Highlights of Hollywood’s fall and holiday schedule

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This article was published 27/08/2007 (6644 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

LOS ANGELES (AP) – Highlights of the fall film slate (release dates are subject to change, and some films will play in limited release):

Late August-September:

“Across the Universe”: Beatles tunes are the backdrop for a musical romance between young lovers (Evan Rachel Wood and Jim Sturgess). Julie Taymor directs.

“The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford”: Brad Pitt is the Old West outlaw, with Casey Affleck the man who’ll eventually gun him down.

“Balls of Fury”: The world of extreme pingpong is the setting for an action comedy featuring Christopher Walken and George Lopez.

“The Brave One”: A woman (Jodie Foster) goes on a vigilante rampage after her boyfriend is killed in an attack. Neil Jordan directs, Terrence Howard co-stars.

“The Brothers Solomon”: Socially bumbling siblings (Will Arnett and Will Forte) try to fulfill their dying father’s wish to have a grandchild.

“The Darjeeling Limited”: Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody and Jason Schwartzman star as brothers stranded on a spiritual journey across India.

“December Boys”: Daniel Radcliffe sets aside his Harry Potter persona in a drama of four orphaned teens on a summer seaside trip in’60s Australia.

“Eastern Promises”: A Russian mob driver (Viggo Mortensen) meets a midwife (Naomi Watts) seeking the truth about an orphaned newborn. David Cronenberg directs.

“Feast of Love”: Morgan Freeman, Greg Kinnear and Radha Mitchell lead the cast in director Robert Benton’s ensemble romance.

“Fierce People”: A drug addict (Diane Lane) tries to repair life with her teenage son. With Donald Sutherland.

“The Game Plan”: Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson plays a football quarterback suddenly forced to care for a young daughter he never knew he had.

“Good Luck Chuck”: A cursed dentist (Dane Cook) learns that women find true love with the next man they date after him. Jessica Alba co-stars.

“Great World of Sound”: Two talent scouts for a small record label gradually learn it’s a con game preying on singers’ dreams of stardom.

“Halloween”: Rob Zombie retells the story of John Carpenter’s serial killer Michael Myers. With Malcolm McDowell.

“The Hunting Party”: A ruined TV journalist (Richard Gere) leads a former colleague (Terrence Howard) on the trail of a Bosnian war criminal.

“In the Shadow of the Moon”: Apollo astronauts share recollections in a documentary about the NASA moon landings.

“In the Valley of Elah”: Parents seek their missing son, who has just come home from Iraq. With Tommy Lee Jones, Susan Sarandon and Charlize Theron. Paul Haggis directs.

“Into the Wild”: Sean Penn directs a story about a young man (Emile Hirsch) who leaves behind his life for the Alaska wilderness.

“Ira & Abby”: A mismatched couple (Jennifer Westfeldt and Chris Messina) takes a stab at romance. With Jason Alexander, Frances Conroy and Fred Willard.

“I want Someone to Eat Cheese With”: Jeff Garlin directs and stars with Sarah Silverman in a romantic comedy about a comedian still living with his mother.

“The Jane Austen Book Club”: Six modern people’s lives parallel Austen’s classic tales. With Maria Bello, Jimmy Smits and Amy Brenneman.

“The Kingdom”: Jamie Foxx is a fed tracking a friend’s killer in Saudi Arabia. With Jennifer Garner and Chris Cooper.

“King of California”: A precocious teen (Evan Rachel Wood) aids her loopy dad (Michael Douglas) in a search for buried treasure.

“Lust, Caution”: Director Ang Lee follows “Brokeback Mountain” with a World War II spy thriller set in Shanghai.

“Mr. Woodcock”: A man (Seann William Scott) learns his mother (Susan Sarandon) has fallen for his tyrannical high school gym teacher (Billy Bob Thornton).

“Resident Evil: Extinction”: Milla Jovovich fights zombies in the third flick based on the video game.

