It’s time to touch down on another week of exciting and unique film releases, with this week’s line-up including a pulpy sci-fi romp by a recognizable auteur, a raunchy comedy starring an Oscar-winning actress, and the return of a literal cult classic…
Movie of the Week
Cinemas
Streaming + On-Demand
Re-Releases
MOVIE OF THE WEEK
Asteroid City (2023, dir. Wes Anderson)
CAST: Jason Schwartzman, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hanks, Jeffrey Wright, Tilda Swinton, Bryan Cranston, Edward Norton, Adrien Brody, Liev Schreiber, Hope Davis, Stephen Park, Rupert Friend, Maya Hawke, Steve Carell, Matt Dillon, Hong Chau, Willem Dafoe, Margot Robbie, Tony Revolori, Jake Ryan, Jeff Goldblum, Sophia Lillis, Fisher Stevens, Ethan Josh Lee, Grace Edwards, Aristou Meehan, Rita Wilson, Jarvis Cocker, Bob Balaban
CREW: Wes Anderson (director, writer, producer), Jeremy Dawson and Steven Rales (producers), Alexandre Desplat (composer), Robert D. Yeoman (cinematographer), Barney Pilling (editor)
PLOT: In 1955, the itinerary of a Junior Stargazer and Space Cadet convention, which is taking place in the desert town of Asteroid City, is interrupted by world-shattering events…
FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:
1) That delightfully quirky auteur Wes Anderson is back with a brand-new outing that displays all of the filmmaker’s best qualities
2) It is also, appropriately enough, the starriest film of his career, with A-listers like Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hanks, Steve Carell and Margot Robbie being only a handful of the many names on the cast list
3) Sadly, Anderson regular Bill Murray isn’t showing up here, since he was forced to pull out after contracted COVID-19 before shooting his scenes
4) Every single aesthetic, from the cinematography to the editing all the way to down to the musical score, is so on-brand for Wes Anderson that it’s honestly impressive
5) There might also be some dabblings in the purely sci-fi genre, which would be a first for a filmmaker known for his out-there style of visual storytelling
Asteroid City is showing in cinemas from Friday 23rd June 2023
WHAT’S SHOWING IN
CINEMAS THIS WEEK?
No Hard Feelings (2023, dir. Gene Stupnitsky)
CAST: Jennifer Lawrence, Andrew Barth Feldman, Matthew Broderick, Laura Benanti, Natalie Morales, Scott MacArthur, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Hasan Minhaj, Kyle Mooney
CREW: Gene Stupnitsky (director, writer), John Phillips (writer), Justine Polsky, Jennifer Lawrence, Naomi Odenkirk, Marc Provissiero and Alex Saks (producers), Eigil Bryld (cinematographer), editor TBA
PLOT: Maddie (Lawrence) is an Uber driver who is about to lose her livelihood after her car is repossessed, until she sees a job listing by a pair of wealthy parents (Broderick and Benanti) looking for someone to date their introverted teenage son Percy (Feldman) before he heads off to college. She accepts the seemingly straightforward task, for which she’ll receive a new car, but Maddie quickly discovers that her new young companion is a trickier nut to crack than she ever anticipated…
FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:
1) Oscar-winner Jennifer Lawrence cuts loose and sharp with a starring role in this raunchy and boundary-pushing new comedy
2) Lawrence also produces the film, which marks a refreshing change in direction for the A-lister’s top-pedigree career
3) Director and co-writer Gene Stupnitsky, who scored a hit with 2019’s Good Boys, aims for some hilariously low-brow moments of humour that may shock you but also have you seriously chortling
4) Teens don’t get more socially awkward than the frightfully introverted Percy, played in a potentially breakout role by theatre actor Andrew Barth Feldman
5) Amidst all the hilariously uncomfortable comedy is a surprising heart that may just make the painful moments feel completely worth it
No Hard Feelings is showing in cinemas from Friday 23rd June 2023
The Super 8 Years (2022, dirs. Annie Ernaux and David Ernaux-Briot)
CAST: Annie Ernaux, David Ernaux-Briot, Blanche Madeleine Dumenil Duchesne, Dominique Ernaux, Éric Ernaux, Philippe Ernaux
CREW: Annie Ernaux (director, writer), David Ernaux-Briot (director), Philippe Martin and David Thion (producers), Florencia Di Concilio (composer), Philippe Ernaux (cinematographer), Clément Pinteaux (editor)
PLOT: Between 1972 and 1981, acclaimed French author Annie Ernaux and her family shot several home videos together, which ended up tying into the themes of her works from the past sixty years…
FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:
1) Annie Ernaux, the highly acclaimed French writer and 2022 Nobel Prize recipient, shares her personal family footage in this fascinating new documentary that she co-directs and writes
2) The footage was captured by several members of Ernaux’s family, including then-husband Philippe Ernaux, who is credited as cinematographer here
3) Fans of Ernaux’s work, including her autobiographical novel Happening which was turned into an award-winning film last year, will find many connections to her work and her private life
4) It offers viewers a rare glimpse into Ernaux’s personal affairs, including her familial relationships and her creative process
5) At just over sixty minutes, this is a brisk viewing experience that’s neatly contained and says everything it needs to say without overstaying its welcome
The Super 8 Years is showing in cinemas from Friday 23rd June 2023
Jesus Revolution (2023, dirs. Jon Erwin and Brent McCorkle)
CAST: Joel Courtney, Jonathan Roumie, Kimberly Williams-Paisley, Anna Grace Barlow, Kelsey Grammer, Nic Bishop, Nicholas Cirillo, Ally Ioannides, Julia Campbell, Mina Sundwall, DeVon Franklin, Charlie Morgan Patton, Jolie Jenkins, Shaun Weiss, Jackson Robert Scott
CREW: Jon Erwin (director, writer, producer), Brent McCorkle (director, composer), Jon Gunn (writer), Kevin Downes, Andrew Erwin, Jerilyn Esquibel, Daryl Lefever and Joshua Walsh (producers), Akis Konstantakopoulos (cinematographer), John Pucket (editor)
PLOT: In the early 1970s, a group of hippies – including teenager Greg Laurie (Courtney) – arrive in the sunny region of Southern California seeking liberation and spirituality. There, charismatic street-preacher Lonnie Frisbee (Roumie) and pastor Chuck Smith (Grammer) open up the doors to Smith’s church and welcome the wandering youthful crowd, forming an evangelical movement in the process…
FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:
1) This uplifting Christian drama tells the inspirational story of the Californian Jesus movement of the early 70s that saw a group of hippies find spiritual awakening that ended up changing their lives
2) Several important figures within the movement are depicted here, including head pastor Chuck Smith (played by Frasier legend Kelsey Grammer) and future evangelist Greg Laurie, who was a teenager at the time of the movement
3) It has already become a huge financial success in the United States, grossing over $50 million at the box office next to its $15 million budget
4) Jon Erwin, known for directing other faith-based films like I Can Only Imagine and I Still Believe with his brother Andrew, directs on his own for the first time (with co-director Brent McCorkle by his side)
5) Whatever your stance on religion, there’s no denying the feel-good factor and rejuvenating feelings that this movie imparts onto its audience
Jesus Revolution is showing in cinemas from Friday 23rd June 2023
The Last Rider (2023, dir. Alex Holmes)
CAST: Greg LeMond, Kathy Lemond, Cyrille Guimard, Pedro Delgado, Laurent Fignon
CREW: Alex Holmes (director, writer), Sam Brayshaw, James Erskine and Victoria Gregory (producers), Samuel Sim (composer), Tristan Chenais, Ryan Earl Parker and Giuseppe Truppi (cinematographers), Paul Monaghan and Gibran Ramos (editors)
PLOT: In 1986, American cyclist Greg LeMond becomes the first non-European athlete to win the Tour de France, but a year later he barely survives a hunting accident, and then defies the odds by making a miraculous recovery and then winning the 1989 event by impossible margins…
FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:
1) This thrilling sports documentary tells the amazing tale of cyclist Greg LeMond and his unbelievable comeback journey
2) LeMond and numerous others recount their versions of events for the camera, complete with archive footage of the main subject at the peak of his athletic condition
3) Filmmaker Alex Holmes paces his film with as much thrilling suspense and eager anticipation as the most tightknit of cycling races
4) LeMond’s rivalry with French cyclist Laurent Fignon, who sadly passed in 2010, is a major focus leading into their ultimate showdown in 1989
5) You may just be inspired enough to get out your own bike and subsequent equipment and start peddling away on the roads surrounding you!
The Last Rider is showing in cinemas from Friday 23rd June 2023
WHAT’S SHOWING AT
HOME THIS WEEK?
