October marks the second month of fall where we are in the middle of festival season, coming off of TIFF in September. A few films that premiered there will see a theatrical release this month (Joker, Lucy in the Sky, The Laundromat, Dolemite Is My Name, Pain & Glory, Jojo Rabbit, Parasite, The Lighthouse, Western Stars). Director Ang Lee also returns with his newest tech demo movie Gemini Man. October also means Halloween but this year’s slate appears to have been preempted by the release of It Chapter Two. Either way, October looks to be a solid month. Welcome to our October 2019 movie preview, where we let you know about the noteworthy releases of the month and follow them up with 5 top picks. Hope to see you at the movies!

Noteworthy Releases

 First Love – October 4th (Theatrical)
A young boxer and a call girl get caught up in a drug-smuggling scheme over the course of one night in Tokyo. (IMDb)

Directed by Takashi Miike. Written by Masa Nakamura.

Starring Becky, Sakurako Konishi, Masataka Kubota, Jun Murakami, Nao Ohmori, and Shôta Sometani.

Where’s My Roy Cohn – October 4th (Theatrical)
Roy Cohn personified the dark arts of American politics, turning empty vessels into dangerous demagogues – from Joseph McCarthy to his final project, Donald J. Trump. This thriller-like exposé connects the dots, revealing how a deeply troubled master manipulator shaped our current American nightmare. (IMDb)

Directed by Matt Tyrnauer

Starring Ken Auletta, Roy M. Cohn, Joseph McCarthy, Roger Stone, Barbara Walters, and Donald Trump.

The Laundromat – October 4th (Theatrical), October 18th (Netflix)
A widow investigates an insurance fraud, chasing leads to a pair of Panama City law partners exploiting the world’s financial system. (IMDb)

Directed by Steven Soderbergh. Written by Scott Z. Burns.

Starring Meryl Streep, Gary Oldman, Antonio Banderas, Sharon Stone, Jeffrey Wright, and David Schwimmer.

Matthias & Maxime – October 9th (Theatrical)

A drama focusing on a group of friends in their late 20s. (IMDb)

Written and Directed by Xavier Dolan.

Starring Gabriel D’Almeida Freitas, Xavier Dolan, and Harris Dickinson.

Gemini Man – October 9th (Theatrical)
An over-the-hill hitman faces off against a younger clone of himself. (IMDb)

Directed by Ang Lee. Written by David Benioff, Billy Ray, and Darren Lemke.

Starring Will Smith, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Clive Owen, Douglas Hodge, and Benedict Wong.

Jay & Silent Bob Reboot – October 9th (Theatrical)
Jay and Silent Bob return to Hollywood to stop a reboot of ‘Bluntman and Chronic’ movie from getting made. (IMDb)

Written and Directed by Kevin Smith.

Starring Jason Mewes, Kevin Smith, Shannon Elizabeth, James Van Der Beek, Chris Hemsworth, Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Joe Manganiello, Val Kilmer, and countless others.

Lucy in the Sky – October 11th (Theatrical)

(review)

Astronaut Lucy Cola returns to Earth after a transcendent experience during a mission to space, and begins to lose touch with reality in a world that now seems too small. (IMDb)

Directed by Noah Hawley. Written by Hawley, Elliott DiGuiseppi, and Brian C. Brown.

Starring Natalie Portman, Jon Hamm, Zazie Beetz, Dan Stevens, Pearl Amanda Dickson, and Ellen Burstyn.

Jexi – October 11th (Theatrical)
A comedy about what can happen when you love your phone more than anything else in your life. (IMDb)

Written and Directed by Jon Lucas and Scott Moore.

Starring Adam Devine, Alexandra Shipp, Michael Peña, Justin Hartley, Charlene Yi, Wanda Sykes, Ron Funches, and the voice of Rose Byrne.

Mister America – October 11th (Theatrical)

Mister America follows Heidecker’s attempt to enter the world of politics. After beating a murder charge for selling faulty e-cigarettes at an EDM festival, Tim seeks revenge by running a campaign to unseat the San Bernardino District Attorney. Fueled by ego and ignorance, he tries to surmount a lack of experience, funds and likability by personally connecting with unsuspecting constituents. It does not go well. (IMDb)

Directed by Eric Notarnicola. Written by Tim Heidecker, Eric Notarnicola, and Gregg Turkington.

