Vying to Be Legends of the Fall

Friday

BARBERSHOP

Comedy MGM

With: Ice Cube, Sean Patrick Thomas, Troy Garity, Leonard Earl Howze, Cedric the Entertainer and rapper Eve.

The idea: Interesting characters congregate at Chicago clip joint.

Writers: Mark Brown and Don D. Scott and Marshall Todd; story by Brown.

Director: Tim Story.

So? Shear wit.

HOW I KILLED MY FATHER

Drama New Yorker Films

With: Michel Bouquet, Charles Berling, Natacha Regnier.

The idea: Long-estranged father’s return shatters successful gerontologist’s peaceful existence.

Writers: Jacques Fieschi, Anne Fontaine.

Director: Fontaine.

So? Fontaine and Berling teamed on the sexy 1997 drama “Dry Cleaning.�

IGBY GOES DOWN

Black comedy United Artists

With: Kieran Culkin, Claire Danes, Jeff Goldblum, Jared Harris.

The idea: Teen from dysfunctional family seeks refuge among eccentric New Yorkers.

Writer-director: Burr Steers.

So? Steers, a nephew of Gore Vidal, co-starred in Whit Stillman’s “The Last Days of Disco.�

QUITTING

Drama Sony Pictures Classics

With: Jia Hongsheng, Jia Fengsen, Chai Xiurong, Wang Tong.

The idea: True story of Chinese movie star Jia Hongsheng and his plunge into drug-induced isolation.

Writers: Zhang Yang and Huo Xin.

Director: Zhang.

So? Reality bites. People involved play themselves.

STEALING HARVARD

Comedy Columbia

With: Tom Green, Jason Lee, Leslie Mann, Megan Mullally.

The idea: Underfinanced family must come up with big bucks when daughter is accepted by Harvard.

Writer: Peter Tolan; story by Martin Hynes and Tolan.

Director: Bruce McCulloch.

So? Can Kid in the Hall McCulloch revive fellow Canuck Green’s career?

THE TRANSPORTER

Action Fox

With: Jason Statham, Shu Qi, Matt Schulze.

The idea: Expert courier gets involved in the kidnapping of a beautiful Chinese woman.

Writers: Luc Besson & Robert Mark Kamen.

Director: Cory Yuen.

So? U.S. directing debut for martial arts choreographer and frequent Jet Li collaborator Yuen.

Sept. 20

APOLLO 13

THE IMAX EXPERIENCE

Drama Universal

With: Tom Hanks, Kevin Bacon, Bill Paxton, Gary Sinise, Ed Harris, Kathleen Quinlan.

The idea: Mishap imperils moon mission, triggers taut rescue effort.

Writers: William Broyles Jr. & Al Reinert; based on the book “Lost Moon� by Jim Lovell and Jeffrey Kluger.

Director: Ron Howard.

So? The 1995 hit is the first 35-millimeter live-action film to be digitally remastered into ultra-large Imax format.

BALLISTIC: ECKS VS. SEVER

Action Warner Bros.

With: Lucy Liu, Antonio Banderas, Gregg Henry, Ray Park.

The idea: Rivals vie for an advanced assassination device.

Writer: Alan McElroy.

Director: Kaos.

So? Kicks. Lots of them.

THE BANGER SISTERS

Comedy Fox Searchlight

With: Goldie Hawn, Susan Sarandon, Geoffrey Rush, Erika Christensen.

The idea: Two ‘60s-era rock groupies reunite in middle age. One has changed; the other hasn’t.

Writer-director: Bob Dolman.

So? Funny parental perspective.

DAS EXPERIMENT

Dramatic thriller IDP/Samuel Goldwyn

With: Moritz Bleibtreu, Christian Berkel, Oliver Stokowski, Wotan Wilke Mohring.

The idea: Psychological research turns into power struggle between role-playing “prisoners� and “guards.�

Writers: Mario Giordano, Christoph Darnstadt, Don Bohlinger; based on Giordano’s novel “Black Box.�

Director: Oliver Hirschbiegel.

