How often have you wanted to return to Hogwarts and spend time with Harry, Hermione, Ron and the other delightful characters written beautifully by J. K. Rowling?
In 2011, before the release of the last Harry Potter movie, YouGov America reported that 18 percent of those surveyed had read all the Harry Potter books. And 31 percent had read at least one book.
The story of Harry Potter is over with the disintegration of Voldemort in the last book and movie. We can still appreciate the seven books and eight movies by re-reading and re-watching the telling of a fantastic story.
Perhaps that is why HBOMax brings us Harry Potter’s 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts on New Year’s Day. Viewers watch as actors reminisce about working on one of the world’s finest movie franchises.
Directed by Robert Eggers, who wrote the screenplay with Sjon, The Northman follows a Viking prince, Amleth, played by Alexander Skarsgard. Amleth’s mission is to revenge his father’s murder, which becomes his journey from a child to an adult.
The movie takes place in Iceland during the turn of the tenth century.
Young Prince Amleth, played by Oscar Novak, is on the cusp of becoming a man when his father, played by Ethan Hawke, is brutally murdered by his uncle, Claes Bang, who kidnaps the boy’s mother, played by Nicole Kidman. Fleeing his island kingdom by boat, the child vows revenge.
Two decades later, Amleth, played by Alexander Skarsgard, is a Viking berserker raiding Slavic villages, where a seeress, played by Bjork, reminds him of his vow to avenge his father, save his mother, and kill his uncle.
Traveling on a slave ship to Iceland, Amleth infiltrates his uncle’s farm with the help of Olga, played by Anya Taylor-Joy, an enslaved Slavic woman — and sets out to honor his vow.
Eggers also directed The Witch, Anya Taylor-Joy’s first movie, The Lighthouse, comes an immersive Viking epic featuring an ensemble cast including Willem Dafoe.
“This is a big, muscular adventure, grander in scale than his previous films,” says Willem Dafoe, who co-starred in The Lighthouse and played the court jester Heimir the Fool in The Northman. “But Robert approaches it with the same kind of detail, creating sets, props and even shots that are made with such precision and care that the pretending on the part of the audience becomes effortless. Inside each shot of this movie, there is a rhythm and a story and a dynamic that’s beautiful on its own. Everything’s there on (the) screen; you don’t simply enter Eggers’ worlds — you get folded into them.”
Directed by Sean McNamara, in 1684 France, Louis XIV, played by Pierce Brosnan, – the Sun King – is the most powerful monarch on the planet.
His birthday and a rare solar eclipse are approaching, and he’s worried about the future of France. His spiritual advisor, Père La Chaise, played by William Hurt, comforts him.
His physician, Dr. Labarthe, played by Pablo Schreiber, informs him that scientists believe mermaids contain a life force that grants immortality.
Louis commissions Yves, a young sea captain played by Benjamin Walker, to search the North Seas for the heretofore-mythical sea creature.
Meanwhile, to help pay off war debts, Louis brings to Court Marie-Josèphe, played by Kaya Scodelario, the daughter of the mistress he always loved.
Orphaned at a convent since birth, Marie-Josèphe is educated and musically gifted yet bears inherent defiance of authority. Père feels he can use Marie-Josèphe to tap into the deep pockets of Lintillac, played by Ben Lloyd-Hughes, a wealthy young merchant angling for a position at court and using her musical abilities to satisfy Louis’ ear.
As the week of the Eclipse begins, Yves returns to Versailles, successfully capturing a mermaid played by Fan Bingbing. They order him to place her in a reservoir beneath the Grotto of Thetis and restore her to total health.
Marie-Josèphe discovers the mermaid, and the two quickly develop a mysterious communication ability. Kindred spirits forge an empathic bond based on a common thread: the mermaid, in her capture, has been separated from her children and yearns to be reunited, and Marie-Josèphe still longs to know her parents. Marie-Josèphe also falls in love with Yves, not knowing he is the mermaid’s captor.
Eventually, Marie-Josèphe finds out that Louis has planned not only to marry her off to Lintillac, whom she hates, but, worse yet, to kill the mermaid. When confronting Louis, she learns the secret that has shrouded her life: the King is her father. Her heart leaps at the revelation, but the King is more concerned with the future of France than building a relationship with his daughter.
In the end, Marie-Josèphe understands she must defy her father, her King, to rescue the mermaid.
