2014 Fall Movie Preview

2014 Fall Movie Preview
The dog days of cinema summer are almost over.

As the autumn leaves change and summer fades to fall, the next round of Oscar contenders come out to play.

WTOP Film Critic Jason Fraley is here with a preview of the fall movie season.
'The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby'
Release Date: Sept. 12

Every relationship has multiple sides of the story. So debut director Ned Benson has created a unique trio of films following his young married couple, Eleanor and Conor.

"The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby" was released to film festivals last year in two installments, once from Eleanor's perspective under the subtitle "Her," and once from Conor's perspective under the subtitle "Him."

This year, the two versions are combined into a third film, subtitled "Them." Jessica Chastain ("Zero Dark Thiry") and James McAvoy ("X-Men: Days of Future Past") give powerful, authentic performances of love and loss with a supporting cast that includes William Hurt and Viola Davis.
'The Drop'
Release Date: Sept. 12

The late James Gandolfini makes his final film appearance alongside Tom Hardy ("Locke") and Noomi Rapace ("Prometheus") in "The Drop.

The film follows a money funneling scheme with gangsters in Brooklyn bars, the latest adaptation from the author of "Mystic River," "Shutter Island" and "Gone Baby Gone."
'This is Where I Leave You'
Release Date: Sept. 19

Comedy fans can rejoice any time a movie pools the collective comic chops of Jason Bateman, Tina Fey, Adam Driver and Corey Stoll.

Here, they star as four grown siblings who return to their childhood home after their father's death, only to find it difficult to live under the same roof with their mother (Jane Fonda).
'Gone Girl'
Release Date: Oct. 3

Director David Fincher has consistently engrossed us, from "Se7en" to "Fight Club," "Benjamin Button" to "The Social Network." Now, "Gone Girl" fixes to be one of his most suspenseful mysteries.

Gillian Flynn adapts his own novel to star Ben Affleck as a man who insists he doesn't know what happened to his wife (Rosamund Pike), Tyler Perry as the lawyer defending Affleck and Neil Patrick Harris as the wife's ex-lover.
'The Judge'
Release Date: Oct. 10

The ever-charismatic Robert Downey Jr. stars as hotshot lawyer Hank Palmer, who returns to his hometown where his father (Robert Duvall), the town's judge, is suspected of murder.

From the director of "Wedding Crashers" and the writer of "Gran Torino," the film co-stars Billy Bob Thornton and Vera Farmiga.
'Whiplash'
Release Date: Oct. 10

Two years ago, it was "Beasts of the Southern Wild." Last year, it was "Fruitvale Station." This year, make way for the new Sundance champ, Damien Chazelle's "Whiplash."

It tells the tale of a student jazz drummer (Miles Teller, "The Spectacular Now") trained by a strict music instructor (J.K. Simmons, "Juno"). Simmons is already receiving awards buzz for his hardass portrayal.
'Birdman'
Release Date: Oct. 11

The summer box office was dominated by "Guardians of the Galaxy," "X-Men: Days of Future Past" and "Captain America: The Winter Soldier." But a more offbeat, unexpected superhero flick just turned heads by dominating the Venice Film Festival: "Birdman."

Michael Keaton, star of Tim Burton's "Batman" (1989), plays a self-reflexive role as a washed-up superhero actor. The supporting cast is filled with fellow superhero stars, such as Emma Stone ("The Amazing Spider-Man") and Ed Norton ("The Incredible Hulk").

What's more, it's directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu ("Amores Perros," "Babel") to look like one long, single take, shot by the Oscar-winning cinematographer of "Gravity."
'Listen Up Philip'
Release Date: Oct. 17

Jason Schwartzman ("Rushmore") plays a cocky writer humbled when The New York Times pans his sophomore novel. Directed by Alex Ross Perry ("The Color Wheel"), the film co-stars Elisabeth Moss ("Mad Men") as the photographer girlfriend.
'Fury'
Release Date: Oct. 17

Five years after "Inglourious Basterds," Brad Pitt once again kicks Nazi butt in the action war movie "Fury.'

He plays an army sergeant nicknamed "Wardaddy," who commands a Sherman tank and a five-man crew behind enemy lines in April, 1945.

The film is written and directed by David Ayer, who's gone from the writer of "Training Day" and "The Fast and the Furious" to a respected dual threat after the acclaimed "End of Watch."
'Dear White People'
Release Date: Oct. 17

Justin Simien's directorial debut pulls no punches in satirizing racism and embodying an attitude summed up in the trailer: "If Spike Lee and Oprah had some sort of pissed-off baby."

The film won a Special Jury Prize at Sundance, where judges said the film has a "reverence, audacity and a sense of humor" that marks "the arrival of an original and exciting new voice in American cinema."
'Nightcrawler'
Release Date: Oct. 31

Jake Gylenhaal has shined in detective roles, from "Zodiac" to "Prisoners." Now, he plays a freelance crime journalist in Los Angeles, alongside Rene Russo's primetime news anchor.

The film is written and directed by Russo's husband Dan Gilroy, who also happens to be the younger brother of screenwriter Tony Gilroy ("Michael Clayton," "The Bourne Ultimatum").
'Interstellar'
Release Date: Nov. 7

Director Christopher Nolan has earned legions of fans thanks to "The Dark Knight," "Inception" and "Memento."

Here, he directs Oscar-winners Matthew McConaughey and Anne Hathaway as engineers who discover a wormhole through time and space.

The trailer of NASA footage set to McConaughey narration will give you goosebumps: "Perhaps we've forgotten that we are still pioneers and that our greatest accomplishments cannot be behind us. Our destiny lies above us."
'Rosewater'
Release date: Nov. 7

"The Daily Show" host Jon Stewart makes his anticipated directorial debut in "Rosewater," which tells the true story of a journalist detained and interrogated in an Iranian prison for more than 100 days.

