Compiled by Ryan Painter

In a more perfect world, I would be praising (or dismissing) Longlegs. Unfortunately, NEON did not screen the film for local critics. I hope to be able to catch a screening on Saturday or early next week depending on how much energy and motivation survives in the current heatwave that we’re experiencing.

I can tell you that Fly Me to the Moon is an appealing romantic comedy. However, I found myself too distracted by what the film could have been to really enjoy it for what it is. There was a lot of potential that went unfulfilled.

I’m going through something of a wild-mid-summer mood swing, I’ll try to find a sense of purpose and get on with life.

Theatical Releases

Fly Me to the Moon 

Synopsis: Starring Scarlett Johansson and Channing Tatum, Fly Me To The Moon is a sharp, stylish comedy-drama set against the high-stakes backdrop of NASA’s historic Apollo 11 moon landing. Brought in to fix NASA’s public image, sparks fly in all directions as marketing maven Kelly Jones (Johansson) wreaks havoc on launch director Cole Davis’s (Tatum) already difficult task. When the White House deems the mission too important to fail, Jones is directed to stage a fake moon landing as back-up and the countdown truly begins…

The Lion King (Theaters)

 

Synopsis: Back in theaters to celebrate its 30th Anniversary. Embark once again on an extraordinary coming-of-age adventure as Simba, a lion cub who cannot wait to be king, searches for his destiny in the great “Circle of Life.” You will be thrilled by the breathtaking animation, unforgettable Academy Award winning music (1994: Best Original Score; Best Song, “Can You Feel The Love Tonight”), and timeless story.

Longlegs (Theaters)

FBI Agent Lee Harker is assigned to an unsolved serial killer case that takes an unexpected turn, revealing evidence of the occult. Harker discovers a personal connection to the killer and must stop him before he strikes again.

Lumina (Theaters)

A terrifying sci-fi thrill ride, LUMINA follows four friends desperately searching for their abductee friend in a DUMB – DEEP UNDERGROUND MILITARY BASE. Whether they find their friend or not, what they find in the desert of the US to the sands of the Sahara, will change their lives forever.

Touch (Theaters)

Synopsis: Based on the Icelandic best-selling novel by Ólafur Jóhann Ólafsson, Touch is a romantic and thrilling story that spans several decades and continents. Touch follows one widower’s emotional journey to find his first love who disappeared 50 years ago, before his time runs out.

Watch at Home 

The Bikeriders (Digital Retailers) 

Synopsis: The Bikeriders captures a rebellious time in America when the culture and people were changing. After a chance encounter at a local bar, strong-willed Kathy (Jodie Comer) is inextricably drawn to Benny (Austin Butler), the newest member of Midwestern motorcycle club, the Vandals led by the enigmatic Johnny (Tom Hardy). Much like the country around it, the club begins to evolve, transforming from a gathering place for local outsiders into a dangerous underworld of violence, forcing Benny to choose between Kathy and his loyalty to the club.

The Boy and the Heron (Digital/Blu-ray/DVD)

Synopsis: From the legendary Studio Ghibli and Academy Award®-winning director Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away) comes a critically-acclaimed fantasy adventure. After losing his mother during the war, young Mahito moves to his family’s estate in the countryside. There, a series of mysterious events lead him to a secluded and ancient tower, home to a mischievous gray heron. When Mahito’s new stepmother disappears, he follows the gray heron into the tower, and enters a fantastic world shared by the living and the dead. As he embarks on an epic journey with the heron as his guide, Mahito must uncover the secrets of this world, and the truth about himself. Featuring the voices of Christian Bale, Dave Bautista, Gemma Chan, Willem Dafoe, Karen Fukuhara, Mark Hamill, Robert Pattinson and Florence Pugh.

Challengers (Digital/Blu-ray/DVD) 

Synopsis: From visionary filmmaker Luca Guadagnino, “Challengers” stars Zendaya as Tashi Duncan, a former tennis prodigy turned coach and a force of nature who makes no apologies for her game on and off the court. Married to a champion on a losing streak (Mike Faist, “West Side Story”), Tashi’s strategy for her husband’s redemption takes a surprising turn when he must face off against the washed-up Patrick (Josh O’Connor, “The Crown”) – his former best friend and Tashi’s former boyfriend. As their pasts and presents collide, and tensions run high, Tashi must ask herself, what will it cost to win.

Civil War (Digital/Blu-ray/DVD)

Synopsis: An adrenaline-fueled thrill ride through a near-future fractured America balanced on the razor’s edge. A group of journalists must race through battlefields to the White House before DC falls. Featuring Kirsten Dunst, Cailee Spaeny, Wagner Moura, Stephen McKinley Henderson and Nick Offerman.

