Jeff Bridges on Hulu’s ‘Stara’, Dakota Fanning on Apple’s ‘Cha Cha Real Smooth’, Chris Hemsworth on Netflix’s ‘Spiderhead’ – airing June 16-22
The summer blockbuster season is fast approaching and yes, there will be something to watch on the big screen this week. But there’s a lot more to see on the small screen this week, including Netflix. Spider starring Chris Hemsworth and Miles Teller, director Top Shooter: Maverick Directed by Joseph Kosinski. Netflix also has a third season. Umbrella Academywho again sees the Hargreaves siblings in battle. Sundance Favorites 2022 Cha Cha Real Smooth as well as Good luck Leo Grande available on Apple TV Plus and Hulu, respectively. Hulu also has a highly anticipated Old man starring Jeff Bridges. In the non-fiction arena HBO Max Intelligence is more important than murder.as well as Chernobyl: Lost Records while Netflix offers Civil about civil rights lawyer Ben Crump.
Father of the Bride (HBO Max, June 16)
It’s Father’s Day weekend, so why shouldn’t HBO Max capitalize on the Hallmark holiday? The film stars Andy Garcia as a father who is not ready to marry his only daughter. If this sounds like a familiar storyline, it is. The HBO Max movie marks the second remake of the original film, which was released in 1950 and starred Spencer Tracy and Elizabeth Taylor. In 1991, Steve Martin played the father of the bride in the successful remake of the film. Why relaunch a classic comedy that’s already hit twice? Because this is Hollywood, and remakes are supposedly win-win. The most notable change in Gary Alazraqui’s 1950 film adaptation is that the family is Cuban-American and lives in Miami. “Just like in 2018. Crazy Rich Asians, Alazraqui’s look combines glossy escapism with storytelling centered on a demographic long relegated to the background in mainstream American films. Two plus decades into the new millennium, this shouldn’t be news, although the father is certainly important for all of these reasons; Basically, it’s just fun,” wrote Entertainment Weekly Leah Greenblatt.
Old Man (Hulu, June 17)
It’s been a long road for Old man. The drama, starring Jeff Bridges, was originally scheduled to premiere in 2020, but COVID prevented that. Bridges was then diagnosed with leukemia in the fall of 2020, underwent treatment, and almost died from COVID himself, further delaying production. An adaptation of Thomas Perry’s 2017 thriller of the same name, the seven-episode series stars Bridges as Dan Chase, a former CIA operative who has lived off the grid for years in hiding. But when someone tries to kill him, Chase is forced to come out of hiding and run from FBI agent Harold Harper (John Lithgow). On the run, Chase confronts his dark past. First two episodes Old man debuts June 16 on FX and will be available to stream the next day on Hulu.
Spiderhead (Netflix, June 17)
Based on a story by George Saunders. Spider Head Escape per New Yorkerthis sci-fi thriller was directed by Joseph Kosinski, the same guy who directed Top Shooter: Maverick. (Apparently he doesn’t need sleep.) The film is about visionary inventor Steve Abnesti (Chris Hemsworth) who runs a prison that offers inmates the opportunity to reduce their sentences by participating in a drug trial that involves taking mind-altering drugs. . Miles Teller (who has appeared in both TG: Maverick as well as Only the brave for Kosinski) plays one of the inmates. Zombieland as well as Dead Pool screenwriters Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick wrote Spiderwhich makes this movie promising. “It’s a thriller at times, but also a terribly funny black comedy,” wrote Hollywood Reporter Frank Shek.
The Summer I Got Pretty – Season 1 (Amazon Prime Video, June 17)
An adaptation of the 2009 best-selling book of the same name by Jenny Khan about growing up. Summer when I became beautiful focuses on Belli, an Asian American girl who has a difficult relationship with Jeremy and Conrad, two brothers she has known since childhood. Interestingly, Amazon allowed Khan to be the creator and co-showrunner of the series even though she had never written for television before. (For some reason, Hollywood doesn’t want writers to adapt their work for the screen.) It will be interesting to see which aspects of her novel Khan are included in the script and which words she left out. Amazon has already renewed the series for a second season.
