What’s Streaming This Week (10/13 - 10/20)
Monday, October 14th, 2024
A SACRIFICE - Netflix
What we like:
Nepo Baby Discourse alert! Director Jordan Scott is the daughter of legendary filmmaker Ridley Scott. This is the her first feature since her 2009 debut, the Eva Green drama Cracks.
Eric Bana and Sadie Sink co-star, and the film’s premise is intriguing: A psychiatrist must save his daughter from a cult after she falls in love with a boy whose mother is its charismatic leader.
What we don’t like:
Unfortunately, reviews on this one were not great.
Tuesday, October 15th, 2024
ALIEN: ROMULUS - $29.99 Sale / $24.99 Rental
What we like:
Director Fede Alvarez delivers an entertaining (enough) Alien movie that takes place in the Alien timeline between the two most popular (and best) installments in the franchise. 1979’s Alien is set in 2122, Romulus is set in 2142, and 1986’s Aliens is set in 2179.
Alvarez sought out the special effects crew from Aliens to work on the creatures. Physical sets, practical creatures, and miniatures were used wherever possible to help ground later VFX work.
What we don’t like:
We won’t spoil it, but we’re not crazy about some of the callbacks to the earlier films, particularly the re-use of an iconic line of dialogue. It’s the sort of fan service that’s pandering and derivative.
THE THREE MUSKETEERS: PART 1 D’ARTAGNAN - Hulu
What we like:
A big, swashbuckling adventure based on the famed novel by Alexandre Dumas, this French production was a big hit in its native country, but never really caught on here in the US. It’s a shame, because it’s incredibly entertaining and handsomely mounted.
The cast includes a who’s who of French talent: Vincent Cassel, Romain Duris, Eva Green, Louis Garrel, Vicky Krieps (not French), and François Civil in the titular role. It’s stacked.
What we don’t like:
This is not exactly a fresh story, as there have been numerous adaptations of the Musketeers story. But if you need any inspiration to check out this new one, let’s compare the casts of this French production with the 1993 American version:
THE THREE MUSKETEERS: PART II: MILADY - Hulu
What we like:
This second part of the Three Musketeers story was shot back-to-back with the first one. The 150 day shoot was done almost entirely on location around France, with only one day spent filming in a studio.
The film won Best Production Design at the 2024 Cesar Awards.
What we don’t like:
Clocking in at just under 4 hours, Parts I & II are quite a time commitment. But if you give it a chance, the time will fly by. And get ready for the new The Count of Monte Cristo adaptation coming in December!
THE WILD ROBOT - $29.99 Sale / $24.99 Rental
What we like:
Director Chris Sanders brings to life the 2016 novel of the same name by Peter Brown, and it’s a visual and storytelling triumph. The film is a likely Best Animated Feature Oscar nominee, and many are predicting it will win.
The voice cast is superb: Lupita Nyong'o, Pedro Pascal, Kit Connor, Bill Nighy, Stephanie Hsu, Mark Hamill, Catherine O'Hara, Matt Berry, and Ving Rhames.
The film uses a hand-painted aesthetic, inspired by classic Disney animated films and the works of Hayao Miyazaki.
What we don’t like:
We’re surprised Universal is releasing this to PVOD after 18 days (as always, dates are subject to change). But they likely didn’t want to extend the window to overlap with their other animated film, Piece by Piece, which we’re expecting will hit PVOD at the end of the month.
A reminder: Just because a film goes to PVOD, doesn’t mean it’s being pulled from theaters. Animated films have shown remarkable resilience at the box-office, even when available on digital.
Thursday, October 17th, 2024
BROTHERS - Prime Video
What we like:
Director Max Barbakow follows up his charming debut feature Palm Springs, which was released during the pandemic in drive-in theaters and straight to Hulu. It deserved better.
The Brothers cast is fantastic: Josh Brolin, Peter Dinklage, Glenn Close, Marisa Tomei, Taylour Paige, and Brendan Fraser. Just insane that a cast like this is in a straight-to-streaming release.
