Putting aside scandals including red carpet snubs, “Spitgate” and gossipy, complicated, high-maintenance, off-screen relationships, US actress and director Olivia Wilde’s long-anticipated psychological thriller has finally arrived.
It’s one of a raft of seriously decent flicks out this month, offering film fans plenty of choice.
In the mix we’ve got drama, true crime, a gay romantic comedy, a dramatisation of a real-life 1930s murder mystery (starring Margot Robbie), a coming-of-age Australian film about teenage love and an emotional story about adoption.
Not enough?
Need some high impact CGI super-hero action sequences?
What about Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson in Black Adam or the true story of The Woman King starring Viola Davis.
First up, though, we’ve got rising star Florence Pugh (Little Women) in the Wilde-directed Don’t Worry Darling, a complicated storyline about Alice Chambers, a beautiful young woman trapped in a 1950s “reality”, desperate to escape her supposedly perfect life.
Pugh, whose onscreen husband, Jack, is global UK pop sensation Harry Styles, takes up a stack of the screen time and for good reason.
The film has been years in the making, and Pugh will definitely reap the rewards of enduring intense filmmaking as awards season fast approaches.
One thing is certain, the reviews have triggered a debate about disenfranchised, controlling men, comparisons to the 1972 satirical feminist horror novel The Stepford Wives and misogyny.
“It is only fitting that Don’t Worry Darling was released after a promotional tour inadvertently drawing attention to a web of alleged feuds between the director and her actors, whether over casting decisions or on-set behaviour,” wrote the Washington Post review.
“One could argue that the rumours circling the tour, chock full of drama, reveal more about dysfunctional human relationships than the film itself.”
Don’t Worry Darling: October 6
See How They Run: September 29
If you like a classic whodunnit, this one’s for you. Set in 1950s London, plans for a movie version of a smash-hit play come to an abrupt halt after a pivotal member of the crew is murdered.
Sadly, we don’t get to see the Pink Panther‘s Inspector Clouseau, but another world-weary inspector played by American Sam Rockwell.
He and rookie constable Saoirse Ronan take on the case and enter the glamorously sordid world of underground theatre.
Amsterdam: October 6
Starring Australian actress Margot Robbie, Christian Bale, Chris Rock, John David Washington and Robert de Niro, Amsterdam‘s A-list cast is reason enough to go see this one.
Based on facts that meet fiction, the official storyline says it’s an original romantic crime epic set in 1918 and the 1930s about three close friends who find themselves at the centre of one of the most shocking secret plots in American history.
Elements of the film are inspired by real historical events and people, including a fascist coup attempt against US President Franklin D Roosevelt.
“We wanted to see a friendship that we wanted to have, a triangle of people that would do absolutely anything for each other no matter what,” said Bale, who plays a scarred WW1 veteran Burt Berendsen.
“They’ve been kind of forged in the crucible of the Great War, and they’ve declared they will do anything for each other, and they stick to that no matter what, even when they’re dragged into this big murder rap and then into this huge global conspiracy, which is crazy but is actually based on fact,” he said, reported Reuters.
The Stranger: October 6
In the retelling of the true-crime story of one of Australia’s biggest undercover police investigations, The Stranger sets out to explore the relationship between a police officer (Joel Edgerton), and the man alleged to have abducted and killed a teenage boy and what happened to eventually bring about an arrest.
Under Cover: October 6
After featuring at the Melbourne International Film Festival, Under Cover is a documentary narrated by Margot Robbie and shines a light on the reality that women over 50 are the fastest-growing cohort experiencing homelessness in Australia.
Packed with 10 moving stories, these women take viewers into their nomadic worlds, showing us how they live, how they survive on a limited budget, and ultimately how their futures can change with community support.
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The Good Nurse: In cinemas on October 13 (Netflix, October 26)
US actress and Oscar-winner Jessica Chastain is never far away from a character-driven lead role – think The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Zero Dark Thirty or Molly’s Game, to name a few.
Here she plays another lead role based on real events, an ICU nurse who befriended her new work mate Charles Cullen, played by Eddie Redmayne.
Little does she know that her new friend had been killing patients on wards across nine hospitals in a New Jersey murder spree, fatally using insulin as his weapon of choice to murder as many as 40 patients.
The Good Nurse is about nurse Amy Loughren who is forced to risk her life and the safety of her children to uncover the truth.
Lifemark: October 13
A tender, emotional and true story about adoption, and an 18-year-old who always thought about where he came from. He’s totally loved by his parents and grandparents, but when his birth mother reaches out, it’s his turn to make the hard decisions.
Bring tissues.
“With the loving encouragement and support of his parents, and his best friend going along to capture on camera everything as it happens, David chooses to embark on a journey of discovery … and ultimately, forgiveness,” reads the film’s official storyline.
Everything In Between: October 20
Written and directed by Nadi Sha, Screen Australia’s long list of funded films is starting to make it to the big screen.
This homegrown coming-of-age story is about a struggling teenager who falls for older hippie Liz, who is in her late 20s, after an unexpected meeting. His parents disapprove of the relationship but after Liz develops a mystery illness, the 90-minute film turns to salvation and hope.
Black Adam: October 20
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson would be seriously happy to know he’s playing the strongest metahuman on Earth – a blend of superhero and villain.
In a wide-ranging interview with Vanity Fair in August, the Fast and Furious star talks about playing a DC anti-hero.
“I always get asked, nine times out of 10, ‘Well, what’s taken them so long? How come we haven’t heard of this character?’”
“We get a chance to deliver a movie, deliver a character, that’s never been seen before. There has been no other Black Adam.
“Black Adam’s real name is Teth-Adam … and the Black in Black Adam refers to his soul.”
Plus he gets golden wings which look pretty spectacular.
The Woman King: October 27
Inspired by true events in the 1800s in the West African kingdom of Dahomey (which existed from 1600 to 1904), Oscar-winner Viola Davis is perfectly cast in this story of the Agojie, the all-female unit of warriors who protected their country.
She plays General Nanisca and trains the next generation of recruits for battle against an enemy determined to destroy their way of life.
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Bros: October 27
If the trailer is anything to go by, Bros has delivered up something for everyone.
Universal Pictures says it’s the first romantic comedy from a major studio about two gay men “maybe, possibly, probably, stumbling towards love. Maybe. They’re both very busy”.
Co-written by Billy Eichner (Billy on the Street, 2019’s The Lion King, Difficult People, Impeachment: American Crime Story) with producers like Judd Apatow (Trainwreck, The Big Sick) on board, this gay rom-com may be set to make LGBTQ+ history on the big screen.
