We’re on the wrong side of Labor Day, which means it’s time to put away your summer sunglasses and break out your fall shades. It also means serious moviegoers are in luck; days aren’t the only things getting darker! Much like post-J. Lo Ben Affleck, September movies are starting to take themselves seriously --- a welcome change after a summer that offered us fare that was little better than Gigli. So toss your 3D specs and check out these fall books on screen.

One of this month's most anticipated releases is The Drop, a crime drama about a lonely bartender whose discovery of an abused puppy sets off a chain of events that forever changes his life. Some of the Bookreporter staffers were lucky enough to go to an advance screening of the film (written by Dennis Lehane, of Mystic River fame), and we were blown away. The movie is quiet but packs a tremendous punch, and James Gandolfini is mesmerizing in his final role.

If you’re looking for something a little lighter, head out to This is Where I Leave You, a hilarious comedy about...death. Based on the Jonathan Tropper novel of the same name, it’s the story of newly divorced and unemployed Judd Foxman, who reunites with the rest of his combative family to sit shiva for their father in their childhood home. More family-friendly is The Boxtrolls --- based on Alan Snow’s HERE BE MONSTERS! --- a stop motion adventure-comedy film that looked stunning in its early trailer. Teens and adults should also make sure to see The Maze Runner, the highly anticipated adaptation of James Dashner's mega hit. Try as you might, we both know it's impossible to ignore the siren call of a post-apocalyptic YA book adaptation --- so long as we're between Hunger Games and Divergent sequels, you might as well give in.

September also marks a transitional period for television, with summer shows wrapping up and fall shows premiering in droves. We’ll be saying goodbye to HBO’s “The Leftovers” (only temporarily --- thank god for small favors and season two renewals!); luckily, Starz’s critical darling “Outlander” is plenty braw to keep us home on Saturday nights --- if you’re not watching it yet, I strongly encourage you to check it out. “Bones” and “Resurrection” are returning this month, and BBC America’s new show, “The Intruders,” looks too spooky for my non-chilled blood but may be perfect for all you thrill-seekers out there.  

There you have it! Let’s leave the falling to the leaves and not the ratings --- get out there and see some great books on screen!
 

--- Written and compiled by Emily Hoenig

In Theaters:

The Drop
Cast: Tom Hardy, Noomi Rapace, James Gandolfini
Director: Michaël R. Roskam
Distributor: Fox Searchlight Pictures
MPAA rating: R
Release Date: September 12th
Based On: THE DROP by Dennis Lehane

Bob Saginowski finds himself at the center of a robbery gone awry and entwined in an investigation that digs deep into the neighborhood's past where friends, families and foes all work together to make a living --- no matter the cost.

A Walk Among the Tombstones
Cast: Liam Neeson, Dan Stevens, Boyd Holbrook, Ruth Stevens Sebastian Roché
Director: Scott Frank
Distributor: Universal Pictures
MPAA Rating: R
Release Date: September 19th
Based On: A WALK AMONG THE TOMBSTONES by Lawrence Block

Private investigator Matthew Scudder is hired by a drug kingpin to find out who kidnapped and murdered his wife.

Hector and the Search for Happiness
Cast: Simon Pegg, Toni Collette, Rosamund Pike, Stellan Skarsgård
Director: Peter Chelsom
Distributor: Koch Film
MPAA Rating: R
Release Date: September 19th
Based On: HECTOR AND THE SEARCH FOR HAPPINESS by François Lelord

Hectoris a quirky psychiatrist who has become increasingly tired of his humdrum life. As he tells his girlfriend, Clara, he feels like a fraud: He hasn't really tasted life, and yet he's offering advice to patients who are just not getting any happier. So Hector decides to break out of his deluded and routine-driven life. Armed with buckets of courage and child-like curiosity, he embarks on a global quest in hopes of uncovering the elusive secret formula for true happiness.

