Part 1 of our Fall Preview of films likely to attract award consideration begins with the directorial debut of an acclaimed indie actor known to LGBTQ audiences for his impressive work in the gay-themed troubled-teen film "L.I.E." This first part, covering 20 titles, features an array of fiction and nonfiction features likely to play the Castro, Roxie, Alamo Drafthouse and Landmark Theatres. Next week we'll offer another batch of capsules.
"Wildlife" Indie actor Paul Dano makes his feature directorial debut with this coming-of-age drama, from a script written with life partner Zoe Kazan. It's based on the 1990 Richard Ford novel. The narrator of the book is a teenage boy who watches his parents' marriage start to come apart after the family moves to Montana. "In the fall of 1960, when I was 16 and my father was for a time not working, my mother met a man named Warren Miller and fell in love with him," the book begins.
"John McEnroe: In the Realm of Perfection" Written and directed by Julien Faraut and narrated by Mathieu Amalric, the bio-doc revisits a treasure trove of 16mm films of the left-handed tennis star John McEnroe, at the time the world's top-ranked player, as he competed in the 1984 French Open at Paris' Roland Garros Stadium.
"A Whale of a Tale" Local fishermen, animal rights activists and an American journalist debate the hunting of whales and dolphins in the sleepy seaside town of Taiji, Japan.
"Let the Corpses Tan" A grizzled robber and his gang head to an island retreat with a large haul of gold bullion. A bohemian writer, his muse, and a pair of policemen complicate the situation as loyalties are strained to the max.
"Kusama-Infinity" Now a top-selling artist, Yayoi Kusama overcame long odds to bring her hip artistic vision to a world stage. After working as an artist for over six decades, Kusama continues to create fresh work daily as people around the globe experience her installations "Infinity Mirrored Rooms."
"My Son" stars Guillaume Canet ("Tell No One") and Melanie Laurent ("Inglourious Basterds"). Premiered at Cannes Film Festival in 2017, it focuses on a husband and wife as they face the crisis of their lives. Julien (Canet) travels constantly for work, and his perpetual absence from home has wrecked his marriage. During a stopover in France, he gets a message from his distraught ex-wife (Laurent): Mathys, their seven-year-old, has gone missing.
"Love, Gilda" She was a spectacular presence on national TV back when "Saturday Night Live" was innovative and really funny. Diaries, audiotapes, videotapes and testimonies from friends and colleagues infuse poignancy to the rapid rise and fall of TV comic Gilda Radner.
"Bisbee 17" In 1917, nearly 2,000 immigrant miners, on strike for higher wages and improved working conditions, were brutally attacked by their armed neighbors, herded onto cattle cars, shipped to the middle of the New Mexican desert and left to die. This largely forgotten event is known as the Bisbee Deportation. The film documents locals as they play characters and stage scenes from the controversial story, culminating in a large-scale recreation of the deportation on the day of its 100th anniversary.
"Bad Reputation" is a bio-documentary on the life and career of musician Joan Jett.
"Science Fair" Nine high school students from disparate corners of the globe navigate rivalries, setbacks, and hormones on their quest to win the international science fair. Only one can be named "Best in Fair."
"306 Hollywood" When two siblings begin an archaeological dig at their late grandmother's house, they embark on a magic-realist trip in search of what life remains in the objects left behind.
"Studio 54" Warning: the title may remind some of 1998's cringeworthy disco-mania version "54," from Mark Christopher. Relax, this one draws on previously hidden sources to show what went on behind the velvet rope. Director Matt Tyrnauer zooms in on Studio 54's celebrity owners Steve Rubell (dead from AIDS in 1989) and Ian Schrager, who met at college and lived to showcase the exhilarating highs and deadly lows of the club scene. Elton John, Cher, Grace Jones and other celebs bumped up against common guys and gals lucky enough to get in.
"Free Solo" From directors Chai Vasarheyli and Jimmy Chin. Follow Alex Honnold as he becomes the first person ever to free-solo climb Yosemite's 3,000-ft.-high El Capitan Wall. With no ropes or safety gear, he completed arguably the greatest feat in rock-climbing history.
"The Happy Prince" Written, directed and starring Rupert Everett, the last days in the tragic times of Oscar Wilde, who observes his failure with ironic distance, and regards the difficulties that beset his life with detachment and humor.
"The Guilty" This Danish thriller follows a police officer who enters a race against time when he answers an emergency call from a kidnapped woman.
"Life and Nothing More" In his impressive second feature, Spanish filmmaker Antonio M�ndez Esparza follows up "Aqu� y all�" with another sensitive portrait of working-class people struggling in the margins of society. Stressed by the mounting pressures of raising two children and fighting to get by on minimum wage, single mother Regina (Regina Williams) longs for more to her life than constant work, while attempting to instill in 14-year-old Andrew (Andrew Bleechington) the values she hopes will prevent him from winding up in prison like his father.
"The War at Home" A re-release of the 1979 Oscar-winning Best Documentary Feature. Consists of interviews with folks leading the Madison, Wisconsin resistance the Vietnam War.
"Maria by Callas" Intimate look at the life and work of temperamental but charismatic Greek-American opera singer Maria Callas, as told in her own words.
"The Great Buster: A Celebration" Peter Bogdanovich's insightful documentary celebrates the life and career of prolific and influential filmmaker Buster Keaton. Stunning restorations of archival works bring Keaton's magic to life. Bogdanovich's dive into the Keaton archives reveals a visionary artist who put everything on the line for a laugh in such films as "The General" (1926), "Steamboat Bill Jr." (1928), and many others. Interviews with Mel Brooks, Quentin Tarantino, Werner Herzog, Carl Reiner, and Dick Van Dyke.
"Shoplifters" Winner of 2018 Palme D'Or at Cannes. Directed by acclaimed Japanese director Hirokazu Kore-eda, it's the tale of a family of small-time crooks as they adopt a child they find on the street.
"Capernum" A politically-charged fable, featuring mostly non-professional actors, concerning a child who launches a lawsuit against his parents.