“Whatever you do, whatever you hear, Do. Not. Look. Away.” On September 8th, the greatest evil in the conjuring universe returns. But before you head out to your local cinemas, check out this 30 second international promo for THE NUN II.
New Line Cinema brings you the horror thriller “The Nun II,” the next chapter in the story of “The Nun,” the highest grossing entry in the juggernaut $2 billion “The Conjuring” Universe. 1956 – France. A priest is murdered. An evil is spreading.
The sequel to the worldwide smash hit follows Sister Irene as she once again comes face-to-face with Valak, the demon nun. Taissa Farmiga (“The Nun,” “The Gilded Age”) returns as Sister Irene, joined by Jonas Bloquet (“Tirailleurs,” “The Nun”), Storm Reid (“The Last of Us,” “The Suicide Squad”), Anna Popplewell (“Fairytale,” “The Chronicles of Narnia” trilogy) and Bonnie Aarons (reprising her role from “The Nun”), surrounded by an ensemble cast of international talent.
Michael Chaves (“The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It”) directs, from a screenplay by Ian Goldberg & Richard Naing (“Eli,” “The Autopsy of Jane Doe”) and Akela Cooper (“M3GAN,” “Malignant”), with a story by Cooper, based on characters created by James Wan & Gary Dauberman.
The Safran Company’s Peter Safran and Atomic Monster’s James Wan produce, continuing their collaboration as filmmakers on all of the previous “Conjuring” films. “The Nun II” is executive produced by Richard Brener, Dave Neustadter, Victoria Palmeri, Gary Dauberman, Michael Clear, Judson Scott and Michael Polaire.
Joining Chaves behind the camera are director of photography Tristan Nyby (“The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It,” “The Dark and the Wicked”), production designer Stéphane Cressend (“Les Vedettes,” “The French Dispatch”), editor Gregory Plotkin (2022’s “Scream,” “Get Out”), visual effects producer Sophie A. Leclerc (“Finch,” “Lucy”) and costume designer Agnès Béziers (“Oxygen,” “The Breitner Commando”), with composer Marco Beltrami (2022’s “Scream,” ”Venom: Let There Be Carnage”) providing the score.
“The Conjuring” Universe is the highest grossing horror franchise in history with $2+ billion worldwide. Globally, four of “The Conjuring” Universe titles have earned more than $300 million worldwide each (“The Nun,” $366 million; “The Conjuring 2,” $322 million; “The Conjuring,” $320 million; “Annabelle: Creation,” $307 million), and all seven have each grossed more than $200 million. “The Nun” is the top-earning film in the franchise, with more than $366 million worldwide.
New Line Cinema presents an Atomic Monster / Safran Company production, “The Nun II,” distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is set to open in North America on September 8, 2023 and internationally beginning 6 September, 2023.
In select theaters September 15 and streaming globally on Prime Video September 22 is the upcoming film CASSANDRO.
Saúl Armendáriz, a gay amateur wrestler from El Paso, rises to international stardom after he creates the character ‘Cassandro,’ the “Liberace of Lucha Libre.” In the process, he upends not just the macho wrestling world, but also his own life. Based on a true story. Directed by Academy Award® winner Roger Ross Williams.
The film stars Gael García Bernal, Roberta Colindrez, Perla De La Rosa, Joaquín Cosío, and Raúl Castillo with special appearances from El Hijo del Santo and Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio.
The film sits at 97% on Rotten Tomatoes. It screened, and was one of the most buzzed about movies, earlier this year at the Sundance Film Festival.
In their review, The Daily Beast says “Led by a phenomenal performance by Gael García Bernal, Cassandro is a wild and entertaining story.”
One of the best alien invasion shows is returning this week to AppleTV+. It is right up there with some of the best that include The 4400, Colony, Falling Skies and the ultimate, V.
The epic series “Invasion” is set to make its global premiere with the first episode on Wednesday, August 23, 2023. From Academy Award-nominated and two-time Emmy Award-nominated producer Simon Kinberg, who serves as showrunner, and David Weil, “Invasion” is a sweeping, character-driven science fiction drama series that follows an alien invasion through different perspectives around the world.
Check out this new clip.
