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Tag: films

  • Social Bonding Through Movies: The Emotional Magic Behind Watching Films Together

    Social Bonding Through Movies: The Emotional Magic Behind Watching Films Together

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    Movies can be an excellent social bonding experience in a variety of situations, including first dates, family movie nights, group watches, couples therapy, and professional settings. Learn more about the emotional dynamics behind watching films together.

    Beyond being a source of entertainment, films have the power to foster social bonds and create shared experiences among individuals.

    Whether it’s getting together at a friend’s house on a weekend night, embarking on a first date at the theaters, or upholding a family tradition of watching the same movie during holidays, watching movies together is one of the most common ways we connect with others.

    But what’s the psychology behind these cinematic connections? Let’s dive into the many social benefits behind movie watching and how they can improve our relationships in a number of different social settings.

    Shared Experiences

    Every time you press “Play” on a new movie, you are starting a collective journey with whoever you are watching with. No one knows what will happen, so you are both entering the unknown together and experiencing it for the first time.

    Every film is a rollercoaster of different emotions – joy, laughter, surprise, fear, suspense, disgust, sadness, anger – and everyone is experiencing those emotions together as a “hive mind.” Research shows emotions are contagious, and when multiple people are experiencing the same emotion in unison, feelings are often amplified more than if you were just experiencing it by yourself.

    Movies create new shared experiences that mark new chapters throughout our relationship. “Remember that one time we saw Wolf on Wall Street? That was fun!” A memorable movie can become a distinct event in our relationship’s storyline, especially if it symbolizes a special day like a first date, birthday, or anniversary, giving us a positive memory to look back on and reminisce about.

    Watching movies together doesn’t require much work, it effortlessly creates a sense of unity among the people watching. Even if everyone hates the movie, it still creates a shared bond, “Wow, that movie was really stupid!” and then you can all laugh about it.

    Icebreaker and Conversation Starter

    Watching films together serves as an excellent icebreaker, especially in situations where individuals may be meeting for the first time or trying to strengthen new connections.

    The movie theater, often considered a classic venue for a first date, provides a natural conversation starter. After the credits roll, initiating a conversation becomes as easy as asking, “Did you like the movie? Why or why not?” Ask about favorite scenes or whether they’ve seen other movies featuring the same actor or actress.

    Use the film as a springboard into other topics to talk about. If you’re skilled at conversation threading, you should be able to take one thing from the film and branch off into more important subjects. If it’s a film about music, inquire about their musical preferences or whether they play an instrument. For sports-themed movies, explore their favorite sports or childhood sports experiences.

    Icebreakers aren’t exclusive to first dates; they’re equally helpful in building connections in various scenarios, whether it’s getting to know a coworker outside the office or deepening a friendship.

    One fair criticism of movies as a bonding experience is that you don’t get to do much talking during them. It’s a passive experience, not an active one. But there are also benefits to this: it’s a shared experience with little effort (no pressure, just sit and watch), and it gives you a convenient starting point for more meaningful conversation later on.

    Nostalgia and Tradition

    For many, watching films together is not just an occasional activity but a cherished tradition that spans multiple generations.

    Family movie nights play a pivotal role in strengthening the bonds between parents and children. Holiday film marathons, especially during festive seasons, elevate our collective spirit and enhance the joyous atmosphere. Revisiting favorite childhood movies creates a profound sense of nostalgia, keeping us connected to our past.

    One popular family tradition may be during Christmas, such as having A Christmas Story playing in the background as you decorate the tree or watching It’s A Wonderful Life every Christmas eve.

    These traditions are about more than just the movie; they’re about creating a whole family experience. Infuse your own unique twist by turning it into a game, baking homemade cookies before watching, or simply enjoying jokes and good company. The film itself is just one aspect of a complete family ritual and bonding experience.

    When families embrace these shared traditions, they contribute to a profound sense of belonging and unity. These rituals become the threads weaving together the fabric of family ties and friendships over long periods of time.

    Team Building and Group Bonding

    Beyond personal connections, watching films together can be an effective team-building activity in professional settings.

    Organizational unity can be difficult to achieve for many companies, especially when workers have radically different jobs and skillsets, often being assigned to work within one department of a company but being siloed off from the organization as a whole.

    Movie nights and film screenings can be an effective way to provide employees with a stronger sense of unity and camaraderie. Different departments that normally don’t see each other get to cross-pollinate and make connections with faces they don’t often get to see. Scheduled events like this can foster a team of teams mindset, helping to interconnect different departments into a cohesive whole.

    Perhaps certain movies depict an idea, philosophy, or mindset that an organization wants to embrace more of. Requiring every employee to watch a movie together is more than just making friends at work, it can also tap into a deeper meaning behind the organization’s mission and purpose.

    Couples Therapy

    Movies can serve as bouncing points to important conversations that need to be had between spouses and loved ones.

    It’s not always easy to bring up certain topics of conversation, but through film you can organically dive into subjects that otherwise wouldn’t get brought up in everyday discourse, like mental health, sex and intimacy, or experiencing grief after a tragedy or loss.

    It’s common for a couples therapist to recommend a specific movie to their clients. You may already know of a movie that you’d like to share with someone. You can also ask friends or seek recommendations online. Ask yourself, “What’s something I really want to talk about with my partner?” then “What’s a good movie that can introduce this topic?”

    A powerful film can help couples process their relationship more clearly. It shows the universality of humanity – you’re not alone with whatever you are going through – and brings ideas out in the open that need to be expressed or talked about.

    One exercise you can try together is to each take notes or fill out a movie analysis worksheet while watching.

    Communal Bonding and Bridging Social Divides

    On a larger scale, film watching can help bridge cultural and social divides, as well as be used as a tool for communal bonding.

    Social events such as public screenings, outdoor showings, movie festivals, or drive-thru theaters are great settings to watch a movie among a large and diverse group of people within your community.

    These days with easy access to streaming services at home, most people watch movies all by themselves, but there used to be a time when movie-watching was an intrinsically social activity done in public spaces.

    As we continue to see a decline in community feeling, movies may be one avenue to start bringing people together again as a cohesive group.

    One idea is for local organizations to throw more public events with film features to celebrate holidays or special events – or you can set up a projector on your garage door and invite some neighbors for a weekend movie watch.

    Conclusion

    Watching films together is more than just a passive form of entertainment; it is a dynamic social activity that brings people together, creating lasting bonds and shared memories.

    Films are universal connectors. Whether it’s with family, friends, or colleagues, the act of watching a movie together creates an automatic bond and sense of unity.

    Are you a big movie watcher? In what situations can use film watching to improve your relationships with family, friends, loved ones, or coworkers?


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    Steven Handel

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  • Fortnite Player Recreates *That* Saltburn Scene In-Game

    Fortnite Player Recreates *That* Saltburn Scene In-Game

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    Image: Amazon MGM Studios

    Have y’all seen Saltburn yet? If you haven’t, Emerald Fennell’s black comedy which stars Barry Keoghan and Jacob Elordi as two Oxford University students spending a summer at the titular mansion, is pretty okay to great depending on whichever scene you’re talking about. Though it’s not as “weird” and unsettling as you might’ve heard (I saw it recently and thought all the hooplah was greatly over exaggerated), it does have one or two scenes that have fast become memes on TikTok, Twitter, and other social media sites. Scenes like the final one (some NSFW spoilers ahead) where Keoghan’s character dances naked with his penis flopping around throughout the mansion to Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s “Murder on the Dancefloor”. Of course it was only a matter of time before someone remade that scene in Fortnite.

