Author: Michelle McCue

Huge passion for film scores, lives for the Academy Awards, loves movie trailers. That is all.

Disney Plus “Muppets Now” Zoom Video Call With Kermit the Frog And Friends

In preparation for the world premiere of the Muppets’ first-ever streaming show, “Muppets Now,”  Kermit the Frog will conduct a video chat to break the news that Disney+ has ordered six half-hour muppisodes premiering July 31. With a full roster of rotating guest stars, world-class production facilities, and pure unscripted mayhem, “Muppets Now” breaks new ground for the gang in their Disney+ debut.

“The Muppets are thrilled to be doing our first-ever unscripted show! It’s going to be extremely spontaneous and very surprising; almost as surprising as the fact that we ever actually used a script in the past.”

  • Kermit the Frog

“This is moi unfiltered, unexpurgated, and more unbelievably fabulous than ever. If you watch only one show on Disney+ ,you really should tune in more often. But whenever you watch, make it moi on Muppets Now.”

  • Miss Piggy

“For the first time ever, I’m working without a joke book, folks. It’s a new kind of totally improvised comedy I call ‘bare bear’! See what I did there? Ahh! Wocka! Wocka!”

  • Fozzie Bear

“I knew Muppets Now was coming to Disney+ but I did NOT know they wanted Muppets Now  NOW, as in right away, as in “doesn’t anybody give a warning around here’!? Gotta go upload those episodes pronto! Wish me luck; I’ll need it.”

  • Scooter

This season’s celebrity guests include entertainers, comedians, chefs, and more. Fans won’t want to miss all-new improvised comedy segments from their favorite Muppets including Miss Piggy, Beaker, Camilla, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Fozzie Bear, Gonzo the Great, Kermit the Frog, Pepe the King Prawn, The Swedish Chef, Scooter, Uncle Deadly, among others.

Disney+ is the streaming home for the Muppets collection where “Muppets Now” will join an assortment of fan-favorite Muppet movies, series, and shorts.

Produced by The Muppets Studio and Soapbox Films, “Muppets Now” premieres Friday, July 31, streaming only on Disney+. New episodes will be released every Friday.

Watch Jamie Foxx and Joseph Gordon-Levitt in Netflix’s PROJECT POWER – Debuts August 14

PROJECT POWER (L to R) JAMIE FOXX as ART in PROJECT POWER Cr. SKIP BOLEN/NETFLIX © 2020

Coming to Netflix on August 14 is PROJECT POWER. The film is directed by Ariel Schulman and Henry Joost (CATFISH, VIRAL and NERVE).

What would you risk for five minutes of pure power? On the streets of New Orleans, word begins to spread about a mysterious new pill that unlocks superpowers unique to each user. The catch: You don’t know what will happen until you take it. While some develop bulletproof skin, invisibility, and super strength, others exhibit a deadlier reaction. But when the pill escalates crime within the city to dangerous levels, a local cop (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) teams with a teenage dealer (Dominique Fishback) and a former soldier fueled by a secret vendetta (Jamie Foxx) to fight power with power and risk taking the pill in order to track down and stop the group responsible for creating it.

Mid-August debut is perfect and one to add to your queue. Netflix has been very successful with the release of such recent films as OLD GUARD, EXTRACTION, and EUROVISION

Did you know that Paranormal Activity 3 was helmed by Joost and Schulman and that it was their first horror film, with the follow-up Paranormal Activity 4?

Watch Project Power on Netflix: http://www.netflix.com/projectpower

PROJECT POWER (L-R) JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT as FRANK in PROJECT POWER Cr. SKIP BOLEN/NETFLIX © 2020

Jayro Bustamante’s LA LLORONA Coming To Shudder on August 6 – Watch The Trailer Now

Winner of Venice Days 2019. Official Selection TIFF 2019, Sundance 2020, Shudder has unveiled the trailer for director Jayro Bustamante’s LA LLORONA.

