Monthly Archives: June 2021

Unparalleled Comedy “First Date” Feels Mainstream

Co-directed by Manuel Crosby and Darren Knapp, shy high schooler Mike, played by Tyson Brown, finally summons the courage to ask out his badass neighbor Kelsey, played by Shelby Duclos. Only to realize he’s missing an essential element for a successful date – the car. Panicked and low on cash, someone cons him into buying a beat-up ’65 Chrysler.

Mike’s plan to win over Kelsey soon turns into a surreal misadventure when they encounter some mishaps: a pair of cops inexplicably targeted them, a criminal gang, and a vengeful cat lady. A night fueled by desire, bullets, and burning rubber makes any other first date seem like a walk in the park.

The story weaves together elements of dark comedy, teen romance, shoot-’em-up action and classic coming-of-age tale. The rhythm of the trailer is so funny, great timing.

The movie clip below is so funny.

“Halloween Kills” Absolutely Lowest Horror Never Ends

Co-written by David Gordon Green, Danny McBride and Scott Teems and directed by Green, Halloween Kills is again on the silver screen. 

Based on characters created by John Carpenter and Debra Hill, the film brings back Jamie Lee Curtis and Judy Greer with Anthony Michael Hall. Curtis is now the executive producer and, of course, still stars in the horror movie. 

Fed up with Michael Myers hunting them, the citizens of Haddonfield decide to hunt Myers down. It begins where we left off on Halloween night. Minutes after Laurie Strode, played by Curtis, her daughter Karen, played by Greer, and a granddaughter, played by Matichak, left the masked monster Myers caged and burning in Laurie’s basement.

They rush Laurie to the hospital with life-threatening injuries, believing she finally killed her lifelong tormentor. However, Myers frees himself from Laurie’s trap. His ritual bloodbath resumes. Laurie overcomes her pain and prepares to define herself against him. She inspires all of Haddonfield to rise up and stop this monster.

The strode women join a group of Myer survivors from his first rampage. They decide to take matters into their own hands and form a vigilante. Like a mob with pitchforks and torches, they set out to hunt Myers down, once and for all — evil dies tonight.

Remarkable “Sing 2” Breakthrough Musical Performances

Written and directed by Garth Jennings, Buster, Meena, Rosita, Gunter, Johnny and Ash prepare for a bigger stage and a brighter spotlight as they leave the Moon Theater for the big city in SING 2.

This animation feature is on the dovetails of the creators of Despicable Me, Minions and The Secret Life of Pets.

The next chapter welcomes Matthew McConaughey and Reese Witherspoon back, alongside Scarlett Johansson, Taron Egerton, Nick Kroll and Tori Kelly.

Hilarious Look at Discovering “How It Ends”

Co-written and co-directed by Zoe Lister-Jones and Daryl Wein, How It Ends follows freewheeling Liza, played by Zoe Lister-Jones. She scores an invitation to one last wild party before the world ends.

The catch is she takes her younger self, played by Cailee Spaeny, with her. This is a feel-good apocalyptic comedy, and making it to the party won’t be easy after her car gets stolen, and the clock is ticking on her plan to tie up loose ends with friends and family. Liza embarks on a hilarious journey across Los Angeles, running into an eclectic cast of characters.

The sizeable stellar cast includes Whitney Cummings, Tawny Newsome, Finn Wolfard, Nick Kroll, Logan Marshall Green, Bobby Lee, Fred Armisen, Glenn Howerton, Bradley Whitford, Ayo Edebiri, Sharon Van Etten, Olivia Wilde, Paul W. Downs, Raymond Cham Jr., Lamorne Morris, Angelique Cabral, Rob Huebel, Paul Scheer, Helen Hunt, Colin Hanks, Charlie Day, Mary Elizabeth Ellis, Pauly Shore.

“The Ice Road” Film Clips and Images

BENJAMIN WALKER as VARNAY, AMBER MIDTHUNDER as TANTOO, LIAM NEESON as MIKE. CR: NETFLIX © 2021

Written and directed by Jonathan Hensleigh, The Ice Road is intense as you watch the film clips. The Netflix trailer is available on the streaming channel. Still, these two clips are nerve-wracking as they attempt their rescue mission.

BENJAMIN WALKER as VARNAY, AMBER THUNDER ROSE MIDTHUNDER as TANTOO, MARCUS THOMAS as GURTY, LIAM NEESON as MIKE. CR: NETFLIX © 2021

When a remote diamond mine collapses in the far northern regions of Canada, an ice driver, played by Liam Neeson, orchestrates a rescue mission. The catch is they have to drive their 18-wheelers over a frozen ocean to save the miner’s lives. The waters were thawing, and they confronted threats they didn’t see coming.

