60. “Black Widow”
Director: Cate Shortland (“Somersault,” “Berlin Syndrome”)
Cast: Scarlett Johansson, David Harbour, Florence Pugh, O-T Fagbenle, Rachel Weisz
Synopsis: A prequel that follows Natasha Romanoff after the events of “Captain America: Civil War,” and before her untimely death in ‘Endgame.’
What You Need To Know: After three phases, billions of dollars, a few COVID-related delays, and a feud with Martin Scorsese, where does the Marvel Cinematic Universe go next? It seems the franchise is moving forward by going back with their first Phase 4 film, “Black Widow.” “Black Widow” lands at an interesting time for the pop culture behemoth, as Marvel will continue to grow its wings with endless storytelling opportunities on Disney+. How the film will fare in our current moviegoing climate remains to be seen. While arthouse fave Cate Shortland is an inspired pick to direct, 23 movies into the MCU, we’re reasonably sure she won’t be straying too far from Marvel’s winning formula.
Release Date: May 7, 2021, via Marvel. – Kevin Jagernauth
59. “The Velvet Underground”
Director: Todd Haynes (“Carol”)
Cast Lou Reed, Nico, John Cale, and presumably Andy Warhol.
Synopsis: A documentary explores the multiple threads that converged to bring together one of the most influential bands in rock and roll.
What You Need To Know: Todd Haynes has a well-documented history with rock n’ roll culture, whether it’s the feckless experimental streak on display in his proto-Bowie glam odyssey “Velvet Goldmine,” or his divisive, stylish deconstruction of the Bob Dylan persona, “I’m Not There.” Haynes fanatics can now rejoice knowing that the acclaimed filmmaker’s next project will take a look at avant-garde proto-punk pioneers, The Velvet Underground. This is rich material for Haynes, presumably covering the 1960’s in New York City, Lou Reed’s contentious relationship with the German model and Gothic crooner Nico, and the band’s connection to Andy Warhol and the Factory.
Release Date: TBD. – NL
58 “Shulan River”
Director: Hou Hsiao-Hsien (“Millennium Mambo,” “Flight of the Red Balloon”)
Cast: Shu Qi
Synopsis: A waterway enthusiast encounters a river goddess while studying the city’s waterway system.
What You Need To Know: Taiwanese legend Hou Hsiao-Hsien graced us with precisely one film this last decade, 2007’s “The Assassin,” which won him the Best Director prize in Cannes, and he’s been mostly quiet ever since. But in 2015, after Cannes, the filmmaker revealed he was working on a loose adaptation of the novel by “Shulan River” by Hsieh Hai-meng about a riverboat goddess. Set in the modern-day, the lonely river deities’ (Shu Qi) waterways have now been covered by modern roadways. “I thought, if there were a river goddess, she would be very lonely, feeling sad about this situation,” he told Film Comment in 2015. All we can guess is that any fantastic or supernatural qualities will likely be gorgeous, but atypical from what you might expect.
Release Date: TBD, but really who knows until it appears at a film festival. –RP
57. “On A Half Clear Morning”
Director: Bruno Dumont (“P’tit Quinquin,” “Slack Bay”)
Cast: Lea Seydoux, Blanche Gardin, Benoît Magimel
Synopsis: Juggling a busy career and personal life, a famous TV star and celebrity journalist’s life is overturned by a freak car accident.
What You Need To Know: French enfante terrible Bruno Dumont is starting to soften a little. The films are still austere and exacting, and Dumont still generally works with non-actors, but as he’s chilled out a bit, bigger French stars have joined his films. Seydoux is the second major star Dumont’s work with following (Juliette Binoche’s turn in ‘Camille Claudel’ and “Slack Bay”) A drama, we won’t know how severe this film is comparatively, but additional details suggest—including a producer that says the movie “highlights the excesses and hypocrisy of our highly-connected societies.”
Release Date: TBD. –RP
56. “An Afternoon with SCTV”
Director: Martin Scorsese (“The Irishman,” “Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese”)
Cast: Eugene Levy, Catherine O’ Hara, Rick Moranis, Martin Short
Synopsis: The legendary cast of SCTV is reunited, recounting stories from the famed 70’s and 80’s sketch comedy show. Hosted by Jimmy Kimmel.
What You Need To Know: Martin Scorsese is currently hard at work on the epic-sounding “Killers of the Flower Moon,” but as his legion of devoted fans surely knows, the man is consistently knocking out curious and compelling works of documentary storytelling. His latest, “An Afternoon with SCTV,” sounds like a breezy, nostalgic sit-down with some real-deal comedy legends, all of whom were members of “Second City TV,” Canada’s answer to “Saturday Night Live.” If nothing else, this sounds like catnip for vintage comedy nerds, and something to hold the Scorsese die-hards over until the “Flower Moon” eventual release.
