>>> Wiener-Dog marks the return of the empathetic misanthrope director, delivering a four-part anthology film about the inevitability of death and a wandering dachshund. The writer/director peaks early with a hilarious tale of overbearing parents (July Delpy and Tracy Letts) with a dog diarrhea problem and then closes strong in a heartbreaking ode to lost life paths hinging on a brilliant Ellen Burstyn performance. (See full review).
Opens July 10. See listing.
Rating: NNNN
>>> Eat That Question: Frank Zappa In His Own Words is an enormously entertaining portrait of the pathologically prolific composer, singer, guitar wizard and unlikely rock star Frank Zappa. Taking a cue from the films of Asif Kapadia (Amy, Senna), the film is constructed exclusively from archival television appearances. It’s a shrewd way of granting Zappa, who died of cancer in 1993, posthumous control of his legacy. (See full review).
Opens July 10. See listing.
Rating: NNNN
>>> The Music Of Strangers: Yo-Yo Ma And The Silk Road Ensemble follows world-famous cellist Yo-Yo Ma as he connects with the best musicians from countries along the route known as the Silk Road – many of them playing and preserving the legacy of their cultures’ ancient instruments – and for an ensemble that performs a never-before-heard mashup of styles. (See full review).
Opens July 10. See listing.
Rating: NNNN
Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates is loosely based on “true events,” but the well-worn premise of a destination wedding gone wrong is all that’s needed for Hollywood and the Hawaii state tourism board to develop another broad (and very loud) romantic comedy. (See full review).
Opens July 10. See listing.
Rating: NNN
The Secret Life Of Pets casts Kevin Hart as a loony white rabbit, an idea that’s both obvious and genius. Hart’s ceaseless, high-pitched banter (and a career that keeps on ticking) has already drawn comparison to the Energizer Bunny – from me, Ice Cube and many more. (See full review).
Opens July 10. See listing.
Rating: NNN
The Debt tells the intersecting stories of an American banker (Stephen Dorff) negotiating a cheap land purchase in the mountains of Peru, a farmer (Amiel Cayo) who refuses to sell and a woman (Elsa Olivero) trying to wangle an operation for her dying mother (Delfina Paredes) in Lima. (See full review).
Opens July 10. See listing.
Rating: NN
>>> Last Cab To Darwin is a road movie about Rex (Michael Caton), an aging cab driver who – upon learning his cancer has returned and will kill him in about three months – decides to drive himself from his home in Broken Hill to a short-lived voluntary euthanasia program in Darwin, taking fares along the way to pass the time. (See full review).
Opens July 10. See listing.
Rating: NNNN
Out of Print celebrates the New Beverly Cinema, a repertory theatre in Los Angeles that serves the moviemaking community by inviting directors, actors and writers to program the films they love, screening them in 35mm prints wherever possible rather than digital editions. The New Beverly is a great theatre, and director Marchese – who worked there from 2006 to 2014 – gathers an assortment of employees and patrons to sing its praises. (See full review).
Opens July 10. See listing.
Rating: NNN
Available now on Netflix
Girlhood In a suburban Parisian housing project, 16-year-old Marieme, aka Vic (the charismatic Karidja Touré), tries to find an identity of her own. She’s so busy taking care of her younger sister and staying out of the way of her abusive brother (Cyril Mendy) while her mother works nights cleaning hotel toilets that her grades have tanked and she’s been kicked out of the academic stream.
Rating: NNNN
Available to watch here.