“When I read the novel The Moon and the Sun by Vonda McIntyre, I completely fell under its magical spell. A King, a secret daughter, and an incredible mermaid that lived in the fountains of Versailles,” tells McNamara. “I love to make inspirational movies that delight audiences around the Globe. We adapted the book into the feature film The King’s Daughter.”
McNamara made films like Soul Surfer, Spare Parts, and The Miracle Season, branched out, and made a fantasy film that the audience appreciated. “When you meet the mermaid, I want you to feel her journey as she adapts to her new world and meets Marie-Josephe D’Alember.”
McNamara’s love for music and his love of the ocean come together as Marie-Josephe plays her cello and communicates magically with the mermaid.
Even the love affair between Yves and Marie-Josephe is one of the ages. “It’s pure and whimsical. In fact, after playing the roles in the movie, Kaya Scodelario and Benjamin Walker fell in love in real life and now have two beautiful children.”
Directed by Pierre Perifel and based on a popular Scholastic book series by Aaron Blabey, The Bad Guys is about five friends. A crackerjack criminal crew of animal outlaws tries to become model citizens and turn good.
After years of countless heists and being the world’s most-wanted villains, they finally caught the gang. Mr. Wolf makes a deal, which he doesn’t plan on keeping, to save them all from prison. The Bad Guys decide they better be good.
The voice cast includes Sam Rockwell, Marc Maron, Anthony Ramos and Awkwafina.
Co-directed by Aaron and Adam Nee, The Lost City follows a reclusive romance novelist, played by Sandra Bullock. She’s on a book tour with her cover model, played by Channing Tatum.
They both get swept up in a kidnapping attempt that lands them both in a cutthroat jungle adventure.
Daniel Radcliffe plays the villain and Brad Pitt comes to save the day. The rest of the cast includes Patti Harrison, Oscar Nunez and Da’Vine Joy Randolph.
Written and directed by Goran Stolevski, You Won’t Be Alone takes place in an isolated mountain village in 19th century Macedonia, Southeast Europe. The story follows a young girl kidnapped and then transformed into a witch by an ancient spirit.
Curious about life as a human, the young witch accidentally kills a peasant in the nearby village and then takes her victim’s shape to live life in her skin.
Her curiosity ignited. She continued to will the horrific power to understand what it means to be human.
Noomi Rapace, Anamaria Marinca, Alice Englert, Carloto Cotta, Felix Maritaud and Sara Klimoska star in the movie.
Tom Gormican directed The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent starring Nicolas Cage, who is Nicolas Cage in this action-comedy.
Creatively unfulfilled and facing financial ruin, the fictionalized version of Cage must accept a $1 million offer to attend the birthday of a dangerous superfan, played by Pedro Pascal.
Things take a wildly unexpected turn when a CIA operative, played by Tiffany Haddish, recruits and forces him to live up to his legend.
He channels his most iconic and beloved on-screen characters to save himself and his loved ones.
Pedro Pascal as Javi and Nicolas Cage as Nic Cage in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent. Photo Credit: Katalin Vermes/Lionsgate
It appears clips and references to Cage’s movies are part of the script. So, he built his career by playing Nicolas Cage at this moment.
Sharon Horgan, Ike Barinholtz, Alessandra Mastronardi, Jacob Scipio, Lily Sheen, and Neil Patrick Harris also star in the movie.
Bringing back David Yates, Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore introduces Mads Mikkelsen as Grindelwald, a wizarding villain that Johnny Depp played prior.
The rest of the cast includes Katherine Waterston, Ezra Miller, Jude Law and Eddie Redmayne.
Directed by Swinton O. Scott III, Diary of a Wimpy Kid delivers an animated movie filled with similar situations described in Jeff Kinney’s bestselling books. In this 56-minute movie, Greg Heffley, voiced by Brady Noon, enters middle school and potentially explosive problems and hazards to friendships.
Personified as a digital, bulbous boy, Heffley appears to stumble through misadventures with his buddy, Rowley, voiced by Ethan William Childress. Together they ride out the dreadful mishaps of trying to social fit as a middle schooler. As seen in the trailer, the importance of saying “hang out” instead of “come over and play.” Remember not to go near or touch the revolting piece of swiss cheese in the playground.
Whether they’ve read the books, kids will enjoy the movie, and perhaps encourage them to pick up one of Kinny’s books to read since the film is less than an hour. Kids might want to read about more of Heffley’s mishaps.
Thank you, New York Times information about the movie.
