The top 10 fall/winter movies I can't wait to see

Now that it's September, what has become increasingly well know as the "good movie season" is about to begin.

Michael B. Jordan in Creed

Sadly, the major studios have been increasingly unwilling to release Oscar-caliber movies until the last 2-to-3 months of the year, forcing us to sit through mindless blockbusters the rest of the year.

It's unfathomable to some people that Silence of the Lambs came out in February of 1991 or that a prestige movie like Saving Private Ryan competed with traditional action films in the thick of the summer of 1998.

That said, I think it's been a very strong year for movies so far, with a couple of titles (Mad Max: Fury Road and It Follows), that I wouldn't be surprised to see in my final top 10 list). And there are some very exciting titles still on the horizon. This is one of those years where the genre pictures of the winter are way more interesting to me than the summer fare.

There are still so many films that I haven't seen trailers for yet or have enough buzz to make a judgment, but as of right now -- these are the top 10 movies I am marking my calendar for.

Honorable mention: Miles Ahead - I have literally only seen a photo of actor-director Don Cheadle as Davis and I'm very intrigued. This has been a passion project of his for years and I'm so excited to see how he brings his jazz icon onto the big screen and introduces him to a new audience. I am an enormous Miles fan and he is a challenging subject for a film. As Straight Outta Compton proved, you can make entertaining biopics that can transcend their core audience. Waiting and seeing on this one.

10) Spotlight - A dream cast (Michael Keaton, Mark Ruffalo, to name a few) anchor this real life story of Boston reporters who brought national attention to the child molestation by Catholic priests that was covered up for decades. It should be a stirring and fascinating film if the trailer is any indication and since the story is not something I am not overly familiar with, there's sure to be some surprises too.

9) Rock the Kasbah - Bill Murray looks like he's returning to vintage pure comedy form in the trailer for this one and I couldn't be more excited about that. I've been a big fan of his more dramatic late career turns, but have also wanted to see a glimpse of the old wild and crazy Murray. His character in this movie seems a little more grounded, a rock manager stranded in the Middle East.

8) Truth - This drama about the downfall of Dan Rather should provide Robert Redford with another one of his great late career roles. He has long been one of my favorite movie stars, and after All Is Lost he's finally starting to get some of critical appreciation he always deserved. If he nails this performance he should be a shoo-in for an Oscar nomination. As a journalist still one really intrigues me and its a genre Redford's done wonders with before (see All the President's Men).

7) The Revenant - I was never a big fan of director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu until Birdman, and now I can't wait to see what he does next. This new film, which boasts a trailer that was appropriately mysterious but exciting, was shot in all natural light lending it an intense and gorgeous immediacy. It stars two of the best leading men acting today -- Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hardy -- and already gets points for originality in my book. Could be a major player in the Oscars if it's legit.

6) Sisters - It's not a golden age for American comedies by any means, but the trailer for this one had me laughing hard out loud in a way I haven't since perhaps Bridesmaids. This one boasts a similar pedigree and party atmosphere. We already know Tina Fey and Amy Poehler have amazing chemistry together and it's nice to see them swapping comedic personas a bit and playing against type. Sisters should be a lot of fun and hopefully will avoid Trainwreck's unfortunate moralizing.

5) Black Mass - I thought I was done with Johnny Depp and then I saw this incredible looking trailer for this Boston-based crime epic. The movie could turn out to be terrible, but it looks like a real transformative performance for an actor I used to really admire, but who recently seemed content to crank out cheesy pirate movies every couple years. I'm intrigued to see him play one of the only full-blown villains of his career (the feared gangster Whitey Bulger).

The Force Awakens

4) Creed - This project has had me really excited for a long time. I thought Rocky Balboa was a fitting finale for the beloved boxing character, but when I learned that rising star Ryan Coogler and actor Michael B. Jordan were taking over the reigns of the franchise. And Sylvester Stallone is widely ceding the spotlight. He's finally playing his age and it could be the comeback dramatic performance of his career.

3) The Hateful Eight - Quentin Tarantino doesn't make movies often, but when he does they are always unforgettable. This does feel like the first time he's retreating to totally familiar territory -- another western on the heels of Django Unchained, but that was my favorite movie he ever made -- and with a cast like this (Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell, Jennifer Jason Leigh and Bruce Dern) I can't complain. Perhaps he'll finally get the Oscar love that has eluded all but his screenplays.

2) Star Wars: The Force Awakens - You'd think after nearly a decade of dreadful prequels all of the magic of Star Wars would have evaporated by now, but J.J. Abrams' old school approach has me believing again. I can't wait to see the original cast reassemble one more time (although I am still really bummed about the omission of Billy Dee Williams). The use of real sets, practical effects and the emphasis on story really comes across in the little footage we've seen. This could be a real game-changer.

1) Spectre - Hands down the movie I'm most psyched about this year. Skyfall is not just my favorite Bond movie all time -- it is one of my favorite movies period. It'll be an incredibly tough act to follow both critically and commercially but this new film wisely seems to be building off of that film's DNA. It's yet another look deeper into the background of Bond, a character we don't truly know after over 50 years in the movies. Daniel Craig has been owning this role for nearly a decade now and I expect great things.