"We're not critics. We're professional fan-girls." --- This blog is dedicated to movies and the entertainment industry. We use random selection to bring into light the best and worst of streaming films and entertainment news.
I have been absolutely giddy over the last few days. It’s
not because I’ve been left alone with the blog while Selina’s on a much needed
vacation. She’s been decidedly missed. My excitement stems from some recent
movie news. More specifically, it was an update regarding the movie Code 8, which is currently in
pre-production.
According to a Facebook Live video
by Robbie Amell (The Tomorrow People, The
X-Files, ARQ), the film is going into production as of May 29th,
2017.
What is this Code 8,
you ask?
It is a heaping helping of awesomesauce.
Imagine a world where humans are beginning to evolve and
develop ‘powers.’ Some are strong, some wield fire, others have various kinetic
talents, and even electricity. I’m sure there are many other varieties in this
movie landscape, but these are the ones that the proof-of-concept short film I
have posted at the top of this article has confirmed. However, regular humans
are wary of these ‘Specials’ and have developed some high-tech means to ensure
that these evolved people follow the same laws as everyone else. Prejudice and discrimination
underscore the lives of those born gifted.
I absolutely adore fantastical Sci-Fi stories that involve
metahumans, or ordinary people with extraordinary abilities. Jeff Chan (The Apostles, Call of Duty: Operation
Kingfish, Grace: The Possession) did an amazing job with his team in
crafting the short film. It certainly whet my appetite for more – which the
upcoming movie promises to deliver in spades.
This film has already shattered records. This is largely
thanks to the epic and loyal fanbase of both Robbie and Stephen Amell (Private Practice, Arrow, Teenage Mutant
Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows). These cousins have been wanting to do a
project together for quite some time. Their brief collaboration on their CW
shows’ cross-over episodes just wasn’t enough – for them or their fans.
Thus, Code 8 was
born. They crafted a project, primarily spearheaded by Robbie, where they can
do just that and tell a great story at the same time; while keeping control of
the movie out of big-studio hands and involving passionate fans in the process.
They launched a phenomenally successful Indiegogo campaign on March 22, 2016 to
fund the film. Their goal was $200,000.00. The 30-day campaign closed with over
$1.7 million. The overwhelming response to this crowdfunding effort made this
the most successful Canadian film crowdfunding project EVER.
I have a firm belief that this movie will be absolutely
amazing due to the dedication of those working on it. This is a passion project
that has a lot of heart and the Amells are just genuinely a couple of great,
talented guys that use their celebrity platforms for more than self-promotion.
This isn’t Stephen’s first fundraising project. He champions the F-Cancer charity through his Nocking Point Wines and annual
Represent.com campaigns, as well as other efforts. One of his t-shirt campaigns
hit over the million mark and F-Cancer actually put him on their board.
I digress…
Part of what makes them so special is their love of
communicating with their fans. There were many updates as the Indiegogo campaign
progressed, and they have remained providing consistent updates since it
closed. There is a palpable excitement for this project when they talk about
it, and they’ve gone above and beyond to include fans in the creative process
for this movie. If I had a few thousand dollars to throw around, you can bet I’d have
snagged one of the movie premiere perks.
What’s even more awesome is that there’s more to come! Robbie
announced that the Indiegogo campaign will be re-opening shortly after
production begins, in order to give fans a chance to not only help the project
but also get more awesome movie gear such as the wildly popular signed
postcards, apparel, other personalized perks, and even weekly giveaways. They
are changing up the artwork on the cards and the apparel designs to preserve
the collectability of their first backers, but I’ve no doubt that whatever they
pick will be really cool.
So back to the movie, itself. Have I mentioned that Sung
Kang (Fast Five, Bullet to the Head,
Power) will be in this? I loved him in the short, and can’t wait to see
what they have him doing in the full-length film. There have been teases about
the casting, but more names have yet to be revealed.
The film has an ambitious production schedule with plans to
premiere around October of this year. According to a March 2017 Facebook
Live session that the Amells broadcast together, they’re currently
remaining pretty much on target. Those that purchased the campaign perk to
become an extra in the movie have already received emails with their scene
information. While Stephen’s busy schedule prevented him from lending more than
his voice to the short film, they will be shooting all of his live scenes for
the movie during the month of June.
I can’t wait to see this film hit the big screen. If you’re
interested, too – go check out the site and keep your eyes peeled for that
re-launch of the Indiegogo. The more they’re able to raise, the higher they can
up the ante on the movie.
Bonus! - If you'd like to read an exclusive Comingsoon.net interview with Robbie Amell from March 2016, shortly after the Indiegogo launch, click here.
But
I Digress... is a weekly column for trustthedice.com that can't be
pinned down to just one thing. It's Cat's celebration of tangents,
random references, and general fan geekdom that both intertwines with,
revolves around, and diverges from our movie-review core. In homage to
the beloved Brit comedians, we want to bring you something completely
different!
Blurb from Rottentomatoes: Krishna is born with magical powers -- a legacy from his father, Rohit
Mehra. Priya comes into his life and becomes his world. When she beckons
him to Singapore, he follows. In Singapore, Dr Siddhant Arya, the
megalomaniac scientist is on the verge to change the future forever.