Also starring are Marcus Thomas, Laurence Fishburne, Benjamin Walker, and Amber Midthunder.

“The Eyes of Tammy Faye” Ultimately Highest to Absolutely Lowest

Jessica Chastain as “Tammy Faye Bakker” and Andrew Garfield as “Jim Bakker” in the film THE EYES OF TAMMY FAYE. Photo by Daniel McFadden. © 2021 20th Century Studios All Rights Reserved

Directed by Michael Showalter, The Eyes of Tammy Faye takes an intimate look at the extraordinary rise, fall and redemption of televangelist Tammy Faye Bakker, played by Jessica Chastain.

In the 1970s and 80s, Tammy Faye and her husband, Jim Bakker, played by Andrew Garfield, rose from humble beginnings to create the world’s largest religious broadcasting network and theme park. The public revered their message of love, acceptance and prosperity.

Tammy Faye was legendary for her indelible eyelashes, her idiosyncratic singing, and her eagerness to embrace people from all walks of life. However, it wasn’t long before financial improprieties, scheming rivals, and scandal toppled their carefully constructed empire.

With these two powerhouse actors, we are going to see some fine acting, but we already know the storyline.

Jessica Chastain does meticulous preparation and research when developing characters, and becoming Tammy Faye was no different. She studied Tammy Faye Bakker for seven years, memorizing all of her mannerisms and vocal inflections from the hours of tape she watched.

Impressed, Michael Showalter says, “Her bar is very high, her level of dedication, perfectionism and preparedness. The level of the performance, the depths that she’s willing to go to. It’s amazing to work with an actor like that because they give so much.”

Building a character based on a well-known public figure is always a challenge, but Chastain’s biggest hurdle was overcoming how other people perceived Tammy Faye. “I spent years looking at footage of her and never once saw mascara running down her face,” said Chastain. “Tammy Faye was nothing like the caricature the media fed off of. She was the ordained minister Jim wasn’t. She preached acceptance and compassion and meant it, and that’s what we wanted people to see in this film. When everyone turned their backs on people with HIV and AIDS, she invited a high-profile gay pastor who had AIDS to be on her show. She also hosted Praise The Lord network shows all day long, wrote four books and released twenty-four albums. She never got paid for any of it. She gave her money back to the church.”

Chastain had been in close touch with Tammy Faye’s children before and during production. Tammy Faye’s daughter, Tammy Sue, and her two children traveled to set for the pivotal interview scene with HIV/AIDS activist Steve Pieters, played by actor Randy Havens, a gay minister who candidly spoke with Tammy about his illness, coming out and losing his partner. By the end of the shoot, family members were in tears, stunned and moved by the emotion the scene evoked. Bailey and Barbato also recognized the significance of her contribution to the LGBTQIA community, saying, “Homosexuality has often been demonized by the Christian community. At a time when people shrank from HIV and AIDS, Tammy was having none of it. She didn’t believe in labeling people. She understood the power of the camera to look into the eyes of people far and wide and share the truth.”

Playing a singer was another test for Chastain, whose previous musical experience only included college experience. Drawing inspiration from Tammy Faye, she dove right into an area outside of her comfort zone. “She was never embarrassed,” the actress added. “People were drawn to her because she was unique. She used her platform to advocate for a celebration of our differences and knowing that made it easier for me to perform.” It inspired Andrew Garfield in his role as Jim as well. “Tammy is so rooted into Jessica’s heart, and that’s an amazing place to come from. You follow her into the fray because of that; because she’s so passionate and devoted.”

“I won’t go forward looking in the rearview mirror of my life.”
– Tammy Faye Bakker

Chastain and Garfield connected before shooting and began sending each other articles and videos about the Bakkers, but their commitment to building the characters’ relationship didn’t stop there. “Once we got to Charlotte, North Carolina, we would go to church every Sunday at Heritage USA,” Chastain recalled. “It became a weekly thing. We saw people that we recognized from watching the documentaries who had worked with Jim and Tammy. They were generous in giving us their insight. It was an incredible and inspiring way to start the work week.”

Being from the UK, Garfield wasn’t initially familiar with Bakker’s story, so he had a fresh perspective on the couple. “I knew that Tammy Faye was an icon in the LGBTQ community, but I didn’t know anything else,” said Garfield. “It’s a very American story, even the evangelical movement is a very American movement.”

Spirituality had always captivated Garfield and how ego and money can bastardize nearly every spiritual movement. Jim initially met Tammy Faye at North Central Bible College after leaving behind a “sinful” life as a rock’n’roll-loving DJ and devoted himself to serving Christ. Later on, when he and Tammy Faye founded Praise The Lord (PTL), the world’s largest religious broadcasting network, their success and wealth twisted Jim’s perception of his own faith. While researching Jim’s decline, it struck Garfield how many preachers equated God’s love with material wealth instead of redemption in the afterlife.

