“Proof”

John Madden, director of “Shakespeare in Love,” promises another dose of a… “Proof”

John Madden, director of “Shakespeare in Love,” promises another dose of a poignant and triumphal love story with “Proof.” Catherine (Gwyneth Paltrow), the daughter of a brilliant and troubled mathematician (Anthony Hopkins), discovers dozens of notebooks that may contain the greatest work of his life. When Hal (Jake Gyllenhaal) encourages her to examine them, he must also help her conquer the fear of inheriting her father’s instability rather than his genius.

elease Date: Sept. 16

“Lord of War”

Yuri Orlov (Nicholas Cage) prides himself on unabashedly providing weapons to anyone — or any nation — that wants them. Does this entail arming warring lands and sitting back to watch the fray? You bet. Director Andrew Niccol seems to locate the morality of gunrunning in chastisement from authorities, but then glorifies Orlov with wealth, women and badass one-liners. Also starring Jared Leto and Ethan Hawke, “Lord of War” may be viewable if for no other reason than to marvel at the audacity of the premise.

Release Date: Sept. 16

“Everything is Illuminated”

In “Everything is Illuminated,” Jonathan (Elijah Wood), a prim, obsessive collector of trinkets and photographs, finds himself on a mission to the Ukraine. Desperate to learn the story of the woman who saved his grandfather from the Nazis, Jonathan must rely on a guide’s poor grasp of English to dig into the past and uncover a touching secret. By setting Jonathan’s mission against vivid surrealism, director Liev Schreiber may capture the chaos that ensues when rigidity merges with the extraordinary.

Release Date: Sept. 16

“Corpse Bride”

After a lengthy recess, “Corpse Bride” marks Tim Burton’s return to stop-motion. As “The Nightmare Before Christmas” demonstrated, it’s the ideal medium for his favored amalgam of the amusing and the macabre. In a dusky, oddly Victorian setting, Victor Van Dort (voiced by Johnny Depp) inadvertently marries the Corpse Bride (Helena Bonham Carter) when he slips a ring on her skeletal finger. As Victor’s meticulously crafted world attempts to deal with such a match, Burton will surely tread the fine line between comedy and fright that he knows so well.

Release Date: Sept. 23

“Elizabethtown”

So we know that Orlando Bloom can hold his own with a sword, but what if he’s armed with a cell phone and an American accent? In director Cameron Crowe’s “Elizabethtown,” business-failure Drew Baylor (Bloom) travels to small-town Kentucky for the funeral of his father. During the bizarre proceedings, Drew finds solace in fulfilling his father’s last wishes and a blossoming romance with the flight attendant (Kirsten Dunst) helping him along the way.

Release Date: Oct. 14

“Legend of Zorro”

Six years after “The Mask of Zorro,” Antonio Banderas and Catherine Zeta-Jones are gearing up for round two of sexy outfits and swashbuckling. Zorro (Banderas) may have become a family man, but he reenters the realm of heroism in his typically bombastic fashion when California’s admittance into the Union is threatened. Although director Martin Campbell’s “Legend of Zorro” will in all likelihood be just as silly as its predecessor, any trailer 85 percent composed of explosions deserves an honorable mention.

Release Date: Oct. 28