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 Call of the Wild
Loren: Man, this looks pretty terrible. I remember reading this as a young kid but I tend to get it mixed up with “Stone Fox” which absolutely wrecked me. Let’s hope they never make that into a movie.
RDT: I tried to find the behind the scenes clip where you see the dude in the mocap suit pretending to be the dog, but I didn’t have any luck. I also didn’t look very hard because, ultimately, I don’t care about this movie.
Rick: I saw the trailer for this in front of Little Women back in December. I had to stifle laughter when the dog showed up. That is godawful CGI. Not quite bottom of the barrell, but no kid on earth is going to think that’s a real dog. Ever. There are more realistic looking dogs in the Toy Story movies. This looks terrible on every front. I hope Ford got paid new plane money for this.
AJ: So is this a kids movie? I guess so. I’m not sure how to feel about this. In the end, the animated dog is just throwing me. I wish they could have made this work with a real dog. Or maybe a combination of real and animated. But kudos to Ford for having that grumpy old man market cornered.
Emma
Loren: I kinda love Anya Taylor Joy. This looks pretty good for a genre that I’m not usually a fan of.
RDT: I was not nearly as impressed with this trailer as my cohorts below. As such, I will likely never see this movie. Sorry (not sorry).
Rick: Jane Austen has never been in my wheelhouse, but that is one of the best trailers I’ve seen in ages. Bravo, whomever cut that together. Your work has won me over.
AJ: I’ve never been a Jane Austen person, per se, but I have to tell you, that single moment at the end of the trailer where she flicks the carriage’s window open with her finger? That kills me. I could be persuaded to see this.
Brahams: The Boy II
Loren: I honestly don’t even remember The Boy, so I was a little confused at the sequel of it all. That said at first I was like, “Ok, there’s some decent creepiness to this” but then that last shot with the bees(?) made me laugh out loud. Sorry Brahams, I just don’t care.
RDT: Didn’t want to see the first one. So, I didn’t see it. Can you guess how I feel about seeing the second one?
Rick: Movies that didn’t need sequels: The Boy. But, despite how predictably terrible it was, it made decent box office. And these things are made for couch cushion money, so unless it gets numbers like The Rhythm Section, this one will turn a tidy profit too. Shit like this makes me a sad horror fan. People should be paying to see Come to Daddy instead.
AJ: How many times do we have to endure this “moves into a spooky house” premise? (Not that I ever endure it – I do not see such movies.) I mean, I’ve not heard of the first Boy movie so I’m a little lost here but it’s just not for me. I defer to Rick as the expert in this space. Continue reading →
AJ’s here to cover while Loren is out at British nerdfest, aka Gallifrey 1. And don’t think just because he’s out that that means there will be less tangents. Quite the contrary!
Rick Moranis returns! But not in the sequel you hoped for…..
Eilish, Billie Eilish
Aladdin 2…?
Sonic is good……?
Indy 5 is happening, we guess
David E. Kelley’s sister-in-law is going to star in his new show
Superstore getting supersized!
Masked Singer
The Goonies tv show isn’t what you think it is
Drag Race judges announced
Pete Davidson coming to Netflix, dating a ridiculously hot woman, probably
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
Sonic The Hedgehog
Loren: I didn’t want to be into this but then I saw a clip that actually made me laugh. I’ll catch it at some point.
Rick: I want to give this my money just to show support for the poor animation and VFX teams who had to burn the candle at both ends, in the middle, and anywhere else they could in order to fix the awful first Sonic design. It’s just…it’s so much work. That’s a ground up, start with new model sheets and redo everything up the chain reconstruction. They deserve a ton of credit for pulling it off. Probably not in theaters, but I’ll give this my money on-demand.
Jen: Thanks, but no.
AJ: I know they did a lot of work on this after a rather volatile reception to the first trailer (and rightfully so, it looked like hot garbage), but I can’t say I have any interest in seeing this, all the same. And poor James Marsden, right? Oof.
Fantasy Island
Loren: I don’t hate it? Look if we’re going to still get all these old shows revamped for a movie why not add a twist to it. I do wish it looked like it had a little more teeth but other than that, maybe?
