Directed by Joseph Kosinski and starring Tom Cruise, Top Gun: Maverick storyline is hush-hush, right now. But, watch the trailer, and you’ll get a gest of what is happening. All I can say is it looks like the same formula as the first Top Gun. We are fortunate to have Cruise introduce the first trailer to us at San Diego ComicCon.
Tom Cruise plays Capt. Pete “Maverick” Mitchell in Top Gun: Maverick from Paramount Pictures, Skydance, and Jerry Bruckheimer Films.
Tom Cruise plays Capt. Pete “Maverick” Mitchell in Top Gun: Maverick from Paramount Pictures, Skydance, and Jerry Bruckheimer Films.
The movie trailer says it all. The movie formula fits the original movie storyline.
The featurette takes you to another realm. Fantastic footage captured for IMAX theaters.
The Superbowl ad narration tells us there is a conflict going on between Maverick and Goose’s son. Ad narration tells us there is a conflict going on between Maverick and Goose’s son. The cuts and shots of the top guns are incredible.
Directed by Niki Caro, Mulan is the live-action feature film of the animated feature film the Disney Studios produced in 1998.
A young Chinese maiden, played by Yifei Liu, disguises herself as a male warrior so she can save her father.
Caro’s directing credits include The Zookeeper’s Wife, North Country, and Whale Rider. The screenplay has several co-writers, including Lauren Hynek, Rick Jaffa, Elizabeth Martin, and Amanda Silver.
Disney Studios is quiet about the storyline, but rumors are the dragon Mushu, voiced by Eddie Murphy in the original animated movie, will not be in this movie.
I was skeptical about the film, but after seeing the second trailer, I am utterly interested. I hope the story holds throughout and is not too slow.
The third trailer shows us more of the action and the story. It introduces the fact that the enemy has a witch fighting with him. I don’t think that was in the original animated version. So, there are some changes, which make this more unique and promising.
It is all about stunts, and Mulan has plenty of action sequences.
Kevin Hart, Dwayne Johnson, Karen Gillan, and Jack Black Photo credit: Hiram Garcia
The whole gang is back for more.
Co-written and directed by Jake Kasdan, Jumanji: The Next Level brings the gang back together, but this time the game shifts.
The players return to Jumanji to rescue one of their own. They discover that nothing is as they expect. The players will face brave parts unknown and unexplored, from the arid deserts to the snowy mountains, in order to escape the world’s most dangerous game.
Jeff Pinkner and Scott Rosenberg co-wrote the screenplay with Kasdan. All three worked on Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle with Kasdan directing.
The cast includes Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, Nick Jonas, Awkwafina, Ser’Darius Blain, Madison Iseman, Morgan Turner, Alex Wolff, Danny Glover, and Danny DeVito.
Directed by Walt Dohrn, Anna Kendrick and Justin Timberlake return in a massive cast of talented stars to the sequel Trolls World Tour. The movie is an adventure. We follow Poppy, played by Kendrick, and Branch, played by Timberlake, to a place where they discover they are but one of six different Troll tribes. Each scattered over six different lands and devoted to six different kinds of music: Funk, Country, Techno, Classical, Pop, and Rock. Their world is about to get a lot bigger and a whole lot louder.
A member of hard-rock royalty, Queen Barb, played by Rachel Bloom, aided by her father King Thrash, played by Ozzy Osbourne, wants to destroy all other kinds of music to let rock reign supreme.
Because the fate of the world at stake, Poppy and Branch, along with their friends — Biggie, played by James Corden, Chenille, played by Caroline Hjelt, Satin, played by Aino Jawo, Cooper, played by Ron Funches, and Guy Diamond, played by Kunal Nayyar — set out to visit all the other lands. They visit the different territories to unify the Trolls in harmony against Barb, who’s looking to upstage them all.
Cast as members of the different musical tribes is one the largest and most acclaimed groups of artistic talent ever assembled for an animated film. The cast list continues with the land of Funk are Mary J. Blige, George Clinton, and Anderson. Paak. Representing Country is Kelly Clarkson as Delta Dawn, with Sam Rockwell as Hickory and Flula Borg as Dickory. J Balvin brings Reggaeton, while Ester Dean adds to the Pop tribe. Anthony Ramos brings the beat in Techno, and Jamie Dornan covers smooth jazz. World-renowned conductor and violinist Gustavo Dudamel appears as Trollzart and Charlyne Yi as Pennywhistle from the land of Classical. And Kenan Thompson raps as a hip-hop new Troll named Tiny Diamond.
