As much as the Academy Awards have never (and will never) be an honest showcase of the best of contemporary American cinema, all studios save their most ambitious and politically "radical" films for the end of the year to qualify. At the end of the day, Oscars, as well as Saturn Awards and Independent Spirit Awards and so on, have more to do with marketing and employment than anything else: winners are seen as prestigious and bankable, especially considering that Oscar-winning movies always show a nice bump in box office and in home video/digital realms. The actors who win these awards are promised major attention from big studios, filmmakers and producers can demand higher budgets, and writers secure more high-profile gigs with larger paychecks. Well, actually, all of them get a bit of a pay-hike.

And yet, even beyond obvious early Oscar favorites (Spotlight, which Adam said "exploded" into the Oscar discussion at TIFF, The Danish Girl, Steve Jobs, etc.), big-time event films (Star Wars VII, Mockingjay - Part 2, Spectre, etc.), and New Hollywood throwbacks (Black Mass, Joy, The Revenant, etc.), the fall and winter months house a cadre of bonafide oddities, ranging from inventive genre workouts to challenging, mystical foreign features. For every The Martian, there's a Cooties, a grotesque horror-comedy, or, more importantly, something like The Assassin, a famed international auteur's passion project finally landing stateside. The schedule of release gets more packed, sometimes seeing some 16 films opening in a major market in one weekend, but the hash of offerings remains essentially the same as any other time of the year. Hell, even January offered a wide variety of delights and masterworks, including Paddington, Red Army, Li'l Quinquin, Hard to Be a God, and Timbuktu.

Even so, it's hard to not have a bit of romance for the end of a movie year. For me, it goes back to years of anticipating end-of-year lists from the likes of Roger Ebert or J. Hoberman, looking to be pointed in the right direction from cinephiles I admired. There's also something deeply comforting and uniquely nostalgic about hiding from the colder elements in a movie theater, even more than using a theater's air-conditioning to take respite from a particularly sweltering summer afternoon. Not unlike the winter of 1997, in which I spent my Christmas morning watching Pam Grier introduce Robert Forster to the Delfonics in Jackie Brown, 2015 looks to have a promising line-up of could-be classics, topped off by the Christmas Day release of The Hateful Eight, the latest release from one of the few American directors who still makes you want to go see a film on the big screen. Not surprisingly, Tarantino's second Western secured a place in our most anticipated movies of Fall-Winter 2015, the entire list which you  can view below.

Black Mass

Release Date: September 18th

Scott Cooper is known mainly as a director of actors, having directed Jeff Bridges to a long-overdue Oscar win in Crazy Heart and galvanizing the likes of Christian Bale, Casey Affleck, and Woody Harrelson in the underrated Out of the Furnace. In taking on the infamous story of Whitey Bulger, the Boston-area crime lord who worked as an informant for the FBI, Cooper has been given a sprawling cast to work with, including Benedict Cumberbatch, Joel Edgerton, Kevin Bacon, Corey Stoll, Adam Scott, Dakota Johnson, Juno Temple, Jesse Plemons, Peter Sarsgaard, and, of course, Johnny Depp as Bulger. Beyond that, however, the trailer hints at a more focused aesthetic from Cooper and DP Masanobu Takayanagi, all the better to frame this insidious tale of widespread murder and governmental corruption. You can read Matt's review from TIFF right here. - Chris Cabin

Sicario

Release Date: September 18th

Cooties

Release Date: September 18th

A good horror comedy is always a treat, and it can be a hard blend to pull off, but Cooties has all the working parts to make the grade. The film follows a group of oddball elementary school teachers who band together for survival when their students are transformed into a bunch of bloodthirsty savages by a shipment of infected chicken nuggets. Even the logline is equal parts goofy and gross. The film is co-written by Leigh Whannell (with Ian Brennan), who proved his aptitude for idiosyncratic horror with mega-hits Saw and Insidious. But Whannell also has roots in comedy, and while we got to see him stretch those skills a little as Specs in the Insidious films, I'm really looking forward to his full-tilt comic performance as the socially inept Doug. As another plus, Elijah Wood always had a good eye for horror, From The Faculty to Maniac, and now with his production company Spectre Vision, so his involvement immediately brands the project as a movie worthy of attention. - Haleigh Foutch

