As the holidays begin to kick into high gear, so does award season. This month is packed with performances by actresses who are considered likely to receive Oscar nods.. If you’re not in the mood for dramatic fare, there are also lighthearted comedies and spooky horror flicks to look forward to.
Amy Adams officially enters the Oscars race with two vastly different films. In “Arrival” she faces an alien invasion, while “Nocturnal Animals” sees her try her hand at film noir. Both performances have garnered her major awards buzz.
“Harry Potter” author J.K. Rowling makes her screenwriting debut with “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them,” which opens November 18. Set decades before Harry and his friends saved the Wizarding World, this series follows a tie-in book of the same title Rowling published in 2001. Fans can now follow the adventures of Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) as he, well, tries to find fantastic beats in 1920’s New York City. The same week also sees the debut of coming-of-age dramedy “The Edge of Seventeen,” starring Hailee Steinfeld.
Disney’s newest princess will make her big-screen debut in “Moana.” Set to music by “Hamilton” scribe Lin-Manuel Miranda, Moana (voiced by Auli’i Cravalho) goes on a journey to become a master way-finder, aided by the demi-god Maui (voiced by Dwayne Johnson). The film already looks like it’s on it’s way to becoming one of Disney’s classics, and will no doubt be an Oscar contender for Best Animated Feature as well as Best Original Song.
Jessica Chastain will also make a bid for her long overdue Oscar with “Miss Sloane,” a drama about high-powered lobbyist who takes on the gun industry.
There are plenty of smaller releases this month as well to satisfy all your genre cravings. Horror lurks around every corner in “The Monster,” and the documentary “National Bird” discusses the impact of drone strikes. November will also see the re-release of the iconic “Daughters of the Dust,” one of the iconic inspirations for Beyoncé’s “Lemonade.”
Here is Women and Hollywood’s preview of November’s women-centric, directed, and written films. All descriptions are from press materials, unless stated otherwise.
November 2
Don’t Call Me Son — Written and Directed by Anna Muylaert
A young man (Naomi Nero) is stunned to discover that he was kidnapped as a child by the woman he’s called mother his entire life. Now, he’s left to deal with the consequences of her actions and finally meet his biological family.
The Eagle Huntress (Documentary) (Opens in NY and LA)
Aisholpan, a 13-year-old girl, trains to become the first female in 12 generations of her Kazakh family to become an eagle hunter and rises to the pinnacle of a tradition that has been handed down from father to son for centuries. While there are many old Kazakh eagle hunters who vehemently reject the idea of any female taking part in their ancient tradition, Aisholpan’s father, Nurgaiv, believes that a girl can do anything a boy can, as long as she’s determined. The documentary is narrated by “The Force Awakens” star Daisy Ridley.
November 4
My Dead Boyfriend (Also Available on VOD)
Mary’s (Heather Graham) life has been defined by a string of temp jobs and a half-hearted attempt to become a writer. But all that changes when she comes home to find her boyfriend dead in front of the TV set. During her misadventures in trying to get rid of his ashes — accidentally becoming the bassist in a rock band, bonding with the dog he left behind, and awkward encounters with numerous ex-lovers — Mary discovers that there was much more to her couch potato boyfriend than she ever thought imaginable.
What Happened Last Night — Written and Directed by Candice T. Cain
When two college students (Alix Kermes and Clayton Snyder) wake up together after partying, they try to remember what happened.
Beauty Bites Beast (Documentary) — Directed by Ellen Snortland (Opens in NY; Opens in Pasadena November 11)
Most of us have heard these statistics: the World Health Organization says one in three women worldwide experience sexual or physical violence, and one in every six women in America have been victims of sexual assault. Why are so many of our sisters, wives, daughters, and mothers targets for violence? Could it be because societies teach women and girls — and boys and men — that women are helpless? That they must depend upon males to protect them, rather than defend themselves? Women and girls have a right to set boundaries — emotionally, verbally, and, if push comes to shove, physically. Teaching them that fact is one missing key to empowering females to stop personal violence, says “Safety Godmother” Ellen Snortland, author of “Beauty Bites Beast,” the groundbreaking book on women’s self defense that’s now a new documentary. “We teach women and girls to fight back,” she says. “Beauty Bites Beast — Revealing the Missing Conversations about Ending Violence” aims to spark discussions to help put an end to violence against women and girls.
