Between The Super Mario Bros. Movie and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Chris Pratt accounts for about $2B at the box office. Fans obviously love him. You know what else people love? Cats. Even grumpy, orange, lasagna-eating cats. And Pratt gets to voice the most famous of them all in The Garfield Movie, which has just dropped a new trailer.
Pratt voices Jim Davis’ beloved comic strip feline, in a story that finds Garfield reunited with his long-lost father, who happens to be voiced by another Marvel vet, Samuel L. Jackson. Nobody voices Odie because, well, Odie doesn’t say shit.
Also in the voice cast are Hannah Waddingham, Ving Rhames, Nicholas Hoult, Cecily Strong, Harvey Guillén, Brett Goldstein, and Bowen Yang.
Behind the camera is Mark Dindal, directing his first movie since Chicken Little in 2005, so it’s been a while. Dindal also helmed Disney’s The Emperor’s New Groove.
Garfield has proven to be pretty hot business at the box office, with 2004 and 2006 films (with Bill Murray as Garfield) combining for $350M.
Here’s the synopsis: Garfield (voiced by Chris Pratt), the world-famous, Monday-hating, lasagna-loving indoor cat, is about to have a wild outdoor adventure! After an unexpected reunion with his long-lost father – scruffy street cat Vic (voiced by Samuel L. Jackson) – Garfield and his canine friend Odie are forced from their perfectly pampered life into joining Vic in a hilarious, high-stakes heist.
Zack Snyder has never been one to sell his fans short on anything. In the case of his new sci-fi epic, Rebel Moon, we’ve already seen teasers, loads of visual promos, a promise that this is only the first of two parts, with extended editions, as well. It feels like we’ve seen a ton from this movie already, and yet it’s only now that the first full trailer has arrived as part of Netflix’s Geeked Week. And once again, it looks as if Snyder has built a gigantic sci-fi franchise all to himself.
Originally beginning life as Snyder’s vision for a samurai-influenced Star Wars movie, Rebel Moon is a space opera about a ragtag group of warriors battling an evil empire known as the Imperium. Sofia Boutella stars as Kora, a former Imperium soldier now living outside of its influence on the planet Veldt. When the Imperium comes to dominate Veldt, as well, Kora gathers her own forces to fight back.
Joining Kora’s side are ex-Imperium general Titus (Djimon Hounsou), cyborg sword-wielder Nemesis (Doona Bae), mercenary Kai (Charlie Hunnam), brother-sister duo Darrian (Ray Fisher) and Devra (Cleopatra Coleman), blacksmith Tarak (Staz Nair), Kora’s friend Gunnar (Michiel Huisman), mechanical warrior Jimmy (voiced by Anthony Hopkins), and spider warrior Harmada (Jena Malone).
Also in the cast are Fra Free, Ed Skrein, E. Duffy, Cary Elwes, Stuart Martin, and Corey Stoll. The script by co-writers Kurt Johnstad, and Shay Hatten appears to have been designed to create the complex cinematic universe Snyder has always wanted and that nobody will snatch away from him. He has even gone so far as to say Rebel Moon and Army of the Dead exist in the same universe, which sounds ridiculous but if anybody can make it work, it’s Snyder.
Rebel Moon—Part One: A Child of Fire premieres December 15th for a limited theatrical release, then comes to Netflix the following week. Part Two: The Scargiver, is currently slated to release on April 19th, 2024.
I’m not going to waste my time doing a typical box office breakdown this week, when the only movie that’s going to get talked about is The Marvels. So let’s just cut to the chase: this was a disastrous opening weekend for the Captain Marvel sequel. It broke a 15-year MCU low record with just $47M domestic, and $110M worldwide. Ouch.
The stateside number follows a $21M opening day/preview night, which is so far on the weak side it’s unimaginable this is from the same Marvel Studios that dropped nearly $300M months ago for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3‘s debut.
But the wide disparity is sorta the point. Hear me out. Because if there’s anything I immediately dismiss it’s the “superhero fatigue” claim that so many lazy analysts like to throw around. It’s not that fans are tired of superhero movies, or Marvel flicks in particular. They just have a wider selection to choose from, and thus are more discerning in what they pay to see.