The Maze Runner
Cast: Dylan O’Brien, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Kaya Scodelario, Will Poulter
Director: Wes Ball
Distributor: 20^th Century Fox
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Release Date: September 19th 
Based On: THE MAZE RUNNER by James Dashner

Thomas is deposited in a community of boys after his memory is erased, soon learning they're all trapped in a maze that will require him to join forces with fellow "runners" for a shot at escape. Only by piecing together fragments of his past with clues he discovers in the maze can Thomas hope to uncover his true purpose

This Is Where I Leave You
Cast: Jason Bateman, Tina Fey, Jane Fonda, Adam Driver, Rose Byrne
Director: Shawn Levy
Distributor: Warner Bros
MPAA Rating: R
Release Date: September 19th
Based On: THIS IS WHERE I LEAVE YOU by Jonathan Tropper

When their father passes away, four grown siblings are forced to return to their childhood home and live under the same roof together for a week, along with their over-sharing mother and an assortment of spouses, exes and might-have-beens.

Tracks
Cast: Mia Wasikowska, Adam Driver
Director: John Curran
Distributor: Entertainment One
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Release Date: September 19th
Based On: TRACKS by Robyn Davidson

This film tells the incredible true story of Robyn Davidson, a young woman who in 1977 undertook a perilous solo trek across 1,700 miles of stunning Australian outback. Abandoning city life, Robyn arrives in Alice Springs and declares her ambition to cross the desert to the Indian Ocean to the amusement of the locals. However after months of camping out and working on a camel farm people begin to take her seriously. A chance meeting with National Geographic photographer Rick Smoland provides her with the necessary financing for her expedition under the condition that he be allowed to photograph parts of her journey for the magazine. With only her dog and four unpredictable camels for company, she embarks on an inspiring and life-changing journey of self-discovery.

The Boxtrolls
Cast: Elle Fanning, Ben Kingsley, Toni Collette, Simon Pegg, Isaac Hempstead Wright, Nick Frost, Tracy Morgan
Director: Graham Annable and Anthony Stacchi
Distributor: Focus Features
MPAA Rating: PG
Release Date: September 26th
Based On: HERE BE MONSTERS! by Alan Snow

An orphaned boy named Eggs is raised by underground cave-dwelling trash collectors called the Boxtrolls. When the Boxtrolls are targeted by an evil exterminator named Archibald Snatcher, Eggs must go to great lengths to save his family.

Good People
Cast: James Franco, kate Hudson, Anna Friel, Tom Wilkinson
Director: Henrik Ruben Genz
Distributor: Millennium Entertainment
MPAA Rating: R
Release Date: September 26th
Based On: GOOD PEOPLE by Marcus Sakey

Discovering a cache of cash in their dead tenant's apartment, a couple in debt take the money and find themselves the target of a deadly adversary --- the thief who stole it.

The Two Faces of January
Cast: Kirsten Dunst, Viggo Mortensen, Oscar Isaac
Director: Hossein Amini
Distributor: Magnolia Pictures
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Release Date: September 26th (VOD)
Based On: THE TWO FACES OF JANUARY by Patricia Highsmith

A thriller centered on a con artist, his wife and a stranger, who flee Athens after one of them is caught up in the death of a private detective.

On TV:

“A Young Doctor’s Notebook”
Cast: Jon Hamm, Daniel Radcliffe
Network: Ovation
Air Dates: Season two premieres September 2nd, Tuesdays at 10pm ET
Based On: A collection of short stories by Mikhail Bulgakov

Jon Hamm and Daniel Radcliffe return for Season two of “A Young Doctor’s Notebook,” the critically-acclaimed black comedy series based on the memoirs of a young doctor’s life in a remote village in early 20th century Russia.

Season two picks up in 1935 with the older doctor returning to his former infirmary to collect the pieces of his shattered life. Reliving his battle with morphine addiction, and his doomed romantic choices, Hamm’s character watches his younger self struggle to survive against the backdrop of the Bolshevik Revolution. Based on a collection of short stories by celebrated Russian playwright Mikhail Bulgakov.

“Bones”
Cast: Emily Deschanel, David Boreananz
Network: Fox
Air Dates: Season 10 premieres September 25^th, Mondays at 9pm ET
Based On: The Temperance Brennan series by Kathy Reichs

Brilliant, but socially inept, forensic anthropologist Dr. Temperence Brennan works at the Jeffersonian Institute in Washington, DC. After consulting for him on a FBI case, she is approached by cocky yet charming ex-Army Ranger turned Special Agent, Seeley Booth to help the Bureau solve crimes by identifying human remains that are too far gone for standard FBI forensic investigations. Brennan's empirical, literal view of the world causes friction with Booth's emotive, instinctive attitude, creating a volatile relationship. However as their case load increases the symbiotic partnership produces results and with the support of Brennan's Squint Squad, murderers, past and present, should be on the lookout.