What we don’t like:
This is the final screen appearance for character actor M. Emmet Walsh. Just a sampling of his screen credits: Midnight Cowboy, What’s Up, Doc?, Serpico, Slap Shot, The Jerk, Ordinary People, Reds, Blade Runner, Silkwood, Fletch, Blood Simple, Back to School (one of our favorites), Raising Arizona, Knives Out, and countless others. A genuine legend.
Friday, October 18th, 2024
BAGMAN - $14.99 Sale / TBD Rental
What we like:
In this dark horror film, a family finds themselves ensnared in a nightmare as they’re hunted by a malevolent, mythical creature. For centuries and across cultures, parents have warned their children of the legendary Bagman, who snatches innocent children and stuffs them into his vile, rotting bag--never to be seen again. Good premise!
Lead Sam Claflin is an appealing actor who we’re always rooting for.
What we don’t like:
Hoo boy…this one was supposedly pretty terrible. We won’t kick Lionsgate while they’re down, but they didn’t even report the theatrical grosses. Yikes.
LEE - $14.99 Sale / TBD Rental
What we like:
Famed cinematographer Ellen Kuras makes her feature directorial debut. Her DP credits are impressive. Swoon, I Shot Andy Warhol, Summer of Sam, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind are some of her notable narrative features. But she also has interesting documentary credits, including Spike Lee’s 4 Little Girls, and Martin Scorsese’s Public Speaking.
In the film, Kate Winslet plays Lee Miller, a fashion model who became an acclaimed war correspondent for Vogue magazine during World War II.
The heavy-hitting cast includes Marion Cotillard, Andrea Riseborough, Andy Samberg, Noémie Merlant, Josh O'Connor and Alexander Skarsgård.
What we don’t like:
The film debuted at the 2023 Toronto Film Festival to muted buzz. But the reviews have been pretty decent. We’re excited to catch up with it.
MADS - Shudder, AMC+
What we like:
This buzzy film premiered at this year’s Fantasia Fest and is another winner for Shudder.
Critic Brian Tallerico at RogerEbert.com described it as like ‘George A Romero’s Run Lola Run’, which is a brilliant way to sell it.
What we don’t like:
The film needs a better poster! We realize this is Shudder’s busiest time of the year, but it looks unfinished.
MAXXXINE - Max
What we like:
The third installment in Ti West’s X trilogy, Maxxxine features West’s most impressive cast, including Elizabeth Debicki, Moses Sumney, Michelle Monaghan, Bobby Cannavale, Halsey, Lily Collins, Giancarlo Esposito, and Kevin Bacon.
A true tour-de-force showcase for star Mia Goth, all three films in the X trilogy have given the actress a chance to show her range, and yes, chew the scenery (in the best way). What an exciting partnership between actor and director.
We love that West took inspiration from the scuzzy slasher movies of the 80s for Maxxxine, films like Vice Squad, Angel, and Body Double. In fact, we kinda wish it was a bit scuzzier.
What we don’t like:
Maxxxine was positioned to be the horror film of the summer, but was overshadowed by Longlegs. The critical and audience reception felt like a bit of a letdown. Still, West is an exciting filmmaker and we can’t wait to see what he does next.
WOMAN OF THE HOUR - Netflix
What we like:
Anna Kendrick’s directorial debut made a big splash when it premiered at the 2023 Toronto Film Festival. Netflix scooped up US distribution rights for a reported $11M.
The film takes place in 1978, when serial killer Rodney Alcala (Daniel Zovatto) appeared on The Dating Game and won a date with bachelorette Cheryl Bradshaw (Kendrick). At the time, Alcala had murdered five women, and his strange facade during the episode later nicknamed him "The Dating Game Killer".
What we don’t like:
We’ve been waiting for this one for over a year. Yes, we are impatient!
Let’s get Kendrick more directing gigs and less Trolls movies.
Happy Streaming Everyone!
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