Shadows on the Wall

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Shadows reviews Trailers and other previews... ALL COMMENTS BY RICH CLINE
C O M I N G S O O N to the UK & US...	O N T H E H O R I Z O N can’t hardly wait...
6 Nov: WILD HORSE NINE I PLAY ROCKY LA BOLA NEGRA (Sp) CLUB KID ONWARDS AND SIDEWAYS GODZILLA MINUS ZERO (Jpn) THINK OF ENGLAND MANIPULATION THE DIVINE TRAGEDY DE GAULLE: RESISTANCE (Fr) NUISANCE BEAR 13 Nov: I PLAY ROCKY EBENEZER HOW TO ROB A BANK THE MOSQUITO BOWL BEING HEUMANN BITTER CHRISTMAS (Sp) MISTY GREEN FJORD (Nor) CONFESSION 1 IN 2 20 Nov: ELSINORE YOUR MOTHER YOUR MOTHER YOUR MOTHER JOSEPHINE A MAN WALKS DOWN THE STREET FILIPINANA (Ph) MAVERICK: THE EPIC ADVENTURES OF DAVID LEAN 27 Nov: FOCKER-IN-LAW IN WAVES* ALL OF A SUDDEN (Fr) BIG GIRLS DON'T CRY 14TH 4 Dec: RAY GUNN BEHEMOTH! I SEE BUILDINGS FALL LIKE LIGHTNING DE GAULLE: LIBERTE (Fr) NUISANCE BEAR MAVERICK: THE EPIC ADVENTURES OF DAVID LEAN* 14TH 11 Dec: THE DEBUT 8 Jan: CLUB KID INK 29 Jan: ELSINORE 19 Feb: THE DEBUT BUNKER 12 Mar: BLUEBERRY INN* RELEASE DATE TBC . . . THE BASICS OF PHIOLOSOPHY BUCKING FASTARD COMPANY THE ECHO CHAMBER A GOOD LITTLE SOLDIER (Fr) THE MAD WORLD OF HARVEY KURTZMAN MASPALOMAS (Sp) MISSION PLACE TO BE A PLACE TO HEAL (Fr) QUEER EDWARD II TEST * films I've seen, reviews under embargo C O M I N G U P . . . • BARBARA FOREVER. MANIPULATION. THE DIVINE TRAGEDY. EBENEZER. FOCKER-IN-LAW. 1 IN 2. CONFESSION. 12 12 12. A MAN WALKS DOWN THE STREET. SOMETHING CASUAL. BEFORE WE FORGET. THE APOLOGIST. • TANGO AFTER DARK. ACT OF GOD. MARTHA GRAHAM: DANCING OUR TIMES. • DUNE: PART THREE. THE FURTHER MIS-ADVENTURES OF CLIFF BOOTH. SUNRISE ON THE REAPING. UNRELEASED FESTIVAL FILMS . . . • LFF: SWEET MILK LAKE • Venice: AGATA THE WRITER. ARRESTED MEMORY. BACK TO BUENOS AIRES. BEFORE THE WAR. A BIT OF LIGHT. CHILDREN OF THE MONKEY. DAU. DIANE IN THE LOOP. FALLING HOUSE. THE FIRE WITHIN YOU. FROM INSIDE OUT. THE GOOD LAWYER. GURIA. HOMBRE AL AGUA. HOUSE OF THE WIND. LONDON. LOVERS IN THE BLUE NIGHT. MOONFISH. NO PARADISE IF YOU ARE KILLED BY A WOMAN. OUR SHARE OF SAND. ONE MINUTE TO MIDNIGHT. TIJUANA, TODAVIA. SALON DE BELLEZA. TRICK. WHAT BELONGS TO OTHERS. • FrightFest: BAD KARAOKE. BLOOD SECRET. DO YOU WANT TO PLAY? DRACULA: THE NIGHT AROUND US. ELECTRIC MEAT. HY3NA. ITHAQUA. STARSUCKERS. VALLEY VIEW MOTEL. • Annecy: NOBODY. SOUL SHIFT. THE VIOLINIST. • Raindance: MY DAUGHTER'S HAIR. PESCADOR. THE TROLL. WHISKEY DIXIE AND THE BIG WET COUNTRY. • Flare: 10s ACROSS THE BORDERS. BLACK BURNS FAST. THE BROKEN R. CAN'T GO OVER IT. HUNKY JESUS. I AM GOING TO MISS YOU. JARIPEO. KEEP COMING BACK. THE LAST GUEST OF THE HOLLOWAY MOTEL. LOW RIDER. LUNAR SWAY. OUT LAWS. SATISFACTION. STRANGE RIVER. TO DANCE IS TO RESIST. UCHRONIA. WHAT WILL I BECOME? See also: SHADOWS FILM FEST	THE HUNGER GAMES: SUNRISE ON THE REAPING dir Francis Lawrence; with Joseph Zada, Mckenna Grace, Glenn Close, Ralph Fiennes, Elle Fanning, Jesse Plemons, Kieran Culkin, Maya Hawke 26/US release UK/US 20.Nov.26 Set some 15 years after The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, this story fills in another chunk of the saga's back-story, 24 years before the events of the original movies. At the centre is Haymitch (We Were Liars star Joseph Zada playing a young Woody