Sci-fi master preps next film
Sci-fi master preps next film
And fans sue studio over Beatles movie
What to know:
Kirsten Dunst joins Alex Garland’s next film… It’ll be an action movie set in the near future. Considering Garland’s past work (Ex Machina, Annihilation, Devs), “an action movie set in the near future” could mean almost anything — but no matter what it is, it will definitely be a trip. Before that, Garland will release Men, about a young woman who takes a solo vacation to the English countryside after the death of her ex-husband. Garland is one of the most exciting and provocative sci-fi writer-directors working today. Pay attention when his stuff comes out. 🎞
Fans are suing Universal for false advertising because Ana De Armas wasn’t actually in Yesterday… I hate false advertising as much as the next person, but imagine loving Ana De Armas so much you’d file a class action lawsuit because she didn’t show up in the movie you rented for $4. And also that movie is Yesterday, the one about everyone forgetting The Beatles. I wish I could forget this news item. 🎸
Tig Notaro and Stephanie Allynne are making their next movie with Judd Apatow… Their first feature Am I OK? is currently at Sundance. Apatow has a special talent for elevating and spotlighting the best voices. 🎥
Amy Schneider becomes 2nd-most winningest Jeopardy! contestant… While #1 champ Ken Jennings is currently hosting the show. It’s going to be awkward when she breaks his record too. 📺
Javier Bardem celebrated Daniel Craig’s birthday by popping out of a cake dressed as a Bond girl… I didn’t know people still popped out of cakes 🎂
Chris Evans joins The Rock in Red One… didn’t The Rock just star in a movie called Red Notice? Is he only doing Red movies now? 🎅
Idris Elba has, in fact, been “part of the [James Bond] conversation”… Just cast him already! 🤵🏾♂️
Peloton bike gives another TV character a heart attack… one more and it’s a trend 🚴♀️
Drama series White House Doctor in the works at Fox… I wonder what it could be about? 👩🏻⚕️
For more pop culture news, discussion, and what-to-watch recommendations subscribe to my pals over on the Kickball Friends podcast. 🎙
What’s new this week:
The Gilded Age — Jan. 24 | HBO period drama | 🍅 80%
The Afterparty — Jan. 28 | Apple TV+ comedy series | 🍅 67%
Getting Curious with Jonathan Van Ness — Jan. 28 | Netflix talk show | 🍅
The Woman in the House Across the Street From the Girl in the Window — Jan. 28 | Netflix comedy series | 🍅
What to watch:
Belfast is a crowd pleaser. Young or old, you’d have to be a pretty cold soul to not be moved by writer-director Kenneth Branagh’s semi-autobiographical coming-of-age drama about growing up during The Troubles in Belfast. As the greatest artists always do, Branagh lays bare universal truths through specificity. Belfast might be about one family living on one block in one city during a very unique and violent part of its history, but it reveals everything about making sacrifices for your family, losing your childhood innocence, and coming together to face down the woes of the world. Yet remarkably, the movie is light on its feet. It’s pure and buoyant, lit up by talented child actor and Branagh-proxy Jude Hill. He breathes glowing exuberance into the movie and is perfectly counterbalanced by the warm and gravitated adult presences of Caitríona Balfe, Judi Dench, Jamie Dornan, and Ciarán Hinds, each one better than the last. Dornan, who audiences might only remember from the Fifty Shades movies, especially so. Belfast is 2022’s Minari or Roma, family affairs with seemingly humble ambitions — and yet everything to say about family and the human condition.
For all past ‘what to watch’ recommendations, see the full list here!