November 8
Operator — Directed by Logan Kibens; Written by Sharon Greene and Logan Kibens (Also Available on VOD)
Joe (Martin Starr), a programmer and obsessive self-quantifier, and Emily (Mae Whitman), a budding comedy performer, are happily married until they decide to use one another in their work. “Operator” is a dark comedy about love, technology, and what can’t be programmed. (Press materials)
November 10
The Watermelon Woman (Re-Release) — Written and Directed by Cheryl Dunye (Opens in NY)
An aspiring black lesbian filmmaker (Cheryl Dunye) researches an obscure 1940s black actress billed as the Watermelon Woman.
November 11
Arrival
When mysterious spacecrafts touch down across the globe, an elite team — lead by expert linguist Louise Banks (Amy Adams) — is brought together to investigate. As mankind teeters on the verge of global war, Banks and the team race against time for answers — and to find them, she will take a chance that could threaten her life, and quite possibly humanity.
Shut In — Written by Christina Hodson
A heart-pounding thriller starring Naomi Watts as a widowed child psychologist who lives an isolated existence in rural New England. Caught in a deadly winter storm, she must find a way to rescue a young boy before he disappears forever.
The Monster (Also Available on VOD) (Available Now on DirecTV)
“The Monster” follows a divorced mother (Zoe Kazan) and her headstrong daughter (Ella Ballentine) who must make an emergency late night road trip to see the girl’s father. As they drive through deserted country roads on a stormy night, they suddenly have a startling collision that leaves them shaken but not seriously hurt. Their car, however, is dead, and as they try in vain to get help, they come to realize they are not alone on these desolate backroads — a terrifying evil is lurking in the surrounding woods, intent on never letting them leave…
National Bird (Documentary) — Directed by Sonia Kennebeck (Opens in NY; Opens in LA November 18)
“National Bird” follows the harrowing journey of three U.S. military veteran whistleblowers determined to break the silence around America’s secret drone war. With unprecedented access to first-hand information about the U.S. drone program through on-the-record sources, “National Bird” introduces us to Heather, a former drone imagery analyst who never left American soil but witnessed countless deaths and now suffers from PTSD; Daniel, a signals intelligence analyst-turned-activist who is now being investigated for espionage; and Lisa, whose guilt over her participation in the drone program and determination to reveal the truth leads her to Afghanistan, where she is confronted with stories of a horrendous incident. “National Bird” gives rare insight into America’s drone operations through the eyes of veterans and survivors, connecting their stories as never seen before in a documentary.
Elle (Opens in NY; Opens in LA November 16)
The story centers on Michele (Isabelle Huppert), a ruthless head of a video game company. After being raped in her home by an unknown assailant changes Michele’s life forever. When she resolutely tracks the man down, they are both drawn into a curious and thrilling game that may, at any moment, spiral out of control.
The Love Witch — Written and Directed by Anna Biller (Opens in LA; Opens in NY November 18)
Elaine (Samantha Robinson), a beautiful young witch, is determined to find a man to love her. In her gothic Victorian apartment she makes spells and potions, and then picks up men and seduces them. However, her spells work too well, leaving her with a string of hapless victims. When she finally meets the man of her dreams, her desperation to be loved will drive her to the brink of insanity and murder.
The Anthropologist (Documentary)
The film features the parallel stories of two women: Margaret Mead, who popularized cultural anthropology in America, and Susie Crate, an environmental anthropologist currently studying the impact of climate change. Uniquely revealed from their daughters’ perspectives, Mead and Crate demonstrate a fascination with how societies are forced to negotiate the disruption of their traditional ways of life, whether through encounters with the outside world or through climate change.
November 18
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them — Written by J.K. Rowling
“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” opens in 1926 as Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) has just completed a global excursion to find and document an extraordinary array of magical creatures. Arriving in New York for a brief stopover, he might have come and gone without incident…were it not for a No-Maj (American for Muggle) named Jacob (Dan Fogler), a misplaced magical case, and the escape of some of Newt’s fantastic beasts, which could spell trouble for both the wizarding and No-Maj worlds.
The Edge of Seventeen — Written and Directed by Kelly Fremon Craig
A look at what it’s like to grow up as a young woman in today’s modern world. Everyone knows that growing up is hard, and life is no easier for high school junior Nadine (Hailee Steinfeld), who is already at peak awkwardness when her all-star older brother Darian (Blake Jenner) starts dating her best friend Krista (Haley Lu Richardson). All at once, Nadine feels more alone than ever, until the unexpected friendship of a thoughtful boy gives her a glimmer of hope that things just might not be so terrible after all.