Indignant retired general Enrique finally faces trial for the genocidal massacre of thousands of Mayans decades ago. As a horde of angry protestors threatens to invade their opulent home, the women of the house—his haughty wife, conflicted daughter, and precocious granddaughter—weigh their responsibility to shield the erratic, senile Enrique against the devastating truths being publicly revealed and the increasing sense that a wrathful supernatural force is targeting them for his crimes. Meanwhile, much of the family’s domestic staff flees, leaving only loyal housekeeper Valeriana until a mysterious young Indigenous maid arrives.

Guy Lodge, VARIETY, called LA LLORONA, “Astonishing… A trauma-induced reverberation of patriarchal war and violence.”

A tale of horror and magical realism, the film reimagines the iconic Latin American fable as an urgent metaphor of Guatemala’s recent history and tears open the country’s unhealed political wounds to grieve a seldom discussed crime against humanity. LA LLORONA marks Bustamante’s third feature and demonstrates his continued efforts to highlight social inequality in his native Guatemala following his previous titles TEMBLORES (2019) and IXCANUL (2016).

See it on Shudder August 6.

Get Scared With MONSTROUS Bigfoot Trailer

Something is out there.

Sylvia, a lonely 20-something, goes searching for answers after her friend mysteriously vanishes in Whitehall, NY, an Adirondack town known for its Bigfoot sightings. She sets off with a mysterious, charming young woman, Alex, hellbent on getting to Whitehall for different reasons. Sylvia soon learns that hiding in the woods is an evil more sinister than she could ever imagine.

Ready for a new Bigfoot movie? Catch this first look at MONSTROUS.

From director Bruce Wemple, and starring Anna Shields, Rachel Finninger, Grant Schumacher, Hannah McKechnie, Catharine Daddario, Dylan Grunn, Peter Stray, Rick Montgomery Jr., and Thomas Brazzle , Monstrous premieres On Demand and DVD August 11 from Uncork’d Entertainment.

You can watch many Sasquatch themed movies over on AMAZON PRIME. https://www.amazon.com/bigfoot-movies/s?k=bigfoot+movies

Or looking for a great Bigfoot read. Then look no further than Max Brooks’ book “Devolution”. His bestselling books include Minecraft: The Island, The Zombie Survival Guide, and World War Z, which was adapted into a 2013 movie starring Brad Pitt. 

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The #1 New York Times bestselling author of World War Z is back with “the Bigfoot thriller you didn’t know you needed in your life, and one of the greatest horror novels I’ve ever read” (Blake Crouch, author of Dark Matter and Recursion).

As the ash and chaos from Mount Rainier’s eruption swirled and finally settled, the story of the Greenloop massacre has passed unnoticed, unexamined . . . until now. The journals of resident Kate Holland, recovered from the town’s bloody wreckage, capture a tale too harrowing—and too earth-shattering in its implications—to be forgotten. In these pages, Max Brooks brings Kate’s extraordinary account to light for the first time, faithfully reproducing her words alongside his own extensive investigations into the massacre and the legendary beasts behind it. Kate’s is a tale of unexpected strength and resilience, of humanity’s defiance in the face of a terrible predator’s gaze, and, inevitably, of savagery and death.

Yet it is also far more than that.

Because if what Kate Holland saw in those days is real, then we must accept the impossible. We must accept that the creature known as Bigfoot walks among us—and that it is a beast of terrible strength and ferocity.

Part survival narrative, part bloody horror tale, part scientific journey into the boundaries between truth and fiction, this is a Bigfoot story as only Max Brooks could chronicle it—and like none you’ve ever read before.

Cosmo Jarvis, Barry Keoghan Star In Trailer For THE SHADOW OF VIOLENCE – In Theaters July 31st

“An immersive tale of tortured masculinity and divided loyalties that pulls the viewer right into the raging bull mindset of its haunted protagonist.” – The Guardian

“visceral and compelling” – The Sun

Saban Films has released the trailer for THE SHADOW OF VIOLENCE.

In the dark underbelly of rural Ireland, ex-boxer Douglas “Arm” Armstrong (Cosmo Jarvis, Hunter Killer) has become a feared enforcer for the drug-dealing Devers family. When his ruthless employers order him to kill for the first time, his loyalties are tested in this powerful thriller costarring Barry Keoghan (Dunkirk) and Ned Dennehy (“Peaky Blinders”).