So? Bleibtreu ran with Franka Potente in “Run Lola Run.�

8 WOMEN

Musical-comedy-mystery Focus Features

With: Catherine Deneuve, Isabelle Huppert, Emmanuelle Beart, Fanny Ardant.

The idea: They’re all suspects in the murder of a family patriarch and regularly break into song.

Writer-director: Francois Ozon.

So? Sort of a Douglas Sirk spoof.

THE FOUR FEATHERS

Adventure Paramount

With: Heath Ledger, Wes Bentley, Kate Hudson, Djimon Hounsou.

The idea: Disgraced British officer in 1898 Sudan surreptitiously redeems his honor.

Writers: Michael Schiffer and Hossein Amini; based on the novel by A.E.W. Mason.

Director: Shekhar Kapur.

So? Colonialism and the colonized.

A GUY THING

Comedy MGM

With: Jason Lee, Julia Stiles, Selma Blair, James Brolin.

The idea: Groom-to-be tells a little lie, with consequences.

Writers: Greg Glienna & Pete Schwaba, Matt Tarses & Bill Wrubel; story by Glienna.

Director: Chris Koch.

So? Koch directed the 2000 sleeper hit “Snow Day.�

INVINCIBLE

Drama Fine Line

With: Tim Roth, Jouko Ahola, Anna Gourari.

The idea: Jewish blacksmith riles Nazis by billing himself as the world’s strongest man.

Writer-director: Werner Herzog.

So: Herzog is always an event for cineastes.

THE MESMERIST

Thriller 7th Arts

With: Neil Patrick Harris, Jessica Capshaw, Jason Carter, Howard Hesseman.

The idea: Doctor hypnotizes dying man.

Writers: Ron Marasco and Michael Goorjian; based on the short story “The Facts in the Case of Mr. Valdemar� by Edgar Allan Poe.

Director: Gil Cates Jr.

So? Transcendent humor.

MIYAZAKI’S SPIRITED AWAY

Animated fantasy Disney

With: Voices of Daveigh Chase, Lauren Holly and Suzanne Pleshette.

The idea: Girl and her parents stumble into a parallel universe of magic and spirits.

Writer-director: Hayao Miyazaki.

So? “Toy Story’s� John Lasseter guides English-language translation of Japanese master for U.S. audiences.

SECRETARY

Comedy Lions Gate

With: James Spader, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Lesley Ann Warren, Jeremy Davies.

The idea: Attorney and secretary have an unconventional affair.

Writer: Erin Cressida Wilson.

Director: Steven Shainberg.

So? This office assistant takes spankings as well as dictation.

SLAP HER, SHE’S FRENCH

Comedy Premiere

With: Piper Perabo, Jane McGregor, Trent Ford, Michael McKean, Julie White.

The idea: French foreign exchange student targets Texas teenager who has it all.

Writers: Lamar Damon & Robert Lee King.

Director: Melanie Mayron.

So? “All About Eve� goes to high school.

TRAPPED

Thriller Columbia

With: Charlize Theron, Courtney Love, Stuart Townsend, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Dakota Fanning, Kevin Bacon.

The idea: Two couples--one kidnappers, one victims--face off as extortion plan unravels.

Writer: Greg Iles, based on his novel “24 Hours.�

Director: Luis Mandoki.

So? Touchy subject.

Sept. 27

BIGGIE AND TUPAC

Documentary Roxie Releasing

The idea: Investigates the slayings of rappers Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac Shakur.

Director: Nick Broomfield.

So? “Kurt & Courtney’s� Broomfield has experience stirring things up.

CRAZY AS HELL

Drama Artistic License

With: Michael Beach, Eriq LaSalle, Ronny Cox, John C. McGinley, Sinbad, Tia Texada, Tracy Pettit.

The idea: Maverick psychiatrist is shadowed by documentary film crew as he treats patient who claims to be Satan.

Writers: Jeremy Leven and Erik Jendresen; based on Leven’s novel “Satan.�

Director: LaSalle.

So? Reunion for “ER� alumni LaSalle and Beach.

JUST A KISS

Comedy Paramount Classics

With: Zoe Caldwell, Taye Diggs, Kyra Sedgwick, Marisa Tomei.

