Published Thursday, September 04, 2008 6:30 AM

This fall's movies (some of them, anyway)

LOS ANGELES -- Highlights of the fall film slate (release dates are subject to change, and some films will play in limited release):

September

APPALOOSA: Hired lawman (Viggo Mortensen and Ed Harris) take on a tough rancher (Jeremy Irons) in a Western directed by Harris. Renee Zellweger co-stars.

BABYLON A.D.: Vin Diesel's a hired gun escorting a mystery woman from Europe to New York in a post-apocalyptic future.

BANGKOK DANGEROUS: A lone-wolf hit man (Nicolas Cage) finds a young friend and potential romance on assignment in Thailand.

BATTLE IN SEATTLE: Stuart Townsend directs girlfriend Charlize Theron in a drama about the 1999 World Trade Organization protests.

BLINDNESS: A plague of sightlessness strikes humanity. With Julianne Moore, Danny Glover, Mark Ruffalo and Gael Garcia Bernal.

BURN AFTER READING: George Clooney and Brad Pitt star in the Coen brothers' romp about CIA secrets that fall into the hands of fitness club employees.

THE DUCHESS: Keira Knightley stars as an 18th century ancestor of Princess Diana who becomes a major political player. With Ralph Fiennes.

EAGLE EYE: Strangers (Shia LaBeouf and Michelle Monaghan) are cast together as fugitives by a phone call from a mystery woman.

FOREVER STRONG: A jailed rugby star (Sean Faris) gets a second chance with a rival team. Co-starring Sean Astin.

GHOST TOWN: A man (Ricky Gervais) revived after a near-death experience finds he can see ghosts -- who all pester him with demands. With Greg Kinnear and Tea Leoni.

HOUNDDOG: After she's raped, a girl (Dakota Fanning) in rural 1950s Alabama struggles to find solace in blues music.

IGOR: A mad scientist's humpbacked lab flunky tries to create his own monster in this animated comedy. John Cusack heads the voice cast.

MIRACLE AT ST. ANNA: Spike Lee tells the story of four Americans in an all-black Army unit trapped behind enemy lines during World War II. With Derek Luke.

MY BEST FRIEND'S GIRL: Kate Hudson becomes the object of a love triangle between her heartbroken ex (Jason Biggs) and his best buddy (Dane Cook).

RIGHTEOUS KILL: Robert De Niro and Al Pacino are police detectives pursuing a vigilante serial killer. Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson co-stars.

SUKIYAKI WESTERN DJANGO: A gunman is caught up in a deadly battle between two clans in this Japanese take on spaghetti Westerns. With Quentin Tarantino.

SURFER, DUDE: A surfer (Matthew McConaughey) rides a wave of chaos in his life. With Woody Harrelson and Willie Nelson.

A THOUSAND YEARS OF GOOD PRAYERS: A Chinese widower comes to America to help his daughter through her divorce.

TYLER PERRY'S THE FAMILY THAT PREYS: Writer-director Perry spins a tale of secrets and shady dealings among two clans. Kathy Bates and Alfre Woodard star.

October

AN AMERICAN CAROL: This twist on Charles Dickens features three spirits that give an anti-American filmmaker a lesson in U.S. values. With Kelsey Grammer.

BEVERLY HILLS CHIHUAHUA: A pampered pooch (voiced by Drew Barrymore) gets stranded in Mexico. The live-action family flick also features Andy Garcia and George Lopez.

CHANGELING: Angelina Jolie stars in Clint Eastwood's drama about a single mom fighting corrupt police trying to cover their tracks in the abduction of her son.

HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL 3: SENIOR YEAR: Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale and the other kids sing and dance through their final school year.

HOW TO LOSE FRIENDS AND ALIENATE PEOPLE: An inept British journalist wreaks havoc among the celebrities he covers. With Simon Pegg and Kirsten Dunst.

RACHEL GETTING MARRIED: An addict (Anne Hathaway) rekindles tension and tragic family memories at her sister's wedding. Jonathan Demme directs.

RELIGULOUS: Bill Maher travels the world to talk God and religion with the faithful in this documentary from "Borat" director Larry Charles.

SAW V: If it's Halloween season, it must be time for another torture tale about diabolical killer Jigsaw. With Tobin Bell and Costas Mandylor.

W.: Oliver Stone chronicles the life of party-boy-turned-president George W. Bush (Josh Brolin). Elizabeth Banks, James Cromwell and Richard Dreyfuss co-star.

ZACK AND MIRI MAKE A PORNO: Destitute roommies (Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks) try to make a skin flick to raise cash. Directed by Kevin Smith.

November

AUSTRALIA: Nicole Kidman reunites with "Moulin Rouge" director Baz Luhrmann for the story of a noblewoman on a cattle drive in Australia during World War II. With Hugh Jackman.

BOLT: A canine TV star (voiced by John Travolta) hits the streets to reunite with his human co-star (Miley Cyrus) in this animated comedy.

MADAGASCAR: ESCAPE 2 AFRICA: Zoo animals are stranded again in this animated sequel reuniting voice stars Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, David Schwimmer and Jada Pinkett Smith.

MILK: Sean Penn stars as gay political pioneer Harvey Milk, who was slain by a fellow San Francisco city supervisor. Gus Van Sant directs.

QUANTUM OF SOLACE: James Bond (Daniel Craig), vengeful over the death of his love, takes on a phony environmentalist trying to control water supplies.

SOUL MEN: Samuel L. Jackson and the late Bernie Mac are an estranged singing duo reunited for a tribute concert. The late Isaac Hayes co-stars.

TWILIGHT: The publishing sensation comes to Hollywood in this tale of an eternally young vampire (Robert Pattinson) and his teen soul mate (Kristen Stewart).

December

THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON: Brad Pitt stars as a man aging backward from his 80s to infancy. With Cate Blanchett, directed by David Fincher.

DEFIANCE: Jewish brothers (Daniel Craig, Liev Schreiber and Jamie Bell) evade the Nazis and form a community to protect others in jeopardy.

DOUBT: Meryl Streep, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Amy Adams star in a drama about a nun who accuses a priest of abusing a student.

FROST/NIXON: Ron Howard directs the adaptation of the play about the soul-baring 1977 interview between Richard Nixon (Frank Langella) and David Frost (Michael Sheen).

GRAN TORINO: Clint Eastwood directs and stars as a veteran whose prejudices are challenged by his immigrant neighbors.

REVOLUTIONARY ROAD: Titanic stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet reunite as a couple struggling to break out of the boredom of 1950s suburbia.

SEVEN POUNDS: Will Smith's an IRS agent making amends for past wrongs by helping seven strangers. With Rosario Dawson and Woody Harrelson.

THE TALE OF DESPEREAUX: Matthew Broderick provides the voice of a mouse who sets out to rescue a princess in this animated adventure.

VALKYRIE: Tom Cruise stars as a German colonel attempting to assassinate Adolf Hitler.

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