Want more? Here's everything we recommend this month: Music, Visual Art, Literature, Performance, Film, Food, This & That.

‘The Florida Project’

Sept 3

The September installment of the SIFF Movie Club brings a screening of the 2017 indie cut The Florida Project. Sean Baker’s affecting humanist depiction of central Florida strip mall heartland has become a bit of a cult classic, and for good reason; those who found Baker’s award-sweeping Anora lacking in subtlety and resolve will find the opposite here. The film follows Moonee (Brooklynn Prince), a joy-seeking 6-year-old, as she befriends a rotating cast of long-term motel residents, the only constants being her exotic dancer mom (Bria Vinaite) and hotel manager Bobby (Willem Dafoe), the latter of whose goal of being taken seriously is often undercut by a paternalist affection for his tenants. As a character, the neon purple motel stands out as a glaring metaphor for an unmoored life at the hands of economic uncertainty. It’s up to Bobby to hold things together, his unwashed traits not able to shine elsewhere, but in a chaotic environment that swallows others, he is allowed to emerge, while flawed, as a protector of virtue. (SIFF Cinema Uptown, 6 pm, all ages) TODD HAMM

‘Vampyr’ (1932) with Live Score by Lori Goldston

Sept 4

This event combines three of my favorite things: early horror movies, solo cello, and unsettling contemporary art. Local experimental cellist Lori Goldston—known for her solo ambient work, as well as her collaborations with PNW rock bands like Earth and Nirvana—will perform a live original score to Carl Dreyer’s eerie 1932 masterwork Vampyr. The silent film is a classic vampire tale that follows a young occult enthusiast as he gets entangled in dark forces and forbidding living shadows. This screening will accompany the Frye’s current exhibit, Jamie Wyeth’s Unsettled, and I predict that Goldston’s tense strings will echo beautifully through the gallery walls. Plus, the hauntedness of the whole thing is a great way to get in the mood for dark and rainy autumn. (Frye Art Museum, 6 pm) AUDREY VANN

L.A. Noir

Sept 10–Nov 12

In my opinion, noir films are meant to be watched in fall. I think SIFF must agree with me, because they’ve programmed Los Angeles–set noir films throughout September, October, and November. The film series kicks off with the sci-fi-tinged 1955 classic Kiss Me Deadly, starring the always captivating Maxine Cooper (of Autumn Leaves and What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?). I am also excited to see Robert Altman’s adaptation of Raymond Chandler’s The Long Goodbye and the prequel to Chinatown, The Two Jakes, directed by and starring Jack Nicholson. The moodiness of these films will suit your fall blues. The gorgeous LA sets will remind you that the sun exists. (SIFF Cinema Uptown, various times) AUDREY VANN

‘Death Becomes Her’

Sept 16

Sabrina Carpenter’s “Taste” music video, in which she and Jenna Ortega attempt to murder each other over a mostly inconsequential man before deciding to ditch him and make out instead, owes its kitschy, catty theatrics to the 1992 cult classic Death Becomes Her. Director Robert Zemeckis’s campy dark comedy follows the shallow actress Madeline Ashton (Meryl Streep) and jilted writer Helen Sharp (Goldie Hawn), who compete for the plastic surgeon Ernest Menville (Bruce Willis) and become obsessed with attaining eternal youth. The film has enjoyed a resurgence as of late, thanks in part to the “Taste” video and a Tony Award–winning musical adaptation. Keep your eyes peeled for Isabella Rossellini, looking the hottest anyone has ever looked in her scene-stealing role as the immortal socialite Lisle Von Rhuman. (Here-After, 7:30 pm, 21+) JULIANNE BELL

More

Jaws: 50th Anniversary (New 4K Restoration) Through Sept 4, SIFF Downtown, various times

SEA-Nordic Film Festival Sept 5–7, Majestic Bay Theatre, various times

Star Wars: The Ultimate Cinematic Marathon Sept 5–18, SIFF Downtown, various times

Flow in Concert with the Seattle Symphony Sept 10, Benaroya Hall, 7:30 pm, all ages

Twilight in Concert Sept 13, Paramount Theatre, 2 pm and 7:30 pm, all ages

2025 SIFF Marquee Gala Sept 18, Fremont Studios, 6:30 pm

Local Sightings Film Festival Sept 19–28, Northwest Film Forum, various times

Silent Movie Mondays: The Last Laugh Sept 29, Paramount Theatre, 7 pm, all ages

Re-Animator 40th Anniversary Screening Sept 30, Neptune Theatre, 8 pm, all ages

Early Warnings

Airplane! Unreleased Director’s Cut Screening and Q&A Oct 3, Paramount Theatre, 8 pm, all ages

20th Tasveer Film Festival & Market Oct 8–12, Tasveer Film Center, various times

Seattle Latino Film Festival Oct 10–18, various locations, various times

Ghost Almanac with a Live Score by Montopolis Oct 12, Here-After, 7:30 pm, 21+

SIFF DocFest Oct 16–23, SIFF Uptown & Downtown, various times

Twin Peaks: A Conversation with the Stars Oct 19, Neptune Theatre, 7 pm, all ages

The Rocky Horror Picture Show: 50th Anniversary Oct 28, Paramount Theatre, 7:30 pm