Release Date: TBD. – NL
55. “Zola”
Director: Janicza Bravo (“Lemon”)
Cast: Taylour Paige, Riley Keough, Colman Domingo, Nicholas Braun
Synopsis: A stripper named Zola embarks on a wild road trip to Florida.
What You Need To Know: Janicza Bravo has remained one of the more idiosyncratic talents on the indie comedy scene for some time now, mastering a form of defiantly uncomfortable cringe comedy that is uniquely her own. Bravo’s next feature, seen earlier this year at Sundance by critics, is an adaptation of a Rolling Stone article by David Kushner about an exotic dancer who embarks on a road trip to Florida with her bipolar boyfriend, a sex worker, and an unhinged pimp in tow. At one point, James Franco was slated to direct the film (and let’s be real, we’re all glad that didn’t happen), although “Goat” screenwriter Andrew Neel and playwright Jeremy O. Harris have remained attached. We’ve actually already seen it out of Sundance 2020, but it sounds so awesome, we had to make the exception and include it here.
Release Date: TBD. – NL
54. “Stillwater”
Director: Tom McCarthy (“Spotlight,” “The Station Agent”)
Cast: Matt Damon, Abigail Breslin
Synopsis: A father travels from Oklahoma to France to help his daughter, arrested for murder.
What You Need To Know: Tom McCarthy appears to be making an illustrious, post-“Spotlight” return to the world of prestige filmmaking with his latest effort, tentatively titled “Stillwater.” Matt Damon will star as an Oklahoma-born “oil-rig roughneck” who becomes determined to overcome cultural barriers when he travels to Marseille to exonerate his daughter for a crime she insists she is innocent of. This sounds like the kind of thoughtful human drama at which McCarthy excels, and the fact that the story has been called “complex, surprising, and emotional” has all the trappings of a serious awards contender if it lands the way it should.
Release Date: Originally scheduled for November 6, 2020, Focus Features pulled it from the schedule this summer, presumably due to the way the pandemic had basically killed theaters. Fall 2021 seems likely. – NL
53. “Untitled Elvis Presley Project”
Director: Baz Luhrmann (“Romeo + Juliet,” “Moulin Rouge!”)
Cast: Austin Butler, Tom Hanks, Olivia DeJonge, Yolanda Quartey
Synopsis: A look at the life of the legendary rock and roll star, Elvis Presley.
What You Need To Know: Whatever Baz Luhrmann decides to make, you can assure that the results will contain many layers of pomp, glitz, and visual extravagance. In other words, he’s an ideal fit for the larger-than-life biography of rock n’ roll trailblazer Elvis Presley. He’s got an ace up his sleeve in the form of rising star Austin Butler, whose cool, measured assurance allowed him to steal small roles in 2019, in “Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood” and “The Dead Don’t Die.” In other words, he’s a damn fine choice to play the man many affectionately refer to as ‘the King.’
Release Date: November 5, 2021, via Warner Brothers. – NL
52. “Red Rocket”
Director: Sean Baker (“Tangerine,” “The Florida Project”)
Cast: Simon Rex
Synopsis: Plot details are unknown at this time.
What You Need To Know: The fact that Sean Baker, neo-realist genius and a poet of contemporary marginal Americana, secretly filmed a movie during a pandemic should count as a blessing during an otherwise very dark year, and the details surrounding that new project, “Red Rocket,” are about as peculiar as you’d expect. Word is that the movie will be a dark comedy (check out that smutty title again), and that it will feature Simon Rex (yes, that Simon Rex) acting in an ensemble at least partially composed of first-time performers. “Red Rocket,” which was lensed by in-demand DP Drew Daniels (“Waves,” “Euphoria”), is currently without a distributor, but given Baker’s considerable indie cache, don’t be surprised if the film gets picked up by the likes of A24 or Neon.
Release Date: TBD. – NL
51. “The Green Knight”
Director: David Lowery (“A Ghost Story”)
Cast: Dev Patel, Barry Keoghan, Alicia Vikander, Ralph Ineson, Sean Harris
Synopsis: A fantasy re-telling of the medieval story of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.
What You Need To Know: One of the great things about David Lowery is he seems all but committed to never making the same movie twice. “Green Knight” is another stylistic switch-up for Lowery, seeing the auteur venturing into the realm of medieval fantasy. Lowery is a filmmaker interested in surprise and delight, so we wouldn’t be surprised if “Green Knight” turns out to be somehow unconventional in the way his previous movies have been. A24, who also did a fine job handling the release of “A Ghost Story,” will handle domestic distribution after what was shaping up to be one of 2020’s starrier SXSW premieres.
Release Date: TBD, but a Sundance premiere is rumored to be in the works. – NL