Most of the buzz surrounding sci-fi thriller Overlord is about what the film isn’t rather than what it is. When first announced as the latest in J.J. Abrams-produced movies it as assumed to be the latest Cloverfield entry. And why wouldn’t people think that considering how things have gone? But after the poor response to The Cloverfield Paradox it was confirmed to be a standalone.
All that said,Overlord sure does look like a secret Cloverfield movie. It has a director most people don’t know anything about, Julius Avery (Son of a Gun), a vaguely recognizable cast in Jovan Adepo, Wyatt Russell, Pilou Asbæk, Bokeem Woodbine, John Anderson, Iain de Caestecker, John Magaro, and Mathilde Ollivier, and hides its sci-fi trappings under cover of a war movie. The really weird, freaky stuff doesn’t start until U.S. soldiers are stuck behind enemy lines where the Nazis are dabbling with supernatural forces.
Reason for optimism? The screenplay is by Billy Ray (Shattered Glass) and Mark L. Smith (The Revenant) whose track record speaks for itself. Overlord opens November 9th.
The cast of Spider-Man: Far From Home just grew with the addition of Numan Acar, an actor you may recognize from Homeland and the film 12 Strong. How important this news is will depend on the role he’s taken, and we know precious little about that right now.
Deadline has the news, adding that all we know about Acar’s character is that he’ll be named Dimitri? Ohhhhhh really? Time to thumb through the Marvel Encyclopedia! While it could easily be a new character with that name, there’s also the chance it’s Dmitri Smerdyakov aka the Chameleon, a half-brother to Kraven the Hunter, and a master of disguises. The Spidey flicks have been pretty good about changing established characters to fit a story, so this could be Chameleon albeit a version we have never seen before.
Acar joins Tom Holland, Marisa Tomei, Jake Gyllenhaal, Michael Keaton, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, and JB Smoove. Jon Watts is returning to direct Spider-Man: Far From Home which opens July 5th 2019. Acar will be seen next in Disney’s live-action Aladdin, which opens in May 2019.
My first thoughts after enduring comedian Bo Burnham’s stunning directorial debut Eighth Grade were “God damn eighth grade was a nightmare” and “No really, someone explain to me why middle school isn’t state sanctioned torture”? Those middle school years wedged like an arm in a vice between elementary and high school are when the worst damage to a person’s psyche can happen. Our bodies are changing, our hormones are flaring for the first time, and we have no idea who we want to be, should be, or can be. Burnham’s Eighth Grade is the most realistic depiction of those awkward middle school years ever on the big screen.
Of course, that level of realism is also quite painful. Even the funniest bits come from the realization that we probably felt the same way or acted as weird as Kayla (breakout star Elsie Fisher), the familiar protagonist trying to survive being the class misfit. Quiet and painfully shy, Kayla insists to herself and the viewers of her YouTube channel (there are no viewers) that she’s actually quite outgoing and the key to being popular is to just put yourself out there. Kayla’s dad (Josh Hamilton) is a source of encouragement, not that she wants to hear it from him, anyway. There’s Kennedy (Catherine Oliviere), the cool girl in school, who Kayla wishes she was more like. There’s also a hot boy, Aiden (Luke Prael), that Kayla has a crush on, and Gabe (Jake Ryan), an overlooked friend who would probably be more Kayla’s speed.
All of these components are familiar to the genre, that much is true. What makes Burnham’s film unique is its place in this moment in time. Wile the archetypes we’ve definitely seen before, never have we seen them this way, as kids born fully into the social media age. In the case of Kennedy, she isn’t the typical mean girl ruining Kayla’s life through withering criticism. She barely acknowledges Kayla’s existence, and only invites her to her big birthday bash, over text mind you, because her mother forces her too. And even then she texts it in such a way that it seems like a heavy burden. This is what bullying looks like in the digital age. Being ignored at school is one thing, but to be a ghost over social media is to vanish completely. Kayla wanders through these final days before graduation wishing someone would notice that she exists, and hoping that high school will lead to better things. All of us who felt like outsiders during this confusing age, and I include myself in that, cling to the hope that high school is where we will finally blossom. It’s when people will finally realize how cool we really are.