For example, fans clearly did not want another Ant-Man movie. You could make the point that two previous movies with average box office told Marvel that, and they simply didn’t listen. So when Ant-Man & the Wasp: Quantumania ended its run with just $476M, a franchise low, absolutely nobody was shocked. On the other hand, Marvel fans have loved Guardians of the Galaxy from the beginning and were eager to show up for the bittersweet swansong, taking it to $845M globally.
In the case of The Marvels, it follows 2019’s $1B-grossing Captain Marvel. That film saw Brie Larson take charge in the first solo Marvel film with a female lead, and that drove excitement and attendance. However, the movie wasn’t an instant favorite, and there wasn’t a ton of clamor for a sequel. Marvel tried to get around that by making this one an all-girl-jam, adding Teyonah Parris as Monica Rambeau, and popular Ms. Marvel star Iman Vellani. My gut tells me financials would be even worse if Vellani, who everyone seems to love, hadn’t been in the movie. Still, Marvel struggled to promote the film beyond its “Freaky Friday” plotline, and a desperate, generic superhero trailer released just days before opening was proof of that. Larson made the rounds, as well, to drum up support but to no avail.
The critical response to The Marvels has been as polarizing as I said it would be. It only recently flipped from “rotten” to “fresh” with 63% at Rotten Tomatoes, while general audiences have given it an 85% which is pretty good. Personally, I enjoyed it quite a lot and think people are judging it too harshly. I’m about to go see it again with a few friends in just a couple of hours.
At a budget of $200M+, The Marvels is a flop and a half. Disney/Marvel is already in the process of retooling, with fewer Disney+ shows to satiate fans and to make each release feel more special. There’s only one movie scheduled to open in 2024, and that should offer time to figure out a path forward that rekindles the creative spark of the MCU’s first decade. Because that’s where the real problem is. Marvel has been in a creative rut, and the fans aren’t energized by what’s being offered. Get that fixed, and trust me, the huge box office numbers will come roaring back. [numbers via Deadline]
For over 13 years, Stacey Battat has created the look of director Sofia Coppola’s characters. Since 2010’s Somewhere, the duo has worked on six projects together, their most recent being Priscilla. Battat’s job was not easy as she had to recreate some of the Presleys’ most iconic outfits.
I sat down with Stacey Battat to discuss her collaboration with Coppola and what it was like designing a biopic like this. Instead of tediously finding and sourcing exact accurate looks, she looked to the clothes to “develop the characters” and used photographic references to help along the way.
We also chatted about the state of plus size and fat bodies onscreen and what her dream project to work on would be (it’s not what you think.) Listen to our interview with Stacey Battat below. Priscilla is now playing in theaters.
Walden centers on court stenographer Walden Dean (Emile Hirsch), who lives in a small Georgia town. His life is pleasant and unassuming. Aside from a strained relationship with his father and trying to beat the world record for words per minute among stenographers, you could say things are damn near perfect. That is until the day he discovers that a brain tumor might bring things to a crashing halt. This turn of events causes him to rethink things and start a killing spree, exacting revenge on those who have escaped justice and been freed on technicalities. Eventually, it all uncovers a deeper, darker threat to this peaceful southern town.
Running parallel to the main plot line, Detectives Kane (Shane West) and Hunt (Tania Raymonde) investigate the disappearance of a young boy. Abducted from his house in the middle of the night they uncover he is only one in a string of abductions over the preceding decade, adding a bit of mystery to the main storyline.
Revenge flicks have always been prevalent in cinema and are popular for a reason. With the likes of Nobody, The Killer, and the John Wick series of films, there’s nothing better than rooting for the underdog to go out and take out bad guys. It gives the collective consciousness an outlet to vent their frustrations against the world…without doing anything illegal, that is.