Rick: I hate this. I appreciate trying to maybe make this unique, but this is too far afield. This isn’t Fantasy Island. It’s a horror movie set on an island that they slapped a famous TV show’s name on. And we all saw how well genre-bending The Banana Splits worked out. Oh, we didn’t? Right, because nobody saw it. There’s a reason for that. There’s likely more entertainment value in something like Club Dread, and that movie is hot garbage. Better yet, just watch Zombie Island Massacre:
Jen: I liked the premise at the outset of the trailer, the idea of giving a creepy twist to Fantasy Island, which was always kind of creepy to begin with, was an interesting one, but then it just becomes a normal old horror movie and they lost me.
AJ: I get when studios boot up and reboot franchises like Spider-Man so they can retain the license and keep milking the cash cow, but why this? And this which isn’t even what it was? It’s lazy and not for me anyway because scary.
The Photograph
Loren: It’s a little sacharrhine for my personal taste but I love the pairing of Issa Rae and Lakeith Stanfield. I was a lot more into this than I thought I would be.
Rick: I was all ready to roll my eyes at this, but it actually looks like a decently executed romance. I probably won’t see it, but I’m betting it’ll do well.
Jen: That looks lovely with a phenomenal pair of stars. Just a straight romance without the rom-com-y trappings? I could be down for that.
AJ: It’s kinda refreshing to see just a straight up romance get a wide release in theaters. We don’t get those too often anymore. Issa Rae is having a great time right now and I am here for it. This looks strong. Continue reading →
This week the guys get a little personal before talking about the weeks Pop Culture and Entertainment News. So, business as usual. 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
Birds of Prey
Loren: DC keeps fucking my with their trailers but this could actually be kinda good. I’m probably going to see it. Maybe even in the theater.
RDT: So…..apparently……it’s…..good…..? Yeah, I’m gonna see it.
Rick: Definitely in no rush to see this. If reviews turn out to be decent I’ll catch it down the line, but I’ve been burned by too many crappy DC outings to willingly give my time to any of their output without a glowing recommendation.
Jen: I am of two minds. This trailer is awesome and really makes me want to see this movie. But so did the Suicide Squad trailer and that was… underwhelming. I’m going to approach with caution.
AJ: I’m not over the perfect use of Bjork’s “It’s Oh So Quiet” in this trailer. There are so many elements here that appeal to me – Margot Robbie, Ewan McGregor (as the villain!), ass-kicking women. I’ve got my expectations tempered at this point when it comes to any DC films, but I do want to see this.
Limited Release
Waiting for Anya
Loren: At least Noah Schnapp hasn’t been completely typecast like Finn Wolfhard. Other than that I don’t have much interest in this movie.
RDT: I think I’ll keep waiting. Thanks.
Rick: I checked out the moment “from the author of War Horse” came on screen. Christ, that movie was awful. No thank you.
Jen: Films about the Holocaust provide important catharsis for a world still grieving the loss. So I’m glad they continue to be made. That being said, I don’t need to see ALL of them.
AJ: I’m always a weird sucker for WWII-era/Holocaust films. I am not sure I will get to seeing this in theaters but I am sure I will see it eventually. It’s less than two hours; cut and dry drama, probably something I’d be okay watching from my sofa.
Dream Round
Loren: Jen, I’m not convinced this isn’t a porno. I’ll tell you if it is when it shows up on PornHub.
RDT: What….. the fuck…… was that?
Rick: I had so many thoughts while watching that trailer that my brain basically spun out. I think they hired whomever shot Rollergator to “film” this. Garbage. Utter garbage.
Jen: I could not take my eyes off that. It feels like that trailer broke my brain. Every shot looks like the non-sex part of a porno.
AJ: I have a lot of questions, but let’s start with: RICHARD GRIECO?! What is with that weird trailer narration? Why does this look like my little brother shot it on our handheld video camera circa 1993? Random golf mentor dude dressed in white is totally some kind of ghost, right? Is this is a bad, bad Happy Gilmore-inspired faith film? Too many red flags. That’s a negative, ghost rider. 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
The Rhythm Section
Loren: Yeah this isn’t treading any new ground but I could get into it. A more serious version of Peppermint, without the Lady Punisher stuff. A solid maybe.