Harrelson), who finds himself in the Hunger Games on a fluke and sets out to break the entire system. There are terrific characters in Suzanne Collins' novel, and previous films have adapted the books faithfully, catching clever storytelling elements. So let's hope this one has a bit more spark than the last rather over-serious chapter. The cast definitely bodes well. PAPER TIGER dir-scr James Gray; with Adam Driver, Scarlett Johansson, Miles Teller, Gavin Goudey, Roman Engel, Cindy Katz, Yves Garvy, Victor Ptak, Semion Bogoyavich 26/US release US 20.Nov.26, UK 5.Feb.27 James Gray is a solid filmmaker, and he has assembled a terrific central trio for this thriller, which apparently begins as a family-style drama before things cut loose. The film has been well-received on the festival circuit, acclaimed largely due to the performances by Adam Driver, Scarlett Johansson and Miles Teller. So this looks like it might be a nice guilty pleasure movie, a throwback to taut 1980s grit. It's screening at the London Film Festival, but the UK release has been pushed back to February. THE FURTHER MIS-ADVENTURES OF CLIFF BOOTH dir David Fincher; with Brad Pitt, Elizabeth Debicki, Carla Gugino, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Timothy Olyphant, Peter Weller, Emily Alyn Lind, Scott Caan 26/US release US/UK 25.Nov.26 Brad Pitt returns to his Oscar-winning role as stuntman Cliff Booth for another sharp-edged comedy written by Quentin Tarantino. Although this time David Fincher has taken over the directing role, which signals that we're in for something rather different. Fincher is a skilled craftsman, so the details will be stunning. The question is whether he can navigate the humour and also muster up some emotional resonance along the way. The cast is excellent, with some nice surprises (Peter Weller as Cliff's dad!). So bring it on. ABOVE THE BELOW dir Idris Elba, Martin Owen; with Idris Elba, Hero Fiennes Tiffin, Caitlin FitzGerald, Isla Jackson-Ritchie, Imhiteshparmar 26/UK release UK/US 4.Dec.26 This ambitious British sci-fi adventure stars the always-watchable Idris Elba, and it's also a much bigger project for his second feature as director, after 2018's Yardie. The story offers plenty of possibility for action, as it follows three astronauts as they survive a harrowing return to Earth, then find themselves trapped at the bottom of the ocean. So look for this to be an intriguingly claustrophobic thriller, with quite a bit demanded of the small cast as well as the special effects teams. DUNE: PART THREE dir Denis Villeneuve; with Timothee Chalamet, Zendaya, Florence Pugh, Robert Pattinson, Rebecca Ferguson, Anya Taylor-Joy, Josh Brolin, Javier Bardem, Jason Momoa, Charlotte Rampling 26/US release US/UK 18.Dec.26 "Dunesday!" Easily one of the most anticipated films of the year, this caps off Denis Villeneuve's already definitive version of Frank Herbert's Dune by adapting the second novel in the series, Dune Messiah. The staggeringly gifted cast and crew are back, adding all manner of nuance to Villeneuve's inventive world-building. The story goes to some very dark places this time, and it will be interesting to see if the film can more gently navigate the shift than the books did. And the addition of Robert Pattinson to the cast bodes very