August 19, 2022

The Black Phone, New Orphan, Vikram and all other new movies to watch at home

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This week is relatively easy on the new film board.

Sure, Netflix has its usual slate of seven new movies, but beyond that, it’s August’s dry season in the annual movie calendar. Still, there are some fascinating new releases to check out at home, and an easy week still means 15 new movies to choose from.

New horror films are groundbreaking: the Orphaned precursor first kill On Paramount Plus, Isabelle Fuhrman returns to the franchise more than a decade later, and Scott Derrickson’s new horror film The black phone with Ethan Hawke fell quietly on Peacock.

One of the best action thrillers of the year also makes its streaming debut: vikramthe highest-grossing Tamil language film of 2022. It is the sequel to the 2019 thriller Kaithiand I for one can’t wait to see it this weekend.

There are also Jurassic World Dominionan animated adaptation of Flaming Saddles and BJ Novak’s Podcast Mystery Thriller Revenge available for digital rental or purchase, and among the many new Netflix releases is a coming-of-age film featuring Riverdale Starring Lili Reinhart and a fascinating Malaysian action film from the director of hero.

Let’s get into that!

Orphan: First kill

Where to see: Available to stream on Paramount Plus

Isabelle Fuhrman returns as Esther in a prequel Orphaned. If your main character is a woman posing as a child, you can do unusual things such as: B. Do a prequel 13 years later with the same actor!

The black phone

Where to see: Available to stream on Peacock

Scott Derrickson’s first film since Doctor Strange sees him return to his horror roots and team up with Ethan Hawke for this adaptation of Joe Hill’s short story. In it, Hawke plays a masked man who kidnaps and murders children. The latest kidnapping victim (Mason Thames) comes from a family that may have supernatural abilities, and he is able to talk to the killer’s previous victims on a dead phone in the basement where he is being held captive.

From our review:

Outside the feeling of morbid inevitability The black phone is a mess. The main issue is the performances, which range from puzzling to downright pathetic. Jeremy Davies is particularly bad as Finney and Gwen’s drunk father, whose babble and shouting doesn’t come across as pathetic or threatening. Hawke is also too everywhere to be read as credibly scary: when we first see The Grabber, his face is made up white and he speaks in a high-pitched, affected voice that reminds us Atlantais Teddy Perkins. Crazy, right? What is he trying to mean, and how does that fit with his psychosis? Regardless – this is the first and last time that character detail will appear in the film.

vikram

Where to see: Available to stream on Hulu

One of the most critically acclaimed action thrillers of the year was suddenly added to Hulu this week without any announcement. Now you know!

vikram takes place after the events of Kaithi in the Lokesh Cinematic Universe but does not all include the same characters. in the Kaithi, a cop, an ex-con and a catering company worker work together to transport dozens of drugged cops in a truck to escape a group of gangsters out to kill them. in the vikra, Kamal Hassan is the leader of a black ops team tasked with hunting down a group of dangerous criminals, with Vijay Sethupathi (seen above, snarling) starring as the criminal gang’s leader. vikram is the highest-grossing Tamil language film this year.

Jurassic World Dominion

Where to see: Available to rent or buy for $19.99 on Google Play, Amazon, Apple

With the final film in the Jurassic World trilogy, Colin Trevorrow returns to the director’s chair after only co-writing the second entry. Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard are returning in their lead roles from the World franchise, but so are more people from the original Jurassic films. Jeff Goldblum (who appeared in the second entry) is back, but her exciting returns to the series are Laura Dern and Sam Neill.

From our review:

in the domination, Grant, Dern and Goldblum sneak around another high-tech facility adjacent to another sanctuary full of dinosaurs. Colin Trevorrow, who co-wrote and directed the first Jurassic worldwho co-wrote the second and is directing this again is too in awe of the original Jurassic Park to resist going back into the jungle, even if it’s a different jungle. Perhaps he is too in awe of the original point. domination is full of callbacks and curtain calls, and finally he’s so busy presenting a combination of familiar dinosaurs (animal and human) alongside brand new threats that he’s running out of space to build actual set pieces. Which is a shame because the ones he puts together are mostly great fun, full of special effects work that doesn’t feel like a green screen into the Uncanny Valley.

Revenge

Where to see: Available for $19.99 from Amazon, Apple, Vudu

BJ Novak holds up a phone to record Boyd Holbrook's voice on Vengeance

BJ Novak directs and stars in this podcast-style film about a writer trying to solve the murder of a girl he knew.

From our review:

At first glance, it seems like the film will treat podcasting as a bitter punchline — a substitute for Ben’s empty, self-impressed pursuit. In the end, the film speaks to bigger ideas than just podcasting. Once in a while, Revenge seems to aim for omnidirectional satire with a pinch of empathy, like the films of Alexander Payne. More often, however, it resembles a hall of mirrors with a bunch of culture clash illusions waving at each other in confident approval.

Paws of Rage: The Legend of Hank

Where to see: Available for $19.99 from Amazon, Apple, Vudu

Two animated cats grin and make plans in Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank

This film is an animated adaptation of the classic comedy directed by Mel Brooks Flaming Saddles, with a samurai bow instead of strictly western. Yes, really!

From our review:

Still, a silly children’s cartoon has value that cares enough to string together a series of gags. So many cartoons in big studios just construct busy, loud set pieces, with slapstick blown up to blockbuster scale. But in paws of rage, most jokes feel like mischievous throwaways, training kids’ ears for comedy rather than stunning them with junior-level spectacle. There are ridiculous cat puns galore. There is some knowingly absurd, anachronistic dialogue. (When one character lists “cars and curiosity” as prominent cat killers, another asks, “What are cars?”, leading to inevitable scolding for his curiosity.) And the characters repeatedly refer to the film’s “85 minutes, not including credits.”