Theatrical Releases: Aladdin (2019), Booksmart, & Brightburn

May 24, 2019 / Leave a Comment

ALADDIN (2019)

Directed By: Guy Ritchie
Studio: Walt Disney Pictures

Official Synopsis: A street rat frees a genie from a lamp, granting all of his wishes and transforming himself into a charming prince in order to marry a beautiful princess. But soon, an evil sorcerer becomes hell-bent on securing the lamp for his own sinister purposes.

Starring: Will Smith, Mena Massoud, Naomi Scott, Marwan Kenzari, Navid Negahban, Nasim Pedrad, and Billy Magnussen

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BRIGHTBURN

Directed By: David Yarovesky
Studio: Screen Gems

Official Synopsis: What if a child from another world crash-landed on Earth, but instead of becoming a hero to mankind, he proved to be something far more sinister?

Starring: Elizabeth Banks, David Denman, Jackson A. Dunn, Matt Jones, and Meredith Hagner

Genre: Horror | Sci-Fi
Country: USA (English)
Rating: R (for horror violence/bloody images, and language)
Runtime: 91 minutes

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BOOKSMART

Directed By: Olivia Wilde
Studio: United Artists

Official Synopsis: The story follows Dever and Feldstein’s characters, two academic superstars and best friends who, on the eve of their high school graduation, suddenly realize that they should have worked less and played more. Determined never to fall short of their peers, the girls set out on a mission to cram four years of fun into one night.

Starring: Kaitlyn Dever, Beanie Feldstein, Jessica Williams, Will Forte, Lisa Kudrow, and Jason Sudeikis

Genre: Comedy
Country: USA (English)
Rating: R (for strong sexual content and language throughout, drug use and drinking – all involving teens)
Runtime: 105 minutes

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THE POISON ROSE

Directed By: George Gallo
Studio: Lionsgate

Official Synopsis: A former football player-turned-private investigator is hired to investigate what appears to be a routine missing-persons case. It leads him to an intricate plot that seemingly pins a murder on his long-lost daughter.

Starring: John Travolta, Morgan Freeman, Famke Janssen, Kat Graham, Peter Stormare, Ella Bleu Travolta, Claudia Gerini, Robert Patrick, and Brendan Fraser

Genre: Thriller
Country: USA | Italy (English)
Rating: R (for some violence and language)
Runtime: 98 minutes

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THE TOMORROW MAN

Directed By: Noble Jones
Studio: Bleeker Street

Official Synopsis: Ed Hemsler spends his life preparing for a disaster that may never come. Ronnie Meisner spends her life shopping for things she may never use. In a small town somewhere in America, these two people will try to find love while trying not to get lost in each other’s stuff.

Starring: John Lithgow, Blythe Danner, Derek Cecil, Katie Aselton, Sophie Thatcher, and Eve Harlow

Genre: Drama | Romance
Country: USA (English)
Rating: PG-13 (for brief strong language and some suggestive material)
Runtime: 94 minutes

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FUNNY STORY

Directed By: Michael J. Gallagher
Studio: Blue Fox Entertainment

Official Synopsis: Walter Campbell (Matthew Glave) is an aging heartthrob struggling to keep up appearances–especially with his estranged adult daughter, Nic (Jana Winternitz). In an attempt to reconnect with his family, he invites himself to crash her vacation in Big Sur. Offering a ride to her friend Kim (Emily Bett Rickards), they bond in unexpected ways that are sure to ruin the lives of everyone in their path. From director Michael Gallagher comes a hilarious and heartfelt tragicomedy you never saw coming. Filled with memorable characters and award-winning performances, Funny Story teaches us about the destructive power of narcissism, the healing power of forgiveness, and the dangers of doing karaoke after drinking enough tequila.

Starring: Matthew Glave, Emily Bett Rickards, Jana Winternitz, Pete Gardner, and Reginald VelJohnson

Genre: Comedy | Drama
Country: USA (English)
Rating: Not Rated
Runtime: 84 minutes

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DIAMANTINO

Directed By: Gabriel Abrantes & Daniel Schmidt
Studio: Kino Lorber

Official Synopsis: Diamantino (Carloto Cotta), the world’s premiere soccer star, loses his special touch and ends his career in disgrace. Searching for a new purpose, he sets out on a delirious odyssey — in which he must confront neo-fascism, the refugee crisis, genetic modification, and abuse at the hands of his evil twin sisters — all part of a deranged hunt for the source of genius.

Starring: Carloto Cotta, Cleo Tavares, Anabela Moreira, Margarida Moreira, Carla Maciel, Chico Chapas, Hugo Santos Silva, Joana Barrios, Filipe Vargas, Maria Leite, and Manuela Moura Guedes

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ECHO IN THE CANYON

Directed By: Andrew Slater
Studio: Greenwich Entertainment

Official Synopsis: Echo In The Canyon celebrates the explosion of popular music that came out of LA’s Laurel Canyon in the mid-60s as folk went electric and The Byrds, The Beach Boys, Buffalo Springfield and The Mamas and the Papas gave birth to the California Sound. It was a moment (1965 to 1967) when bands came to LA to emulate The Beatles and Laurel Canyon emerged as a hotbed of creativity and collaboration for a new generation of musicians who would soon put an indelible stamp on the history of American popular music. Featuring Jakob Dylan, the film explores the beginnings of the Laurel Canyon music scene. Dylan uncovers never-before-heard personal details behind the bands and their songs and how that music continues to inspire today.

