Today on "Words On Film", Dan Burke reviews "Never Let Go", "Speak No Evil", "Seeking Mavis Beacon", "¡Casa Bonita Mi Amor!", and "Linda Perry: Let It Die Here". Mr. Burke also gives a spoken-word preview of movies subject to being released into theaters for the week of September 23rd - 27th, 2024.
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[MUSIC] >> Hello and welcome to Words on Film, the spoken word show dedicated to moving pictures. I'm Dan Burke, your host and movie critic, and you're listening to Words on Film on WBCALP Boston. I will be reviewing some of the newest movies out right now. >> For this show, I have five movies to review for you. One of them is brand new, the others have been out for the last couple of weeks, and another one of them, the fifth one I'm gonna be reviewing for this show, is actually one that I saw at the Nashville Film Festival, which started on Thursday, and is continuing on into Wednesday, September 25th. And I got a media pass to go there, so rest assured I'll be talking about that as well. So we got a good show and I hope you can stick around for some of my reviews. But I'm gonna start with the newest movie that I saw, but probably not the movie that's going to be the highest grossing film of the week, but still, it was the one I had time to see, so I will discuss it first. The first movie I'm going to be reviewing for you is Never Let Go. This is the latest film directed by Alexander Aja, who has directed a lot of modern horror films of late, such as the 2006 remake of The Hills Have Eyes, Mirrors, and Piranha 3D, the latter of which was critically savage, but it made a very healthy profit. But Never Let Go is not quite as campy or as potentially profitable as Piranha 3D. Piranha 3D was camp, but Never Let Go is a horror film that takes itself pretty seriously, but does that make it a better horror film than a campy one like Piranha 3D? Yeah, probably, but still not a perfect film. And the star of the film is actually Halle Berry, and it's been a while since she's been in a horror film, but she co-stars in this film along with two child actors who play her twin sons, albeit fraternal twin son, because you can tell from looking at them that they couldn't be mistaken as twins, or at least not identical twins. There is Samuel, who's played by Anthony B. Jenkins, and then there's Nolan, who's played by Percy Daggs IV. And the two of them are very competent and capable actors, otherwise they probably wouldn't be in a film with an Academy Award winner like Halle Berry, but the three of them play a family that has been haunted by an evil spirit for years, and they are confined to a remote house in the middle of the woods, where the movie doesn't exactly say, but it doesn't exactly have to. There are lots of places in the world that alone in the United States like this isolated cabin, but their safety and their surroundings come into question when one of the children questions if the evil is real, and it's not determined what age these kids are. There's somewhere between the ages of eight and ten, I believe, but it's Nolan, the kid who's played by Percy Daggs IV, who calls this evil spirit into question, and it's kind of easy to see why, because when you're taught this ritual when you're growing up and you're basically living in fear for all your life, you begin to wonder probably what's the point of all this? Why do we have to keep holding on to the ropes that are attached to the house in order to go out and get food? And these people who are living in this house, this family, really has to scrape by. They have to find whatever they can in the woods in order to just basically live for another day. And Halle Berry plays somebody who's only known as mama. Her backstory is semi-revealed as the movie progresses, and this cabin in which they live has no electricity, presumably no running water or indoor plumbing, like where you stew in this modern age. So you're not exactly sure as this movie begins and probably towards the middle in which time this takes place. And that's probably one of the film's strengths. One of the film's weaknesses is probably not revealing enough about the family in order to get some kind of competence backstory about them. I think the movie probably would have benefited from a middle scene where they actually showed Halle Berry's character going through a typical day before she was confounded by this evil that haunted her and her sons. It also would have helped to have known a little bit more about her husband, who's not in the picture right now, but his facade is one of the disguises through which this evil begins to haunt the family. There is a lot going on here, and there are some devastating scenes here. It's not necessarily a film that's scary, but there actually are some really good jump scares, especially in the very beginning. But it being a psychological horror film, it's not just about the evil spirit that haunts this family, or how the evil spirit haunts this family. In other words, too, who the evil spirit is visible, some people can see the evil spirit in the family, some people can't, and I won't spoil who can and who can't. But the way they have to sacrifice and the way