AfrAId (2024) review
written by: Chris Weitz
produced by: Jason Blum, Chris Weitz and Andrew Miano
directed by: Chris Weitz
rated: PG-13 (for sexual material, some strong violence, some strong language, and thematic material)
runtime: 84 min.
U.S. release date: August 30, 2024
Here’s a techno-thriller about the horrors of life with AI. Yes, that’s why the title is awkwardly spelled out: “AfrAId”, and that’s about as clever or original as this movie gets. Oh, wait, the antagonist is named AIA (pronounced eye-ugh), to drive home what’s being attempted here. The working title from writer/director Chris Weitz (“About a Boy,” “The Golden Compass,” and “The Twilight Saga: New Moon”) was “They Listen”, which wasn’t any better. That seems more like the sarcastic title of a self-help book for parents with unruly teens. I would be curious to know if the screenplay differed from the final cut before Blumhouse Productions and Sony Pictures backed Weitz’s production company, Depth of Field. Read more…
ALIEN: ROMULUS (2024) review
‘written by: Fede Álvarez and Rodo Sayagues
produced by: Ridley Scott, Michael Pruss & Walter Hill
directed by: Fede Álvarez
rated: R (for bloody violent content and language)
runtime: 119 min.
U.S. release date: August 16, 2024
20th Century Studios, no longer Fox after being acquired by The Mouse, can now be compared to Weyland-Yutani, the real antagonist of the “Alien” universe. Just as that fictional evil mega-corporation has utilized every available resource to procure a living specimen of the slobbery xenomorph-with-acid-for-blood, so too has the studio gone out of its way to keep the alien alive and profitable. There have been sequels, prequels, and crossovers, and now we have “Alien: Romulus,” which can be considered an interquel. The main goal here is to lure a new generation of viewers (as evidenced by the marketing) into proximity to the “perfect organism.” Still, those well-versed in face-hugging will be experiencing something familiar. Whether or not that’s a welcome concept depends on the viewer. Read more…
DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE (2024) review
written by: Ryan Reynolds, Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick, Zeb Wells & Shawn Levy
produced by: Kevin Feige, Ryan Reynolds, Shawn Levy & Lauren Shuler Donner
directed by: Shawn Levy
rated: R (for strong bloody violence and language throughout, gore and sexual references)
runtime: 128 min.
U.S. release date: July 26, 2024
It’s a strange and different year for the folks over at Disney/Marvel Studios in that only one feature is being released in theaters. In prior years, a movie would drop just about every quarter. There are various reasons that’s not happening this year, and “Deadpool & Wolverine” acknowledges them in the absurdly meta manner we’ve come to expect from Deadpool movies. Perhaps the best reason is to give viewers some breathing room and build up anticipation for one sole MCU feature. It’s also a year in which “X-Men ’97”, the sequel series to the animated series from the 90s, became a massive hit for Disney+. This makes it an excellent time to give fans a live-action Wolverine that finally appears in his classic yellow-and-blue superhero suit. Indeed, it would seem that the timing is just right for a movie that serves as both a sequel and a random one-off – or, as it’s called in the comics world, a one-shot. Read more…
TRAP (2024) review
written by: M. Night Shyamalan
produced by: Ashwin Rajan, Marc Bienstock, and M. Night Shyamalan
directed by: M. Night Shyamalan
rated: PG-13 (for some violent content and brief strong language)
runtime: 105 min.
U.S. release date: August 2, 2024
You must admit that M. Night Shyamalan knows how to lift up his family, specifically his daughters. After producing his daughter’s directorial debut, “The Watchers”, earlier this summer, he gave his other daughter a surprisingly prominent role in his latest directing endeavor, “Trap”. Way to go, Dad! Sadly, neither of these debatable thrillers live up to the exhaustive marketing that promised taut storytelling, intense thrills, and, perhaps a traditional Shyamalan twist. There’s certainly a valid curiosity in the “Silence of the Lambs meets a Taylor Swift concert” concept, which is how M. Night pitched the project to Warner Bros. Pictures. If only he had kept the action within the stadium because it would have entered unexpectedly ridiculous levels of absurdity once it exited the building. Read more…
TWISTERS (2024) review
written by: Mark L. Smith (screenplay) and Joseph Kosinski (story)
produced by: Mark L. Smith
directed by: Lee Isaac Chung
rated: PG-13 (for intense action and peril, some language and injury images)
runtime: 122 min.
