Here to take a look at the films coming out in wide and limited release this coming weekend. I’ll give you my thoughts to help you decide what’s worth checking out.
- Furious 7 – The gang is back together to take out the older brother of their last foe who is trying to take them out one by one for revenge.
Directed by James Wan (The Conjuring, Insidious)
Starring Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Jason Statham, Michelle Rodriguez, Jordana Brewster, Dwayne Johnson
A full review will be up on the site tomorrow, but this movie fits right in line with the past two. Totally ridiculous action scene after scene, with lots of melodramatic “we’re a family” lines going on. If you were on board this far, you won’t be disappointed. It’s definitely a fun popcorn movie that knows what it is and isn’t afraid to go all out. And it’s going to be box office gold, especially since all the other studios wouldn’t even touch the same weekend.
- Woman in Gold – The true story of a woman who became a refugee during the Holocaust and decades later fought the Austrian government in court to retrieve a family painting that had been confiscated by Nazis.
Written & directed by Simon Curtis (My Week With Marilyn, Greenberg)
Starring Helen Mirren, Ryan Reynolds, Daniel Brühl, Tatiana Maslany
This story does seem interesting and worth telling, but the movie just feels very rote and by-the-numbers. I don’t think this was much of a stretch to put to film. It probably doesn’t help that I immediately compared it to Philomena in my head – woman reconnecting with her past and something she was forced to give up, pairing with a younger man who helps her along her journey. Philomena was fantastic, one of my favorites from that year, and this just seems like a lesser version of the same dynamic.