“Invasion” will debut the first episode of its ten-episode second season on Apple TV+, followed by one new episode weekly, every Wednesday through October 25, 2023.
The action-packed second season of “Invasion” picks up just months later with the aliens escalating their attacks in an all-out war against the humans. The trailer gives a suspenseful sneak peek into the new season, as aliens and destruction abound, answers are relentlessly pursued and the fight for the world’s survival continues.
The series stars Golshifteh Farahani, Shioli Kutsuna, Shamier Anderson, India Brown, Billy Barratt, Azhy Robertson, Paddy Holland and Tara Moayedi. New series regulars joining season two include Enver Gjokaj, Nedra Marie Taylor and Naian González Norvind.
“Invasion” is produced for Apple TV+ by Boat Rocker. In addition to series creators Simon Kinberg & David Weil, Audrey Chon, David Witz, Alik Sakharov, Andrew Baldwin and Katie O’Connell Marsh serve as executive producers.
The first season’s terrific score is by Max Richter and the episodes were helmed by Jakob Verbruggen (House of Cards, Black Mirror), Jamie Payne, and Amanda Marsalis (Ozark 2017 and Westworld 2016).
Apple TV+ has revealed the series title of the highly anticipated sci-fi drama “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters,” based on Legendary’s Monsterverse. The announcement also includes first-look images including Godzilla as part of the series for the first time. The 10-episode first season stars Kurt Russell and Wyatt Russell, who play the same character, as well as Anna Sawai, Kiersey Clemons, Ren Watabe, Mari Yamamoto, Anders Holm, Joe Tippett and Elisa Lasowski.
In this epic journey, which follows the thunderous battle between Godzilla and the Titans that leveled San Francisco and the shocking revelation that monsters are real, “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” tracks two siblings following in their father’s footsteps to uncover their family’s connection to the secretive organization known as Monarch. Clues lead them into the world of monsters and ultimately down the rabbit hole to Army officer Lee Shaw (played Kurt Russell and Wyatt Russell), taking place in the 1950s and half a century later where Monarch is threatened by what Shaw knows. The dramatic saga – spanning three generations – reveals buried secrets and the ways that epic, earth-shattering events can reverberate through our lives.
Kurt Russell and Wyatt Russell in “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters”.
“Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” is co-developed by Chris Black (“Severance,” “Star Trek: Enterprise,” “Outcast,”) and Matt Fraction (“Hawkeye”). Matt Shakman (“Wandavision”) directs the first two episodes.
Hailing from Legendary Television, the series is executive produced by Black, Fraction and Shakman alongside Joby Harold (“Obi-Wan Kenobi,” “Transformers: Rise of the Beasts”) and Tory Tunnell (“Spinning Out,” “Underground”) from Safehouse Pictures, Matt Shakman (“Wandavision”), Andy Goddard (“Carnival Row, “Downton Abbey”), Brad Van Arragon (“Yellowjackets, “Carnival Row”), and Andrew Colville (“Severance,” “Star Trek: Discovery”). Hiro Matsuoka and Takemasa Arita executive produce on behalf of Toho Co., Ltd., the owner of the Godzilla character. Toho licensed the rights to Legendary for “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” as a natural byproduct of their long-term relationship with the film franchise.
Legendary Entertainment’s Monsterverse is an epic entertainment universe of interconnected stories that bring together popular culture’s most titanic forces of nature. Witness humanity’s greatest battle for survival as we fight for our world in the face of a catastrophic new reality—the monsters of our myths and legends are real. Beginning in 2014 with Godzilla and continuing with 2017’s “Kong: Skull Island,” 2019’s “Godzilla: King of the Monsters” and 2021’s “Godzilla vs. Kong,” the Monsterverse has accumulated close to two billion dollars globally at the box office and is ever-expanding, with the highly anticipated sequel “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire.”
The series will premiere globally on Apple TV+ alongside an expanding offering of sweeping, world-building dramas including global hit series “Silo”; “Foundation,” based on the award-winning novels by Isaac Asimov, and created by David S. Goyer; “Invasion,” a sci-fi drama series from Academy Award-nominated and two-time Emmy Award-nominated producer Simon Kinberg and David Weil launching its second season on August 23, and more.
