What’s Streaming This Week (7/14 - 7/21)
Tuesday, July 16th, 2024
THE DEAD DON’T HURT - $14.99 Sale Only
What we like:
Viggo Mortensen directs a Western that centers the woman’s perspective, something that rarely happens in the genre. Vicky Krieps plays Vivienne Le Coudy, who embarks on a journey with Danish immigrant Holger Olsen (Mortensen), attempting to forge a life together in the dusty town of Elk Flats, Nevada. When Holger decides to go fight for the Union in the burgeoning Civil War, Vivienne must fend for herself, which isn't easy in a town controlled by a corrupt mayor.
Mortensen assembles a terrific supporting cast, including Garret Dillahunt, Solly McLeod, Danny Huston, and Ray McKinnon.
What we don’t like:
Mortensen not only directs, writes, produces and stars in The Dead Don’t Hurt, but he also composed the film’s score. All that while being 65 years-old and still looking smokin’ hot. Let’s just say he makes us feel…inadequate.
HORIZON: AN AMERICAN SAGA - CHAPTER 1 - $24.99 Sale / $19.99 Rental
What we like:
Kevin Costner betting on himself. The actor reportedly put up $38M of his own money to help finance his passion-project Western.
Kevin Costner Westerns. 1990’s Dances with Wolves was probably over-praised at the time, but it’s an entertaining, if overlong, sweeping epic. The fact that it beat Goodfellas for Best Picture does its reputation no favors. And 2003’s Open Range is a Costner Western that still holds up beautifully.
What we don’t like:
Unfortunately, Costner’s bet has not paid off. The biggest knock seems to be that it feels more like television than a movie. The first chapter is broken up in to three one-hour parts, which gives it an episodic/television rhythm.
We get it was probably cost-prohibitive, but the decision to shoot Horizon on digital rather than film really bolsters the ‘It feels like television’ takes.
Horizon: An American Saga - Chapter 2’s theatrical release has been pulled, with no new date announced. Here’s hoping they don’t ship it directly to Max.
A SACRIFICE - $14.99 Sale / $9.99 Rental
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.
TAKING VENICE - $12.99 Sale / $4.99 Rental
What we like:
Director Amei Wallach’s acclaimed documentary uncovers the true story behind rumors that the U.S. government and a team of high-placed insiders rigged the 1964 Venice Biennale – the Olympics of art – so their chosen artist, Robert Rauschenberg, could win the Grand Prize.
Wallach was an on-air arts commentator for the PBS MacNeil/Lehrer Newshour, and is an award-winning art critic.
What we don’t like:
It feels quaint to think there was a time the US government had any interest in the arts, even if their motivations were nefarious.
TUESDAY - $19.99 Sale Only
What we like:
Julia Louis-Dreyfus stretches beyond comedy in this fantasy drama, where she plays a mother, who with her daughter, must confront Death when it arrives in the form of an astonishing talking bird.
This is Croatian filmmaker Daina O. Pusić’s feature debut, and it’s an ambitious big swing that got positive reviews out of the 2023 Telluride Film Festival.
What we don’t like:
Unfortunately, even with A24’s seal-of-approval, this big swing failed to attract much of an audience in theaters. The film didn’t crack $1M at the box-office. Here’s hoping it finds an audience on streaming.
Wednesday, July 17th, 2024
THE TEACHERS’ LOUNGE - Netflix
What we like:
İlker Çatak’s German-language drama was nominated for Best International Feature at the Oscars and was named one of the top five international films of 2023 by the National Board of Review.
Lead Leonie Benesch is dynamite here, just as she was in Michael Haneke’s 2009 Oscar-nominated drama The White Ribbon.
What we don’t like:
This excerpt from Matt Zoller Seitz’s review at RogerEbert.com sums up the film’s intense dread nicely:
Thursday, July 18th, 2024
LAND OF BAD - Netflix
What we like:
Land of Bad begs you to mock its title, but the reviews were not too terrible.
Starring Russell Crowe and Liam Hemsworth, here’s the plot: A covert Special Forces operation in the South Philippines spirals into a brutal 48-hour battle for survival. When an elite extraction team is ambushed deep in enemy territory, rookie officer Kinney (Hemsworth) is left outnumbered but determined to leave no man behind. With an air strike closing in, Kinney's only hope hinges on the guidance of Air Force drone pilot Reaper (Crowe), navigating unknowable danger where every move could be their last.
Sounds like a certain Oscar-winner got to film his entire part in one room! Not a bad way to make a living.
