Welcome to this week’s edition of Back Lot 605’s Coming Soon column! This week, we’ve got a lot of horror (’tis the season!), as well as one of the most infamously delayed blockbusters of the COVID era! Here’s what coming soon for the week of October 8^th, 2021:

Featured Title: No Time to Die

It’s been a long and winding road to get to this week’s release of the 25th James Bond movie (and the last to star Daniel Craig as 007, ending his 15-year tenure in the role). From the get-go, the movie had been fraught with production hurdles… namely, the brief participation of Danny Boyle as director and co-writer, before departing in the summer of 2018 due to “creative differences” with the script. A little more than a month later, a replacement was found: Cary Joji Fukunaga, best known for Season 1 of True Detective and Netflix’s first prestige film Beasts of No Nation… but the change in director and the need for a script rewrite pushed the movie’s release date from November 2019 to April 2020. And then, on March 4th, 2020, a little more than a month before its April 8th release date, No Time to Die became the very first movie to be delayed due to the COVID pandemic… the first in a series of COVID-related date moves that would ultimately add up to 18 months in delays. But alas, the time is finally here, and this weekend, we are finally going to see James Bond back in action!

While this movie is intended to tie up Daniel Craig’s five-film run as James Bond, this is in many ways a direct follow-up to 2015’s Spectre, with that film’s main Bond girl Lea Seydoux having a key role in this new installment (and Christoph Waltz’s Blofeld also makes a one-scene appearance as well). In this movie, Bond (who has left MI6) is recruited by his old CIA buddy Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright) to rescue a kidnapped scientist from the clutches of terrorist leader Lyutsifer Safin (Rami Malek). Other new faces include Lashana Lynch as the “new” 007, and Craig’s Knives Out co-star Ana de Armas as a CIA agent. Also of note: this movie features a Grammy-winning title song by Billie Eilish, which first dropped 18 months ago in the lead-up to the original April 2020 release date. (Opens Friday, October 8^th in theaters nationwide, including the Century Stadium 14 & XD, the Century East at Dawley Farm, and the West Mall 7 in Sioux Falls, with previews beginning at 4PM on Thursday, October 7^th.)

New to Streaming and VOD

South of Heaven

Leading the at-home slate this weekend is a serious and dark turn from… Jason Sudeikis? Ted Lasso himself?!? That’s right! He plays a convicted felon who gets parole so that he can watch over his girlfriend (Evangeline Lilly), who’s just been diagnosed with cancer. However, Sudeikis gets embroiled in various criminal activities involving his parole officer (Shea Whigham), a local crime boss (Mike Coulter), a deadly car accident, and $500,000 in missing cash. Directed by Aharon Keshales (2013’s Big Bad Wolves). (Premieres Friday, October 8^th on digital VOD services.)

V/H/S94

You’ll notice here that all of the remaining brand-new titles for this week are all horror-themed… so you’ll have lots to watch this spooky season! Kicking things off is the fourth installment in the horror anthology series, which is a reboot of sorts… in that all of this movie’s segments are interconnected into an overarching narrative. (In fact, the movie has only one screenwriter: David Bruckner, a veteran of the V/H/S series who just gave us The Night House in August.) This sequel is set in 1994… a creative choice allowing for the film to actually emulate the VHS tape visual aesthetic! It features a SWAT team who discovers a cult compound with various televisions playing VHS tapes, kicking off five segments from directors including Simon Barrett (Seance), Chloe Okuno, Ryan Prows, Jennifer Reeder, and Timo Tjahjanto. (Premieres Wednesday, October 6^th on Shudder.)

There’s Someone Inside Your House

Hot off their success with the Fear Street trilogy, Netflix fires up their latest teen horror flick, from director Patrick Brice (the Creep movies) and producers Shawn Levy (Stranger Things, Free Guy) and James Wan! A group of high school seniors are pursued by a killer with a particularly unsettling touch: he wears masks of his victims’ faces during the attacks! Starring Sydney Park, Theodore Pellerin, Asjha Cooper, and Dale Whibley. (Premieres Wednesday, October 6^th on Netflix.)

The Manor

The final two installments of this month’s “Welcome to the Blumhouse” horror series on Amazon are both dropping this week! First up: this flick about a woman (Barbara Hershey) who’s recently suffered a stroke, and who then moves into a nursing home… and finds some supernatural goings-on! Also starring Bruce Davison; directed by Axelle Carolyn, who recently directed episodes of American Horror Story, Creepshow, and The Haunting of Bly Manor. (Premieres Friday, October 8^th on Amazon Prime Video.)

