The season of blockbusters, franchises and sequels is over, the season of literary adaptations, costume dramas and, er, sequels is about to begin. Michael Dwyer offers his indispensable A-Z of the movies opening from now until the end of the year
AE FOND KISS
Ken Loach's modern-day spin on Romeo and Juliet is set in Glasgow, where religious and cultural conflicts undermine the relationship between an Irish schoolteacher (Eva Birthistle) and a young Muslim (Atta Yaqub). Sep 17
ALFIE
In Charles Shyer's remake of the 1966 film starring Michael Caine, Jude Law takes on the central role of the Cockney womaniser. With Susan Sarandon and Sienna Miller. Oct 22
AFTER THE SUNSET
Pierce Brosnan plays a master thief whose retirement plans are disrupted by a dogged FBI agent (Woody Harrelson). Brett Ratner directs. Nov 19
ALIEN VS PREDATOR
The 20th Century Fox franchise monsters duke it out in the early 21st century. Oct 22
ANDREW LLOYD-WEBBER'S THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA
Joel Schumacher directs the movie of the long-running musical with Gerard Butler in the title role, Minnie Driver, Patrick Wilson and Miranda Richardson. Dec 10
THE AVIATOR
Martin Scorsese's biopic of the young Howard Hughes stars Leonardo DiCaprio, with Cate Blanchett as Katharine Hepburn, Kate Beckinsale as Ava Gardner and No Doubt singer Gwen Stefani as Jean Harlow. Dec 31
BAD SANTA
Billy Bob Thornton plays a boozy, bad-tempered lout hired as a department store Santa in this bad taste comedy from Ghost World director Terry Zwigoff. Nov 5
THE BEST OF YOUTH
Marco Tullio Giordana's superb, hugely ambitious Italian epic follows two brothers and the people closest to them from the summer of 1966 to the spring of 2003. Oct 22 tbc
BEYOND THE SEA
Kevin Spacey doubles up as director and star for a biopic on singer-actor Bobby Darin, who died in 1973 at the age of 37. With Kate Bosworth as Sandra Dee. Nov 26
BIRTH
Nicole Kidman plays a widow convinced that a 10-year-old boy is the incarnation of her late husband in this drama from Sexy Beast director Jonathan Glazer. Nov 5
BRIDE AND PREJUDICE
Jane Austen goes Bollywood in Gurinder Chadha picture of a headstrong sister (Aishwarya Rai) who falls for Will Darcy, an American played by Martin Henderson. Oct 8
BRIDGET JONES: THE EDGE OF REASON
Set four weeks after the first film, Beeban Kidron's sequel finds Bridget (Renée Zellweger) as insecure as ever. With Colin Firth and Hugh Grant. Nov 12
CHURCHILL: THE HOLLYWOOD YEARS
Ex-Comic Strip director Peter Richardson lampoons Hollywood again in this yarn about a Winston Churchill biopic with an all-American action hero (Christian Slater) in the lead. Nov 19
COFFEE AND CIGARETTES
Jim Jarmusch assembles a comic series of vignettes hooked on the musings of diverse loquacious characters played by, among others, Roberto Benigni, Cate Blanchett, Steve Buscemi, Iggy Pop and Tom Waits. Oct 29
COLLATERAL
Cast against type, Tom Cruise plays a professional assassin, with Jamie Foxx as the LA taxi driver he commands to take him on his rounds in Michael Mann's nocturnal thriller. Sep 17
COMME UNE IMAGE
Agnès Jaoui's sophisticated and consistently entertaining serious comedy entangles the romantic and creative complications among two generations of culturally steeped Parisian bourgeoisie. Nov 5
A DIRTY SHAME
The new John Waters comedy stars Tracey Ullman as a Baltimore shop owner whose sex drive is dramatically increased after she suffers a concussion. With Johnny Knoxville and Chris Isaak. Oct 29
MAN'S SHOES
When two brothers return home after eight years, one (Paddy Considine) is determined to settle an old score in this revenge drama directed by Shane Meadows. Oct 1
DE-LOVELY
Kevin Kline plays bisexual composer Cole Porter, with Ashley Judd as his wife and musical performances from Robbie Williams, Sheryl Crow, Alanis Morissette and Elvis Costello. Oct 1
THE EDUKATORS
Daniel Bruhl (from Good Bye, Lenin!) and Stipe Erceg play idealistic young activists whose non-violent acts against the wealthy come unstuck in this German drama directed by Hans Weingartner. Nov 26
ELLA ENCHANTED
Shot in Ireland, Tommy O'Haver's spin on Cinderella features Anne Hathaway in the central role with Patrick Bergin as her widower father and Joanna Lumley as her wicked stepmother. Dec 17