The idea: Two Manhattan couples confront fidelity issues.

Writer: Patrick Breen.

Director: Fisher Stevens.

So? Clever use of animation with live action.

MOONLIGHT MILE

Drama Disney

With: Jake Gyllenhaal, Dustin Hoffman, Susan Sarandon, Holly Hunter, Ellen Pompeo.

The idea: Living with parents of deceased fiancee complicates grieving process for groom-to-be.

Writer-director: Brad Silberling.

So? Fascinating look at catharsis arising from personal tragedy for Silberling.

SWEET HOME ALABAMA

Romantic comedy Touchstone

With: Reese Witherspoon, Fred Ward, Mary Kay Place, Patrick Dempsey, Candice Bergen, Jean Smart.

The idea: Fashion designer’s glamorous life becomes complicated by her past as a Southern wild child.

Writers: C. Jay Cox; story by Douglas J. Eboch.

Director: Andy Tennant.

So? Sweet as sugar cane.

THE TUXEDO

Comedy DreamWorks

With: Jackie Chan, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Jason Isaacs, Debi Mazar.

The idea: Formal wear transforms chauffeur into trouble-prone secret agent.

Writers: Michael J. Wilson and Michael Leeson; story by Phil Hay & Matt Manfredi and Wilson.

Director: Kevin Donovan.

So? Chan-tastic.

WASABI

Action-comedy TriStar

With: Jean Reno, Ryoku Hirosue, Michel Muller.

The idea: French police inspector finds himself in Tokyo following the death of an old flame.

Writer: Luc Besson.

Director: Gerard Krawczyck.

So? Prolific writer-producer Besson’s second film this fall after “The Transporter.�

Sept. TBA

BIG SHOT’S FUNERAL

Comedy Sony Pictures Classics

With: Donald Sutherland, Ge You, Rosamund Kwan, Paul Mazursky.

The idea: Veteran director breaks down while filming a remake of “The Last Emperor� in China, setting off a series of comic misunderstandings.

Writers: Feng Xiaogang, Li Xiaoming, Shi Kang.

Director: Feng Xiaogang.

So? Satire of international media, using the Chinese tradition of extravagantly celebrating the “dearly departed’s� life well-lived.

CHILDREN OF THE CENTURY

Drama Empire Pictures

With: Juliette Binoche, Benoit Magimel, Stefano Dinisi.

The idea: The doomed romance between novelist George Sand and younger poet Alfred de Musset enthralls Parisian society.

Writers: Francoise Olivier Rousseau, Murray Head, Diane Kurys.

Director: Kurys.

So? Title riffs on De Musset’s only novel, “Confessions of a Child of the Century.�

Oct. 4

ALIAS BETTY

Thriller Wellspring Media

With: Sandrine Kiberlaine, Nicole Garcia, Mathilde Seigner.

The idea: Grieving mother gets entangled in a kidnapping.

Writer-director: Claude Miller; based on Ruth Rendell’s novel “The Tree of Hands.�

So? French director Miller finds psychological depth in crime novel.

BOWLING FOR COLUMBINE

Documentary United Artists

The idea: A look at guns and violence in American society.

Writer-director: Michael Moore.

So? Political and provocative, of course.

HEAVEN

Drama Miramax

With: Cate Blanchett, Giovanni Ribisi.

The idea: British woman in Italy takes justice for a drug kingpin into her own hands.

Writers: Krzysztof Kieslowski, Krzysztof Piesiewicz.

Director: Tom Tykwer.

So? Blanchett is convincing even if the material ultimately isn’t.

HIS SECRET LIFE

Drama Strand

With: Margherita Buy, Stefano Accorsi, Serra Yilmaz.

The idea: Widow pieces together late husband’s secrets when she meets his lover.

Writers: Ferzan Ozpetek and Gianni Romoli.

Director: Ozpetek.

So? Ozpetek directed “Steam.�

JONAH--A VEGGIETALES MOVIE

Animated Artisan

The idea: TV veggies reunite and embark on an adventure involving a whale.

Writer-directors: Mike Nawrocki, Phil Vischer.

