Friday Releases: Night Swim

JANUARY 4, 2024

Night Swim

Directed By: Bryce McGuire
Studio: Universal Pictures

Based on the acclaimed 2014 short film by Rod Blackhurst and Bryce McGuire, the film stars Wyatt Russell (The Falcon and the Winter Soldier) as Ray Waller, a former major league baseball player forced into early retirement by a degenerative illness, who moves into a new home with his concerned wife Eve (Oscar® nominee Kerry Condon, The Banshees of Inisherin), teenage daughter Izzy (Amélie Hoeferle, this fall’s The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes) and young son Elliot (Gavin Warren, Fear the Walking Dead). Secretly hoping, against the odds, to return to pro ball, Ray persuades Eve that the new home’s shimmering backyard swimming pool will be fun for the kids and provide physical therapy for him. But a dark secret in the home’s past will unleash a malevolent force that will drag the family under, into the depths of inescapable terror.

Starring: Wyatt Russell, Kerry Condon, Amélie Hoeferle and Gavin Warren
Genre: Horror | Thriller
Rating: PG-13 (for terror, some violent content and language)
Country: USA (English)
Runtime: 98 minutes

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Self Reliance

Directed By: Jake Johnson
Studio: NEON + Hulu

When a middle-aged man (Jake Johnson) is invited into a limo by famous actor Andy Samberg, his dull life takes a thrilling turn. Johnson is offered a chance to win a million dollars in a dark web reality TV show, where assassins from all over the world attempt to kill him for 30 days. The catch? He can’t be killed if he’s not entirely alone, leading him to recruit an unlikely team to help him survive.

Starring: Jake Johnson, Anna Kendrick, Natalie Morales, Mary Holland, Emily Hampshire, Christopher Lloyd, and Wayne Brady
Genre: Comedy | Thriller
Rating: R (for language throughout)
Country: USA (English)
Runtime: 85 minutes

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He Went That Way

Directed By: Jeffrey Darling
Studio: Vertical

Set in 1964, He Went That Way is a taut thriller based on a true crime story that puts a wicked spin on the buddy road trip film. The film follows 19-year-old serial killer Bobby (Jacob Elordi) as he is picked up by a celebrity animal handler, Jim (Zachary Quinto), on a desolate stretch of Route 66 with priceless cargo in tow: Jim’s chimpanzee, Spanky, an American TV darling. As stress between Bobby and Jim rises and their fiery personalities combust, the road only becomes more treacherous the farther they go.

Starring: Jacob Elordi and Zachary Quinto
Genre: Crime | Drama | Thriller
Rating: Not Rated
Country: USA (English)
Runtime: 95 minutes

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Some Other Woman

Directed By: Joel David Moore
Studio: Falling Forward Films

A woman whisked away to a tropical island for her husband’s work, later she encounters a strange woman who takes her life where the reality begins to unravel.

Starring: Amanda Crew, Tom Felton and Ashley Greene
Genre: Thriller
Rating: R (for language, some sexual content and violence)
Country: USA (English)
Runtime: 85 minutes

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The Bricklayer

Directed By: Renny Harlin
Studio: Vertical

The Bricklayer follows a rogue insurgent blackmailing the CIA by assassinating foreign journalists and making it appear the agency is responsible. As other nations begin turning against the U.S., the CIA must lure Steve Vail (Aaron Eckhart) — their most brilliant and rebellious operative — out of retirement. With an elite and deadly skill set, Vail is tasked with helping clear the agency’s name, forcing him to confront his checkered past while unraveling an international conspiracy.

Starring: Aaron Eckhart, Nina Dobrev, Tim Blake Nelson, Ilfenesh Hadera, and Clifton Collins Jr.
Genre: Action | Thriller
Rating: R (for strong violence, and language)
Country: USA | Greece | Bulgaria (English)
Runtime: 110 minutes

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American Star

Directed By: Gonzalo López-Gallego
Studio: IFC Films

An assassin (Ian McShane) on a final assignment in Fuerteventura, to kill a man he has never met. When his target is delayed, he finds himself drawn to the island, people and a ghostly shipwreck.

Starring: Ian McShane, Thomas Kretschmann, Nora Arnezeder, Adam Nagaitis, and Fanny Ardant
Genre: Thriller
Rating: R (for language and some bloody violence)
Country: USA (English)
Runtime: — minutes

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Mayhem!

Directed By: Xavier Gens
Studio: IFC Films

Sam (Nassim Lyes) is a professional boxer about to be released from prison in France, but while on parole, his past catches up with him and he is forced to flee the country. Five years later, he has rebuilt a simple life on an exotic island in Thailand with his wife Mia and her daughter Dara, working multiple jobs to support his family and buy a piece of land to build a restaurant. As his life begins to improve, a job gone wrong puts Sam in the crosshairs of local crime lord Narong (Olivier Gourmet), who retaliates with brutal violence. Crushed but still alive, Sam is left with only one purpose: to seek merciless and bone-breaking vengeance.