The chilling prequel to the critically-acclaimed Predator films, 20th Century Studios’ Prey, arrives on 4K UHD, Blu-ray and DVD on October 3. As part of a special artist line, a collector’s edition 4K SteelBook®, designed by popular digital artist Attila Szarka, will also be available exclusively at Best Buy.
Nominated for six Emmys, including Outstanding Television Movie, the science-fiction film welcomes new viewers into the Predator story while entertaining long-time fans of the celebrated franchise. All formats include a full-length Comanche audio track and never-before-seen bonus content.
The epic Predator legacy continues with this action-thriller set in 1719 on the Great Plains with a band of Comanches. When Naru, a fierce and highly skilled young warrior, sets out to protect her people, the prey she stalks turns out to be a highly evolved alien predator — leading to a vicious and terrifying showdown. (Review)
Bonus Features*
Making of Prey:Step behind the scenes of Prey as the cast and crew explore the genesis of the project, how they gave authenticity to the story, the intense physical training the cast endured, and the effects work that brought the iconic Predator back to the screen.
Prey FYC Panel With Cast & Crew: Go deeper into Prey with a lively panel discussion featuring director Dan Trachtenberg, actor Amber Midthunder, producer Jhane Myers, director of photography Jeff Cutter, film editor Angela M. Catanzaro and creature effects designer Alec Gillis.
Alternative Opening Scene: Check out a scene that didn’t make the cut with commentary by Dan Trachtenberg.
Deleted Scene: Big Warrior, Little Warrior: Check out a scene that didn’t make the cut with commentary by Dan Trachtenberg.
Deleted Scene: Treetop Chase (pre-vis): Check out a scene that didn’t make the cut with commentary by Dan Trachtenberg.
Audio Commentary: Play Movie With Audio Commentary By Dan Trachtenberg, Amber Midthunder, Jeff Cutter & Angela M. Catanzaro.
*Bonus features vary by retailer and are exclusive to the Blu-ray
Cast Amber Midthunder as Naru Dane DiLiegro as Predator Harlan Blayne Kytwayhat as Itsee Dakota Beavers as Taabe Michelle Thrush as Aruka
Directed by Dan Trachtenberg
Written by Patrick Aison
Story by Patrick Aison & Dan Trachtenberg
Based on Characters by Jim Thomas & John Thomas
Produced by John Davis Jhane Myers Marty P. Ewing
Executive Produced by Lawrence Gordon Ben Rosenblatt Mary Kathryn Nagle Tyson Breuer James E. Thomas John C. Thomas Marc Toberoff
Music by Sarah Schachner
Product Specifications Release Date 4K UHD: October 3
Product SKUs Physical: 4K UHD, Blu-ray and DVD
Feature Run Time Approx. 100 minutes
Rating U.S. Rated R
Rated R for strong bloody violence
Aspect Ratio Physical: 2.39:1
Disc Size 4K UHD: 66GB Blu-ray: 50GB DVD: 8.5GB
U.S. Audio 4K UHD: English 7.1.4 Dolby Atmos, English AD 2.0 Dolby Digital, French 5.1 Dolby Digital, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital Blu-ray: English 7.1.DTS-HDMA, English AD 2.0 Dolby Digital, French 5.1 Dolby Digital, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital DVD: English 5.1 Dolby, English AD 2.0 Dolby, French 5.1 Dolby, Spanish 5.1 Dolby
U.S. Subtitles 4K UHD: English SDH, French, Spanish Blu-ray: English SDH, French, Spanish DVD: English SDH, French, Spanish
The “invisible hand of the marketplace” is a favorite term of laissez-faire globalized economics, but LANDSCAPE WITH INVISIBLE HAND is a dark comedy science fiction tale about a teen-aged artist living on a near-future Earth transformed by twenty years of occupation by creatures from another planet. We expect invaders from space to be scary monster with big weapons but what if the space aliens who came to conquer the Earth weren’t monsters with ray guns but annoying, harmless-looking bureaucrats who used economic soft power and brought advanced technology which made most human jobs obsolete?