What we don’t like:
Despite being an American film, with an American director, American studio, and a cast of American characters, Milo Ventimiglia is the only American actor in the lead cast. All other actors are Australian or British. Step it up, America!
MY SPY: THE ETERNAL CITY - Prime Video
What we like:
Likable leads Dave Bautista and Chloe Coleman are back, and this time they’re in Italy! Unfortunately, their trip is interrupted by a plot to nuke the Vatican. It happens.
Anna Faris has a supporting role, and we miss having Anna Faris is movies.
What we don’t like:
The film is rated PG-13 by the MPA for violence/action, some strong language, suggestive references, teen drinking, and a nude sculpture. Really, MPA?? A nude sculpture? Those pearl-clutching ninnies are the worst.
Friday, July 19th, 2024
ABIGAIL - Peacock
What we like:
Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett’s Spring horror comedy under-performed at the box-office, but has slowly built up a reputation as a solid thriller with its fun performances and super-bloody action set pieces.
What a cast! Melissa Barrera, Dan Stevens, Will Catlett, Kathryn Newton, Giancarlo Esposito, Matthew Goode, and in one of his final film roles, Angus Cloud. Alisha Weir is also terrific as the titular terror.
We love that the filmmakers used a real gothic mansion rather than just building sets, which gives the film an authenticity that really adds to overall mood.
What we don’t like:
Did they studio kneecap the effectiveness of the film by revealing a key plot twist in the trailer? Well…we would argue that most trailers overshare. Studios don’t seem to trust moviegoers to be adventurous and take a chance on the unknown. So a film like Abigail, whose major plot twist happens about an hour in to the story, is left with audiences who are way ahead of the characters. Why not use the trailer to tease, not spell out?
FIND ME FALLING - Netflix
What we like:
A breezy summer romance filmed on the island of Cyprus, which is an underused location for escapist entertainment. We’ve seen Greece in a thousand films, let us explore the region a bit!
Lead Harry Connick Jr. is a likable presence in everything he does, whether he’s acting in television and films, or hosting his own talk show.
What we don’t like:
These Netflix rom-coms often feel very rough, like a copy of a copy of a copy. Not sure why they feel the need to replicate the Hallmark model. Our friend @SleepyKittyPaw said it best:
LOVE LIES BLEEDING - Max
What we like:
Rose Glass’s follow up to her debut feature Saint Maud, Love Lies Bleeding follows the relationship between a reclusive gym manager (Kristen Stewart), who is part of a crime family, and an ambitious bodybuilder (Katy O’Brian).
We love the power of lesbian twitter, who surfaced the following tweet from O’Brian, which lead to her audition and eventual casting. Absolute legend.
What we don’t like:
Homophobic heckling at a screening of the film at the Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival led to walk-outs and some violence.
A STILL SMALL VOICE - MUBI US
What we like:
This devastating documentary follows Mati, a chaplain completing a year-long residency at New York City's Mount Sinai Hospital, as she learns to provide spiritual care to people confronting profound life changes.
The film was shortlisted for the Best Documentary Feature Oscar, but was ultimately not nominated. It was also named one of the Top 5 Documentaries of 2023 by the National Board of Review.
What we don’t like:
Thank god for MUBI, as this doc has not been available for any kind of streaming since its release in theaters last Fall.
THELMA - $16.99 Sale / TBD Rental
What we like:
94 year-old June Squibb finally gets a star vehicle as she fronts this delightful comedy from writer-director Josh Margolin. She plays a grandmother who loses $10,000 to a con artist on the phone and embarks on a treacherous journey across Los Angeles to reclaim what was taken from her.
The film has a stellar supporting cast, including Fred Hechinger, Parker Posey, Clark Gregg, and Malcolm McDowell.
Thelma is a hit! The film has grossed over $7M for distributor Magnolia, which in today’s indie marketplace makes it a blockbuster.
What we don’t like:
This is the final film appearance of legendary actor Richard Roundtree, who died last October at the age of 81.
YOUNG WOMAN AND THE SEA - Disney+
What we like:
Daisy Ridley goes full Nyad, playing Gertrude Ederle, an American competitive swimmer who became the first woman to swim across the English Channel.
The film was originally slated to go directly to Disney+, but following positive test screenings and the box office performance of the Amazon MGM Studios sports drama The Boys in the Boat, a limited theatrical release was launched.
What we don’t like:
Unfortunately, the film was no The Boys in the Boat at the box-office. We hope it doesn’t discourage Disney from continuing to give their smaller films theatrical runs.
Happy Streaming Everyone!
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