Starring im Heidecker, Gregg Turkington, Terri Parks, Don Pecchia, and Mark Proksch.

The Addams Family – October 11th (Theatrical)

An animated version of Charles Addams’ series of cartoons about a peculiar, ghoulish family. (IMDb)

Directed by Greg Tiernan and Conrad Vernon. Written by Matt Lieberman and Pamela Pettler.

Featuring the voices of Oscar Isaac, Charlize Theron, Chloë Grace Moretz, Finn Wolfhard, Nick Kroll, Snoop Dogg, Bette Midler, Martin Short, Catherine O’Hara, and Allison Janney.

Maleficent: Mistress of Evil – October 18th (Theatrical)

Maleficent and her goddaughter Aurora begin to question the complex family ties that bind them as they are pulled in different directions by impending nuptials, unexpected allies, and dark new forces at play. (IMDb)

Directed by Joachim Rønning. Written by Micah Fizerman-Blue, Noah Harpster, and Linda Woolverton.

Starring Angelina Jolie, Elle Fanning, Michelle Pfeiffer, Ed Skrein, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Sam Riley, and Harris Dickinson.

Pain & Glory – October 18th (Theatrical)

A film director reflects on the choices he’s made in life as past and present come crashing down around him. (IMDb)

Written and Directed by Pedro Almodóvar.

Starring Antonio Banderas, Asier Etxeandia, Leonardo Sbaraglia, Nora Novas, Julieta Serrano, César Vicente, Asier Flores, and Penélope Cruz.

QT8 The First Eight – October 18th (Theatrical)

A documentary that focuses on the first 21 years of Quentin Tarantino’s career and includes interviews with his frequent collaborators. (IMDb)

Written and Directed by Tara Wood.

Featuring Jennifer Jason Leigh, Samuel L. Jackson, Diane Kruger, Kurt Russell. Christoph Waltz, Lucy Liu, Michael Madsen, Jamie Foxx, Tim Roth, Eli Roth, and Bruce Dern.

Black and Blue – October 25th (Theatrical)

‘Black and Blue’ is an action thriller about a rookie cop (Naomie Harris) who inadvertently captures the murder of a young drug dealer on her body cam. After realizing that the murder was committed by corrupt cops, she teams up with the one person from her community who is willing to help her (Tyrese Gibson) as she tries to escape both the criminals out for revenge and the police who are desperate to destroy the incriminating footage. (IMDb)

Directed by Deon Taylor. Written by Peter A. Dowling.

Starring Naomie Harris, Tyrese Gibson, Mike Colter, Frank Grillo, and Reid Scott.

The Lighthouse – October 25th (Theatrical)

(review)

The hypnotic and hallucinatory tale of two lighthouse keepers on a remote and mysterious New England island in the 1890s. (IMDb)

Directed by Robert Eggers. Written by Robert and Max Eggers.

Starring Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson.

Western Stars – October 25th (Theatrical)

(review)

Live concert performance of Bruce Springsteen singing songs from his album ‘Western Stars’. (IMDb)

Directed by Bruce Springsteen and Thom Zimny.

Featuring Springsteen.

Dan’s Keith’s Top Five Picks of the Month

5. Dolemite is My Name – October 11th (Theatrical), October 25th (Netflix)

(review)

Eddie Murphy portrays real-life legend Rudy Ray Moore, a comedy and rap pioneer who proved naysayers wrong when his hilarious, obscene, kung-fu fighting alter ego, Dolemite, became a 1970s Blaxploitation phenomenon. (IMDb)

Directed by Craig Brewer. Written by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski.

Starring Eddie Murphy, Keegan-Michael Key, Mike Epps, Craig Robinson, Titus Burgess, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, and Wesley Snipes.

