Movie Preview: 10 Films to See in September

This month's notable theatrical releases

Below, our editors have selected 10 interesting films debuting this month, listed in alphabetical order.

Bird People Watch trailer
NR Foreign/Drama | September 12 | Directed by Pascale Ferran

Also by this director:

80 Lady Chatterley (2007)

With her first feature in seven years, director Pascale Ferran looks at the isolated lives of Gary, an American engineer played by The Good Wife's Josh Charles, and Audrey (Anais Demoustier), a hotel chambermaid at an airport hotel on the outskirts of Paris. The first half of the film focuses on Gary as he disassembles his life, while the second half takes a magical turn as Audrey takes center-stage. With a narrative twist that won’t be given away here, the film became a favorite of many critics at Cannes this year, with The New York Times’ Manohla Dargis calling it “delightful, and delightfully eccentric.”

The Boxtrolls Watch trailer
PG Animation/Family | September 26 | Directed by Graham Annable and Anthony Stacchi

This adaptation of Alan Snow’s illustrated novel Here Be Monsters! comes from Laika, the Portland-based team behind stop-motion favorites Coraline and ParaNorman. The story follows Eggs (voiced by Game of Thrones’ Isaac Hempstead-Wright), a young orphan boy raised by Boxtrolls, a lovable group of underground trash collectors who live under the town of Cheesebridge. When an evil exterminator (Ben Kingsley) threatens Egg’s makeshift family, he attempts to save them with the help of Winnie (Elle Fanning), a young heiress to the fortune of one of the town’s cheese-loving families. The talented voice cast also includes Jared Harris, Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Richard Ayoade, and Toni Collette.

The Disappearance Of Eleanor Rigby Watch trailer
R Drama | September 12 ("Them" version) | Directed by Ned Benson

When is a 122-minute movie too short? When it is two widely praised movies edited down and spliced together. Writer-director Ned Benson’s debut feature explores the dissolution of a marriage from the perspective of Eleanor (Jessica Chastain) and Connor (James McAvoy). When it premiered in Toronto last year, viewers experienced the dual perspectives as two separate films, subtitled “Him” and “Her," each 90 minutes long and played back to back (with the order of the films switched for a second screening). But for that twin-film experience you’ll have to wait until October 10th, when the Her and Him versions will get a limited theatrical release. This month, the 122-minute “Them” premieres. Cut by Benson and original editor Kristina Boden, this shortened and combined version premiered at Cannes in May, where it received a less-enthusiastic response than the original films. But Variety critic Scott Foundas, who reviewed both the Toronto and Cannes editions, noted, “In all its versions The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby is a film of marked ambition that turns out to know a fair bit about love and loss and the various ways in which we do and don’t grow up to become our parents.”

The Drop Watch trailer
R Drama | September 12 | Directed by Michaël R. Roskam

Also by this director:

68 Bullhead (2012)

After writing for The Wire and Boardwalk Empire and having three of his novels made into a trio of well-reviewed movies (Mystic River, Gone Baby Gone, Shutter Island), Dennis Lehane has finally written his first screenplay. Crime drama The Drop is based on his own short story Animal Rescue (the film’s original title), and it comes to the big screen with a stellar cast (Tom Hardy, Noomi Rapace, James Gandolfini) and a director, Michaël R. Roskam, coming off an exciting debut (Bullhead). (This will be Roskam's English-language debut.) Drop's story revolves around a robbery at a bar where Hardy’s Bob Saginowski works for his cousin Marv (played by Gandolfini in his final screen appearance). An investigation ensues that involves mobsters, cops, and old neighborhood secrets.

The Guest Watch trailer
R Thriller | September 17 | Directed by Adam Wingard

Also by this director:

66 You're Next (2013)
52 A Horrible Way to Die (2011)
48 Autoerotic (2011)

The latest from writer Simon Barrett and director Adam Wingard, the team behind You’re Next, is “an even better genre pastiche,” according to A.A. Dowd of the A.V. Club. The Guest stars Downton Abbey’s Dan Stevens as David Collins, an ex-soldier who introduces himself to the family (parents Leland Orser and Sheila Kelley and kids Maika Monroe and Brendan Meyer) of his deceased Army buddy, Caleb Peterson. But after earning the Petersons’ trust, they begin to suspect that David is not exactly who he claims to be.