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    TikTok user nxganussy posted a clip of their character dancing through the Lavish Lair mansion location on Fortnite’s map with “Murder on the Dancefloor” playing in the background. While their character is not nude like Keoghan is at the end of Saltburn (no Peely’s swinging around here), the vibes of the final scene are still perfectly captured within Epic’s battle royale. Well, until they’re discovered by another player who kills the vibe by killing them. That part didn’t happen in the movie.

    I planned to spend this next paragraph ruminating on whether or not Fortnite players could recreate other Saltburn scenes in the game, but lo and behold, nxganussy had already recreated the Bathtub scene, in which Keogan’s character drinks Jacob Elordi’s inseminated bathwater. This recreation is a little more abstract, but I admire the creativity.

    The next question is when do we get Saltburn skins in Fortnite? Then we could really recreate those scenes as authentically as possible. That’s probably not going to happen, but a guy can dream. Fortnite recreations are a pretty prevalent part of the game’s community at this point, ranging from game recreations to pop culture moments that capitalize on hot new memes. And even if what those memes are based off of are decidedly NSFW, Fortnite’s cartoonish, sanitized world make the recreations somewhat age-appropriate and hilarious for those in the know.

    Fortnite has been adding a lot of new modes and features as of late, from a Lego mode to a Rock Band-like one that still doesn’t support the plastic instrument controllers it should, yet. But it sounds like Fortnite players are eating as good as Keogan was out of that bathtub, am I right?

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    Kenneth Shepard

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  • Rebel Moon — Part One Is A Soulless Regurgitation Of Better Movies

    Rebel Moon — Part One Is A Soulless Regurgitation Of Better Movies

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    From his critically maligned but fan-favorite Sucker Punch to his infamous internet darling “Snyder Cut” of 2017’s Justice League, Zack Snyder is no stranger to drumming up discourse whenever one of his films nears release. His latest effort for Netflix, Rebel Moon — Part One: A Child of Fire, has already sparked discussions of an R-rated, three-hour director’s cut to give his fans an alternate taste before Rebel Moon — Part Two hits the streaming platform early next year. But while Snyder may do his best to invent a dark, gripping universe to engross viewers, Rebel Moon is a limp, soulless regurgitation of tropes stolen from much more formidable films.

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    Written, directed, produced, and shot by Snyder, Rebel Moon follows Kora (Sofia Boutella), a battle-hardened soldier with a tragic past. Though she’s attempting to live a low-profile life on a peaceful farming colony, Kora is forced to once again take up the mantle of warrior when the Motherworld sends a military contingent led by the brutal Admiral Noble (Ed Skrein) to occupy her new home. With the help of a humble farmer (Michiel Huisman) Kora sets off on a galaxy-spanning adventure to recruit a ragtag group of fighters to defend her homeland.

    Attempting to establish an original, engrossing science-fiction world is no small task, even for the most adept of writers, and it’s painfully clear that Snyder took heavy aesthetic and stylistic notes from genre classics like Star Wars and Dune, without understanding the story and emotional beats that made those aforementioned franchises so beloved. Certainly, there’s all manner of science-fiction spectacle in Rebel Moon to gawk at: the characters are all dressed in tattered greyscale robes, wielding retrofuturist weapons and talking about the “Motherworld” and the “Imperium.”

    But while every element of production design, costuming, and worldbuilding is certainly specific, none of them are inspired or purposeful. Instead, Rebel Moon’s stylistic sensibilities feel like Snyder simply tossed all the sci-fi greats into a blender and called it a day. Extensive attention is paid to plotting out lore and history, but Snyder forgets to flesh out the characters that populate his meticulously detailed universe.

    Aside from Kora, whose tragic backstory and brutal upbringing are delivered entirely through clunky monologues of exposition that bleed into extensive flashback sequences, the rest of Rebel Moon’s sizable ensemble cast are eacg allotted five minutes of dialogue, if that. Kora and her crew flit to a new planet, are treated to a dazzling display of their new ally’s combat prowess, given the CliffsNotes version of their tragic backstory (is there any other kind?), and then that character simply falls in among the ranks, never to be examined or explored with any real intentionality again.

    As for Kora herself, Boutella brings the customary strength and stoicism expected of a YA dystopian protagonist with none of the heart or passion. Constantly glowering out from underneath her dark crop of hair, Kora is a painfully uninteresting hero whose stoicism is certainly understandable given her history, but whose personality could not make for a more tepid protagonist. Though she’s plenty ferocious in combat, Kora is detached and distant when not embroiled in a fight, giving the entire film a remote, inaccessible emotional core. At two hours and 15 minutes, Rebel Moon is a laborious moviegoing experience—why should the audience care about the film’s events when the protagonist herself barely seems to?

    Rebel Moon – Part One: A Child of Fire | Official Trailer | Netflix

    Rebel Moon’s lack of interest in exploring its own characters is made all the more frustrating by the cruel, visceral nature of its villains—while we don’t get much personality from Kora, Gunnar, and the other wannabe heroes, we are treated to several extended sequences that revel in the cruelty and violence of the Imperium. The vaguely fascist ruling faction is clearly an underbaked stand-in for Star Wars’ Empire, but Snyder mistakes onscreen brutality for effective writing. The film’s first act subjects viewers to an extended sequence of Imperium soldiers attempting to rape a villager, a scene that serves no other purpose than making explicitly clear to the audience that the authoritarian military occupiers are, in fact, bad guys.

    The world Snyder has created is a cold, brutal one, utterly lacking in any kind of charm, whimsy, or excitement. The closest Rebel Moon ever comes to eliciting any kind of emotional response is during the action-packed, slo-mo heavy combat sequences. Stories like Star Wars and Dune soar by using far-fetched worlds and fantastical settings to interrogate relatable, deeply human ideas. Rebel Moon, on the other hand, trades in the aesthetic trappings of those classics without making the effort to engage on any emotional or philosophical level.

    Though Rebel Moon ends on a relative cliffhanger with the promise of a sequel on the horizon, it’s difficult to imagine why one would want to subject themselves to another two hours in this soulless slog of a universe. Certainly, Snyder is a master of his particular brand of highly stylized action sequences, but the sheer lack of emotional stakes and memorable characters renders Rebel Moon toothless.

    Rebel Moon — Part One: A Child Of Fire begins streaming on Netflix December 21.

    This review originally appeared on The A.V. Club.

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    Lauren Coates

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  • The final scene in the DCEU dares you to think of it as a metaphor for the whole franchise

    The final scene in the DCEU dares you to think of it as a metaphor for the whole franchise

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    Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom flows into theaters this weekend with the dubious honor of being the final film in the DC Extended Universe. And that means its final scene — its credits scene — is the final shot of Warner Bros. great attempt to equal the Marvel Cinematic Universe with its own pet superhero setting.

    But it also means that the typical use of a superhero movie credits scene doesn’t apply here. There aren’t any future franchise events for Lost Kingdom to point to. What’s a blockbuster to do?

    If you’ve seen Lost Kingdom, you know, and if you haven’t, maybe you’re just here to rubberneck. But here’s what it did.

    [Ed. Note: This piece contains spoilers for Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.]

