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Shadows reviews Trailers and other previews... ALL COMMENTS BY RICH CLINE
C O M I N G S O O N to the UK & US...	O N T H E H O R I Z O N can’t hardly wait...
69th London Film Fest 8-19.Oct.25 17 Oct: FRANKENSTEIN ROOFMAN URCHIN BALLAD OF A SMALL PLAYER BLUE MOON THE WILDERNESS* YOUR HOST BROKEN BIRD SHE'S THE HE SOULEYMANE'S STORY (Fr) 24 Oct: BUGONIA AFTER THE HUNT HEDDA SKETCH 31 Oct: RELAY* SHELBY OAKS PALESTINE 36 7 Nov: THE CHORAL BUGONIA CHRISTY ODYSSEY GRAND PRIX OF EUROPE 14 Nov: JAY KELLY PARK AVENUE* CACTUS PEARS (Ind) NIGHT OF THE JUGGLER 21 Nov: CHRISTY THE THING WITH FEATHERS THE ICE TOWER (Fr) ZODIAC KILLER PROJECT 28 Nov: WAKE UP DEAD MAN BLUE MOON THE THING WITH FEATHERS ZODIAC KILLER PROJECT 5 Dec: JAY KELLY 12 Dec: WAKE UP DEAD MAN LITTLE TROUBLE GIRLS (Svn) 25 Dec: THE CHORAL 23 Jan: THE HISTORY OF SOUND 19 Feb: TWO PROSECUTORS (Fr) RELEASE DATE TBC . . . 213 BONES CIELO (Bol) THE DARK FANTASTIC DEPARTURES HEAVYWEIGHT HIGH TIDE HOW TO BUILD A TRUTH ENGINE KILL THE JOCKEY (Arg) THE LOVE THAT REMAINS (Ice) LURKER NIGHT STAGE (Br) OUR HAPPY PLACE THE PLEASURE IS MINE (Arg) ROMERIA (Sp) TWINLESS * reviews under embargo C O M I N G U P . . . • HAMNET. AFTER THE HUNT. TRAIN DREAMS. HEDDA. ANEMONE. FRANKENSTEIN. IS THIS THING ON. RENTAL FAMILY. LA GRAZIA. THE VILE. IN WAVES AND WAR. SHELBY OAKS. THE MARBLES. 300 LETTERS. • ELTON JOHN: NEVER TOO LATE. THE BITTER TEARS OF ZAHRA ZAND. • SPRINGSTEEN: DELIVER ME FROM NOWHERE. FRANKENSTEIN. HORIZON CHAPTER II. UNRELEASED FESTIVAL FILMS . . . • FrightFest: THE DEGENERATE. DON'T LET THE CAT OUT. MALPERTUIS. NIGHT OF VIOLENCE. PIG HILL. WHERE IS JUAN MOCTEZUMA? • Raindance: BEAM ME UP SULU. BREAKWATER. A CELL PHONE MOVIE. FLAMINGO CAMP. IF YOU SHOULD LEAVE BEFORE ME. THE LONELY MUSKETEER. SOMEWHERE IN LOVE. • SXSW London: THE OLD WOMAN WITH THE KNIFE. TORO. • Flare: DREAMS IN NIGHTMARES. DRIVE BACK HOME. FATHERHOOD. A FEW FEET AWAY. MEA CULPA. MEMORABILIA. REALLY HAPPY SOMEDAY. SAD JOKES. SANDBAG DAM. WE ARE FAHEEM & KARUN. WINTER KEPT US WARM. See also: SHADOWS FILM FEST	SPRINGSTEEN: DELIVER ME FROM NOWHERE dir-scr Scott Cooper; with Jeremy Allen White, Stephen Graham, Gaby Hoffmann, Jeremy Strong, Paul Walter Hauser, Marc Maron, David Krumholtz, Odessa Young, Grace Gummer 25/US release US/UK 24.Oct.25 Casting Jeremy Allen White as Bruce Springsteen feels like a stroke of genius lateral thinking, as the actor will bring his tightly wound physicality to the role in a way that's bound to be fascinating. Scott Cooper has a strong history with musical biopics (see Crazy Heart), and the eclectic cast he has assembled bodes well - that the film will take a more intriguing approach rather than abroadly crowd-pleasing one. The UK release date hints at a possible London Film Festival slot. FRANKENSTEIN dir-scr Guillermo del Toro; with Oscar Isaac, Jacob Elordi, Mia Goth, Christoph Waltz, Charles Dance, Ralph Ineson, Burn Gorman, David Bradley David Bradley 25/UK release US/UK 7.Nov.25 It feels like Guillermo del Toro has wanted to make this movie forever, as it plays into his strengths in telling monster stories that are infused with emotional undercurrents. It will clearly look terrific, and the cast is solid, anchored by Oscar Isaac and Jacob Elordi as the mad scientist and his indelible creation. Despite the dark, overwrought production design, this looks like an unusually faithful adaptation of Mary Shelley's groundbreaking novel. So the big question is what kind of theatrical release Netflix will give it. NOW YOU SEE ME: NOW YOU DON'T dir Ruben Fleischer; with Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Dave Franco, Isla Fisher, Justice Smith, Dominic Sessa, Ariana Greenblatt, Rosamund Pike, Morgan Freeman, Mark Ruffalo, Daniel Radcliffe 25/US release US/UK 14.Nov.25 The increasingly stacked cast of this third magical action thriller is a little worrying, because they will all need to get their screen time. These are guilty pleasure movies that work best when they don't take themselves too seriously, and also when they use in-camera magic tricks rather than cheating with digital effects. The most promising thing here that the new screenwriting team includes Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, who should inject more fun (and hopefully coherence) than previous chapters. NUREMBERG dir-scr James Vanderbilt; with Russell