“Captain Fantastic”
Synopsis: In the forests of the Pacific Northwest, a father devoted to raising his six kids with a rigorous physical and intellectual education is forced to leave his paradise and enter the real world, challenging his idea of what it means to be a parent.
What You Need To Know: Viggo Mortensen has made a fascinating career of not being careerist in the slightest. True to this rather antithetical stance for an actor, he’s only chosen projects that mean something dearly to him, all but eschewing what could have been an easy path to Hollywood stardom. That’s almost certainly where this latest vehicle sprang from, and when we caught the film at Sundance earlier this year, we admitted the lead role for this film “fits Mortensen like a glove, and he’s surrounded by a very capable supporting cast.” Though we found some of the character’s design to be “little more than an idealized fantasy figure” by the end, there’s plenty to admire as well, not least of which is the cinematography by Stéphane Fontaine (Jacques Audiard‘s “A Prophet“), score by Jónsi Birgisson collaborator Alex Somers (listen to a preview), and the filmmaking from actor-turned-director Matt Ross (“Silicon Valley“), who won the directing prize in the Un Certain Regard section of Cannes this year for his effort.
Release Date: July 8th (Limited)
“Ghostbusters”
Synopsis: When a supernatural crisis threatens Manhattan, two paranormal researchers, a nuclear engineer and a New York subway worker team up to save the world.
What You Need To Know: After three back-to-back female-driven comedy hits, director Paul Feig was handed the keys to one of the most beloved ’80s geek properties — “Ghostbusters.” And much to the consternation of the internet’s baby-men population, Feig stuck with the approach of “Bridesmaids,” “The Heat” and “Spy,” and made his new take revolve around a band of female Ghostbusters — four extremely talented ones, in fact, in the shape of Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Leslie Jones and Kate McKinnon (but fans of the original should take comfort that, bar the retired Rick Moranis, virtually every living cast member of the original is cameo-ing here). With some fun effects, the near-genius move of casting Thor as the Ghostbusters’ secretary, and Feig and McCarthy’s team-ups being 3/3 so far, there’s every reason to believe that this could be an example of the comedic reboot done right.
Release Date: July 15th
“Café Society”
Synopsis: Set in the 1930s, a young Bronx native moves to Hollywood, where he falls in love with the secretary of his powerful uncle, an agent to the stars. After returning to New York, he is swept up in the vibrant world of high-society nightclub life.
What You Need To Know: Though controversy and negative media attention follows him like a loyal dog on a fairly consistent basis, you just can’t keep Woody Allen from making a new movie every year. True to form, he’s back this summer with this period piece set in the old-timey movie world he’s fond of returning to every so often. After a splashy Cannes premiere that garnered more talk about his personal life than about the actual film, our critic was able to look past that and even called it one of the nebbishy one’s most charming films in years. “Allen seems to take almost perverse pleasure in restricting himself to his pet themes and milieus, his pet periods and pet characters… But, semi-miraculously, it seems, in the endless combination and recombination of those elements, sometimes they can click into place, to give us something that can never be termed new, but that somehow makes a virtue of its familiarity. Praise be, that’s largely what happens in ‘Café Society’, Allen’s most untroublesome film in a while, his most charming in years and his most beautiful to look at, maybe ever.”
Release Date: July 15th (Limited)
“Equals”
Synopsis: In an emotionless utopia, two people fall in love when they regain their feelings from a mysterious disease, causing tensions between them and their society.
What You Need To Know: Back in 2011, Drake Doremus‘ “Like Crazy“ was the toast of Sundance, winning the Grand Jury Prize and then being snatched up by Paramount Vintage for an impressive $4 million. It also helped kick-start the career of Felicity Jones. Sadly, his follow-up “Breathe In“ didn’t fare as well with critics and was seen by some as a step back for the promising writer-director. Even with our mixed review of this latest film, “Equals,” hopes are still sky-high for indie distributor A24 that the sci-fi romance starring Kristen Stewart, Guy Pearce and Nicholas Hoult might become a sleeper hit this summer. The plot sounds intriguing; Doremus seems to be using a lot of white and blue palettes in the film; and, if “Like Crazy” and “Breathe In” were any indication, he hasn’t lost his knack for beautifully rendered visuals. It may not have received the best reception on the festival circuit, but consider the rest of us who haven’t seen it yet still very much intrigued.
Release Date: July 15th (Limited)