Nocturnal Animals
The plot is described as a “story inside a story,” with the first part following a woman named Susan (Amy Adams) who receives a book manuscript from her ex-husband (Jake Gyllenhaal), a man whom she left 20 years earlier, asking for her opinion. The second part of the story follows the actual manuscript, called “Nocturnal Animals,” which revolves around a man (also played by Gyllenhaal) whose family vacation turns violent and deadly. It also continues to follow the story of Susan, who finds herself recalling her first marriage and confronting some dark truths about herself.
I Am Not Madame Bovary
A café proprietor (Fan Bingbing) spends a decade petitioning the Chinese legal system after being swindled by her ex-husband, in this caustically comic contemporary fable from superstar director Feng Xiaogang. (TIFF)
Blood on the Mountain (Documentary) — Co-Directed by Mari-Lynn C. Evans (Opens in NY and LA)
“Blood on the Mountain” is a searing investigation into the economic and environmental injustices that have resulted from industrial control in West Virginia. This feature documentary details the struggles of a hard-working, misunderstood people, who have historically faced limited choices and have never benefited fairly from the rich, natural resources of their land. “Blood On The Mountain” delivers a striking portrait of a fractured population, exploited and besieged by corporate interests, and abandoned by the powers elected to represent them.
Daughters of the Dust (Re-Release) — Written and Directed by Julie Dash
“Daughters of the Dust: is a portrait of the women in Peazant family, who belong to the creole Gullah culture, former slaves living in the coastal Carolinas who have been able to preserve much of their African cultural heritage. As they prepare to migrate, leaving their land and legacy for the promise of the North, conflict and struggles rise to the surface. It unfolds over the course of their final picnic in their current home; saturating the audience with impressionistic colors, African symbolism, Geechee-Gullah rituals, cooking, dialect, and the sound of field cries, all expressing the complex resonances of the Lowcountry lifestyle. “Daughters of the Dust” is a post-slavery narrative about cultural memory, notions of home and belonging, and conflicts of Black female identity, a lost cultural connector between Charles Burnett’s “Killer of Sheep” and Beyonce’s “Lemonade.” “Daughters of the Dust” stars Cora Lee Day, Alva Rogers, Barbara-O, Trula Hoosier, Vertamae Grosvenor, and Kaycee Moore.
Divines — Written and Directed by Houda Benyamina (Also Available on Netflix)
The funny, suspenseful, and often emotional drama tells the story of Dounia (Oulaya Amamra), a tough, but naive teenager who sees getting rich or dying trying as her most viable option in life. Set in a ghetto near Paris where drugs and religion reign supreme, Dounia is hungry for her share of power and success. Enlisting the help of her best friend (Déborah Lukumuena) she decides to follow the footsteps of a respected and successful neighborhood dealer (Jisca Kalvanda). But when Dounia meets a strong-willed and sensual dancer (Kevin Mischel), her life takes a surprising turn.
November 23
Moana
In the ancient South Pacific world of Oceania, Moana (Auli’i Cravalho), a born navigator, sets sail in search of a fabled island. During her incredible journey, she teams up with her hero, the legendary demi-god Maui (Dwayne Johnson), to traverse the open ocean on an action-packed voyage, encountering enormous sea creatures, breathtaking underworlds, and ancient folklore.
November 25
Miss Sloane
In the high-stakes world of political power-brokers, Elizabeth Sloane (Jessica Chastain) is the most sought after and formidable lobbyist in D.C. Known equally for her cunning and her track record of success, she has always done whatever is required to win. But when she takes on the most powerful opponent of her career, she finds that winning may come at too high a price.
Evolution — Written by Lucile Hadzihalilovic and Alanté Kavaïté; Directed by Lucile Hadzihalilovic (Also Available on VOD)
Ten-year-old Nicolas (Max Brebant) lives in a remote seaside village populated only by boys his age and adult women. But when he makes a disturbing discovery beneath the ocean waves — a dead boy with a red starfish on his stomach — Nicolas begins to question everything about his existence. What are the half-remembered images he recalls, as if from another life? If the woman he lives with is not his mother, then who is she? And what awaits the boys when they are all suddenly confined to a hospital?
