Fall Preview 2005

Movies

Derailed
Logically enough, one of the new Weinstein Company’s first films is a thriller about two execs (Clive Owen and Jennifer Aniston) out for revenge.
• Weinstein Co., November 11.

Breakfast on Pluto
Neil Jordan directs an adaptation of Patrick McCabe’s crazy-ass novel, starring Cillian Murphy as a cheeky transvestite sweetheart.
• Sony Pictures Classics, November 18.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Ralph Fiennes debuts as He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.
• Warner Bros., November 18.

Walk the Line
Joaquin Phoenix headlines as Johnny Cash, but Reese Witherspoon as June might steal the show.
• Fox, November 18.

Syriana
Soon to be reviewed by Bill O’Reilly: a CIA film, starring a bloated George Clooney.
• Warner Bros., November 23.

Transamerica
One of the highlights at the Tribeca Film Festival was Felicity Huffman, as an oddball transsexual on a cross- country road trip.
• Weinstein Co., December 2.

Brokeback Mountain
Gay cowboys! Ang Lee casts Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger as two men who wear chaps with pride.
• Focus, December 9.

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, And The Wardrobe
Onward Christian franchises! Andrew Adamson (Shrek) directs a giant investment.
• Walt Disney, December 9.

Memoirs of a Geisha
Rob Marshall (Chicago) recruits a cast of Asian all-stars: Ziyi Zhang, Ken Watanabe, Michelle Yeoh, Gong Li, and others.
• Sony, December 9.

King Kong
The biggest movie of the fall, in every way. Peter Jackson directs Jack Black, Adrien Brody, and Naomi Watts.
• Universal, December 14.

All the King’s Men
Sean Penn plays a character based on Louisiana governor Huey Long. Co-stars include Jude Law, whom Penn apparently admires.
• Sony, December 16.

Fun with Dick and Jane
Jim Carrey and Téa Leoni play funny suburban bank robbers. Let the Mr. & Mrs. Smith comparisons begin.
• Sony, December 21.

The Producers
Joining Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick: Uma, as Ulla!
• Universal, December 21.

Munich
War of the Worlds was just Steven Spielberg’s warm-up for his real terrorism film: a drama about the 1972 Olympic terror attack.
• Universal, December 23.

Match Point
Shocking reports from Cannes indicate that Woody Allen may have directed a winner with Scarlett Johansson. We’ll see . . .
• DreamWorks, December 25.

Mrs. Henderson Presents
Stephen Frears directs a backstage comedy starring Judi Dench, Ricky Gervais, and others.
• Weinstein Co., December 25.

(Photo: Courtesy of New Line Productions)

The New World
Terrence Malick’s colonial epic stars Colin Farrell as John Smith and, unlike Alexander, does not require him to dye his hair blond.
• New Line, December 25.

Rumor Has It
A sorta sequel to The Graduate, in which Jennifer Aniston discovers that her grandmother (Shirley MacLaine) inspired the part of Mrs. Robinson.
• Warner Bros., December 25.

The Libertine
Johnny “Wino Forever” Depp stars as a wine-drenched, seductive gadabout.
• Weinstein Co., December.

What are you looking forward to this fall? Ask a film student
Swati Kapila, Tisch School of the Arts

Taste: A story is good if it could really happen, if it’s plausible. My favorite movie is Good Will Hunting.

Looking forward to: Surprisingly, Rent—Chris Columbus is an NYU grad, so I’d like to see how that turned out. And any Matt Damon movie: I have to see it opening night.

Wish list: With unlimited resources, I’d make an epic. I’d team up with Indian historians and filmmakers. Two legendary stories come to mind—the Ramayana, which is a classical Indian story, and a longer, less cohesive story, the Mahabharata.