Walden takes this trope and redresses it with the nice guy gone bad played by Emile Hirsch. In a role that’s very different from what we’ve seen him in before, he seamlessly stands out and blends in at the same time as a bit of a button-down geek. Going into this film blind, it took me 20 minutes to realize who he was. It’s not a role I would have pictured him in prior to this but he plays it extremely well. With Inside Man and Helen’s Dead releasing this year I’m glad he’s kind of everywhere right now because I’m a fan.
You can definitely see the influence director Mick Davis took from the Dexter series. Taking two unassuming civilian employees of the justice system with tragic backstories and slowly morphing them into the bloody hands of justice. Yes, it has been done before but what hasn’t? The similarities aren’t enough to take away from what Davis has here. He’s created a Southern Gothic horror/mystery with a familiar feel that will entertain the seasoned viewer. It’s not groundbreaking but nothing really is anymore. I found the mystery side enjoyable while still satisfying my onscreen blood lust.
If you’re like me and enjoy a good revenge movie then this needs to be added to your list. It has a little something for everyone. There’s a man righting the wrongs of the legal system in increasingly interesting ways, it has a running theme of dark humor throughout and there’s the underlying mystery of the missing children. The only word of caution I would offer is it gets rather graphic describing and showing the fate of the children but the lead-in gives you time to look away if necessary. Then again, if you’re a grizzled genre fan like myself then that might not be an issue.
Waldenis currently in select theaters and will hit VOD December 12th.
It feels fitting that Angus Cloud’s last movie starts with a drug deal gone wrong. The 25-year-old actor was best known for his role as a dealer with a heart of gold in Euphoria. Some may say to end seeing him the way he started would be poetic. However, there’s something rather tragic about his performance in his final film, Your Lucky Day.
Writer/directorDan Brown’s film rides on the same frustration many fans felt at the actors passing. Everything that could go wrong does. It’s brutal with very little breathing room. Events move quickly from the start when a lower-level dealer robs Cloud’s Sterling. After heading to a convenience store to lick his wounds, another customer, a wealthy white man wins a $156 jackpot. His arrogant attitude and loud celebration get Sterling’s attention who decides to steal the ticket. Behind the counter is store owner, Amir (Mousa Hussein Kraish) and in the back of the facility is couple Ana (Jessica Garza) and Abraham (Elliot Knight), each having their own conversations about about money and don’t fully notice Sterling’s starting to disguise himself.
He attacks the winner, taking the ticket and killing a visiting police officer in the process. With all three shaken by the violence, they start questioning Sterling’s next move. He eventually convinces them with the help of a cut of his winnings to cover up the crime. However, things are complicated when one victim isn’t actually dead.
Mind you all of this happens in the first fifteen minutes. Throughout that time, Your Lucky Day feels more like a short film because of its pacing and enclosed setting. Its pace doesn’t let up until the final scene and would work well for the stage. Brown isn’t precious with his characters which raises the stakes and builds suspense. He brings up questions of race and class and yet it doesn’t feel preachy.
Garza’s performance as the pregnant Ana feels the most compelling. The only woman onscreen, she doesn’t play into the scared female stereotype as many actresses would. You can tell her character gets off on figuring out how to cover up the crimes, like she listens to too many murder podcasts in her free time.
You won’t want to blink when Cloud is onscreen. True, he doesn’t give you a different performance than the one on Euphoria. However, his charisma oozes out of this unlikeable character. There’s a sweetness there that underrides Sterling’s presence that’s endearing. There’s a scene that happens about 65% of the way through the 90-minute runtime, that echos Cloud’s death. Like its lead, Your Lucky Day leaves you with an ache for something more. Something that only someone with tremendous potential taken too early can leave behind.
Your Lucky Day is in theaters now, VOD on November 14th.
You think Elon Musk’s head is too damn big now? Just wait until he’s had a movie made about himself by an Oscar-nominated filmmaker. Indiewire was first to report that Musk is about to become the subject of a biopic directed by The Whale‘s Darren Aronofsky. The film is to be Aronofsky’s next and will see him partnering with A24 once again.
The film will be based on Walter Isaacson’s book on Elon Musk, founder of SpaceX, creator of Tesla, current owner of Twitter, and the richest man in the world. He’s also a polarizing figure who has used his riches as a means to wedge his way into politics, wars, and basically every social issue affecting the world. He’s also a massive tool, and that’s not just my opinion. If you like him, good on you. Keep paying that $7 a month, kiddo.