well indeed. AVENGERS: DOOMSDAY dirAnthony & Joe Russo; with Robert Downey Jr, Pedro Pascal, Florence Pugh, Chris Hemsworth, Anthony Mackie, Sebastian Stan, Vanessa Kirby, Simu Liu, Chris Evans, Channing Tatum, Paul Rudd, Ian McKellen 26/UK release US/UK 18.Dec.26 "Dunesday!" Frankly, I'm not really looking forward to this overcrowded sequel, largely because there is so much riding on it. Marvel needs to prove that there's life in the Avengers, so they have included scores of characters and an astonishing cast list that seems to go on forever. How all of these characters will get a chance to have any presence is the big question, as it seems clear that the movie's main reason to exist is to kick off another flurry of storylines. Marvel is best when they simply tell a story, but maybe this will surprise us. WERWULF dir Robert Eggers; with Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Willem Dafoe, Lily-Rose Depp, Ralph Ineson, Kate Dickie, Bodhi Rae Breathnach, Ned Dennehy, Hannah Harpin 26/US release US 25.Dec.26, UK 1.Jan.27 Robert Eggers takes on another legend, and his distinctive style of filmmaking guarantees that this is going to be darker and nastier than any werewolf movie we've seen. And the cast is solid too, including another no doubt meaty role for his regular collaborator Willem Dafoe. It also looks intensely personal, digging into the mythology like he did with Nosferatu. So expect something grisly and disturbing, in all the right ways. Although it might be nice to see the filmmaker switch up his style at some point. NARNIA: THE MAGICIAN’S NEPHEW dir-scr Greta Gerwig; with David McKenna, Beatrice Campbell, Meryl Streep, Daniel Craig, Carey Mulligan, Emma Mackey, Ciaran Hinds, Denise Gough, Susan Wokoma 27/UK release US/UK 12.Feb.27 With the appearance of the first trailer, we discover that Greta Gerwig is making a full-on goth-rock epic here, and I'm all in. CS Lewis' novel traces the origins of Narnia, and it has been tripping me out since I was very young. Gerwig is clearly leaning heavily into that feeling. She is such a talented writer and director that it's hard to imagine this going wrong, unless the studio begins meddling with it. But Netflix seems to be giving her vision their full support, so bring it on ... on an Imax screen, please. Also on my want-to-see list... Autumn: I LOVE BOOSTERS SACRIFICE YOU CAN SEE EVERYTHING BEST PANCAKES IN THE COUNTY THE CAT IN THE HAT EBENEZER HEXED HOW TO ROB A BANK STEPS Winter: BAD LIEUTENANT: TOKYO JUMANJI: OPEN WORLD MR IRRELEVANT SLAYGROUND ICE AGE: BOILING POINT WIFE & DOG Spring: DAY DRINKER THE EXORCIST: MARTYRS GATTO VARANASI
Release dates: British film release schedules are even more fluid than American ones, so please be patient as I try to keep up with distributors. I'm working to keep this list up-to-date as they keep trying to outfox me. I'm sure it's personal. Embargoes: Britain's Film Distributors Association asks us to hold reviews until the week of release, and distributors are increasingly restrictive (and proscriptive) about when reviews can run. Normally, once the film is shown to a paying audience, even at a festival, the full review can be posted. © 2026 by Rich Cline, Shadows on the Wall HOME \| REVIEWS \| NEWS \| FESTIVAL \| AWARDS \| Q&A \| ABOUT \| TALKBACK