You are not working hard enough.
GUESS THE QUOTE
"Coffee, tea, me?"
Last week's releases Vox Lux (which we saw and liked, but didn't love - if you saw it, hit us up) and Mary Queen of Scots dropped in RT score over the weekend, with the lone holder being Ben is Back. Take that into account Oscar bracket makers.
Note: Once Upon a Deadpool is also out, but it's not really a NEW movie, so. Also, people are kinda crapping on it for being a cash grab. /shrug
Gettin cutoff? Go here, click "most recent edition."
SPIDER-MAN:
INTO THE SPIDER-VERSE
AKA
"The spider-verse? Yeah, that's what I call the corner of my ceilings."
PG / 1 hr 40 mins
Action-Animation-Family / Sony
WHAT'S THE DEAL
Don't ignore this one. Look, if you're not a comic nerd, this may be confusing, but in one of the Marvel comics series there are a ton of different Spider-mans, er, Spider-people, um, Spider-things? (see: Spider-Ham above). Thank physicists who think existence may be multi-dimensional. So yeah, it's gonna get trippy.
But the lead of this Spidey story isn't Peter Parker (although he is in it). Nope, the head web slinger here is Miles Morales, a half black/latino kid from the Bronx (noteworthy because he's the first black Spider-man). Who proceeds to meet all the other individuals who don the web shooters in different universes in what is easily one of the best (if not the best) reviewed movies of the year. Crazy.
How did we get here? Well, the duo who did The Lego Movie (and got fired from directing Solo - for being too experimental), helped put this one together and the pop culture awareness / inventiveness shows. The animation is wild looking, the story reportedly holds together, it pushes cultural boundaries, but mostly because it's apparently really fun. Rad.
REVIEWS
This might be the best reviewed movie of the year if you account for emphaticness, not just score, which is also tippy top.
"...fantastically fresh, both visually and narratively, trippy and post-modern at the same time and packed with intriguing storytelling tools, humor, empathy and action, while also true to its roots." - Associated Press
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 98%
(130 reviews @ publish)
WHO'S IT (NOT) FOR?
For: seems like everyone, even people who think they "don't like animated movies."
(Not): for those who really just can't get over the idea of ever liking a superhero or animated movie
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MORTAL ENGINES
AKA
"Kids who have parents who force them do all the yardwork"
PG-13 / 1 hr 51 mins
Action-Sci-Fi-YA / Universal
WHAT'S THE DEAL
It's another post apocalyptic story based on a young adult book series.. blah blah blah. We've been here before. Except this time we have Mr. Middle-earth himself, the king of Hobbits, the Lord of the... it's Peter Jackson, we're talking about Peter Jackson. And he's producing this one and heavily involved sooooo.
What? Oh you were expecting a different result? Nope, it keeps the trend of underwhelming YA book<>movie adaptations going (see: reviews). Key being an apparent over reliance on CGI and not enough of a cogent story to make ya care. It's kind of a bummer, because the concept seems fun - a steampunk future where cities are mobile and evil London is eating up smaller ones. Of course one young person is the answer, because YA novel doctrine requires it be so, but still, a good story about youngsters saving the world is always welcome. We hope this unfortunate streak gets broken soon, otherwise YA movies are gonna turn into NO movies for studios.
REVIEWS
"The movie devolves from promising to unwieldy, then baffling, then exhausting, then finally unintentionally hysterical." - Variety
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 33%
(57 reviews @ publish)
WHO'S IT (NOT) FOR?
For: fans of the novel who need to see it on screen or big steampunk lovers
(Not): for those who expect some adult level storytelling in their young adult level movies
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THE MULE
AKA
"'You know who works hard? Mules. But Clint Eastwood could out haul a mule up the grand canyon any goddamn day"
R / 1 hr 56 mins
Drama-Suspense / Warner Bros
WHAT'S THE DEAL
Do you think you have a good work ethic? That's cool. Clint Eastwood is here to remind you that your work ethic is shit compared to his. Oh, and he has a new movie out too - the second he directed this year, nbd. It's about a man who is not Clint Eastwood getting wrapped up in transporting drugs for a mexican cartel (cuz if it was Clint Eastwood, all of the drugs would've been moved yesterday). Beyond getting himself tracked by rival cartels and the DEA, this guy is trying to make amends with the family he treated poorly overly his life because he spent too much time at work (but not as much as Clint Eastwood). Things get increasingly complicated the more drugs he hauls as he tries to make it right one last time.
But about that work ethic thing. Yeah, Clint Eastwood is 88. He's directed ten movies in the last ten years (scored four, and starred in three). So not only are you getting your ass kicked, you're getting your ass kicked by someone who would've started receiving the AARP magazine nearly forty years ago. So yeah, stop reading this overly wordy description and get your lazy meatsack back to work.
REVIEWS
A few reviews trickling in that are mostly positive, but give a double check before heading to the theaters.
"Another mostly solid notch in a career built on making many of life's notches feel like scars." - The Wrap
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 69%
(16 reviews @ publish)
WHO'S IT (NOT) FOR?