Only one man stands between Dr Siddharth Arya and his destructive
dreams. To block his ruthless ambitions, Krishna must become Krrish.
Why is this edition special, you ask? Today, I get to take
you ‘off script’ so to speak. Since Foreign Film Friday was added to our format
this year, there aren’t any movies for me to pick out of Selina’s archived solo
reviews to give you a different perspective on. So rather than rolling, I’ve
selected a movie just barely outside of our list timeframe (releases within the
last decade).
I remember watching a trailer for this film around the time
it was released, and how I had been so curious about it then. Then, I noticed
that there was a sequel to Krrish available on Netflix that is within our list-range. Win-win! This
movie looked really interesting and it gives you some groundwork frame of reference prior to the dice potentially
giving us Krrish 3 (2013) at some
point in the future. You might be wondering what happened to ‘Krrish 2’ – I’ll
get to that here in a second.
First, I want to caution our readers to entirely ignore the
blurb description in Netflix for this movie. It’s entirely wrong. This is one
thing that galls me about these little summary descriptions. It’s not just
Netflix that falls prey to this – it’s everywhere. I’ve experienced it with my
Xfinity cable service as well. Someone either snarky or plain lazy writes
whatever the hell they feel like without really getting a grasp of what the
programming they’re summarizing entails. I have had to double-take before in an
instance where the blurb-writer interjected their personal opinion of the
production. Whether or not some bozo who thinks they’re funny likes something
or not has no bearing on my desire to know what the general plot of something is
as I’m scrolling through my guide. Can you tell that this is a pet peeve?
I digress…
Back to the movie! To answer the conundrum posed before,
there simply is no Krrish 2. Krrish
is actually considered the 2nd movie of this franchise. It all
starts with the film Koi... Mil Gaya
(2003), which features the parents and grandparents of Krrish’s main character. It seems they didn’t use the ‘2’ in the
title because this is an origin story for the Krrish superhero. Krrish 3
(2013) picks up at some point after the events in this movie, and there’s a Krrish 4 currently in production with a
release date tentatively set for Christmas of 2018 in India.
Following Krrish, and especially around the timeframe of the
3rd installment of this series, comic books and cartoons came out
featuring this superhero. This series is considered one of the most successful
Bollywood franchises of all time. I can see why – it was fantastic!
There are only 2 things that kept this from getting a 5-star
rating from me. The first was those infernal subtitles. The text was in plain
white and over the movie, and had a few issues here and there. The subs did
follow the lyrics of the traditional Bollywood musical numbers sprinkled
through the movie, though. To be honest, I got so drawn into the movie that at
some point I stopped caring and wasn’t even realizing I was reading as I
watched.
The second issue wasn’t really all that bad. The film is a
little over 2.5 hours long. At some points it feels a little slow-moving, but
it doesn’t really take away from the story. The movie needed the time it took
for character development. A few minutes here or there could have been
streamlined but other than that, the length was justified.
The first act of the story follows the main character, Krishna,
as he grows from a boy into the strapping young man, isolated from the world. The
second act comes when the outside world comes to him and he has an encounter
that changes him forever – because his feelings get involved. The third act is
what follows as a result, and so on. I can’t really give more detail away
without spoiling things.
The cast is fabulous here. When Rakesh Roshan (King Uncle, Koyla, Karobaar: The Business of
Love); whom was writer, director, producer, and actor playing Krishna’s
grandfather; wrote the story for this movie, he must have had his son in mind
for the lead. It suited Hrithik Roshan (Lakshyta,
Kites, Mohenjo Daro) perfectly. This guy has some serious action skills.
You read that right – the lead in this film is Rakesh Roshan’s son. (The
musical composer Rajesh Roshan (Love at
Times Square, Aetbaar, Valley of Flowers), is also Rakesh’s brother!)
Hrithik had his work cut out for him in preparation for this
movie. He had martial arts skills to execute (impressively, I might add), and
TONS of wire-work. In fact, there was a freak accident involving snapped cables
while filming in Singapore that was a near-miss to catastrophe. Hrithik makes
this stuff look easy – and he looks good doing it, too.
This movie has all the classic Bollywood elements – humor,
drama, romance, a twist, group dance numbers, fantastic visuals and costuming.
There’s breathtaking scenery, and interesting cinematography. I loved the
action special effects. It reminded me in some places of watching anime where
the background blurs behind the character to highlight whatever power move is
happening. In some places it almost felt like a comic brought to life – done the
right way. Then, of course, there’s a sci-fi element woven in. Since I was
unfamiliar with the first movie, it came at me out of nowhere; so I won’t spoil
it for you!
All told, the movie was engaging and full of heart. It’s a
must-see for anyone that loves superhero origins and musicals Bollywood-style.
This film, in fact, would be great for anyone looking to test the waters with
the genre.
Languages
Speech Available: Hindi
Subtitles Available:
English
Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score – 100%
Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score – 72%
Metascore - 68/100
Metacritic User Score –6.5/10
IMDB Score – 6.3/10
Trust the Dice: Cat’s Rating
– 4.5/5
Trust-the-Dice’s
Parental Advisory Rating: PG
Movie Trailer:
Bonus! - If you don't mind mild spoilers, there's a 6-minute behind-the-scenes video available here. There's interview content, a look at the martial arts training Hrithik Roshan underwent, and production footage.
