Welcome to the Weekend Watch. Where we try to point you towards the best ways to spend your viewing time (or, at least, steer you clear of the garbage).
Movies
Wide Release
Once Upon A Time In Hollywood
Loren: I haven’t been into Tarantino since around the Kill Bill movies (they’re ripoffs, not homages, don’t @ me). I know I would enjoy Inglorious but I haven’t taken the time to sit down with it. This on the other hand very much intrigues me. I’ll give it a go at some point.
RDT: I’m not a huge Tarantino fan. I think his ego gets in the way of his talent. That being said, I have been intrigued by the trailers for this. So, I suspect, I’ll see it sooner than later.
Rick: I feel like Tarantino peaked with Inglourious Basterds, and it’s been a steady downslide since then. I’ll wind up seeing this at some point, but I’m not in a tremendous rush.
AJ: I actually got to attend an advanced screening of this one… It’s not perfect, but I enjoyed it. And I definitely laughed when no one else was laughing but oh well!
Josh: Oh boy, am I excited for this. I’m a total mark for Tarantino and this looks to be one of his best. I don’t know what else to say. Who doesn’t know about this movie? Even my mom knows.
Limited Release
The Mountain
Loren: Goldblum is so delightfully weird and now we can also add creepy.
RDT: Oh this is definitely not the movie for me.
Rick: I’m super in for this. While I love comedy Goldblum, I’m excited to see him take on a drama again. I think the last one I saw him in was Igby Goes Down back in 2002(!). Also, hats off to the choice in aspect ratio. Makes it feel like watching a home move from that period.
AJ: I don’t know that anyone loves Jeff Goldblum as much as I do but this looks a little out of my comfort zone. Maybe if it wasn’t nearly two hours long I’d brave it. But I’ll wait til it’s streaming somewhere for free to give it a looksee.
Josh: Jeff Goldblum is a goddamn treasure, but I don’t think I’ll go out of my way to watch this in theaters. On my parent scale of must see in theaters to never gonna watch, this falls right onto wait for streaming.
The Ground Beneath My Feet
Loren: Say what now?
RDT: That one woman looked like whatsherface from the CIA show and the teen show? I have a headache and am literally blanking on all of these. But I can remember Jordan Catalano(sp?).
Rick:
AJ: I looked it up — it’s from Austria. And boy does it look it. Not for me but it is getting a ton of great reviews so I’m sure it’s for many others.
There was a metric ton of news that came out of Comic Con this year and even though Loren was sick the guys suffered through to bring it to you. You’re welcome. They’ve got stories like:
Welcome to the Weekend Watch. Where we try to point you towards the best ways to spend your viewing time (or, at least, steer you clear of the garbage).
Movies
Wide Release
The Lion King
Loren: I, for one, am looking forward to this on pure nostalgia alone. Do we need it? Nope. Does it look as impactful as the original? Not really. Do I want to see it and hear this cast in these roles? Yes. Yes I do.
Rick: This is the absolute laziest of the of modern Disney remakes. It’s like Drawover: The Movie. It’s the family movie equivalent of Gus Van Sant’s Psycho. At this point I feel like Mr. Krabs is running Disney’s feature division, greenlighting anything that will stuff more cash onto its already overflowing coffers. Between that and the original writers/artists not getting credit or residuals, this whole exercise leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Besides that, the original movie ripped off Kimba The White Lion pretty much wholesale (Disney later settled out of court and quietly scrubbed any mention of Kimba from The Lion King’s special features on home video). I haven’t seen the original, and I will never see this remake.
Jen: Sure, I’m not *excited* for this, per se, but I am fine with it. I’ll probably see it eventually since the voice cast is stellar, but I’m not sure the talking “real” animals are any more effective for me that the animated ones.
AJ: I know I am the only one who is excited to hear John Oliver voice Zazu. But I am.
Limited Release
A Faithful Man
Loren: I do love Paris, but I think I’ll end up hating this movie.
Rick: I was interested for the hot second I thought it was going to be a thriller about whether the woman actually killed her baby-daddy. I got less so when it turned out to be a weird French farce. Meh.
Jen: I can’t believe I’m about to type this, but I want to see this movie. The premise is funny, the cast is great, I didn’t even mind the subtitles. I’m as surprised as you guys are, to be honest.