A little background on the film and story.

While attending National Film and Television School (NFTS) in London, director Nick Rowland discovered Young Skins (2013), a short story collection by the writer Colin Barrett. “I read the whole collection in one sitting, which is rare for me because I’m very dyslexic so it was a good sign that I enjoyed it,” recalls Rowland. One story, THE SHADOW OF VIOLENCE, stood out. It was cinematic; the world was interesting; the characters were funny. It felt unique. It had all the ingredients to make a good film.”

While in his early 20’s, Rowland’s career began to snowball. He won Royal Television Society Student awards for Dancing in the Ashes (2012) and Group B (2015). His short Slap (2014) was nominated for a BAFTA; Out of Sight (2014) received a Sundance Grand Jury Prize nomination.

Nevertheless, he was compelled back to Barrett’s dark drama. He sent the story to Daniel Emmerson who was equally enthused. “The writing, especially in THE SHADOW OF VIOLENCE, was amazing,” recalls Emmerson. “There were elements of the Coen Brothers and Martin McDonagh: it was grounded but also darkly comedic and seriously cinematic. I wanted to option it with whatever beads I could scrape together.”

The film will be released on July 31st.

Paul Schrader’s Thriller THE CARD COUNTER Acquired By Focus Features – Stars Oscar Isaac, Tiffany Haddish, Tye Sheridan

Oscar Isaac

Focus Features has acquired Academy Award® nominee Paul Schrader’s revenge thriller THE CARD COUNTER out of Cannes’ virtual market.

Written and directed by Schrader, whose celebrated works include Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, and his Academy Award®-nominated First Reformed, The Card Counter brings together the talents of Golden Globe winner Oscar Isaac (Inside Llewyn Davis), Emmy Award winner Tiffany Haddish (Girls Trip), Tye Sheridan (Mud), and Academy Award® nominee Willem Dafoe (At Eternity’s Gate).

Tiffany Haddish

Producers are Braxton Pope (The Trust, City of Gold), Lauren Mann (Swiss Army Man), and David Wulf (The Night Clerk, Inheritance) with executive producer Martin Scorsese. Other executive producers include William Olsson, Lee Broda, Ruben Islas and Stanley Preschutti. This marks the fifth collaboration between Schrader and Scorsese who previously worked together on Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, The Last Temptation of Christ and Bringing Out the Dead. Focus Features will distribute the film in the U.S. and Universal Pictures International will distribute internationally in UK, France, Switzerland, Italy, Spain, ANZ, China, SE Asia (excluding Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan and television), Japan, South Korea, Latin America and airlines.

Schrader said, “The folks at Focus are the best at what they do. Over the years I’ve been jealous of directors in the Focus fold. Now happily I am one.” 

“At a time when many of us are left wondering whether it’s our circumstances that corrupt souls or if it’s corrupt souls that create the circumstances, no one can say for sure, but has anyone explored this more in film than Paul Schrader?” commented Focus chairman Peter Kujawski.  “All of us at Focus can’t wait to hear and see what Paul has to say now more than ever before, and we’re very proud to help him bring this story to the world.”

Tell (Isaac) just wants to play cards. His spartan existence on the casino trail is shattered when he is approached by Cirk (Sheridan), a vulnerable and angry young man seeking help to execute his plan for revenge on a military colonel (Dafoe). Tell sees a chance at redemption through his relationship with Cirk. But keeping Cirk on the straight-and-narrow proves impossible, dragging Tell back into the darkness of his past.

The film also reunites Schrader with First Reformed collaborators cinematographer Alexander Dynan and editor Benjamin Rodriguez Jr.  Production leads also include costume designer Lisa Madonna (Regarding the Case of Joan of Arc) and production designer Ashley Fenton (Beatriz at Dinner).

FIRST REFORMED review here

HanWay films represented the international sale of the film.  Schrader’s rep, David Gonzales, and Endeavor Content handled the U.S. sale

Isaac is represented by WME and Inspire Entertainment, Haddish by Artists First and UTA, Sheridan by Mosaic and WME, and Dafoe by CAA and Circle of Confusion. Schrader is represented by David Gonzales.  Both Sheridan and Isaac are also represented by attorney Mitch Smelkinson. The production is represented by attorney Joseph Lanius.