Burnham dangles this hopeful possibility for Kayla, too, but it’s unclear if he actually feels that will happen for her. What’s clear is that he loves this character, and obviously feels an affinity for her where other filmmakers would have made her a pathetic punchline. Fisher, who voiced Agnes in two Despicable Me movies, is of the perfect age to capture Kayla’s anxious mannerisms and emotions. When she finally does get a chance to talk to other kids, Kayla is either too defensive to take part, or too eager and says something embarrassing. Sometimes you just feel you can’t win, and every decision is the wrong one. As someone who went through school feeling exactly this way, and still carries some of that fear as an adult, Kayla’s indecisiveness hit very close to home.
I expect Eighth Grade will be a quiet favorite to people who see a lot of Kayla in themselves. It should be required viewing for elementary school kids about to make the leap to Intermediate, but not as some kind of cautionary tale. If anything, Burnham wants us to see Kayla as more than just a YouTube personality, a series of tweets, or a Snapchat. What she’s feeling is raw and true, and every moment of Eighth Grade rings with undeniable authenticity.
I predict one day we will see all four of these stars in the same movie and it will be tremendous. For now, we’ll have to settle with two very different films boasting the talents of Rose Byrne, Tiffany Haddish, Jamie Foxx, and Michael B. Jordan.
First up, Rose Byrne is in talks to join the previously-cast Tiffany Haddish in buddy comedy, Limited Partners. Directed by Miguel Arteta, the film centers on besties and business partners who see their friendship tested when a tech firm offers to buy the beauty company they started together. Byrne will play the more logical of the two, while Haddish’s character can’t wait to cash out and retire on a Caribbean island. Miguel Arteta (Beatriz at Dinner) will direct. [THR]
Next, Jamie Foxx is close to joining Michael B. Jordan in the courtroom drama, Just Mercy. Based on the true story of Equal Justice Initiative founder Bryan Stevenson, the film focuses on the lawyer’s continued fight against a flawed legal system. Foxx will play the death row inmate being defended by Stevenson, who will be played by Jordan. It was a role Foxx fought hard to win, and was highly sought-after in Hollywood circles. Destin Lance Cretton (Short Term 12) will direct and co-write the script. [Variety]
When you were a kid and your parents said not to ever do something, what did it make you want to do? Of course, you went right out and did it! And probably got in trouble for it! That’s pretty much the premise of Elizabeth Harvest, which stars Mad Max: Fury Road‘s Abbey Lee as a young wife who just can’t heed her husband’s warning.
Game of Thrones actor Ciaran Hinds plays the husband, a scientist who gives his bride everything her heart desires. It only comes with one rule, that she is never to enter one particular room in his sprawling estate. Of course, she does it anyway and discovers a secret that throws everything about her life into question.
Those familiar with the Bluebeard folk tale will see similarities, but whether the big secret is just as murderous remains to be seen. They do a pretty good job of keeping the biggest twist a secret.
The film is written and directed by Sebastian Gutierrez, best known for his Women in Trouble/Elektra Luxx movies starring partner Carla Gugino, who also has a role here.
Here’s the synopsis: Nothing is as it seems in this brain-bending plunge into our darkest desires. Elizabeth (Abbey Lee), a beautiful young newlywed, arrives at the palatial estate of her brilliant scientist husband Henry (Ciarán Hinds). Ensconced in modernist luxury with an obedient—if slightly unsettling—house staff (Carla Gugino & Matthew Beard), she has seemingly everything she could want. But one mystery tantalizes her: what is behind the locked door to Henry’s laboratory that he has forbidden her to enter? When an inquisitive Elizabeth dares to find out, everything she thought she knew about her husband—and about herself—will change. Elizabeth Harvest casts a spell of creeping Gothic menace as it unravels a disturbing tale of identity, obsession, and twisted love.
Elizabeth Harvest hits theaters and VOD on August 10th.
Formerly titled Robin Hood: Origins, the recently-christened Robin Hood is presenting itself as anything but a bunch of guys running around in cheesy green tights. This version of the iconic bowman, who has had more movies than any superhero you can think of, is a darker, more militarized take for the John Wick generation.
Starring Taron Egerton as the legendary archer, he returns from the Crusades a soldier scarred by what he has seen and done. Bringing the war home, so to speak, Robin teams with Moorish commander Little John in an aggressive fight against the Crown, and his enemy the Sheriff of Nottingham played by Ben Mendelsohn. Eve Hewson, Jamie Dornan, and Tim Minchin co-star with Otto Bathurst (Peaky Blinders) directing.
