What We’re Watching in November
If you’re excited to start intense and serious movie-watching now that the cool weather is settling in, here’s a list of thrillers and shows releasing in November—including new release movies to the theater and several coming to Netflix.
A House of Dynamite
When the U.S. Fort Greely in Alaska suddenly identifies an unattributed missile, a 17-minute countdown begins to determine who launched it and what’s to be done about it. This film covers several different perspectives during the countdown, including (but not limited to) the military who originally identifies it, the situation room, one FEMA official, and finally the U.S. president. It builds incredible suspense throughout its 2-hour duration, but its best attribute is forcing the viewer to ask, What would I do? Or more accurately, what do I hope my elected officials would do—since I as a normal person would have no control at all over this situation and be completely uninformed that it was actually happening. Which is frustrating… as is the plot of the film, but the form definitely imitates the content!
Streaming on Netflix October 24.
Bugonia
If you only see one movie on this list, this should be the one. Especially coming right off of Halloween! Conspiracy theorist Teddy (Jesse Plemons) believes that the head of the pharmaceutical company where he works in packaging is actually an alien. In his mind, Michelle Fuller (Emma Stone) and the rest of her Andromedons have come to Earth to kill the humans—including (especially) his mother. Teddy convinces his cousin Don (Aidan Delbis) to help him abduct Michelle and hold her in the basement of their decadent Southern Gothic home (I can say this because I grew up 20 minutes away from this setting) until she can transport them to the mothership during the lunar eclipse… which is when Teddy plans to beg them to stop experimenting on his mother and return her health. The suspense of Teddy’s conspiracy theory is unmatched in thriller-ville, and the performances of are so convincing that all three main actors just disappear into their very convincing roles. I really cannot oversell this film: go see it right away.
DIE MY LOVE
Lynne Ramsay’s film adaptation of Ariana Harwicz’s novel follows the couple Grace (Jennifer Lawrence) and Jackson (Robert Pattinson) as they move to an old country house so that Grace can write her Great American Novel. But when they have a baby, her plans are waylaid, especially when Jackson is conspicuously and often absent. Grace starts to unravel in her post-partum depression (psychosis?), and she morphs into a human wrecking ball. I’m looking forward to seeing these two actors in this intense psychological thriller.
Frankenstein (Directed by Guillermo Del Toro)
In case you are unfamiliar with the plot of Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein, Dr. Victor Frankenstein is a surgeon obsessed with creating life. When he succeeds, he immediately fears his giant, violent creation, and he flees its presence, abandoning the life he has created in self-preservation. The monster is left to make his own way in the world, and he does, but because of his horrific appearance, he wants for a companion. Frankenstein denies him, and the monster pursues him out of revenge.
In a new passion project, Guillermo del Toro re-adapts the novel to film—and because the book is a masterpiece, I have my doubts: what could anyone add or take away to improve it? My hope is for a beautiful, GDT-stylized historical gothic panorama, complete with the grotesque horror that was science in Edinburgh during the time period.
Streaming on Netflix November 7.
Keeper
In Osgood Perkins’ latest “dark trip” (you know him from Longlegs and The Monkey), couple Liz and Martin go on a romantic trip to a secluded cabin. Based on the trailer, they each have doubts about the other’s identity and trustworthiness, and their relationship itself. Ultimately, they have to reckon with an old, sinister presence (or two)—and they may not make it out alive.
Now You See Me: Now You Don’t
This film is the third in the series of Now You See Me thrillers. The premise is that the Four Horseman, a team of illusionists, use their staged magic productions to complete high-stakes and seemingly impossible heists… and then redistribute the stolen funds to their audiences. The first of the series released in 2013 and it began with four different tricksters (an escape artist, a card shark, a pickpocket, and a mentalist) all getting a tarot card that summoned them to an apartment in New York City, where they received instructions on how to commit the first heist onstage in Las Vegas…
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What to Read Next…
Mary Kay McBrayer is the author of Madame Queen: The Life and Crimes of Harlem’s Underground Racketeer, Stephanie St. Clair and America’s First Female Serial Killer: Jane Toppan and the Making of a Monster. You can find her short works on history, true crime, and horror at Oxford American, Narratively, Mental Floss, and FANGORIA, among other publications. She hosts the podcast about women in true crime who are not just victims, The Greatest True Crime Stories Ever Told. Follow Mary Kay McBrayer on Instagram and Twitter, or check out her author site here.