Production Companies: Alliance Cinema, Magnet Media Group, Magnet Media Productions, Magnet Media Productions, Mirabelle Pictures, Film Afrika Worldwide, Cinedigm, Lipsync Productions, Procinvest Sas, Social Capital
Producers: Verenice Buerling, Jeanette Buerling-Milio, Matthew E. Chausse, Philippe Chausse, Sukee Chew, Meg Clark, Ali Cook, Trish Cook, Michael Corso, Chris Curling, Brian Donovan, Vlokkie Gordon, Anthony Gudas, Nina Heyns, Norman Merry, John Michaels, Maggie Monteith, Karl Nickoley, Celine Rattray, Douglas Saylor Jr., Martin Shore, Matthew Spain, Jeff Steele, Guy Tannahill, Christopher Tuffin, Eric van den Eijnden, David Wicht, Pasquale Zaza
Director: John
Stockwell
Writers: Ronnie
Christensen, Amy Sorlie
Actors: Halle
Berry, Olivier Martinez, Sizwe Msutu, Mark Elderkin, Thoko Ntshinga, Ralph
Brown, Luke Tyler
Stunt Doubles: Amanda Foster, Francois Grobbelaar, Dan Hirst, Grant Hulley, James O'Donnell, Chris Pollard, Katie Rowe, Franz Spilhaus
Blurb from Netflix: A "shark whisperer" is crippled by fear. Is big money enough bait to lure her back into the perilous depths?
As we’ve done in the past, since Selina is away; I’ve
revisited a move that she’s already watched and reviewed for you. This way we
can offer you the same dual perspective that our current reviews provide. So
while our Sellie is away, we shall play… with sharks!
For those that caught my January 21st, 2017 But I
Digress article,
you might have an inkling of how much I geek out over sharks. These powerful,
majestic, and terrifying predators have been a fascination of mine dating back
many years.
While this movie doesn’t deal with the megalodon, it does
feature the modern-day apex predator of the ocean – the great white shark.
So let’s get down to the brass tacks here. I could babble
about sharks all day, but you’ve come here for a review.
I’ll be honest right out of the gate – this movie wasn’t the
best shark thriller ever made. The film had its share of issues; however, it wasn’t
the worst shark thriller ever made, either. I’d say it’s somewhere waffling
around the middle of the road. The movie’s gotten quite a lot of reviews that
are considerably unfavorable.
There might be some truth to the consensus that the movie
was akin to a soap opera more than it was a thriller; however, the movie wasn’t
devoid of nail-biting moments. The murky underwater environment was the perfect
setting to evoke dread with these monsters of the deep. My main issue with the
film had nothing to do with that. There was an entire scene that just felt like
it was thrown in randomly for the hell of it. It didn’t tie in with the core
plot or even in a tangential way that would make it a valid sub-plot. At best,
it was the equivalent of ‘flavor text’ to build more of an environment of peril
in regards to the sharks – but that was entirely unnecessary.
So let’s get on with what I felt the movie did right.
For one thing, they used actual footage of real sharks and
seals as filmed off the coast of South Africa around Cape Town. Seal Island was
the real deal. This area is one of the most active great white areas on the
planet. They love to munch those seals. Most of those incredible images of
great whites leaping right out of the ocean were taken right there.
The only shots that were doctored with effects were the ones
where people were interacting directly with the toothsome terrors. The effects
were well done and I would be hard-pressed, even as a shark aficionado, to
point out where the real footage ended and where the graphics began. It’s clear
that great care was taken to portray the sharks correctly rather than just
sensationally, as with most shark-attack movies.
The information they give about sharks, that area off the
coast of South Africa, and the like is all accurate. Hidden within this movie
is a small nature documentary in truth. I enjoyed the fact that they went with
the real deal rather than hyped up fictional sensationalism.
This might not be at the top of my recommendation list for
shark movies, but I wouldn’t mind watching it again.
Actors: Sean
O’Donnell, Alexandria DeBerry, Gary Busey, Stephen Tobolowsky, Michael Eric
Reid, Dylan Riley Snyder, J.D. Rudometkin, Eric Wheeler, Nick Fenske, Jesse Miller,
Pamela Finney, Michael Reep, Jack Shelton, Shelley K. Booker
Genre: Comedy,
Drama, Family
Rated: PG-13
I went back and forth about adding this film to my list. In
the end, it really did look kind of amusing.
It’s reminiscent of Junior
(1994), a film where Arnold Schwarzenegger (Aftermath,
Sabotage, The Expendables) plays a pregnant man. It’s not quite the same
thing, since good old Arnie played an adult and this film takes place in the
high school years of the main characters.
This film seems like what would have happened if Junior had been released on the Disney
channel as a TV movie. That’s not a terrible thing, I’ve enjoyed a few Disney
TV movies in my time.
I know very little about the cast of this movie and this is
the first full length feature film that the director and writer have worked on
in those specific credits. That makes this film a wild card. Depending on how
it’s handled, it could be hilarious; it could also be an eye-rolling
cringe-fest. We’ll see.
19 – Lady
Bloodfight (5/5)
Tag Line: The
year the only way out is to kill them all.
