From a Marilyn biopic to a Bowie doc to a Billy Eichner rom-com, here are all the movies you need to know for September 2022

Select theaters (September 16)The meme-approved, $310 million worldwide box office success of the Oscar-nominated Knives Out created, in the form of Netflix’s bankrolling two planned sequels, cartoonish wealth for writer-director Rian Johnson. But will it additionally spark, let alone sustain, a broader reemergence of original whodunits? An early case study in this marketplace question arrives in the form of , a 1950-set mystery-comedy from screenwriter Mark Chappell and director Tom George.When Leo Köpernick (Adrien Brody), an American film producer seeking to adapt a British stageplay, is killed, world-weary Inspector Stoppard (Sam Rockwell) teams up with the eager but green Constable Stalker (Saoirse Ronan) to sift through a laundry list of suspects (including apparently Richard Attenborough, played by Harris Dickinson, plus David Oyelowo, Ruth Wilson, and Shirley Henderson) who also double as potential victims. The recipe for this affair—droll humor, a pinch of Wes Anderson-inspired visual framing—seems familiar enough. And the movie’s lack of a splashy fall festival premiere slot indicates its distributor views it as more of a commercial play than an awards contender. Still, what’s wrong with that? Let the guessing games begin. [Brent Simon]

Theaters everywhere (September 23)It will be a busy fall season for Harry Styles and Florence Pugh, who have three buzzy movies coming out between the two of them. First for both is director Olivia Wilde’s period psychological thriller . Pugh has the lead role as a 1950s housewife living in a seemingly idyllic community. However, the company where her husband (Styles) works seems to be in control of their lives. Something seems off. Is she being watched? Stalked? Thanks to shades of The Stepford Wives crossed with The Truman Show, the Twitterverse has been abuzz with excitement since the trailer dropped; the combination of Pugh and Styles trapped in a “bad romance” seems irresistible. Not to mention that it’s Wilde’s first foray behind the camera since her directorial breakout with 2019’s excellent Booksmart. In addition to looking acutely stylish, the movie boasts an in-demand supporting cast to match, including Chris Pine, Kiki Layne, and Gemma Chan. Arianne Phillips’ period costumes and sets are lavish and colorful, popping off the screen and framed by Matthew Libatique’s gorgeous cinematography. All that and a taut, suspenseful mystery promises a special moviegoing experience. [Murtada Elfadl]

Netflix (September 23)Allison Janney already let the cat out of the bag with a late night talk show appearance in which she revealed undertaking two hours of fight training per day to play a “female Dirty Harry” in her new movie. Otherwise, much about the intriguing-sounding feminist revenge-thriller Lou remains under wraps—save that Janney stars as the withdrawn, “particular-set-of-skills”-possessing title character, who after a young neighbor is kidnapped, teams up with the girl’s mother (Jurnee Smollett), presumably resulting in things not going so well for co-star Logan Marshall-Green.Perhaps most noteworthy, though, is the fact that Lou is produced by J.J. Abrams through Bad Robot Productions, so it could in theory be another down-and-dirty Cloverfield universe spin-off genre effort. Does the kidnap victim have a telepathic connection to Seabed’s Nectar? Were her kidnappers dispatched by Tagruato corporate minders to help engineer a new Slusho! flavor? Hey, maybe not, but you can at least ponder this alternate cinematic universe scenario as you sit back and enjoy a weapon-wielding Janney, preferably filmed with lots of walk-and-talks. [Brent Simon]

Netflix (September 28)Norma Jeane Baker grew up in an orphanage and various foster homes, suffered three failed marriages and multiple miscarriages, and died at the age of 36. Marilyn Monroe was an actress, sex symbol, and celebrity. Norma Jeane and Marilyn were, of course, the same person. But the pain and loneliness of being Norma Jeane led to the creation of Marilyn, which seems to be the argument director Andrew Dominik (The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford) is making in his much-anticipated new film, . Based on Joyce Carol Oates’ 2000 novel of the same name, Blonde is a fictionalized and highly stylized interpretation of Monroe’s tragic life. Top-billed Ana de Armas reportedly spent nine months training with a dialogue coach to nail Monroe’s breathy voice. She’s joined by a supporting cast that includes Bobby Cannavale and Adrien Brody as riffs on Monroe’s last two husbands, Yankees slugger Joe DiMaggio and playwright Arthur Miller. If the film’s trailers are any indication, the visuals are going to be stunning period recreations that express Monroe’s fractured state of mind. Much to Dominik’s bewilderment, Blonde is rated NC-17. Netflix, who’s distributing the film, doesn’t seem to mind, especially if Oscar nominations are practically assured for this controversial, mostly black-and-white deconstruction of stardom’s most famous victim. [Mark Keizer]