The aliens, called the Vuvv, met resistance from ordinary people and governments when they first arrived but then were aided by human capitalists who saw a golden economic opportunity. The impact of the “invisible hand of the marketplace” brought by colonization by the Vuvv certainly was good for the aliens and some people, but it has left most humans unemployed and impoverished. That is the near-future world where high school student Adam Campbell creates his colorful paintings, in Cory Finley’s smart, funny, satiric science fiction comedy-drama LANDSCAPE WITH INVISIBLE HAND.
Adam’s colorful paints are sprinkled throughout the film, as director Cory Finley uses absurdist humor crossed with social satire and mixed with surprisingly realistic human relationships and insights, in his hilarious, smart and clever film. Finley, whose previous films include BAD EDUCATION and THOROUGHBREDS, wrote the screenplay based on the 2017 novel of same name by M. T. Anderson, a National Book Award winner who writes thought-provoking children’s and young adult novels.
Income inequality, class and race are among the issues touched on in this funny but thought-provoking absurdist comedy. Even though this is science fiction, much of it is set in a more ordinary Earth landscape which actually adds to the humor of the absurd situations.
This delightful, creative film centers on teen-aged artist, Adam Campbell (a winning Asante Blackk), and it is filled with Adam’s colorful, naive art paintings, as he tries to figure out his place in this strange world. The planet his parents grew up on has been transformed by twenty years of rule by the bureaucratic Vuvv, coffee table-shaped beings from outer space, who thanks to their advanced technology now run everything.
Adam, his younger sister Natalie (Brooklynn MacKinzie) and lawyer mother Beth Campbell (Tiffany Haddish) live in their big, once-nice, suburban house, which is now falling into disrepair. Adam creates his paintings, while his sister grows tomatoes and other produce in what was their swimming pool and his attorney mother searches desperately for any menial job she can find.
Dad left sometime ago, going to California in search of work (the only place you can make a living, he said) with promises to send money and return for them. But it has been a long time since they have heard anything from him and they assume he has abandoned him for his new life in California. The family eat meals of unappetizing food cubes made in Vuvv factories. Real food is scarce, and so is hope.
At Adam’s high school, the one of the last human teachers just has been replaced by “educational” broadcasts produced by the Vuvv, focused mostly on touting the how “wonderful” their rule has been. But Adam is more interested in the new girl who has just arrived, Chloe Marsh (Kylie Rogers). After kind-hearted Adam learns her family is living in their car, he impulsively invites her and her family, an unemployed accountant father (Josh Hamilton) and sullen older brother Hunter (Michael Gandolfini), to stay at his family’s house. Adam’s worried mother resists the idea but reluctantly agrees to let them move in – temporarily. Like Adam’s family, the Marshes were once affluent but with the adults unable to find work, funds are tight to non-existent.
Kylie comes up with a wild idea to earn money: she and Adam will live-streaming their budding romance – or what seems to be a budding romance, as they barely know each other. Human love, particularly romantic love, fascinates the Vuvv, who reproduce by budding and having nothing like it in their world. And the Vuvv are willing to pay big money to watch unfolding romantic relationships, like between Adam and Chloe.
The live-stream program takes off with the Vuvv, and soon Adam and Chloe are supporting both their families in much more comfort. But with success comes pressures on both of them, and their relationship.
Absurd comedy abounds, starting with the alien overlords themselves. The Vuvv are wonderfully ridiculous-looking creatures, who one character describes as resembling “gooey coffee tables,” moist, brown, rectangular and squat, with the personality of rigid bureaucrats. Further, tThe Vuvv communicate by rubbing together their fin-like paddles, which they have in place of hands, producing a sound like someone in corduroy pants walking quickly. The Vuvv expect people to be able to learn to speak this language but realistically, an automatic translating machine is needed.
Absurd comedy is a big feature of this movie but so is surprisingly realistic human interactions. Living in close proximity brings conflicts between the families and the weird economic situation warps a lot. The fact that the Campbells are Black and their house-guests the Marshes are white adds to the complexity.
The cast is splendid, starting with the appealing Asante Blackk as Adam, a sweet, kind-hearted teen confused by the harsh world he’s living in and who expresses himself and his feelings through his paintings. He is excellent in this lead role, which might be a star-making turn for the young actor. Tiffany Haddish also is excellent as Adam’s strong mother Beth, a smart woman who is determined to do what is best for her family and with little patience for whining from her live-in white guests. Josh Hamilton is very good as Mr. Marsh, Chloe’s anxious, insecure father, who is defensive, privileged, and clueless, and inclined to echoing pull-yourself-up-by-the-bootstraps platitudes (like insisting that learning to speak Vuvv is the key to success) while having no real insight. Kylie Rogers is touching as a girl who is devoted to her family and trying hard to do what is best for them but who doesn’t always see the big picture.
