Movie-going season gears up with tantalizing true tales, comedies, mysteries, sequels, and news fans will “hunger” for

BY LAURA D.C. KOLNOSKI

CONFESS FLETCH SEPTEMBER (RATED R)
Madmen’s Jon Hamm and John Slattery reunite for a more authentic take on the sleuthing reporter portrayed by Chevy Chase in two 1980s Fletch films, adhering more closely to the novels by Gregory Mcdonald. Hamm’s Irwin “Fletch” Fletcher, on assignment from his editor (Slattery), attempts to solve an art mystery involving stolen Picassos, murder, and multiple suspects, including him. Co-starring Kyle MacLachlan, and Marcia Gay Harden as The Countess. Debuting in theaters and on-demand.

HONK FOR JESUS, SAVE YOUR SOUL SEPTEMBER (RATED R)
A mockumentary about megachurch culture from Executive Producer Jordan Peele’s Monkeypaw Productions. Twins Adamma and Adanne Ebo make their feature directorial debut expanding upon Adamma’s 2018 short, infl uenced by their own experiences. Trinitie Childs (Regina Hall) and her husband Pastor Lee-Curtis (Sterling K. Brown), are former wealthy leaders of a Southern Baptist megachurch. After a misconduct scandal shutters their congregation, the couple plots their “ultimate” comeback.

TICKET TO PARADISE OCTOBER (RATED PG-13)
Location, location, location! Caustic exes George Clooney and Julia Roberts travel to Bali and reluctantly team up to stop their daughter Lily (Kaitlyn Dever, Dopesick) from marrying a native in a romantic comedy about second chances. Billie Lourd (Star Wars) plays Lily’s best friend, who encounters her own romantic entanglements during their post-college adventure. BTW: before you start planning your next trip, filming actually took place in Queensland, Australia.

CLERKS III SEPTEMBER (RATED R)
New Jersey’s own, writer/director/actor Kevin Smith delivers the third of his autobiographical Clerks films about convenience store employees and those in their orbit. After surviving a life changing heart attack, Quick Stop clerk Randal (Je Anderson), enlists store denizens Dante (Brian O’Halloran), Elias (Trevor Fehrman), and the revered Jay (Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob (wordlessly played by Smith), to make a movie about their shop, a real Monmouth County spot from Smith’s past. The filmmaker incorporates aspects of his own 2018 heart attack. Also back for more are Ben A Neck, Justin Long, Fred Armisen, Sarah Michelle Gellar, and Rosario Dawson as Dante’s wife and former boss.

GLASS ONION: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY OCTOBER (RATED PG-13)
After its Toronto Film Festival debut, Rian Johnson’s Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, starring Daniel Craig, Edward Norton, Janelle Monáe, Kathryn Hahn, Leslie Odom Jr., Kate Hudson, and Dave Bautista, will close the 66th BFI London Film Festival. Craig returns as detective Benoit Blanc in the sequel to Johnson’s 2019 hit Knives Out. On a Greek island, a tech billionaire hosts a group of colorful friends who become suspects in a murder. The fi lm takes its title from a Beatles song. Another inspiration – 1973’s The Last of Sheila, a sublime murder mystery written by Stephen Sondheim and Anthony Perkins Johnson. Theaters first, Netflix in December.

BLACK ADAM OCTOBER (UNRATED)
“The world needed a hero. Instead they got me,” utters Dwayne Johnson as anti-hero Black Adam. The line explains the DC Comics character’s conflicted attitude toward powers bestowed upon him by gods. The former football player turned pro wrestling champion turned actor and entrepreneur enters the Marvel universe as the ancient Egyptian predecessor of Captain Marvel. Adam escapes 5,000 years of imprisonment, enters present day, and fights to clear his name while delivering hard justice. Pierce Brosnan donned a motion-capture suit to play Kent Nelson (Dr. Fate), son of an archaeologist with mystical skills. Viola Davis also stars.

THE GREATEST BEER RUN EVER SEPTEMBER (RATED R)
Based on the true story told in the New York Times bestseller by John “Chick” Donohue and J.T. Molloy, The Greatest Beer Run Ever: A Memoir of Friendship, Loyalty, and War. With Donohue’s approval, Zac Efron was cast as the New Yorker who in 1967 decided to deliver PBR to his Army buddies in Vietnam and landed in the midst of the war. Director Peter Farrelly told People he went to Florida to pick Chickie’s brain. “It’s hard to believe this actually happened,” Farrelly said, “and yet I realized there was way more to the story than I knew.” Bill Murray and Russell Crowe costar. After debuting at the 2022 Toronto Film Festival, the film hits theaters and Apple TV+.