Production Company:
Voltage Pictures, B&E Productions
Director: Chris
Nahon
Writer: Bey
Logan, Judd Bloch
Actors: Amy
Johnston, Muriel Hofmann, Jenny Wu, Kathy Wu, Jet Tranter, Mayling Ng, Sunny
Coelst, Rosemary Vandebrouck, Lisa Cheng, Chalinene Bassinah, Lauren Rhoden,
Lisa Henderson, Isa Sofa Chan Kwan Nga, Nathalie Ng, Happy Ma, Xiao Xia,
Wing-Hin Ho, Mon Choi, Kirt Kishita, Joe Fiorella, Cecilia Reynal, Ines
Laimins, Jai Day, Harry Oram, James Carss, John Dovoacc
Genre: Action,
Crime, Drama
Rated: R
Lady Bloodfight looks
like an all (or mostly) female version of Mortal
Kombat (1995). It’s the same basic idea at the core.
The film seems to be based on a tournament of martial arts
fighters, though it’s not a fight for the world. In fact, it seems to be a
fight for something much more basic: money.
Despite the corny and somewhat badly acted reality of the Mortal Kombat movie, I rather enjoyed
it. At the very least I remember it fondly. That means seeing a trailer like
this one is incredibly nostalgic for me.
It does seem to take some paths that are unique to this kind
of storyline, however, and that makes it more interesting than it would seem
otherwise. I’m not sure I expect A-list kind of acting, but as B-movies go I
have relatively high hopes.
18 – Worthless
(5/10)
Tag Line: Fifteen
years later, karma bullies back.
Production Company:
Cinemaddict Films, Cinestyle Media Group, Worthless Movie LLC
Director: Rob
Hawk
Writer: Chris
Cardillo Sr., Rob Hawk
Actors: Tara
Reid, Quinton Aaron, Erin O’Brien, Fallon Maressa, Deborah Tucker, Cabrina
Collesides, Chelsea Foster, Alexandra Grossi, Rene Vettese, Tanya Christiansen,
Jamie Houk, Dustin Young, Laura Hine, Jefferson Sanders, Lina Carollo,
Christine Nyland, Chris Cardillo Sr., Erica Seelig, Chris Cardillo, Debbie
Gianfortune, Jasmine Vargas, Matt Brickner, Laura Witsker
Genre: Drama,
Thriller
Rated: Unrated
If you made Bring It
On (2000) a horror film, this is what it would have been. That alone kind
of intrigues me.
I really enjoy films like this that take a trope from
another genre and twist it to add a different spin.
Here we see the basic ‘cheerleaders rule the school’ trope
that’s in almost every teen drama or high school comedy ever created and it’s
used to really open the door to another perspective on it. That means that even
though the trope is well-known, it actually feels newer.
I’ll admit that Tara Reid (Sharknado, Last Call, Silent Partner) is a little hit-or-miss as an
actress. She’s her best when she’s in B-movies where she can just cut loose and
not worry about perfection. Worthless
seems to be more of a serious film, however, which means she might not do as
well as she could.
I’m still ready to keep an open mind.
17 – Lowriders
(5/12)
Tag Line: None
Production Company:
Blumhouse Productions, Imagine Entertainment, Universal Pictures
Director: Ricardo
de Montreuil
Writer: Cheo
Hodari Coker, Elgin James
Actors: Melissa
Benoist, Eva Longoria, Theo Rossi, Demian Bichir, Cress Williams, Tony
Revolori, Gabriel Chavarria, Johanna Sol, Bryan Rubio
Genre: Drama
Rated: PG-13
Dramas aren’t usually my go-to films, unless they’re this
kind of gritty family-type drama.
When I tell people I grew up in Brooklyn, this tends to be
what they think about but they’re quite wrong. I grew up in a Hassidic
neighborhood and I spent my time with friends in Bensonhurst, which was
primarily Italian. If that sounds segregated that’s only because it is. Every
neighborhood in Brooklyn is known to belong to a specific group. If things
start to shift, it’s highly noticeable and talked about.
I can think of places in Brooklyn that resemble what is seen
in Lowriders, but that’s not the part
that fascinates me.
This film is a peek into a culture I know very little about
and involves a present father which, sadly, I also know very little about. I
feel like it could really expand my perspective on things by sitting down and
watching Lowriders. On top of that, I
hardly feel like I’d be bored watching it.
Also, I’m still a huge fan of Theo Rossi (Luke Cage, Sons of Anarchy, Bad Hurt).
16 – Black Site
Delta (5/5)
Tag Line: Don’t
expect the good guys to save you.
Production Company:
Benattar/Thomas Productions, Base Film Productions
Director: Jesse
Gustafson
Writer: Rick
Benattar, Guy Stevenson, Nigel Thomas
Actors: Cam
Gigandet, Teri Reeves, Sherri Eakin, Jeremy Sande, Benjamin Charles Watson,
Chris Bosarge, Courtney Compton, Dion Mucciacito, Casey Hendershot, John
Brodsky, Michael Randall, Arash Mokhtar, Danny Cosmo, Michael Dale, Noah Cook,
Curtis Nichouls
Genre: Action
Rated: Unrated
This looks kind of like a powerless version of the Suicide Squad (2016). The premise is relatively
the same from what I can tell. We don’t really need another version of the Suicide Squad (unless they decide to release
a version that hasn’t been cut to all hell), but I do think that this kind of
part will be good for Cam Gigandet (Reckless,
4 Minute Mile, Easy A).
This is another film that can go either way. Either it can
be handled right and the creators can give it its own identity away from Suicide Squad or it could wind up being
basically a remake with less comic book characters. I’m hoping for the former,
obviously.
