wager a success unless it veers off into a totally different direction than what we’re imagining.
Release Date: October 12th – AJ
“Widows”
Cast: Viola Davis, Michelle Rodriguez, Elizabeth Debicki, Cynthia Erivo, Colin Farrell, Brian Tyree Henry, Daniel Kaluuya, Robert Duvall, Liam Neeson
Synopsis: After their husbands are killed, four widows decide to finish the heist started by their spouses.
What You Need to Know: To be completely honest, “Widows” looks so perfect on paper that it’s almost unfair to the remainder of the films premiering at TIFF this year. Think of it like opening presents on Christmas morning, but each subsequent gift you open gets better and better. A new Steve McQueen movie? Awesome. Gillian Flynn collaborated on the script and Hans Zimmer will compose the soundtrack? Alright, stop teasing. Wait, you added Viola Davis, Michelle Rodriguez, Brian Tyree Henry and Daniel Kaluuya to the cast? If you listen very closely, you will actually hear the sound of thousands of film fanatics sighing in ecstasy. With any luck, “Widows” will hopefully stand as one of the fall season’s must-see releases for both cinephiles and general audiences alike.
Release Date: November 16 — JC