Starring: Brian Wilson, Ringo Starr, Michelle Phillips, Eric Clapton, Stephen Stills, David Crosby, Graham Nash, Roger McGuinn, Jackson Browne, Tom Petty (in his very last film interview), Beck, Fiona Apple, Cat Power, Regina Spektor and Norah Jones

Genre: Documentary | Music
Country: USA (English)
Rating: PG-13 (for drug references and some suggestive content)
Runtime: 82 minutes

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AVENGEMENT

Directed By: Jesse V. Johnson
Studio: Samuel Goldwyn Films

Official Synopsis: While released on furlough from prison, a lowly criminal evades his guards and returns to his old haunts to take revenge on the people that made him a cold-hearted killer. It’s an epic, bloody battle to search for the soul he lost years ago on the streets of an unforgiving city.

Starring: Scott Adkins, Craig Fairbrass, Thomas Turgoose, Nick Moran, Kierston Wareing, Leo Gregory, Beau Fowler, and Louis Mandylor

Genre: Action | Crime
Country: UK (English)
Rating: Not Rated
Runtime: 90 minutes

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ISABELLE

Directed By: Robert Heydon
Studio: Vertical Entertainment

Official Synopsis: After moving into the perfect New England neighborhood, an all-American couple’s dream of starting a family shatter as they descend into the depths of paranoia and must struggle to survive an evil spirit that wants nothing more than their own lives. ISABELLE is very much in the vein of ROSEMARY’S BABY and THE EXORCIST.

Starring: Adam Brody, Amanda Crew, Zoë Belkin, Sheila McCarthy, Booth Savage, Michael Miranda, Dayo Ade, David Tompa, Zoe Doyle, Shanice Banton, and Krista Bridges

Genre: Thriller
Country: USA | Canada (English)
Rating: Not Rated
Runtime: 81 minutes

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WOODSTOCK: THREE DAYS THAT DEFINED A GENERATION

Directed By: Barak Goodman
Studio: PBS Distribution

Official Synopsis: In August 1969 — against a backdrop of a nation in conflict over sexual politics, civil rights, and the Vietnam War — half a million people converged on a small dairy farm in upstate New York to hear the concert of a lifetime. What they experienced was a moment that would spark a cultural revolution, changing many of them and the country forever. With never-before-seen footage, WOODSTOCK: THREE DAYS THAT DEFINED A GENERATION tells the story of the political and social upheaval leading up to those three historic days, as well as the extraordinary events of the concert itself, when near disaster put the ideals of the counterculture to the test. What took place in that teaming mass of humanity — the rain-soaked, starving, tripping, half-a-million strong throng of young people — was nothing less than a miracle of unity, a manifestation of the “peace and love” the festival had touted, and a validation of the counterculture’s promise to the world. Who were these kids? What experiences and stories did they carry with them to Bethel, New York that weekend, and how were they changed by their time in the muck and mire of Max Yasgur’s farm? Directed by award-winning filmmaker Barak Goodman and written by Goodman and Don Kleszy, WOODSTOCK takes us back to the three days that defined a generation.

Starring: Joan Baez, David Crosby, Richie Havens, and Stephen Stills

Genre: Documentary
Country: USA (English)
Rating: Not Rated
Runtime: 106 minutes

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THE PROPOSAL (2019)

Directed By: Jill Magid
Studio: Oscilloscope Laboratories

Official Synopsis: Known as “the artist among architects,” Luis Barragán is among the world’s most celebrated architects of the 20th century. Upon his death in 1988, much of his work was locked away in a Swiss bunker, hidden from the world’s view. In an attempt to resurrect Barragán’s life and art, boundary redefining artist Jill Magid creates a daring proposition that becomes a fascinating artwork in itself–a high-wire act of negotiation that explores how far an artist will go to democratize access to art.

Starring: Jill Magid and Federica Zanco

Genre: Documentary
Country: USA (English)
Rating: Not Rated
Runtime: 83 minutes

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HALSTON

Directed By: Frédéric Tcheng
Studio: 1091 Media

Official Synopsis: From Iowa to Studio 54 to Wall Street, Halston lived an American dream. Prodigiously talented, he reigned over fashion in the 1970s, becoming a household name. But everything changes in the Wall Street era. With his empire under threat, Halston takes the biggest gamble of his life.

Starring: Tavi Gevinson, Liza Minnelli, Marisa Berenson, Joel Schumacher, and Pat Cleveland

Genre: Documentary
Country: USA (English)
Rating: Not Rated
Runtime: 105 minutes

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ASSIMILATE

Directed By: John Murlowski
Studio: Gravitas Ventures

Official Synopsis: Best friends Zach (Joel Courtney, THE KISSING BOOTH), Randy (Calum Worthy), and Kayla (Andi Matichak, HALLOWEEN) discover that their neighbors are being killed and replaced by perfect copies of their victims. Their only chance to survive is to covertly record the invasion in a desperate attempt to warn the world.