“Resurrection”
Cast: Samaire Armstrong, Omar Epp, Matt Craven
Network: ABC
Air Dates: Season two premieres September 28th, Sundays at 9pm ET
Based On: THE RETURNED by Jason Mott

The series follows the residents of Arcadia, Missouri, whose lives are upended when their loved ones return from the dead, unaged since their deaths. Among the returned is Jacob Langston (Landon Gimenez), an eight-year old boy who drowned in 1982. Having been found alive in China, Jacob is brought back to America by an immigration agent named J. Martin ("Marty") Bellamy (Omar Epps), who defies orders and returns Jacob to his parents, Henry (Kurtwood Smith) and Lucille (Frances Fisher). Jacob's surprise return inspires his uncle Arcadia Sheriff Fred Langston (Matt Craven) and his daughter Dr. Maggie Langston (Devin Kelley), whose wife/mother drowned and had been falsely reported to have been trying to rescue the boy, to learn more about this mystery.

“The Leftovers”
Cast: Liv Tyler, Justin Theroux, Amy Brenneman, Carrie Coon, Christopher Eccleston, Ann Dowd
Network: HBO
Air Dates: Season one finale September 7th at 10pm ET
Based On: THE LEFTOVERS by Tom Perrotta

When two percent of the world’s population abruptly disappears without explanation, the world struggles to understand just what they’re supposed to do about it. The new drama series “The Leftovers” is the story of the people who didn’t make the cut. “The Leftovers” follows Kevin Garvey, a father of two and the chief of police in a small New York suburb, as he tries to maintain some semblance of normalcy when the notion no longer applies.

“Under the Dome”
 Cast: Mike Vogel, Natalie Martinez, Alexander Koch, Dean Norris
Network: CBS
Air Dates: Mondays at 10pm ET
Based On: UNDER THE DOME by Stephen King

An invisible and mysterious force field descends upon a small fictional town in the United States, trapping residents inside, cut off from the rest of civilization. The trapped townsfolk must discover the secrets and purpose of the "dome" and its origins, while coming to learn more than they ever knew about each other.

“Masters of Sex”
Cast: Michael Sheen, Lizzy Caplan, Annaleigh Ashford
Network: Showtime
Air Dates: Sundays at 10pm ET
Based On: MASTERS OF SEX by Thomas Maier

Michael Sheen and Lizzy Caplan star as the lead characters, Dr. William Masters and Virginia Johnson, two pioneering researchers of human sexuality at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.

“The Strain”
Cast: Sean Astin, David Bradley, Corey Stoll
Network: FX
Air Dates: Sundays at 10pm ET
Based On: THE STRAIN by Guillermo del Toro and Chuch Hogan

A plane lands at John F. Kennedy International Airport with the lights off and doors sealed. Epidemiologist Dr. Ephraim Goodweather (Stoll) and his team are sent to investigate. On board they find 200 corpses and four survivors. The situation deteriorates when the bodies begin disappearing from morgues. Goodweather and a small group of helpers find themselves battling to protect not only their own loved ones, but also the entire city, from an ancient threat to humanity.

"Pretty Little Liars"
Cast: Lucy Hale, Ashley Benson, Troian Bellsario, Shay Mitchell
Network: ABC Family
Air Dates: Tuesdays at 8pm ET
Based On: The Pretty Little Liars series by Sara Shepard

A clique of teenage girls drift apart after the group's leader, Alison DiLaurentis, goes missing. Her body is found and the girls are reunited at her funeral. All four begin receiving text messages from the mysterious 'A,' who seems to know many of the group's deepest secrets, some of which only the late Alison had knowledge of. The girls join forces against A's scheming and try to uncover the mystery of Alison's death. 

"Outlander"
Cast: Sam Heughan, Caitriona Balfe, Tobias Menzies
Network: Starz
Air Date: Saturdays at 9pm ET
Based On: The Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon

OUTLANDER follows the story of Claire Randall, a married combat nurse from 1945 who is mysteriously swept back in time to 1743; there, she is immediately thrown into an unknown world where her life is threatened. When she is forced to marry Jamie, a chivalrous and romantic young Scottish warrior, a passionate affair is ignited that tears Claire’s heart between two vastly different men in two irreconcilable lives.

