Summer movie season is kicking off in full swing this week, between glitzy debuts at Cannes, and our first thoughts on incoming blockbusters like Furiosa. But it seems neither you or we could escape the absolute nightmare of John Krasinski’s bizarre new fantasy film, If. Click through to see our thoughts there, as well as even more of the biggest news of the week you might have missed. —James Whitbrook
In a world of cinematic universes, it makes no sense that IF exists. You may think we mean that because IF is an original, big-budget Hollywood release, the likes of which we don’t see much anymore. But that’s not it at all. What we mean is in a sea of films that are beholden to strict rules of canon and storytelling, somehow IF was made without any acknowledgment of that. It makes rules, it breaks rules, it starts storylines and never pays them off, and in the process gives us a film that’s so maddening, any minor goodwill it gains goes right out the window. Everything that Hollywood has learned in the past few decades was not applied to IF. - Germain Lussier Read More
Agatha All Along was, of course, Agatha all along. Tuesday, Marvel Studios finally finished its multi-year magic trick, changing the title of the upcoming Agatha Harkness show every few months, and landed on its official title. And it’s the one we expected all along: Agatha All Along. The show will debut with a two-episode premiere on September 18. - Germain Lussier Read More
It was only just recently that we started hearing about Warner Bros.’ plans for Dune: Prophecy, the mysterious streaming series prequel inspired by the events of Sisterhood of Dune, again. But out of nowhere, we’ve just got a thunderous first look at its take on Dune’s world. - James Whitbrook Read More
This week’s season finale of X-Men ‘97 brought an emotional, explosive climax to mutantkind’s battle against Bastion and the Prime Sentinels—and the X-Men love nothing more for their soap operatic drama than a big emotional twist while everything’s going bonkers. The finale delivered on that front... although as with a lot of the X-Men’s problems, we’re going to have to wait and see how it pans out. - James Whitbrook Read More
There’s a lot of really interesting things going on in Fallout’s first season, but few are as immediately fascinating as Walton Goggin’s mysterious hunter—known only to the inhabitants of the Wasteland as “The Ghoul,” but to audiences as the pre-war actor Cooper Howard. It’s a mystery that works thanks to an incredible turn by Goggins... but it’s one the actor initially had no idea he could sell. - James Whitbrook Read More
The fact that a show about a devious witch has us so confused feels completely on brand. It started back in late 2021 when Marvel revealed it was working on a WandaVision spinoff series focused on Kathryn Hahn’s breakout character, Agatha Harkness. Since then, the show has had at least four publicly announced titles, with a possible fifth revealed in the most Agatha of ways. All of which (witch?) is to say, what the heck is happening? - Germain Lussier Read More
If you think of Mad Max: Fury Road as The Hobbit, Furiosa is its Lord of the Rings. They’re two stories set in the same world, with the same characters, taking place at different periods of time. One is a little more singular and focused while the other is larger and more expansive. They’re two stories that stand alone beautifully, but also complement each other magnificently. - Germain Lussier Read More
One of the best filmmakers of all time, Francis Ford Coppola, hasn’t had a major theatrical release in almost 30 years. Instead, the man behind The Godfather, The Conversation, and Apocalypse Now has been making weird art films and his very own wine. And you know what? That sounds amazing. Good for you, Mr. Coppola. - Germain Lussier Read More