99 Homes

Release Date: September 25th

Inspired by true events, Ramain Bahrani's housing crisis drama stars Michael Shannon as Rick Carver, a greedy real estate mogul who makes big money serving eviction notices, removing people from their homes, and snatching up the property for a steal. Andrew Garfield, in his first dramatic role since swinging his way through Sony's defunct Spider-Man franchise, plays Dennis Nash, an unemployed construction worker who experiences Carver's harsh tactics first-hand when he's forcibly evicted along with his mother (Laura Dern) and son.  When he sets out to confront Carver, he ends up employed by the businessman instead, facing the hard truth that it's better to be predator than prey. 99 Homes is backed by Bahrani's gift for capturing aching humanity, a cast you can't argue with, and a story that rolls around in the fertile dramatic ground of human callousness and immorality. Check out Matt's review right here. - HF

The Martian

Release Date: October 2nd

When Ridley Scott makes a science fiction film, it will always have my attention. The Martian is not science fiction in the sense of sweeping space operas or extraterrestrial warfare – there are no martians in The Martian -- but quite literally fiction about science. I recently had the chance to watch the first 50 minutes of the film, and if the rest measures up to what I saw, and to what TIFF reviews are saying (including Matt's), The Martian will be Scott's best work in a decade. Matt Damon turns his trademark charisma on full-blast as Mark Wattney, a NASA astronaut stranded on Mars, embodying Wattney's wry humor and steady diligence with precision. Due to the strength of that performance, and the story's focus on character rather than grand galactic action, the film is allowed to be grounded and human, and perhaps most unexpectedly, fun. - HF

Taxi

Release Date: October 2nd (limited)

Over the last decade, Jafar Panahi has made two films while in filmmaking exile in his home country of Iran, the first of which being This is Not a Film, one of the best films of this decade. His follow-up, Closed Curtain, was nearly as challenging and insightful a view of constrained artistry and inventiveness, and with Taxi, his hugely anticipated third work of self-documentation, Panahi has strung together a moving, wildly political trilogy, one that attests to the high caliber of work coming out of Iran’s film community as of late. His latest film features Panahi driving a taxicab around his neighborhood and talking with random passengers and passer-bys. The premise may sound thin, but Panahi has a long history of finding the moral complexity, anti-nationalist fury, and unshakeable humanity in stories that seem simple and without nuance at first glance. Take a look at Brian's review of the film right here. - CC

The Forbidden Room

Release Date: October 7th (limited)

The latest whatsit from Canadian experimentalist Guy Maddin, here co-directing with Evan Johnson, shows new ambitions for Maddin, who has constructed a variety of fantastical silent films, as well as My Winnipeg, one of the best documentaries of the oughts. Here, and this is taken directly from the synopsis, a mysterious woodsman finds himself suddenly on board a submarine that's been trapped underwater, prompting a psychedelic voyage into the root of each crew members' fears. So, yeah. Regardless of how strange Maddin's film sounds (and looks), his films are marvels of texture and lighting, creating films that are as odd in physical production as they are in terms of narrative. And with a cast that includes Udo Kier, Mathieu Amalric, Charlotte Rampling, and Hannibal's Caroline Dhavernas, The Forbidden Room may prove to be Maddin's most lively freakout to date. - CC

Steve Jobs

Release Date: October 9th (limited); goes wide on October 23rd

Though the specter of a second Fincher-Sorkin collaboration will forever haunt Steve Jobs, what’s been seen of Danny Boyle’s biopic thus far is intensely tantalizing and seemingly far more critical of the late Apple CEO than one might have expected. Bolstered by a dream cast that includes Michael Fassbender as Jobs, alongside Seth Rogen, Kate Winslet, Jeff Daniels, Katherine Waterston, John Ortiz, and Michael Stuhlbarg, Boyle’s take on the digital pioneer puts specific focus on the emotional distance and lack of empathy (or sympathy) that came along with Jobs’ sizable ambitions. Shot by Alwin H. Küchler, who last teamed with Boyle on Sunshine, Steve Jobs may not ultimately live up to expectations, but it’s already brandished more fascination and dramatic pull than the reprehensible Jobs. Check out Brian's review of the film here. - CC