    Image: Warner Bros. Pictures/DC Comics

    Lost Kingdom’s credits scene isn’t about anything weighty, it’s just a call back to a gross-out gag from earlier in the film. Orm (Patrick Wilson), the redeemed bad guy from the first Aquaman, is enjoying his first surface-world hamburger when he spies a cockroach scurrying across the dock-side picnic table.

    Earlier in the movie, his brother Aquaman (Jason Momoa) tricked him into thinking that live cockroaches are an every day surface-world snack. So Orm grabs the roach, slaps it between the layers of his sandwich, and takes a big, happy bite. Good night, sweet DCEU, may flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.

    But here I must implore my fellow human beings: We absolutely musn’t make this a metaphor. No matter how resonant, absurd, or funny the credits scene on Lost Kingdom, we must resist.

    Orm’s burger is, inevitably, a roachy Rorschach test. The insect can be whatever you didn’t like about the DCEU, and Orm happily eating it is the fans you don’t like lapping it up. Or, Orm is the executives whose meddling ruined the franchise happily choosing their comeuppance (the roach), which is the collapse of the whole thing (an honestly very appetizing burger). Or maybe, the burger is the Snyder Cut, somehow, and Orm is Joss Whedon? I’m sure somebody could flesh out that video essay.

    But we have to draw a line in the sand, like Topo the octopus scurrying away from the blood-drinking Deserters and back to the safety of deep water. We have to restrain ourselves, like Orm touching the Black Trident. We have to escape, like the fish in the sea, able to say that in the end, at the end of an era, we didn’t take the bait.

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    Susana Polo

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  • Sad News: Zack Snyder Willing To Direct Live-Action Fortnite Movie

    Sad News: Zack Snyder Willing To Direct Live-Action Fortnite Movie

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    Zack Snyder, Film director and guy-who-spells-Zack-correctly, is out promoting his new Netflix film, Rebel Moon. But because he’s talked about Epic’s popular battle royale shooter Fortnite in the past, people keep asking him about the game and recently, someone wondered if he would be willing to direct a movie based on the franchise. According to Snyder, “of course” he would.

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    Rebel Moon is a gritty, space-adventure that is poised to set up a larger franchise for Netflix. Let’s check out what the critics are saying about Snyder’s newest movie…oh…oh boy…ouch…well…uh… actually, let’s talk about something else and not that seemingly horrible film. Instead, Snyder has some thoughts on the world of Fortnite and making a live-action movie based on the ever-expanding free-to-play game he’s been enjoying for years.

    As spotted by IGN, during a December 15 interview with Etalk, the film director behind Man of Steel, 300 and that Dawn of the Dead remake where the zombies run was asked if he would ever “want to combine” his two passions for filmmaking and playing Fortnite.

    “I mean, of course,” Snyder quickly replied. He further added that he was trying hard to get skins based on Rebel Moon added to Fortnite, a game that is famous for its many brand crossovers. That didn’t happen, but Snyder doesn’t seem bitter about it and is still into the Fortnite universe.

    “Look, Fortnite is an amazing world, and it is an amazing distraction for me,” Snyder said. “It’s really cool, and the alchemy that they’ve created there is really unique. When I started playing it I thought I knew what it was and then it was something entirely different.”

    When playfully pushed by the interviewer about his vague answer, Snyder added: “You definitely don’t know. You definitely can never say never. That’s my mantra in this business.”

    If Zack Snyder does end up making a Fortnite film, I will expect a big starring role for Rick and Morty’s Mr. Meeseeks as that is, according to the filmmaker, the main skin he uses when playing the game. What a movie that will be.

      .

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    Zack Zwiezen

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  • Our Top Five Miyazaki Films and ‘The Boy and the Heron’

    Our Top Five Miyazaki Films and ‘The Boy and the Heron’

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    A grey heron told once me that Mal and Jo are here to talk all things Miyazaki! They start by discussing Hayao Miyazaki’s newest film, The Boy and the Heron. They talk about the themes, the world, and why this was such a personal film for Miyzaki (9:42). Later, they put together a list of their top five Miyazaki films and discuss how each one has impacted them and why they love them so much (50:30).

    Hosts: Mallory Rubin and Joanna Robinson
    Associate Producer: Carlos Chiriboga
    Additional Production: Arjuna Ramgopal
    Social: Jomi Adeniran

    Subscribe: Spotify / Apple Podcasts / Stitcher / Pandora / Google Podcasts

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    Mallory Rubin

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  • 15 dark and deranged Christmas movies we’re dying to watch

    15 dark and deranged Christmas movies we’re dying to watch

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    Zach Nading

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  • The Week In Games: What’s Coming Out Beyond Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora

    The Week In Games: What’s Coming Out Beyond Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora

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    Eric Schulkin

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  • The Costumes in “How to Have Sex” Are More Important Than You Might Think – POPSUGAR Australia

    The Costumes in “How to Have Sex” Are More Important Than You Might Think – POPSUGAR Australia

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    This post contains spoilers and explores themes of sexual assault.

    Going on your first girls holiday is often seen as a rite of passage. We’ve all seen the documentaries and reality shows, and many of us have experienced those neon-lit strips of bars and clubs, but there is a darker side to the teenage party holiday explored in Molly Manning Walker’s debut feature film. “How to Have Sex” is an assured coming-of-age story about consent and friendship that is hard to shake off once you’ve seen it.

    Awarded the coveted Un Certain Regard prize at Cannes Film Festival, the movie received critical acclaim prior to its release. It highlights how intimacy can go from mutually pleasurable to scarring if we buy into the misconception that communication and empathy aren’t sexy. While the film spotlights the pressure teenagers experience, it’s also a joyous study of girlhood, looking back on Walker’s own teen holidays.

    “It’s so important that this film feels real and that people recognise themselves in it, or, if they don’t, they recognise the characters.”

    Set in Malia, Greece, this compelling debut follows Tara (Mia McKenna-Bruce), Em (Enva Lewis), and Skye (Lara Peake) awaiting their GCSE results on what promises to be “the best holiday ever”. Tara is looking to lose her virginity, while the girls half-jokingly bet on who will have more sex.

    Choosing the right outfit is half the fun of their mission, and we see them borrow clothes from their respective hand luggage and hype each other up. And it’s their outfits that serve so much more than just an aesthetic. The writer and director sat down with costume designer George Buxton to bottle up today’s Gen-Z-on-holiday vibe, while incorporating details that speak to the film’s bigger themes.

    To portray this stylistic messaging, Buxton travelled to Malia for research, talking to young holidaygoers and collecting an “incredible archive of thousands of photos”. “It’s so important that this film feels real and that people recognise themselves in it, or, if they don’t, they recognise the characters,” she tells POPSUGAR.

    Below, Buxton shares her and Walker’s behind-the-scenes colour-coding and how some foreshadowing accessories contributed to creating the world of “How to Have Sex”.

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    Stefania sarrubba

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  • F-35 Stealth Jet Reported Missing After Pilot Ejects During ‘Mishap’

    F-35 Stealth Jet Reported Missing After Pilot Ejects During ‘Mishap’

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    U.S. military officials found the crash site of an F-35 jet that went missing after a “mishap” caused its pilot to eject from the stealth aircraft, prompting the base to post on social media and ask anyone with information to call in. What do you think?

    “We can’t let our enemies know we’ve discovered flight.”

    Heather Anzola, Pedicab Driver

    The Onion Reviews ‘Licorice Pizza’

    “This is why you should always take a picture of where you eject from your plane.”

