Holler
Boy, this sure starts us off on a somber note. Doesn’t look fun at all, but I’m pretty compelled by what I see here. Looks like a solid small town American drama. Nothing I haven’t seen before, but it could still be pretty interesting and engaging. Funnily enough, I spent the whole trailer waiting for Pamela Adlon to show up since she’s the first actor listed in the description under the video, and me being a fan of her work, I was really excited to see her pop up, except she didn’t. Maybe it’s a spoiler, who knows? I think this is something I would check out anyways, it looks quite promising.
Holler hits select theaters and VOD platforms on June 11th.
Georgetown
I recall seeing some news about Christoph Waltz making his first film as a director, and then it just fell off my radar. Glad to see this finally come out, and ready for release. Apparently, the word-of-mouth, following its festival run, is rather mixed, and if the lack of tonal cohesion in the trailer is of any indication, I guess I can see why. I honestly haven’t heard much of this story that this is apparently based on, but it sounds wild. I’m definitely going to check this out. Waltz is a great actor, and I’m curious to see how his instincts as a performer translates to his first turn as a director.
Georgetown hits select theaters on May 14th and VOD platforms on May 18th.
Plan B
I’ve seen a few people compare this to Unpregnant, which was one the first HBO Max Originals to come out last year, and I honestly don’t see it. Aside from the fact that the story involving a teenager who doesn’t want to be pregnant, and her best friend helping her out, there’s not much else in common. If anything, this has more in common with the “one night of hijinks” quality of Booksmart than the road trip element of Unpregnant. If there’s anything to criticize, it’s that it doesn’t seem all that funny, especially compared to the two other films I mentioned. Still, it’s a trailer, and not necessarily reflective of the whole film. It’s directed by Natalie Morales, which is interesting, I’ve enjoyed her as an actress, and it’s written by Prathiksha Srinivasan, which definitely explains the trailer featuring two South Asian characters who aren’t related, and one being the lead. That’s cool, and I certainly hope the film is more enjoyable than the trailer.
Plan B hits Hulu on May 28th.
Awake
I know that Gina Rodriguez has been on some thin ice with some people, but generally speaking, I’ve liked most of the stuff I’ve seen her in. I think she’s solid. This movie seems interesting. I like the premise, but I have a feeling that it might fall into some of the traps that a lot of Netflix sci-fi movies fall into, and get too caught up in the minutiae and the mechanics of its ideas. I hope it just tries to have fun with the idea of no one being able to sleep, but I won’t won’t my breath for this.
Awake will be released on Netflix on June 9th.
The Last Letter From Your Lover
Now this is a film that definitely reminds me of another recent movie. I didn’t review last year’s The Photograph, but I did see it, and I thought it was perfectly fine. A lot of this reminds me so much of that film. Granted, I know this is based on a book, and there’s always the possibility that two people came up with similar ideas. I don’t know. It’s just weird how this is similar, almost beat for beat with the exception of a certain plot point front the end of The Photograph that doesn’t seem to apply here (if you know, you know). Even if I hadn’t seen The Photograph, I probably wouldn’t be too enamored with this, it looks pretty bland, and while I like the actors here, some of them feel miscast. I won’t dismiss it outright, the trailer could easily be underselling it, but I don’t see what the hype is with this.
The Last Letter From Your Lover will be released on Netflix on July 23rd.
There Is No Evil
I’m not familiar with the works of Iranian filmmaker, Mohammad Rasoulof, but this looks very exciting and interesting. Though he does share a similarity with one of my favorite Iranian directors, Jafar Panahi, in that he was also imprisoned, and forced to make movies in secret. While I’m sure it sucks for them, I can’t help but imagine them using that situation to fuel their creativity and drive. It’s definitely led Pinahi to some of the finest cinematic works made in the 21st century so far, and I don’t see why Rasoulof couldn’t be capable of doing the same. I actually got a screener for this, and I’m looking forward to checking it out, so expect a review sometime next week.
There Is No Evil opens in select theaters and virtual cinemas on May 14th.
Thoughts on any of the trailers? Feel free to discuss in the comments!