The only major studio release this week comes from Warner Brothers in the form of Birds of Prey, the latest DC Universe release and first comic book movie of 2020. Directed by Cathy Yan, this marks the third wide release film of the year directed by a woman, after the January releases of Floria Sigismondi’s The Turning and Reed Morano’s The Rhythm Section.
The films listed are from studios other than the “Big Six” - Paramount, Warner Brothers, 20th Century Fox, Universal, Columbia/Sony and Disney. Note that some of the movies listed are in their first week or two of limited release in the USA, so it may take them a few more weeks (or months) to show up in your local arthouse theater or on VOD. Check out the posts from the past few weeks for more movies that may have just opened near you: January 31st, January 24th, and January 17th.
The Lodge
Stars: Riley Keough, Richard Armitage, Alicia Silverstone, Jaeden Martell
Writer: Sergio Casci, Severin Fiala, Veronika Franz
Director: Severin Fiala, Veronika Franz
Genre: Drama, Horror, Thriller
Plot: A soon-to-be stepmom is snowed in with her fiancé's two children at a remote holiday village. Just as relations begin to thaw between the trio, some strange and frightening events take place.
What you should know: Premiered at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival
Opens in: Select cities; set to expand over the next few weeks
And Then We Danced
Stars: Levan Gelbakhiani, Bachi Valishvili, Ana Javakishvili, Giorgi Tsereteli
Writer/Director: Levan Akin
Genre: Drama, Romance
Plot: A passionate coming-of-age tale set amidst the conservative confines of modern Tbilisi, the film follows Merab, a competitive dancer who is thrown off balance by the arrival of Irakli, a fellow male dancer with a rebellious streak.
What you should know: This was Sweden’s submission to the International Feature Film Category of the 92nd Academy Awards. Set in Tbilisi, Georgia, the filmmaker, cast and crew faced difficulties making their film in the conservative country due to the LGBT content.
Opens in: Select cities
Come to Daddy
Stars: Elijah Wood, Stephen McHattie, Garfield Wilson, Madeleine Sami
Writer: Toby Harvard, Ant Timpson
Director: Ant Timpson
Genre: Comedy, Horror, Thriller
Plot: Norval Greenwood, a privileged man-child arrives at the beautiful and remote coastal cabin of his estranged father. He quickly discovers that not only is dad a jerk, but he also has a shady past that is rushing to catch up with both of them. Now, hundreds of miles from his cushy comfort zone, Norval must battle with demons, both real and perceived, in order to reconnect with a father he barely knows.
What you should know: This is Ant Timpson’s first feature film; previously, he was a producer on Turbo Kid.
Opens in: Select cities
Waiting for Anya
Stars: Anjelica Huston, Jean Reno, Gilles Marini, Noah Schnapp
Writer: Ben Cookson, Toby Torlesse
Director: Ben Cookson
Genre: Drama, War
Plot: During the harrows of WWII, Jo, a young shepherd along with the help of the widow Horcada, helps to smuggle Jewish children across the border from southern France into Spain.
What you should know: Based on the novel by Michael Morpurgo.
Opens in: Select cities
2/1
Stars: Boyd Holbrook, Song Yang, Beau Bridges, Anna van Hooft
Writer/Director: Juan Cabral
Genre: Drama
Plot: Kaden is a world-class ski jumper in Whistler, Canada, unexpectedly presented with the chance of reconnecting with his teenage sweetheart. Khai is a corporate executive in Shanghai, China, faced with the fact that the girl he fantasizes about on the internet has just started working in his office. The two men go about their lives, without knowing that they are connected.
What you should know: This is director Juan Cabral’s first feature film.
Opens in: Select cities
Cane River
Stars: Richard Romain, Tommye Myrick, Carol Sutton, Barbara Tasker
Writer/Director: Horace B. Jenkins
Genre: Drama, Romance
Plot: A racially-charged love story set in Natchitoches Parish, a “free community of color” in Louisiana. A budding, forbidden romance lays bare the tensions between two black communities, both descended from slaves but of disparate opportunity—the light-skinned, property-owning Creoles and the darker-skinned, more disenfranchised families of the area.
What you should know: Written, produced, and directed by Emmy Award-winning documentarian Horace B. Jenkins, and crafted by an entirely African American cast and crew, the film never received a proper release due to the death of Jenkins shortly after its premiere. This is a 4k restoration of the 1982 film.
Opens in: Select cities
Pandora and the Flying Dutchman
Stars: James Mason, Ava Gardner, Nigel Patrick, Sheila Sim
Writer/Director: Albert Lewin
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Fantasy
Plot: A seductive woman falls in love with a mysterious ship's captain.
What you should know: This is a digitally restored rerelease of the 1951 film based on the tale of the Flying Dutchman.
Opens in: Select cities
Goalie
Stars: Mark O’Brien, Kevin Pollak, Georgina Reilly, Éric Bruneau
Writer: Adriana Maggs, Jane Maggs
Director: Adriana Maggs
Genre: Biography, Drama. Sport
Plot: The life of a professional hockey player was not always a glamorous one. For legendary goaltender Terry Sawchuk, each save means one more gash to his unmasked face and one more drink to numb the pain. Even with a wife and seven children at home, he is haunted by the void left from his childhood which he tried to fill with cheering crowds.
What you should know: Filmed in Canada.
Streams on: Select cities
New Releases on Streaming
We're a litte short on theatrical new releases this week, so I thought I'd highlight a couple of new Netflix releases.
They’ve Gotta Have Us
Director: Simon Frederick
Genre: Documentary
Storyline: Chronicles art, activism and race in black cinema through in-depth interviews with some of Hollywood’s most iconic voices, including Barry Jenkins, John Boyega, Whoopi Goldberg, Laurence Fishburne, David Oyelowo, Diahann Carroll, Kasi Lemmons, Harry Belafonte, Robert Townsend and the late John Singleton.
What you should know: This miniseries is distributed by ARRAY, a grassroots organization founded by Ava DuVernay focused on people of color and women.
Streams on: Netflix, now available
Horse Girl
Stars: Alison Brie, Debby Ryan, John Reynolds, Molly Shannon
Writer: Jeff Baena, Alison Brie
Director: Jeff Baena
Genre: Drama
Plot: A socially awkward woman with a fondness for arts and crafts, horses, and supernatural crime shows finds her increasingly lucid dreams trickling into her waking life.
What you should know: Premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival.
Streams on: Netflix, starting tomorrow
Also opening: Malang (Trailer), Earth (Trailer), Dream Round (Trailer), Zakhmi Family Man (Trailer)
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What have you been watching lately, ONTD? Seeing anything this weekend?
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