    Roman Latner, Tribute Organizer

    “It’s scary to think that was just out there not killing anybody.”

    Gordon Barberena, Table Setter

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  • JK: Hayao Miyazaki Isn’t Retiring From Making Ghibli Movies After All

    JK: Hayao Miyazaki Isn’t Retiring From Making Ghibli Movies After All

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    Photo: Frazer Harrison (Getty Images)

    Contrary to popular belief, How Do You Live? (aka The Boy and the Heron) will no longer be Studio Ghibli director Hayao Miyazaki’s final film.

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    In a recent red carpet interview at the Toronto International Film Festival, Studio Ghibli vice president Junichi Nishioka told CBC reporter Eli Glasner that the iconic director has been coming into the office with new movie ideas following The Boy and the Heron’s international release. This news comes after years of Studio Ghibli never releasing a single trailer to promote Miyazaki’s final film, sharing only the title and a single poster in the run-up to release, and operating on the intriguing premise of it being Miyazaki’s final animated movie.

    “Other people say that this might be [Miyazaki’s] last film, but he doesn’t feel that way at all,” Nishioka told the CBC. “He is currently working on ideas for a new film. He comes into his office every day and does that. This time, he’s not going to announce his retirement at all. He’s continuing working just as he has always done.”

    Read More: Studio Ghibli’s Final Miyazaki Film Opens Huge Despite Zero Marketing

    As longtime Ghibli watchers may recall, Miyazaki’s previous, supposed “final” films were 2013’s The Wind Rises and then 2018’s animated short film Boro the Caterpillar. Yet here we are today, tricked once more by this master of fake retirement.

    Spoiler warning for The Boy and the Heron.

    According to Anime News Network, How Do You Live? is about a boy named Mahito Maki who, after the death of his mother in the firebombings of Tokyo during World War II, moves with his father to the countryside. Things take a dramatic turn for Mahito when his father remarries his mother’s pregnant sister. It’s here that Mahito meets a talking heron who promises him that he can see his mother again if he follows him into another mysterious world, one which critics are praising for its visual inventiveness and stunning animation.

    If you’re still planning on going into Miyazaki’s latest “final film” without any knowledge of what the film looks like, I suggest you don’t click on the trailer below. I’m told it’s pretty sweet—like worth paying $300 to snag the final movie ticket on Ticketmaster kinda sweet.

    GKIDS Films

    Personally, I’m gonna opt to not watch the trailer because I wanna watch How Do You Live? with fresh eyes. If Japanese audiences could do it, why can’t we?

       

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    Isaiah Colbert

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  • TIFF 2023 kicks off amid actors and writers strike | Globalnews.ca

    TIFF 2023 kicks off amid actors and writers strike | Globalnews.ca

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    By Noel Ransome

    The Canadian Press

    Posted September 7, 2023 6:06 am

    TORONTO — The Toronto International Film Festival kicks off today under the shadow of dual strikes by Hollywood writers and actors but festival CEO Cameron Bailey is touting a strong lineup and ticket sales.

    Tonight’s opening night film is Hayao Miyazaki’s animated feature “The Boy and the Heron,” which centres on a boy who loses his mother during the Second World War and embarks on a journey into a magical world.

    Among the celebs expected this year are Sean Penn, Willem Dafoe, Spike Lee, Lil Nas X, Nicolas Cage, Nickelback and Patricia Arquette.

    However, expectations for star-filled premieres and parties remain low as members of the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists and the Writers Guild of America continue a work stoppage that extends to publicity events.

    Despite the labour unrest, Bailey says ticket sales have been “as strong as ever.”

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    Unions for Hollywood writers and actors are each seeking improved compensation and job protections from labour contracts with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.

    Other buzzy titles include Viggo Mortensen’s western drama “The Dead Don’t Hurt,” Michael Keaton’s “Knox Goes Away” and the horror drama “Dream Scenario,” starring Cage.

    “Just the ticket sales we’ve seen so far with interest in the festival…that’s as strong as ever,” Bailey said in advance of the fest.

    “We’re the centre of the film world, and we’re proud of that.”

    &copy 2023 The Canadian Press

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  • This John Wick-Inspired Killer Bean Game Looks Pretty Cool, Ridiculous

    This John Wick-Inspired Killer Bean Game Looks Pretty Cool, Ridiculous

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    There’s a trailer taking X, formerly Twitter, by storm of a coffee bean armed with two pistols engaging in acrobatic shootouts that’s giving Max Payne meets Just Cause with a bit of GTA sprinkled in, and I’m totally obsessed.

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    Dubbed Killer Bean, the game is billed as a first-/third-person shooter with procedurally generated elements that affect everything from the characters to the story itself. Based on the Steam description, the project sounds ambitious.

    “You are Killer Bean, a rogue assassin who takes out the trash in this world, one bullet at a time. The procedurally generated story changes every time you start a new campaign in this first-person/third-person, roguelike shooter,” the description reads.

    Killer Bean

    Playing as Jack “Killer” Bean, you were betrayed by the Shadow Agency. Thirsting for revenge, you set out to murk the people who backstabbed you, employing bullets, punches and kicks, and acrobatic slow-motion moves to get your vengeance. It’s like John Wick, but instead of playing as Keanu Reeves, you’re…Keanu Bean. Pun aside, Killer Bean uses procedural generation in an exciting way: Everything changes when you play, according to its description.

    “Every time you start a new single-player campaign, everything changes. The locations change, the missions change, the characters change, the bosses change, and most of all, the story changes. Characters who you trusted before, may turn against you. Enemies who tried to kill you, may end up helping you. Simple missions can turn into deadly traps. No two campaigns are the same.”

    That sounds fascinating if it’s executed well, especially considering its GTA/Max Payne/Just Cause vibes. I mean, watch that above trailer one more time. Killer Bean starts by butterfly twisting into a James Bond-looking sports car and immediately finds himself in a shootout with motorcycle-riding beans before jumping out in slow-motion to blast up another bean. It’s amazingly ridiculous, especially as you watch Killer Bean windmill to dodge bullets then take control of an attack helicopter to destroy some industrial-looking bridge. I’m not totally sure what’s happening here, but I’m all for it regardless.

    While this may be the first big-budget Killer Bean game, it isn’t the first to come out. Based on two short animations from 1996 and 2000, as well as a feature-length film from 2008, the franchise saw the side-scrolling action platformer Killer Bean: Unleashed release in 2012 for Android and iOS devices. I played a little bit of it, and yeah, it’s pretty ridiculous. It’s got in-app purchases (that you can circumvent by watching ads), clunky touchscreen controls, and a plethora of levels to shoot through. It isn’t exactly an enjoyable experience, but it does provide a semblance of an idea of what the big Killer Bean game might play like.

    Killer Bean doesn’t have a release date, but you can wishlist it on Steam now.

     

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    Levi Winslow

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  • Barbenheimer Begins: The Battle of ‘Barbie’ v ‘Oppenheimer’

    Barbenheimer Begins: The Battle of ‘Barbie’ v ‘Oppenheimer’

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    For months on end, the internet has been joking about summer’s most unexpected double feature: Oppenheimer vs Barbie. Well, July 21st is finally here. And, as writers who are chronically online and always down to do something for the bit, of course, we grabbed our comfies and our blankets and spent 5 hours in the cinema on the opening day of what’s been dubbed … Barbenheimer.

