The High Five: October

October is the gateway to Oscar season, and at least one strong Best Picture contender is in the mix.  Here's what I can't wait to see:

1. Cloud Atlas (October 26) - This epic collaboration between the Wachowski siblings and Tom Tykwer has all the makings of either a beautiful, worlds-colliding opus or the most fascinating trainwreck of the year.  Reviews are mixed, with some festival crowds giving the film lengthy standing ovations, and others dismissing the film as a mess.  Either way, it's sure to be a gorgeous, interesting sit, with the impressive cast (which includes Tom Hanks, Jim Broadbent, Halle Berry, Ben Whishaw, Hugh Grant, and many, many more) taking on multiple roles in the eons-spanning yarn.  I'm interested to read the book, but this is one of those times when I'm going to let the film be my entry into the universe, because with these filmmakers working with this cast, even a let-down will be a thrill.

2. The Sessions (October 26 limited) - John Hawkes (Winter's Bone, Martha Marcy May Marlene) is a strong Best Actor contender in The Sessions, about a poet in an iron lung who decides to lose his virginity to a sex surrogate (Helen Hunt, who's also getting plenty of buzz).  The film looks like the kind of feel-good movie that manages - and deserves - to sneak into viewers' hearts and, thus, into major awards races.  Fox Searchlight tends to do a great job shepherding movies into Oscar pole position, so The Sessions could even make a play for Best Picture.  Check out the poster and trailer here.

3. Argo (October 12) - Ben Affleck has reinvented himself in the past decade or so.  After becoming a sort of casting punchline, he has settled comfortably into the director's chair.  With two great films already under his belt (Gone Baby Gone and The Town, which both deserve your attention if you've missed them), it looks at though Affleck has really come into his own with Argo, a true story about the rescue of six American diplomats who find refuge in the Canadian ambassador's home in Tehran during the 1979 Iran hostage crisis.  Affleck leads a great cast including Alan Arkin, John Goodman, and Bryan Cranston (it looks like this may be Cranston's first film role that really takes advantage of his incredible talent), and the film looks like it balances the fun bits (the plan to extract the hostages involves the "production" of a fake sci-fi movie) with the more serious aspects of this fascinating tale.  Argo is already getting plenty of Oscar buzz, so this is one you'll want to see before the Big Show.

4. Frankenweenie (October 5) - Tim Burton may finally be back.  After the candy-colored blandness of Alice in Wonderland and Dark Shadows, Burton is diving back into his own catalog, with this stop-motion feature-length take on his 1984 live-action short film.  The beautiful black-and-white animation is classic Burton; it looks like his drawings have come to life in a way that none of his previous films have managed.  The film also looks to pay homage to horror classics, with obvious nods to Frankenstein and, apparently, Godzilla, too?  Burton is sure to pay homage to his hero Vincent Price here, and what better way to do so than by getting back to his creepy roots?  Hopefully, this marks a true return to form for the director, and he won't keep making the rainbow-hued adaptations that have effectively killed his reputation with serious film-goers.

5. Paranormal Activity 4 (October 19) - While the trailer for the fourth entry in the Paranormal Activity franchise isn't particularly scary, I still can't help but be excited to see where directors Ariel Schulman and Henry Joost steer this super scary series.  The third entry, which was the first helmed by this pair, proved to be the scariest yet, and this is the rare horror franchise that has yet to wear out its welcome.  Rather than recycling the same scares over and over, Paranormal Activity has evolved into an interesting narrative that, hopefully, has enough left to reveal to warrant this sequel (and the many to inevitably follow in years to come).  I have enough faith in the directors, and love for the franchise, to hope that the bland trailer isn't a great indicator of the frights to come.

Other Notable Releases: The Imposter (October 5 Columbus release), Taken 2 (October 5), Samsara (October 12 Columbus release), Seven Psychopaths (October 12), Nobody Walks (October 12 limited), Holy Motors (October 17 limited)