Romance & Cigarettes”: John Turturro directs and co-stars in a working-class musical fantasy. With James Gandolfini, Susan Sarandon and Kate Winslet.

“Shoot ’em Up”: : A loner (Clive Owen) races to protect an infant from a criminal (Paul Giamatti).

“Silk”: A merchant has a forbidden affair with a woman in’th century Japan. With Keira Knightley and Michael Pitt.

“Sydney White”: A college freshman (Amanda Bynes) leads a bunch of frat-house dorks in a fight against campus snobs.

“3:10 to Yuma”: Russell Crowe and Christian Bale star in a Western about a captured outlaw whose gang aims to free him.

“Trade”: A Texas cop (Kevin Kline) joins a Mexican teen to pursue the youth’s sister, who has been abducted by sex traffickers.

October:

“Defore the Devil Knows You’re Dead”: Brothers (Philip Seymour Hoffman and Ethan Hawke) plot a robbery. With Albert Finney and Marisa Tomei.

“The Comebacks”: A loser coach who gathers misfits for a college football team.

“Control”: Sam Riley and Samantha Morton star in the dark story of Joy Division singer Ian Curtis.

“Darfur Now:” Don Cheadle narrates a documentary examining genocide in Sudan.

“Dan in Real Life”: A widower (Steve Carell) falls for the girlfriend (Juliette Binoche) of his brother (Dane Cook).

“Elizabeth: The Golden Age”: Cate Blanchett reteams with co-star Geoffrey Rush and director Shekhar Kapur for more in the saga of Queen Elizabeth I.

“Feel the Noise”: A Harlem rapper (Omarion Grandberry) finds a new beat in Reggaeton, a mix of hip-hop, reggae and Latin sounds.

“Finishing the Game”: The hunt is on in a comic tale about the search for the new Bruce Lee to complete the martial-arts hero’s unfinished film.

“For the Bible Tells Me So”: A documentary examines how the Christian faithful deal with having a gay member in the family.

“Funny Games”: Two men take a family hostage in director Michael Haneke’s English-language remake of his’97 thriller. With Naomi Watts and Tim Roth.

“Gone Baby Gone”: Ben Affleck directs brother Casey Affleck in the tale of private eyes searching for an abducted girl.

“The Good Night”: A musician in a failing relationship meets the perfect woman – in his dreams. With Gwyneth Paltrow, Penelope Cruz and Martin Freeman.

“Grace is Gone”: A father (John Cusack) takes his daughters on a road trip to postpone telling them their mother has been killed in Iraq.

“The Heartbreak Kid”: Ben Stiller rejoins the Farrelly brothers in the tale of a new hubby who meets his soul mate on his honeymoon.

“Hitman”: Timothy Olyphant stars in a video-game adaptation about a genetically engineered assassin.

“Lake of Fire”: A documentary examines the history and continuing conflicts of the abortion debate.

“Lars and the Real Girl”: A shy man (Ryan Gosling) finally meets the woman of his dreams – a life-size doll.

“Martian Child”: A widowed sci-fi writer (John Cusack) adopts a boy claiming to come from Mars. With Amanda Peet and Joan Cusack.

“Michael Clayton”: George Clooney is an attorney handling dirty work for a corporate firm embroiled in a major class-action suit.

“Music Within”: A soldier (Ron Livingston) who loses his hearing in Vietnam becomes an activist for the disabled.

“Rails & Ties”: Tragedy brings together a train conductor, his ailing wife and an orphaned boy. With Kevin Bacon and Marcia Gay Harden.

“Rendition”: A woman (Reese Witherspoon) races to find her Egyptian-born husband after he disappears on a flight to Washington. With Jake Gyllenhaal and Meryl Streep.

“Reservation Road”: A grieving father (Joaquin Phoenix) tracks the hit-and-run driver (Mark Ruffalo) who killed his son. With Jennifer Connelly and Mira Sorvino.