So? Theatrical feature debut for the TV and video franchise.

THE MAN FROM ELYSIAN FIELDS

Comedy IDP/Samuel Goldwyn-Fireworks

With: Andy Garcia, Mick Jagger, Julianna Margulies, Olivia Williams, James Coburn.

The idea: Struggling writer becomes a gigolo and enters the strange world of an aging author.

Writer: Philip Jayson Lasker.

Director: George Hickenlooper.

So? Jagger plays Garcia’s pimp.

RED DRAGON

Thriller Universal

With: Anthony Hopkins, Edward Norton, Ralph Fiennes, Harvey Keitel, Emily Watson.

The idea: Former FBI agent comes out of retirement and reunites with an old nemesis, Hannibal Lecter.

Writer: Ted Tally; based on the novel by Thomas Harris.

Director: Brett Ratner.

So? Appetizing goose bumps.

WELCOME TO COLLINWOOD

Comedy Warner Bros.

With: Luis Guzman, Patricia Clarkson, Sam Rockwell, William H. Macy, Isaiah Washington, George Clooney.

The idea: Denizens of a working-class neighborhood vie to carry out an incarcerated buddy’s caper.

Writer-directors: Anthony & Joe Russo; based on the 1958 Italian film “I Soliti Ignoti,� a.k.a. “Big Deal on Madonna Street,� by Suso Checchi D’Amico, Mario Municelli, Agenore Incrocci, Furio Scarpelli.

So? Quaintly quirky.

Oct. 11

BLOODY SUNDAY

Drama Paramount Classics

With: James Nesbitt, Tim Pigott-Smith, Nicholas Farrell, Gerard McSorley.

The idea: Depicts the fateful events of Jan. 30, 1972, when British troops fired on civil rights demonstrators in Londonderry, Northern Ireland.

Writer-director: Paul Greengrass; based on the book “Bloody Sunday: Massacre in Northern Ireland: The Eyewitness Accounts.�

So? Provocative, but quasi-documentary style is initially distracting.

BROWN SUGAR

Drama Fox Searchlight

With: Taye Diggs, Sanaa Lathan, Mos Def, Nicole Ari Parker.

The idea: Music critic and record executive trace their careers and friendship to the birth of hip-hop.

Writers: Michael Elliot and Rick Famuyiwa; story by Elliot.

Director: Famuyiwa.

So? Fresh perspective, adroitly conceived.

THE GREY ZONE

Drama Lions Gate

With: David Arquette, Steve Buscemi, Harvey Keitel, Mira Sorvino.

The idea: Moral dilemmas complicate the only armed revolt to take place at Auschwitz.

Writer-director: Tim Blake Nelson.

So? Compelling events.

KNOCKAROUND GUYS

Drama New Line

With: Barry Pepper, Vin Diesel, Seth Green, Andrew Davoli, Dennis Hopper, John Malkovich.

The idea: Flatbush versus sagebrush as four sons of mobsters confront Montana sheriff.

Writer-directors: Brian Koppelman & David Levien.

So? Shot before Diesel got hot.

POKEMON 4EVER

Animation Miramax

The idea: The newest Pokemon, Celebi, hooks up with Ash and Pikachu.

Writer: Michael Haigney.

Director: Jim Malone.

So? Pokemon fever has ebbed, at least for screen versions.

PUNCH-DRUNK LOVE

Comedy Columbia

With: Adam Sandler, Emily Watson, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Luis Guzman.

The idea: Man tries to overcome psychological trauma from seven sisters and find romance.

Writer-director: Paul Thomas Anderson.

So? Anderson’s affection for eccentrics and San Fernando Valley is intact.

THE RULES OF ATTRACTION

Comedy Lions Gate

With: James Van Der Beek, Shannyn Sossamon, Jessica Biel, Ian Somerhalder.

The idea: Students at exclusive college cavort and couple in a variety of combinations.

Writer: Roger Avary; based on Bret Easton Ellis’ second novel.

Director: Avary.

So? Fans of Ellis may approve, but not for the faint of heart.

