Lion
Directed by Garth Davis from a script by Luke Davies, Lion is based on the non-fiction book “A Long Way Home” by Saroo Brierley.
Dave Patel stars as a young Indian man, who was separated from his family as a child and adopted by an Australian family after a train takes him thousands of miles away from home. Haunted by memories of his lost family, he sets out to find them. The movie also stars Rooney Mara, David Wenham and Nicole Kidman.
This looks like a promising drama based on a remarkable true story. It doesn't necessarily look as if it's fishing for critical attention and it has a talented cast to back it up, so it might be worth checking out.
Lion is set for a November 25 release.
A United Kingdom
Based on a true story and directed by Amma Asante, A United Kingdom stars David Oyelowo (Selma) and Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl) as Seretse Khama, the King of Botswana and Ruth Williams, a London office worker. The two meet and fall in love in 1947, but their proposed marriage was challenged by both their families and their respective governments.
While everything about A United Kingdom sounds great in theory, there's a real danger of it falling into Oscar-bait territory. As fascinating as the true story may be, you can see the same tired old tropes rear their heads in the trailer and it makes me weary. A talented cast is not always enough to elevate Oscar-bait beyond the generic, but hopefully A United Kingdom will stand out.
A United Kingdom is set for a UK release on November 25.
Manchester by the Sea
Written and directed by Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester by the Sea stars Casey Affleck as Lee Chandler, a Boston janitor who returns to his hometown to take care of his teenage nephew Patrick (Lucas Hedges), after his older brother Joe (Kyle Chandler) passes away. Lee not only has to struggle with the loss of his brother and the sudden responsibility of being a guardian, but with adjusting to life in a community he left a long time ago.
Manchester by the Sea looks like an absolutely fantastic drama. The trailer gives us a glimpse of what look to be earnest performances by the cast. These feel like real people with real, understandable struggles in their own little corner of the world. This could be a serious contended come awards season and is definitely one to look out for.
Manchester by the Sea is set for a November 18 release.
Rings
Directed by F. Javier Gutierrez from a script by David Loucka, Jacob Estes and Akiva Goldsman, Rings is a continuation of the popular horror franchise from the early noughties, about a videotape which kills you seven days after you watch it.
Much like the newly announced Blair Witch (the new trailer for which was so dull I couldn't even be bothered to include it in this Round-Up), Rings looks like it adds nothing new to a formula that worked before. The video is now online instead of a videotape, but apart from that and the added "s", it seems like the same old, increasingly nonsensical horror shtick. Also like Blair Witch, this doesn't look even remotely scary.
Rings is set for October 28 release.
