Movie Preview: 10 Films to See in October

This month's notable theatrical releases

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

. The Assassin Watch trailer
NR Foreign/Action/Drama | October 16 | Directed by Hsiao-hsien Hou

Hou Hsiao-hsien’s first feature film in eight years earned him the best director prize at Cannes this year. Leaving the contemporary stories of Flight of the Red Balloon and Cafe Lumiere to return to the period filmmaking of Flowers of Shanghai, the director's latest tells the story of a young girl (played by Shu Qi, the star of Hou’s Three Times and Millennium Mambo), who is abducted by a nun and trained to be an assassin, only to face a difficult personal decision when the man she loves becomes her latest target. Beautifully shot in Academy ratio (1.37:1), the film combines quiet scenes of palace intrigue with breathtaking moments of martial-arts action.

. Beasts of No Nation Watch trailer
NR Drama | October 16 | Directed by Cary Fukunaga

Sin Nombre writer-director Cary Fukunaga’s adaptation of Uzodinma Iweala's 2005 novel about child soldiers in West Africa is the first dramatic feature film to be produced by Netflix. (In what could become a more common distribution model, Beasts will open in theaters on the same day it debuts on the streaming service.) It is also Fukunaga’s first post-True Detective project, and the film earned excellent reviews when it premiered in Venice, with special notice given to the performances of its two leads: Idris Elba, and 15-year-old newcomer Abraham Attah. This devastating portrait of brutality challenges audiences as Elba’s charismatic commandant introduces Attah’s Agu to the horrors of war.

. Bridge of Spies Watch trailer(s)
PG-13 Drama | October 16 | Directed by Steven Spielberg

Following Saving Private Ryan, Catch Me If You Can, and The Terminal, this is the fourth collaboration between Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks. This true story, written by Matt Charman and Ethan and Joel Coen, follows James Donovan (Hanks), a Brooklyn lawyer who finds himself thrust into the middle of the Cold War when the CIA sends him to negotiate the release of a captured American U-2 pilot. The supporting cast includes Mark Rylance, Amy Ryan, Scott Shepherd, Sebastian Koch and Alan Alda. While Spielberg’s first directorial effort since 2012’s Lincoln doesn't appear to be heading for best picture consideration, it should nevertheless be another solid piece of history-based entertainment.

. Crimson Peak Watch trailer(s)
R Horror/Thriller/Fantasy | October 16 | Directed by Guillermo del Toro

After having some fun with the Kaiju vs. Jaeger battle-rama Pacific Rim, director Guillermo del Toro returns to the ghostly environs of The Devil’s Backbone and Pan’s Labyrinth with this haunted house story co-written with Matthew Robbins (Mimic). Crimson Peak follows Edith Cushing (Mia Wasikowska), an aspiring author who is wooed by a mysterious aristocrat (Tom Hiddleston) to return with him to his house where his sister (Jessica Chastain) also resides. To say the house has secrets would be an understatement. Charlie Hunnam plays an admirer who warns Edith to be careful. Luckily for horror fans, she doesn’t listen. Though official reviews are still embargoed, the film has been receiving great early buzz since its surprise debut at Fantastic Fest last weekend.

. The Martian Watch trailer(s)
PG-13 Sci-fi/Adventure | October 2 | Directed by Ridley Scott

When Ridley Scott directs a science fiction story, there’s usually reason to be excited (Alien, Blade Runner). Sure, his last foray into space was a disappointment (Prometheus), but even the best directors struggle to overcome bad scripts. Luckily, this time out Scott has a script written by Drew Goddard, based on Andy Weir’s best-selling novel, The Martian. Praised for its scientific accuracy, the story follows stranded astronaut Mark Watney (Matt Damon), who must survive on Mars with meager supplies while NASA (on Earth) and his crew (in space) try to figure out how to rescue him. According to early reviews out of the recent Toronto festival, the excellent cast (Jessica Chastain, Kristen Wiig, Kate Mara, Michael Peña, Jeff Daniels, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Sean Bean, and Donald Glover) and Scott’s assured direction (including excellent use of 3D) combine to deliver maybe not groundbreaking but very satisfying blockbuster entertainment.

. Room Watch trailer(s)
R Drama | October 16 | Directed by Lenny Abrahamson

Director Lenny Abrahamson’s follow-up to Frank is an adaptation of Emma Donoghue’s best-selling novel about a woman (Brie Larson) and her 5-year-old son Jack (Jacob Tremblay), who escape the 10-by-10-foot space where they have been trapped since before Jack was born. Scripted by Donoghue and also starring Joan Allen and William H. Macy, the film earned very good reviews from its showings in Telluride and Toronto (where it won the People’s Choice Award, considered a strong predictor of an Oscar best picture nomination), with Larson and Tremblay emerging as possible acting award contenders.

. Steve Jobs Watch trailer(s)
R Drama | October 9 | Directed by Danny Boyle

From Sony to Universal; from David Fincher to Danny Boyle; from Christian Bale to Michael Fassbender: the Steve Jobs biopic loosely based on Walter Isaacson’s book and written by Aaron Sorkin has taken a circuitous route to theaters. But it arrives (fresh from the festival circuit) with good reviews for Fassbender’s portrayal of the titular Apple co-founder. While critics where more mixed on Boyle’s direction, one thing they agreed on was that the film is most influenced by Aaron Sorkin’s unique ear for dialogue.

. Taxi [aka Jafar Panahi's Taxi] Watch trailer(s)
NR Foreign/Drama | October 2 | Directed by Jafar Panahi

What happens when an acclaimed Iranian director drives around Tehran in a taxi with a camera mounted on the dashboard? He makes a(nother) great film. Jafar Panahi (This Is Not a Film, Offside, The Circle) still finds creative ways to make films while being banned by his government from doing so, and his latest won the Golden Bear at this year’s Berlin International Film Festival.

. Truth Watch trailer(s)
R Drama | October 16 | Directed by James Vanderbilt

The directorial debut of Zodiac screenwriter James Vanderbilt is an adaptation of Mary Mapes’ memoir Truth and Duty: The Press, the President, and the Privilege of Power, an account of her 2004 60 Minutes report about President George W. Bush’s National Guard service that resulted in her firing and Dan Rather (played in the film by Robert Redford) stepping down as anchor of the CBS Evening News. With a supporting cast that includes Topher Grace, Bruce Greenwood, Elisabeth Moss, and Dennis Quaid, the film received good reviews when it premiered at TIFF.

. Victoria Watch trailer(s)
NR Foreign/Drama/Thriller | Oct 9 | Directed by Sebastian Schipper

Premiering earlier this year in Berlin, this partially improvised and wildly ambitious single-shot feature—yes, the entire film consists of a single, two-hour-plus take, with no Birdman-style cheating—from director Sebastian Schipper follows the titular character, a young woman (Laia Costa) from Madrid, as she meets Sonne (Frederick Lau), a local Berliner and his pals outside of a club. Hoping to have a fun night with her local guides, Victoria falls into trouble when Sonne and his friends must pull off a bank heist to pay off a debt to some very bad men. The film won six prizes at the German Film Awards this year: Best Feature Film, Director, Actress, Actor, Cinematography and Score.

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 films arriving in late 2015 and 2016, visit our Movie Calendar.