Twelve-year-old Brooklynn MacKinzie is cute and funny as Natalie Campbell, Adam’s precocious younger sister, who seems wise beyond her years but sometimes drops the facade to be just a kid. Michael Gandolfini gives a strong, often unsettling performance as Hunter Marsh, a confused young man seething with resentment that covers his fears for the future.
Weird things happen as this plot unfolds, leading to plenty of dark comedy and also to insights on human life and our own society, as all good science fiction does. LANDSCAPE WITH INVISIBLE HAND is an outstanding dark comedy with both a head and a heart, and one you should not miss.
LANDSCAPE WITH INVISIBLE HAND opens Friday, Aug. 18, in theaters.
This Summer the multiplex has been filled with superheroes, supercars, giant robots, dolls, atom bombs, and secret agents. So, where’s “man’s best friend”? How about a sweet family-friendly flick about those angelic “fur babies”? This weekend that request is addressed…sorta’. Yes, it’s full of cute, cuddly (mostly) live-action canines, but it is far from family-friendly as you can tell by the poster with one of the pups tearing into an “R” rating insert. Yes, there are a few sweet moments, but these mutts are behaving like, well, real mutts, engaging in all manner of crude activities (hence that rating). and this cursing pack of pooches would growl at being called “fur babies” as they prefer flaunting their “street cred” as STRAYS.
The first of them we meet, actually the story’s narrator, is a fuzzy naive border terrier named Reggie (voice of Will Ferrell). Oh, but his human owner calls him by a variety of nasty nicknames. That’s the slacker stoner Doug (Will Forte). who had acquired Reg for a long-departed girlfriend (smart lady). And now Doug wants to be rid of him, although Reggie thinks it’s a new fun version of “fetch”. Doug drives him to a desolate field or forest and tosses Reggie’s beloved ratty tennis ball. And the dog brings it back to their dingy shack every time. Then Doug decides to really “go for it”. The two drive two hours away from rural Oakwood to a scary big city. Poor Reggie is now truly lost. Just as it looks like he’ll be a “chew toy” for some bigger brutal dogs, he’s befriended by the self-proclaimed “street king”, a Boston terrier named Bug (VO: Jamie Foxx). While showing Reg the “ropes” he introduces him to a couple of pals. Maggie (VO: Isla Fisher) is a lovely Australian Shephard with a keen sense of smell, whose master ignores her in favor of a cute new puppy. And there’s the timid, lumbering Hunter (VO: Randall Park) a service Great Dane who won’t take off his “healing cone”.The quartet bonds and hatches a plan. Going by Reggie’s memory of “landmarks” (“a giant mouse-wheel, a huge cone, and the devil in the sky”). they’ll travel back to Doug for some very painful “payback”. But can they survive the long journey or will they end up in that fabled “farm up north”?
Careful, this is NSFW!!
Well since the title named ‘strays” are the main focus of the film, we should discuss the vocal performances of several movie comedy vets. Ferrell makes Reggie a furry canine cousin to Buddy the ELF with his sunny outlook and bouncy energetic innocence. But Ferrell is also able to convey his frightened panic and Reggie’s near-boundless joy. Foxx gives Bug a very different energy, one of (sorry) alpha-dog swagger and aggressive determination. His wall of macho is finally chipped away by Reggie when he reveals his own past heartbreak with a human. Fisher exudes pluck and spunk as the lone lady who’s usually several steps ahead of the boys when the stakes are high. The biggest laughs (his “howling” got me every time) might be those garnered by the endearing Park who makes the looming giant Hunter into a sympathetic and emotionally vulnerable hero, though full of self-esteem issues (he can’t tap into his “BDM” energy). Along the trail, the quartet encounters a surly intimidating German Shephard police dog voiced by the gregarious Rob Riggle. As for the “people”, Forte somehow upstages those adorable pups as the cruel but somehow entertaining lowlife Doug, making him more than a nasty one-note villain. There’s also a scene showcasing the terrific comic actor Bret Gelman, but his skills are squandered in a sequence that makes little sense and seems to be a way to indulge in some scatological gags (honestly).