they have to live to see another day is probably the best part about this film. I think by the time the movie ended, it felt like it was a twist in the story that we had seen before, but about 75% of the way in, you really are questioning whether or not this reality that you are seeing alongside this family of Mama, Samuel, and Nolan is real. And you also begin to question what the evil spirit is, and whether or not it is something that really does haunt this family, or if it's in the mind of Halle Berry's character. So this movie, Don't Let Go is certainly one that is very gripping. In terms of its cinematography, it's quite beautiful and striking in a lot of areas. And you begin to take this journey with these unreliable protagonists, and that's the strength of the film. The weakness of the film is towards the end when this situation resolves itself, and you begin to get an understanding of what kind of world they live in. And I think that could have been made a little bit better and made a little bit less like a twist, but I think that the twist of the story was handled better than it was in M. Night Shyamalan's film The Village. And this movie in some instances feels like an M. Night Shyamalan film, but I think it takes itself a lot more seriously than some M. Night Shyamalan films have and probably should have, which is why I give Never Let Go My Rating of a Checkout. I do think that the three principal actors here, Halle Berry, Percy Daggs, The Fourth, and Anthony B. Jenkins definitely act well in their role, especially Halle Berry as the head protagonist or the main protagonist in this film. I think without her and her very strong acting, this film probably would have faltered even more, but Never Let Go is certainly a film that is thrilling, and it also makes you fear for the character's safety on screen. Welcome back to Words on Film, the spoken word show dedicated to moving pictures. I am your host and movie critic Dan Burke. The next movie I'm going to be reviewing for you is Speak No Evil. This is the latest film that is a horror and psychological film that is directed by a British director, James Watkins. And amongst the films that he has previously directed, he's directed at a handful include Eden Lake, The Women in Black, The Take, and that's it for movies. He's also directed some other series, but Speak No Evil is his first film in eight years, and it's probably his highest profile film as the star of the movie is James McAvoy. And the movie follows an ex-patriot family, and by ex-patriot I mean they are from the United States and they are living in Great Britain, specifically in London, and the family consists of the patriarch Ben Dalton, who's played by Scoot McNary, a name we haven't really seen very many times, and you also have the matriarch Louise Dalton, who's played by the more familiar Mackenzie Davis, and the two of them live in London along with their 12 year old daughter Agnes, who's played by Alex West Leffler. And while there are an on vacation in Italy, they meet up with a British couple who's consists of Patty, who is a doctor played by James McAvoy, her his wife Sierra, who's played by Iceland Franciosi, and their son Ant, who's played by Dan Huff. And the three of them, or rather the two families, begin to bond in Italy as they are spending their holiday there. And eventually, the patriarch of the British family, Patty, invites the American Dalton family to stay with them in their English countryside farmhouse for a given amount of time. And when Ben and Louise and their daughter Agnes go to that farmhouse, things are great at first, but eventually, things begin to take a strange turn. And for me to reveal what that strange turn is, it would spoil the movie, or yes, it would spoil the movie, and Words on Film is a show where there are no spoilers. I will tell you, however, that there is a game of cat and mouse that's going on. What I won't reveal to you is who's the cat and who's the mouse. And I also won't reveal to you who wins. But the movie does most certainly take you in, especially where you have James McAvoy, who's playing his usual charismatic self. And I will see anything that James McAvoy is in. And I have a theory about James McAvoy in the sense that if he's in a movie, it can't be all that bad. I'm not saying he never makes a bad film, he's made a couple. But when he's in a movie, it usually means that the film has some semblance of acting credibility. Speaking of evil is no exception to that rule, but it's more than just a semblance of acting credibility. Once the cat and mouse game begins to start, and you're not exactly sure whom to trust over whom, that's when the film gets really intense. And there isn't so much any jump scares that occur in this film. It's more psychological drama and psychological horror than it is the usual standard horror with paranormal activities. But there is a twist that happens about 75% of the way through the film. And once you realize what the twist is, and it's revealed by a character who doesn't talk because their tongue has been cut out. And that's a little bit of a spoiler, but it would be more of a spoiler if I told you who that character was. Things begin to get