SKINS

Drama First Look

With: Graham Greene, Eric Schweig.

The idea: Two Sioux brothers cope in different ways with the indignity of reservation existence.

Writer: Jennifer D. Lyne; based on the novel by Adrian Louis.

Director: Chris Eyre.

So? Eyre, who directed “Smoke Signals,� knows the territory.

SWEPT AWAY

Romantic comedy Screen Gems

With: Madonna, Adriano Giannini, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Bruce Greenwood.

The idea: Remake the Lina Wertmuller classic about a sailor and an imperious employer whose roles are reversed when they’re marooned.

Writer-director: Guy Ritchie.

So? It is a remake, but Ritchie is husband of Madonna, and Giannini is the son of the original male lead.

TUCK EVERLASTING

Drama Disney

With: Alexis Bledel, Ben Kingsley, Sissy Spacek, Amy Irving.

The idea: Teenage girl gets lost in the woods, becomes drawn to an unusual family.

Writers: Jeffrey Lieber and James V. Hart; based on the book by Natalie Babbitt.

Director: Jay Russell.

So? Dreamlike book was a beloved award-winner.

WHITE OLEANDER

Drama Warner Bros.

With: Michelle Pfeiffer, Alison Lohman, Robin Wright Penn, Renee Zellweger.

The idea: Teenage daughter spends an eventful three years in a series of foster homes.

Writer: Mary Agnes Donoghue; based on the novel by Janet Fitch.

Director: Peter Kosminsky.

So? Pfeiffer is imposing as the mother.

Oct. 18

ABANDON

Thriller Paramount

With: Katie Holmes, Benjamin Bratt, Charlie Hunnam, Zooey Deschanel.

The idea: A woman is conflicted by an investigation into her boyfriend’s disappearance.

Writer-director: Stephen Gaghan.

So? Will this be a Bratt breakthrough?

AUTO FOCUS

Drama Sony Pictures Classics

With: Greg Kinnear, Willem Dafoe, Maria Bello, Rita Wilson.

The idea: A look at the libidinous life and mysterious murder of TV star Bob Crane.

Writer: Michael Gerbosi; based on the book “The Murder of Bob Crane� by Robert Graysmith.

Director: Paul Schrader.

So? One of Hollywood’s more lurid mysteries.

FORMULA 51

Action-comedy Screen Gems

With: Samuel L. Jackson, Robert Carlyle, Emily Mortimer, Sean Pertwee.

The idea: Entrepreneur’s grand plan for a designer drug unravels in a series of double-crosses.

Writer: Stel Pavlou.

Director: Ronny Yu.

So? Think “Snatch� with Hong Kong flair.

THE HAPPINESS

OF THE KATAKURIS

Musical comedy-horror Vitagraph

With: Kenji Sawada, Keiko Matsuzaka, Shinji Takeda, Naomi Nishida, Tamaki Miyazaki.

The idea: At rural Japanese lodging house, all the guests turn up dead. Set to music.

Writer: Kikumu Yamagishi.

Director: Takashi Miike.

So? Singing family, mountain lodge, dead guests, karaoke, clay animation....

LOVE IN THE TIME OF MONEY

Dramatic comedy ThinkFilm

With: Steve Buscemi, Jill Hennessy, Rosario Dawson, Michael Imperioli.

The idea: A portrait of boom-time Manhattan is linked by a succession of sexual encounters.

Writer-director: Peter Mattei.

So? Updates Arthur Schnitzler’s play “Reigen.� His “Traumnovelle� was the basis for “Eyes Wide Shut.�

NAQOYQATSI

Documentary Miramax

The idea: The third entry in the series of visuals-and-music montage concerns the world’s passage from nature to technology.

Writer-director: Godfrey Reggio.

So? Philip Glass score features Yo-Yo Ma.

REAL WOMEN HAVE CURVES

Dramatic comedy Newmarket/HBO Films

With: America Ferrara, Lupe Ontiveros, Ingrid Oliu.

The idea: A young Latina’s aspirations vie with cultural expectations.

Writers: George LaVoo, Josefina Lopez.

Director: Patricia Cardoso.

