August sees blockbuster season wind down, with summer break wrapping up and many target audiences get ready to go back to school. Because of that, it’s really only the beginning of the month that has much to offer in terms of extremely popular releases, with the rest of the month mostly trailing off.
That being said, it doesn’t mean that there still aren’t some noteworthy movies to check out. As the big-budget franchises take a backseat, the rest of August has plenty to offer in terms of smaller-scale releases. Many of these films face little competition outside of holdovers from late last month, and would have otherwise fallen off the radar, as the rest of the year begins to shift gears and get ready for awards season.
This month, there are notable horror movies to check out, as well as independent comedies that fared well during the festival season earlier this year. You may not immediately recognize all the names, but here’s a look at what to check out this August:
1) Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw (Aug. 2)
Directed by: David Leitch
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Jason Statham, Idris Elba, Vanessa Kirby, Helen Mirren
Who would have thought a movie about street car racing would lead us to this? The Fast and the Furious was released in 2001 to mixed reviews and has since evolved from a movie targeted at car lovers to a big budget action franchise. This is the first spinoff movie in the franchise, pairing together Dwayne Johnson’s Luke Hobbs with Jason Statham’s Deckard Shaw, two characters whose banter in the seventh and eighth installments would be some of the highlights of those films. So naturally, it’s fitting that they get their own spinoff movie, which seems to be placing an even heavier emphasis on the comedy. Throw in Idris Elba as this overpowered super villain, and now it’s a party. Reviews are already in, and they indicate what’s evident in the trailers - that this is simply some good ol’ dumb fun, that’s going to rely heavily on the chemistry of Johnson and Statham. This won’t break any new ground, but not every movie has to, and this should be a good way to help wind down the summer.
2) Luce (Aug. 2)
Directed by: Julius Onah
Starring: Naomi Watts, Kelvin Harrison Jr, Octavia Spencer, Tim Roth
Not another teen movie! Or so it seems. While on paper, Luce appeared to tread some familiar “troubled teen” territory, it seems like it actually does have some tricks up its sleeve, as the trailers indicate that this might be more a battle of wits between the title character and his teacher (Spencer), who seems to have this personal vendetta against him. Spencer previously played a character who went after teenagers in a more over-the-top manner earlier this year in Ma, which was only okay other than her standout performance. While she’s less exaggerated here, it looks like this time around she’ll be in a somewhat similar situation and she’ll have a solid story to back her performance up this time around. While reviews are in and have been positive, I have a feeling with this movie’s limited release that it will be the biggest movie of the month to slip under everyone’s radar, and if it does, it will be a shame.
3) The Nightingale (Aug. 2)
Directed by: Jennifer Kent
Starring: Aisling Franciosi, Sam Claflin, Baykali Ganambarr, Damon Herriman
Director Jennifer Kent had a great debut with The Babadook back in 2014, and genre enthusiasts have been patiently waiting for her follow-up to that, and now it’s arrived. This time around, she’s attracted much more controversy. The Nightingale has caused a bit of a stir due to its graphic content, with many audience members walking out during its premiere at the Sydney Film Festival. Needless to say, this is definitely not a movie that all will appreciate, and its evident it won’t see a very long run in theaters, considering it was picked up for distribution by IFC, whose releases are very limited. Still, the trailers do look like this will be absolutely brutal, as well as incredibly filmed, and it seems those that may be able to stomach some of the more horrifying imagery may be greatly rewarded for powering through it.
4) Them That Follow (Aug. 2)
Directed by: Britt Poulton and Dan Madison Savage
Starring: Olivia Colman, Kaitlyn Dever, Alice Englert, Jim Gaffigan, Walton Goggins
It’s a movie involving a swarm of killer snakes who are sent by preachers who think they’re doing God’s work. That description alone should be enough to make it worth at least checking out. While the trailers play this movie up a bit more seriously than it should, there’s definitely going to be a level of B-movie cheesiness that will be involved here. Unlike another movie this year involving killer animals, Crawl, this isn’t strictly just about killer snakes, and does have its fair share of character drama, if the trailers are any indication. Depending on how the movie balances both these elements out, it can be an effective enough thriller. More than likely, it’ll be the performances of both Olivia Colman and Kaitlyn Dever that will be one of its biggest strengths.
5) Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (Aug. 9)
Directed by: Andre Ovredal
Starring: Zoe Colletti, Michael Garza, Gabriel Rush, Austin Abrams, Dean Norris
Based on the children’s anthology book series of the same name, it’s the not-anthology move that definitely doesn’t seem like it’s for kids. While the PG-13 rating makes it clear this will only go so far with some of its creepy imagery, the trailers do seem fairly creepy, so it may be a rare horror movie that doesn’t go to the extreme to pull off an effective scare. And it’s directed by Andre Ovredal, who has proved himself to be a solid fit in the horror genre with Trollhunter and The Autopsy of Jane Doe, as well as produced by Guillermo del Toro, who’s proved time and time again that horror is his bread and butter. This will surely be one of the more popular horror movie of this year. Whether it’ll ultimately be one of the best remains to be seen.