real. And by real, I mean very, very intense. But I absolutely loved it. I thought that the acting was amazing, especially by James McAvoy, Mackenzie Davis, and Scoot McNary, the latter of whom I wasn't entirely familiar when I was watching this film. And granted, if there was a bigger name who was in this role, like Walton Goggins, for example, and that's just naming one actor off the top of my head, who I think would have been good in the role as Ben Dalton, I think his name would have been on the poster of the film higher than James McAvoy's. But because James McAvoy is arguably the most well-known actor in here, he gets top billing. But he's not so much the lead character as much as Mackenzie Davis and Scoot McNary's characters are, but I think all of them and Isling, Franciosi, all acted very well together in this film. And also the child actors, Alex West Leffler and Dan Huff, acted well in their roles as well. And the movie probably wouldn't have worked as well without these child actors in their respective roles. But the movie is most certainly thrilling, it takes you in with these characters charisma and also their relatable situations, not to mention that the cinematography of this film, like in Speak No Evil, is absolutely beautiful. Although the cinematography in the film Never Let Go is scary, but Speak No Evil's cinematography isn't quite as scary, but it certainly adds to the nuance and the atmosphere of this very chilling film from Blumhouse Productions that is probably the best film that Blumhouse Productions has released in terms of its quality, which is why I give Speak No Evil my rating of a knockout. I think it is a very well-acted film and also the twist in the film is one that I most certainly didn't see coming. And not only does the cinematography and the acting work well to increase the intensity in some of these scenes, but also some of the sound effects in this film make this film as chilling as you would probably not expect one going into it, but it will take you by surprise about halfway through the film as well. So Speak No Evil was a film, Blumhouse Productions has certainly made some flops, granted a lot of their films have been absolutely profitable, but this is a film that has the potential to be profitable not to mention it is very high quality and good for Blumhouse Productions for making each of the films they've released better and better. And Speak No Evil is certainly a sign of that. Welcome back to Words on Film, the spoken words show dedicated to moving pictures. I am your host and movie critic Dan Burke. The next movie I'm going to be reviewing for you is a documentary that's called Seeking Mavis Beacon. And this is the directorial debut of Jasmine Jones, who also very much like Michael Moore and a lot of his documentaries, is not only directing and having written this film, but she also stars in it along with her friend and computer programmer Olivia Michaela Ross. And the two of them come together to seek out what the mystery is behind Mavis Beacon. And if the name Mavis Beacon sounds particularly familiar, it's because Mavis Beacon is a character in an application software program titled Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing, which first debuted in 1987 and has since been retooled and revamped based on technologies and their advances. Now what a lot of people don't know and what some people are discovering for the first time is that Mavis Beacon is actually not a real person. She's a character and there's usually some very pretty black model who's put on the cover of Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing. And a lot of people have assumed that that model is Mavis Beacon. And Mavis Beacon has been, I guess you could say, portrayed by various beautiful black women over the last three or four decades. And what Jasmine Jones and her friend, Olivia Michaela Ross, are out to discover is what happened to the very first model who represented Mavis Beacon and where is she now? And they begin to uncover not so much a conspiracy, but a very intriguing look at what the origins of the Mavis Beacon character was, why the character was named Mavis Beacon, and they are on the search to find the first woman to portray, or at least model as Mavis Beacon, who is a Haitian model by the name of Loree Esperance. I hope I pronounce that name right. She is a Haitian woman. And they, their journeys lead them to the people who developed Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing, the software developers, that is, some of the people who knew them, as well as some of Renee Lesperance's next door neighbors who actually revealed that the lady not only lived in that area, but she also had a son. So they begin to follow a bit of a rabbit hole as they are trying to find out what happened to a character that while she doesn't exist, she did serve as an inspiration to a lot of young black women who eventually went on to become software developers or got into coding. Olivia Michaela Ross, the co-star of this documentary, being one of them. And this movie is generally good at showing some of the basic story behind Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing and how that game