The Perfect Find (2023, dir. Numa Perrier)
CAST: Gabrielle Union, Gina Torres, Keith Powers, La La Anthony, Aisha Hinds, Janet Hubert, Latoia Fitzgerald, Remy Ma, Diana Noris, Phoenix Noelle, Ts Madison, Numa Perrier
CREW: Numa Perrier (director), Leigh Davenport (writer), Jeff Morrone, Codie Elaine Oliver, Tommy Oliver and Gabrielle Union (producers), Amanda Delores Patricia Jones (composer), Eric Lin (cinematographer), Paul Millspaugh (editor)
PLOT: After losing her job and her boyfriend, Jenna (Union) returns to New York to reignite her career in fashion journalism. She soon lands a high-maintenance job working for cutthroat mogul Darcy (Torres), but she also finds herself attracted to her much younger videographer Eric (Powers), who happens to be Darcy’s son. Jenna must now decide whether she wants to risk her growing career on a whirlwind romance with her younger lover…
FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:
1) Gabrielle Union is a delightful presence as the lead in this sweet and winning rom-com that based on Tia Williams’ 2016 novel
2) The actor also produces for director Numa Perrier, who has a small supporting role in her own movie
3) It is set in the cutthroat world of fashion journalism, making it a possible spiritual successor to The Devil Wears Prada
4) Leigh Davenport, the creator of hit new show Run the World, brings her sharp wit and sense of sass to the screenplay
5) Full of love, laughs, and lots of heart, this is a rom-com that is worth watching with your significant other
The Perfect Find is streaming exclusively on Netflix from Friday 23rd June 2023
World’s Best (2023, dir. Roshan Sethi)
CAST: Utkarsh Ambudkar, Manny Magnus, Punam Patel, Jake Choi, Max Malas, Piper Wallace, Kayla Njeri, Dorian Giordano, Kathryn Greenwood, Christopher Jackson, Doug E. Fresh
CREW: Roshan Sethi (director), Utkarsh Ambudkar (writer, producer), Jamie King (writer), Thomas Kail and Kate Sullivan (producers), Jongnic Bontemps and Raashi Kulkarni (composers), Sing Howe Yam (cinematographer), Jonah Moran (editor)
PLOT: Prem Patel (Magnus) is a 12-year-old maths prodigy navigating the hardships of young adolescence. Upon discovering that his recently deceased father Suresh (Ambudkar) was a world-famous rapper, Prem sets out to become a hip-hop star in his own right, risking everything he’s built up for himself to see if he has what it takes to follow in his late father’s footsteps…
FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:
1) Disney’s newest original musical is a rap-filled frenzy that features as much sentimentality as it does some sick rhymes
2) Utkarsh Ambudkar, a standout player in Blindspotting and Free Guy, co-writes this fresh new coming-of-age story
3) Ambudkar also has a ghostly supporting role among a cast that features some strong South Asian representation, including from young lead Manny Magnus
4) Among the producers is Thomas Kail, who previously brought Lin-Manuel Mirand’s landmark stage musical Hamilton to Disney+ during the 2020 pandemic
5) There’s a surprising tenderness that gives this story a real emotional weight
World’s Best is streaming exclusively on Disney+ from Friday 23rd June 2023
Stars at Noon (2022, dir. Claire Denis)
CAST: Margaret Qualley, Joe Alwyn, Benny Safdie, Danny Ramirez, Nick Romano, Stephan Proaño, Monica Bartholomew, Carlos Bennett, Sebastián Donoso, Hector Moreno, Robin Duran, Jose Leonel Hernandez, Cristian Pulido, John C. Reilly
CREW: Claire Denis (director, writer), Andrew Litvack and Léa Mysius (writers), Olivier Delbosc (producer), Tindersticks (composer), Eric Gautier (cinematographer), Guy Lecorne (editor)
PLOT: American travel writer Trish (Qualley) finds herself stranded in Nicaragua, where the tense political climate is fierce against any and all oppressors. She soon meets and falls for Daniel (Alwyn), an enigmatic British businessman who might provide her with the best possible chance to escape, but she starts to suspect that he is more dangerous than he lets on…
FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:
1) Legendary French filmmaker Claire Denis dabbles in the English language once again with her elegant and erotic adaptation of Denis Johnson’s 1986 novel The Stars at Noon
2) Margaret Qualley and Joe Alwyn form a passionate pairing as the central romantic couple whose motivations are shrouded in mystery
