Fall Film Picks: Cinema Reviews Pt. 2

By Tristan Gerdesic

Here are five, mostly new, films worth seeing on the big screen this fall.

1.) Primetime (2026, dir. Lance Oppenheim).

Primetime is a feature film following the original run of Chris Hansen’s Dateline NBC program To Catch a Predator, where he entrapped and arrested pedophiles using online decoys. The film, in which Hansen is portrayed by Robert Pattinson, questions the complicated morality of turning pedophilia and law enforcement into spectacle and was inspired by films like David Cronenberg’s Videodrome. Out in cinemas now.

2.) Digger (2026, dir. Alejandro Iñárritu).

From the Oscar-winning director of Birdman and The Revenant, Digger is a satire following an oil executive, played by Tom Cruise. Rumors abound that the trailer’s strange framing and rhythm are due to it actually being a musical. The film’s gray color palette and strange, almost cyber-punk aesthetic have also raised an interesting question: Will it be a return to the intentionally strange filmmaking of Birdman, which was made to look like one continuous shot? Find out for yourself. Out in cinemas now. 

3.) Wild Horse Nine (2026, dir. Martin McDonagh).

Martin McDonagh has released some of the best dark comedies and dramas of the 21st century, from In Bruges to The Banshees of Inisherin, which follows two friends’ falling out on a small Irish island as a metaphor for the Troubles. In Wild Horse Nine, he follows two bumbling CIA agents on 1970s Easter Island, mere months before the US-backed coup overthrew Chilean president Allende in 1973. Starring John Malkovich and Sam Rockwell. Out in cinemas November 6.

4.) 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968, dir. Stanley Kubrick).

Kubrick’s magnum opus is widely regarded as one of the greatest, and by some as the greatest, films of all time. Spanning from the advent of humanity to its downfall, the film covers themes of AI and superintelligence that feel eerily prescient in 2026. In addition to its gorgeous cinematography and flawless use of silence and sound, it is a stunning and thought-provoking film that paved the way for all cinema for nearly 60 years, particularly science fiction. Do we get Star Wars without 2001? Probably not. 

5.) Aguirre, the Wrath of God (1972, dir. Werner Herzog).

From brilliant German avant-garde director Werner Herzog, Aguirre follows 1500s Spanish conquistadors in the Amazon jungle as they search for the fabled El Dorado. Returning to many of the central themes of Herzog’s creations, like colonialism and the horror of nature, Aguirre and the equally epic Fitzcarraldo are the centerpieces of Herzog’s long and prolific career. Aguirre is a haunting reminder of man’s arrogance, and the ways in which our hubris can lead us astray. Showing at the SBIFF Film Center only on November 18th.

The reader is implored to go watch all of these incredible films in a real cinema, as a communal experience. 

The opportunity to better understand art and the world around us is one not afforded to everyone, and it’s one we must seize. A future without cinemas, without libraries, without concerts, is a sad one, and it can only be prevented by taking advantage of these services while they’re here. What would a world without these actually look like? Is it one where we cede even more ground to massive tech conglomerates to determine what we consume and how we consume it? Where we think less about what we believe, where we share less of what we love with each other? The least we can do is make an effort to enjoy life to its fullest and do what is most fulfilling rather than what is most convenient, what requires the least effort from our brains. It is our hope that these articles have inspired you to visit your local cinema, explore filmmaking, and, with sincerity, grow as a viewer and a person.