Why You Should See It: Eddie Murphy is back! While this should rightfully be the headline as he certainly does not disappoint here, Dolemite is My Name is a hilarious ensemble comedy in its own right, elevated by its stellar cast. This Disaster Artist clone won’t be for everyone because of its arguably offensive material, it will surely appeal to diehard Murphy fans and will be your next chance to see him before he jumps back into a few of his classic roles in Beverly Hill Cops 4 and Coming 2 America.

4. Zombieland: Double Tap – October 18th (Theatrical)

Columbus, Tallahasse, Wichita, and Little Rock move to the American heartland as they face off against evolved zombies, fellow survivors, and the growing pains of the snarky makeshift family. (IMDb)

Directed by Ruben Fleischer. Written by Dave Callaham, Rhett Reese, and Paul Wernick.

Starring Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, Abigail Breslin, Rosario Dawson, Luke Wilson, Zoey Deutch, Thomas Middleditch, Dan Akroyd, and Bill Murray.

Why You Should See It: After a 10 year absence, our gang is back. Suffice it to say that the original cast are at a much different stage in their careers since the original so it’s definitely nice to see them back for what will be the 10th anniversary of the original Zombieland. However, they are not alone this time around. One of the most memorable cameos in any film was Bill Murray’s in the original. Based on how that ended (no spoilers) it is definitely surprising to learn that he is expected to return here. It will certainly be interesting to see what happens.

3. Joker – October 4th (Theatrical)

(review)

A gritty character study of Arthur Fleck, a man disregarded by society. (IMDb)

Directed by Todd Phillips. Written by Phillips and Scott Silver.

Starring Joaquin Phoenix, Robert De Niro, Zazie Beetz, Brett Cullen, Bill Camp, Shea Whigham, Marc Maron, and Frances Conroy.

Why You Should See It: Everybody knows the famed Batman villain known as The Joker. This character has seen many interpretations over the years with Heath Ledger’s Oscar-winning turn in The Dark Knight widely regarded as the best. Joaquin Phoenix looks to join Ledger, delivering a performance that is certainly worth all the hype, putting his twist that we’ve never seen before. The film’s problematic subject matter may not be for everyone but his excellent performance is without question. The inspirations from other films are also definitely there but this intensely-emotional character study set in an incredibly immersive and unsettling world.

2. Jojo Rabbit – October 25th (Theatrical)

(review)

A young boy in Hitler’s army finds out his mother is hiding a Jewish girl in their home. (IMDb)

Written and Directed by Taika Waititi.

Starring Roman Griffin Davis, Thomasin McKenzie, Taika Waititi, Rebel Wilson, Alfie Allen, Stephen Merchant, Sam Rockwell, and Scarlett Johansson.

Why You Should See It: An anti-nazi satire sounds like a tricky movie on paper but Taika Waititi makes it work, resulting in a hilarious and surprisingly emotional coming-of-age story. Though it’s big, it’s silly, and it’s ridiculous, that’s the point. The smart script balances all the craziness with ease and along with the great performances from newcomer Roman Griffin Davis as well as much different turns from Sam Rockwell and Scarlett Johansson, make this one to watch out for. Winning the People’s Choice Award at this year’s TIFF doesn’t hurt either.

1. Parasite – October 25th (Theatrical)

(review)

All unemployed, Ki-taek’s family takes peculiar interest in the wealthy and glamorous Parks for their livelihood until they get entangled in an unexpected incident. (IMDb)

Directed by Bong Joon-ho. Written by Bong and Jin Won Han.

Starring Kang-ho Song, Woo-sik Choi, Hye-jin Jang, So-dam Park, Sun-kyun Lee, Hyun-jun Jung, Ji-so Jung, and Yeo-jeong Jo.

Why You Should See It: This one is a hard one to talk about. The hype train started after winning the Palme D’Or at this year’s Cannes Film Festival and suffice it to say that the hype is justified. This dark comedy is a roller-coaster ride from beginning to end and is best going into as blind as possible in order to experience everything it has to offer and it is definitely an experience. Might as well see what all the fuss is about since we will definitely be hearing about this one come awards season.

Follow Dan on twitter @daniel_azbel and on letterboxd @danthemovieman.

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Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.