So? Won audience award and special acting prize for Ferrara and Ontiveros at Sundance.

THE RING

Thriller DreamWorks

With: Naomi Watts, Martin Henderson, David Dorfman, Brian Cox.

The idea: Reporter investigates the link between a grisly video and mysterious deaths.

Writer: Ehren Kruger; based on the novel by Koji Suzuki and the 1998 Japanese film.

Director: Gore Verbinski.

So? Early word is quite favorable.

Oct. 25

ALL OR NOTHING

Drama United Artists

With: Timothy Spall, Lesley Manville, Alison Garland, James Corden.

The idea: Working-class London is the setting for the story of a couple and a tragedy that rekindles their love.

Writer-director: Mike Leigh.

So? Bittersweet as only Leigh can be.

ALL THE QUEEN’S MEN

Comedy Strand

With: Matt LeBlanc, Eddie Izzard, James Cosmo, Nicolette Krebitz.

The idea: Allied agents dress as women to infiltrate a Nazi factory.

Writer: David Schneider; story by Digby Wolfe & Joseph Manduke and June Roberts.

Director: Stefan Ruzowitsky.

So? LeBlanc looks pretty good in a dress; Izzard’s pretty funny.

FRIDA

Drama-biography Miramax

With: Salma Hayek, Alfred Molina, Mia Maestro, Roger Rees, Geoffrey Rush.

The idea: Artists Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera stir things up with their works and their play.

Writers: Clancy Sigal and Diane Lake and Gregory Nava & Anna Thomas; based on the book by Hayden Herrera.

Director: Julie Taymor.

So? Hayek’s labor of love shows.

GHOST SHIP

Thriller Warner Bros.

With: Gabriel Byrne, Julianna Margulies, Desmond Harrington.

The idea: Good news: Salvagers discover long-abandoned ocean liner. Bad news: It’s not entirely abandoned.

Writers: Mark Hanlon and John Pogue; story by Hanlon.

Director: Steve Beck.

So? Spooks ahoy.

HUSH!

Comedy Strand

With: Seichi Tanabe, Kazuya Takahashi, Reiko Kataoku.

The idea: A woman and a gay male couple consider parenthood.

Writer-director: Hashiguchi Ryosuke.

So? Another triangle from Ryosuke (“Like Grains of Sand�).

JACKASS THE MOVIE

Comedy Paramount

With: Johnny Knoxville, Bam Margera, Chris Pontius, Steve-O.

The idea: The King of Pain leads his subjects through ever more outrageous stunts.

Director: Jeff Tremaine.

So? Hilariously revolting, emphasis on the latter.

ROGER DODGER

Comedy Artisan

With: Campbell Scott, Jesse Eisenberg, Isabella Rossellini, Jennifer Beals, Elizabeth Berkley.

The idea: Advertising copywriter guides teenage nephew through the Manhattan singles scene.

Writer-director: Dylan Kidd.

So? Smooth operator gets more than he bargains for.

TEKNOLUST

Science fiction Skouras Films

With: Tilda Swinton, Jeremy Davies, James Urbaniak, Karen Black, Josh Kornbluth, Thomas Jay Ryan.

The idea: Biogeneticist downloads her own DNA and creates three replicas of herself.

Writer-director: Lynn Hershman-Leeson.

So? Quadruple Swinton? We’re ready.

THE TRUTH ABOUT CHARLIE

Romantic thriller Universal

With: Mark Wahlberg, Thandie Newton, Tim Robbins, Joong-Hoon Park.

The idea: Woman finds herself widowed and pursued in Paris.

Writers: Jonathan Demme & Steve Schmidt and Pierre Marton and Jessica Bendinger. Based on the movie “Charade,� written by Peter Stone.

Director: Demme.

So? Intriguing.

WAKING UP IN RENO

Comedy Miramax

With: Billy Bob Thornton, Charlize Theron, Patrick Swayze, Natasha Richardson.

The idea: Two couples set out on an eventful road trip.

Writers: Brent Briscoe & Mark Fauser.

Director: Jordan Brady.

So? Billy Bob and Carol and Ted and Alice.

