Here we look at the upcoming month’s offerings.

October 4, 2019

Joker

Premise: From IMDb: “A failed stand-up comedian is driven insane and becomes a psychopathic murderer.”
Box Office Prospects: $150 M
Expectations: Good. Although the film doesn’t fit into the current DC Extended Universe, it’s still a DC film, which should allow it to make a fairly large sum of money.
Oscar Prospects: Good. There’s talk of Joaquin Phoenix being an Oscar contender for this role. He would be the second person to be nominated should that occur and the second to win for this same role as well if he should.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

The Current War (Limited)

Premise: From IMDb: “The dramatic story of the cutthroat race between electricity titans Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse to determine whose electrical system would power the modern world.”
Box Office Prospects: $5 M
Expectations: Weak. The film has been hold for a number of years due to the fall-out over the collapse of The Weinstein Company. It doesn’t have a lot of prospects.
Oscar Prospects: None.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

Pain and Glory (Limited)

Premise: From IMDb: “A film director reflects on the choices he’s made in life as past and present come crashing down around him.”
Box Office Prospects: $3.5 M
Expectations: Uncertain. Pedro Almovodar isn’t the biggest box office draw, but at the specialty box office, his films do all right.
Oscar Prospects: Uncertain. The film had solid word of mouth out of the festival circuit, so it’s at least a contender for Best International Film (if submitted) and star Antonio Banderas is also a possibility.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

October 11, 2019

The Addams Family

Premise: From IMDb: “An animated version of Charles Addams’ series of cartoons about a peculiar, ghoulish family.”
Box Office Prospects: $120 M
Expectations: Uncertain. There’s no certainty that this film will be a box office hit, but fewer animated films this year could give it a nice boost at the box office.
Oscar Prospects: Uncertain. It’s one of the few animated features this year that could be popular enough to make a run for a Best Animated Feature nomination, but its chances aren’t great.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

Gemini Man

Premise: From IMDb: “An over-the-hill hitman faces off against a younger clone of himself.”
Box Office Prospects: $175 M
Expectations: Good. A Will Smith sci-fi film where he plays an older and younger version of himself. That could rescue his flagging box office career.
Oscar Prospects: Uncertain. Ang Lee hasn’t been an Oscar contender for a long while. This just doesn’t seem like the kind of movie the Academy supports, though.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

Jexi

Premise: From IMDb: “A comedy about what can happen when you love your phone more than anything else in your life.”
Box Office Prospects: $50 M
Expectations: Uncertain. This type of comedy has struggled at the box office in recent years, so there’s no certainty that it will be a box office hit.
Oscar Prospects: None.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

Parasite (Limited)

Premise: From IMDb: “All unemployed, Ki-taek’s family takes peculiar interest in the wealthy and glamorous Parks for their livelihood until they get entangled in an unexpected incident.”
Box Office Prospects: $5 M
Expectations: Uncertain. With its Oscar potential, the film could play well at the specialty box office.
Oscar Prospects: Good. South Korea will submit the film for consideration and although the director’s prior films have been too offbeat for the Academy to consider, this might be closer to their wheelhouse.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

October 18, 2019

Maleficent: Mistress of Evil

Premise: From IMDb: “The complex relationship of Maleficent and Aurora continues to be explored as they face new threats to the magical land of the Moors.”
Box Office Prospects: $200 M
Expectations: Excellent. Disney hasn’t struggled too much with its live-action adaptations of animated films, though this sequel will be an interesting test for the continuance of the trend.
Oscar Prospects:
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

Zombieland 2: Double Tap

Premise: From IMDb: “Columbus, Tallahasse, Wichita, and Little Rock move to the American heartland as they face off against evolved zombies, fellow survivors, and the growing pains of the snarky makeshift family.”
Box Office Prospects: $70 M
Expectations: Uncertain. It’s been ten years since the first film came out and became a cult hit, now we’re seeing an attempt to establish a sequel and see if the box office will respond. It could, but it probably won’t.
Oscar Prospects: None.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

The Lighthouse (Limited)

Premise: From IMDb: “The story of two lighthouse keepers on a remote and mysterious New England island in the 1890s.”
Box Office Prospects: $1 M
Expectations: Weak. This type of film never does well at the box office, but critical acclaim and Oscar consideration might change that.
Oscar Prospects: Weak. Apart from its performances, the film isn’t likely to play well to Oscar voters and even the performances are likely to be ignored.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

October 25, 2019

Black and Blue

Premise: From IMDb: “‘Black and Blue’ is an action thriller about a rookie cop (Naomie Harris) who inadvertently captures the murder of a young drug dealer on her body cam. After realizing that the murder was committed by corrupt cops, she teams up with the one person from her community who is willing to help her (Tyrese Gibson) as she tries to escape both the criminals out for revenge and the police who are desperate to destroy the incriminating footage.”
Box Office Prospects: $55 M
Expectations: Uncertain. This genre has produced numerous films, few from this particular perspective, but that won’t bolster its fortunes much.
Oscar Prospects: None.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.