Robin Hood opens November 21st. Check out the trailer below followed by a new bunch of character posters.
*NOTE: This is a reprint of my review from the Sundance Film Festival.*
If you’re like me and have never taken Daveed Diggs seriously as an actor outside of his Hamilton stage breakthrough, that’s about to change with the powerful, confrontational drama Blindspotting. The strength of Diggs’ spoken word lyricism, along with that of his longtime friend, co-writer, and star Rafael Casal, carries a film that captures every ounce of frustration at cops who persist in killing unarmed black men, at a white society that co-opts black culture but never has to deal with the daily fears of being black.
Blindspotting is a movie with something important to say and it pulls no punches in saying it, but thankfully it’s also very funny when the messaging stops. Directed by Carlos López Estrada in his feature debut, the film follows two Oakland buddies trying to keep their head up in newly gentrified Oakland, where hipsters are so prevalent they’re accidentally being set on fire by fruity alcoholic drinks. It’s a long story, but one that landed Collin on probation for a solid year. Now with just three days until freedom, Collin is trying his best to stay out of trouble, and would probably have no problem if it wasn’t for his childhood pal Miles (Casal), a white guy with grills in his mouth, a gangsta attitude, a quick tempter, and a gift of gab. Miles can sell anything if you give him enough time. A basket full of old curling irons? Bet. Sold to the nearby hair salon. A rundown old boat from a home he and Collin just helped empty out in their job as movers? Bet. Sold to somebody right in the middle of the street.
A lot of the film’s humor comes from Miles, whose mouth runs a mile a minute, even to his wife and kid back at home. And he’s even sold something to Collin, that something being that his violent way is how one needs to be to stay true in the new Oakland. Collin starts seeing things differently when he witnesses an unarmed black man’s murder at the hands of a white cop (Ethan Embry), recognizing that it could happen to any black man whether they’re guilty of anything or not. Haunted by fevered visions, he starts to try and change his life and impress his ex-girlfriend Val (Janina Gavankar), first by getting healthy but also by changing his attitude. Unfortunately, there’s Miles always pulling them into some new mess to get out of, like waving a gun around in public (“Plausible deniability!!!” Collin often cries) or starting fights at a hipster party.
Diggs and Casal let their knack for wordplay fly in the everyday interactions between Collin and Miles, bursting out into rap at a moment’s notice. At first it just seems like the playful exchanges between friends, but it begins to take a deeper meaning as Collin slips into rap to express his anger and rage. There are two major confrontations in this movie and in both Diggs is a force of a nature, dropping verbal dimes in monologues that are the backbone of the entire story. If Diggs doesn’t bring it, the whole thing collapses, particularly in the final confrontation where his lyricism could be a distraction. Instead he nails it, and that intensity he brings elevates Blindspotting during a directionless second act that plays like a poor man’s Friday, with Collin as Craig and Miles as Smoky. Even then there are moments of inspired humor, and the chemistry between Diggs and Casal is something to witness. If the film gets a little preachy and overwrought, you can tell it’s only because of how deeply Diggs feels what he’s saying.
The title Blindspotting comes from those illusory images where someone might see one thing, and another person something else entirely. If you’ve seen the image of the vase that can also be two faces, well that example is used here in the movie to visualize the effect. Here’s hoping that people don’t look at Blindspotting and see just another urban comedy with a message. There’s more; there’s the pure straight-up emotional potency Daveed Diggs brings, and it demands to be seen.
Based on the classic arcade game of the same name, Rampage stars Dwayne Johnson as Davis, brilliant primatologist with a special
bond shared with a rare albino silverback gorilla named George. When a rogue
genetic experiment accidentally mutates
George and several other animals in the vicinity, it’s up to Davis and his team
to stop the oversized animals from tearing the city apart.
We Said: “Over-the-top right
from the start, Rampage never takes itself too seriously even for a moment.
Thank goodness it doesn’t because the only way this movie works is if you
embrace how ridiculous the whole thing is.” Rating:
3.5 out of 5
From the whimsical mind of Wes Anderson comes this new hit
stop-motion animated adventure. Set in a vision of Japan where all dogs have
been condemned to life on a remote island of garbage, one young boy manages to
cross his way over to rescue his beloved pet. Accompanied by an unlikely crew of
misfit dogs, the pack go on an adventure across the island to reunite the lost
friends.