The recent ISIS beheading of two American journalists just made this one super-relevant, just like "Argo" caught the zeitgeist of the 2012 attack on the U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi.
'The Theory of Everything'
Release Date: Nov. 7

After directing the Oscar-winning documentary "Man on Wire," James Marsh tackles ALS in the Stephen Hawking biopic "The Theory of Everything." On the heels of countless ALS ice bucket challenges, this story could really hit home, based on a book by ex-wife Jane Hawking.
'Dumb and Dumber To'
Release Date: Nov. 14

It could be a flop like "Anchorman 2," but loyal fans of "Dumb and Dumber" are counting the days until Harry and Lloyd reunite on the silver screen.

Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels return for this silly sequel to the 1994 comedy hit by Bobby and Peter Farelly ("There's Something About Mary," "Kingpin").

There's only one thing left to say: "Big gulps, huh? Alright. Welp, see ya later!"
'Foxcatcher'
Release Date: Nov. 14

He's best known for comedies like "The Office" and "The 40-Year-Old Virgin," but Steve Carell has proven he can play serious roles in "The Way Way Back" and "Crazy, Stupid Love."

Now, he's garnering Oscar buzz for "Foxcatcher," the true story of Olympic wrestler Mark Schultz (Channing Tatum), whose brother was murdered by their coach, John du Pont (Carell).

If you're not already intrigued, know that director Bennett Miller ("Capote," "Moneyball") won Best Director at the Cannes Film Festival. Enough said.
'The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1'
Release Date: Nov. 21

Jennifer Lawrence returns as Katniss Everdeen in the epic third installment of the "Hunger Games" series, which grows increasingly dark as Katniss battles the political establishment of President Snow (Donald Sutherland).

If "Mockingjay" is anything like the first two, it'll be a box-office smash with the added attraction of Philip Seymour-Hoffman in a posthumous role as Plutarch Heavensbee.
'The Imitation Game'
Release Date: Nov. 21

Fresh off an Emmy for "Sherlock," Benedict Cumberbatch joins Keira Knightley in the biopic of Alan Turing, a British mathematician who races against time to crack the so-called Enigma code during World War II.
'Wild'
Release Date: Dec. 5

After a messy divorce and the death of her mother (Laura Dern), a grieving woman (Reese Witherspoon) hikes more than a thousand miles along the Pacific Crest Trail with no experience.

The film is directed by Jean-Marc Vallee, who coached Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto to Oscars in "Dallas Buyers Club."
'Exodus: Gods and Kings'
Release Date: Dec. 12

It's been a big year for Biblical films, from Darren Aronofsky's "Noah" to Randall Wallace's "Heaven is for Real."

Director Ridley Scott ("Gladiator") and screenwriter Steve Zaillian ("Schindler's List") are the latest to dive into the Old Testament, telling the legendary tale of Moses leading the Israelites out of Egyptian slavery.

Christian Bale follows in the famous footsteps of Charlton Heston, parting the Red Sea with the benefit of today's special effects. The supporting cast is filled with heavy hitters, including Aaron Paul as Joshua, Sigourney Weaver as Tuya, Ben Kingsley as Nun, John Turturro as Seti and Joel Edgerton as Pharaoh Ramses.
'Inherent Vice'
Release Date: Dec. 12

He brought you "Boogie Nights," "Magnolia," "There Will Be Blood" and "The Master." Now, writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson is back in all his bizarre glory in this adaptation of Thomas Pynchon's crime novel.

Drugged-out detective Doc Sportello (Joaquin Phoenix) investigates the disappearance of a former girlfriend. The star-studded cast includes Josh Brolin, Reese Witherspoon, Benicio Del Toro, Owen Wilson, Maya Rudolph and Michael K. Williams.
'The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies'
Release Date: Dec. 17

Director Peter Jackson returns to Middle Earth once more to lead Bilbo Baggins in the third installment of "The Hobbit," the popular but drawn-out prequel series to the mesmerizing "Lord of the Rings" trilogy.
'Big Eyes'
Release Date: Dec. 25

Unique visionary Tim Burton directs the always-spectacular Amy Adams as successful '50s painter Margaret Keane and two-time Oscar winner Christoph Waltz as the husband who tries taking credit for her work.
'Unbroken'
Release Date: Dec. 25

Angelina Jolie directs the incredible life story of Louis Zamperini, an Olympic runner captured by Japanese forces during World War II.

Based on the hit book by Laura Hillenbrand, the script is adapted by the Coen Brothers ("Fargo") with cinematography by Roger Deakins ("No Country for Old Men").
'Selma'
Release Date: Dec. 25

David Oyelowo ("The Butler") plays Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Tom Wilkinson plays President Lyndon B. Johnson in this account of the Civil Rights marches that changed America.

Produced by Oprah Winfrey, the film was originally supposed to be directed by Lee Daniels, but has since been taken over by Ava DuVernay.
'American Sniper'
Release Date: Dec. 25

Clint Eastwood directs Bradley Cooper in this chronicle of Navy SEAL sniper Chris Kyle, who recorded more than 150 confirmed kills, the most in U.S. military history.
'Forrest Gump' 20th anny IMAX
Release Date: Sept. 5

If you can't wait for these potential Oscar contenders, a past Best Picture winner hits theaters this weekend.

"Forrest Gump" celebrates its 20th anniversary with a special IMAX release as Forrest, Jenny, Momma, Bubba and Lt. Dan return in all their side-splitting, tear-jerking glory.
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