Adapting Isaac’s book should be interesting because the author’s previous biography on Steve Jobs was turned into a 2015 movie directed by Danny Boyle and starring Michael Fassbender. Could a similar event-driven format be used for an Elon Musk film?
So what will the story beats be for this movie? Maybe the DISASTROUS $44B purchase of Twitter, now known hilariously as “X”? Or the advancement of SpaceX? His dominance over the electric car industry? Certainly, his childhood growing up in apartheid South Africa (and how that influences his current mindset) will play a role.
I think the bigger question is who do you get to play Elon Musk? Come to think of it, Musk will probably want to play himself his ego is that huge. Good luck casting this one!
It’s bad enough that there isn’t a proper sub-genre for “Thanksgiving Movie”, sure you can point to Planes, Trains, and Automobiles but that’s everyone’s go to. Face it, Thanksgiving is the red headed step-child of major holidays. As if that wasn’t obvious enough, this year’s Thanksgiving season has a movie crossing over the two, move loved, holidays surrounding it. Tyler MacIntyre‘s It’s a Wonderful Knife, aside from having the best pun title of the year, is the perfect piece of media for all those anxiously awaiting the joys of Christmas while still lamenting the passing of spooky season.
As you probably guessed from the title, It’s a Wonderful Knife is a play on Frank Capra’s iconic classic It’s a Wonderful Life. Winnie Carruthers is just a normal teenage girl whose life if forever changed after defeating ‘The Angel’ a masked slasher that crashed her Christmas Eve party killing her best friend (amongst others) and was planning a trail of terror. Seems like a pretty standard plot but this film dares to ask “What Happens Next?” Well, in Winnie’s case, not much. A year later the town has moved on, preferring to pretend the horrific events of the year before never happened, she begins to wonder if the world would be any different if she never existed. She really should have known better then to say such a thing on a meaningful date while an aurora shined overhead. As you can imagine she wakes the next morning to find a world where she never existed, and because she never existed, a world where “The Angel” is still killing its way through town.
I love this new sub-genre of horror movies with another genre’s template attached. Freaky, Totally Killer, Happy Death Day, all great in their own ways and, honestly, It’s a Wonderful Knife fits right in with that group. It’s not at the top of the list, but it’s definitely in the group. I think the biggest failing of the film is that it seems shackled to it’s inspiration, going step for step with the plot of It’s A Wonderful Life (sans the blood, murder, and LGBTQ representation). The film still manages to deliver a fun ride with plenty of laughs and more thrills but it just seemed more of a “Mad Libs” version of the 1946 version and less of a take on the concept. Thankfully MacIntryre had some aces up his sleeve when it comes to casting, specifically Justin Long as the real estate developer turned politician (sound familiar? It should) Henry Waters, the films lead in Jane Widdop and Jess McLeod who plays Bernie, Winnie’s only believer turned romantic interest.
Justin Long is a master of playing this type of character who you’re never sure is crossing over into caricature or not, then when the film ends you realize how perfectly it was played. He eats up the spray tan, bleached teeth, fake niceness of Water’s character and the fun he has is transferred directly to the audience watching. Two names on the cast list I have to bring up are Joel McHale who plays a disturbingly supportive and normal father to Winnie, something fans of the Community star are sure to enjoy but also be a bit surprised by…one would think he’d be more apt in the role Justin Long inhabits. Lastly, just to show appreciation for long term genre fans is the inclusion of Katharine Isabelle, one of the most beloved neo-scream queens of the last 20 years. She’s thoroughly enjoyable as Winnie’s no-nonsense lesbian aunt, but really I just bring her up to point out the Scream reference in her characters name, Gale Prescott (Gail Weathers, Sidney Prescott).