came to be developed. I shouldn't say it's a game. It has some game-like qualities, but it's largely a software tool to help people learn how to type. And while I didn't learn to type with Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing, I did see that cover on the shelves of home office stores like Staples and Office Max. And I can certainly appreciate the legacy of Mavis Beacon even though she's not a real person. But as I was watching this film, and I will give it some levity because Jasmine Jones is a first-time director, I do feel like a lot of the story behind Jasmine Jones and Olivia Michaela Ross is seeking out the original model who played Mavis Beacon and seeing where her life is now, I did feel as though the story had some holes in it here and there that I think could have been plugged in. And also that the movie had some moments where the story kind of dragged out a little bit. But I'm not taking that away from this documentary for a documentary that's made by a first-time director, writer, and editor. It is a very good start. And it also begins by asking a very good question. If Mavis Beacon is not a real person, why was she created as a fictional character? And also did the person who originally modeled as Mavis Beacon get some sort of financial benefit from playing Mavis Beacon or portraying Mavis Beacon? And that's where the movie begins to take a dark turn, which is also unfortunately not surprising, given the status of some African Americans or even some people of African descent who are the face of a certain product who don't get the recognition that they ultimately deserve. Aunt Jemima in particular comes to mind here. But the documentary Seeking Mavis Beacon is certainly a great debut for Jasmine Jones. And it gets my rating of a checkout. And I do think that should Jasmine Jones come out with another documentary. And if she is collaborating with her friend Olivia Michaela Ross on that documentary, I think that documentary will be better, tighter, and also probably better paced. But for a first effort, this is pretty good. And it also starts by asking some very good questions. Unfortunately, the unfortunate part about it is it doesn't answer a lot of those questions, or it doesn't make the answers to these questions as upfront as probably this documentary should make them. But I do think it is a valiant start. And I do think also some young black people, not necessarily women who see this documentary may want to also seek out, not necessarily Mavis Beacon for themselves, but become more encouraged to ask questions about some of the heroes that they had growing up, whether it's fictional characters like Mavis Beacon or others. And I think for that reason, Seeking Mavis Beacon may not be perfect, but it is a serviceable documentary that also is a lot of fun in some parts here. And I could most certainly appreciate the questions that Jasmine Jones and Olivia Michaela Ross were asking and also seeking out the answers to as the film progresses. [Music] Welcome back to Words on Film, the spoken word showed dedicated to moving pictures. I am your host and movie critic Dan Burke. The next movie I'm going to be reviewing for you is Casa Bonita Miyamore. Is this a Spanish language film? There is some Spanish in it, but no. This is actually an American film that is directed by Arthur Bradford and prominently stars Matt Stone and Trey Parker, who are probably best known to all of you for being the creators and showrunners of South Park. And they star in this film as not only themselves, but also two guys who are very nostalgic about having gone to Casa Bonita, which is a semi popular or rather a very popular Mexican restaurant that's not just a Mexican restaurant, but it's also an experience. And it is located in Denver, Colorado, specifically the Denver suburb of Lakewood, Colorado. And it was first opened in 1974. And it was closed very briefly for the pandemic, but even when it opened in 2021 after most people had had their vaccinations and it was opened to the public, it closed shortly afterwards because the previous owners of the iconic Colorado Mexican restaurant sold it in a bankruptcy auction and who bought Casa Bonita, Matt Stone and Trey Parker. And they bought it for three and a half million dollars with the hopes to renovate it and also to open it up again. But as you get the picture from the very first 20 minutes of this film, Matt Stone and Trey Parker had their work cut out for them. And even though they weren't responsible for renovating it themselves, in other words, going in, replacing the electrical wiring and doing all that other maintenance work, they still had to fork over literally millions of dollars to do this. And one of the most fascinating parts of this documentary is when the camera people are going around and filming the aftermath of Casa Bonita after it closed and after Trey Parker and Matt Stone wanted to open it again. You see what was lurking behind the walls. You also see what the kitchen staff and also some of the elaborate cliff divers who were in Casa Bonita had to put up with. I mean, the diving was easy, but then they had in probably one of my favorite parts of this tour. And by favorite, I