To make way for Pope Francis, the 53rd New York Film Festival kicks off a day late this year.
But beginning Saturday and running for the following two weeks, the culture cathedral of Lincoln Center will bless New York with its curation of the best cinema of the year, from Cannes hits anticipated on American shores (Todd Haynes' "Carol,'' the Holocaust drama "Son of Saul'') to the latest from international heavyweights like Taiwanese director Hou Hsiao-hsien ("The Assassin'').
Opening the festival is Robert Zemeckis' "The Walk,'' a 3-D recreation of high-wire artist Philippe Petit's famous 1974 walk between the World Trade Center Towers.
Other festivities include a tribute to the late documentarian Albert Maysles, a 15th anniversary reunion of the Coen brothers' "O Brother Where Art Thou'' and a 25th anniversary celebration of Martin Scorsese's movie restoration nonprofit, Film Foundation.
Other highlights:
- "Bridge of Spies": Premiering ahead of its mid-October release is Steven Spielberg's latest, a Cold War spy thriller and true tale starring Tom Hanks as a lawyer recruited to rescue a downed pilot in the Soviet Union.
- "Miles Ahead": Closing the festival will be Don Cheadle's directorial debut in which he also stars as jazz legend Miles Davis. Set in 1979 New York, it focuses on Davis's career revival following his five-year "silent period.''
- "Steve Jobs": Though it landed first at the Telluride Film Festival, Danny Boyle's anticipated biopic on the Apple visionary, written by Aaron Sorkin and starring Michael Fassbender, is likely to make a big splash in its New York debut.
- "Junun": Paul Thomas Anderson's 54-minute documentary was an unexpected addition to the festival. In it, he documents Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood traveling to the musically rich Indian region of Rajasthan. It will premiere on subscription streaming service MUBI on Oct. 9, the day after it premieres at the festival.
