"The heart's not like a box that gets filled up.
It expands in size the more you love."
PINNED: this newsletter started as a way to highlight movies coming to theaters (see: the name). Then, "the bullshit" happened. And I started featuring movies in theaters, VOD or streaming (see: the +). Point is, if there's a movie worth checking out, you'll probably find it here.
No column as it were today, but still some tasty bites.
Paramount moved all their remaining movies - Top Gun: Maverick and Jackass Forever - to next year. Bummer. I was actually stoked for both. But what that means for theaters is more worrying.
Ooh! Ooh! Shall we play the game of How Wrong Was Latham?! It's a quick game... Very wrong! Vacation Friends not only had an ok Rotten Tomatoes score, it just got a sequel!
And in contrast, while I wasn't "right," my thoughts on how good of a marketer Ryan Reynolds is were echoed last week in a similar take from The Hollywood Reporter.
Oh, and if you ever wanted to know how to spell the sound you hear when you open Netflix, it's "tudum." We know this because The Flix is hosting their own (online) fan convention for their shows and movies. It's called, Tudum.
Extra Credit Movies: Amazon decided to make another version of Cinderella, except it's a musical, hyper-modern (in plenty of good ways), stars a pop-star (Camila Cabello), buuuut isn't that good? Cuz reviews are (metaphorically) all like, nah, smash that slipper girl. Don't want it!
I mentioned it a couple weeks back in the trailers section, but the Riz Ahmed starring Mogul Mowgli, which is very well reviewed, also comes out this weekend, but only in "limited theaters." Not sure if that's 5 or 500, so don't want to get you hyped until you can watch it for real (i.e. likely VOD).
(from top, left to right)
SHANG-CHI: "and the Legend of the Ten Rings" <-- teeeechnically the full title. Just a lil' long, so we'll go with just Shang-Chi from here on out. Plus, like all movies from the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe), it's the title of the movie and the name of the lead character(s) / group the movie follows.
But ok, you know it's a Marvel movie, and all that generally follows: epic CGI heavy fight scenes / a feeling of gravitas, but never too "heavy" / quip filled / always leading to more. However, you may know less about Shang-Chi the character, so let me tell you about him.
Shang-Chi (played by relative newcomer Simu Liu - from Canadian TV show Kim's Convenience) is a superhero. (Duh.)
Shang-Chi is a guy who grew up with a tough dad. No, like real tough. As in he's been living for centuries, has superpowers because of these ten rings (see above) and made Shang-Chi fight adults when he was a child, tough. (And you thought your early bedtime as a kid was bullshit...)
Shang-Chi does not want to be like his dad and in fact ran away from him because he didn't like his nefarious doings. But Shang-Chi can't escape his dad. (Can you ever fully "escape" family?)
Shang-Chi conveniently has a friend, played by Awkwafina, who is uncannily good at producing funny asides on command. (Awkwafina is the best)
Shang-Chi's history is in part pulled from his comic origins, but has been modified to fit the current Marvel universe as well as these modern times. (A good thing!)
Shang-Chi also happens to be the first ever Asian lead in a Marvel movie. The studio has hit a few of these "milestones," ie having a non-white straight dude head their movies (see: Black Panther, Captain Marvel, Black Widow, Wasp). But that doesn't make this one any less important. In fact, it almost feels doubly so because there's the sense this should be normal by now, but it's still not. And no matter what one's personal taste is wrt the MCU, we all understand it has a large presence in society, and things like this can have impact far beyond the dollars made for Disney.
As for Shang-Chi the movie, there are bound to be opinions on its specifics, e.g. Justin Chang from NPR noting, "At times I felt like I was watching a comedy about the all-too-relatable tensions between a traditional Chinese parent and his wayward Westernized offspring, though one in which, of course, the fate of the world hangs in the balance." However, The New York Times reviewer felt "The film uses the superficial markers of Asian culture and filmmaking without presenting anything unique in its Marvel take on that tradition." But overall, reviews say it handles its role as both a Marvel movie, and a particular family drama, solidly.
So in short, yeah, this is "yet another" Marvel movie. But it also has its own story, on screen, and off.
Note: this one is NOT playing on Disney +. You'd think Disney would be worried people might get confused with all the variance in their releases, but I guess that's why I'm here? /shrug
Vibe: a Marvel movie yes, but with unique cultural resonance and threaded with family drama
Out Friday
Watch Theaters Only
The Trailer | 2 hrs 13 mins | PG-13 | 🍅: 91%
WORTH: Talk about contrasts. We're moving from the biggest movie franchise of all time featuring magical rings, mystical dragons to... 9/11. Which, as a subject matter, is gonna cut down on the potential audience. Now if I tell you this movie also involves a complex moral quandary crossed with government ineptitude and callousness, that audience pool might become kiddy sized.
And I get it, people often use movies to escape, and it's not always fun to escape into a screen dripping with tears from all the sadness.
But for those who like to consider things like whether you can ever fully compensate a family member for the loss of another. Or if you like to watch great acting from veterans like Michael Keaton, Stanley Tucci and Amy Ryan, you might be able to handle the emotional weight you'll likely have to carry while watching.
Cuz as we discussed last week, not everyone wants to watch the 25th(!!) Marvel movie.
Vibe: quite possibly the reason the term "adult drama" was invented
Out Friday
Watch Netflix
The Trailer | 1 hr 58 mins | PG-13 | 🍅: 77%
(called out from top, left to right)
There's a big fat trailer for the new Bond, which you might want to avoid if you know you're already going so some of the big set pieces don't get too spoiled.
In things I did not expect, we have a trailer for a western which only made me think of Jurassic Park. Looks cools. Sounds like JP. Just watch.
Kristen Stewart is Princess Diana in Spencer.
Dan Stevens (Downton Abbey) keeps making super fun acting choices, and plays a robot love partner in a german rom-com. I love that guy. And the movie is apparently pretty great.
Finally another trailer for oft-delayed King's Man. This time it's red band, so you get to see that Matthew Vaughn has no intension of abandoning his inner 10 year old.
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