mean, oh my God, how did they go that long with getting away with this, that the people who were running the restaurant, the people who dived into the pool also had to get out of the pool where there was not only a wet floor, but also some electrical wires that were exposed. And the movie didn't reveal any of these divers getting electrically shocked as they were getting out of the pool. But that doesn't necessarily mean that none of them did either. So as this movie demonstrates, Matt Stone and Trey Parker had a lot of work to do. Now they had it probably easy with the writing the checks and also the planning stages, but they sunk a lot of money into it. And I won't reveal how much they ultimately sunk into it because that's actually revealed in the written epilogue of this documentary. I will say, however, that the original estimate, the original estimate for Matt Stone and Trey Parker to renovate this place was, here's the number 20 million dollars. That was the estimate. But as the construction and thereby the movie progressed, you learn that 20 million dollars is not enough to keep Casablone to up to date. And Trey Parker even says as he's going through the restaurant and touring its aftermath, he said any businessman would have told me to get out while they could while we could. And honestly, I didn't grow up in Colorado. In fact, I've never been to Colorado. But even if I had a soft spot in my heart for Casabloneeta, in other words, if my parents took me there when I was a kid, and it was a special treat to not only eat the food there, but also to go around and explore this place, which is ultimately like a mini Mexican Disney world, I probably would have looked at some of the things that needed renovated and just said, this place isn't a fixer upper. This is a blower upper and you should probably get out while you can, maybe bulldoze the place and start anew. But to Trey Parker and Matt Stone's credit, they stuck with it. I mean, fortunately, it seemed like they had the millions to do this because when you have a show that's been on Comedy Central for 27 years, and doesn't show any signs of slowing down either creatively or with Matt Stone or and or Trey Parker quitting the show, which probably won't happen anytime soon, but it will eventually happen. I'm just saying that they have the disposable income to actually make their childhood dream a reality, and kudos to them for actually getting the funds to resurrect Casabloneeta. And Casabloneeta, Mia Moore, consequently, is a very fascinating documentary to watch, not to mention that with Matt Stone and Trey Parker being interviewed constantly for this film. It's also a very funny documentary to watch, and I hope I really hope the Academy takes notice. I also should note that the director of this film, Arthur Bradford, has directed some TV movies and TV series. And this is his his third feature film documentary that he's put out. He first got on the scene in 1999 with the documentary How's Your News, which come to think of it, it might be a prophetic documentary, but then he follows that up with a sequel called How's Your News, election 2012, which frankly is four years too early to make a documentary about the news and its effect on the election. But I'm just saying Casabloneeta, Mia Moore is a thematic departure for Arthur Bradford, but it is a very solid documentary, and Casabloneeta Mia Moore, which translates from Spanish to English, by the way, for those of you who aren't native Spanish speakers to Pretty House My Love, but Casabloneeta Mia Moore sounds so much better. But the documentary Casabloneeta Mia Moore gets my rating of a knockout. It certainly is a film that like all great movies, not just documentaries, tells an incredible story and also emphasizes how potentially foolish resurrecting a restaurant like this that was opened in the 70s and probably didn't have the structural regulations that we have in restaurants today. But kudos to Matt Stone and Trey Parker for actually getting Casabloneeta up from the ground and also revealing how much Casabloneeta meant to native people of Denver. I don't know if they're Denver I absolutely loved watching Matt Stone and Trey Parker on their journey. I probably wouldn't like it as much if I was either writing the checks or doing the reconstruction on Casabloneeta. But it was most certainly a labor of love. But it's not just Matt Stone and Trey Parker in addition to the various people who worked to resurrect Casabloneeta who labored on this because of love. They labored on it. It was not easy labor. Some of these people were working 80 hour days to get Casabloneeta open on time. But it was inspiring to see the native Coloradans. There I go again. Actually cheering this project on. And if I ever go to Denver or the suburb of Lakewood, Colorado, I will most certainly visit Casabloneeta. And I would imagine I'd have a pretty good time. Welcome back to words on film. The spoken words show dedicated to moving pictures. I am your host and movie critic Dan Burke. The next movie I'm going to be reviewing for you is another documentary. And this may be a record three documentaries in one show. Or at least it's a it's a record that I may break