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GLADIATOR II  
RED ONE
JOY
SKINCARE
CHRISTMAS EVE IN MILLER'S POINT
ALL WE IMAGINE AS LIGHT (Ind)
THE LAST DANCE (Chn)22 Nov: 
WICKED: PART I
GLADIATOR II
JOY
LAYLA
FLOW
I'M STILL HERE (Br)
A TRAVELER'S NEEDS (Kor)
NEVER LOOK AWAY29 Nov:
ALL WE IMAGINE AS LIGHT (Ind)
CONCLAVE
MARIA
QUEER
THAT CHRISTMAS
YOUR MONSTER6 Dec:
MERCHANT IVORY
NIGHTBITCH
RUMOURS
THAT CHRISTMAS
UNSTOPPABLE13 Dec:
THE COLOURS WITHIN (Jpn)
NICKEL BOYS
QUEER 20 Dec:
THE BRUTALIST 
WALLACE & GROMIT: VENGEANCE MOST FOWL 27 Dec:
BETTER MAN
NOSFERATU*
WALLACE & GROMIT: VENGEANCE MOST FOWL 3 Jan: 
NICKEL BOYS
NOSFERATU*
WE LIVE IN TIME 10 Jan:
HARD TRUTHS
MARIA
A REAL PAIN 17 Jan:
PADDINGTON IN PERU 24 Jan:
THE BRUTALIST 31 Jan:
HARD TRUTHS
SATURDAY NIGHTRELEASE DATE TBC . . .
C O M I N G U P . . .
UNRELEASED FESTIVAL FILMS . . . 
• FrightFest:
7 KEYS. THE DAEMON.
THE DEAD THING. DERELICT.
FRIGHT. LADYBUG.
SCARLET BLUE. TRAUMATIKA.• Annecy: ROCK BOTTOM. THE BIRTH OF KITARO: THE MYSTERY OF GEGEGE. • Flare: ALIGNED. BALDIGA: UNLOCKED HEART. CALLS FROM MOSCOW. COMMITMENT TO LIFE. DESIRE LINES. DON'T EVER STOP. LADY LIKE. PINE CONE. TOLL. UNSPOKEN. WE FORGOT TO BREAK UP. WHAT A FEELING. SHADOWS FILM FEST |
KRAVEN THE HUNTER
dir JC Chandor; with Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Russell Crowe, Ariana DeBose, Fred Hechinger, Christopher Abbott, Alessandro Nivola, Levi Miller, Chi Lewis-Parry 24/USrelease US/UK 13.Dec.24 Delayed and delayed, and then delayed some more after decades of development, this Sony-Marvel spinoff is yet another feature centring around a Spider-Man villain (see also Venom, Morbius and Madame Web). But it looks more intriguing, thanks to the presence of Aaron Taylor-Johnson (and those abs) and offbeat cast members like Ariana DeBose, Fred Hechinger and Christopher Abbott. And hopefully director JC Chandor will be allowed to bring a fresh perspective here. HERE
dir Robert Zemeckis; with Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, Michelle Dockery, Kelly Reilly, Paul Bettany, Ophelia Lovibond, Nikki Amuka-Bird, Jonathan Aris
24/USrelease US 1.Nov.24, UK 17.Jan.25 Based on a graphic novel, this film is a 30-year reunion for Forrest Gump director Robert Zemeckis, writer Eric Roth and stars Tom Hanks and Robin Wright. As a multi-generational drama about family connections, we can expect Zemeckis' usual boundary-pushing special effects here, with Hanks and Wright ageing up and down. Although the generic title doesn't bode well, the talent does. Let's hope they can keep the heartwarming sentiment in check. (Alas, reviews on the US release weren't great.) MUFASA: THE LION KING
dir Barry Jenkins; with Aaron Pierre, Kelvin Harrison Jr, Seth Rogen, Billy Eichner, John Kani, Mads Mikkelsen, Thandiwe Newton, Donald Glover, Beyonce 24/USrelease US/UK 20.Dec.24 This prequel explores the life of Simba's dad, as told with photo-real animation like the 2019 remake of The Lion King. What makes this particularly intriguing, aside from the terrific (if rather gimmicky) voice cast, is the fact that it's being directed by Barry Jenkins. He has spoken of his love for this story, so let's hope that Disney allows him to tell it in his own expert way, rather than trying to please focus groups and studio execs. A COMPLETE UNKNOWN
dir James Mangold; with Timothee Chalamet, Elle Fanning, Edward Norton, Monica Barbaro, Boyd Holbrook, Scoot McNairy, Dan Fogler, Charlie Tahan 24/USrelease US 25.Dec.24, UK 17.Jan.25 Casting Timothee Chalamet as Bob Dylan feels like a stunt, but filmmaker James Mangold is smarter than that. So this biopic is certain to be something unexpected, taking what is sure to be an introspective look at a key moment in pop music history when in 1965 Dylan went electric, shifting from acoustic folk music to more urgent rock-n-roll. Mangold's attention to detail will make sure this film looks and sounds like nothing we've seen before, and with a script he wrote with Jay Cocks, it could be properly powerful. PRESENCE