    Barbie and Oppenheimer might not seem like they have much in common, but after watching both in quick succession, turns out, they do.

    Both are, at their core, about existential crises. In Barbie, stereotypical Barbie (Margot Robbie), leaves Barbieland to go on a journey to the real world and discovers the harsh truths about her life and ours. Meanwhile, Oppenheimer chronicles the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer (Cillian Murphy), the man behind the atomic bomb, and his experience wrestling with his conscious in the years after.

    The only difference: one is a camp, candy-colored creation by Greta Gerwig (with an infectious aesthetic that has taken over the world), while the other is a trippy, gritty, three-hour Christopher Nolan aesthetic.

    Here’s what we thought about these insanely different films — and their surprising similarities.

    Caution: SPOILERS AHEAD – EMARK ON YOUR OWN DOUBLE FEATURE BEFORE READING

    Costumes

    JP – The fashion for Barbie was all things pink and trendy. It was my dream closet, and that Chanel pink dress was my dream fit. Unfortunately, I dress more like Albert Einstein in Oppenheimer – a dirty, ragged sweatshirt, lots of layers, and a hat.

    LKC – I thought I was blown away by the Barbie press tour outfits but the movie outfits were in a whole other league. From the archival Barbie references to the perfect satirical Ken looks, I was obsessed. Though I will say, I liked a lot of the sweater vests in Oppenheimer. But mostly it was a bunch of nerdy guys in ill-fitting suits.

    Barbieland vs Los Alamos

    JP – Los Alamos was desolate, there wasn’t even a kitchen when Oppenheimer first moved in. They literally made this place in the middle of nowhere, so you can’t expect it to look lush. Take me to BarbieLand, where I’m surrounded by pink Dream Houses and every night is Girl’s Night, please.

    LKC – I will say, both worlds were completely immersive. And it’s crazy that they both represented a fantasy, an escape from reality — though, in polar opposite ways. The real question is: why did Kendom look like every fratty dive bar? I had war flashbacks. (Oppenheimer pun not intended)

    Horses

    JP – All Ken really cared about in Barbie was Barbie…and horses. Horses were a way to make a person taller, to Ken, and also much, much more. Similarly, in Oppenheimer, there was a plethora of horses. I couldn’t believe my eyes. How cinematic for the two of them.

    LKC – Cannot believe these were two movies about horse boys. “When I realized the patriarchy was not about horses, I kind of lost interest.” – Ken in Barbie. And lowkey, Oppie too.

    Soundtrack

    JP – Despite the low 5/10 rating for the Barbie soundtrack, I thought it was perfect. Fun in all the right ways, childish and playful, and sometimes raw and human. From Dua Lipa’s disco number to the rousing ballad of “I’m Just Ken”, I was locked in my seat. And while Oppenheimer did not have an all-male musical number as I’d hoped, each song was correctly placed and timed.

    LKC – Apparently, Christopher Nolan tried to work with Hans Zimmer for Oppenheimer but couldn’t, because of scheduling conflicts. Tea. But it all worked out because Ludwig Göransson, another frequent collaborator, really put his foot in the score of this film. The tension! I could feel it! But dare I say, the Barbie soundtrack was equally emotive. I didn’t expect to feel that many feelings when the Billie song hit.

    The Cast

    JP – When Christopher Nolan and Greta Gerwig cast their respective movies, they ate. No crumbs. Margot Robbie is a real-life Barbie, there’s no doubt about it. She’s so stunning it’s literally unbelievable, which is exactly what Barbie the doll is as well. And then there’s Ken, played by Ryan Gosling, who has adapted his mind, body, and soul to play this role. It wouldn’t be the movie it was without him.

    And don’t get it twisted, I wholeheartedly believe Cillian Murphy is getting an Oscar for this role. However, Emily Blunt acted her ass off the entire time. I was so impacted by her refusing to shake hands at the end of the movie. Mother.

    LKC – Leaving the Barbie movie, I heard someone say “Oscar for Ryan Gosling.” And I agree. In the same way Austin Butler went method for Elvis, Gosling went full Ken. And it paid off. He and Cillian Murphy should face off at the Academy Awards for sure.

    Surprising Cameos

    JP – Much like the main cast, the supporting characters in both Barbie and Oppenheimer had my jaw on the floor. I am now under the firm belief that the world would be a utopia if Issa Rae were president. With Barbies and Kens being played by the likes of Emma Mackey, Dua Lipa, John Cena, Simu Liu, Kate McKinnon, Ncuti Gatwa, and Kingsley Ben-Adir, you’re instantly wondering when you can get your ticket to BarbieLand.

    As for Oppenheimer, is anyone else struggling to see Josh Peck in any role that isn’t a resident podcaster? We had mega cameos in Oppie as well like Jack Quaid, Rami Malek, Devon Bostick (NOT RODERICK!!), Gary Oldman, Ben Safdie, and even Alex Wolff (½ of The Naked Brothers Band, the half that was in Hereditary).

    LKC – Literally every working actor was either in Barbie or Oppenheimer. I recognized pretty much every face from somewhere. But none of them could hold a candle to Michael Cera as Alan! He was for the girls, but he could also handle himself in a fight scene. Range.

    The Male vs Female Gaze

    LKC – From the moment I stepped into the theatres of Barbie and Oppenheimer, I was literally blown away by the difference between the audiences. Yet, Barbie was actively aware of the male gaze — that was the full plot — while Oppenheimer didn’t even pass the Bechdel test.

    JP– Obviously we have two ends of the spectrum with a male-dominated Oppenheimer and a women-run Barbie. Barbie couldn’t do a better job of describing how it feels to be a woman in a male-dominated society: powerless, tired, and objectified. The discourse of “pretending to have never seen The Godfather” so they could explain it to you and dumbing yourself down so they can teach you Photoshop is so prevalent.

    And yet in Oppenheimer, you see the truth of a male-dominated society. Where groups of the smartest men driven by war create a device that has the power to eviscerate us all. The irony was not lost on me after seeing Oppenheimer second.

    Directorial Masterclasses

    LKC – Both films were expertly directed for their plots. Greta Gerwig did her own time-bending, color-shifting film with Little Women. But for Barbie she used deceptively simple shots and aching attention to detail to tell a pretty straightforward story in a smart way. She deserves the accolades for the biggest open weekend by a female solo creator.

    Nolan on the other hand, didn’t pull any punches. He’s at his best with Oppenheimer, subverting the traditional biopic framework — which is usually slow and chronological — with fast cuts moving from different time frames to make an ingenious portrait of not just a single man, but a pivotal moment in history and its consequences. Also, there’s something to be said about making me enjoy a movie about quantum physics.

    JP – The ultimate clash (if you can even call it that) of male and female director titans proved to be thrilling. Greta Gerwig’s take on patriarchy and feminism was wrapped in a perfect pink bow for us, with candid, straightforward takes. However, where Christopher Nolan shone bright was truly the scene of the test bomb exploding. It was intense, you could feel the magnitude of both the bomb and the consequences it would soon bring from one scene. Chills.

    Endings

    LKC – I haven’t stopped thinking about Oppenheimer since I watched it. While I do think the last hour dragged on a little too long, the last 15 minutes made it worth it. Meanwhile, Barbie’s ending made me unexpectedly emotional. Margot Robbie saying “I don’t want to be the idea, I want to be the person having ideas” hit me just as hard as Oppenheimer’s existential ending.