15 – War Machine
(5/26)
Tag Line: From
the producers of the Big Short comes a story about the politics of war.
Production Company:
Netflix, Plan B Entertainment
Director: David
Michod
Writer: Michael
Hastings, David Michod
Actors: Brad
Pitt, Anthony Hayes, John Magaro, Anthony Michael Hall, Emory Cohen, Topher
Grace, Daniel Betts, Aymen Hamdouchi, RJ Cyler, Alan Ruck, Nicholas Jones, Will
Poulter, Lakeith Stanfield, Ben Kingsley, Meg Tilly, Griffin Dunne, Josh
Stewart, Kola Bokinni, Derek Siow, Hopper Penn, Pico Alexander, Scoot McNairy,
Justin Rosniak, Paolo Gasparini, Simon Werner, Sian Thomas, Reggie Brown,
Hassani Shapi, Richard Glover, Elham Ehsas, Paul Hickey, Georgina Rylance,
Tilda Swinton, Aykut Hilmi, Nezar Alderazi, Kick Gurry, Nicholas Maude, Rufus
Wright, Gijs Scholten van Aschat, Mirrah Foulkes, Tim Downie, John Street,
Andrew Byron
Genre: Comedy,
Drama, War
Rated: Unrated
This film has no association with the Marvel hero. If that
film is coming, it’s not this month.
On the Netflix US YouTube page, they describe this film as
part reality, part savage parody… and I can’t help but notice that Brad Pitt’s
(Allied, The Big Short, 12 Years a Slave)
character looks a lot like General Mattis. I don’t know what parts of the story
are real and which are fake, but I’m amused at the prospect that some of it
might actually be a look into reality.
This film has a really good cast and a decent premise. I
don’t care if it’s true – fully or partially. I think with something like this
you need to take every fact you ‘learn’ in it with a grain of salt. There’s
bound to be a left or right leaning bias woven in by the writer. If you ignore
the politics, though, it should be an awesome watch.
14 – Wakefield
(5/19)
Tag Line: He’s
checked out.
Production Company:
Mockingbird Pictures, Dominion Pictures
Director: Robin
Swicord
Writer: Robin
Swicord
Actors: Jennifer
Garner, Bryan Cranston, Jason O’Mara, Beverly D’Angelo, Ian Anthony Dale, Pippa
Bennett-Warner, Ellery Sprayberry, Frederick Keeve, Monica Lawson, Isaac Leyva,
Victoria Bruno , Eliza Coleman, Alexander Zale, Cameron Simmons, Carinna
Rossignoli
Genre: Drama
Rated: Unrated
Who hasn’t gotten to such a stressful point that they’ve
thought about just picking up and leaving?
I don’t mean thinking of leaving friends and family behind,
more like taking a vacation. This film examines the extreme version of that
where leaving the people one loves behind becomes an option. I expect it to be
an incredible tearjerker of a film. I also expect that it will be acted
flawlessly, which is something Bryan Cranston (SuperMansion, Power Rangers, Why Him?) is known for.
The writer/director, Robin Swicord (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Practical Magic, Matilda), is
responsible for some real masterpieces, as well. I think there’s very little
chance that this film will be less than amazing.
13 – Black
Butterfly (5/26)
Tag Line: There
is a reason you don't talk to strangers.
Production Company:
Ambi Pictures, Battleplan Productions, Compadre Entertainment, Paradox Studios
Director: Brian
Goodman
Writer: Marc
Frydman, Justin Stanley
Actors: Jonathan
Rhys Meyers, Piper Perabo, Antonio Banderas, Abel Ferrara, Nicholas Aaron,
Vincent Riotta, Nathalie Rapti Gomez, Alexandra Klim, Randall Paul, Gioia
Libardoni, Timothy Martin, Katie McGovern, Cristina Moglia, Cherish Gaines,
Tracy Green
Genre: Thriller
Rated: R
Black Butterfly
looks like an awesome, original, straight-up thriller. It’s based off a French
film called Papillon Noir (2008). The
two films sound like something I would be looking forward to if it came up on
Netflix. I might search for the French film to add to our Foreign Film Friday
queue.
Sure, there are some base tropes that are utilized. The evil
hitchhiker, the woman who checks on the victim after a few days, the blocked
writer… and a few others. Really though, it’s kind of difficult to make a film
these days where you don’t hit on some kind of trope, regardless of how
original the story is.
The cast is experienced and has a lot of praise under their
belt, but the writers/director are relatively new to their specific positions.
I think the collective experience of the cast will help raise the bar for this
film.
12 – Snatched
(5/12)
Tag Line: This is
the closest they’ve been in years.