"The Intruders"
Cast: John Simm, Mira Sorvino, James Frain
Network: BBC America
Air Date: Premieres August 23rd, Saturdays at 10pm ET
Based On: THE INTRUDERS by Michael Marshall Smith

Jack Whelan, a former LAPD cop with a troubled and violent history, finds the quiet idyllic life he has crafted with his wife, Amy shattered when she goes missing. While Jack is consumed with an investigation that threatens his very core, a sinister agent named Richard Shepherd is embarking on a series of lethal executions. Meanwhile, a distraught little girl named Madison runs away from home into a world of danger.

On DVD:

A Long Way Down
Cast: Pierce Brosnan, Toni Collette, Aaron Paul
Director: Pascal Chaumeil
Distributor: Lionsgate
MPAA Rating: R
Release Date: September 9th
Based On: A LONG WAY DOWN by Nick Hornby

A black comedy about four strangers who happen to meet on the roof of a London building on New Year’s Eve, each with the intent of committing suicide. Their plans for death in solitude are ruined when they meet as they decide to come down from the roof alive — however temporary that may be.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Cast: Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Sebastian Stan, Robert Redford, Samuel L. Jackson
Director: Anthony and Joe Russo
Distributor: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Release Date: September 9th
Based On: CAPTAIN AMERICA: Winter Soldier by Ed Brubaker, illus. by Steve Epting and Michael Lark

For Steve Rogers, awakening after decades of suspended animation involves more than catching up on pop culture; it also means that this old school idealist must face a world of subtler threats and difficult moral complexities. That comes clear when Director Nick Fury is killed by the mysterious assassin, the Winter Soldier, but not before warning Rogers that SHIELD has been subverted by its enemies. When Rogers acts on Fury's warning to trust no one there, he is branded as a traitor by the organization. Now a fugitive, Captain America must get to the bottom of this deadly mystery with the help of the Black Widow and his new friend, The Falcon. However, the battle will be costly for the Sentinel of Liberty, with Rogers finding enemies where he least expects them while learning that the Winter Soldier looks disturbingly familiar.

God’s Pocket
Cast: Philip Seymour Hoffman, Richard Jenkins, Christina Hendricks
Director: John Slattery
Distributor: IFC Films
MPAA Rating: R
Release Date: September 9th
Based On: GOD’S POCKET by Pete Dexter

When Mickey's crazy step-son Leon is killed in a construction 'accident', nobody in the working class neighborhood of God's Pocket is sorry he's gone. Mickey tries to bury the bad news with the body, but when the boy's mother demands the truth, Mickey finds himself stuck in a life-and-death struggle between a body he can't bury, a wife he can't please and a debt he can't pay.

Palo Alto
Cast: Emma Roberts, Jack Kilmer, val Kilmer, Nat Wolff, James Franco
Director: Gia Coppola
Distributor: Tribeca Film
MPAA Rating: R
Release Date: September 9th
Based On: PALO ALTO: Stories by James Franco

Shy, sensitive April is the class virgin, torn between an illicit flirtation with her soccer coach Mr. B and an unrequited crush on sweet stoner Teddy. Emily, meanwhile, offers sexual favors to every boy to cross her path - including both Teddy and his best friend Fred, a live wire without filters or boundaries. As one high school party bleeds into the next --- and April and Teddy struggle to admit their mutual affection --- Fred's escalating recklessness starts to spiral into chaos.

The Fault in Our Stars
Cast: Shailene Woodley, Ansel Elgort, Nat Wolff, Laura Dern
Director: Josh Boone
Distributor: 20^th Century Fox
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Release Date: September 16th
Based On: THE FAULT IN OUR STARS by John Green

Hazel and Gus are two teenagers who share an acerbic wit, a disdain for the conventional, and a love that sweeps them on a journey. Their relationship is all the more miraculous given that Hazel's other constant companion is an oxygen tank, Gus jokes about his prosthetic leg, and they met and fell in love at a cancer support group.

The Rover
Cast: Guy Pearce, Robert Pattinson, Scoot McNairy
Director: David Michôd
Distributor: A24
MPAA Rating: R
Release Date: September 23rd
Based On: A short story written by David Michôd and Joel Edgerton

Ten years after a global economic collapse, a hardened loner pursues the men who stole his only possession, his car. Along the way, he captures one of the thieves' brother, and the duo form an uneasy bond during the dangerous journey.