Madres

This week’s other “Welcome to the Blumhouse” entry follows a Mexican-American couple in the 1970s, who moves to a migrant farming community in California… only for the pregnant wife to start experiencing terrifying visions. Directed by Ryan Zaragoza. (Premieres Friday, October 8^th on Amazon Prime Video.)

Chucky

Typically, I don’t highlight TV series in this article, because there are plenty of movies to cover as is! But every once in a while, there comes a new TV show that has very direct ties to a movie or franchise… and this is definitely the case here! Yes, America’s most terrifying doll, Chucky, is getting a brand-new cable series, created by Don Mancini himself (who’s also directing the pilot episode)! The festivities kick off when a young boy buys the Chucky doll at a yard sale… kicking off another series of murders. In the process, a number of familiar faces from the Child’s Play franchise appear, including Alex Vincent, Christine Elise, and Fiona Dourif. Plus, Brad Dourif returns to voice Chucky, as will Jennifer Tilly as Tiffany! (Premieres Tuesday, October 12^th on USA and Syfy, and available through their respective streaming apps for cable subscribers.)

Returning to Theaters

Scream

“Do you like scary movies?” Well, you certainly love Wes Craven’s 1996 horror game-changer that kicked off a new era of teen horror movies! And now, it’s coming back to theaters this weekend as part of a Fathom Events 25th anniversary event, which is designed to promote the October 19th 4K UHD release, as well as the upcoming fifth installment, which is due in theaters on January 14th. (Showing Sunday, October 10^th and Monday, October 11^th in theaters nationwide, including the Century Stadium 14 & XD in Sioux Falls.)

Rad

Once again, we’re giving you the advance word on a Fathom Events one-night only screening that’s happening late next week… and this time, it’s the infamous (and, until very recently, rarely seen) 1986 BMX racing flick, celebrating its 35th anniversary with a screening of its new 4K remaster! Starring Bill Allen, Lori Loughlin, Talia Shire, Jack Weston, and Ray Walston; directed by Hal Needham (Smokey and the Bandit). (Showing one night only, Thursday, October 14^th in theaters nationwide, including the Century Stadium 14 & XD in Sioux Falls.)

Showing at the State!

The Bride of Frankenstein

This weekend kicks off the State’s weekly Spooktacular Series, with a vintage pre-1960 horror movie screening every Wednesday night this month! (And in case you thought that was a misprint, yes, they’ll be open on Wednesdays!) The first installment in this series is James Whale’s 1935 sequel to his classic Frankenstein, with Colin Clive’s Henry Frankenstein building a mate (played by Elsa Lanchester) for Boris Karloff’s Monster! (Showing one night only, Wednesday, October 6^th at the State Theatre.)

Titane

You have one more chance to see the wild and crazy 2021 Cannes Palme d’Or winner at the State, if you hadn’t checked it out last weekend! And after you check this movie out, you can listen to yours truly discuss the movie (in spoiler-filled fashion, mind you) on this week’s Criterion Break podcast! (Showing Thursday, October 7^th at the State Theatre.)

Songs My Brothers Taught Me

The State is celebrating Native American Day by bringing back Chloe Zhao’s 2015 feature film debut, filmed at the Pine Ridge Reservation! For those of you who enjoyed Zhao’s Oscar-winning Nomadland, and for those of you who are getting ready to see her first studio blockbuster, November’s Marvel Studios entry Eternals, here’s your chance to see the film that kicked that journey off! (Showing one day only, Monday, October 11^th at the State Theatre.)

Cat People

Finally, since these Coming Soon articles drop every Wednesday night at 7PM – which is the exact same time as these Spooktacular Series screenings – we’re giving you the heads-up on next week’s installment! This is the original 1942 Val Lewton-produced horror movie about a Serbian woman (Simone Simon) who marries an American man (Kent Smith)… but she fears that if they get intimate with each other, she will turn into a cat person! Directed by Jacques Tourneau (I Walked with a Zombie, Out of the Past). (Showing Wednesday, October 13^th and Friday, October 15^th at the State Theatre.)

The Dakota Independent Film Festival!

