Neither Here nor there.
Except Here is here, in this email.
THE QUOTE 🎬 💬
“The calls are coming from the house.”
hint: I watched this holiday themed 70’s classic for the first time last weekend and had no idea it was the originator of this phrase
THINK THOUGHTS 💭
Normally I’d for sure be giving the next Clint Eastwood movie a nice big fat feature. Because even if his last few haven’t been / done great, he’s still Clint Eastwood and his movies have a tendency to be good / do well at the box office. Which is why they also almost always get a “wide release” - i.e. most everyone around the country can watch if they want.
But the 94 year old’s forthcoming flick, Juror #2 is getting this weird “shadow release” where it’s technically playing in theaters, but only a few. This isn’t abnormal if the movie were to expand to more locations over the coming weeks. But it’s not. And no word if it’ll be streaming soon either - usually the case if the studio releasing it (Warner Bros.) has a streaming service (it does, Max).
What makes it even weirder is that the movie was originally meant to be a streaming only release but then “graduated” to a theatrical release, reportedly after moviegoers liked it during test screenings. A sentiment shared by critics.
To make it even more bonkers, this is possibly Clint Eastwood’s last movie and he’s been working with Warner Bros. for 50(!) years.
Which begs the question, why would WB do this? What’s their rational? Sometimes studios release movies in a limited capacity to become awards eligible, but while Juror #2 seems to be of quality, it’s unlikely to seriously compete for stuff.
Which just leaves us to nosh on a question wrapped inside an enigma burrito. Variety dug in, but didn’t come up with much. Running theory is it’s a business move because Clint’s last movie (Cry Macho) didn’t make money. I mean yeah, most likely, but then why even do a release? If it’s a gesture, just so they can tell Clint it went to theater, it’s a pretty shitty one.
Or maybe it’s a contract thing?! And they were required to do a theatrical release, but not at any certain level?!
I don’t know man, Hollywood’s weird.
NEWSY BITS 👾
Disney+ Introduces Top 10 List Of Movies & TV Shows To Help Users Discover New Content - because curation is a neccisity when there’s so much damn stuff to watch. plus, we be social (read: nosy) creatures and we’re also curious what everyone els eis up to. - Deadline
EXTRA CREDIT MOVIE(S) 📝
Juror #2 - a juror (Nicholas Hoult) realizes that maybe he killed the woman another man is being accused of murdering. And he has to decide whether to bring it up. It creates a pretty hard moral quandary that can apparently sustain an entire movie. With the reviews saying if this is Clint East Eastwood’s final movie, that wouldn’t be such a bad thing. Playing in Limited Theaters Friday
A Real Pain - Jesse Eisenberg directs his first movie, a semi-autobiographical story about cousins taking a trip to Poland to honor their grandmother. I could tell you what reviews say, which is that it’s a movie that mixes a lot of tones together extremely well and that Kieran Culkin is damn good at his job - but for once I get to say I personally think it’s great. Because I was able to watch in January via Sundance screeners. And yes, Culkin is that good. Playing in Limited Theaters Friday
Martha - Martha Stewart agreed to do a documentary about her life. She had thoughts… The reviews say it may not be entirely original, but Stewart is, and that keeps it interesting. Streaming on Netflix now
Absolution - Liam Neesons is still kickin’ and punchin’ his way through his eighth decade. But he says he’s gettin off the action-train next year, so if you’re a fan, you better get it while the gettin’ is… good? Ok, based on reviews the gettin is actually pretty meh - with a fairly typical story. But that it does have some flourishes here and there, with “the Neesons” being solid as always. Playing in Theaters Friday
The Graduates - if I told you this was about kids recovering from a school shooting, you’d be like yeah no, I already have too much trauma in my life. But if I told you this was a very well liked affirming story about teenagers finding community in a hard time, that might sound less stresful. The reviews say it’s just that, and that ultimately it’s a great human story that captures teenagers well. Playing in Limited Theaters Friday
NOTABLE NEW RELEASE(S) 🎟 & 📺
Here
A conceit is a nice place to start making a film, but it’s generally not a great place to finish it. And while I’m not saying Robert Zemeckis (Back to the Future, Forrest Gump, Flight) intended to, it sounds like he couldn’t get beyond his bold (some might say silly) idea of plunking a camera down in a single spot on earth, never shifting the frame and flashing a bunch of images by it for nearly two hours - some of which contain dinosaurs 🦖🦕, but the majority featuring a reunited and de-aged Tom Hanks and Robin Wright.1
The concept may sound kinda nifty (some might say boring) when you’re describing it, but apparently doesn’t lend itself to affectign the audience. It’s almost as if the camera needs to be moved for you to be.
But hey, Zemeckis likes to try stuff and honestly, I’m glad. Obviously I’d rather have the movie be “good,” but there aren’t too many filmmakers who have the leeway to do shit like this.
The dude, along with co-writer partner Eric Roth (who also wrote Forrest Gump, Dune and plenty others) went for it, and even if he failed in his to goal to create an impact on viewers, at least he’s not just standing still in his artistic efforts.
Er, you know what I mean. 🙃
Out: Friday
Where: Theaters
Details: 1 hr 44 mins | PG-13 | 🍅: 37%
THE WEEKLY TRAILER PLAYLIST ⏯
Queer - Daniel Craig and Call Me By Your Name / Challengers director Luca Guadagnino adapt a novel about a man searching for connection in 50’s Mexico City. Craig has gotten lots of Oscar talk for this acting in the surreal looking tale.
One of Them Days - yah, and that day is Friday. (as in, the movie) And that’s a good thing, cuz that movie rules.
Sweethearts - cute looking rom-com. Feel like I normally would’ve just stick this in the extended trailer list, but for some reason it felt kinda legit.
September 5 - retelling of how ABC sports started broadcasting the Israel hostage situation during the 1972 Olympics in Munich.
The Damned - a well-shot thriller where a fateful decision starts to haunt a crew of sailers. Literally. oooOOOOOoooohh
Hot Frost - Netflix + Lindsey Lohan = new holiday tradition?
Maria - another “watch it for the performance” situation with Angelina Jolie a strong contender for the Best Actress Oscar.
Who kiiiinda look like there in another Zemeckis movie, The Polar Express.