The Most Exciting Films at the 57th New York Film Festival

As the 57th New York Film Festival approaches, we run down the premieres and events that we are most excited for, and their Oscar prospects.

This year, the 50th Anniversary of Film at Lincoln Center and the 57th New York Film Festival merge for what is possibly the most exciting line up that the festival has had in years. From some amazing world premieres to some great Oscar contenders that you won’t want to miss, read our list to know what to see this Fall.

The World Premiere of Martin Scorsese’s The Irishman

The newest film from beloved New York filmmaker Martin Scorsese returns to his roots with The Irishman. The story is about a mobster who is connected to some of the most notorious gangsters in New York history and reunites Scorsese with Robert DeNiro, Joe Pesci, Harvey Keitel, and more of his usual crew. It also marks the first time that Al Pacino and Scorsese have worked together and the fourth meeting of DeNiro and Pacino.

The World Premiere is September 27th, prior to the film’s release in theaters and on Netflix.

The Centerpiece of the Adam Driver/Scarlett Johansson Starring Marriage Story

Noah Baumbach is one of the most interesting filmmakers of the last few decades, making incisive looks on the realistic problems of humans. With Marriage Story he returns to the same territory as The Squid & the Whale: Divorce. Starring Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson as a couple splitting up and co-starring Alan Alda and Laura Dern among others, it is one of the most buzzed-about films of the year hitting up other fall festivals across the world and making its New York premiere here.

Marriage Story’s New York premiere will be on October 4th. It will be in theaters and on Netflix this Fall. 

Motherless Brooklyn Closes Out the 57th NYFF with a Homecoming

Based on a 1999 novel of the same name, Motherless Brooklyn is the second directorial effort of Edward Norton and already looks to be a very curious film. The trailer is strange and makes for a film that likely has to be seen to be believed. Norton stars, along with Bruce Willis, Willem Dafoe, Alec Baldwin, and many more names. 

Motherless Brooklyn’s New York premiere will on October 11th. It will be released in theaters by Warner Bros. on November 1st.

One of America’s Most Underrated Filmmakers Returns to NYFF with First Cow

Kelly Reichardt has made some of the best films of the past decade, including both Certain Women and Night Moves. Now she comes back to Alice Tully Hall for her newest film, First Cow. The film depicts the 19th-century relationship between a fur trapper in the Pacific Northwest who finds himself going into business with a Chinese immigrant. Suspenseful and ponderous, it is a return to the time period of Meek’s Cutoff, the setting of Certain Women, the tension of Night Moves, and the male bonding of Old Joy. In other words, it is looking to be another masterpiece from Reichardt. 

First Cow will have its New York premiere on September 28th. It is an A24 release.

Put on a Happy Face for the New York Premiere of Joker

We seem to have entered a cinematic Twilight Zone of sorts, as maybe the hottest film of the 2019 festival season is a DC Comics film. That’s right, the new film Joker from Todd Phillips and starring Joaquin Phoenix and Robert DeNiro is expected to make a splash this year at the New York Film Festival in their “special events” category, and it promises to be… well something. And no matter what it will be worth watching. 

Joker will have its New York premiere at the festival before its October 4th release from Warner Bros. 

Antonio Banderas and Pedro Almodóvar Reteam for Pain and Glory

Pedro Almodóvar has long been one of the most acclaimed Spanish directors in the world, and the careers he has launched are numerous. Maybe none more so than Antonio Banderas, making his eighth time working with the director. Banderas plays a director looking back on his life a la 8 1/2 but with the signature Almodóva twist. Banderas won the Best Actor award at the Cannes Film Festival and is already looking like an Oscar contender. 

Pain & Glory will have its New York premiere on September 28th before its release in theaters by Sony Pictures Classic on October 4th.

Parasite Makes It’s Highly Anticipated New York Premiere

Bong Joon-ho has made some of the most thought-provoking and entertaining films of the 21st Century, from his 2000 debut with Barking Dogs Never Bite to his recent Netflix film Okja. Now, he returns to South Korea for a film about class struggle and obsession. Parasite won the Palme d’Or and is without a doubt the most anticipated non-American film at the festival this year. 

Parasite will have its New York premiere on October 6th before its theatrical release on October 11th from NEON.

Celine Sciamma’s Fourth Feature Portrait of a Lady on Fire Brings a Cannes Favorite to NYC

Portrait of a Lady on Fire was one of the most well-regarded films at Cannes in May, and now it is coming to the 57th New York Film Festival with a lot of expectations. Sciamma’s previous films include the critically beloved Girlhood about young women on the streets of Paris, as well as the truly special film Tomboy. Here, she tells the story of a relationship between a young heiress and the female painter that was hired to make a portrait for the heiress’s betrothed. 

Portrait of a Lady will have its New York premiere on September 29th before its theatrical release on December 6th. A NEON release. Presented by Film Comment.

The much-anticipated third film of Nadav Lapid, Synonyms, makes its US Premiere

Following a Golden Bear-lauded premiere at the Berlin Film Festival, Lapid brings his third film to New York. After the thrilling The Kindergarten Teacher in 2014 and Policeman in 2011, Lapid has made his mark as a master of Israeli cinema, and this story of a young Israeli who flees to Paris to find himself, although things become increasingly complicated as his relationship to a young couple begins to bend his expectations of France.

Synonyms will have its U.S. premiere on September 29th before its theatrical release on September 29th from Kino Lorber

The Final Film of a True Master, Varda by Agnès Marks a Celebration of Agnès Varda’s Work

When Agnès Varda passed away in March of this year, it marked the passing of one of the last French New Wave masters. Her final film will mark the start of a celebration of Varda’s films across Film at Lincoln Center. They’ve dedicated the 57th New York Film Festival to her memory and a program in the winter will feature a full retrospective of the legend’s work. Varda by Agnès is an autobiographical capstone 

Varda by Agnès will have its New York premiere on October 9th before its release by Janus Films on November 22nd.

Olivier Assayas’s Wasp Network Marks his 7th Straight NYFF Release

Olivier Assayas is a mainstay at the New York Film Festival, and at this 57th festival, he presents his latest work. This time with Gael García Bernal, Penélope Cruz (also in Pain & Glory), and Édgar Ramírez, Wasp Network is a reunion and return to political thrillers from the director and star of Carlos. A new Assayas is always something to anticipate, especially when he reunites with one of his favorite actors. 

Wasp Network will have its U.S. premiere on October 5th. 

Zombi Child Promises another Twisted Trip into Bertrand Bonello’s Mind

One of my personal favorite films of the past few years was Bertrand Bonello’s Nocturama, so hearing that he is returning to the same look at youths in distress gives me great hope for Zombi Child. The story bounces between Haiti and France in the 60s and the 2010s. Each half gives a look at countries in distress from the eyes of the young, though with an undead twist. The premiere at Cannes gives me hope for another great work by the director. 

Zombi Child will have its U.S. premiere on October 1st. It is a Film Movement release.

 

The 57th New York Film Festival will begin on September 27th, running until October 13th. Tickets go on sale September 8th.