It was a pretty good summer for film but now that the dog days of July and August are behind us and temperatures are beginning to simmer around the mid twenties, films increasingly look like the kind that may figure in Oscar chatter around New Year 2018.
On our screens in September and October we’ve got Tom Cruise again, horror, animated Lego, Detroit riots, Blade Runner, Thor, a super-creepy snowman and a big name documentary and more.
First up is the evergreen Tom Cruise. Cruise, whose Cruise control has been temporarily halted by an accident while filming the next Mission Impossible film, plays Barry Seal in American Made. Teaming up for a second time with director Doug Liman, after 2014’s splendidly bonkers Edge of Tomorrow, the film tells the true story of Seal, caught up in drug smuggling ’80s Colombia – between the Medellin cartel, the DEA, the CIA and the lure of cocaine riches. Reviews have been mixed with some saying that Cruise’s Seal is a welcome challenge for an actor who hasn’t been stretched in terms of a performance in over ten years, while others have seen his portrayal as hijacking a story which is full of dramatic potential. You be the judge. For me, Tom Cruise brings a dedication that always makes his films at the least, entertaining. Expect planes, perilous stunts, rise and fall and a mint-white smile. American Made is released on September 1st in Madrid.

Kathryn Bigelow, so far the only woman to win a best director Oscar, brings us Detroit on September 15th. After The Hurt Locker – for which she won the award – and Zero Dark Thirty, Detroit is another suspenseful slice of violent life. The film relives the events of the Detroit riots of 1967 which were sparked by a notorious case of police brutality in a Detroit motel. It looks loud, chaotic, and keeping with Bigelow’s simple style, real and unstylised. This could be in the running for awards and is one I’m really looking forward to. There has been a recent tide of films covering American racial tension in recent years and this appears to be another cold re-examining of American social scars. See it.
Back in 2014, Kingsman: The Secret Service was a surprise hit that really brought mad, bloody cartoon violence to the screen. It was great fun and I loved it. As an alternative to the increasingly serious Bond movies and with a huge fanbase, it was clear that a sequel would be coming. This time the scrupulously-tailored, hyper-British Kingsman gentlemen are teaming up with their American cousins, who in this world all dress in cowboy hats, drink bourbon and use a lasso in a dust up with the bad guys. The cast is impressive – with the usuals Taron Egerton, Colin Firth and Mark Strong, joined by Channing Tatum, Halle Berry and Jeff Bridges. The spies at Kingsman and their American counterparts at ‘Statesman’ are on the trail of shadowy forces which threaten to undermine the world as we know it. See it from September 22. Matthew Vaughn returns as director.

Director Darren Aronofsky made one of my favourite films of the last ten years in Black Swan and returns after the middling, batshit biblical epic, Noah, with Mother!. Jennifer Lawrence is a perfect lead for Aronofsky’s trademark brand of psychological collapse and paranoia. JLaw is joined by a stellar cast with Javier Bardem, Michelle Pfeiffer and Ed Harris – whose inclusion always brings something sinister. The fear of unwanted house guests is the centre of the psychological apparatus that starts to crumble and the film looks unnervingly claustrophobic and damp. Try it if you’re looking for something a little different. Mother! is released on the 29th.
Coming to Madrid’s screen on the same day as Mother! is the sequel to former Vice President Al Gore’s environmentalist documentary An Inconvenient Truth. Gore spent years researching this and has amassed a collection of poignant images and interviews that provide a window into the problems we face in a world with a rapidly changing climate. The science is grim and those already affected are a warning to us all for our future. The recalcitrant politicians, the deniers and the angry public all have their say in this film as Al Gore tries to bang the drum for some collective action by using his political muscle. An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power is a must-see addendum to the original Oscar-winner from 2006.

Horror fans, me included, whose tummies might still be rumbling with an insatiable appetite for yet more horror after the killer clown turmoil of IT, may find much to terrify them in the possessed-doll-dread of Annabelle: Creation. Initially a peripheral tale in the first Conjuring movie, Annabelle has come out of the cupboard and in this film we go back to the fifties to learn the origins of the doll. Annabelle terrorises a bunch of kids and all kinds of supernatural shenanigans and jump scares will leave you struggling to keep hold of your popcorn. See it from the 12th in Madrid.
The same weekend another symbol of childhood innocence is given a sinister makeover when The Snowman hits our screens (13th). Based on the novel of the same name, Michael Fassbender stars and Tomas Alfredson (Let the Right One in, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy) directs in the tale of a killer who leaves a Snowman as a calling card for his kills. Fassbender brings desperation and a tenacious grit to his detective Harry Hole – who really should do his coat up in all that snow. He is surrounded by a brilliant cast – with Rebecca Ferguson, Toby Jones, Val Kilmer, Chloë Sevigny and JK Simmons. Alfredson, as director has an impressive track record so far and I see this as one of the highlights of the next few months. See it.

Whatever you go for, have fun and I look forward to telling you about November’s movies. Enjoy!