Going against the grain of past November releases, this year’s 11th-month offerings are light on downers and heavy with movies designed to appeal to audiences looking for upbeat, inspirational titles.
As always, all opening dates are subject to change without notice.
Nov. 5
‘Black Doves Season 2’
Ordered before the 2024 first season even debuted, this is one of the best espionage series Netflix has ever produced.
Keira Knightley goes far against type, starring as Helen, the recent widow of the British secretary of state who was assassinated. Some higher-ups in MI6 fear for her life, so they assign Helen’s lifelong friend Sam (Ben Whishaw, the current “Q” in the James Bond movies) to guard her.
What Sam and the big brass don’t know yet: Helen isn’t as demure and vulnerable as she may appear. (Netflix)
Nov. 6
‘Wild Horse Nine’
Sort of an Irish version of Quentin Tarantino, playwright and screenwriter Martin McDonagh’s calling cards are top-heavy dialogue, pop culture references, offbeat non-sequiturs, and almost always banter between two leads.
In “Wild Horse Nine,” the two leads are Chris (John Malkovich) and Lee (Sam Rockwell). They play two bickering CIA Agents using Eastern Island as their base in preparation for the 1973 political uprising in Chile.
McDonagh has yet to make a bad or even average movie, and this is easily one of his best. (Searchlight)
‘I Play Rocky’
The eagerly-awaited factual drama chronicles the behind-the-scenes creation of the movie “Rocky.” Anthony Ippolito stars as Sylvester Stallone, a struggling actor and screenwriter who caught a big break. Multiple studios got into a bidding war for rights to his “Rocky” screenplay. Great news, right?
Not exactly. Stallone made it clear that whoever bought the property would have to hire him to play Rocky, which almost killed the deal. After dropping his price, United Artists agreed to Stallone’s terms, and the rest is history. (MGM)
‘Jimmy’
An American success story if ever there was one: The life of Jimmy Stewart is better than anything Hollywood could have concocted.
At the peak of his popularity, Stewart (KJ Apa) volunteers to join the U.S. Air Force as a pilot, flying 20 missions during World War II and rising to the rank of colonel in the process.
Bookended by Stewart’s Oscar-winning performance in “The Philadelphia Story” and his turn in the perennial favorite “It’s a Wonderful Life,” it’s got a “feel-good” premise that will find the bulk of its appeal in the over-60 demographic. (Fathom Entertainment)
Nov. 11
‘Ghost Soldier’
In what will likely strike a chord in America’s heartland, Jim Caviezel stars as “Fitz” Fitzgerald, a former special forces Green Beret living off the grid in Wyoming, designing new weapons.
When corrupt U.S. officials look the other way as unfriendly foreign government agents seize personal property, Fitz springs into action. (Sony Pictures Releasing)
Nov. 13
‘Paper Tiger’
The latest effort from Russian-Jewish descendant filmmaker James Gray is a crime thriller set in the 1980s in Queens, New York.
While pursuing a lucrative (legal) business venture, two brothers (Adam Driver and Miles Teller) get mixed up with the Russian Mob. This eventually calls into question the safety of one of their wives (Scarlett Johansson). (Neon)
Nov. 18
‘Madden’
On paper, the casting of Nicolas Cage as Super Bowl-winning coach and Emmy Award-winning broadcaster John Madden shouldn’t work and might not. The latest effort from filmmaker David O. Russell (“American Hustle” 2013) and (“Silver Linings Playbook” 2012), it co-stars Russell regular Christian Bale as the volatile and polarizing Raiders owner Al Davis. (Amazon/MGM)
Nov. 25
‘The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth’
The hotly anticipated sequel to “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” (2019) stars Brad Pitt reprising his Oscar-winning role as the title character. Again written by Quentin Tarantino, David Fincher is directing it in what could be an explosive combination of two of the most talented living filmmakers.
Set in the early to mid-1970s after his parting of ways with actor Rick Dalton (an unseen Leonardo DiCaprio), former stunt double Booth (Pitt) returns to a life of questionably legal activities while amassing a new set of enemies. (Netflix)
‘Hershey’
In what is possibly a contender for “feel good movie of the year,” Finn Wittrock and Alexandria Daddario star as Milton and Kitty Hershey, the founders of what would eventually become one of the largest chocolate companies in the world. (Angel)
What I’m Looking Forward To
The idea of David Fincher directing a Quentin Tarantino-penned screenplay starring Brad Pitt with a Led Zeppelin soundtrack is impossible to resist.
In the “upbeat and inspirational” department, there’s “I Play Rocky,” “Jimmy,” “Ghost Soldier,” and “Hershey,” which should all play well with families and general audiences.
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