Crowe, Rami Malek, Michael Shannon, Leo Woodall, Richard E Grant, Colin Hanks, John Slattery, Lotte Verbeek 25/US release US 7.Nov.25, UK 14.Nov.25 With a stacked cast and meaty subject matter, this dark drama will explore the psychological roots of the Nazi atrocities. Set just after the war ended as the legal cases were being established against the German leaders, this is bound to be intense and not very easy to watch. But the actors should be able to add intriguing nuances to these roles, and hopefully the present-day parallels will be both handled with a light touch and also present and accounted for. I'm avoiding reading reviews before I see it. WICKED: FOR GOOD dir Jon M Chu; with Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, Jonathan Bailey Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater, Peter Dinklage, Bowen Yang 25/UK release US/UK 21.Nov.25 After the surprising high quality of first part, on every concievable level, it's a no-brainer that this is the year's most anticipated film. They were made at the same time, so the standard of production will be just as full-on. But the story takes a very different path in the second half, namely following Dorothy and friends as they travel the yellow brick road, but seen through the eyes of witches Glinda and Elphaba (Grande and Erivo). It's difficult to tamp down expectations, because we know it will be spectacular. Let's hope the emotional kick resonates. IT WAS JUST AN ACCIDENT dir-scr Jafar Panahi; with Vahid Mobasseri, Mariam Afshari, Ebrahim Azizi, Hadis Pakbaten, Majid Panahi, Mohamad Ali Elyasmehr 25/Irn release US 15.Oct.25, UK 5.Dec.25 It's simply impossible to ignore any film made by Iranian master Jafar Panahi, who has been continually detained by his own government, so has to work in secret and smuggle his movies to festivals. His work is simply wonderful, packed with earthy humour, realistic characters and remarkably original approaches to enormous social issues, never pulling any punches while also maintaining an unusually human perspective. This crime adventure has wowed festival audiences. It's at the London Film Festival in October. AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH dir James Cameron; with Zoe Saldana, Kate Winslet, Sigourney Weaver, Cliff Curtis, Giovanni Ribisi, Sam Worthington, David Thewlis, Edie Falco Edie Falco, Jemaine Clement 25/NZ release US/UK 19.Dec.25 James Cameron continues with his passion project, which is turning into a franchise with this third instalment. The first trailer (which was shown to the press in 3D and was genuinely impressive) looks like an intriguing continuation of the story into a new realm, where Cameron can play around with new colours and textures in this increasingly varied distant planet. He's very good at creating simple stories that grab hold of the audience, matched by eye-catching imagery and groundbreaking special effects. So obviously, we'll all be there to see what comes next. 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/US release US/UK tbc After his enjoyable three-hour prologue ended on an extended montage of scenes to come, we're hoping some 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. After its premiere at Venice in 2024, word was that it's more of the same. Costner has plans for two further chapters, but there's after more than a year there's no release date for this one. Also on my want-to-see list... Autumn: SWIPED ADULTHOOD THE ASTRONAUT FAIRYLAND GOOD FORTUNE IF I HAD LEGS I'D KICK YOU STITCH HEAD DIE, MY LOVE IN YOUR DREAMS KEEPER PREDATOR: BADLANDS THE RUNNING MAN THE WOMAN IN CABIN 10 Winter: ANACONDA HAMNET THE HOUSEMAID IS THIS THING ON? MARTY SUPREME SONG SUNG BLUE WAKE UP DEAD MAN 28 YEARS LATER: THE BONE TEMPLE THE PEOPLE WE MEET ON VACATION THE RIP WE BURY THE DEAD WUTHERING HEIGHTS Spring: THE BRIDE THE MANDALORIAN AND GROGU Release TBC: ETERNITY NO OTHER CHOICE
Release dates: British film release schedules are even more fluid than American ones, so please be patient as I try to keep up with 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 distributors are increasingly restrictive (and proscriptive) about when reviews can run. Normally, once the film is shown to a paying audience, even at a festival, the full review can be posted. © 2025 by Rich Cline, Shadows on the Wall HOME \| REVIEWS \| NEWS \| FESTIVAL \| AWARDS \| Q&A \| ABOUT \| TALKBACK