The Skeleton Twins Watch trailer
R Drama | September 12 | Directed by Craig Johnson

Also by this director:

57 True Adolescents (2011)

Writer-director Craig Johnson (True Adolescents) and co-writer Mark Heyman (Black Swan) won the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award at Sundance in January for this story about estranged siblings Milo (Bill Hader) and Maggie (Kristen Wiig), who reunite when Milo is hospitalized after attempting suicide. It’s not all drama, however, as the film relies on the Saturday Night Live alums’ comedic chemistry and the power of Starship’s “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” to heal the pair’s wounds. Helping in their recovery are Luke Wilson as Maggie’s husband and Ty Burrell as a man from Milo’s romantic past.

Stray Dogs Watch trailer
NR Foreign/Drama | September 12 | Directed by Ming-liang Tsai

Also by this director:

78 I Don't Want to Sleep Alone (2007)
45 The Wayward Cloud (2007)
82 Good Bye, Dragon Inn (2004)
79 What Time Is It Over There? (2002)
55 He liu (2001)

Tsai Ming-liang’s latest feature, his first in four years, won the the Grand Jury Prize at last year’s Venice Film Festival, where his long takes and disregard for conventional narrative resulted in a few walk-outs along with all of the praise. His films have always challenged the attention span of the modern moviegoer, but for those who can get on his wavelength, they offer plenty of rewards as well. While in Venice, Tsai hinted that Stray Dogs, the story of an impoverished family struggling to survive in Taipei, could be his final film, so it is fitting that Lee Kang-sheng, his longtime collaborator, stars in what could be Tsai’s first and last film shot on digital.

Tracks Watch trailer
PG-13 Drama | September 19 | Directed by John Curran

Also by this director:

58 Stone (2010)
69 The Painted Veil (2006)
66 We Don't Live Here Anymore (2004)
79 Praise (2000)

Mia Wasikowska stars as Robyn Davidson in this true tale of her 1977 trek across 1,700 miles of Australian desert. Accompanied by camels, a dog, and, occasionally, National Geographic photographer Rick Smolan (Adam Driver), Davidson’s journey is brought to life by director John Curran and cinematographer Mandy Walker (Australia). The film has already screened elsewhere in the world, and early reviews have been positive, especially for Wasikowska’s performance.

Tusk Watch trailer
R Horror | September 19 | Directed by Kevin Smith

Also by this director:

50 Red State (2011)
31 Cop Out (2010)
56 Zack and Miri Make a Porno (2008)
65 Clerks II (2006)
43 Jersey Girl (2004)
51 Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001)
62 Dogma (1999)
71 Chasing Amy (1997)
41 Mallrats (1995)
70 Clerks (1994)

The first film of what Kevin Smith is calling his True North Trilogy (which will eventually include Yoga Hosers and Moose Jaws—yes, that's Jaws with a moose rather than a shark) stars Justin Long as Wallace, a podcaster enslaved and experimented on by an old sailor played by Smith’s Red State star Michael Parks. Genesis Rodriguez and Haley Joel Osment play Wallace’s girlfriend and pal, who come looking for him. Look for early reviews shortly after Tusk premieres at TIFF on September 6th.

The Two Faces of January Watch trailer
PG-13 Thriller | September 26 | Directed by Hossein Amini

Drive screenwriter Hossein Amini makes his directorial debut with this adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s 1964 novel about a vacationing American con artist and his wife (played by Viggo Mortensen and Kirsten Dunst, respectively), and a Greek-speaking American tour guide (Oscar Isaac) who forms a dangerous bond with the couple. Film adaptations of Highsmith’s work include The Talented Mr. Ripley, Strangers on a Train, and Todd Haynes’ upcoming film, Carol, starring Rooney Mara and Cate Blanchett. Early reviews of The Two Faces of January have been promising, though not on par with those earlier releases.

What do you think?

Which films are you looking forward to this month? Let us know in the comments section below. For a complete, updated listing of all upcoming film releases by date, including other September releases and films arriving later in 2014 and beyond, visit our Movie Calendar.