LEILA FADEL, HOST:
Fall is always a busy time for movies. This year, things kicked off with an incantation.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE")
WINONA RYDER: (As Lydia Deetz) I can't believe I'm doing this. Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice.
FADEL: Sound familiar? There will be more supernatural this year but also a "Joker" sequel, a "Wicked" movie and lots more. Aisha Harris hosts our POP CULTURE HAPPY HOUR podcast, and she's here to talk about which movies we should be watching out for in the next few months. Hi, Aisha.
AISHA HARRIS, BYLINE: Hey, Leila.
FADEL: OK, so let's just start with this weekend.
HARRIS: This weekend, we have a movie with the amazing title "My Old A**."
FADEL: (Laughter).
HARRIS: Yes, that is the name of the movie. It stars Maisy Stella as Elliott, a teenager who's about to head off to college. And she goes on a trip with her friends and takes some psychedelic drugs, where she meets the 39-year-old version of herself, played by Aubrey Plaza.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "MY OLD A**")
AUBREY PLAZA: (As Older Elliott) Dude, I know Mom can be annoying, but be nice to her. And go hang out with your brothers.
MAISY STELLA: (As Elliott) Ow, Max.
PLAZA: (As Older Elliott) Also, can you avoid anyone named Chad?
HARRIS: This is really charming and inspired. It's one of my favorites of this year. And it's in limited theaters today and rolling out to more theaters over the coming weeks.
FADEL: I love this one, too. I just spoke to Aubrey Plaza and the writer and director, Megan Park, and that'll be on MORNING EDITION later. I see another one on the calendar here called "The Substance," and it seems a little weird. What's that about?
HARRIS: (Laughter) Yes. "The Substance" is a nightmare - in many good ways. It's a body horror movie, and that's out next Friday, on the 20. Demi Moore plays a aerobics TV star - think, like, '80s era Jane Fonda - who's fired as soon as she turns 50 and then discovers a substance that can transform her into a younger version of herself. Yes, we've got a lot of other halves here. And that younger self is played by Margaret Qualley.
Also, a little bit further down the line, we have a really interesting movie that I haven't seen yet, but it's called "Emilia Perez." It's from filmmaker Jacques Audiard. And it's a musical about a Mexican drug cartel leader who happens to be transgender. And she plots to fake her own death and attain gender-affirming surgery. This stars Karla Sofia Gascon in the title role, and also has Zoe Saldana and Selena Gomez. And it won the Jury Prize at Cannes earlier this year, so I think it's already got a lot of buzz from the subject and the fact that people are really, really talking about it. And that's out in theaters November 1 and Netflix on November 13.
FADEL: And you just got back from the Toronto International Film Festival. What'd you find there?
HARRIS: Yeah, I saw about 20 movies over a few days.
FADEL: Wow.
HARRIS: It's a lot, but one of the standouts for me was "The Room Next Door." This is Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodovar's first English-language film. It has such a great cast. It stars Julianne Moore and Tilda Swinton as two old friends who reconnect after years apart and then sort of confront sickness and death together in really, really interesting ways. And that one's rolling out in December.
And then finally, there's a sort of more conventional but, I think, above average sports biopic called "The Fire Inside." It's the directorial debut of cinematographer Rachel Morrison, and it features newcomer Ryan Destiny playing the real-life Olympic gold medalist boxing champion Claressa Shields. And it has a really great performance from her, as well as Bryan Tyree Henry as her coach. And that one's going to be in theaters December 25.
FADEL: A lot to look forward to. That's Aisha Harris, host of NPR's POP CULTURE HAPPY HOUR. Thanks so much, Aisha.
HARRIS: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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