Cha Cha Real Smooth (Apple TV Plus, June 17)
This Sundance 2022 comedy hit starred Dakota Johnson, Cooper Reiff, Leslie Mann and Brad Garrett. Apple was very impressed with the film about a bar mitzvah party host (Reiff) who forms a bond with a single mother (Johnson) and her autistic daughter (Vanessa Burghardt). The technology company paid $15 million for the rights. The film scored an aggregated 91% on Rotten Tomatoes. “A smart movie that ended up surprisingly touching,” wrote Site RogerEbert.com Brian Tallerico.
Good Luck Leo Grande (Hulu, June 17)
Oscar winner Emma Thompson plays Nancy Stokes, a 55-year-old widow longing for good sex after a beautiful but stale marriage. So she does what any 50 year old widow would do and hires handsome 20 year old sex worker Leo Grande (Daryl McCormack). The drama begins at its best. The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January and was well received by critics. “A film starring the incomparable Emma Thompson as an adventurous widow looking for good sex? You should appear on Sophie Hyde’s overtly sex-positive drama based on that premise alone.” Harpers Bazaar Tomris Laffley.
Civil (Netflix, June 19)
This Netflix documentary follows civil rights lawyer Ben Crump as he stands trial to seek justice for the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, whose murders sparked nationwide protests over race and police brutality. Nadia Hallgren (ur.Formation: Michelle Obama) directed the film, which premiered earlier this month at the Tribeca Film Festival. It’s the kind of narrative that runs counter to the numerous Fox News segments branding (Krump) “the most dangerous man in America” (snippets that appear throughout the documentary), but it’s also an excavation of how Crump himself dedicates himself relentlessly to writing counterarguments about black people. killed by the police,” wrote IndieWire Siddhant Adlaha.
Mind Over Killing (HBO Max, June 20)
This six-part documentary is the latest non-fiction true crime series to hit streaming services. We are talking about 68-year-old grandmother Helen Wilson, who was killed in her apartment in Nebraska in 1985. Five people confessed to the crime, but were exonerated in 2009 through DNA testing. Director Nanfu Wang (In one breath) explores Wilson’s murder, but also touches on other interesting questions, such as city politics and how trustworthy one’s own memory really is. The documentary series includes archival footage, original interrogation videos and interviews with members of the Wilson family, as well as people who confessed to her murder.
The Umbrella Academy – Season 3 (Netflix, June 22)
Despite saving the world by ending the 1963 doomsday, the Hargreaves siblings are not allowed to celebrate a return in the present day. Instead, they have a new rival called Sparrow Academy. Of course they do! Otherwise, this group of gifted, time-traveling brothers and sisters, who were born all over the world at the same time, would not be doing what they are on the planet for – stopping evil forces. The first two seasons are based on the comic book of the same name by Gerard Way. Umbrella Academy were critical hits. “Umbrella Academy that’s what you get when you mix Wes Anderson with Matthew Vaughn, stuff them with Red Bull and Adderall, and give them a Spotify Premium subscription. Yes, that’s a compliment.” Observer Brandon Katz. The third season will have 10 hour-long episodes.
Chernobyl: The Lost Recordings (HBO Max, June 22)
This 92-minute documentary tells what really happened on April 26, 1986, when the nuclear reactor at the Chernobyl power plant in Soviet Ukraine exploded. Uncovered archival footage and recorded interviews with those present paint a grim picture of the disaster and the lengths the Soviet government went to to cover up the incident. This is not the first time HBO has explored the Chernobyl explosion and its aftermath. In 2019, the distributor released a five-part story-driven mini-series titled Chernobyl, which was a critical hit and won 10 Emmy awards. Documenting the worst man-made accident in history doesn’t make for optimistic viewing, but knowing what actually happened makes this document definitely worth watching.