Production Company:
Chernin Entertainment, Feigco Entertainment, Twentieth Century Fox Film
Corporation
Director: Jonathan
Levine
Writer: Katie
Dippold
Actors: Goldie
Hawn, Ike Barinholtz, Amy Schumer, Joan Cusack, Christopher Meloni, Randall
Park, Colin Quinn, Tom Bateman, Oscar Jaenada, Wanda Sykes, Jiaoying Liang,
Arturo Castro, Kevin Kane, Ty Quiamboa
Genre: Action,
Comedy
Rated: R
Snatched looks
funny. Its got a raunchy feel to it that’s kind of cool. I have to admit,
though, I’d be a LOT more interested if Amy Schumer (Trainwreck, Inside Amy Schumer, Seeking a Friend for the End of the
World) wasn’t in it. I don’t hate her or anything, I’m just a smidge sick
of her. She’s a little boring to me at this point, not really sure why. Still,
I can’t deny that the movie looks pretty good and it has a cool premise to it.
As sick of Schumer as I am, though… I’m happy that I’m going
to get to see more from the director, Jonathan Levine (Warm Bodies, All the Boys Love Mandy Lane, The Night Before). I’ve
seen some of his stuff in the past and I think he’s good at what he does. I’d
like to see more in the future.
11 – Dead Awake
(5/12)
Tag Line: An
ancient evil. Trapped in a world of darkness. Waiting for someone to believe.
Production Company:
Aristar Entertainment, Gama Entertainment Partners, Incendiary Features
Director: Phillip
Guzman
Writer: Jeffrey
Reddick
Actors: Lori
Petty, Jesse Bradford, Brea Grant, Jocelin Donahue, Jesse Borrego, James
Eckhouse, Liz Mikel, Jeffrey Reddick, Billy Blair, Mona Lee Fultz
Genre: Horror,
Thriller
Rated: Unrated
I experienced sleep paralysis – or something close to it –
exactly once in my life. I was laying on a couch, opposite my boyfriend at the
time. We were studying and I fell asleep because, to this day, I find Ernest
Hemmingway boring. In the dream, I kept waking up into the exact same dream
until I ‘woke up’ to see him on the other side of the couch, finally. I was
screaming for him to help me, and to wake me up (because I was aware I was sleeping
at that point) but he didn’t move because I wasn’t actually saying anything.
That stayed with me for a long time. Still sends a chill
down my spine when I think of it.
This film touches on that kind of phenomenon and I expect it
to be blood-curdling.
10 – The Wall (5/12)
Tag Line: This
isn’t war. It’s a game.
Production Company:
Amazon Studios, Big Indie Pictures, Picrow
Director: Doug
Liman
Writer: Dwain
Worrell
Actors: Aaron
Taylor-Johnson, John Cena, Spencer Thomas, Laith Nakli
Genre: Drama,
Thriller
Rated: R
I love war films like this. There are few, if any, fancy
explosions. There are very little in the way of computer effects. It’s just a
couple of soldiers, a sniper, and the bare face of mortality. In my opinion,
films like this are hundreds of times more frightening than any other movie.
Watching movies like The
Wall, I get a knot in my stomach. I’ve had a lot of friends that have been
over-seas and the idea of any of them being in such a hopeless situation sends
chills up my spine. Even those that have just been acquaintances.
I don’t always like the idea of wrestlers making the
transition into films. I mean, there are some that make it, like Dwayne Johnson
(Moana, Ballers, Furious 7), but
there are some that try and wind up being complete and total failures, like
Paul Levesque (Warrior: The Ultimate
Legend, The Chaperone, Blade: Trinity). Watching Triple H in anything not
WWE-related is just… painful. However, I feel like this kind of film could be a
great vehicle for John Cena (Sisters,
Trainwreck, The Reunion). He’s got the right look and is familiar with that
kind of soldier-esque personality. I’d definitely believe it.
I hope he lives up to expectations.
9 – Enter the
Warrior’s Gate (5/5)
Tag Line: None
Production Company:
EuropaCorp, Fundamental Films
Director: Matthias
Hoene
Writer: Luc Besson,
Robert Mark Kamen
Actors: Mark
Chao, Ni Ni, Dave Bautista, Sienna Guillory, Uriah Shelton, Francis Chun-Yu Ng,
Zha Ka, Ron Smoorenburg, Dakota Daulby, Luke Mac Davis, Jia Dong Liu, Tao Chen,
David Liu, Fei Huang
Genre: Action,
Adventure, Fantasy
Rated: PG-13
A LOT of the movies that are coming out this month are
stories that remind me of other films. In this case, I’m reminded of the Forbidden Kingdom (2008). Now, although
a lot of critics kind of shat on that film, I really enjoyed it. It’s a guilty
pleasure of mine and I can watch it over and over again. I can’t really explain
why, but it doesn’t matter. Point is, I love it.
Enter the Warrior’s
Gate looks like a version of the Forbidden
Kingdom where the main character isn’t obsessed with films, but video
games.
I’m not all too familiar with the cast in this one, which
would normally make it a wild card for me… except I’m very familiar with the
creators. Director Matthias Hoene (Trigger
Point, Beyond the Rave, Tower Block) is still a little green, but his work
includes Cockneys vs. Zombies (2012),
which is a film both Cat and I adored when we watched it for Trust the Dice. I
have stated that I have high hopes for him in the future. I stick by that
statement.