AJ: That critic that said “you can’t get more French than this”? I agree. Hee hee. But I kinda wanna see this, too, shockingly.
Supervized
Loren: No one needs Grumpy Old Supermen.
Rick:
Jen: When did Tom Berenger get so old? See AJ’s note below for my additional feelings on the matter.
AJ: I think the premise is funny. And that is all I’ll say because I was taught to respect my elders. Continue reading →
Welcome to the Weekend Watch. Where we try to point you towards the best ways to spend your viewing time (or, at least, steer you clear of the garbage).
Movies
Wide Release
Stuber
Loren: I really like both of these guys and this looks fun. Not rush out to the theater fun, but definitely sitting at home bored on a weekend fun.
Rick: I feel like someone saw Deadpool and thought “Those bits with Dopinder and Deadpool are funny. We can make a whole movie out of that.” Also, isn’t this just the comedy version of Michael Mann’s Collateral? Regardless, despite my like for both these actors, I’m kind of meh about this.
Jen: OK, this premise *seems* dumb AND overdone, but, two things 1. Kumail Nanjiani 2. That very last gag in the warehouse with the operator made me laugh out loud for a solid minute.
AJ: This just makes my whole body hurt. That looks so… stubid.
Crawl
Loren: That definitely looked more serious than I thought it was going to. I can enjoy a killer animal movie from time to time but I can just about guarantee that the dog isn’t going to make it and that’s like one of my least favorite things in horror/action movies. I’ll wait until I get the go ahead from Rick to see this one.
Rick: It’s been a while since we’ve gotten a good killer gator/crock movie. Even if this is terrible, it’s sparked my desire to do killer animal double feature. So many options…
Jen: I saw this trailer in the theater, it played after all the other trailers and didn’t have the usual MPAA intro card or anything. Most of the audience, myself included, thought it was an ad or one of those “pretend movies where a phone rings and the character turns to the audience” But it was actually just one jump scare and my god was it effective. Enraging, but effective. I don’t plan to see this but kudos, Cinemark.
AJ: I got about :30 into that trailer before I had to stop. Enjoy it, braver people.
Limited Release
Trespassers
Loren: This movie has been done a million times already and probably so much better. I’m all set.
Rick: This is all pretty standard stuff as modern home invasion movies go. If this clocks in at like 80 minutes I might throw it on if I’m bored. Also, I swear that house was used in Velvet Buzzsaw.
Jen: I’m guessing AirBnB didn’t help fund this, huh?
AJ: Look, all I’m saying is, when you’re on vacation and the doorbell rings late at night and someone says DON’T OPEN THE DOOR, you DO NOT OPEN THE DOOR. Continue reading →
Welcome to the Weekend Watch. Where we try to point you towards the best ways to spend your viewing time (or, at least, steer you clear of the garbage).
Loren: Neat. It’s got a little bit of The VVitch and a little bit of The Wicker Man and this guy makes scary fucking movies. I’ll see this at some point.
RDT: I will never see this movie. But it sure does look pretty.
Rick: Well, there’s one thing writer/director Ari Aster doesn’t have to worry about: the sophomore slump. He came out of the gate last year with the criminally underseen Hereditary, and has delivered a gorgeous and unnerving followup in Midsommer. The best way to describe it is if Stanley Kubrick returned from the dead and decided to do his own riff on The Wicker Man. There isn’t a wasted shot, performance, or set piece. Aster has proven himself a true master of dread, shock, and internal turmoil. And it takes a sure craftsman to bring all of those to the fore, especially when 99% of your movie takes place in bright sunshine. I can’t wait to see what he does next.
Jen: This looks like the kind of creepy horror I could actually enjoy from the safety of Rick’s kitchen.
AJ: This trailer sort of had me til I got a glimpse of…. Was that ANIMAL GUTS? No thank you. I recommend everyone go watch 2011’s Sound of My Voice instead.
Limited Release
The Eight Hundred
Loren: I don’t know enough about our own country’s history let alone other ones.
RDT: I will never see this movie for different reasons than why I wouldn’t see the previous one above.
Rick: I know nothing of the context of this story, but this looks like China’s version of Saving Private Ryan/the second half of Full Metal Jacket. I mean, if you have to imitate other movies, there are worse ways to go.
Jen: I… got nothing.
AJ: I will add in a little Empire of the Sun to Rick’s mixtape but I’m passing. Continue reading →