later, but not because I want to break it just because it kind of happens. But the next movie I'm going to be reviewing for you is Linda Perry. Let it die here. Now not only is this the third documentary that I've been reviewing for this show. It's also the very first movie that I saw at the 55th annual Nashville Film Festival. Now being a movie buff like I am, I hear about film festivals all the time, like Sundance, Cans, Telluride, Toronto International Film Festival, and the like. And I want to go to each and every one of those film festivals. I honestly do or at least go to one of them at some point before I die. And maybe I will, but right now I am just an average Joe who works a full time job and a couple of part time jobs too. So I don't have that luxury. However, I did get a press pass to the Nashville Film Festival and I'm taking advantage of that access that I have. But Linda Perry, let it die here, is an intimate look at Linda Perry's personal and professional life as one of pop music's major creative forces as a multifaceted singer, songwriter, and producer. And Linda Perry is somebody with whom I've been familiar ever since she was in the band for non-blons and pop radio could not stop playing that song What's Up. And truth be told, when I was 10 years old, I began to hate the song What's Up because radio just played it over and over and over and over again. But Linda Perry actually left the four non-plons right after they had that success with that song What's Up and she largely never looked back. In fact, she became a very noteworthy producer who produced songs like Get This Party Started by Pink from her album Misunderstood Beautiful by Christina Aguilera from her album Dirty and also What You Waiting For by Gwen Stefani from her album Lamb Love Angel Music Baby. And she's also contributed to albums by Adele, Alicia Keys, Courtney Love, and she also signed and distributed James Blunt. And as this movie demonstrates, one of her clients, for whom she produced songs and presumably a whole album at one point, was Dolly Parton, who makes an appearance in this film, not only going to work recording songs for Linda Perry, but also praising Linda Perry and her unique production ways. And there are also some other interviews here by the likes of Christina Aguilera, who I'd mentioned Linda Perry had worked with back in 2002, Brandy Carlisle, Sarah Gilbert, the latter of whom was married to Linda Perry and unfortunately isn't married to her anymore. And the movie doesn't exactly explain why, but you can extrapolate based on Linda Perry's work ethic here, how the relationship ultimately deteriorated. But it is really a fascinating look at Linda Perry, where she started from. She was born and raised in Springfield, Massachusetts, and her childhood was very dysfunctional. As a matter of fact, at one point, she tried to kill herself by swallowing her mother's pills. But it's because her doctor actually prescribed her less of a dose of some of these pills that Linda Perry ultimately survived this suicide. And thank God she did, because otherwise, we wouldn't have a lot of these great songs. And years ago, I did a review of a documentary about Pink. And I mentioned that Pink's sophomore album misunderstood, where Linda Perry definitely produced many, if not all of the songs on that album, was the, was the album that put Pink on the map. It definitely was an album that made me appreciate Pink more as an artist. And I think it's actually one of the best albums released in the years 2002, 2009, albeit the first decade of this century, which no one has a name for I guess you could call it the aughts. I don't know, but that's another story for another time. But director Don Hardy does a great job showing Linda Perry not only in her zone as she's writing, recording, and producing music, but also some very vulnerable sides too. For instance, there's one scene where Linda Perry is dancing in her closet. And she is not only lamenting about how she can't dance, but she also has some other figurative skeletons that come up as she's dancing in her closet, which was probably one of the more poignant scenes here. And there's another scene later after you discover that Linda Perry was diagnosed at one point with breast cancer. And she ultimately survived breast cancer. But she also is in the middle of what I presume to be Death Valley. And she takes her shirt off. And you see her chest. And this isn't gratuitous. It's actually, at least it wasn't to me. It showed the brevity that Linda Perry has, not only in the songs that she writes and records, but also in the way that she lives her life. And also the way she carries on from day to day, especially when personal tragedy besets her. And this movie could have covered the relationships she had with Sarah Gilbert, but it turns out she had also other darker demons besides her split from Sarah Gilbert. And I'm very sorry that it didn't work out between the two because in the archive footage, they seem like a very cute couple. But Linda Perry let it die here is a movie that you would expect to see at the Nashville Film Festival because Nashville Film Festival showcases movies that are not necessarily music related, but they