ENDURING LOVE
Roger Michell's film of the Ian McEwan novel features Daniel Craig and Rhys Ifans as strangers whose lives are entangled after they witness a hot-air balloon accident. With Samantha Morton. Nov 26
EXORCIST: THE BEGINNING
When Paul Schrader's treatment of this prequel was deemed insufficiently scary, the film was almost entirely re-shot by Renny Harlin, more than doubling the budget. Stellan Skarsgård plays Fr Merrin. Oct 29
FINDING NEVERLAND
Johnny Depp plays Peter Pan author JM Barrie in this blending of biopic and fantasy directed by Marc Foster (Monster's Ball). With Kate Winslet, Julie Christie and Dustin Hoffman. Oct 29
THE FORGOTTEN
Julianne Moore plays a woman grieving after the death of her eight-year-old son and forced to question her sanity when her psychiatrist (Gary Sinise) insists that the boy never existed. Joseph Ruben directs. Nov 26
GARDEN STATE
Scrubs actor Zach Braff wrote, directed and stars in this picture of a young Hollywood actor on a journey of self-discovery at his New Jersey hometown. With Natalie Portman and Peter Sarsgaard. Nov 26
GOOD MORNING, NIGHT
Marco Bellochio's gripping Italian political drama deals with the 1978 kidnapping of the former prime minister, Aldo Moro, as the captors themselves become prisoners in an edgy state of permanent vigilance. Nov 19
HAROLD AND KUMAR GET THE MUNCHIES
Released in the US as Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle, this comedy yarn follows two stoner dudes (John Cho and Kal Penn) over an eventful night in search of the perfect burger. Nov 26
HERO
Zhang Yimou's stylised martial arts drama deals with the assassination attempts on China's first emperor. With Jet Li and Tony Leung Chiu-wai. Sep 24 tbc
A HOME AT THE END OF THE WORLD
Colin Farrell is magnetic as a sexually ambiguous young man living with a gay friend (Dallas Roberts) and an older woman (Robin Wright Penn), both of whom fall in love with him in Michael Cunningham's adaptation of his own novel. Oct 22
HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS
Zhang Yimou piles on the impeccably choreographed musical and action set-pieces in this deliriously staged melodrama, made after Hero and set in China in 859 AD as the authorities seek out a guerrilla army. Dec 26
THE INCREDIBLES
Brad Bird, who made The Iron Giant, directs the new Pixar animated feature in which a married couple of retired superheroes are summoned back into action for an assignment. Nov 26
INSIDE I'M DANCING
Damien O'Donnell's new film charts the problems faced by two disabled Dubliners as one of them (Steven Robertson), who has cerebral palsy, is taken under the wing of the other (James McAvoy), a brash young man with muscular dystrophy. Oct 15
KONTROLL/CONTROL
This grungy Hungarian picture, directed by Nimrod Antal, makes dexterous use of the Budapest subway system at a time when a hooded killer is pushing passengers in front of oncoming trains. Oct 8
LADIES IN LAVENDER
Charles Dance turns director with the 1936-set story of two ageing sisters (Judi Dench and Maggie Smith) caring for a young Pole (Daniel Bruhl) who survives an accident at sea. Nov 12
LAYER CAKE
Matthew Vaughn, the producer of Guy Ritchie's movies, turns director with a dark thriller set in the London underworld. With Daniel Craig, Tom Hardy, Colm Meaney and Sienna Miller. Oct 1
LEMONY SNICKET'S SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS
When three children are orphaned, a greedy relative (Jim Carrey) schemes to steal their inheritance in this fantasy directed by Brad Silberling. Dec 17
THE LIBERTINE
Johnny Depp plays a debauched, hard-drinking 17th century poet who succumbed to syphilis at the age of 33 and received posthumous acclaim for his writings. With John Malkovich, Samantha Morton, and as a bard, Shane MacGowan. Oct 22
THE LIFE AND DEATH OF PETER SELLERS
Geoffrey Rush plays Sellers as a selfish, self-pitying and deeply insecure individual. With Charlize Theron (as Britt Ekland), John Lithgow (Blake Edwards) and Stanley Tucci (Stanley Kubrick). Directed by Stephen Hopkins. Oct 1
MAMBO ITALIANO
Emile Gaudreault's breezy comedy is set in Montreal as a gay couple (Peter Miller and Luke Kirby) come out - to the horror of their Catholic parents. Oct 1