    JP – While Barbie may have ended with Stereotypical Barbie finding her place in the real world (and, finally, a trip to the gynecologist), Oppenheimer ended in an opposite manner. We see Oppenheimer talking to Albert Einstein about how he fears he’s set off a domino effect with his findings. Einstein stalks off, clearly stressed in his classic gray ratty sweater (such a mood), and we know the rest is history.

    The Final Verdict

    LKC – 5 hours in the theatre well spent. Movies are back! Thank god.

    JP – Overall, I loved them both…for vastly different, camp reasons. Barbie gave girls of every age hope in the theater, and very publicly called out discrepancies no one has wanted to talk about in movies before. Oppenheimer has me still thinking to this hour, about destruction and humanity and all things nuclear war. See Oppenheimer first so you can end with hope and dreams in Barbie.

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    LKC

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  • Movies to Watch this Summer — In Theatres​

    Movies to Watch this Summer — In Theatres​

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    Remember the era of summer blockbusters? Every weekend of the summer, families, friend groups, budding romances, and solo cinema lovers alike would pack into their local theatres to watch the latest, hottest summer film.

    For a while, there’d be one or two movies that would own the summer — plus a smattering of stragglers that would fight for the audience’s attention and to nab those coveted box office numbers.

    Times were simpler when Will Smith was the reigning champion of the summer blockbuster. From 2002 to 2008, he held the record for the most consecutive $100 million-plus releases from Men in Black to Hancock. And every summer, there were lines and lines, and unavailable seats as crowds packed into those movie houses to watch the latest summer film.

    When did that end? With the dawn of streaming? With the death of cinema? Or, maybe it didn’t end. Maybe, just maybe, cinema is making a slow crawl back.

    After last year’s mega releases of Top Gun: Maverick andElvis, the momentum for moviegoing has returned. And, of course, the hottest movie ticket going is for Barbie in theatres July 21st. I wonder, will the tickets themselves be pink? One can only hope the marketing budget stretches that far.

    But once the Barbie frenzy’s over, what else should you watch? With a reinvigorated passion for the in-theater experience, I think we all go to the movies more this summer. And bring back those summers of yore where the best place to be on the weekend was staring at a cinema screen, together.

    Here are the movies to get out of your house and watch this summer:

    Barbie – July 21

    THEEE movie of the summer — or the year, decade, century? Barbie is the film on everyone’s lips. And you better get your tickets now — seats for opening night are already selling out. And the soundtrack is already the sound of the summer.

    When Barbie has an existential crisis, everything in her world starts going wrong. Faced with her mortality, she goes to the real world to discover a realm beyond the pretty pink pastels she’s always known. Oh — and then there’s Ken.

    Oppenheimer – July 21

    Who knows what Oppenheimer is about, honestly? And it’s by Christopher Nolan, so chances are, you won’t understand it after watching it either. Just go see it. Right after Barbie, preferably.

    Joy Ride – July 7

    This girls-trip comedy is already getting rave reviews. Starring AAPI female comedians, it follows Ashley Park, Sherry Cola, Stephanie Hsu, and Sabrina Wu as they go on a trip to China. Hilarity and chaos ensue.

    Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One – July 12

    Fresh off the heels of his Academy Award-nominated Top Gun: Maverick, Tom Cruise is back with another Mission: Impossible film. While this probably won’t land an Oscar, it’s classic summer blockbuster fun.

    Theater Camp – July 14

    This one is for all the theater kids! Set in a theater camp where the counselors have more drama than the kids, this comedy stars Ben Platt, Molly Gordon, Noah Galvin, Ayo Edebiri, Jimmy Tatro, and Patti Harrison.

    Meg 2: The Trench – August 4

    Yes, they’re making another one. Yes, I will watch anything with Jason Statham in it. Yes, I will be in attendance on opening night. Yes.

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    LKC

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  • Layers Of Fear: The Kotaku Review

    Layers Of Fear: The Kotaku Review

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    There’s a lot to admire about Layers of Fear, Polish studio Bloober Team’s new reimagining of its (relatively) excellent surreal, psychological adventure horror series.

    Developed alongside Anshar Studios, which previously assisted Bloober in expanding its sci-fi horror Observer in 2020, this new version of Layers of Fear compounds the original 2016 game, its DLC, Layers of Fear 2, a new DLC, and a new story meant to fill the gaps into one beautifully complex, decayed rose. But while the series has never looked better—Layers of Fear was made with Unreal Engine 5—its narrative is contrived, choking sometimes on its own ambitious intricacies.

    My disappointment is poetic. Most of the characters the game lets you choose—The Painter, his wife The Musician, The Actor, and The Writer, who is introduced to the series for the first time in this game—suffer from the same sickness: getting squished under impractical aspirations. Through Layers of Fear’s divided chapters, I play each of them in first-person and piece together their distressing pasts through notes and their own commentary.

    Letters with scratched-out names, found sentimental objects like a cracked conch shell, and a barrage of enigmatic voiceover tell me that the Layers of Fear cast has been successful in art before, and so they’re determined to keep striving, however unreasonable their goals start to feel in the game’s morphing, pitch-black houses. Only boring things can hold them back, earthly things, like the brown liquor The Artist depends on, or the marred skin stretched painfully over The Musician’s burnt fingers.

    But these are temporary setbacks—the splendor of their art and genius can’t be contained by something as small and imperfect as a body, the characters suggest. So they turn to the Rat Queen, the series’ villain formally introduced in 2019’s Layers of Fear 2, with her long teeth and black marble eyes, and she forces them to take her supernatural path to greatness.

    Screenshot: Bloober Team / Kotaku

    Layers of Fear is my favorite walking simulator

    With its emphasis on piece-by-piece discovery and exploration, there isn’t much typical “gameplay” in Layers of Fear, so I spend the majority of my time in it digesting this information. The series frequently has been called, with a little bit of a scoff, a “spooky walking simulator,” and that’s what I spend over 10 hours doing—walking, and, sometimes, screaming at sudden sounds, like dissonant, echoing piano chords.

    There aren’t options to do a lot more. Aside from walking, I can run—or, more accurately, walk with more DualSense feedback—and pick items up by hitting right trigger. I can zoom in on secret codes and puzzle solutions since they’ve all been changed from their original iterations, and in the Layers of Fear 2 section, I can crouch into vents.

    The Layers of Fear Rat Queen hovers over a boy seated on a stage.

    Screenshot: Bloober Team / Kotaku

    The most significant gameplay adjustment between this Layers of Fear and previous titles is the introduction of a handheld light source. It isn’t particularly shocking, but it breaks the series’ passivity tradition, since the lights are not only practical, they’re violent. By hitting both triggers, my beam becomes incendiary, and I use it to singe a fresh puzzle type—it appears like a blurry blob and obscures exits and key items—as well as approaching enemies. For The Artist, who has shunned electricity in his palatial 1920’s home, this means pointing a glowing gas lantern at visions of my dead wife, who may or may not have deserved it, but other characters get to use flashlights to illuminate the rot around them.

    Anyway, I don’t mind just walking. The game’s level and puzzle designs are immaculately unpredictable. They shift when I’m not looking, and I get a nervous thrill from not knowing what will happen if I turn back around. Will I find a film photo? A chopped-up finger? Am I about to get trapped in a looping hallway, or locked closet, or bedroom with no windows, or keys, or air to breathe?