STAR WARS: THE BAD BATCH New Animated Series Debuting on Disney Plus in 2021

Today Disney+ ordered its next animated series from Lucasfilm, “Star Wars: The Bad Batch.” Fresh off of the critically-acclaimed series finale of “Star Wars: The Clone Wars,” the Disney+ original series will premiere on the streaming service in 2021.

The series follows the elite and experimental clones of the Bad Batch (first introduced in “The Clone Wars”) as they find their way in a rapidly changing galaxy in the immediate aftermath of the Clone War. Members of Bad Batch – a unique squad of clones who vary genetically from their brothers in the Clone Army — each possess a singular exceptional skill which makes them extraordinarily effective soldiers and a formidable crew. In the post-Clone War era, they will take on daring mercenary missions as they struggle to stay afloat and find new purpose.

“The Bad Batch” from Disney + “STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS”

“Giving new and existing fans the final chapter of ‘Star Wars: The Clone Wars’ has been our honor at Disney+, and we are overjoyed by the global response to this landmark series,” said Agnes Chu, senior vice president, Content, Disney+. “While the Clone Wars may have come to its conclusion, our partnership with the groundbreaking storytellers and artists at Lucasfilm Animation is only beginning. We are thrilled to bring Dave Filoni’s vision to life through the next adventures of the Bad Batch.”

“Star Wars: The Bad Batch” is executive produced by Dave Filoni (“The Mandalorian,” “Star Wars: The Clone Wars”), Athena Portillo (“Star Wars: The Clone Wars,” “Star Wars Rebels”), Brad Rau (“Star Wars Rebels,” “Star Wars Resistance”) and Jennifer Corbett (“Star Wars Resistance,” “NCIS”) with Carrie Beck (“The Mandalorian,” “Star Wars Rebels”) as co-executive producer and Josh Rimes as producer (“Star Wars Resistance”). Rau is also serving as supervising director with Corbett as head writer.

HBO Max Streaming DOCTOR SLEEP DIRECTOR’S CUT, BATMAN v SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE: Ultimate Edition, ALIENS, JAWS And All 8 HARRY POTTER Films

While everyone is house-bound this hot summer, time to check out what’s streaming.  One service to sign up for is HBO MAX.

HBO Max will eventually feature a library of more than 2,000 films within the first year, but one of the movies streaming now is the superb DOCTOR SLEEP. In ca se you missed it in cinemas last year, then you can catch it as well as the director’s cut.  Clocking in at 3 hours, this sequel to Stephen King’s “The Shining,” is about the troubled, now-adult Dan Torrance (Ewan McGregor) who meets a teen who shares his extrasensory gift of the “shine” and tries to protect her from a cult whose members feed off the shine of innocents to become immortal.

The movie is directed by Mike Flanagan (Oculus, Hush, Before I Wake, Ouija: Origin of Evil, Gerald’s Game and the Haunting of Hill House) along with a fantastic score by The Newton Brothers.

interview: https://www.wearemoviegeeks.com/2018/10/newton-brothers-talk-netflixs-haunting-hill-house-director-mike-flanagan/

Read WAMG’s review of DOCTOR SLEEP here https://www.wearemoviegeeks.com/2019/11/doctor-sleep-review/.

In his review, Michael Haffner says “Writer/director Mike Flanagan continues to explore characters grappling with past trauma and grief (he previously directed ABSENTIA, GERALD’S GAME,  and THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE). His tender and vulnerable approach to his characters can almost be described as a signature style at this point. McGregor approaches the character of Danny much like the audience. There is a sense of self-discovery throughout, and a fear of going down a path that you know will only end poorly. There’s a sadness in his eyes, and his redemptive journey from addict to mentor is powerful and heartbreaking at times when he struggles with the mental demons and the demons in the bottle. But the most powerful scenes come from his scenes serving as a hospice caretaker. These emotional scenes bear the weight of Danny’s powers as you see that it’s not necessarily a gift. Flanagan centers these moments around beautiful reflections about life and death, and provides more heart in these scenes than anything in Kubrick’s film.”