U.S. release date: July 19, 2024
“Twisters” isn’t a comedy, but I did chuckle when a character shouted, “We’ve gotta get everyone into the movie theater!” during one of the many tornadoes that plowed through Oklahoma. That doesn’t turn out to the be greatest idea for anyone in the movie. Still, I’d like to believe that’s definitely what the folks over at Universal Pictures, Warner Brothers Pictures, and Amblin Entertainment had in mind back in 2020 when they got together with writer Joseph Kosinski. When he pitched the idea of a sequel to 1996’s megahit “Twister”, I can imagine him touting…” this time there’s plural and that’s bound to get butts in seats.” Read more…
IN A VIOLENT NATURE (2024)
written by: Chris Nash
produced by: Shannon Hanmer and Peter Kuplowsky
directed by: Chris Nash
rated: Not rated (contains gruesome horror violence and gore on a par with a hard R rating)
runtime: 94 min.
U.S. release date: May 31, 2024
“Alright, buckle up.”
The slasher movie has some of the most well-established tropes of any subgenre, things that have become ingrained in the minds of horror movie fans and general audiences alike. This, naturally, makes the slasher genre ripe for deconstruction and subversion, something that many films have played with over the years to varying degrees of effectiveness. “In a Violent Nature,” the confidently assured feature directorial debut of writer/director Chris Nash, revels in this kind of trope subversion even if it’s not a wholly successful undertaking. Read more…
INSIDE OUT 2 (2024) review
written by: Meg LeFauve and Dave Holstein
produced by: Mark Nielsen
directed by: Kelsey Mann
rated: PG (for some thematic elements)
runtime: 96 min.
U.S. release date: June 14, 2024
When Pixar Animation Studios released “Inside Out” in the summer of 2015, it was a financial and critical success and a poignant and relatable tale of adolescent woes. It also landed at the top spot of my top ten films of the year. The movie was a return to new and original ideas for a studio relying on the box-office draw of sequels. One thing was certain: here was an animated feature that didn’t need a sequel, but here we are with “Inside Out 2”. Disney can’t resist, but considering our protagonist would now be entering some turbulent emotions, there is plenty of material to choose from. Read more…
A QUIET PLACE: DAY ONE (2024) review
written by: Michael Sarnoski
produced by: Michael Bay, Andrew Form, Brad Fuller & John Krasinski
directed by: Michael Sarnoski
rated: PG-13 (for terror and violent content/bloody images)
runtime: 99 min.
U.S. release date: June 28, 2024
When 2018’s “A Quiet Place” dropped, we didn’t know much about the creatures threatening the humans of Earth. Director John Krasinski revealed more about the hearing-enhanced threat in the 2021 sequel, “A Quiet Place Part II,” showing how they dropped out of the sky one day. Within both movies, the protagonists learn how to stay alive: be as quiet as possible. If not, the blind creatures will kill you. Now there’s a prequel called “A Quiet Place: Day One,” written and directed by Michael Sarnoski (who had a strong debut in 2021 with “Pig”), which places viewers in Manhattan on the first day these unexpected visitors arrive. Working with a mostly new cast, Sarnoski leans more on characterization than the expected horror genre jump-scares. Read more…
THELMA (2024) review
written by: Josh Margolin
produced by: Zoë Worth, Chris Kaye, Nicholas Weinstock, Benjamin Simpson, Karl Spoerri & Viviana Vezzani
directed by: Josh Margolin
rated: PG-13 (for strong language)
runtime: 98 min.
U.S. release date: June 21, 2024
It’s long been thought that action flicks and senior citizens could (should) never go hand-in-hand. Well, that’s a load of poppycock! Just look at all the action-adventure movies within the past decade starring actors over 50, the eligible age for AARP membership. But, a lot of those actors are either known for such physically demanding roles or are men. Unfortunately, we rarely see any actresses offered such roles once they reach a certain age, which is why seeing 94-year-old June Squib get behind the wheel of a scooter and wield a handgun is surprising and fun. Granted, the thoroughly entertaining “Thelma” isn’t an all-out action flick, but considering what first-time writer/director Josh Margolin is asking of the nonagenarian, it definitely feels like one. Read more…
GHOSTLIGHT (2024) review
written by: Kelly O’Sullivan
produced by: Ian Keiser, Alex Thompson, Pierce Cravens, Eddie Linker & Chelsea Krant
directed by: Alex Thompson and Kelly O’Sullivan
rated: R (for language)
runtime: 110 min.
U.S. release date: June 14, 2024
As a film enthusiast, you hope to find at least one film each year that reminds you of the unifying power of great storytelling. Last year, I experienced that at the Chicago Critics Film Festival with “Past Lives,” and that happened again last month at the same film festival when I watched “Ghostlight.” It’s a Chicago-made dramedy written by Kelly O’Sullivan, who directed it with her partner, Alex Thompson; local actors primarily populate that and bring together topics such as grief, love, forgiveness, and community in an emotionally engaging manner. The result is the kind of film you want everyone you know to see as soon as you finish watching it. Read more…