The writers make up for Hoene’s inexperience with a list of
credits that anyone could be proud of. Luc Besson (Taxi, Taken, The Big Blue) is known for writing amazing stories and
characters, like those used for The Fifth
Element (1997) and Nikita
(2010-2013). Robert Mark Kamen (Gladiator,
Kiss of the Dragon, The Transporter) is known for writing some of the same
stories as Besson, but he’s also credited for writing the original Karate Kid (1984).
I highly doubt any of the creators could take this storyline
and do something unacceptable with it. I have significantly high hopes for this
film.
8 – Pirates of
the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (5/26)
Tag Line: None
Production Company:
Walt Disney Pictures, Jerry Bruckheimer Films, Infinitum Nihil
Director: Joachim
Ronning, Espen Sandberg
Writer: Jeff
Nathanson, Terry Rossio, Ted Elliott, Stuart Beattie, Jay Wolpert
Actors: Johnny
Depp, Keira Knightley, Kaya Scodelario, David Wenham, Orlando Bloom, Geoffrey
Rush, Brenton Thwaites, Javier Bardem, Golshifteh Farahani, Stephen Graham,
Kevin McNally, Martin Klebba, Adam Brown, Nico Cortez, Ben O’Toole, Zoe
Ventoura, Alexander Scheer, James Mackay, Robert Morgan, Lewis McGowan, Danny
Kirrane, Angus Barnett, Juan Carlos Vellido, Rodney Afif
Genre: Action,
Adventure, Fantasy
Rated: PG-13
I’m just really a big fan of this series, to be honest. I
think it’s gone too far and I want to hate the idea of more of them… but I just
really enjoy the films. I should be marooned on an island somewhere….
With rum.
7 – Alien:
Covenant (5/19)
Tag Line: The
path to paradise begins in hell.
Production Company:
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, Brandywine Productions, Scott Free
Productions, TSG Entertainment
Director: Ridley
Scott
Writer: Dan
O’Bannon, Ronald Shusett, Jack Paglen, Michael Green, John Logan, Dante Harper
Actors: Michael
Fassbender, Katherine Waterston, Billy Crudup, Danny McBride, Demian Bichir,
Carmen Ejogo, Jussie Smollett, Callie Hernandez, Amy Seimetz, Nathaniel Dean,
Alexander England, Benjamin Rigby, Uli Latukefu, Tess Haubrich, Lorelei King,
Goran D. Kleut, Andrew Crawford, James Franco, Guy Pearce, Noomi Rapace
Genre: Sci-Fi,
Thriller
Rated: R
Admittedly, I’m less familiar with the Alien (1979) series than I should be. I’m interested, but I’ve seen
less than one would expect of me. I do want to see more of them, and I will
eventually.
In the meantime, it looks like Alien: Covenant could be fine if viewed as a stand-alone, which is
nice. Although sequels could elevate a previous film if made right, sometimes
it’s nice to have one that is made in the same universe but could be seen on
its own. As people grow and get older, new fan-bases are created and older ones
can fall behind if they don’t keep up with the times. This film could allow a
whole new generation of people to see and appreciate the Alien franchise films.
6 – Everything,
Everything (5/19)
Tag Line: Risk
everything… for love.
Production Company:
Alloy Entertainment, Itaca Films, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)
Director: Stella
Meghie
Writer: J. Mills
Goodloe, Nicola Yoon
Actors: Amandla
Stenberg, Nick Robinson, Anika Noni Rose, Ana de la Reguera, Taylor Hickson,
Danube R. Hermosillo, Farryn VanHumbeck, Robert Lawrenson, Peter Benson,
Allison Riley, Dan Payne, Valareen Friday
Genre: Drama,
Romance
Rated: PG-13
I thought the plot of this film was really interesting. I
want to know what disease the main character is afflicted with.
I’m not familiar with any of the actors, so I don’t know how
they would be able to handle the script for this kind of story. For all I know,
they might not have the acting chops to pull it off… but I am still so
intrigued by the trailer, and the idea of the film, that it feels worth the
risk.
5 – Drone (5/26)
Tag Line: Choose
your target wisely.
Production Company:
Look to the Sky Films, Gold Star Productions, Interlock Capital
Director: Jason
Bourque
Writer: Ian
Birkett, Paul A. Birkett, Jason Bourque, Roger Patterson
Actors: Sean
Bean, Mary McCormack, Joel David Moore, Sharon Taylor, Patrick Sabongui,
Bradley Stryker, Kirby Morrow, Kevin O’Grady, John Emmet Tracy, Elissa Ciullo,
Maxwell Haynes, Cary Alexander, Becky Hachey, Peter Dwerryhouse, Corina Akeson
Genre: Thriller
Rated: Unrated
This film is a fascinating idea. It goes into the lack of
humanity behind the use of drones in war and the revenge one person takes after
his family is killed by one.
I understand the use of drones on one hand, but on the
other… I know the internet. In agreement with drones, I can acknowledge that it
could save many lives of many soldiers that won’t have to go into dangerous
territory. However, without that face to face contact, without the judgment of
a human soldier, it’s hard to understand the humanity in the victims. Killing
isn’t easy because it shouldn’t be easy. It should only be done when necessary,
and well trained soldiers with eyes on a target could do it better than the cold
touch of a machine.
I like films that peek into this new kind of war technology.
Of course, I expect Sean Bean (Broken,
Legends, The Martian) to die, but who doesn’t?
