IMDb Picks: October 2014

Any David Fincher movie is worthy of excitement: at best Fincher delivers a classic like Fight Club or The Social Network, and at worst the movies are at least thrilling and well-made (here’s looking at you, Panic Room and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo). Gone Girl, based on the immensely popular Gillian Flynn novel, fits in to the murder mystery genre that Fincher has previous worked in with Seven, Zodiac and Dragon Tattoo.

I’m also primed to see how Ben Affleck handles portraying the Nick Dunne character. Affleck’s career has had quite the resurgence thanks to his work behind and in front of the camera in The Town and Argo, and Fincher’s perfectionist style will hopefully push Affleck to another level in Gone Girl.

Gone Girl opens in theaters on October 3.

--Ray

The number of series that manage to stay on the air for ten seasons is rare. Even rarer are those which achieve what "Supernatural" has: This is a show that hasn't merely maintained its audience as time has passed, but expanded it. Indeed, an entire generation of fans has grown up watching Sam and Dean Winchester battle monsters, demons, angels and gods, not to mention seeing them die a few times in the process. (OK, not just a few -- 117 times, by one estimate).

That brings us to the 10th season, with Dean having shuffled off this mortal coil for the 111th time, only to awaken as a very special demon. He's the worst version of the Dean viewers know and love --and that guy was no saint -- with the bonus of possessing a mark that gives him special powers. The best episodes of "Supernatural" show the boys cutting loose and misbehaving, so this fan can't wait to see where this season will take the Winchesters... although I'm less than excited to see what the devil inside Dean Winchester does to the Metallicar. It's such a beautiful machine. Only a being of pure evil would want to wreck it.

-- Melanie Season Premiere: 9pm Tuesday, October 7 on The CW.

Past seasons of "American Horror Story" have featured ghosts, Nazis, serial killers, possessed nuns, witches, zombies, and even aliens. I find it amusing that this season is titled "Freak Show" because after the previous casts of characters, a bearded lady sounds pretty tame. I'm looking forward to the new cast additions, including Michael Chilklis and Wes Bentley, but am bummed that my AHS favorite Lily Rabe will not be in this season. I'm hoping she makes a surprise appearance. It's been a long time since I've been this excited about a show returning but I am dreading the psychotic dreams I will ultimately have every Wednesday night.

• Michelle

Some the best genre shows lay the foundations of their mythologies during their first two seasons and really hit their stride, growing richer and more profound, during season three. The third season of "Buffy" gave us Faith. The third season of "Battlestar Galactica" explored the occupation, and season three of "The Walking Dead" introduced us to the prison, Woodbury and The Governor. My hope is that season three of "Arrow" follows this pattern now that circumstances have forced Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell) to grow up and accept his family's mantle as the head of Queen Consolidated, and his alter ego The Hood has established himself as the force of good holding Starling City together.

But it's not the hero that makes a show like this such fun to watch -- it's the villains. Already we know that Malcolm Merlyn (the fabulous John Barrowman) is back, and will likely turn Oliver's sister Thea (Willa Holland) against him. The main lure for season three, however, is its recently announced Big Bad: The Arrow will be tangling with one of DC's most fearsome characters, Ra's al Ghul (played by Matt Nable).

-- Mel

Season Premiere: 8pm Wednesday, October 8 on The CW.

The most-buzzed-about title to come out of the 2014 Sundance Film Festival was almost certainly Whiplash. The movie stars Miles Teller as a drummer who enrolls in a prestigious music program only to butt heads with an intense teacher. That role is filled by J.K. Simmons, who has reportedly delivered a performance worthy of major awards attention. In general, all of the reviews for Whiplash have been outstanding, and I personally know a handful of people who can’t stop singing its praises; that’s enough to guarantee a ticket purchase from me on opening weekend.

Whiplash opens in theaters on October 10.

--Ray

Having seen Dead Snow at a Sundance after-hours screening years ago, I made sure to give a second viewing and it played even better when I was sober and back at sea level. I'd much rather see a third outing of Nazi zombies than have director Tommy Wirkola make the proposed sequel to Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters.

-Arno

Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead opens in theaters on October 10.

"The Affair", one of IMDb's Top 10 New Shows, is one of those pilots where the less information a person knows going in, the more enjoyable savoring the hour potentially can be.

The basic conceit: Ruth Wilson plays Alison, a waitress at a Hamptons diner who has been shattered by a personal loss, and who is struggling to connect to her husband Cole (Joshua Jackson). When Noah (Dominic West), a harried but attractive married man, comes into her diner with his wife Helen (Maura Tierney) and their kids, the connection between the two is palpable.

