Tuesday, June 18, 2024

THE BEAST - $19.99 Sale / TBD Rental

What we like:

• We’re big fans of director Bertrand Bonello, who here delivers another big-swing winner that will confound as many people as it delights. If the log line ‘A sci-fi epic based on the Henry James novella The Beast in the Jungle’ doesn’t intrigue you, then the film is probably not for you. For the rest of us…settle in and enjoy.

• Léa Seydoux continues to impress, here giving a three-role performance that could be career defining. The actress is on an incredible run. In just the 2020’s, she’s worked with the following auteurs: Bonello, Denis Villeneuve, Mia Hansen-Løve, David Cronenberg, Cary Joji Fukunaga, Bruno Dumont, Quentin Dupieux, Arnaud Desplechin, and Wes Anderson. Impressive.

What we don’t like:

• Bonello told Indiewire that the film was rejected by Cannes. How do you say ‘morons’ in French?!

I USED TO BE FUNNY - $19.99 Sale / TBD Rental

What we like:

• Rachel Sennott in a (semi-)dramatic role. Yes, she’s hysterically funny in Shiva Baby and Bottoms, but it’s great to see her showing her range.

• This is Canadian filmmaker Ally Pankiw’s first feature, and it shows real promise.

What we don’t like:

• We don’t blame Utopia for the micro-release and quick pivot to digital. The indie film box-office landscape is still brutal. But man…it’s tough to see these films not get some room to grow theatrically.

IF - $24.99 Sale / $19.99 Rental

What we like:

• A non-IP driven story for kids. This one’s from the mind of John Krasinski, who wrote and directed. Good for him for using his A Quiet Place juice to make something original.

• Krasinski has clout. A sampling of the big stars that lend their voices to this film: Steve Carrell, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Emily Blunt (how’d he get her?), Awkwafina, George Clooney, Bradley Cooper, Matt Damon, Bill Hader, and Blake Lively. Oh, and Ryan Reynolds stars.

• Fiona Shaw also has a supporting role, and we love her.

What we don’t like:

• Enough with the imaginary friend trend! With this, the tepid horror thriller Imaginary, and the upcoming The Imaginary, we’re ready for some real-life protagonists.

• We recently lost Oscar-winning actor Louis Gossett Jr., who voices an elderly teddy bear in the film.

WE GROWN NOW - TBD Sale / TBD Rental

What we like:

• This small gem of a film was nominated for three Independent Spirit Awards, including Best Editing, Best Cinematography, and Best Feature.

• We love an early 1990s period piece! The film follows best friends Malik and Eric as they come of age in Chicago’s Cabrini-Green housing complex in the early 1990s.

• The stellar cast includes S. Epatha Merkerson, Jurnee Smollett, Lil Rel Howry, and newcomers Blake Cameron and Gian Knight Ramirez.

What we don’t like:

• It’s a shame the film couldn’t capitalize on its Indie Spirit nominations. Why not release the film around the time of the awards?

• The now shuttered Participant Media is a producer on the film. The production company’s contribution to indie cinema cannot be overstated, and its loss is devastating.

Wednesday, June 19, 2024

BLACK BARBIE - Netflix

What we like:

• We love a deep-dive documentary that tells the story of something we’re curious about. Directed by Lagueria Davis, Black Barbie explores the impact of three Black women at Mattel responsible for the Black Barbie debut in 1980: Beulah Mae Mitchell, Kitty Black Perkins, and Stacey McBride Irby.

• Shonda Rhimes is an executive producer on the doc, and we love that she’s killing it at Netflix.

What we don’t like:

• The idiots online who got mad thinking this was a sequel to Barbie.

Thursday, June 20, 2024

FEDERER: TWELVE FINAL DAYS - Prime Video

What we like:

• Full disclosure: Between the ‘Big 3’ GOATs in tennis (Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic), Federer is our favorite. He definitely has the weakest GOAT resume of the three, but he was a joy to watch.

• Co-director (with Joe Sabia) Asif Kapadia won the Best Documentary Feature Oscar for 2015’s Amy Winehouse doc Amy. This film follows Roger Federer in the last twelve days of his professional career.

What we don’t like:

• As big Federer fans, we prefer to watch him winning, not losing. Still, it’s likely to be a fascinating look at a legend coming to terms with the end of his career.

Friday, June 21, 2024

KUNG FU PANDA 4 - Peacock

What we like:

• Reaching nearly $200M at the domestic box-office, this sequel was a big hit theaters desperately needed last Spring.

• It’s just fun to say Oscar-winner Ke Huy Quan! He joins the Kung Fu Panda-verse as Han, a Sunda pangolin who is the leader of a den of thieves.

What we don’t like:

• This is the first Angelina Jolie-less Kung Fu Panda movie. We miss Angelina Jolie in movies.

SOMETIMES I THINK ABOUT DYING - MUBI US

What we like:

• This under-seen sleeper features a terrific lead performance from Daisy Ridley. She plays a socially awkward office worker who spends most of her time in isolation and daydreams of her own death, until a new colleague pricks the bubble of her own isolation.

• Meg Stalter has a supporting role in the film. And since it’s Pride Month, there’s no better time to share this classic Meg Stalter video:

What we don’t like:

• The title sounds like a parody of an indie film title.

TRIGGER WARNING - Netflix

What we like:

• Jessica Alba is back! This is her first feature film in five years. And her co-star is Anthony Michael Hall. It’s the Gen X/Millennial cross-over we’ve all been waiting for.

• Indonesian filmmaker Mouly Surya has bona fide action chops. Her 2017 feature Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts premiered in the Director’s Fortnight section of the Cannes Film Festival and was hailed for its nail-biting tension and Tartantino-esque high concept violence.

• The film’s screenplay comes from Josh Olson (Oscar-nominated screenwriter of David Cronenberg’s A History of Violence) and John Brancato (who wrote David Fincher’s The Game).

What we don’t like:

• Netflix’s action movies tend to disappoint. The pedigree on this one gives us hope…but we'll keep our expectations in check.

Happy Streaming Everyone!

*We are an Amazon affiliate, and do receive a very small commission for any purchases made from this website. If you’d like to support our work, and you’re looking to buy through Amazon, we’d appreciate it if you’d click through.