Matt writes: The Toronto International Film Festival just ended this past Sunday, and you can find our complete coverage of its enticing selections in this table of contents, featuring reviews and essays penned by Brian Tallerico, Nick Allen, Robert Daniels, Marya E. Gates, Monica Castillo and Chaz Ebert. This year’s distinguished recipient of the TIFF Ebert Director Award at the annual TIFF Tribute Awards gala was Oscar-winner Spike Lee, who previously attended Ebertfest for a screening of 1989’s “Do the Right Thing.” Chaz joined “Moonlight” director Barry Jenkins and TIFF CEO Cameron Bailey in presenting Lee with the accolade, and you can view his acceptance speech in the video embedded below…
Trailers
The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar (2023). Written and directed by Wes Anderson (based on the book by Roald Dahl). Starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Ben Kingsley, Ralph Fiennes. Synopsis: Chronicles a variety of stories, but the main one follows Henry Sugar, who is able to see through objects and predict the future with the help of a book he stole. Debuts on Netflix on September 27th, 2023.
The Boy and the Heron (2023). Written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki. Starring Soma Santoki, Masaki Suda, Takuya Kimura. Synopsis: Through encounters with his friends and uncle, follows a teenage boy’s psychological development. He enters a magical world with a talking grey heron after finding an abandoned tower in his new town. Debuts in the US on December 8th, 2023.
Origin (2023). Written and directed by Ava DuVernay (based on the book by Isabel Wilkerson). Starring Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Jon Bernthal, Vera Farmiga. Synopsis: The unspoken system that has shaped America and chronicles how lives today are defined by a hierarchy of human divisions. US release date is TBA.
Nyad (2023). Directed by Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi. Written by Julia Cox (based on the book by Diana Nyad). Starring Annette Bening, Jodie Foster, Rhys Ifans. Synopsis: It tells the remarkable true story of athlete Diana Nyad who, at the age of 60 and with the help of her best friend and coach, commits to achieving her life-long dream: a 110-mile open ocean swim from Cuba to Florida. Debuts on Netflix on November 3rd, 2023.
May December (2023). Directed by Todd Haynes. Written by Samy Burch. Starring Natalie Portman, Julianne Moore, Charles Melton. Synopsis: Twenty years after their notorious tabloid romance gripped the nation, a married couple buckles under the pressure when an actress arrives to do research for a film about their past. Debuts on Netflix on December 1st, 2023.
The Burial (2023). Directed by Maggie Betts. Written by Maggie Betts and Doug Wright (based on the article by Jonathan Harr). Starring Jamie Foxx, Tommy Lee Jones, Jurnee Smollett. Synopsis: Inspired by true events, a lawyer helps a funeral home owner save his family business from a corporate behemoth, exposing a complex web of race, power, and injustice. Debuts on Prime Video on October 13th, 2023.
The Bikeriders (2023). Written and directed by Jeff Nichols (based on the book by Danny Lyon). Starring Austin Butler, Tom Hardy, Michael Shannon. Synopsis: It follows the rise of a Midwestern motorcycle club through the lives of its members. Debuts in the US on December 1st, 2023.
The Royal Hotel (2023). Directed by Kitty Green. Written by Kitty Green and Oscar Redding. Starring Julia Garner, Jessica Henwick, Herbert Nordrum. Synopsis: US backpackers Hanna and Liv take a job in a remote Australian pub for some extra cash and are confronted with a bunch of unruly locals and a situation that grows rapidly out of their control. Debuts in the US on October 6th, 2023.
The Pot-au-Feu (2023). Written and directed by Anh Hung Tran. Starring Juliette Binoche, Pierre Gagnaire, Jan Hammenecker. Synopsis: It tells the story of Eugenie, an esteemed cook, and Dodin, the fine gourmet she has been working for over the last 20 years. Debuts in the US on November 8th, 2023.
The Delinquents (2023). Written and directed by Rodrigo Moreno. Starring Daniel Elías, Esteban Bigliardi, Margarita Molfino. Synopsis: Morán and Román are looking for freedom and adventure. One commits a robbery, discovering an alternative to his boring life, while the other hides money that doesn’t belong to him. Their destiny as new criminals will bring them together. US release date is TBA.