This grows into an affair, of which we only see the seed in the pilot. Or do we? We can't be sure, any more than we can accurately describe the moral characters of any of these people. The tale is told from two very distinct perspectives, neither of which feels entirely truthful. Who is the seducer? Are his or her actions justified? "The Affair's" first episode leads the viewer asking a lot of questions, none can be answered easily.

But it's appear that Noah and Alison's tryst is merely the launchpad for a more complex examination of marriage, trust and tragedy, which one only sees by sticking around until the end of its first hour.

--Melanie

Season Premiere: 10pm Sunday, October 12 on Showtime.

The last time we saw Rick Grimes and the gang, they were locked in a railroad car at Terminus and waiting to be slaughtered so their captors could continue to gorge themselves on human ham. Thankfully (or maybe not, depending on how you feel about spoilers) the Comic-Con trailer revealed that the group won't be in Terminus for long...although we're pretty sure not everybody who entered the train yard will make it out.

But what makes me really excited about returning to AMC's zombieland is the promise of a reinvigorated, bad-ass Rick who isn't afraid to do what it takes to survive, and to make those who crossed his people pay a heavy price. All that, and Daryl and Michonne, too. Now that's tasty TV.

--Mel Season Premiere: 9pm Sunday, October 12 on AMC.

Every year I am tasked with compiling a list of Top 10 New Shows for fall, and every year I have to make the painful choice of which deserving series ends up in the #11 slot. "Marry Me" is that show. Yes, in many ways, it's a conventional single-camera comedy, and one laden with farce and quick banter. But Casey Wilson and Ken Marino are stupendous actors who should have been leads in their own series a long time ago. Together they weave the kind of hilarity that robs you of breath. I'll have to see a few more episodes before committing myself to this show, but a second date? Sure, why not?

--Mel

Series premiere: 9pm Tuesday, October 14 on NBC.

In Birdman, Michael Keaton plays a washed-up actor best known for playing a superhero named “Birdman.” That’s an intriguing art-imitates-life set-up, as most moviegoers associate Keaton first-and-foremost with his portrayal of Batman in Tim Burton’s Batman and Batman Returns.

Birdman is directed by Alejandro Gonzalez Innaritu, whose movies tend to be pretty dire: Biutiful, Babel and 21 Grams are remembered as much for the quality filmmaking as they are for being really, really depressing. While Birdman appears to dabble in existential angst, it’s being positioned more as an off-beat comedy, albeit one that’s artfully crafted (its apparently been pieced together to seem as if most of the movie is one continuous shot).

Reviews coming out of the early Fall film festivals have heaped lavish praise upon Birdman, with many suggesting that it’s an instant classic. It’s also being pegged as a major Oscar contender, so if you’re the type that needs to see all the Best Picture nominees, make sure to check this out early.

Birdman opens in theaters on October 17.

--Ray

It’s not encouraging that Fury skipped the Fall festival circuit: it’s rare that a quality October release avoids Venice, Telluride, Toronto and New York. Putting aside that inside baseball speculation, I’m going to remain cautiously optimistic about writer/director David Ayer’s World War II movie.

The tagline “War Never Ends Quietly” suggests that Fury covers the final days of the war, which is an interesting area that doesn’t seem overplayed (unlike most war stories). The fantastic cast also adds to the intrigue: aside from Brad Pitt (who seems to be more or less reprises his role from Inglourious Basterds), there’s also Logan Lerman, Shia LaBeouf, Jon Bernthal and Michael Pena. While this may not wind up being an Oscar contender, it should at the very least be an exciting night out at the movies. And isn’t that all we really want anyway?

Fury opens in theaters on October 17.

--Ray

I am well-acquainted with writer/director Justin Simien from his film-publicist days, and I love that he's generated discussion about race and identity on a national level and handled the media like a seasoned filmmaker. I'm heading into this film imagining that I'll be enlightened to a certain degree and frustrated in new ways, and I'm really enthused to see Simien gets into for his next project.

-Arno

Dear White People opens in limited release on October 17.

Just when I think I've had enough of the self-centered writer as a protagonist, someone casts Jason Schwartzman as a novelist making questionable life decisions as his sophomore title is about to be released, and critics say the cinematography is a Cassavetes tribute while Elisabeth Moss threatens to walk away with the narrative in her hands. And I'm rooted to my theater seat again. Also, director Alex Ross Perry caught my interest with his previous film, The Color Wheel.

-Arno

Listen Up Philip opens in limited release on October 17.

Earlier this year Jake Gyllenhaal notched one of his finest roles in the criminally under-seen thriller Enemy, and he's been tipped for a second Oscar nomination for his work in this character study in American ambition. Rene Russo may experience a renaissance since her performance as Gyllenhaal's producer is also in the spotlight.

Nightcrawler opens in theaters on October 31.

--Arno