Sundance Review : Emergency
Carey Williams follows up his directorial debut R#J with another love story in Emergency. Straight-A college student Kunle (Donald Elise Watkins) and his laid-back best friend, Sean (RJ Cyler), are about to have the most epic night of their lives. Determined to be the first Black students to complete their school’s frat party legendary tour, the friends strap in for their ultimate assignment, Solo cups in hand.
A Shot Through The Wall is a promising debut from Aimee Long
Race relations serve as the backdrop of director Aimee Long’s feature debut, A Shot Through the Wall from Vertical Entertainment. Chinese-American Officer Mike Tan (Kenny Leu) is in his early twenties and still living at home with his parents, one of whom is his overbearing mother, May (Fiona Fu).
Shattered is a ho hum thriller
Thriller writer David Loughery continues to milk his bread and butter genre in Shattered from Lionsgate. Luis Prieto directs the film, which follows the story of lonely tech millionaire Chris (Cameron Monaghan) amid an amicable divorce from Jamie (Sasha Luss).
Scream is a fresh entry in the franchise
The newest entry in a beloved Meta horror franchise slashes into theaters from directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett in Scream from Paramount Pictures. James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick pen the fifth film that will please old fans and possibly gain new ones.
ABFF Film Review : B-Boy Blues
Actor Jussie Smollet makes his directorial debut with B-Boy Blues. Smollet co-writes the film with James Earl Hardy, which is an adaptation of Hardy’s same-titled novel. Mitchell (Timothy Richardson) is a successful advertising executive living in New York who is unlucky in love.
American Underdog is a good ole fashioned crowd pleaser
Christian filmmakers, The Erwin Brothers continue their trend of inspirational stories with their seventh film American Underdog from Lionsgate. The film is a biopic of Kurt Warner (Zachary Levi), who went from a stock boy at a grocery store to a two-time NFL MVP, Super Bowl champion, and Hall of Fame quarterback.
Denzel Washington directs Michael b. Jordan and Chanté Adams in the sentimental A Journal For Jordan
For his fourth film as a director, legendary actor Denzel Washington helms an adaptation of a New York Times bestseller in A Journal for Jordan from Columbia Pictures. A Journal for Jordan is based on a period in the life of First Sergeant Charles Monroe King (Michael B. Jordan), a soldier deployed to Iraq
The King’s Man avoids threequel pitfalls
Director Matthew Vaughn returns to the world of The Secret Service in The King’s Man from 20th Century Studios. The third chapter in the Kingsman franchise, an adaptation of a comic book series, is a prequel to the first two films.
Simon Rex lifts off to a career best performance in Red Rocket
Director Sean Baker continues his trend of small-town America based with his junior feature Red Rocket from A24. Simon Rex portrays Mike as a down on his luck washed up porn actor who returns to his small Texas hometown. Baker introduces us to Mike in a disheveled appearance and a bruised face.
The Tragedy of Macbeth is a faithful adaptation
TA trio of Academy Award-winning talent collaborates for a Shakespearean adaptation in The Tragedy of Macbeth from A24. Joel Coen helms and scripts the film while Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand step into the roles of Lord and Lady Macbeth.
Encanto is good old fashioned Disney Magic
The 60th animated film from Walt Disney Studios arrives in the form of Encanto. Byron Howard and Jared Bush direct the movie with some co-direction from Charise Castro Smith.
Ghostbusters: Afterlife is a love letter to the franchise
Director Jason Reitman breathes new life into an eighties franchise with Columbia Pictures, Ghostbusters: Afterlife. After being evicted from their home, Callie (Carrie Coon), a single mother, and her two children Phoebe (Mckenna Grace) and Trevor (Finn Wolfhard) are forced to move to a decayed farmhouse in Summerville, Oklahoma, left to them by the children’s late grandfather, Egon Spengler.