dir Steven Soderbergh; with Lucy Liu, Julia Fox, Chris Sullivan, Callina Liang, West Mulholland, Lucas Papaelias, Eddy Maday, Natalie Woolams-Torres 24/USrelease US/UK 24.Jan.25 Steven Soderbergh continues to experiment with new genres and filmmaking approaches, and this looks like a properly nasty horror thriller with a script by David Koepp and a lean 85-minute running time. A refreshingly offbeat cast will help make the film even more involving, as it circles around a group of people dealing with crippling paranoia in an isolated location. Indeed, word after its premiere screening at Sundance has been very strong, calling it an intense slow burn. STAR TREK: SECTION 31
dir Olatunde Osunsanmi; with Michelle Yeoh, Sam Richardson, Omari Hardwick, Kacey Rohl, Humberly Gonzalez, Robert Kazinsky, Miku Martineau, Avaah Blackwell 25/USrelease US/UK 24.Jan.25 A spin-off continuation from the series Star Trek: Discovery, this film is notable because it's centred on Michelle Yeoh's Philippa Georgiou, a seriously great character who easily deserves a feature-length adventure all her own. In this one, she'll be facing up to her past crimes while joining a secret government group that's tasked with protecting the United Federation of Planets. Much of the series team is involved in this movie, which will premiere on streaming. But I'm hoping there's a big-screen press screening. MICKEY 17
dir Bong Joon Ho; with Robert Pattinson, Toni Collette, Mark Ruffalo, Naomi Ackie, Steven Yeun, Thomas Turgoose, Angus Imrie, Patsy Ferran 25/UKrelease UK/US 18.Apr.25 It's been five years since Bong Joon Ho took the world by storm, and won every award going, for Parasite. And now he has teamed up with Warner Bros for this big-scale action comedy about an expendable worker who is sent to colonise a distant planet. The cast is terrific, and it's bound to look amazing through Bong's distinctly inventive eyes. The only concern is whether the studio lets his imagination run with it. Because they seem to be worried, as evidenced by the fact that the release date was pushed back to January, bypassing awards contention, then into April. HORIZON: AN AMERICAN SAGA - CHAPTER II
dir Kevin Costner; with Kevin Costner, Sienna Miller, Sam Worthington, Giovanni Ribisi, Abbey Lee, Luke Wilson, Dale Dickey, Georgia MacPhail 24/USrelease US/UK tbc After his enjoyable three-hour prologue ended on an extended montage of scenes to come, we're hoping for dramatic resolution to the various plot strands Kevin Costner left dangling. Chapter 2 looks just as spectacular visually, with its expansive settings and colourful ensemble, including a promising glimpse of a sneering Giovanni Ribisi. Word out of Venice was only OK on this one. And Costner is working on two further chapters. But there's no word yet on a release for this one. Also on my want-to-see list... 
Autumn: MOANA 2
SPELLBOUND
Winter: CARRY-ON
THE END
THE ORDER
THE SIX TRIPLE EIGHT
YOU'RE CORDIALLY INVITED
THE MONKEY
BRIDGET JONES: MAD ABOUT THE BOY
CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD
Spring/Summer 2025: SNOW WHITE
SINNERS
MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE - THE FINAL RECKONING
THUNDERBOLTS
BALLERINA
F1
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Release dates: British film release schedules are much more fluid than American ones, so please be patient as I try to keep up with UK distributors. I'm working to keep this list up-to-date as they keep trying to outfox me. I'm sure it's personal. Embargoes: Britain's Film Distributors Association asks us to hold reviews until the week of release, and some distributors are even more restrictive. Normally, once the film is shown to a paying audience, either on release or at a festival, the full review can appear on the site. © 2024 by Rich Cline, Shadows on the Wall HOME | REVIEWS | NEWS | FESTIVAL | AWARDS | Q&A | ABOUT | TALKBACK | ||
• A COMPLETE UNKNOWN. THE DAY OF THE FIGHT. THE TASTE OF MANGO. HEAVIER TRIP. BAM.
BONHOFFER. THE SEED OF THE SACRED FIG. THE ORDER.