Oct. TBA

FRIENDS AND FAMILY

Comedy Regent Entertainment

With: Tony Lo Bianco, Greg Lauren, Christopher Gartin, Tovah Feldshuh.

The idea: The real gay mafia? A couple (literally) of mob hit men try to cover up their relationship when parents come to visit.

Writer: Joseph Triebwasser.

Director: Kristen Coury.

So? A fabulous, if derivative, idea for a movie.

LAWLESS HEART

Drama First Look

With: Bill Nighy, Douglas Henshall, Tom Hollander, Clementine Celarie.

The idea: Three men encounter different aspects of desire.

Writer-directors: Neil Hunter and Tom Hunsinger.

So? Coincidentally amusing.

ON GUARD!

Adventure Empire Pictures

With: Daniel Autueil, Fabrice Luchini, Vincent Perez, Marie Gillain, Philippe Noiret.

The idea: In 17th century France, an expert swordsman dons a disguise to carry out a promise to a slain duke.

Writers: Philippe de Broca, Jean Cosmos; based on Paul Feval’s novel “Le Bossu.�

Director: De Broca.

So? Feval was a popular contemporary of Victor Hugo and Alexandre Dumas pere et fils.

Nov. 1

THE CORE

Science fiction Paramount

With: Aaron Eckhart, Hilary Swank, Delroy Lindo, Stanley Tucci.

The idea: Scientists get boring when chemical-waste reaction throws Earth’s core off balance.

Writers: Cooper Layne and John Rogers.

Director: Jon Amiel.

So? “Journey to the Center of the Earth� with a nuclear device.

THE RISING PLACE

Drama Flatland Pictures

With: Frances Fisher, Alice Drummond, Laurel Holloman, Elise Neal, Mark Webber, Gary Cole, Tess Harper.

The idea: A young Mississippi Delta woman bucks social convention to have a child out of wedlock in the 1940s.

Writer-director: Tom Rice.

So? Took grand prize at 2001 Malibu Film Festival.

I SPY

Action-comedy Columbia

With: Eddie Murphy, Owen Wilson, Famke Janssen, Malcolm McDowell.

The idea: Update of ‘60s TV series pairs elite athlete with CIA agent to retrieve missing stealth bomber.

Writers: Cormac Wibberley & Marianne Sellek Wibberley, Jay Scherick & David Ronn.

Director: Betty Thomas.

So? High potential for comic chemistry.

THE SANTA CLAUSE 2

Comedy Disney

With: Tim Allen.

The idea: Mr. C hunts for a wife while a substitute Santa imperils Christmas.

Writer: Don Rhymer and Cinco Paul & Ken Daurio and Ed Decter & John J. Strauss; based on characters created by Leo Benvenuti & Steve Rudnick.

Director: Michael Lembeck.

So? Original was a surprise hit, but that was when Allen was a hot TV commodity.

THE WEIGHT OF WATER

Drama Lions Gate

With: Catherine McCormack, Sean Penn, Elizabeth Hurley, Sarah Polley.

The idea: A woman’s obsession with a 19th century murder plays out against her increasingly troubled marriage.

Writers: Alice Arlen and Christopher Kyle; based on the novel by Anita Shreve.

Director: Kathryn Bigelow.

So? Bigelow takes a break from action.

Fall TBA

HOPE SPRINGS

Romantic comedy Touchstone

With: Colin Firth, Heather Graham, Minnie Driver, Oliver Platt.

The idea: British artist on rebound rides roller coaster of romance in small-town Maine.

Writer-director: Mark Herman; based on the novel “New Cardiff� by Charles Webb.

So? Light and airy.

THE ISLE

Drama Empire Pictures

With: Suh Jung, Kim Yoo-Suk, Park Sung-Hee, Cho Jae-Hyung, Jang Hang-Sun.

The idea: Man on the run bonds with mysterious mute woman who runs a seaside fishing village.

Writer-director: Kim Ki-Duk.

So? Director’s films tend to incite feminist film critics.

*

EDITOR: Kinsey Lowe

CAPSULES: Richard Cromelin

RESEARCH: Kevin Crust