Birth/Rebirth follows Rose Caspar (Marin Ireland), a reclusive morgue technician in search of a cure for death. When a young girl tragically dies from a rather aggressive strain of bacterial meningitis, Rose seizes the opportunity to turn theory into reality. One problem though, once the child is resurrected, she is required to harvest biological material from fetal tissue in order to maintain life and lets just say her methods are a bit strange. When the girl’s grieving mother, Nurse Celie Morales (Judy Reyes) discovers her daughter alive, they begin to work together attempting to perfect the resurrection process. After a buildup of scar tissue forces Rose to have an emergency hysterectomy, the two are forced to find other methods of stem cell harvesting and end up in a place they never imagined they would be.
This feature-length debut from director Laura Moss seems to take inspiration from the Frankenstein mythos, mixes that up with some Reanimator and unleashes an extremely unique story that had me glued to the screen. In a world of recycled ideas and tired tropes, Moss created something that feels fresh and new. Blending elements of horror and drama create a foreboding sense of dread throughout the entire film. There is gore but that only serves to accentuate an underlying ethical dilemma faced by the two women. How far will a grieving mother go to keep her daughter and who will be the voice of reason to stop her?
Personalities on display, these complex women written by Moss are brought to life by Marin Ireland and Judy Reyes who portray their characters close to perfection. The talented performances of Rose (Ireland) and Celie (Reyes) adds a heavy emotional weight to the narrative and make me question why I haven’t seen more of these two. One being the cold, calculated science-minded doctor hell-bent on finding a solution and the other an ever-loving maternal figure creating a rift between the two, only to eventually find common ground is accentuated by this talented cast.
The cinematography is hauntingly beautiful, creating a dark brooding atmosphere that is only enhanced by the score. The use of practical effects for the touches of gore adds a tone that only builds upon a story that pushes the boundaries of science, causing the viewer to question the ethical dilemma of how far is too far when it comes to keeping the ones you love around.
Birth/Rebirthis at its core, just a story of playing God juxtaposed with an odd couple type of pairing but it works. It’s a strange blend of horror and drama with a touch of dark humor. At times I found myself replaying scenes to see if I really saw what I think I saw. It made me think but still satisfied my taste for gore. It was a unique take on an older trope and I enjoyed every second of it. You can find this currently streaming on Shudder as of this writing.
Warner Bros. has another Batgirl situation, taking a ton of heat for scrapping a nearly-completed project just to save a few bucks. Deadline confirms WB and David Zaslav have canned the live-action/animated Coyote vs. Acmemovie that was to star John Cena.
“With the re-launch of Warner Bros. Pictures Animation in June, the studio has shifted its global strategy to focus on theatrical releases,” a WB Motion Picture Group spokesperson said in a statement. “With this new direction, we have made the difficult decision not to move forward with Coyote vs Acme. We have tremendous respect for the filmmakers, casts, and crew and are grateful for their contributions to the film.”
Principal photography was reportedly completed a year ago. This decision will save WB an estimated $30M in tax write-offs on the $70M production. That doesn’t sound like a lot of money, does it? But then again, if they were to move forward with it there would be additional costs for marketing.
Coyote vs. Acme is based on the popular Looney Tunes cartoons featuring Wile E. Coyote, with Acme as the fictional weapons company that makes the gadgets that usually blow up in his face.
It’s surprising this decision was made for a couple of reasons. For one, the film is produced by James Gunn, who is head of DC Studios and a key fixture in reviving their superhero brand. And Cena is a big part of that, too, as star of Peacemaker.
Is it possible WB execs saw the embarrassingly low box office of Cena’s action-comedy Freelance and got cold feet? It would be tough to blame them if they did.
Coyote vs. Acme director Dave Green has spoken up about the move, but is proud of the work they did. He is reportedly working on another project for WB right now…
Composer Steven Price was very unhappy and called WB “anti-art” for their decision, releasing a behind-the-scenes video scoring a key piece of Roadrunner music.
Had a lot of fun scoring Coyote Vs Acme. As no-one will be able to hear it now, due to bizarre anti-art studio financial shenanigans I will never understand, here is a bit of behind the scenes footage of our “Meep Meep” Roadrunner choir, with apologies to Tchaikovsky… pic.twitter.com/HL7h00rXpp