“Run, Fat Boy, Run”: A man (Simon Pegg) enters a marathon to help win back the fiance he abandoned. David Schwimmer directs.

“The Seeker: The Dark is Rising”: A fantasy tale follows the exploits of a time-travelling warrior battling the forces of darkness.

“Saw IV”: The horror franchise is resurrected with another tale of killer Jigsaw’s grisly plots.

“Sleuth”:: Michael Caine remakes his’72 romp, playing a writer in a contest of mind games with his wife’s lover (Jude Law). Kenneth Branagh directs.

“Slipstream”: Anthony Hopkins directs and stars in a surreal tale of a screenwriter whose characters manifest themselves in his real life.

“Things We Lost in the Fire”: A widow (Halle Berry) finds solace in one of her husband’s friends (Benicio Del Toro). David Duchovny co-stars.

“Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married?”: Perry adapts his stage play about infidelity among married friends. Janet Jackson co-stars.

“30 Days of Night”: An Alaska sheriff (Josh Hartnett) fights vampires who show up to feed during the month-long night.

“Weirdsville”: Drug abusers end up on the run from a dealer and a satanic cult. With Wes Bentley, Scott Speedman and Taryn Manning.

“We Own the Night”: Joaquin Phoenix, Mark Wahlberg and Robert Duvall star in a crime thriller set against New York’s’80s drug trade.

“Wristcutters: A Love Story”: People who’ve killed themselves find hope in an afterlife of dreary jobs. With Patrick Fugit, Shannyn Sossamon and Tom Waits.

November:

“American Gangster”: Denzel Washington’s a Harlem drug lord and Russell Crowe’s a cop out to take him down. Ridley Scott directs.

“August Rush”: An orphaned musical prodigy (Freddie Highmore) tries to track down his parents. With Robin Williams.

“Bee Movie”: Jerry Seinfeld co-writes and leads the voice cast in the animated tale of a bee who sues humanity for stealing honey. With Renee Zellweger.

“Beowulf”: Angelina Jolie, Anthony Hopkins and Ray Winstone star in the Norse legend of the warrior who battles Grendel and his mother. Robert Zemeckis directs.

“Cassandra’s Dream”: Woody Allen’s latest features Ewan McGregor and Colin Farrell as brothers at odds in London.

“Crossing Over”: An immigrant drama in Los Angeles features an ensemble including Harrison Ford, Sean Penn and Ashley Judd.

“Enchanted”: A fairy-tale princess (Amy Adams) is banished by a wicked queen (Susan Sarandon) from her magical realm to modern Manhattan.

“Flawless”: Demi Moore and Michael Caine star in a thriller about a diamond company exec and a janitor who team for a jewel heist.

“Fred Claus”:Vince Vaughn is Santa’s jailbird brother, who’s bailed out by St. Nick (Paul Giamatti) and forced to work off his debt at the North Pole.

“I’m Not There”: A Bob Dylan portrait features six actors, among them Richard Gere, Cate Blanchett and Heath Ledger, taking on his persona at various stages of his life.

“The Kite Runner”: Marc Forster (“Finding Neverland”) directs a drama set against turbulence in Afghanistan.

“Lions for Lambs”: Robert Redford directs himself, Tom Cruise and Meryl Streep in a drama that plays out against the war on terrorism.

“Love in the Time of Cholera”: Lovers wait half a century to reunite in the adaptation of Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s novel.

“Margot at the Wedding”: Nicole Kidman, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Jack Black and John Turturro star in a comic drama about family nuptials.

“Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium”: Dustin Hoffman plays the mysterious proprietor of a magic toy shop. With Natalie Portman.

“No Country for Old Men”: The Coen brothers’ latest stars Tommy Lee Jones, Javier Bardem and Josh Brolin in a Texas crime drama.

“Pathology”: An elite team of medical interns engage in a twisted game to see who can conceive of the perfect murder.

“Starting Out in the Eevening”: A reclusive novelist (Frank Langella) lets a young admirer (Lauren Ambrose) into his life. With Lili Taylor.

