Antonio Banderas – Memphis Flyer

Normally, this is the time for the midwinter blues at the multiplex, but 2023 is starting strong, thanks to our robot friend M3GAN. Here’s my full review of this killer flick.

Stepping up to challenge M3GAN is a reboot of the cult 1990 hip hop comedy classic House Party produced by baller supreme, LeBron James. To answer your first question, yes, Kid N’ Play are in it. So are Snoop Dogg, Lil Wayne, and a whole house full of celebrities who show up when cleaners Kevin (Jacob Latimore) and Damon (Tosin Cole) hijack King James’ crib for an epic throwdown.

Gerald Butler is Brodie, a pilot who crash lands in the Philippines with a full load of passengers in Plane. He soon discovers that the jungle is ruled by a feral, anti-government militia who takes his survivors hostage, hoping to get big ransoms from their families. Bodie must enlist a convicted murderer (Luke Cage’s Mike Colter) who was being extradited on his plane to help rescue the passengers. Beatings ensue.

In Puss In Boots: The Last Wish, the cutlass-armed kitty cat from Shrek returns with Antonio Banderas in the lead voice role as a swashbuckler on a mission to restore eight of his nine lives. But Florence Pugh as Goldilocks, the leader of the Three Bears crime family, wants the Wishing Star, too. The DreamWorks film was nominated for a Best Animated Feature Golden Globe.

Never bet against James Cameron, they say. And they’re right! Avatar: The Way of Water recently topped Top Gun: Maverick as 2022’s biggest box office draw, and it’s quickly closing in on the $2 billion mark. It helps that there’s actually a decent story to go with the next-level visual effects. If you’re going to see this one, make sure it’s the IMAX 3D version, and go soon!

At Black Lodge on Sunday is a triple feature of 90’s comedy, including Amy Heckerling’s 1995 classic Clueless. Like, duh!

On Thursday, Jan. 19, the Crosstown Arts film series presents Robert Altman’s 3 Women. The director’s follow-up to his seminal improv comedy Nashville is based on a vivid dream Altman had. Starring Shelly Duvall in her greatest role, and the legend Sissy Spacek before she was legendary, the mostly scriptless film owes some of its psychological complexity to the third woman, Janice Rule, who had just completed her PhD, and went on to retire from acting and become a practicing psychiatrist in Hollywood.

See you at the movies!

Cary Grant and Eva Marie Saint pause for refreshment in North By Northwest.

We’ve got some good stuff on Memphis screens this week, if you’re looking for fare beyond the multiplex.

On Wednesday, January 29th, at Studio on the Square, Indie Memphis is getting warmed up for the new cinema with Pedro Almodóvar’s Pain and Glory. The 70-year-old Spanish filmmaker’s latest earned Antonio Banderas a Best Actor award when it debuted at Cannes. Banderas, who starred alongside the great but perpetually underutilized Penelope Cruz, is up for Best Actor at next weekend’s Academy Awards, and the film is in contention for Best International Feature. It’s also Spain’s biggest box office hit in a decade.

Oscar Contenders, Hitchcock, and the International Jewish Film Festival Kickoff This Week At The Movies

On Thursday, January 30th, the annual Morris and Mollye Fogelman International Jewish Film Festival kicks off with a gala screening at the Malco Paradiso. The Keeper tells the true story of Bert Trautmann, a German soldier during World War II who relocated to the UK after spending time in a POW camp. Trautmann became the goalie for Manchester United and led the storied football team to victory in the 1956 FA Cup. His love for a Jewish woman causes controversy and calls into question everyone’s assumptions. The screening starts at 7 p.m., and you can find more details about the month-long festival at the JCC Memphis website.

Oscar Contenders, Hitchcock, and the International Jewish Film Festival Kickoff This Week At The Movies (2)

Back at Studio on the Square on Thursday night, one of the best films from a GOAT. Alfred Hitchcock’s North by Northwest re-teamed him with Cary Grant, whom he first worked with in 1941’s Suspicion. Grant plays Roger Thornhill, a caddish ad executive who inadvertently gets caught up in Cold War spy-jinx while he romances possible secret agent Eva Marie Saint. The blockbuster hit of 1959 has inspired countless imitators through the decades and remains the commercial pinnacle of Hitch’s career. One of these days, I’ll get the opportunity to use my favorite line from the film: When a train station clerk notices Grant’s sunglasses and asks if there’s something wrong with his eyes, Grant responds, “Yes, they’re sensitive to questions.” The film screens at 7 and 9:45 p.m. Here’s the original trailer:

Oscar Contenders, Hitchcock, and the International Jewish Film Festival Kickoff This Week At The Movies (3)

See you at the movies!