Nostalgia reigns at the movies

Angels answering to Charlie, Skywalker lightsaber duels, Mister Rogers in the 'hood, singing-dancing horrifically uncanny-valley-ed cats ... umm.

Did we write this preview 40 years ago?

I'm one of those stubbornly insistent who argues there continues to be a lot of novel work coming out of Hollywood, original thought and concepts and visions, but that might be skewed by trips to film festivals.

At the multiplexes for the coming holidays, there are a bunch of new flicks coming, new in that we've not seen these actual hours of action, comedy and tears being jerked. But it'd be morphing the truth to suggest anything but nostalgia reigns this season.

Still, between the blockbuster tentpoles, there are intriguing alternates, such as James Mangold's "Ford v. Ferrari," whose title kinda hints at a Fast 'n' Furious racing vibe, but coming from the director of 2017's elegiac "Logan," will probably be somewhat richer. Auteurs Bill Condon, Sam Mendes, Greta Gerwig, Rian Johnson, Tom Harper and others have new picks, too.

So all's not "Frozen II," or "Jumanji" cats.

Here's a look at some choices from now through the end of the year, when Hollywood not only seeks to cash in on vacations time, but squeeze in qualifiers for the Oscars. As always, release dates may change according to box office fortunes, and some may not come to the Hollywood 16, unless you deluge offices with requests.

OPENING THIS WEEKEND

• "Charlie's Angels" — Elizabeth Banks may be the excuse to give this umpteenth iteration a try. The multi-talent will be on-screen, but directing as well, for a new cast of angels including Kristen Stewart, Naomi Scott and Ella Balinska, with Patrick Stewart as Bosley.

• "Ford v. Ferrari" — Mangold delivered delicious pathos, epic-old-western-scale scope and claws, claws, claws for "Logan," so this historically based engineering-racing flick — when Ford set a team to construct a vehicle to win the '66 24-hour LeMans — should be a rollicking road trip. It stars Matt Damon as the genius Carroll Shelby, Christian Bale as British driver Ken Miles, Tracy Letts as Henry Ford II, and Remo Girrone as Enzo Ferrari.

• "The Good Liar" — Helen Mirren and Ian McKellen. Could just stop there, but it's Condon directing these two stars — surprisingly, in their first real movie together — in a con-artist thriller.

NOV. 22

• "21 Bridges" — Chadwick Boseman's picking up the Denzel Washington mantle as a noir-ish guy who saves a corrupt city from itself. Directed by Brian Kirk, who's worked on the BBC's scathing "Luther," and "Boardwalk Empire," "Penny Dreadful," and "Game of Thrones," among others. Also starring J.K. Simmons and Sienna Miller.

• "Frozen II" — Unlike many Disney sequels, this one isn't going straight to video, so either the market's shifting, or The Mouse has faith this followup can successfully match one of its most massive hits in a storied history of hits: The 2013 "Frozen" scored $1.2 billion worldwide. Many voice talents returning, including those of sisters Idina Menzel and Kristen Bell.

• "A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood" — Tom Hanks as Mister Rogers. Again, that sells pretty much everyone who's so inclined, but add in Matthew Rhys as the cynical journalist whose life Fred turns around — based on the true tale of writer Tom Junod — Susan Kelechi Watson from "This is Us," Christine Lahti, Chris Cooper, and direction from rising auteur Marielle Heller, and it's clearly not just a sweet cash-in.

NOV. 27

• "Knives Out" — Rian Johnson drove some "Star Wars" fans bonkers, but thrilled others — me, for one — with his admittedly wonky take on "The Last Jedi." But more folks agreed on the twisty joys of his earlier hits "Looper" and "Brick," so maybe this murder mystery, said to be inspired by Agatha Christie and "Clue" will be more to audiences' liking. He couldn't find any actual stars, so had to make do with Daniel Craig, Toni Collette, Chris Evans, Ana De Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis, Christopher Plummer, Don Johnson, Riki Lindhome, LaKeith Stanfield and Michael Shannon.

• "Queen and Slim" — You think you've suffered bad first dates? New couple Slim (Daniel Kaluuya, from "Get Out" and "Black Panther") and Queen (Jodie Turner-Smith ("Nightflyers") get pulled over by a cop, and things go ... well let's just say "Bonnie and Clyde" times "Thelma and Louise."

DEC. 6

• "The Aeronauts" — Felicity Jones and Eddie Redmayne star as a pilot and scientist struggling for survival in a hot-air-balloon trip intended to travel around the world; based on a true story, set in 1862.

• "Playmobil: The Movie" — Another Lego-ish animated adventure-comedy. Looks really bad, in trailers. Expect your children to beg for it.

DEC. 13

• "Black Christmas" — Remake of the cult horror flick from 1974, about a sorority stalked by a masked killer. The women don't roll over and scream: They pick up weaponry.

• "Bombshell" — Based on the toxic culture at Fox News allegedly created by Roger Ailes. Written by Charles Randolph ("The Interpreter," "Love and Other Drugs," "The Big Short"); starring Charlize Theron, Nicole Kidman, Jennifer Morrison, Alice Eve, Margot Robbie and Kate McKinnon as some of the bombshell blondes; directed by Jay Roach.

• "Jumanji: The Next Level" — The 2017 "Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle" was a pleasantly light diversion, based mainly on the charm of its leads: Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Karen Gillan, Jack Black and Kevin Hart. They're all back, along with Danny DeVito, Awkwafina, Dania Ramirez, Danny Glover and others looking to jump on the bandwagon. Jake Kasdan returns as director. What's the story? Something something kids sucked into a videogame. Again.

• "Richard Jewell" — Whatever Clint Eastwood's personal eccentricities, you can't say he doesn't tell intriguing tales. This one's about the titular character whose life was destroyed by false accusations painting him as the 1996 Atlanta Olympics bomber. Because he's cast the brilliant Paul Walter Hauser —  saving grace of "I, Tonya" — in the lead, expect more from Eastwood this time around, than in recent misfires. Co-stars include Sam Rockwell, Kathy Bates, Jon Hamm, Olivia Wilde and Ian Gomez.

DEC. 20

• "Cats" — Just no.

• "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker" — OK, yes.

DEC. 25

• "1917" — Mendes filmed this World War I epic to appear one long non-stop take. Hitchcock pulled off the no-edits stunt with "Rope," but this takes the gimmickry to extremes. There's a "Saving Private Ryan" sort of mission at heart: two privates must travel deep into enemy territory to deliver a message that may prevent 1,600 men from walking into a trap. Cinematography by the genius Roger Deakins, and a cast including Dean-Charles Chapman, George MacKay, Benedict Cumberbatch, Richard Madden, Andrew Scott, Mark Strong, Colin Firth, Teresa Mahoney, Daniel Mays cries Oscar bait.

• "Little Women" — Yes, it's another recognizable title, revisited yet again, but with Greta Gerwig ("Lady Bird") directing and writing, and a cast including Meryl Streep as Aunt March, Laura Dern as Marmee, Saoirse Ronan as Jo, Florence Pugh as Amy, Eliza Scanlen as Beth, and Emma Watson as Meg, and also featuring Tracy Letts, Bob Odenkirk, Chris Cooper and Timothée Chalamet. Might be OK.

• "Spies in Disguise" — Animated flick trying for the action-comedy heart of "The Incredibles."