    That is what makes Layers of Fear scary, and therefore entertaining. With its rebuilt graphics, the game shapeshifts as convincingly as a terrified chameleon. If I look behind this empty picture frame, a door will appear. If I begin to play this roll of film, a big, white moon will descend and enrapture me. It’s scary to move with determination toward uncertainty, and Layers of Fear exploits that, diffusing in me a tumbling ocean wave of unease.

    But, oh, God, the story.

    Layers of convoluted lore

    This is what makes the game both aggravating and appealing: If Layers of Fear were a person, it would live its whole life with its head up its ass. It wants, somewhere in its shifting staircases and infinite basements, to discover the psychology behind great art.

    Since this is a horror game we’re talking about, its interpretation of that psychology is insufferable. I understand quickly that the environments I’m in are physical manifestations of artists’ looping thoughts and cobwebbed instincts, knotted with metal chains and wet candle wax. A creative mind is an uncomfortable and unsatisfying place, the game tells me, and really lays on the metaphor.

    Layers of Fear routinely makes references to legendary creative work like The Picture of Dorian Gray, Faust, The Shining, and so on, and I am hit on the head with how important art is; “Great art carries a heavy cost,” a note says, “To create is to reach into chaos,” a voiceover instructs. “Chaos is darkness. Warm. Soft. Swarming. He understood it in the end. Will you?”

    Um, not really, TBH.

    Taking cues from its influences, Layers of Fear’s demon is the Rat Queen, who is featured more prominently in the added Writer and Musician content. But Unlike Dorian Gray or Faust, in which men knowingly give up their souls in exchange for sex and knowledge, the characters in Layers of Fear are traumatized people the Rat Queen coerces into pursuing unattainable perfection. As a result, Layers of Fear isn’t a cautionary tale about selfishness.

    I don’t really know what it is. It points out things it wants me to feel without letting me feel them. The most egregious case of this happening is in The Musician’s DLC, where found diary entries describe her house as a “prison.” Eventually, I place a dead songbird back into its cage. Yeah, I get it.

    Whereas something like Faust satirizes the tortured artist, conveying that creative people aren’t necessarily special people, that they can be as bad as anyone, Layers of Fear seems to say that art is uncontrollable. It’s a hungry, magical force, and if a wife, or a sister, or a daughter are caught and bloodied in its insatiable mouth then, well. So be it.

    I find that difficult to accept. I think it’s damaging, too, to contextualize art as something dangerous and wild, however reverentially Layers of Fear phrases it. Art isn’t the boogeyman. It’s not the problem—people are, usually. Blaming a monster, like the Rat Queen, feels too easy to me. That’s a narrative issue I’ve had with Layers of Fear since the beginning, and the new Writer and Musician stories have unfortunately made it snowball.

    Still, I am impressed with Bloober’s ground-up transformation of its series into a compact nightmare with white rats. The game is a show of strength, despite fans’ reservations for the studio’s upcoming Silent Hill 2 remake, and I admire a game that cares about art as deeply as its characters do. I only wish that it weren’t so annoying about it.

     

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    Ashley Bardhan

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  • ‘Eric LaRue’ Review: After Soaring in Succession, Skarsgard Transforms in ‘Eric LaRue’

    ‘Eric LaRue’ Review: After Soaring in Succession, Skarsgard Transforms in ‘Eric LaRue’

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    There’s a lot to be said about Eric LaRue. It’s Michael Shannon’s directorial debut. It’s a meditative adaptation of Brett Neveu’s 2002 play. And it stars Judy Greer, Alison Pill, Tracy Letts, Paul Sparks, and a just about unrecognizable Alexander Skarsgård. The latter is what the film will undoubtedly be remembered for, but let’s start from the top.

    Eric LaRue premiered on June 10th at Tribeca Film Festival. This highly anticipated drama is a fresh perspective on a timely and important topic: gun violence. The film follows two parents (Greer and Skarsgård) whose son commits a school shooting. After murdering three of his high school peers, the title character Eric LaRue is sent to prison. In the aftermath, his parents struggle to repair and adjust to life without their son and as pariahs in their cookie-cutter suburban town.

    The film poses a number of questions. Whose to “blame” when such a shocking tragedy occurs? Who takes responsibility? How does a community heal? And what is our responsibility to ourselves?

    However, while the film provokes and prods, it doesn’t build avenues toward solutions. With nebulous questions that have no right answers, a film like this leans on its characters to raise and elaborate on the issues. Although the characters are compelling and entertaining — and well rendered by the actors — they aren’t complex enough to lead us toward an honest conversation about the film’s themes.

    Within the film itself, the characters attempt to have conversations among themselves. Most of these attempts are just that, with no results. And while this is intentional, when problems are repeatedly introduced nothing moves forward — the action is inert. For the viewer, Eric LaRue feel repetitive and monotonous. A shame, considering the astonishing direction, the striking cinematography, and powerhouse performances.

    As Michael Shannon’s directorial debut, this is a triumph. The actors interact with each other seamlessly. And the establishing shots of suburbia clue the viewer into this community’s rules and the enormity of the coming transgression. It’s also a career-defining role for Judy Greer — who plays the devastated mother, Janice LaRue. Her quest for answers and healing is portrayed with a brilliant blend of melancholy, torment, and messiness.

    However, the most memorable performance is by Skarsgård. It’s always a treat to see one of your favorite actors in a role where you barely recognize them. Skarsgård achieves this with phenomenal results.

    Fresh off a scene-stealing appearance in Succession as the eccentric — and often-shoeless — tech founder, Alexander Matsson, Skarsgård chalks up yet one more title to his already stacked filmography. This film, I think, will live on largely as an example of the actor’s extensive range.

    Rather than the charming, authoritative figures he often plays, Skarsgård transforms into Ron LaRue — an awkward and aimless father. Somehow he wrangles his giant Viking frame into khakis and flannel to bumble around the house. Skarsgård balances power and heartbreak — searching for himself as much as he’s searching for answers. We view him as Janice LaRue sees him: as lacking. And Skarsgard’s complete immersion in his role truly convinces us.

    Overall, Eric LaRue is a half-realized execution of a dynamic concept. Although the pacing is slow and stilted, those moments between characters are so riveting, you can’t look away.

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    LKC

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  • Most Notorious Criminals In U.S. History

    Most Notorious Criminals In U.S. History

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    Violence and crime have been part of American history since the earliest explorers arrived on the continent and killed whoever they found before stealing their land. The Onion looks back at the most notorious criminals in the country’s history.

    Read more…

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  • That Bloodborne-Looking Pinocchio Soulslike Has A Demo Now

    That Bloodborne-Looking Pinocchio Soulslike Has A Demo Now

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    Screenshot: Neowiz / Kotaku

    During Summer Game Fest, host Geoff Keighley debuted a new Lies of P trailer that came with some gorgeous classic music. There was a treat in it, though: the Bloodborne-inspired Soulslike is not only coming to most platforms on September 19. But you can play the action RPG right now if you wanted to.

    GamersPrey

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    Levi Winslow

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  • The Ultimate Pride Month Streaming Guide: Best Queer Titles to Watch This June

    The Ultimate Pride Month Streaming Guide: Best Queer Titles to Watch This June

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    It’s Pride Month, so companies will trick out their websites with rainbow flags and conjure extravagant floats for Pride parades across the country. Then come July . . . they’ll return to the dull old days. The commercialization of Pride month was inevitable, but it’s still disheartening.