So despite the marketing campaign that makes the R-rated content clear, even taking a cue from the “red backdrop” poster from 2019’s GOOD BOYS, some folks still think this is a fun-filled all-ages furry romp. Which it certainly is not. So, does it deliver what it promises? Yes, there are indeed more laughs than in the funny “red band” trailers from the last couple of months. And somehow the script from Dan Perrault does include some heart-tugging moments as the strays try to deal with their need to be free and the yearning for a “people parent”.Director Josh Greenbaum, in his follow-feature to the underrated gem BARB AND STAR GO TO VISTA DEL MAR, keeps the pace fairly taut at a brisk 93-minutes though the dreaded lull rears its head before the final showdown. Oh, the effects are splendid harkening back to the “Dogville” comedy shorts 90 years ago. They used classic 2D animation to make the mutts’ mouths move, while slick CGI keeps the pups chattering away, and enables them to perform all manner of dangerous slapstick (the highlight may be a sight gag about the “invisible fence”). Sure it’s crude with the doggies indulging their “animal impulses”, but if you’re in the mood for some “low-bred” laughs then you may want to join this pack of STRAYS. So “sit”, “stay” and put away that phone (“bad viewer!”).
Academy Award nominees Saoirse Ronan and Paul Mescal star in FOE, a haunting exploration of marriage and identity set in an uncertain world. Hen and Junior farm a secluded piece of land that has been in Junior’s family for generations, but their quiet life is thrown into turmoil when an uninvited stranger (Aaron Pierre) shows up at their door with a startling proposal.
Based on best-selling author Iain Reid’s novel, directed by Garth Davis, and co-written by Davis and Reid, Foe’s mesmerizing imagery and persistent questions about the nature of humanity (and artificial humanity) bring the not-too-distant future to luminous life.
Amazon Studios Will Release FOETheatrically in the US on October 6, 2023.
Check out the teaser trailer for the Leonard Bernstein biopic, MAESTRO, starring Carey Mulligan and Bradley Cooper.
Maestro is directed by Bradley Cooper (A Star Is Born), who co-wrote the script with Josh Singer. Cooper also stars as cultural icon Leonard Bernstein; the film focuses on Bernstein’s lifelong relationship with actress Felicia Montealegre Cohn Bernstein (Carey Mulligan).
According to Netflix: Alongside Mulligan and Cooper, the cast of Maestro includes Matt Bomer, Maya Hawke, Sarah Silverman, Josh Hamilton, Scott Ellis, Gideon Glick, Sam Nivola, Alexa Swinton, and Miriam Shor.
Look for MAESTRO this November 22 before hitting Netflix on Dec. 20. It will have its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival this September.
Launching globally on Prime Video on September 15, 2023 is A MILLION MILES AWAY.
Inspired by the real-life story of NASA flight engineer José Hernández, A MILLION MILES AWAY follows him and his devoted family of proud migrant farm worker on a decades-long journey, from a rural village in Michoacán, Mexico, to the fields of the San Joaquin Valley, to more than 200 miles above the Earth in the International Space Station. With the unwavering support of his hard-working parents, relatives, and teachers, José’s unrelenting drive & determination culminates in the opportunity to achieve his seemingly impossible goal.
Acclaimed writer and director Alejandra Márquez Abella has created a dazzling tribute to the loyalty and tenacity of the entire Hernández family, as well as anyone who dares to dream.
The film stars Michael Peña, Rosa Salazar, Bobby Soto, Sarayu Blue, Veronica Falcón, Julio César Cedillo, Garret Dillahunt and Eric Johnson.
The filmmaker “debuted her first feature, “Semana Santa,” at the Toronto film festival in 2015. In September, she was back at TIFF with “The Good Girls,” which premiered in the prestigious Platform competition, before going on to win the audience award in Macao.
Called one of the “10 Directors to Watch” in 2019 by Variety, read Women And Hollywood’s interview with Abella prior to the “El Norte Sobre El Vacío” screening at the 2022 Berlin International Film Festival.
