film – Matthew Liedke on Film

REVIEW: ‘I Want Your Sex’ is a stellar erotic dramedy

Talk about an attention-grabbing title. Good news, though, director Gregg Araki’s new film has more intrigue than just a notable name.

The film stars Cooper Hoffman as Elliot, a recent college graduate who’s landed himself a job working for a successful, provocative artist. That artist is Erika (Olivia Wilde), a confident, forward and blunt woman who’s demanding of her staff. That especially becomes true when she enlists Elliot as her submissive sexual partner.

The two begin a relationship with a clear power dynamic at play. However, while Erika sees it as a loose relationship serving a purpose, Elliot, who’s more naïve, wants to believe something more exists. As they continue their relationship, Elliot’s life begins unraveling until the entire situation becomes chaotic.

REVIEW: ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ is a web of disappointments

Odd that it’s called “Brand New Day” when it’s so fixated on yesterday and tomorrow.

“Brand New Day” is set four years after the events of “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” Following the spell that erased memories, no one knows Peter Parker, but everyone in New York City is aware of, and loves, Spider-Man. The webslinger is popular with law enforcement and the public alike.

His personal life isn’t as good as his hero time, though, as he still misses his girlfriend MJ (Zendaya) and best friend Ned (Jacob Batalon). Because they have no memory, he just has to watch from afar. His overall life only gets more complicated when a new threat arises and his powers start to fluctuate.

REVIEW: New ‘Avatar’ adventure offers fun reunion with lovable cast

Shame on Paramount for not putting this film in theaters.

While it was once set for release on the big screen, “Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender” was pushed to Paramount Plus as a streaming title. The movie, deserving a theatrical outing, picks up just over a decade after the original series from the 2000s ended. The flick picks up with Aang (Eric Nam) maintaining peace in the world while also trying to preserve Air Nomad culture.

On one of his travels, a series of events leads him to discovering another airbender, Tagah (Dave Bautista), who’s been frozen in ice for centuries. Upon awakening, Tagah informs Aang he knows a way to bring more airbenders back to the world. To make this happen, Aang recruits his old team to help. However, their journey becomes more perilous than originally thought.

REVIEW: To its detriment ‘A Private Life’ is largely scattered

If I had a nickel for every indie film I watched via streaming set in France and starring an Academy Award winning American actress this summer, I’d have two nickels. Which, isn’t a lot but still strange it happened twice.

After reviewing “Couture” with Angelina Jolie a couple weeks ago, another movie with a limited theatrical release turned up on the radar. “A Private Life,” directed and co-written by Rebecca Zlotowski, stars Jodie Foster as therapist Lilian Steiner. The movie opens with Lilian learning one of her patients has taken her own life and it sets her off on a revealing journey.

While it first appears to be an open and shut case of suicide, Lilian notices things that lead her to believe there may have been something nefarious at play. Driven to learn more, she looks for clues while also connecting with people from her past, in doing so learning more about her patients and herself.

REVIEW: Nolan’s ‘Odyssey’ is an extraordinary cinematic experience

The word epic is sometimes thrown around loosely, but Christopher Nolan’s films usually earn the title. His latest flick once again qualifies.

“The Odyssey” is the latest from the Academy Award winning filmmaker. Based on Homer’s ancient text, the film stars Matt Damon as Odysseus, the Greek king of the city state Ithaca. Following the victory by Greece at Troy, Odysseus and his army are now trying to sail back to their home, but as legend tells, their journey is a perilous one.

Meanwhile, back in Ithaca, Odysseus’ son Telemachus (Tom Holland) is anxiously waiting for his father to return and deal with an escalating situation. The issue in question is the group of suitors wanting to marry Ithaca’s queen, Penelope (Anne Hathaway), as most believe Odysseus is dead leaving the throne vacant.

REVIEW: Modern crime drama ‘Carolina Caroline’ has classic vibes

The intersection of crime and romance can create some great cinematic drama, and it’s a well still worth going back to, as this film shows.

“Carolina Caroline” is a road trip flick centering on the titular character played by Samara Weaving. Caroline is a young woman from a small Texas town where she lives with her dad and works at a service station. Someday, she’d like to leave home and visit South Carolina to finally meet her estranged mom, but hasn’t taken steps to do so.

That changes when she meets Oliver (Kyle Gallner), a traveling hustler who runs small money scams to keep moving on the road. The two hit it off after meeting and decide to travel together, with Caroline learning the scams on the way to Carolina. As they travel, their outlaw activities get more daring.

REVIEW: Find an excuse to skip this ‘Invite’

Four characters, two couples, one apartment, and a whole lot of nothing else to really write home about.

However, I’m a film critic, so I have to write about this anyways. “The invite” is the latest film from director Olivia Wilde, who previously helmed 2022’s “Don’t Worry Darling.” Wilde also stars in the film as Angela, the wife of Joe (Seth Rogan), a man who doesn’t feel entirely fulfilled in his life where he works a job as a music teacher at a less than reputable school.

That unhappiness comes out in the marriage, as Joe and Angela are regularly bickering, and that only picks up at the movie’s onset, as the matriarch informs her husband she’s hosting a dinner party. She’s invited her neighbors Piña (Penelope Cruz) and Hawk (Edward Norton), a more free spirited couple. As the small gathering begins, things quickly unravel.

REVIEW: ‘Autumn Summer’ is an admirable but meandering flick

Sometimes directors making their first feature knock it out of the park. Other times it can be a miss. Rookie Jared Isaac lands somewhere in between, with a fair but not quite fulfilling project.

His first movie, which he also wrote, is “An Autumn Summer.” Starring Mark McKenna as Kevin, the film takes place in northern Michigan and is set during the summer right after his high school graduation.

Kevin is spending the summer at his parents’ lake cabin, and he’s joined by his friends Steven (Tony Horton) and Jared (Jun Yu), along with his girlfriend Cody (Lukita Maxwell). During their time there, the four friends spend their days in a lackadaisical fashion, enjoying the nearby lake and scenery. However, they also know their days are fleeting before going separate ways for college.

REVIEW: ‘Supergirl’ is astonishingly underwhelming

It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s another DC cinematic universe going off track!

Sadly, that’s seems to be the case with this follow-up to last year’s movie depicting the Man of Steel. This time around, the focus is on the titular Supergirl, or Kara Zor-El, portrayed by Milly Alcock. The movie picks up with Supergirl traveling around space to celebrate her birthday by partying it up in intergalactic dive bars.

Though it should be a time of celebration, Supergirl doesn’t appear too happy, as she still hasn’t quite settled in to a life on Earth or wandering in space. However, she finds some purpose when approached by a girl, Ruthye (Eve Ridley), who’s seeking someone to help her get vengeance on the man who killed her family.

REVIEW: ‘Couture’ contains moving, but disjointed character arcs

Following up her fantastic period piece work in 2024’s “Maria,” Angelina Jolie does more dramatic acting in this film set in modern times.

In “Couture,” Jolie stars as Maxine, an American indie film director who’s been hired by a French fashion company to helm the intro video for their latest show. It’s a great gig, but while her professional career is taking off, her personal life is facing difficulties. That’s only compounded when she receives a cancer diagnosis from her doctor.

Meanwhile, the audience is also introduced to other women associated with the show. One is Ada (Anyier Anei), a woman from Kenya who was recruited to model for the show and has to adjust to her new life. Another, Angele (Ella Rumpf), is a makeup artist working with the fashion company who’s also writing on her first novel.