By Justin Marble

Michael Stuhlbarg plays besieged academic Larry Gopnik in the Coen Brothers' film A Serious Man

October 1 through 3: Classic Cinema at Museum of Fine Arts: This weekend, the Museum of Fine Arts is showing two classic pieces of cinema. First up is Akira Kurosawa’s “Throne of Blood,” his reworking of Shakespeare’s “Macbeth” in feudal Japan. Then it’s Sam Peckinpah’s “The Wild Bunch,” a 1969 Western that was controversial at the time of its release for its shocking violence. Go on Saturday and make it a double feature.

October 9: “A Serious Man” opens at Kendall Square and Coolidge Corner: The Coen Brothers keep up their breakneck pace of filmmaking with their latest effort, “A Serious Man.” Expect the Coen’s traditional black humor mixed with an odd yet penetrating glimpse into one man’s struggles with his Jewish faith.

October 14: Free screening of “L’eclisse“ at Harvard Film Archive: Michaelangelo Antonioni’s 1962 Palme d’Or nominee “L’eclisse (Eclipse)” is being screened at the HFA free of charge, one night only. Antonioni weaves a tale of two young lovers in a doomed relationship against the backdrop of Rome. A must for fans of Italian cinema.

October 16: “Where the Wild Things Are” opens nationwide: Indie god Spike Jonze returns to the big screen with an adaptation of Maurice Sendak’s classic book, “Where the Wild Things Are.” Don’t dismiss this as pure kids’ stuff- if he stays true to the source, this will be a meditation on the fleeting transience of the innocence of youth. Barring that, the kids will love the friendly, furry monsters.

October 16: “The Friends of Eddie Coyle” at The Brattle: Leave the kids at home for The Brattle’s screening of this gritty gangster flick. Peter Yates illuminates the Boston underground years before “The Departed” ever did. The Brattle got their hands on a 35mm print and are screening it three times the night of the 16th as part of their “Boston Noir” series.

October 17: “The Room” midnight screens at Coolidge: It’s difficult to explain “The Room” to those who haven’t seen it, other than bringing up the fact that it is, quite simply, one of the worst films ever made. Of course, this has led to its status as a cult-like phenomenon complete with midnight screenings across the country. The mysterious and vaguely Eastern European Tommy Wiseau directs and stars in this unbelievably awful piece of cinema that has to be seen to be believed. Quite the experience.

Charlote Gainbourg and Willem Dafoe in Lars von Trier's Antichrist

October 23: “Antichrist” opens at Kendall Square: Danish director Lars von Trier’s “Antichrist” is one of the most polarizing films of the year, with some critics praising its genius and others reviling in horror at its explicit sexual violence and alleged misogyny. Von Trier is a highly respected director, so it will be interesting to see what the fuss is about when this film finally comes to Boston. Not for the faint of heart.

October 30 and October 31: Trick or treat at The Brattle and Coolidge: Halloween weekend brings sweet and sugary treats in the form of campy, B-movie horror exploits. The Brattle offers three showings of Sam Raimi’s zombie classic “Evil Dead 2” on both nights. The Coolidge keeps adult trick-or-treaters in mind with two midnight showings: John Carpenter’s “The Thing” on the 30th and their Halloween Horror Marathon on Halloween night (up this year, a double feature of “The Blob” and “Night of the Creeps”).