    Pride is fundamentally about celebrating people – fun people – bright people – colorful people – all people. Pride started with a spontaneous protest during the early hours of June 28, 1969. NYC’s Stonewall Inn – a popular Greenwich Village gay bar – was raided by the police, and patrons fought back.

    The Stonewall was a safe home to people who felt like outcasts even in the queer community. Tired of being harassed by the cops, they stood up for themselves in a now-infamous riot. Bricks were thrown, a parking meter was fashioned into a battering ram, and cop cars were turned over.

    Following this now-iconic night, activist groups rose up from the community to advocate for queer rights. It was the start of a movement. One year later, the first gay pride marches started around the country to commemorate it.

    This is the spirit of Pride. It’s about community, it’s about standing up and upsetting the status quo, and it’s now an ongoing global revolution. Yet, this month’s commercialized capitalist parade distracts from the origins of this powerful, unstoppable movement.

    Above all, Pride is about celebrating the diversity within the queer community. Whether you’re attending Pride parades, supporting queer businesses, or starting a police riot, do it with that same celebratory spirit in mind.

    A fabulous way to fully appreciate the diversity of queer stories is through film. From documentaries to movies, to television shows, queer cinema demonstrates the richness and multiplicity of the queer experience.

    Some LGBTQ+ titles have become classics, others are contemporary and more whimsical, proving not all queer stories have to be tragic tales of unrequited love.

    Here are some of the LGBTQ+ titles we’ll be streaming this June:

    ​Moonlight (2016)

    The greatest movie of all time, arguably. To get in your cinematic feels, it’s always a good time for a rewatch. Haven’t seen it? Where have you been? Here’s a synopsis that doesn’t do it justice: “A young African-American man grapples with his identity and sexuality while experiencing the everyday struggles of childhood, adolescence, and burgeoning adulthood.” Buckle up, you’re in for a hearty cry.

    Rafiki (2018)

    This touching Kenyan drama follows two young women, Kena and Ziki, as they navigate their love for one another in a country where being LGBTQI+ is illegal. Rafiki was initially banned in Kenya, despite the international critical acclaim.

    Paris Is Burning (1990)

    This documentary focuses on drag queens living in New York City and their “house” culture, which provides a sense of community and support for the flamboyant and often socially shunned performers.

    The Other Two (2019 – Present)

    via HBO

    This HBO comedy has been hailed as one of the most real portraits of queer life right now. Cary (Drew Tarver) and his journey as a queer actor and gay man living in New York may not be the central plotline, but the show is full of biting commentaries on the media’s portrayal of queerness.

    ​Heartstopper (2022 – Present)

    This Netflix series is based on the graphic novel series that took the internet by storm. It’s probably the most wholesome thing you’ll ever see. That’s all there is to say.

    Young Royals (2021 – Present)

    This Swedish Netflix show has amassed a global audience for a reason. Set in a prestigious Swedish boarding school, it portrays the trials and tensions that ensue when the Prince falls in love with another boy. The show is a surprisingly poignant portrayal of teenagers battling with tradition and external pressures. Season 3, the final season, is in production so catch up now!

    ​Happy Together (1997)

    Lai (Tony Leung Chiu Wai) and his boyfriend, Ho (Leslie Cheung), arrive in Argentina from Hong Kong, seeking a better life. Their highly contentious relationship turns abusive and results in numerous break-ups and reconciliations. When Lai befriends another man, Chang (Chen Chang), he sees the futility of continuing with the promiscuous Ho.

    And The Band Played On (1993)

    In 1981, epidemiologist Don Francis (Matthew Modine) learns of an increased death rate among gay men in urban areas. The startling information leads him to begin investigating the outbreak, which is ultimately identified as AIDS. His journey mostly finds opposition from politicians and doctors, but several join him in his cause.

    ​Torch Song Trilogy (1987)

    Arnold Beckoff (Harvey Fierstein) is looking for love and acceptance, but as a gay man working as a female impersonator in 1970s Manhattan, neither come easily. After a series of heartaches, Arnold believes he’s found the love of his life in Alan (Matthew Broderick), and the couple makes plans to adopt. But when tragedy strikes, Arnold’s life is shaken to its very core, leading to a confrontation with his overbearing mother (Anne Bancroft), who has never approved of her son’s lifestyle.

    ​Go Fish (1994)​

    After leaving behind her girlfriend to attend college in Chicago, young lesbian Max West (Guinevere Turner) is introduced to Ely (V.S. Brodie), a slightly older woman with quirky habits. While Max and Ely quickly develop an attraction to each other, a poorly timed phone call from Max’s long-distance girlfriend, Kate, brings things to an abrupt halt.”

    ​Philadelphia (1993)

    Fearing it would compromise his career, lawyer Andrew Beckett (Tom Hanks) hides his homosexuality and HIV status at a powerful Philadelphia law firm. But his secret is exposed when a colleague spots the illness’s telltale lesions.

    ​Boys On The Side (1995)

    After breaking up with her girlfriend, a nightclub singer, Jane (Whoopi Goldberg), answers a personal ad from Robin (Mary-Louise Parker), a real estate agent with AIDS, seeking a cross-country travel partner. On their journey from NYC to Los Angeles, the two stop by Pittsburgh to pick up Robin’s friend Holly (Drew Barrymore), who is trying to escape an abusive relationship. With three distinct personalities, the women must overcome their differences to help one another.

    ​North Sea Texas (2011)

    This Belgian romantic drama was Bavo Defurne’s feature directorial debut. Defurne also co-wrote the script with Yves Verbraeken, based on André Sollie’s Nooit gaat dit over. It’s a beautifully shot coming-of-age story that will get right at your childhood nostalgia and your experiences of yearning.

    Pariah (2011)

    Alike (Adepero Oduye) lives in Brooklyn’s Fort Greene neighborhood with her parents (Charles Parnell, Kim Wayans) and younger sister (Sahra Mellesse). A lesbian, Alike quietly embraces her identity and is looking for her first lover. She wonders how much she can truly confide in her family, especially with her parents’ marriage already strained.

    Sex Education (2019 – Present)

    The show’s new non-binary character, Cal, goes through the struggle of having to wear a uniform for girls even though they don’t identify as female. Cal shows their binders and teaches others how to wear one safely.

    The Boys In the Band (1970) and (2020)

    Based on a play of the same name, the storyline follows a queer friend group over the course of a dinner, exploring their friendship, the social structures around them, and their personal anxieties. The 1970 version is a classic and the recent 2020 Ryan Murphy Netflix adaptation is some of the director’s best work, including incredible performances by Matt Bomer, Jim Parsons, and Zachary Quinto.

    ​The Half of It (2020)

    This Netflix adaptation of a YA novel is one of the best high school romance films out there right now. A modern-day Cyrano – a football player asks loner student Ellie Chu to write love letters to a girl he likes. Neither of them expects to end up caught in a love triangle.

    Crush (2022)

    This fast-paced high school comedy is a whimsical reminder of all the best parts of high school — the friends, the parties, the crushes. After a tortured artist (Rowan Blanchard) joins the track team to impress a girl she has a crush on, she ends up falling in love with someone else. It’s an optimistic and charming portrait of Gen Z’s more normalized queer dynamics.

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    LKC

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