Dohrn served as co-director on Trolls and is co-directed by David P. Smith and co-produced by Kelly Cooney Cilella, both of whom worked on the first Trolls. Trolls World Tour will also feature original music by Justin Timberlake, who earned an Oscar nomination for his song for 2016’s Trolls, “Can’t Stop the Feeling!”
The second trailer is fun to watch, and I guarantee you will laugh because it is so silly.
The String by String featurette shows some behind the scenes clips with Justin Timberlake. Kids will enjoy the story and watch it over and over again.
Co-directed by Tyler Nilson and Michael Schwartz, The Peanut Butter Falcon is a modern-day adventure story with quirky characters and lessons learn like a Mark Twain story.
The movie follows Zak, played by Zack Gottsagen, a young man with Down syndrome, who runs away from a residential nursing home to follow his dream of attending the professional wrestling school of his idol, The Salt Water Redneck, played by Thomas Haden Church.
The Peanut Butter Falcon won SXSW Film Fest Audience Award 2019.
A strange turn of events connects him with Tyler, played by Shia LaBeouf. Tyler is a small-time outlaw on the run, who becomes Zak’s unlikely coach and ally. Together they wind through deltas, elude capture, drink whiskey, find God, catch fish, and convince Eleanor, Dakota Johnson, a kind nursing home employee charged with Zak’s return, to join them on their journey.
Both Nilson and Schwartz are new to directing but have a strong desire to make meaningful movies. The Peanut Butter Falcon won SXSW Film Festival Audience Award 2019.
The “Kidnapping” clip shows how the relationship between these three people develops.
Three more movie clips show the actors working together. Watching them, I am not sure where the movie is going with these two men. Dakota Johnson adds a tremendous amount of validity to the story. Watch the first two clips, then the one with her in it, and you will see what I mean.
The featurette is an eyeopener about three actors coming together and making a movie about a young man with Down syndrome.
Directed by Michael Oblowitz, Heavy Wave arrives at the movie theaters as a Fathom Event, so audiences have limited time to see this movie. The movie explores why surfing is so dangerous and why people like the Fletchers tackle the heavy waves worldwide.
I viewed the movie and interviewed Nathan Fletcher and Oblowitz, though I barely spoke with the director. I am mesmerized by the sheer extreme sport of surfing. I flooded Fletcher with questions about surfing.
The documentary follows the lives of several surfers. It’s a culture, a way of life that few get to adventure. Some pass away while living their dream of surfing the big one. I spoke with Fletcher about the spiritual aspect of surfing because it’s mentioned in the movie a lot. “You go to the water, and you see the sun, magnificent ocean, you’re right there. Then you get to see the fish and the birds and all the beauty…, obviously swells come from across the world, these magnificent pulses of energy, and you go out there, and you ride them. So, if that’s not spiritual…, or somehow connected to the water, and then you’re waiting for a wave, all of a sudden, your mind is somewhere else. And you’re totally in the moment because you’re totally concentrating on what’s happening right there.”
Watch the trailer and see how dangerous and unbelievably surreal surfing the heavy waves can be.
Co-written and directed by James Gray, Ad Astra follows Astronaut Roy McBride, played by Brad Pitt, who travels to the outer edges of the solar system to find his missing father, Tommy Lee Jones.
Brad Pitt plays an astronaut in search of his father.
An interview with Brad Pitt at the NASA premiere in Washington, D.C.
His and the space program’s reasons are more than finding his missing father. He is sent to unravel a mystery that threatens the survival of our planet. His journey will uncover secrets that challenge the nature of human existence and our place in the cosmos.
The trailer, with tearing music, sets up a thriller, magical story about coming to terms with our concepts of the mysteries of the universe.
Gray’s directing credits are impressive in genres like The Immigrant, The Lost City of Z, and Two Lovers. Ethan Gross co-wrote the screenplay with Gray, and it appears they have worked together on most of Gray’s movies, receiving “special thanks” for some. Gross also writes for the episodic Fringe.