The Final Girls

Release Date: October 9th

The Final Girls stars Taissa Farmiga as Max, the daughter of the late scream queen Amanda Cartwright (Malin Ackerman). When Max attends a special screening for one of the slasher films that made her mother a star, she and her friends are transported through the screen into the world of Camp Bloodbath, where they must use their knowledge of genre tropes to survive. Ever since Scream redefined the slasher horror in 1996, self-reference has become a mainstay of the genre. While a lot of films miss the meta mark, occasional gems like Cabin in the Woodsor Detention manage to genuinely bring something new to the table with a clever spin that subverts genre tropes while hitting all the right beats. The Final Girls promises to be one of those movies. Perri gave the film a glowing review when it premiered at SXSW, Evan followed suit when it played at StanleyFest, and it has since screened at TIFF to another round of critical acclaim.  - HF

Crimson Peak

Release Date: October 16th

Crimson Peak stars Mia Wasikowska as a young American woman swept off her feet by a seductive English gentleman (Tom Hiddleston). Their courtship leads her to his childhood home, a gigantic “house atop a mountain of blood-red clay” where she confronts his unyielding sister (Jessica Chastain) and uncovers secrets that will haunt her forever. "Between desire and darkness, between mystery and madness, lies the truth behind Crimson Peak," reads the synopsis and there is no better filmmaker to tread the line between horror and humanity than Guillermo Del Toro, who has called this his first adult movie in the English language. For anyone who's a fan of his Spanish language fare, that alone is enough to get worked up over, but the film looks stunning. The cinematography and production design are sumptuous and decadent, and the performances – from Hiddleston and Chastain in particular – look appropriately mannered, but dark, and rich with humanity. Crimson Peak promises to be a beautifully told original story about spirited youth, the ravages of decay, and all the twisted, kinky bits that come in between. - HF

Bridge of Spies

Release Date: October 16th

When Steven Spielberg decided to direct a posthumous collaboration with Stanley Kubrick in the flawed yet wondrous A.I.: Artificial Intelligence, there didn’t seem to be a more unlikely pairing for the Jaws helmer. And yet, with Bridge of Spies, Spielberg enters into an even more odd collaboration with the wise, eternally skeptical Coen brothers, who penned this script for this tale of James Donovan (Tom Hanks), an American attorney chosen to broker the trading of prisoners during the Cold War. Spielberg is a director of unerring, distinctly American optimism, with the arguable exception of Munich, but the first looks at this film suggest a more complex view of America’s fanatical belief in its exceptionality and the unthinking demonizing of communists at the time. Considering that Spielberg has grown increasingly ambitious in his subject matter as of late, with the notable exception of War Horse, Bridge of Spies at the very least promises treading back into the same dark terrain as Munich and Schindler’s List. - CC

Beasts of No Nation

Release Date: October 16th

Directed and adapted by the incredibly talented Cary Fukunaga (the master behind True Detective’s Season 1 visuals), Beasts of No Nation follows a young boy, Agu, (Abraham Attah) from West Africa who joins a group of mercenary fighters after militants kill his father during a civil war. Idris Elba also stars as “the Commandant,” a tyrant who recruits child soldiers and develops Agu into a killer. Beasts looks like it will be a stunningly crafted, incredibly brutal, difficult, and ultimately necessary work. Plus, the combination of Fukunaga and Elba is a creatively fantastic pairing, and one that will help make Beasts one of the most unique and memorable films of the year. Check out Adam's review of the film here. - Allison Keene

Goosebumps

Release Date: October 16th

Inspired by R.L. Stine's beloved series of children's horror books, Goosebumps stars Jack Black as a fictionalized version of Stine whose quiet suburban life is thrown into chaos when the boy-next-door, Zach (Dylan Minnette), takes a liking to his daughter (Odeya Rush) and unwittingly unleashes Stine's library of monstrous creations. Along with some of Zach's friends, they must team up to stop the creatures from destroying the neighborhood. "Amblin-esque" is one of the most overused phrases in the film market, but director Rob Letterman seems to have captured that elusive quality of innocent, spirited adventure. As someone who grew up on the books, I also appreciate that Letterman isn't interested in exploiting '90s nostalgia, but set out to revitalize the franchise for a new generation. Goosebumps looks like the best all-ages fun headed to theaters just in time for Halloween.- HF

The Assassin

Release Date: October 16th (limited)

Hou Hsiao-hsien has been working on his first wuxia film for years, to the point that the film became something like the cinematic equivalent of Guns ‘n’ Roses’s Chinese Democracy. When the Tang Dynasty-set film, now titled The Assassin, finally landed at this year’s Cannes, the consensus was that it couldn’t possibly live up to expectations, only then to see the gushing reviews come pouring in, each one more glowing than the last. It shouldn’t have been a major surprise, as even the more minor films (Millennium Mambo, Good Men, Good Women) by the Chinese master have evoked a rapturous sense of time and personal experience. Adding in elements of poetic action, matched with the filmmaker’s acute, critical eye towards the history of Chinese politics, The Assassin may very well end up being the film of the year. - CC