Starring: Joel Courtney, Calum Worthy, Andi Matichak, Katherine McNamara, Cam Gigandet, Mason McNulty, and Amye Gousset

Genre: Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller
Country: USA (English)
Rating: Not Rated
Runtime: 93 minutes

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THE SPY BEHIND HOME PLATE

Directed By: Aviva Kempner
Studio: The Ciesla Foundation

Official Synopsis: Aviva Kempner’s The Spy Behind Home Plate is the first feature-length documentary to tell the real story of Morris “Moe” Berg, the enigmatic and brilliant Jewish baseball player turned spy. Berg caught and fielded in the major leagues during baseball’s Golden Age in the 1920s and 1930s. But very few people know that Berg also worked for the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), spying in Europe and playing a prominent role in America’s efforts to undermine the German atomic bomb program during WWII. The Spy Behind Home Plate reveals the life of this unknown Jewish hero through rare historical footage and photographs as well as revealing interviews with an All-Star roster of celebrities and other individuals from the worlds of sports, spycraft, and history. Berg may have had only a .243 batting average during his 15-year major league career, but it was the stats he collected for the OSS that made him a most valuable player to his country during World War II.

Genre: Documentary
Country: USA (English)
Rating: Not Rated
Runtime: 101 minutes

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NO DOUBT

Directed By: Clarence Williams IV
Studio: Freakish Films

Official Synopsis: After connecting on an online dating site a young man and woman spend an evening together and connect in ways they never imagined.

Starring: Tara Kaye Burgh, Adam Stern-Rand, and Marquis Wood

Genre: Comedy | Romance
Country: USA (English)
Rating: Not Rated
Runtime: 117 minutes

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BARBARA RUBIN & THE EXPLODING NY UNDERGROUND

Directed By: Chuck Smith
Studio: Juno Films

Official Synopsis: Underground filmmaker Barbara Rubin’s 1964 art-porn masterpiece “Christmas on Earth”, made when she was only 18 years old, shattered creative and sexist boundaries and shocked NYC’s experimental film scene. Working with Jonas Mekas at the Filmmaker’s Coop, Rubin was instrumental in creating NYC’s thriving underground film community and a rare female voice in a world of powerful men. A rebellious Zelig of the Sixties, she introduced Andy Warhol to the Velvet Underground and Bob Dylan to the Kabbalah. But beyond shaping the spirit of the Sixties, Barbara was seeking the deeper meaning of life. After retiring to a farm with Allen Ginsberg, she shocked everyone by becoming a Hasidic Jew. How and why did one of the 1960’s freest spirits submit to a religious life? For years, 94-year-old filmmaker Jonas Mekas has saved all of Barbara’s letters and cherished her memory. Working with Mekas’ footage and rare clips from the Andy Warhol archives, the film takes us inside the world and mind of Barbara Rubin; a woman who truly believed that film could change the world and then vanished into obscurity.

Starring: Jonas Mekas, Amy Taubin, Richard Foreman, and J. Hoberman

Genre: Documentary
Country: USA (English)
Rating: Not Rated
Runtime: 78 minutes

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AUGUST AT AKIKO’S

Directed By: Christopher Makoto Yogi
Studio: Factory 25

Official Synopsis: Armed with just his suitcase and a sax, cosmopolitan musician Alex Zhang Hungtai (from the band Dirty Beaches) returns home to the Big Island of Hawaii having been away for nearly a decade. Hungtai, playing a fictional version of himself, takes refuge in a Buddhist B&B with a woman named Akiko (Akiko Matsuda, playing herself). Alex’s experimental free jazz music at first collides with the bell sounds ofAkiko’s meditation, but as the film evolves and a friendship develops, the two harmonize.

Starring: Alex Zhang Hungtai, Akiko Masuda, Phoenix Yamashiro, Easten Tanimoto, Steve Iwamoto, Robbie Kane, Akemi Bischo, and Ciara Lacy

Genre: Drama
Country: USA (English)
Rating: Not Rated
Runtime: 75 minutes

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THE COLD BLUE

Directed By: Erik Nelson
Studio: Fathom Events

Official Synopsis: They Flew. They Fought. They Died. They Won. THE COLD BLUE is a meditation on youth, war and trauma, and stands as a tribute to one of the world’s great filmmakers and the men of the 8th Air Force who flew mission after suicidal mission in the Second World War. Nine of the very few surviving veterans were interviewed in the summer of 2017, and their voices take us through the harrowing summer of 1943. William Wyler, one of Hollywood’s most renowned and versatile directors, went to Europe to document the Air War in progress. Wyler flew actual combat missions with B-17’s — and one his three cinematographers was killed during filming. Incredibly, all of the raw color footage Wyler shot for THE MEMPHIS BELLE was recently discovered deep in the vaults of the National Archives, and a new film has been constructed out of the material. This event includes an exclusive behind the scenes look at the making of THE COLD BLUE.

Genre: Documentary
Country: USA (English)
Rating: Not Rated
Runtime: 72 minutes

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