The Deep End (Criterion Channel)

Synopsis: Tilda Swinton delivers a tour-de-force performance as a mother driven to extremes in this stylish and psychologically rich reworking of Max Ophuls’s 1949 noir THE RECKLESS MOMENT. She stars as Margaret Hall, a lonely Lake Tahoe housewife whose naval-officer husband spends months at sea on an aircraft carrier. In his absence, Margaret does her best to do right by her family, no matter what. So when her eldest son’s lover washes up on the beach in front of their house, she does the only thing an unflinchingly devoted mother could: she hides the body to protect her son. What begins as a riveting cat-and-mouse game soon turns into a haunting love story with self-sacrifice at its center.

Descendants: The Rise of Red (Disney+)

Synopsis: Now Headmaster of Auradon Prep, former Villain Kid Uma extends an invite to the school to another VK – Red, the rebellious daughter of the tyrannical Queen of Hearts from Wonderland. The Queen of Hearts has long held a grudge against Auradon, especially against Cinderella, and seizes the opportunity to seek revenge when she drops her daughter off at school. When the Queen of Hearts incites a coup against Auradon, Red must team up with Cinderella’s perfectionist daughter Chloe as they travel back in time to try to undo the traumatic event that set the young Queen of Hearts down her villainous path.

Exploding Kittens (Netflix)

Synopsis: Earth sucks, so God (Tom Ellis) gets fired and sent to Earth to reconnect with humanity. The catch? He’s trapped in the body of a chubby house cat. As part of his rehabilitation, he moves in with a dysfunctional family and tries to solve their problems, but ends up spending a lot of time chasing laser pointers. And to top it off, Godcat’s next-door neighbor, who is also a cat, turns out to be none other than his nemesis, the Antichrist. The result is the ultimate fight between good versus evil…except, Godcat (Ellis) is distracted by a pigeon he saw in the yard and Devilcat (Sasheer Zamata) is busy napping on someone’s laptop.

Faye (Max)

Synopsis: Hollywood legend and Academy Award-winning actress Faye Dunaway speaks candidly about the triumphs and challenges of her illustrious career.

The Hungry Games: Alaska’s Big Bear Challenge, Season 1 (Peacock)

The Hungry Games: Alaska’s Big Bear Challenge, puts a playful competition spin on the bears of Alaska’s Katmai National Park as they bulk up for winter hibernation. Over 150 days, the bears battle the elements – and each other – using brains and brawn to consume three million calories and gain up to 200 pounds in Nature’s real-life survival show. Unbeknownst to the bears, their progress is being tracked and ranked for a television audience with narration that combines fascinating facts about bear behavior with clever color commentary.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (Digital Retailers)

Synopsis: Set several generations in the future following Caesar’s reign, in which apes are the dominant species living harmoniously and humans have been reduced to living in the shadows. As a new tyrannical ape leader builds his empire, one young ape undertakes a harrowing journey that will cause him to question all that he has known about the past and to make choices that will define a future for apes and humans alike.

Mastermind: To Think Like a Killer (Hulu)

Synopsis: From award-winning executive producers Dakota and Elle Fanning, showrunner Dani Sloane, and director Abby Fuller, comes “Mastermind: To Think Like a Killer,” a fascinating new perspective on the woman whose crime hunting innovations changed history. To stop serial killers, psychiatric nurse and professor Dr. Ann Burgess must first learn to think like one. With unprecedented access to the mastermind behind the development of modern serial-killer profiling, the series tells Burgess’ tenacious story and her compassion for victims which puts her at the center of solving America’s most infamous true-crime cases. From the widely known Ed Kemper and Ted Bundy to lesser-known cases like the Ski Mask Rapist, Burgess investigates and studies the victims and damaged psyches of their attackers, putting two halves of the same story together to catch a killer. Largely an unsung heroine until now, Dr. Burgess impacted not only the FBI, she also radically championed the plight of women in America.

Quad Gods (Max)

An HBO Original Documentary following the world’s first all-quadriplegic e-sports team as they navigate New York City, confront ableism, and pursue their dreams to compete as athletes

Receiver (Netflix)

It’s been said that there’s no more difficult position in the NFL than the quarterback. But throwing the pass is only half the story. Receiver follows five of the NFL’s best pass catchers throughout the 2023 season on and off the field: Davante Adams, Justin Jefferson, George Kittle, Deebo Samuel and Amon-Ra St. Brown.

Wildcat [Oscilloscope Pictures]

Synopsis: Directed and co-written by four-time Academy Award nominee Ethan Hawke, WILDCAT invites the audience to weave in and out of celebrated Southern Gothic writer Flannery O’Connor’s mind as she ponders the great questions of her writing: Can scandalous art still serve God? Does suffering precede all greatness? Can illness be a blessing? In 1950, Flannery (Maya Hawke) visits her mother Regina (Laura Linney) in Georgia when she is diagnosed with lupus at twenty-four years old. Struggling with the same disease that took her father’s life when she was a child and desperate to make her mark as a great writer, this crisis pitches her imagination into a feverish exploration of belief. As she dives deeper into her craft, the lines between reality, imagination, and faith begin to blur, allowing Flannery to ultimately come to peace with her situation and heal a strained relationship with her mother.

And remember, if the BEST thing you can say about a movie is that it’s “visually stunning,” then they’ve done something wrong.

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