“Stephen King’s The Mist”: Director Frank Darabont’s third King adaptation centers on small-town survivors battling creatures that emerge from a mysterious mist.

“This Christmas”: Delroy Lindo, Regina King and Mekhi Phifer are among the cast in a family-reunion holiday tale.

“Thomas Kinkade’s The Christmas Cottage”: The work of painter Thomas Kinkade is the basis for the story of a town rallying to save a family’s home.

“War/Dance”: Three children living amid strife in Uganda find hope at a music and dance festival.

December:

“Alvin and the Chipmunks”: A combination of live action and computer animation bring the cartoon critters to life. With Jason Lee.

“Atonement”: Lives are shattered after a teen falsely accuses her sister’s lover of a crime. With Keira Knightley and James McAvoy.

“Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem”: Sci-fi beasties square off again in a sequel to “Alien Vs. Predator.”

“The Bucket List”: A billionaire (Jack Nicholson) and a mechanic (Morgan Freeman), both dying, take a road trip. Directed by Rob Reiner.

“Charlie Wilson’s War”: Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts and Philip Seymour Hoffman plot American strategy against the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Mike Nichols directs.

“Thye Diving Bell and the Butterfly”: A paralyzing stroke leaves the editor (Mathieu Amalric) of French Elle struggling to write a memoir of his affliction.

“The Golden Compass”: Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig are featured in a fantasy about a girl trying to save her friend in an alternate reality.

“The Great Debaters”:: Denzel Washington directs and stars as a coach who forges a champion debate team at a Southern black college. With Forest Whitaker.

“Honeydripper”: An Alabama man tries to save his juke joint by hiring a star electric guitar player. Danny Glover stars, John Sayles directs.

“I am Legend”: The remake of “The Omega Man” stars Will Smith as a human survivor of a plague that has turned people into ravenous night creatures.

“Juno”: A pregnant teen (Ellen Page) goes on a quest to find the ideal couple (Jennifer Garner and Jason Bateman) to adopt her baby.

“Leatherheads”: George Clooney directs and stars with Renee Zellweger and John Krasinski in a love triangle set in the world of’20s football.

“Nanking”: A documentary chronicles efforts by Westerners to shield the locals from the Japanese invasion of Nanking, China, in World War II.

“National Treasure: Book of Secrets”: Nicolas Cage returns as the treasure hunter, out to prove an ancestor’s innocence in Abraham Lincoln’s assassination.

“The Orphanage”: A woman’s plan to reopen an orphanage takes dark twists after her son takes up with an “invisible friend” living there.

“Persepolis”: An Iranian girl comes of age during the Islamic revolution. With Catherine Deneuve.

“P.S. I Love You”: Hilary Swank stars in a drama about a widow whose husband left behind tasks to help her get over her grief.

“Redacted:” Tragedy follows amid the persecution of an Iraqi girl and her family by U.S. troops. Brian De Palma directs.

“The Savages”: Philip Seymour Hoffman and Laura Linney are siblings forced to care for their ailing estranged father.

“Sweeney Todd”: Johnny Depp and Helen Bonham Carter star in Tim Burton’s adaptation of the Stephen Sondheim musical about a murderous barber.

“There Will be Blood”: Daniel Day-Lewis leads the cast in a drama set in the early days of California’s oil boom.

“The Walker”: Woody Harrelson is a Washington socialite who must clear his name of scandal. With Kristin Scott Thomas, Willem Dafoe and Lauren Bacall.

“Wark Hard: The Dewey Cox Story”: John C. Reilly is the king of womanizing, hedonistic rock ‘n rollers.

“The Water Hores: Legend of the Deep”: A boy who finds an enchanted egg is hurtled into a fantastical adventure. With Emily Watson.

“Youth Without Youth”: Francis Ford Coppola directs Tim Roth as a professor-turned-fugitive as the Second World War approaches.