WATCHLIST FOR SEPTEMBER

So here are new movies for the start of the Fall season, or in our case, resumption of the rainy season. The Reeldeal has your back once again as we enter a new month, which holds the end of two franchises.

THE CONJURING: LAST RITES (September 5)

The fourth entry in the James Wan-created horror franchise. They say they don’t make horror movies like they used to. It’s more revolting than genuinely horrifying these days—nothing left to your imagination anymore. Well, The Conjuring is a franchise that lives up to the adrenaline-pumping style of Evil Dead and The Exorcist, where suspense is the main torment. Probably this is because it is more or less grounded in true-life investigations of the Smurls back in the ’80s. Our usual paranormal investigators, Ed and Lorraine Warren, are once more called to investigate. A nail-biting movie- the last in the franchise- which looks quite promising for lovers of the genre.

Starring Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, Mia Tomlinson, Ben Hardy, Rebecca Calder, Elliot Cowan. Directed by Michael Chaves

DARA: A PORT HARCOURT LOVE STORY? (September 5)

Directed by Bobby Rak, this is a coming-of-age romance story with a lot of action, tension, and drama. In the midst of this budding love are the travails of campus life and cult activities at the University of Port Harcourt. Dara is a young TikTok dancer who finds both love and complexities in school, unfortunately crossing a cult don, who looks a bit like a cross between 50cent and Method Man. Think A Bronx Tale and get a small glimpse of what to expect in this Nollywood film, but different.

Starring Bless Smile, Tomi Ojo, Riyo David, Tina Mba, Raymond Umenze. Directed by Bobby Rak

DOWNTON ABBEY: THE GRAND FINALE (September 12)

It goes without saying that the multiple award-winning Downton Abbey television series had a cult following, and the films, no less. The series ended with the sixth season. This is the third and final film in the historical drama franchise. This is the last we shall see of the Crawleys (or so we are told). We continue to follow the family in this film, as Mary finds herself at the centre of a public scandal following her divorce, and the family faces financial troubles during the Great Depression. The Crawleys are forced to embrace the inevitable change that has come with the 1930s.

Starring Hugh Bonneville, Jim Carter. Michelle Dockery, Paul Giamatti, Elizabeth McGovern, Penelope Wilton. Directed by Simon Curtis

THE LONG WALK (September 12)

As far as crazy movie plots go, this one probably bags the prize for the year. Crazy enough to be one of those movies you will not forget for its weirdness. It is based on the 1979 novel of the same name by Stephen King (under his pseudonym Richard Bachman). We are in a dystopian America under a totalitarian regime where there is an annual walking contest. Contestants must maintain a walking speed limit or risk execution. The winner is the last living walker! Stephen King-type crazy ish, huh? Expect a lot of palpitation… and Mark Hamill of Luke Skywalker (Star Wars) fame.

Starring Cooper Hoffman, David Jonsson, Garrett Wareing, Tut Nyuot, Charlie Plummer, Ben Wang, Josh Hamilton, Judy Greer, Mark Hamill, Directed by Francis Lawrence.

TIN SOLDIER (September 12)

If you want an action movie for the month. I guess this is it. A movie about mercenaries. Scott Eastwood (Clint Eastwood’s son and lookalike) joins a covert unit breaking into a cult compound housing hundreds of traumatised veterans. We can’t say much about this movie. The trailer doesn’t quite drag you to the theatres, except that it has a star cast that might save the story from being prosaic with some good acting and make it a hit.

Starring Jamie Foxx, Robert De Niro, Scott Eastwood and John Leguizamo. Directed by Brad Furman

ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER (September 26)

When a movie has Leonard DiCaprio, Benicio del Toro, Wood Harris, Regina Hall, Wood Harris and Sean Penn in it, it instinctively draws your attention. That’s if you are a sucker for great acting like us! The movie tells the story of a group of ex-revolutionaries who reunite to rescue the daughter of their own (Leo and Teyana Taylor) from a mutual enemy who has resurfaced after 16 years. There’s a slight similarity here to Back in Action, which finds Jamie Foxx and Cameron Diaz coming out of retirement after 15 years. An action movie written, produced, and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, like Tin Soldier, the premise is not new but it packs so much Hollywood star punch that, with a good script, it just might be the hit of the month.