Everything is new! In terms of movies I watched this week, that is. New is exciting, and these films were all truly great watches, so when you get the chance, add them to your own watch list.
Pig – Jokes on me! I went into this film expecting a cross between John Wick and Taken, but instead I was treated to a truly touching drama. The pig that is stolen at the start of this film belongs to a widowed recluse and former renowned chef, Robin Feld. He reluctantly pairs up with young and inexperienced truffle seller, Amir to find her. Nothing gets too physically violent, but would you believe me if I told there is a fight club of sorts for food workers? I wouldn’t, but it’s there. It’s clear that even though fifteen years have passed, Feld still holds a lot of respect in the food industry and it’s clear he really cared about what he was making and who he was serving. This comes in handy a bunch of times throughout the film. Even though on the surface this movie is about a man trying to get his pig back, it’s also abundantly clear that it is about grief and how individuals handle it. A beautifully odd film that had me close to tears. I’d keep a look out for this on my top ten list at the end of the year!
Fear Street Pt III: 1666 – This trilogy might be the closest thing to perfect I’ve seen in a long time! Who knew it would come from kid’s horror novels?! In the third and final film, all of the events in the previous two films come together when Deena gets transported back to 1666 as Sarah Fier. She’s led through the events of how the curse came to be. Sarah is hunted down as a witch because she got caught kissing Hannah (Sam) just as chaos descends upon the town. Sarah thinks she can confide in a close friend, Solomon Goode, but it turns out he’s the one who made the deal with the devil! Just before Sarah’s hanged, she promises Goode that the truth will haunt and following him forever. Thus, the curse, which I suppose is really the truth. Also, that means Officer Goode is evil and the reason for the most recent murders. That means in the present, Deena and her brother team up with Ziggy to lure Goode to the mall to kill him and the deal with the devil. So freaking fun! This series of movies is truly a summer treat and you should do yourself a favor by watching them.
Escape Room: Tournament of Champions – Similar to the first installment of this film, I know I was watching this movie in my chair, head back with multiple chins just trying to stifle my anxiety. Zoey and Ben are headed to New York to get more dirt on Minos before they are corralled into the latest Escape Room. This one also happens to feature survivors of other iterations of the game. Much is the same from the first time around, but that doesn’t make these awful rooms any less entrancing to watch. Zoey is clearly the most clever and the most empathetic, but she just wants the games to end for good! After a fun surprise at the end, they think they’ve bested the system, but it all just seems a little too easy. I won’t say more for fear of spoilers, but if you enjoyed the first film, any movies in the Saw or Hunger Games franchises, then this is the movie for you!
Gunpowder Milkshake – Think modern neo noir action flick. That’s a lot packed into one, but all the neon in this film lends itself to a modern if not almost futuristic action thriller, and it was really fun to watch! Sam is essentially orphaned and becomes a fairly lethal assassin. You get to see her softer side when she has to protect a young girl who’s father she’s gravely injured. Sam also gets the chance to team up with some of her mother’ old associates, although they seem rather underutilized. Look, Karen Gillen is so fun to watch in anything she does, but if you’ve got Carla Gugino, Michelle Yeoh, and Angela Bassett, you’ve got to balance all of that screen time out! Regardless, this caper was quite fun to watch, and I especially enjoyed an extended fight scene involving men in classic monster masks. Not the best you can watch on Netflix right now (Fear Street, duh), but certainly worth watching down the line.