Autumn, Fall, whatever you want to call it – the months of September through to the end of November are hosting some serious motion pictures. From an abstract take on the comic book movie genre, to a true story of an epic motorsport tussle, to a classic whodunnit starring Captain America, James Bond and General Zod – or maybe not. It’s a stacked deck.

So, the first of what could well become a quarterly feature, here are my five most anticipated movies of autumn 2019 in a very particular order – (for anyone that cares.)

5. Ad Astra

Director: James Grey
Starring: Brad Pitt, Tommy Lee Jones, Ruth Negga, Liv Tyler
Release Date: 18th September

I’m pretty sure that every single film I’ve sat down to watch in a cinema in the last two months has been preceded by a trailer for Ad Astra. The good news is, that the trailer never gets old – it’s two minutes showcasing brilliant special effects, strong emotional pulls, a kick-ass score and teases a compelling high stakes space narrative.

This looks to have adventure, drama and mystery all rolled into one – at least, that’s the genres that IMDb has tagged to this movie – and I’m absolutely on board.

4. Ready or Not

Director(s): Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett
Starring: Samara Weaving, Adam Brody
Release Date: 27th September

Confession time; I’ve never watched a horror movie. Literally none, unless you count M. Night Shamylan’s Split which is by quite some margin the scariest film I’ve watched from start to finish but I’m reliably informed that it is not a horror.

Brightburn nearly pulled me into my first genre screening earlier this year. My finger hovered over the “book tickets” button right before they released the clip of the woman pulling a glass shard from her eye. Once I’d recovered from behind my sofa, I realised that I’d royally chickened out of that one.

This time it’s different – dark comedy horror Ready or Not has picked up strong reviews since it’s US release, bagging an 87% critical score on Rotten Tomatoes, and judging from the trailers alone, it looks like a blast. A horror movie that doesn’t take itself too seriously and mixes the gore with some laugh out loud comedy.

Sounds like a nice – probably the wrong word – way to ease myself into the genre.

3. Knives Out

Director: Rian Johnson
Starring: Chris Evans, Daniel Craig, Jaime Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon
Release Date: 29th November

While the internet was busy fighting a pointless war over whether The Last Jedi was a superb Star Wars flick or not – spoilers, it’s absolutely one of the best in the franchise – Rian Johnson was busy making another movie.

This time there are no lightsabers, galactic power struggles or salty planets. Instead, we have a murder mystery on our hands. A classic whodunnit story and with one heck of a cast packed with A-Listers and posing them a rare opportunity to flex their muscles as character actors.

Chris Evans cursing his way through a conversation in a fashion that would have Captain America leaving the room in disgust and Daniel Craig’s presence as Detective Benoit Blanc are my highlights of the trailer.

Two actors who have become synonymous with specific roles in recent years given an opportunity to do something totally different in a movie by one of my favourite directors. Ticket please.

2. Ford v Ferrari

Director: James Mangold
Starring: Matt Damon, Christian Bale, Jon Bernthal
Release Date: 15th November

Being a motorsport writer, and first and foremost, lifelong motorsport fan, the concept of a movie starring Matt Damon and Christian Bale and charting the 1966 grudge match at Le Mans between Ford and Ferrari is one that gains plenty of traction with me.

In 1963, Enzo Ferrari refused an offer from the Ford Motor Company to purchase Ferrari, largely on the basis that the acquisition would include a Ford takeover of the Scuderia Ferrari brand that had dominated the Le Mans 24 Hours from 1960-65.

Ford, a little nonplussed that it failed to scoop a jewel of a racing outfit, opted to instead build its own car to challenge the mighty Ferrari in the 1966 edition of the race, defying impossible timescales and creating the legendary Ford GT40. It was famously driven to victory by Ken Miles in what was the first overall win at the event for an American constructor.

Much like the 1976 Formula 1 season, this is a real life motorsport story that warrants a Hollywood retelling. It’s finally got it.

1. Joker

Director: Todd Phillips
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Zazie Beetz, Robert de Niro
Release Date: 4th October

It’s films like Todd Phillips’ Joker that are bound to keep the world from slipping into comic book movie fatigue. This isn’t a picture playing into an interconnected universe and for all of the MCU’s successes and DCEU’s – well – nice concepts, a standalone film allows for the kind of off-the-wall creativity that you just can’t roll the dice on when trying the connect the dots set up by prior movies.

At the start of the year, Joker would have struggled to break the top 10 of my most anticipated movies list. But the first trailer (featured above) is one of my favourite trailers of 2019, due to it’s lived-in aesthetic, showcase of Phoenix’s powerful acting and the way in which the music tells the story.

The trailer propelled Joker towards the top of the list overnight and as such, it’s my most anticipated for autumn.