Rick: This is just the action movie version of In the Fade, a movie I can’t recommend highly enough (and got snubbed for an hugely deserving Oscar nod). I’m not saying I wouldn’t give this a watch if I need an action fix, but this is still treading very familiar ground.
Jen: I have no interest in movies that use losing a child as character motivation – it feels like that rules out 90% of films these days.
AJ: Looks a little Peppermint’ish, yes? But I actually liked that movie whereas most did not. I just love ass-kicking women. Also, I became a bigger Blake Lively fan after A Simple Favor. I’ll probably check this out with tempered expectations.
Gretel and Hansel
Loren: Why did they use the Orion logo from 1987? Anyway that looks pretty damn good for a take on a classic fairy tale. But as we all know, Grimm fairy tales were way more fucked up than the Disneyesque versions we were given as kids.
Rick: This gets all the points for atmosphere and the claustrophobic 1.33:1 aspect ratio, but it seems like a bit of a stretch to make this a feature. At first blush it would work better as a two-reeler short. I’ll give it a curiosity-watch if the reviews are any good.
Jen: Creepy! Also, don’t search “creepy” as a term on giphy. It’s… upsetting.
AJ: It’s cutting edge this time because they put GRETEL first, see??? But seriously, this looks hella creepy and no thank you.
Limited Release
The Traitor
Loren: I’ve said for a while now that Mafia movies don’t really do anything for me then add in the foreign language element and I’m pretty much out from the get go.
Rick: To answer AJ’s question, it’s not the first movie about Buscetta. There’s one from 1999, a miniseries from 2007, and a documentary came out last year. I can’t say I have any interest in this story, but if I did I think I’d rather watch the doc or read up on it than sit through this movie.
Jen: That looks like it was made in the 70s, which I think, was the intention. And they succeeded. Other than that, I have no feelings on this one.
AJ: I love mob stories. Is this the first time someone’s made a movie about Tommaso Buscetta? That would surprise me…. I’m trying to keep this spoiler free because I know how his story panned out in real life… Anyway, yes, I want to see this. (And thank you, Rick.) 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
The Gentlemen
Loren: Sure, I guess. Not usually a gangster type film guy but this could be fun. At least it’s not taking itself super seriously.
RDT: I’m not a huge Guy Ritchie fan but I did enjoy that trailer. So, yeah, sure, why not?
Rick: This movie needs Statham, but otherwise I’m in.
AJ: Oh Henry Golding, let me love you….. Sorry, what? Oh, the movie? Yeah, okay. I’m in.
The Turning
Loren: Man Finn Wolfhard is just suuuper typecast into these horror flicks. You’d hope that at least they would look better than this one does.
RDT: The only Turning I’ll be doing is turning away from the direction in which this movie is playing!
Sorry…..
Rick: I feel like some sort of A.I. is just cranking out these generic looking scare flicks anymore. It’s like they loaded in some sort of checklist and hit ‘run’. Muted color pallet? ☑ Creepy old house? ☑ With a dark secret? ☑ Young children who are a little “off”? ☑☑ Host of unconvincing jumpscares? ☑☑☑☑☑☑ Gags from other, better movies? ☑ I could keep going, but you get the picture. Mackenzie Davis, you’re better than this.
AJ: The only thing I like here is Mackenzie Davis.
The Last Full Measure
Loren: I shouldn’t feel meh here but alas that’s how I feel.
RDT: I don’t understand this movie. Like, not that it’s confusing, but more that it exists and just looks so terrible. Great cast, but otherwise, the definition of mediocre. Pass.
Rick: With this cavalcade of amazing actors, why the hell does this movie look so cheap? I have a feeling someone called in every favor they ever had for this. I’m not convinced it was worth it.
AJ: Once again I look at the cast here, a veritable roster of Hollywood all stars, including the late great Peter Fonda, and I’m just confounded I’ve heard nothing about this movie til now. Which makes me think that is because someone didn’t think it was worth marketing? Seems like an important story but something about Sebastian Stan uttering “it’ll make good television” felt metaphorical. I’ll wait for the TNT broadcast.