3) It won the 2022 Cannes Film Festival’s Grand Prix award – the second-most prestigious prize of the festival, just below the Palme D’Or – despite some initial division amongst audiences
4) The sunny backdrops of Panama fill in for the main setting of Nicaragua, where Denis refused to shoot after the re-election of totalitarian President Ortega
5) It’s a gripping psychological thriller with dashes of intimate romance, made believable by the grounded performances and filmmaking
Stars at Noon is available to rent/buy on digital platforms from Monday 19th June 2023
The Black Demon (2023, dir. Adrian Grunberg)
CAST: Josh Lucas, Fernanda Urrejola, Héctor Jiménez, Julio Cesar Cedillo, Venus Ariel, Raúl Méndez, Jorge A. Jimenez, Edgar Flores, Omar Patin, Arturo Duvergé, Luis del Valle, Carlos Solórzano
CREW: Adrian Grunberg (director), Boise Esquerra (writer), Javier Chapa and Jon Silk (producers), Leonardo Heiblum and Jacobo Lieberman (composers), Antonio Riestra (cinematographer), Sam Baixauli and V. Manu Medina (editors)
PLOT: Paul Sturges (Lucas) takes his family to a coastal town in Mexico to visit an oil rig that his company owns. They arrive to find the town largely abandoned, with the remaining workers living in fear of a legendary megalodon shark that has been attacking the rig. Now, Paul must find a way to protect his family and stop the shark from completing its destructive mission…
FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:
1) Before this summer’s blockbuster sequel Meg 2: The Trench, get your helping of big shark action in this tense survival thriller
2) Josh Lucas headlines a cast largely made up of Latinx actors, who all deliver the kind of B-movie thrills you’d expect from a movie like this
3) Rambo: Last Blood director Adrian Grunberg dials up the violence in a film where nobody is safe from the shark’s fierce wrath
4) It has plenty of pro-environmental messaging on its mind, particularly regarding the discussion of big oil firms polluting the sea in which our main shark swims
5) There’s plenty of action and suspense in this nail-biting creature feature movie where the monster might not necessarily be the giant shark
The Black Demon is available to rent/buy on digital platforms from Monday 19th June 2023
WHAT’S RETURNING TO
CINEMAS THIS WEEK?
The Wicker Man (1973, dir. Robin Hardy)
CAST: Edward Woodward, Christopher Lee, Britt Ekland, Annie Ross, Rachel Verney, Lesley Mackie, Diane Cilento, Ingrid Pitt, Lindsay Kemp, Ian Campbell, Russell Waters, Aubrey Morris, Irene Sunter, Jennifer Martin, Donald Eccles, Walter Carr, Roy Boyd, Peter Brewis, Geraldine Cowper, John Young, Myra Forsyth, Alison Hughes, Barbara Rafferty
CREW: Robin Hardy (director), Anthony Shaffer (writer), Peter Snell (producer), Paul Giovanni (composer), Harry Waxman (cinematographer), Eric Boyd-Perkins (editor)
PLOT: Sergeant Neil Howie (Woodward), a devout Christian, visits the Pagan island of Summerisle just off the coast of Scotland. There, he investigates the disappearance of a 12-year-old girl named Rowan Morrison (Cowper), but finds that many of the locals are convinced that the girl does not exist, leading him to make a number of alarming discoveries about the community…
FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:
1) Robin Hardy’s influential 70s horror is back in cinemas for its 50th anniversary, just in time for the Summer Solstice
2) The film features numerous British screen legends among the cast including Edward Woodward, Britt Ekland and Christopher Lee, who in an interview called it the best film he had worked on
3) It has become a significant classic among the ranks of British horror, and was even responsible for bringing giant wicker man statues into the public consciousness (so, you could effectively say that popular US festival Burning Man is directly inspired by this movie!)
4) The movie was remake in 2006 with Nicolas Cage in the lead role, but the less said about that one, the better…
5) It has been re-edited and re-released in many forms, with this particular release being the Final Cut that was assembled from a discovered 35mm print, and was overseen by Hardy himself before his death in 2016
The Wicker Man is showing in cinemas from Wednesday 21st June 2023
That’s about it for this week – thanks for joining us, and be sure to come back next week for a whole new set of movies to work up an appetite for!
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