Theaters everywhere (September 30)It took a while, like over 100 years, but we finally have the first romantic comedy from a major Hollywood studio that centers around a relationship between two gay men. stars and is co-written by Billy Eichner (TV’s Billy on the Street), who didn’t want to squander such a historic opportunity, so he insisted the film be authentic to the LGBTQ+ dating experience. That meant acknowledging that gay and straight relationships are, in fact, different. “This is not as simple as doing When Harry Met Sally and swapping in two men,” he told Rolling Stone.Eichner plays Bobby, a podcaster asked to write a gay rom-com script that would appeal to straight people. This makes him wonder, “Am I going to be in the middle of a high-speed chase and all of a sudden fall in love with Ice Cube?” While navigating that career crisis, the independent-minded singleton falls for a “gay Tom Brady” played by Hallmark Channel mainstay Luke Macfarlane. As their relationship grows, they encounter many of the unique challenges faced by queer couples today. Directed by Nicholas Stoller (Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Neighbors), Bros features an entirely LGBTQ+ principal cast that includes Ts Madison, Monica Raymund, Guillermo Díaz, Jim Rash, Harvey Fierstein, and season 13 RuPaul’s Drag Race winner Symone. Bros may be the first gay rom-com from the studio big boys, but it better not be the last. [Mark Keizer]

Disney+ (September 30)Disney’s horror-comedy Hocus Pocus haunted theaters way back in 1983. Truth be told, it was more trick than treat, drawing frightful reviews and ghastly box office results. But time and repeated Halloween viewings morphed the film into a cult favorite, and demand grew for a reunion of the Sanderson sisters (Bette Midler as Winnie, Sarah Jessica Parker as Sarah, and Kathy Najimy as Mary). Well, here we go. It’s 29 years later, and the Sanderson sinisters, er, sisters return to action in , premiering on Disney+. Also back is Doug Jones, who played the scene-stealing zombie Billy Butcherson in the original film and has since emerged as a modern-day Lon Chaney, Hollywood’s go-to guy for inhabiting fantastical creatures (Abe Sapien in Hellboy, The Faun in Pan’s Labyrinth, the Amphibian Man in The Shape Of Water, and Saru on Star Trek: Discovery). Here’s hoping that Hocus Pocus 2 is fun and funny, and better than the original. Even if it proves to be a witch’s brew of badness, we’re on board just to see Ted Lasso breakout Hannah Waddingham as a witch. [Ian Spelling]

Select theaters (September 30)“I suppose every house around here has the same ghosts,” Sarah Murphy (Aisling Franciosi) muses through a haze of cigarette smoke in the trailer for , the sophomore outing from Saela Davis and Anna Rose Holmer of The Fits. At a taut 94 minutes, this chilly A24 thriller asks what happens when one of those ghosts comes back to life. Are we beholden to the memories of what they could have been? Or is it possible to adapt to the thorny reality of who they’ve become? The ghost in question is prodigal golden-boy Brian (Normal People’s Paul Mescal), returned to his remote, cool-toned Irish fishing village after an extended flight to Australia. When he is accused of a serious crime, a small lie from his mother, Aileen (played by the always-excellent Emily Watson), ripples outward through their close-knit community with the same force as the waves constantly crashing against the island’s craggy shores. Adapted from a story by Fodhla Cronin O’Reilly and Shane Crowley and set against an appropriately gloomy backdrop from director of photography Chayse Irvin (Blonde, Beyoncé’s Lemonade), God’s Creatures probes the depths of a mother’s love and proves that Mescal—both in character and as an actor—is capable of so much more than the romantic notions of his past. [Emma Keates] 

Other noteworthy film titles this month include Apple TV+’s Zac Efron vehicle The Greatest Beer Run Ever (select theaters and Apple TV+ September 30), Amazon’s remake of Goodnight Mommy (Prime Video September 16) and adaptation of My Best Friend’s Exorcism (Prime Video September 30), IFC’s equally scary-looking Burial (select theaters September 2) and the Thandiwe Newton-starrer God’s Country (select theaters September 16), Roadside Attractions’ heartwarming indies Gigi & Nate (select theaters September 2) and The Good House (theaters everywhere September 30), and Focus Features’ biographical The Silent Twins (theaters everywhere September 16), starring Letitia Wright and Tamara Lawrance. [Jack Smart]