How to Have Sex (2023). Written and directed by Molly Manning Walker. Starring Mia McKenna-Bruce, Shaun Thomas, Lara Peake. Synopsis: Three British teenage girls go on a rites-of-passage holiday – drinking, clubbing and hooking up, in what should be the best summer of their lives. US release date is TBA.
Mister Organ (2023). Directed by David Farrier. Synopsis: Journalist David Farrier (“Tickled“) is drawn into a game of cat and mouse with a mysterious individual. Delving deeper he unearths a trail of court cases, royal bloodlines and ruined lives, in this true story of psychological warfare. US release date is TBA.
Joan Baez: I Am a Noise (2023). Directed by Miri Navasky, Maeve O’Boyle and Karen O’Connor. Synopsis: At the end of a 60-year career, legendary singer and activist Joan Baez takes an honest look back and a deep look inward as she tries to make sense of her large, history-making life, and the personal struggles she’s kept private. Debuts in the US on October 6th, 2023.
Divinity (2023). Written and directed by Eddie Alcazar. Starring Bella Thorne, Stephen Dorff, Caylee Cowan. Synopsis: Centers on two mysterious brothers, who abduct a mogul during his quest for immortality. Meanwhile, a seductive woman helps them launch a journey of self-discovery. Debuts in the US on October 13th, 2023.
Appendage (2023). Written and directed by Anna Zlokovic. Starring Emily Hampshire, Hadley Robinson, Deborah Rennard. Synopsis: A young fashion designer’s life spirals as her darkest inner thoughts manifest into something gruesome- that won’t stop growing. Debuts on Hulu on October 2nd, 2023.
Dark Harvest (2023). Directed by David Slade. Written by Michael Gilio (based on the novel by Norman Partridge). Starring Casey Likes, Emyri Crutchfield, Dustin Ceithamer. Synopsis: A legendary monster called October Boy terrorizes residents in a small Midwestern town when he rises from the cornfields every Halloween with his butcher knife and makes his way toward those who are brave enough to confront him. Debuts in the US on October 13th, 2023.
Totally Killer (2023). Directed by Nahnatchka Khan. Written by David Matalon, Sasha Perl-Raver and Jen D’Angelo. Starring Kiernan Shipka, Olivia Holt, Liana Liberato. Synopsis: When the infamous “Sweet Sixteen Killer” returns 35 years after his first murder spree to claim another victim, 17-year-old Jamie accidentally travels back in time to 1987, determined to stop the killer before he can start. Debuts on Prime Video on October 6th, 2023.
Once Within a Time (2023). Directed by Godfrey Reggio and Jon Kane. Synopsis: A comedic apocalyptic vision of the end of the world and the beginning of a new one, with unforgettable views and the innocence and hope of a new generation. US release date is TBA.
Telluride Film Festival 2023
Matt writes: Sarah Knight Adamson penned an in-depth report on various highlights at this year’s Telluride Film Festival, including Alexander Payne’s eagerly awaited “The Holdovers,” which reunites the director with his “Sideways” star Paul Giamatti.
Married at the Movies
Matt writes: Earlier this month, Chaz Ebert attended the wedding of our regular contributor Collin Souter and his longtime “Christmas Movies Actually” podcast co-host Kerry Finegan at Chicago’s Music Box Theatre. Preceding the ceremony was a delightful pre-show curated by the couple that included the scene embedded above from Joe Dante’s 1993 gem, “Matinee.” You can read Chaz’s full report on the joyous event here.
Free Movies
The Sundowners (1950). Directed by George Templeton. Written by Alan Le May. Starring Robert Preston, Robert Sterling, Chill Wills. Synopsis: Brother is pitted against brother in this tale of fueding ranchers in the old west.
Watch “The Sundowners”
First Man into Space (1959). Directed by Robert Day. Written by John Croydon and Charles F. Vetter. Starring Marshall Thompson, Marla Landi, Bill Edwards. Synopsis: The first pilot to leave Earth’s atmosphere lands, then vanishes; but something with a craving for blood prowls the countryside.
Watch “First Man into Space”
Evel Knievel (1971). Directed by Marvin J. Chomsky. Written by Alan Caillou and John Milius. Starring George Hamilton, Sue Lyon, Bert Freed. Synopsis: Biography of the famed motorcycle daredevil, much of which was filmed in his home town of Butte, Montana. The film depicts Knievel reflecting on major events in his life just before a big jump.
