With Motherland: Fort Salem and The Kissing Booth as part of her resume, Jessica Sutton’s acting career is definitely flourishing. Now she stars with Megan Fox in the new film Rogue, and this South African actress also has designs on producing. Check out our Q&A with Sutton, as she elaborates on why Rogue director M.J. Bassett is the real deal.
The phrase “skin in the game” is oft-used phrased for how much one has invested in some kind of project or lifestyle. It’s a term that definitely fits semi-retired professional wrestler Ian Hodgkinson, the subject of Nail in the Coffin: The Fall and Rise of Vampiro. The trailer has me hooked, and it will be interesting to see how Hodgkinson deals with his share of challenges.
Commenting on the monotony of suburbia and life in general has been part of David Byrne’s calling card. Directed by Spike Lee, David Byrne’s American Utopia gives viewers access to the former Talking Heads frontman’s sold-out Broadway show. The teaser trailer has Byrne drumming, dancing and quoting James Baldwin. What’s not to love?
As a Filipino-American, it’s embarrassing that I’ve only seen a couple of films that are about the Philippines. As soon as I received an email promoting Watch List, a thriller set in Manila, I was all on board. Directed by Ben Rekhi and featuring a heartbreakingly real performances from Alessandra de Rossi, Watch List absolutely delivers.
Sang-ho Yuen shocked the world in 2016 with Train To Busan, by giving us a zombie movie that we didn’t know we needed or wanted. The film provided a surprising level of thrills, humor, and emotion to a genre that had been pretty much depleted. So, expectations have been high for Yuen’s follow-up to Busan. Unfortunately, Peninsula doesn’t quite reach the heights of its predecessor.
Matt Eskandari is one of the filmmakers who has worked the most with Bruce Willis. Since 2019, the pair have collaborated on Trauma Center, Survive the Night, and now Hard Kill. I have a bias towards filmmakers who squeeze every last penny from their shooting budget, and during our chat Eskandari talked about bring production value to his latest film.
Taylor Russell (Escape Room, Waves) stars in Words On Bathroom Walls, a picture based on the Julia Walton novel of the same name. During our brief video chat Russell talked about working with co-star Charlie Plummer, staying in the moment as an actor, and why the John Cassavetes feature Gloria is one of her favorite films.
Noomi Rapace (The Drop, What Happened To Monday) is my go to actress as far as thriller protagonists, and the trailer to The Secrets We Keep has my interest peaked. With Chris Messina and Joel Kinnaman part of the ensemble, this feature should be a keeper.
The One and Only Ivan, based on Katherine Applegate’s bestselling book, centers on a 400-pound silverback gorilla who lives in a suburban shopping mall with various other animals. Bryan Cranston co-stars as Mack, the mall’s owner who develops a bond with Ivan (voiced by Sam Rockwell). Cranston talks about what makes The One and Only Ivan a unique cinematic experience.
Charlie Plummer (The Clovehitch Killer, Lean On Pete) stars in Words on Bathroom Walls as Adam, a teeanger who is diagnosed with a mental illness. Although he forms a bond with fellow student Maya (Taylor Russell), Adam’s daily challenges understandably puts a strain on their friendship as well as causes strife with his family (Molly Parker is his mother and Walton Goggins plays the mom’s live-in boyfriend). During our interview, Plummer talked about staying in the moment as an actor and why Running On Empty is one of his favorite films.