Starring: Nassim Lyes, Loryn Nounay, Olivier Gourmet, Chananticha Chaipa, and Vithaya Pansringarm
Genre: Action | International | Thriller
Rating: R (for strong bloody violence, some sexual content, drug content and language)
Country: France (French)
Runtime: 99 minutes

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Race for Glory: Audi vs. Lancia

Directed By: Stefano Mordini
Studio: Lionsgate

Feel the thrill of the road with this action-packed sports drama inspired by true events. Daniel Brühl (The King’s Man) and Riccardo Scamarcio (A Haunting in Venice) star in a true David vs. Goliath story spotlighting the intense rivalry between Germany (Audi) and Italy (Lancia) at the 1983 Rally World Championships. Against all odds, Lancia battles to regain its former glory with an unbeatable combination of bold innovation and extraordinary courage.

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The Painter

Directed By: Kimani Ray Smith
Studio: Paramount Global Content Distribution

An ex-CIA operative turned painter is thrown back into a dangerous world when a mysterious woman from his past resurfaces. Now exposed and targeted by a relentless killer and a rogue black ops program, he must rely on skills he thought he left behind in a high-stakes game of survival.

Starring: Charlie Weber, Jon Voight, Marie Avgeropoulos, and Madison Bailey
Genre: Thriller
Rating: R (for violence throughout, language and brief sexuality)
Country: USA (English)
Runtime: 100 minutes

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Weak Layers

Directed By: Katie Burrell
Studio: Greenwich Entertainment

After getting evicted, three party-loving best friends set out to win a ski-movie competition. The prize money covers their rent, but they’ll have to beat out professional skiers and filmmakers. An uproarious comedy that celebrates mountain towns and takes on the male-dominated ski industry.

Starring: Katie Burrell, Jadyn Wong, Chelsea Conwright, Evan Jonigkeit, and Neal Bledsoe
Genre: Comedy
Rating: Not Rated
Country: USA (English)
Runtime: 99 minutes

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Roadkill

Directed By: Warren Fast
Studio: Uncork’d Entertainment

Lost while traveling through a rural county in 1983, a young woman crosses paths with a hitchhiker headed the same destination and offers a ride in exchange for directions. Their journey takes a violent turn when the two are caught up in a police manhunt for a fugitive killer. As victims begin to amass and authorities close in, it becomes a fight for survival on the open road.

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Mindwash

Directed By: Beatrice Brigitte
Studio: Buffalo 8

Motivational speaker Billy Seldom is about to become a global sensation when a catastrophic event hits. He spirals into self-destruction, while his co-dependent relationship with his girlfriend, Natalie, falters.

Starring: Camille Hyde, Ben Edlin Beatrice Brigitte, Samantha Walker, and Freya Saxon
Genre: Thriller
Rating: Not Rated
Country: USA (English)
Runtime: 85 minutes

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You Can’t Stay Here

Directed By: Todd Verow
Studio: Bangor Films

Set in the 1990s, follows a photographer who witnesses the homicide of a gay man in Central Park. When the police take some interest in the crime, a relationship develops between the photographer and the murderer.

Starring: Guillermo Diaz, Karina Arroyave, Vanessa Aspillaga, Becca Blackwell, and J.J. Bozeman
Genre: Thriller
Rating: Not Rated
Country: USA (English)
Runtime: 104 minutes

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The Bastard Sons

Directed By: Kevin Interdonato
Studio: Vertical

Life for a crew of organized criminals is disrupted when Vincent Damiano’s father, the family’s boss, is murdered. Vincent’s “bastard” brothers, a group of orphaned souls he raised together, have an idea of who killed their father… his partner, Rome. In a valiant and calculated attempt to regain the business and enact vengeance on Rome, the Bastards wage an all-out war to get their pound of flesh.

Starring: Kevin Interdonato, Charles Malik Whitfield, Frankie Edgar, Al Sapienza, and Anastasia Ganias
Genre: Crime | Thriller
Rating: Not Rated
Country: USA (English)
Runtime: 84 minutes

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Why Men Are Clueless

Directed By: Avery Kidd Waddell
Studio: Studio Dome / Entertainment Squad

In a comedic twist, a regular guy, clueless about his girlfriend’s needs for three years, now has one week to decode all women to save not just his relationship but himself too.

Starring: Carmen Serano, Cynthia Rodriguez, Greg Serano, Jonathan Stanley, and Lou Richards
Genre: Comedy
Rating: Not Rated
Country: USA (English)
Runtime: 100 minutes

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The Mummy Murders

Directed By: Colin Bressler
Studio: Gravitas Ventures

A lot of people have recently gone missing in Alexis’ hometown of San Antonio, Texas. Alexis is a top reporter for the local news station, and there have been rumors that a serial killer is responsible for those missing.

Starring: Jeff Caperton, Will Donahue, Aimee Michelle, Jason Scarbrough, and Leila Annastasia Scott
Genre: Horror
Rating: Not Rated
Country: USA (English)
Runtime: 87 minutes

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