6) The Kitchen (Aug. 9)
Directed by: Andrea Berloff
Starring: Melissa McCarthy, Tiffany Haddish, Elisabeth Moss
Based on the Vertigo comic book series of the same name, it looks like this will be this year’s version of Widows, Steve McQueen’s crime drama released last year about a team of widows who carry out one last job their husbands started. Swap out being killed to being in prison, and you now have The Kitchen. Though the comic book series this is based off was in 2015, so this story technically came first. And while it may bear some similarities to Widows, this seems to be a bit more light-hearted than that film, containing bits of humor here and there so it’s not a totally grim experience. The trailers indicate this will be more of a stylish production, recreating 1970’s Hell’s Kitchen, and will probably rely more on its performances and production values more than anything.
7) Blinded By the Light (Aug. 14)
Directed by: Gurinder Chadha
Starring: Viveik Kalra, Hayley Atwell, Rob Brydon, Kulvinder Ghir, Dean Charles Chapman
The feel-good hit of the summer. Blinded By the Light will be the second movie this summer that tackles the idea of an aspiring British writer who’s heavily influenced by one particular classic rock artist, the first being Yesterday, which was essentially a tribute to The Beatles. This time around, it’s Bruce Springsteen, and while this movie doesn’t show us a world where Bruce Springsteen doesn’t exist, the influence of his song-writing plays a big part in the main character’s journey. The movie screams “crowd-pleaser,” and is sure to hit a lot of similar notes as Yesterday did. The one key difference is that this film does seem to tackle more contemporary issues that may resonate with more audience members. Early reviews have been very positive so far, so this is sure to be one of the bigger hits for later in the month.
8) Good Boys (Aug. 16)
Directed by: Gene Stupnitsky
Starring: Jacob Tremblay, Keith L. Williams, Brady Noon, Will Forte, Molly Gordon
An R-rated comedy starring one of the biggest up-and-coming child actors? Sure, this should be fun. Produced by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, it’s a movie about a trio of kids trying to make their way to a party while getting into a series of misadventures along the way. Kind of like Superbad (also produced by Rogen and Goldberg) or this year’s Booksmart but with an even younger group of protagonists. I’m sure a lot of the humor is going to focus on the kids getting into a lot of misunderstandings where they’re placed in adult situations that they’re unfamiliar with. Though it’ll be refreshing to see Jacob Tremblay in a much more fun and relaxing role, after constantly playing super-serious starring roles in movies like Room and Wonder (both of which are great, for the record). With the way comedies have been performing at the box office this year, I feel like this one is going to come and go rather quickly, despite being a solid hit when it premiered at South by Southwest earlier this year. But either way, Good Boys looks like it’ll be a good time.
9) Where’d You Go, Bernadette (Aug. 16)
Directed by: Richard Linklater
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Billy Crusdup, Kristen Wiig, Judy Greer, Laurence Fishburne
Richard Linklater’s films tend to be both crowd-pleasing and subversive at the same time. Many of his films are based on ideas that appeal to a wide audience, like big romances, gripping character drama, or quirky comedy. Though with the exception of a couple of movies, he never really presents those in an overly-theatrical way. His movies have this quieter feel to them. Big moments aren’t blown up with this really tense music. Things kind of just happen and the film moves on. His latest film evokes that same feel based on the trailers. It’s a comedy and it looks like it’ll be slightly broader than his last few films, but there’s definitely a subdued feel to it as well that doesn’t necessarily look to appeal to as wide of an audience as Good Boys, released on the same day. This will probably be a fairly solid comedy, though it will definitely be a bit more subtle in terms of dialogue. Like Good Boys, this will surely come and go rather quickly due to how comedies have performed at the box office this year so far. But if this is anything like a typical Linklater film, this may potentially be another hidden gem of late summer.
10) Ready or Not (Aug. 21)
Directed by: Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett
Starring: Samara Weaving, Adam Brody, Mark O’Brien, Henry Czerny, Andie MacDowell
Besides Hobbs & Shaw, the one other movie getting released this month that looks like it’ll be just straight up fun is Ready or Not. A horror film centered around a bride whose new in-laws force her into a twisted game of hide-and-seek, this looks like a movie that knows exactly what it is and just wants to have fun with it. The trailers indicate this is going for more of a dark humor vibe, so this is sure to get some big laughs in between moments of explosive, over-the-top gory violence. Directors Bettinelli-Olpin and Gillett make up two-thirds of a filmmaking collective known as Radio Silence who typically contribute to segments in anthology films like V/H/S and Southbound, and their segments have received some solid praise. This will be a rare foray for the directors into directing a full movie on their own, so it looks like horror enthusiasts will find themselves in for a real treat.
11) Brittany Runs a Marathon (Aug. 23)
Directed by: Paul Downs Colaizzo
Starring: Jillian Bell, Michaela Watkins, Utkarsh Ambudkar, Lil Rey Howery, Michah Stock
Based on a true story, the movie stars Bell as a woman who tries taking control of her life by getting into shape and being able to run the New York City Marathon, and as she begins to do so, begins getting more self-esteem. Honestly, on paper this sounds like every other cheesy, inspirational “inspired by a true story” concept that centers around one very basic premise. And the trailers seem to lean in that direction. However, the trailers also make note of the many positive reviews that this movie received when it premiered at Sundance earlier this year. Despite its premise, nearly all reviews have been overwhelmingly positive and have indicated this is much more entertaining than it leads on, and that’s especially due to Jillian Bell’s lead performance. While Bell has been around for a few years now, it’s always been in a supporting role, whether it’s on television or in film, and she’s usually a lot of fun when she’s given some time on screen. This will be her first major starring role, and while like many other movies released around this time of the year, it’s doubtful it’ll be a smash hit, this should still hopefully pave the way for more prominent roles in upcoming works.
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