In this new video King and Flanagan discuss the sequel. King says, “for me it was great to go back to the Overlook.”

HBO Max includes movies from The Lord of the Rings, Lego, A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, the Criterion Collection, Studio Ghibli movies, and via the HBO service – all eight Harry Potter films, the American Pie series and the Alien franchise.

Other titles include:

  • “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald” (via HBO service)
  • “Crazy Rich Asians” (via HBO service)
  • “A Star is Born” (via HBO service)
  • “Aquaman” (via HBO service)
  • “Joker” (via HBO service)
  • “Anastasia” (via HBO service)
  • “Babe” (via HBO service)
  • “Die Hard” (via HBO service)
  • “The Flinstones” (via HBO service)
  • “In Bruges” (via HBO service)
  • “The Indian in the Cupboard” (via HBO service)
  • “Jaws” (via HBO service)
  • “Moulin Rouge!” (via HBO service)
  • “Teen Witch” (via HBO service)
  • “2001: A Space Odyssey“
  • “An American in Paris“
  • “Blood Diamond“
  • “Braveheart“
  • “Friday the 13th“
  • “Godzilla“
  • “A Hard Day’s Night“
  • “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen“
  • “North by Northwest“
  • “Rebel Without a Cause“
  • “Singin’ in the Rain“
  • “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants“
  • “Casablanca“
  • “The Wizard of Oz“
  • “Citizen Kane“
  • “Gremlins“

Titles available throughout the first year of launch include the Lethal Weapon series, every DC film in the last decade and every Batman and Superman movie from the last 40 years. See more titles below:

  • “Wonder Woman“
  • “Justice League“
  • “The Matrix“
  • “The Goonies“
  • “When Harry Met Sally“
  • “Blade Runner: The Final Cut“
  • “Monster Vs. Aliens“
  • “V for Vendetta“

Additionally viewers can also watch the second season of DOOM PATROL streaming now.

Max Originals

  • “Love Life“
  • “On the Record“
  • “Legendary“
  • “Craftopia“
  • “Looney Tunes Cartoons“
  • “The Not-Too-Late Show with Elmo“
  • “Karma” (Summer Release)
  • “Doom Patrol: Season 2” (Summer Release)
  • “Esme & Roy: Season 2” (Summer Release)
  • “Search Party” (Summer Release)
  • “Adventure Time: Distant Lands – BMO” (Summer Release)
  • “Expecting Amy” (Summer Release)
  • “Close Enough” (Summer Release)
  • “Frayed” (Summer Release)
  • “The Dog House” (Summer Release)
  • “The House of Ho” (Summer Release)
  • “Tig N’ Seek” (Summer Release)
  • “An American Pickle” (Summer Release)

HBO

The entire HBO service will be available on HBO Max including classic HBO favorites like:

Get Ready For Season Two Of THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY In New Trailer – On Netflix July 31

THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY (L to R) AIDAN GALLAGHER as NUMBER FIVE, EMMY RAVER-LAMPMAN as ALLISON HARGREEVES, ROBERT SHEEHAN as KLAUS HARGREEVES, TOM HOPPER as LUTHER HARGREEVES, DAVID CASTANEDA as DIEGO HARGREEVES and ELLEN PAGE as VANYA HARGREEVES in episode 206 of THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY Cr. COURTESY OF NETFLIX/NETFLIX © 2020

Netflix has dropped the first preview for Season 2 of their amazing series THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY. The fantastic series will premiere on July 31.

Five warned his family (so, so many times) that using his powers to escape from Vanya’s 2019 apocalypse was risky. Well, he was right – the time jump scatters the siblings in time in and around Dallas, Texas. Over a three year period. Starting in 1960. Some, having been stuck in the past for years, have built lives and moved on, certain they’re the only ones who survived. Five is the last to land, smack dab in the middle of a nuclear doomsday, which – spoiler alert! – turns out is a result of the group’s disruption of the timeline (déjà vu, anyone?). Now the Umbrella Academy must find a way to reunite, figure out what caused doomsday, put a stop to it, and return to the present timeline to stop that other apocalypse. All while being hunted by a trio of ruthless Swedish assassins. But seriously, no pressure or anything.

THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY AIDAN GALLAGHER as NUMBER FIVE in episode 201 of THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY Cr. COURTESY OF NETFLIX/NETFLIX © 2020

A little background on the gang… On the same day in 1989, forty-three infants are inexplicably born to random, unconnected women who showed no signs of pregnancy the day before. Seven are adopted by a billionaire who creates The Umbrella Academy and prepares his “children” to save the world. Now, the six surviving members reunite upon the news of their father’s passing and must work together to solve a mystery surrounding his death. But the estranged family begins to come apart due to their divergent personalities and abilities, not to mention the imminent threat of a global apocalypse. The Umbrella Academy is based on the comic book series created and written by Gerard Way, illustrated by Gabriel Bá, and published by Dark Horse Comics.

Check out the recap of Season 1 below.

The ten episodes of Season Two begins on July 31st.

THE OLD GUARD Drops on Netflix This Friday – July 10

THE OLD GUARD releases on NETFLIX this Friday, July 10.

Led by a warrior named Andy (Charlize Theron), a covert group of tight-knit mercenaries with a mysterious inability to die have fought to protect the mortal world for centuries. But when the team is recruited to take on an emergency mission and their extraordinary abilities are suddenly exposed, it’s up to Andy and Nile (Kiki Layne), the newest soldier to join their ranks, to help the group eliminate the threat of those who seek to replicate and monetize their power by any means necessary.

THE OLD GUARD – Charlize Theron (“Andy”); Kiki Layne (“Nile”) Photo Credit: AIMEE SPINKS/NETFLIX ©2020

Based on the acclaimed graphic novel by Greg Rucka and directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood (LOVE & BASKETBALL, BEYOND THE LIGHTS), THE OLD GUARD is a gritty, grounded, action-packed story that shows living forever is harder than it looks.

The Old Guard flips the conceit of immortality as being something desirable on its head: It instead focuses on the inherent tragedy of living forever. It’s also a superhero story that places the work of saving mankind firmly in the hands of two female warriors. “This is a story with mythological elements and themes of relationships, family, and love that were very appealing to me,” says Prince-Bythewood. “But at its core, the fact that I got to put two badass women on screen was everything. The script came to me at a time when I had been looking to move into a bigger sandbox and it ended up presenting me with the opportunity to do exactly what I wanted: To put female heroes into the world, one of whom is a young black woman.”

WAMG’s Cate Marquis says over on AWFJ, “Charlize Theron plays the leader of a team of spec ops mercenaries with very special skills in sci-fi action film The Old Guard. We’ve seen action teams led by women before but one thing that sets this one apart is that the rest of the team are men and she is the unquestioned leader, one they all call boss. Another thing that sets this band of four highly skilled paramilitary specialists apart this that only take assignments that do good, such as the mission to rescue some kidnapped girls. The movie has an intriguing science fiction premise but really, the emphasis is more on action and personal bonds between the team members, rather than the science fiction aspect. Theron’s Andy is the only woman on the team until they learn of new potential member, a young African American Marine (KiKi Layne), an addition that proves an adventure in itself. The Old Guard boasts a nice cast that includes Matthias Schoenaerts, Chiwetel Ejiofor, and Harry Melling. The adventure has an comic book action hero style, a uniquely diverse mix of characters and plenty of action. It’s pure escapist entertainment but it is fun.”

Published in 2017 by Image Comics, The Old Guard was written by prolific comic book author and screenwriter Greg Rucka (Wonder Woman, Lazarus, Stumptown), whose award-winning work has also straddled both the DC and Marvel universes. All of the volumes in the series are illustrated by acclaimed Argentinian artist Leandro Fernández (Punisher, American Carnage, The Discipline). For more on the film and comics, check out this video below.

https://www.netflix.com/title/81038963

THE OLD GUARD (L to R) CHARLIZE THERON as ANDY and assorted crew members on the set of THE OLD GUARD. Cr. AMY SPINKS/NETFLIX © 2020