Room

Release Date: October 16th

Brie Larson stars as a mother who's been confined to a room in which she has raised her son. When Jack (Jacob Tremblay) turns 5, they attempt to get outside the shed for the first time in his life. Larson is one of the best young actresses who's gotten few chances to lead a film, but when she did before—in Short Term 12—she showed realistic layers of depression and grief, with an occasional joy that she achieves in Room under more plotted duress. I caught Room at Telluride and I think the less you know, the better (i.e. maybe skip the trailers). Directed by Lenny Abrahamson who previously confined Michael Fassbender behind a paper-mache head in Frank, Larson emerges from Room as one of our best modern actresses. - Brian Formo

Experimenter

Release Date: October 16th

Earlier this year, the Kansas-born Michael Almereyda helmed a visceral, if largely flawed, adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Cymbeline, which toyed with concepts of paternal control and authoritative violence. His follow-up, Experimenter, which received rave reviews out of Sundance, deals more directly with similar thematic material, charting the studies done by social psychologist Stanley Milgram (Peter Sarsgaard) in the early 1960s about human reactions to authority. Sarsgaard anchors a tremendous cast, including Winona Ryder, Anton Yelchin, Dennis Haysbert, Jim Gaffigan, Josh Hamilton, and John Leguizamo, but the real pull will be Almereyda’s distinct editing rhythms and attentive, nuanced sense of aesthetic, which made his previous adaptation of Hamlet so uniquely mesmerizing. Considering the climate of anti-authoritative revolt that can be felt both on the political right and left, Experimenter carries a clear yet unassuming timeliness. Check out Matt's take on the film out of Sundance right here. - CC

Spectre

Release Date: November 2nd

The final James Bond film to feature the great Daniel Craig in the role of the suave English spy has been called an origins story, and the trailer emphasizes the long-awaited meet-up between Bond and the titular organization of nefarious, all-powerful titans of industry. The mechanics of the plot are being kept hush-hush, which they always tend to be, and that’s not really what makes Spectre so promising. Rather, it’s the return of director Sam Mendes and DP Roger Deakins, who were able to mirror the shifting allegiances and covert, high-stakes doings of Skyfall in their glowing, peerless compositions. The chances of Sam Smith’s theme song being as booming as Adele’s “Skyfall” is another story altogether. - CC

Brooklyn

Release Date: November 2nd

John Crowley has quietly been making a series of interesting dramas, including the troubling Boy A and 2014’s Closed Circuit, for years but with Brooklyn, his fifth feature, he seemingly has his first out-and-out crowd-pleaser. This is reportedly thanks largely to a script by Nick Hornby and performances from Saoirse Ronan, Emory Cohen, and Domnhall Gleeson, who is having a major breakout year between this, Ex-Machina, and a little movie called Star Wars: The Force Awakens. The story is a familiar sketch of a young Irish immigrant torn between the exciting discoveries of America and the comforts and familial bonds of Ireland, but Crowley’s meticulous imagery brings out a colorful, alluring sense of nostalgia in the material. The trailer exudes the unmistakable timbre of a charmer, which may just be enough for me to forgive Crowley for directing “Omega Station,” the insufferable finale of True Detective Season 2. Check out Adam's review of the film from Sundance here. - CC

By the Sea

Release Date: November 13th

Yes, By the Sea features real-life couple Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt as a married couple—their first such pairing since Mr. & Mrs. Smith—but the biggest appeal of By the Sea isn't just their pairing, it's director and screenwriter Jolie flexing her interest in 60s/70s European arthouse fare. Sea is set at a posh hotel on the French seaside; Jolie is a former dancer, and Pitt is a writer. Going off the trailer, their marriage seems to be unraveling, and visually, Jolie appears heavily influenced by Euro-claustrophobic films such as Roman Polanski's The Tenant and Alain Resnais' Last Year at Marienbad. Regardless of narrative success, By the Sea is guaranteed to be absolutely stunning—not just for placing the attractive stars in 70s duds and digs—but because Jolie is working with Christian Berger, who earned an Oscar nomination for lensing Michael Haneke's White Ribbon. - BF

Entertainment

Release Date: November 13th