We Said: “Imagine a sci-fi infused Akira Kurosawa flick done in
stop-motion animation and you get an idea of the eccentric world Anderson has
brought to life. It’s really quite remarkable, feeling like a place both in and
out of time, feudal and dystopian with modern sensibilities.” Rating: 4 out of 5
When a group of vacationing friends begin a game of truth or
dare with a seemingly friendly person they just met, everything seems perfectly
fun and innocent, until a dark secret is revealed. By agreeing to play the
game, the group has awakened a demon which forces the friends to share dark
secrets and confront their deepest fears. The rules are simple but wicked —
tell the truth or die, do the dare or die, and if you stop playing, you die.
We Said: “I can’t say that I
expected a lot from this flick, you can generally tell a lot about a horror
movie based on its premise and trailers, more so then most other genres, but
man this one missed the mark. I will say that the cast was good, considering
what they were given to work with but that is about the best accolade I can
give Truth
or Dare.” Rating: 1.5 out of 5
Amy Schumer stars in this new comedy as a down on her luck
woman, struggling with self doubt and depression. Things in her life take a
sudden turn, however, when as a result of head-trauma from a particularly awful
fall, she wakes up believing herself to be the most beautiful and capable woman
on the planet. With this newfound confidence, she is empowered to live her life
fearlessly and flawlessly, but what will happen when she realizes her
appearance never changed?
We Said: “I
Feel Pretty means well and is worth a few laughs thanks to Schumer’s
exuberant performance, but ultimately it doesn’t look far enough beneath the
surface to be truly perceptive.” Rating: 2.5
out of 5
Joaquin Phoenix stars in this powerful and intense thriller
as an isolated, brutal hired gun, who, in the midst of his own personal
internal crisis, comits himself to rescuing an abducted teenage girl, stopping
at nothing to bring her captors to justice.
We Said: “You
Were Never Really Here is a knockout film and a welcome dose of art-house
flair to the vengeance movie genre. Here’s hoping [Director Lynn] Ramsay
doesn’t keep us waiting quite so long the next time.” Rating: 4 out of 5
Other than Rob Liefeld I don’t know if any comic book creator has had more of a Hollywood impact than Mark Millar. He’s the guy whose comics have led to films Wanted, Kingsman: The Secret Service, Kick-Ass, and Logan. Now he’s inked a deal with Netflix that will find more of his MillarWorld comics adapted into new TV shows and films for the streaming giant.
Netflix purchased the MillarWorld rights last year, and this is the largest reveal of what their plans are for it. The included titles that will be turned into TV series and movies are Jupiter’s Legacy and American Jesus, Empress, Huck, and Sharkey The Bounty Hunter.
On the TV side, the first out of the gate is Jupiter’s Legacy, about super-powered millennials trying to live up to their parents’ amazing feats. Daredevil and Pacifc Rim: Uprising‘s Steven S. DeKnight will act as showrunner and direct the pilot. That will be followed by American Jesus, which centers on a 12-year-old kid who believes he’s the reincarnation of Jesus Christ.
On the film side, Empress is the first movie to be produced. It centers on a Queen who must flee from her dictator husband from planet-to-planet with her children. The red-hot writer Lindsey Beer (Sierra Burgess is a Loser) will handle the script. Hidden Figures director Ted Melfi will write Huck, which is aboout a boy who uses his special powers to do good; and 21 Jump Street‘s Michael Bacall will write Sharkey the Bounty Hunter.
Just days before the trailer is set to debut at Comic-Con, Warner Bros. has unveiled the first Aquaman poster. It features star Jason Momoa as the aquatic DC Comics hero, underwater rocking a pair of leathre pants and surrounded by fish, sharks, dolphins, oh my!
Directed by James Wan, the film is being described as a swashbuckling Romancing the Stone-style adventure, much lighter in tone than others in the DCEU. This is an important film as Warner Bros. tries to bounce back from the embarrassing failure of Justice League, and Comic-Con should be a good barometer for how they are doing.
Aquaman opens December 21st and co-stars Amber Heard, Patrick Wilson, Nicole Kidman, Willem Dafoe, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Dolph Lundgren, and Temuera Morrison.