Also happening at the State Theatre this weekend is a brand-new Sioux Falls film festival, with two days of features and shorts that will be screening on October 9th and 10th! For more information, listen to our interview with the organizer of the festival, James Fishback… and head over to the State’s website to buy day passes and weekend passes! The full schedule is posted below:

Saturday, October 9th:

• 10:30 AM: Doors open
• 11:00 AM: Narrative Feature – No Tomorrow
• 1:30 PM: Documentary Shorts – Agnes Varga; CHOUETTE; Lift: An Ode to Love & Ski Jumping; The Bears on Pine Ridge; The Making of: LOVING ARMS
• 4:00 PM: Panel Discussion
• 6:00 PM: Feature Documentary – I Really Get Into It: The Underground Architects of Sioux Falls Punk
• 8:30 PM: Late Night Shorts – Afraid of the Dark; Aperture; Bitch, Popcorn & Blood; Black Eyed Girl; MeTube: August Sings “Una furtiva Lagrima”; My Friend Al; Office 86; The Fuzzies; The little death; Wee Shadows

Sunday, October 10th:

• 11:30 AM: Doors open
• 12:00 PM: Narrative Shorts – III; 10am Beer; Are Her Digits Worth It?; Broken Branches; Castleway Road; Dogwood; Hand Me Down; Hell in a Handbasket; Kitman; Open; Pale Dawn; Panic Cord; The ink and the willow.; We’ll Always Have Williamsburg
• 4:00 PM: Documentary Feature – Home from School: The Children of Carlisle
• 7:00 PM: Narrative Feature – Poor Mama’s Boy
• 8:45 PM: Awards (hosted by Nathan Hults)

New This Week to Blu-ray and 4K

• Space Jam: A New Legacy (2021)
• Escape Room: Tournament of Champions (2021)
• Universal Classic Monsters: Icons of Horror Collection (a new 4K box set featuring 1931’s Dracula, 1931’s Frankenstein, 1944’s The Invisible Man, and 1941’s The Wolf Man)
• new Scream Factory 4K editions of Halloween (1978), Halloween II (1981), Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982), Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers (1988), and Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers (1989)

Older Movies New to Streaming

Netflix:

• Insidious: Chapter 2 (2013) (premieres Saturday, October 9^th)
• Going in Style (2017) (premieres Monday, October 11^th)
• Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go for It (2021) (premieres Tuesday, October 12^th)
• Smart People (2008) (premieres Tuesday, October 12^th)

Hulu:

• G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013) (premieres Sunday, October 10^th)
• Rogue Hostage (2021) (premieres Sunday, October 10^th)
• Gunda (2020) (premieres Monday, October 11^th)
• Madonna and the Breakfast Club (2019) (premieres Monday, October 11^th)
• The Loneliest Whale (2021) (premieres Tuesday, October 12^th)
• CHiPs (2017) (premieres Wednesday, October 13^th)

Amazon Prime:

• Lansky (2021) (premieres Friday, October 8^th)

Shudder:

• Nosferatu, the Vampyre (1979) (premieres Monday, October 11^th)
• Possum (2018) (premieres Monday, October 11^th)
• Wake Wood (2009) (premieres Monday, October 11^th)
• House (1986) (premieres Tuesday, October 12^th)
• House II (1987) (premieres Tuesday, October 12^th)
• The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016) (premieres Tuesday, October 12^th)

Disney+:

• Black Widow (2021) (premieres Wednesday, October 6^th)

HBO Max:

• Voyagers (2021) (premieres Friday, October 8^th)
• It: Chapter Two (2019) (premieres Sunday, October 10^th)

Peacock:

• Dead Silence (2007) (premieres Wednesday, October 13^th)
• In Good Company (2004) (premieres Wednesday, October 13^th)

Paramount+:

• G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013) (premieres Monday, October 11^th)

The Criterion Channel:

• Thursday, October 7^th: Three Dimensions: Three by Cicely Tyson: The Heart is a Lonely Hunter (1968), The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman (1974), Bustin’ Loose (1981)
• Friday, October 8^th: Double Feature: Women on the Verge: Diary of a Mad Housewife (1970), A Woman Under the Influence (1974)
• Saturday, October 9^th: Saturday Matinee: Robinson Crusoe on Mars (1964)
• Monday, October 11^th: True Stories: Rat Film (2016)
• Tuesday, October 12^th: Short + Feature: The Present Past: Blessed Land (2019), The Naked Island (1960)
• Wednesday, October 13^th: Exclusive Streaming Premiere: Film About a Father Who (2020)

The Shameless Plugs

Check out the Back Lot 605 Podcast Network on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play, and YouTube. Follow us on social media, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Letterboxd. Support us on Patreon and get access to monthly bonus episodes! Check out our movie friends Fat Dude Digs Flicks and Somewhat Random Movie Collection for some awesome reviews and movie insights! Check out every episode of the Back Lot 605 Podcast and Slash Lot!