For: lazy people, cuz only lazy people stop working long enough to watch a silly movie
(Not): for hard workers, they're too busy working too enjoy some fluffy "motion picture" crap
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LIMITED RELEASE SPOTLIGHT
IF BEALE STREET
COULD TALK
AKA
"If Beale Street Could Talk, we'd probably have to close our children's ears..."
R / 1 hr 57 mins
Drama / Annapurna
WHAT'S THE DEAL
It's the next movie from Barry Jenkins, director of Best Picture winner Moonlight. He tells a love story from the late author James Baldwin (star of his own great documentary last year, I Am Not Your Negro) about a young black couple in 70's Harlem who are about to have a child. But the father is falsely accused of a crime and his chances of getting off are low with racial injustice weighing heavy. His fiancé works to prove his innocence while family supports the both of them. It's a love story, not only between the couple, but between all the people that surround them.
Expect similar visual pleasure as you saw in Moonlight with a poeticness that Jenkins apparently grabs right from the Baldwin novel.
Oscar Watch: best picture, director, Regina King for best supporting actress, more?
REVIEWS
"You've never seen romantic love depicted on screen with such lyrical and gorgeous intensity, or systemic injustice brought to such vivid and enraging life. Film classes will be taught about Jenkins' use of color." - NPR
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 92%
(100 reviews @ publish)
WHO'S IT (NOT) FOR?
For: lovers, in the literal and metaphorical
(Not): for those who think Oscar movies = boring
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ALREADY IN THEATERS + BOX OFFICE
(3-Day Weekend / Domestic Total - $ = Millions)
1) Ralph Breaks the Inter... ($16 / $141)
Sequel to Wreck-It-Ralph
88% RT - Trailer - Showtimes
2) The Grinch ($15 / $223)
The green one goes modern
57% RT - Trailer - Showtimes
3) Creed 2 (er, Creed II) ($10 / $96)
Adonis takes on son of Ivan Drago
83% RT - Trailer - Showtimes
4) Fantastic Beasts: The Cr... ($7 / $145)
Sequel to Harry Potter prequel
38% RT - Trailer - Showtimes
5) Bohemian Rhapsody ($6.1 / $174)
Queen / Freddie Mercury biopic
62% RT - Trailer - Showtimes
6) Instant Family ($5.8 / $54)
Mark Wahlberg / Rose Byrne adopt
82% RT - Trailer - Showtimes
7) Green Book ($3.9 / $20)
Viggo Mortensen drives Mahershala Ali
82% - Trailer - Showtimes
8) Robin Hood ($3.5 / $27)
Brofest retelling of old tale
16% RT - Trailer - Showtimes
9) The Possession of Han... ($3.2 / $12)
Exorcism gone wrong (don't they all?)
12% RT - Trailer - Showtimes
10) Widows ($3.2 / $38)
Women takeover husbands' failed heist
91% RT - Trailer - Showtimes
AQUAMAN
Sure, he might be one of the goofiest well known superheros, but reviews making it look like it'll be the (second) best movie yet in the combined DC universe. Why? Because it apparently doesn't take itself too seriously - and goes all in on the weirdness of crab men and sharks as horses. Unnecessary Disclaimer: image not actual film footage.
MARY POPPINS RETURNS
Indeed she does, but does it live up to the OG? Looks like... mostly? If some gripes of "what for..."
BUMBLEBEE
NOTE: NOT DIRECTED BY MICHAEL BAY. Now that we got that out of the way, it's what you expect, an origin story for the mute machine of a yellow hue. And it's good? Like actually good. So say early reviews. Set in the 80's, so naturally it's go for that Spielberg vibe - character over spectacle (but still lots of spectacle).
SECOND ACT
Do you just really like Jennifer Lopez? Cool. This is probably for you. Otherwise... like maybe? Get ready for a straightforward "screw the rich" people / life lessons will be handed down ham in fist kinda movie.
WELCOME TO MARWEN
Sheesh, don't know here. Accomplished director (Robert Zemeckis - Forrest Gump/Flight/Back to the Future), good cast (Steve Carell, Janelle Monáe, Leslie Mann), "heartwarming" story (man brain damaged by Neo-Nazis has PTSD, uses his art to deal with it), cool technology (lots of motion capture). And yet, it feels off... We'll see when reviews come, but we're skeptical.
CAPTIVE STATE
February 14, 2019
First full trailer. Finally get a better understanding - some humans comply with new alien overlords, some do not, and there's a resistance afoot. Kind of a District 9 tone.
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AVENGERS: ENDGAME
April 26, 2019
Teaser. Come on, you don't need anymore.
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SHAUN THE SHEEP:
FARMAGEDDON
May 15, 2019
An alien visits the farm. Next movie from people who created Wallace and Gromit.
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BRIGHTBURN
May 24, 2019
What if Superman wasn't benevolent? Yeah, it's a horror "superhero" movie. Presented by James Gunn, director of Guardians of the Galaxy. Totally apes the Man of Steel trailer in a fun way.
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GODZILLA:
KING OF THE MONSTERS
May 31, 2019
Second trailer. Godzilla meets up with Mothra (yup, a big moth), Rodan (a huge Pteranodon) & King Ghidorah (three headed ...dragon?) Note: not directed by Gareth Edwards who did first.
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