MAN ABOUT DOG
In Paddy Breathnach's pacy, very funny road movie, Allen Leech, Tom Jordan Murphy and Ciaran Nolan play young Belfast chancers plotting scams on the Irish greyhound circuit. Oct 1
MAN ON FIRE
Denzel Washington plays an ex-mercenary seeking revenge when kidnappers abduct the 10-year-old girl (Dakota Fanning) he is hired to protect. Tony Scott directs. Oct 8
THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE
Jonathan Demme's remake of John Frankenheimer's 1962 thriller infuses it with an urgent topicality. Meryl Streep chillingly plays a senator ruthlessly pursuing the political prospects of her son (Liev Schrieber). With Denzel Washington. Nov 19
MELINDA AND MELINDA
Woody Allen stays behind the camera for his latest Manhattan-set romantic comedy, which features Chiwetel Ejiofor, Will Ferrell, Jonny Lee Miller, Radha Mitchell and Chloë Sevigny. Dec 3
METALLICA: SOME KIND OF MONSTER
This reputedly fascinating warts-and-all documentary follows the heavy metal band over two years as they record a new album. Oct 1
MILLIONS
The new Danny Boyle movie deals with two young boys who find a stash of stolen bank money but - and here's the implausible bit - it's only seven days before Britain replaces sterling with the euro. Dec 3
MY SUMMER OF LOVE
Director Pawel Pawlikowski follows Last Resort with a critically acclaimed picture of the friendship formed by two 16-year-old girls from different backgrounds. Oct 22
OLD BOY
In Park Chan-wook's disturbing, ultra-stylish psychodrama, a man (Choi Min-sik) is held in solitary confinement for 15 years. The consequences include live octopus consumption, bloody torture by dentistry, and twisted narrative revelations. Oct 15
OPEN WATER
This low-budget, effects-free thriller deals with a holidaying couple (Blanchard Ryan and Daniel Travis) stranded in shark-infested waters. Sep 10
THE POLAR EXPRESS
Robert Zemeckis employs innovative digital technology for this fable featuring Tom Hanks as the conductor on a magical train journey to the North Pole. Dec 10
RED LIGHTS/FEUX ROUGES
Cédric Kahn's dark French thriller follows a married couple (Jean-Pierre Darroussin and Carole Bouquet) on a car journey that takes a nasty turn. Sep 24
RIDING GIANTS
Surfing documentary. Oct tbc
SAVED!
Brian Donnelly's irreverent comedy is set at a fundamentalist high school where a student (Jena Malone) surrenders her virginity to save the soul of her gay boyfriend. With Mandy Moore and Macaulay Culkin. Oct 29
SHARK TALE
Among those providing the voices for the new DreamWorks animated feature, which deals with undersea mobsters are Will Smith, Robert De Niro, Renee Zellweger, Angelina Jolie, Jack Black and, no kidding, Martin Scorsese. Oct 15
SHE HATE ME
Spike Lee's provocative picture features Anthony Mackie as a corporate whistle-blower finding a new source of income as a sperm donor to lesbians. With Ellen Barkin and Monica Bellucci. Sep 24
SKIPPING CHRISTMAS
Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis play the Kranks, a couple whose plans to escape the horrors of the season are changed when their daughter returns home. Joe Roth directs. Dec 3
SKY CAPTAIN AND THE WORLD OF TOMORROW
In this science-fiction fantasy thriller, an aviator (Jude Law) and a reporter (Gwyneth Paltrow) have to save the planet from an evil mastermind's dastardly plan. Oct 1
SUPER SIZE ME
Director Morgan Spurlock lives exclusively on McDonalds fare for a month in a satirical documentary that charts the consequences of his diet. Sep 10
TAXI
In this remake of the French action-comedy, Queen Latifah plays Manhattan's fastest cab driver coming to the aid of an undercover cop (Jimmy Fallon). Nov 19
TRAUMA
Welsh director Marc Evans follows My Little Eye with a psychological thriller featuring Colin Firth as a disorientated accident victim. With Mena Suvari and Brenda Fricker. Sep 17
WHITE CHICKS
A cross-dressing, race-switching comedy in which brothers Shawn and Marlon Wayans play undercover FBI agents posing as high society debutantes. Oct 15
WIMBLEDON
Director Richard Loncraine employs Pat Cash and CGI to make the tennis scenes convincing in this romantic comedy with Kirsten Dunst as an American ace and Paul Bettany as a British no-hoper. Sep 24
Release dates are subject to change