The cast includes Ruth Negga, Liv Tyler and Donald Sutherland.
The second trailer shows a decadent society, and whether the location is on Earth or another planet appears unclear. I am sensing a thriller and mystery of a secret society is at play.
As a symbolic gesture, the studio released the featurette on the 50th anniversary of man landing on the moon. The featurette shows more clips and gives us insight into the movie.
The IMAX trailer says very little about the movie in general. The prior trailers tell more about the movie – espionage or government secrets. Having phenomenal visuals is cool, but the film will be worth watching if the ending is impressive and not wasted time.
The sneak peek shows how fantastic the movie will be with all the CGI and good guys against the bad guys, including a moon rover chase.
The following movie clip shows a grave, solemn side to the story. I am guessing this clip is where the movie heads toward the third act, where more action will occur.
The following clip, “Lima Project,” is astoundingly intense. Pitt knows how to show the intensity and use the camera to communicate the undertones of discovering that his father is still alive.
Directed by Dan Scanlon, Onward is a Disney and Pixar movie with the substance leaning heavily toward Pixar. The story takes place in a suburban fantasy world where two teenage elf brothers, played by Tom Holland and Chris Pratt, drive off in their van on a journey to discover if there is still magic out there.
Scanlon works for Pixar as a miscellaneous crew, writer, and director. His credits include Monster University as a writer and director, and Brave and Inside Out as miscellaneous crew.
The other cast members currently listed are Octavia Spencer and Julia Louis-Dreyfus.
The second trailer is almost a minute longer than the first trailer and tells us the story about the two boys using magic to bring back their father. It’s a road movie like Finding Nemo, an adventure where they run into all sorts of magical creatures. Watch the trailer until the very end because it is hilarious. Onward is going to be one of the best Pixar movies yet.
The third trailer tells us the story and the premise of the movie.
The featurette will get under your skin and drive you to see this movie.
The next three featurettes are kind of fun to watch and share a little information about the Pixar movie.
And, now, a publicity clip and another movie clip you might not be able to see because it could be blocked.
Written and co-directed by Jill Culton, Abominable is a DreamWorks Animation and Pearl Studio’s co-production. The story follows Yi, voiced by Chloe Bennet, as she encounters a young Yeti on her apartment building’s rooftop in Shanghai. Her impish friends Jin, voiced by Tenzing Norgay, and Peng, voiced by Albert Tsai, named the Yeti “Everest.”
They embark on an epic quest to reunite the magical creature with his family at the highest point on Earth. The journey takes audiences on an epic 2,000-mile adventure from the streets of Shanghai to the breathtaking Himalayan snowscapes.
But the trio has to stay one step ahead of Burnish, voiced by Eddie Izzard. Eddie is a wealthy man intent on capturing a Yeti along with zoologist Dr. Zara, voiced by Sarah Paulson. If Yi and her friends can’t evade these two evildoers, they might not help Everest get home.
Culton’s directing credits include Open Season, Monsters, Inc., and Toy Story 2, and the movie is co-directed by Todd Wilderman, who directed Trolls and Crood.
The movie clip looks like a fun movie to see with the kids. It’s magical and spontaneous.
The movie clip explains more about the silliness and craziness that goes on with their newfound friend.
The featurette shows how the voice cast values the story, and it relates to their heritage.
Directed by Jeff Fowler, Sonic the Hedgehog is a live-action adventure comedy based on a popular videogame franchise from Sega. The story follows infamously brash bright blue hedgehog named Sonic, played by Ben Schwartz, and his misadventures.
He navigates the complexities of life on Earth with his newfound – human – best friend Tom Wachowski, played by James Marsden. Sonic and Tom join forces to try and stop the villainous Dr. Robotnik, played by Jim Carrey, from capturing Sonic and using his immense powers for world domination.
Patrick Casey and Josh Miller are the first two listed screenwriters attached to the movie. The movie shares a total of eight writers.
The film also stars Tika Sumpter, Natasha Rothwell, Neal McDonough, and Adam Pally.
Here is the second trailer for the movie and a new look for Sonic. Do you see the difference?
The next three clips show how the movie is silly enough for kids to enjoy.
I like the Superbowl ad since it shows some funny stuff with Carrey and who Sonic fights. But for what purpose?