4 – Berlin
Syndrome (5/26)
Tag Line: None
Production Company:
Aquarius Films, DDP Studios, Entertainment One, Film Victoria, Fulcrum Media
Finance, Memento Films International, Photoplay Films, Screen Australia
Actors: Teresa
Palmer, Max Riemelt, Lucie Aron, Matthias Habich, Cem Tuncay, Maia Absberg,
Emma Bading, Thuso Lekwape, Nassim Avat, Elmira Bahrami, Mascha Wolf, Matthias
Russel, Nadine Peschel, Viktor Baschmakov, Christoph Franken
Genre: Thriller
Rated: R
I almost didn’t recognize Teresa Palmer (Warm Bodies, Point Break, Kill Me Three
Times) in this trailer. She looks different than I’m used to, and she
certainly acts differently than in the previous films I’ve seen her in. I am
dying to see how she does in Berlin
Syndrome. It seems like an edge-of-the-seat kind of thriller with tons of
suspense. If she does well in it, that could mean spectacular things for her
career.
I’m really looking forward to it.
3 – King Arthur:
Legend of the Sword (5/12)
Tag Line: From
nothing comes a King.
Production Company:
Safehouse Pictures, Village Roadshow Pictures, Warner Bros., Weed Road
Pictures, Wigram Productions
Director: Guy
Ritchie
Writer: Joby
Harold, Guy Ritchie, Lionel Wigram, David Dobkin
Actors: Charlie
Hunnam, Jude Law, Annabelle Wallis, Hermione Corfield, Katie McGrath, Millie
Brady, Djimon Hounsou, Eric Bana, Astrid Berges-Frisbey, Georgina Campbell,
Aidan Gillen, Poppy Delebingne, Eline Powell, Kamil Lemieszewski
Genre: Action,
Adventure, Drama
Rated: PG-13
It’s absolutely impossible to not want to see a film with
Charlie Hunnam (Sons of Anarchy, The Lost
City of Z, Pacific Rim) in it. As King Arthur, it’s an even more tempting
deal. I LOVE the legends of King Arthur. The trailer looks as great as I hoped
it would.
Writer: Robert
Ben Grant, Thomas Lennon, David Ronn, Jay Scherick, Damian Shannon, Mark Swift
Actors: Alexandra
Daddario, Dwayne Johnson, Priyanka Chopra, Zac Efron, Pamela Anderson, Kelly
Rohrbach, Ilfenesh Hadera, Ana Flavia Gavlak, Charlotte McKinney, David
Hasselhoff, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Rob Huebel, Hannibal Buress, Jon Bass,
Haviland Stillwell
Genre: Comedy
Rated: R
I really didn’t watch Baywatch
(1989-2001) back in the day. To be honest, I didn’t even have any real interest
in this remake/reboot/sequel (whatever it is) film at first. My interest piqued
a little when Dwayne Johnson was tied to the project… but it was the trailer
that sealed the deal for me.
The trailer looks fucking hilarious. It looks so much better
than the booby-bouncing original series. If the series looked like THIS, I’d
have actually watched it!
If it didn’t look so good, it’d have likely made the list at
a higher number because I’ll follow Johnson to any film (phrasing)… but it’s as
high on my list as it is because the trailer really highlights just how his
specific brand of comedic acting is utilized.
1 – Guardians of
the Galaxy Vol. 2 (5/5)
Tag Line: Obviously.
Production Company:
Marvel Studios, Walt Disney Pictures
Director: James
Gunn
Writer: James
Gunn, Dan Abnett, Andy Lanning, Steve Englehart, Steve Gan, Jim Starlin, Stan
Lee, Larry Lieber, Jack Kirby, Bill Mantio, Keith Giffen
Actors: Chris
Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Michael Rooker,
Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Sylvester Stallone, Kurt Russell, Elizabeth
Debicki, Chris Sullivan, Sean Gunn, Tommy Flanagan, Laura Haddock, Aaron
Schwartz, Alex Klein, Evan Jones, Joe Fria, Terence Rosemore, Jimmy Urine,
Stephen Blackehart, Steve Agee, Blondy Baruti, Richard Christy, Rhoda Griffis,
Elizabeth Ludlow, Wyatt Oleff, Gregg Henry, Seth Green, Ving Rhames, Michael
Rosenbaum, Michelle Yeoh, Miley Cyrus, nea Dune, Jeff Goldblum, David
Hasselhoff, Stan Lee, Kelly Richardson
Genre: Action,
Adventure, Sci-Fi
Rated: PG-13
Baby. Groot.
There are plenty of other reasons, but… dude… omg… so cute.
If I wasn’t unavailable that day, I’d be going to the
midnight showing. I’m going to have to wait a whole fucking week. Damn it.
Oh, and, rumor has it there are FIVE after credits scenes
so, keep your butt in the chair until the lights come up.
Movies to Look out For
According to: Cat
Lowriders .20
Another Evil .19
The Dinner .18
War Machine .17
Dead Awake .16
Black Butterfly .15
The Shadow Effect .14
The Wall .13
The Wizard of Lies .12
Drone .11
3 Generations .10
Everything, Everything .9
Blame! .8
Berlin Syndrome .7
Enter the Warrior’s
Gate .6
Pirates of the
Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales .5