“Jim’s actually a very complicated person,” says Garfield. “I found it easy to fall in love with him. What he and Tammy did was really radical. They created a wild alternative to other Christian broadcasting of the time. They had a longing to heal people. Instead of waiting for joy in heaven, they advocated for happiness in the here and now. His downfall was that he lost sight of all of that, and I found his fallibility fascinating.”

Showalter also recognized the importance of portraying Jim Bakker in a more nuanced way. “Andrew really found humanity to Jim Bakker and… really forced us all to see Jim, not just as a two-dimensional character… we could have gone down that path, and I’m so glad we didn’t. Andrew has created this incredibly complicated, deeply flawed but also compelling character in Jim.”

“Ron’s Gone Wrong” Challenge of Social Media Relationships

Co-directed by Sarah Smith Jean-Philippe Vine and Octavio E. Rodriguez, Ron’s Gone Wrong follows Barney, voiced by Jack Dylan Grazer, socially awkward middle-schooler, and Ron, voiced by Zach Galifianakis, his new walking, talking, digitally connected device.

Ron is supposedly his “Best Friend out of the Box.” Ron’s hilarious malfunctions set against the backdrop of the social media age. Launch them into an action-packed journey in which boy and robot come to terms with the wonderful messiness of genuine friendship.

Other voice actors include Olivia Coleman, Ed Helms, Justice Smith and Kylie Cantrall.

“Paw Patrol: The Movie” Sparkles with Celebrity Voices and Cute Dogs

Co-written and directed by Cal Brunker based on Billy Frolick story with Frolick and Bob Barlen co-writing the screenplay, PAW Patrol: The Movie begins with their biggest rival, Humdinger, becomes Mayor of nearby Adventure City and starts wreaking havoc, Ryder and everyone’s favorite heroic pups kick into high gear to face the challenge head-on.  

Gus (voiced by Tyler Perry) and Chase (voiced by Iain Armitage) in PAW PATROL: THE MOVIE from Paramount Pictures. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Spin Master.

While one pup must face his past in Adventure City, the team finds help from a new ally, the savvy dachshund Liberty. Together, armed with exciting new gadgets and gear, the PAW Patrol fights to save the citizens of Adventure City. 

If you’ve watched the television series, then you are in for a treat with a full-length movie. 

The cast includes Iain Armitage, Marsai Martin, Yara Shahidi, Kim Kardashian West, Randall Park, Dax Shepard, Tyler Perry, Jimmy Kimmel and Will Brisbin.

Anthony Bourdain

“Roadrunner” Documentary of an Icon Chef, Anthony Bourdain

Written and directed by Morgan Neville, Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain is a documentary about Chef, writer, adventurer and provocateur.

Anthony Bourdain stars in Morgan Neville’s documentary, ROADRUNNER, a Focus Features release. Courtesy of Dmitri Kasterine / Focus Features

He lived his life unabashedly in an intimate, behind-the-scenes look at how an anonymous chef became a world-renowned cultural icon. Neville gives us an unflinching look at Bourdain’s resounding presence, in his own voice, and in the way he indelibly affected the world around him.

Drawing on previously unseen footage from Bourdain’s television shows, all-new interviews with his friends and family, and Bourdain’s own wry and instantly recognizable voiceovers, Neville creates a record of an extraordinary man’s unexpected rise to stardom as a celebrity chef, book author, journalist and travel documentarian. 

Anthony Bourdain (left) and Ottavia Busia-Bourdain (right) star in Morgan Neville’s documentary, ROADRUNNER, a Focus Features release.
Courtesy of Discovery Access / Focus Features

The story, the filmmaker realized early in the filmmaking process, is one of constant transformation. “In the beginning, I wasn’t sure what the film was going to be about,” he says. “I only knew I wanted to celebrate the joy and excitement and humor of the man. But I soon found the story I wanted to tell was how a hard-living, irreverent chef at a mediocre New York restaurant suddenly shot to fame at the age of 44 and what happened after that. Not many people in their mid-40s suddenly go from utter obscurity to absolute fame.”

“Reminiscence” Drives Backwards into Time

Written and directed by Lisa Joy, Reminiscence follows Nick Bannister, played by Hugh Jackman, as a scientist who develops a technology to go back into time. He searches for his long, lost love, played by Rebecca Ferguson.

Also starring in this science fiction movie are Thandiwe Newton, Natalie Martinez and Brett Cullen.