probably choose the best music related documentaries to showcase. And Linda Perry let it die here is what I think is a great introduction for me to the Nashville Film Festival as it is, the first film not only that I saw at this year's film festival, but also the first film that I ever attended at a Nashville Film Festival period. And it makes me want to come back for more films next year. But of course, I've got a lot of other films to see and to review for the show, but I will tell you that Linda Perry let it die here gets my rating of a knockout. It is most certainly a very vulnerable documentary about a person who has made it very far in the music industry, which is not easy to do, especially in this day and age where even the people who are household names in the music industry may not necessarily be making a living for themselves just from the music because of all the complications with the music industry. But Linda Perry has heart, she has soul, she has talent, and this film definitely showcases that. But the direction I actually really liked from Don Hardy is when they filled in some of the blanks in this documentary where Linda Perry is talking about her past life and some of her previous tragedies with this very unique animation, the stop motion animation style that I really liked and stayed with me, even as I left the theater. But Linda Perry let it die here is not only about a fascinating topic, it's also it also tells a story very well without being the linear story that you might expect, but it never ceased to be interesting. Welcome back to Words on Film, the spoken words show dedicated to moving pictures. I am your host of movie critic Dan Burke and now that I've reviewed all the movies that I have to review for this show, it's now time for me to get into my final segment which is What's Coming Up Next. This is a spoken word preview of movies that are subject to being released in theaters for the week of September 23rd through September 27th, 2024. And I have a really good problem in the sense that there are a lot of movies that are coming out. I would say a lot of great movies, but I'll just leave it at saying that they are a lot of mainstream movies and I have a lot of movies to review for you and so little time to review them. So I don't anticipate that all these movies that I'm going to be covering on What's Coming Up Next are those I'm going to see, but I'll let you know what the movies are and whether or not they will likely be playing in a theater near you. On Tuesday, September 24th, this is a movie that I probably won't see because it's coming out on a Tuesday and it's probably one of those Fathom events movies, but it's a movie that's called Little Brother and it's a movie about a guy by the name of Jake who drives his older brother Pete played by Edinger, home for a family intervention after his most recent suicide attempt. The movie is directed by and written by Sheridan O'Donnell and stars Beth Bailey, Kevin Bransford, Daniel Deemer and Polly Draper, amongst other people. So there are some familiar names scattered in this film here and there. As I'm going down the list of people in the roster of actors, actually JK Simmons makes an appearance in this film as well. So that's probably the most well-known actor here. I don't know if this film is coming out in the theater near me, but if I see it, I'll let you know what I think on a future show. On September 26th with a Thursday, there are two films that are subject to being released in theaters, but because they're not coming out in the theater near me, presumably, I probably won't see them, but I will just describe them briefly. The first one is Devara Part One, which is an epic action saga set against coastal lands, which briefs about riproaring emotionally charged incidents in the periodic timeline, also comprises the titular protagonist being the rescuer to deprived and fear to evil doers. The movie is directed by and written by Kora Tala Siva and is presumably a Bollywood film. If it's not a Bollywood film, it's a film that's made in India, but I can't exactly tell you whether or not this film is coming out of the theater near me. I probably won't see it, but if I do, I'll let you know what I think on a future show. Another movie that's subject to be released in theaters on September 26th is a movie that's called One Hand Clapping. And if that name sounds familiar to you, it's because it is not a new movie. It actually is a film that was released in 1974, and it is about Paul McCartney and Wings. It's a rockumentary where Paul McCartney's Wings recorded live at Abbey Road in 1974, and it features performances of songs of theirs like "Maybe I'm Amazed," "Jet," "Live and Let Die," and "Voiceovers from band members discussing their musical journeys." So obviously, as you might expect, the movie stars Paul and the late great Linda McCartney, and some other members of the band Wings. So this movie seems like it's coming out as an anniversary release. I actually have never seen it, but if I see it, I may let you know what I think on a future show, but chances are I probably won't review this one, but I'll look out for it, and I won't entirely rule it out. But it is