10 Must-See Movies Of The 2024 Fall Movie Festival Season

Movies from TIFF, Venice, Telluride, NYFF, BFI, and more

Anora, Neon

While this Fall has some heavy hitters not debuting during the Fall Festival circuit (Gladiator 2, Wicked), there are still plenty of movies making their debut at the many, MANY, film festivals. The season officially begins on August 28th as the Venice Film Festival opens its doors to the Fall Movie season. Following quickly on Labor Day weekend is when Telluride will welcome viewers to its holiday weekend of some of this year’s biggest movies.

The Toronto International Film Festival lacked some much-needed star power last Fall. The strikes stopped most actors from attending and some great movies (Challengers, Dune Part 2) moved into 2024. Thankfully, the stars will be returning to all film festivals, but that lengthy work stoppage certainly affected what movies we will see this year. I’ve decided not to attend TIFF this year, but I will certainly be interested in returning in 2025 which will be the 50th Anniversary of the Fest.

If you’d like to hear about movies from other festivals and a broader Fall Film preview the It’s the Pictures podcast has recently recorded a new episode that expands on some of the movies listed below:

I’ve used the synopsis for some of the titles directly from TIFF and NYFF for the Pitch sections and included a little bit of why I’m interested in the movies. If you want a full list of the movies playing at these festivals you can visit the links featured here:

• NYFF

• Venice

• TIFF

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Nightbitch (Director: Marielle Heller) (TIFF World Premier)

Pitch: Six-time Academy Award nominee Adams stars as a woman “thrown into the stay-at-home routine of raising a toddler in the suburbs, who slowly embraces the feral power deeply rooted in motherhood, as she becomes increasingly aware of the bizarre and undeniable signs that she may be turning into a canine.”

Why I’m interested: While Adams hasn’t always starred in movies I’ve been interested in, I’ve loved her work in movies like Arrival and The Fighter. With Heller in the director's chair, I’m expecting this to be more like the aforementioned movies and less like her Ron Howard feature. (Searchlight Release. Opens December 6th)

Conclave (Director: Edward Berger) (TIFF Special Presentations) (Telluride?)

Pitch: Cardinal Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes) is tasked with leading one of the world’s most secretive and ancient events, selecting a new Pope. Once the Catholic Church’s most powerful leaders have gathered from around the world and are locked together in the Vatican halls, Lawrence finds himself at the center of a conspiracy and discovers a secret that could shake the very foundation of The Church.

Why I’m interested: I love myself a good Church drama. I expect this to be nothing more than talking heads, but with Fiennes, Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow, and Isabella Rossellini involved I’m excited. Add in the fact that Berger won international acclaim for his last movie, and the new adaptation of All Quiet on the Western Front, and Conclave has my attention.

(Focus Features release. Opens November 1st)

Blitz, Apple

Blitz (Director: Steve McQueen) (BFI Opening Film) (NYFF)

Pitch: In World War II London, nine-year-old George is evacuated to the countryside by his mother, Rita (Saoirse Ronan), to escape the bombings. Defiant and determined to return to his family, George embarks on an epic, perilous journey back home as Rita searches for him.

Why I’m interested: It’s been a long time since I’ve been excited by a Saoirse Ronan movie. Some of her best work like Brooklyn and Lady Bird, seems like ages ago. On the other hand, McQueen has been busy making some excellent features since 12 Years A Slave. I really enjoyed Widows despite it not getting that much attention and his anthology series Small Axe (Amazon Prime) is absolutely worth watching. (Apple Films release. Opens November 1st, Streaming November 22nd)

The End, Neon

The End (Director: Joshua Oppenheimer) (TIFF) (Telluride?)

Pitch: A post-apocalyptic story about a rich family living in a salt mine converted into a luxurious home. The earth around them has apparently been destroyed, but their son has never seen the outside world. As a young girl appears at the entrance of the bunker, the balance of the family is threatened.

Why I’m interested: Oppenheimer is responsible for two of the most acclaimed documentaries in the last twenty years (The Act of Killing, The Look of Silence) and now he’ll send this new work which is described as an apocalyptic musical. (A Neon Release.)

Anora (Director: Sean Baker) (TIFF) (NYFF) (Telluride?)

Pitch: Anora (Mikey Madison), a young sex worker from Brooklyn, gets her chance at a Cinderella story when she meets and impulsively marries the son of an oligarch. Once the news reaches Russia, her fairytale is threatened as the parents set out for New York to get the marriage annulled.

Why I’m interested: I wasn’t a big fan of Baker’s last movie, Red Rocket, but Anora won the Palme d’Or. Winning the Cannes Film Festival’s highest prize isn’t a guarantee that I’ll like Anora, but chances are it’ll keep my interest. Madison has also been signaled out by critics as being fantastic in this one. (A Neon Release. Opens October 18th)