Friday, September 27th, where there are a number of big films that are coming out, the biggest of which is most likely Megalopolis. And the reason that this film is huge is because not only does it have an all-star cast consisting of Adam Driver, Giancarlo Esposito, Aubrey Plaza, Shia LaBeouf, John Voight, Lawrence Fishburne, Talia Shire, Jason Schwartzman, and others, but it is directed by and written by Francis Ford Coppola, and it is probably his most ambitious film since the Cotton Club. And I'm always kind of rooting for Francis Ford Coppola because I know that he's always been a very ambitious director, and that ambition paid off in the 70s when he directed great films like The Godfather's Part 1 and 2, and I can't decide which one of those films is better, The Conversation and Apocalypse Now. And in the 80s, he had his share of ups and downs beginning with the film One from the Heart, which got decent reviews, but was a very big commercial flop. He made up for that commercial flop with commercially successful films in the 80s like Rumblefish and The Outsiders, but he also made The Cotton Club, which was a critical darling, but a commercial flop. But Francis Ford Coppola has definitely put his money where his mouth is in Megalopolis, and what is Megalopolis about? If I can pronounce it correctly, it's about a city by the name of New Rome that is the main conflict between Caesar Catalina, who is a brilliant artist in favor of a utopian future, and the greedy mayor Franklin Cicero. Between them is Julius Cicero, her loyalty divided between her father and her beloved. So that sounds like a semi-familiar tale, but I am excited to see this. I'm not saying that it's going to be a great film, but in the hands of Five Time Academy Award winner Francis Ford Coppola, it is most certainly promising. This is a movie that I will see, and I will likely review it for you next week. Another film that is, excuse me, subject to being released in theaters on September 27th, is a movie that's called Lee. And Lee is a movie that stars Kate Winslet, not the beautiful Kate Winslet that we're used to in films like Titanic, but it is the story of American photographer Lee Miller, a fashion model who became an acclaimed war correspondent for Vogue Magazine during World War II. Kate Winslet plays the titular Lee. Also, co-starring in this film is Alexander Skarsgard, Andy Samberg. Yes, Andy Samberg is starring in a dramatic film. The movie also stars Andrea Reisboro, Marion Cotillard, and Josh O'Connor, amongst other people. So Lee, like Megalopolis, looks to Megalopolis, excuse me, looks to be an Oscar contender, or at least it looks like Oscar bait. Whether or not the Oscars will take the bait, I can't say, I can't say how good the movie is, but with Kate Winslet starring in this film, and also probably producing this film, it looks promising. So Lee is a film that I will see, and I will see it for you on a future show, but may not necessarily be next week's show. Another film that is subject to being released in theaters on September 27th is a movie that's called The Wild Robot. And this is an animated film from DreamWorks Animation that features the voice talent of Lupita Nyong'o. This is not the first time that Lupita Nyong'o has voiced an animated character. She voiced an animated character also in the Star Wars sequels, Chapter 789, but this is the first time she's voicing a character in an entirely animated film. And it's a movie about an intelligent robot called Rauss, who, after a shipwreck is stranded on an uninhabited island. To survive the harsh environment, Rauss bonds with the island's animals and cares for an orphaned baby goose. So this movie kind of sounds like Castaway meets AI. But I'm not saying that it's a rip off of either of those movies. What I'm saying is it looks like a very interesting and unique film. Now besides Lupita Nyong'o, this movie also features the voice talents of Pedro Pascal, Bill Nahi, Ving Rames, Mark Hamill, who's a veteran of animated films, Catherine O'Hara and others. So this movie has a very strong voice cast, and it's a movie that I look very forward to seeing. I know that DreamWorks has had its share of hidden misses in terms of its animated films. I mean Pussin Boots, the last Pussin Boots movie was a better film than I anticipated that it would be. So the Wild Robot is a film very much like Megalopolis and Lee, for which I have very high hopes. But I can't say whether or not they're gonna be good films, but I will see them, and I'll let you know what I think, or I will see the Wild Robot and I'll let you know what I think on a future show. That just about does it for this episode of Words on Film. Words on Film is the spoken word showed dedicated to moving pictures, and I am your host and movie critic Dan Burke, reminding you that the views and opinions expressed on Words on Film about movies or other topics are solely those of your host and movie critic Dan Burke. They not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of any employees or volunteers who are working at WBCA or the station as a whole. Until I watch a whole bunch of brand new movies, this is Dan Burke saying I'll see you at the movies. [BLANK_AUDIO]