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BBC News
a day ago
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Materialists to 28 Years Later: 10 of the best films to watch this June
From Materialists to 28 Years Later – these are the films to watch at the cinema and stream at home this month. Materialists Celine Song's bittersweet debut, Past Lives, was nominated for two Oscars in 2024. For her follow-up, Song has moved from a delicate semi-autobiographical drama to a glamorous romantic comedy with an A-list cast. Dakota Johnson plays a New York matchmaker who is blunt about her clients' value as potential partners: what matters, she says, is exactly how rich, tall and good-looking people are. But in her own love life, should she choose her poor ex (Chris Evans) over a wealthy new suitor (Pedro Pascal)? Materialists may be more conventional than Past Lives, but Song told Time that she wanted to make a film about the pursuit of love. "When people say it's not important, I ask, 'Not as important as what?' When you watch a movie, we don't all know what it's like to save the world. But we know what it's like to fall in love. It's the biggest drama in our lives. It's vital, and we need to talk about it more." Released on 13 June in the US, Canada, India, Poland and Turkey The Life of Chuck The Life of Chuck begins at the end – specifically, at the end of the world. Two ex-spouses, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Karen Gillan, reunite to watch the Earth crumble and the stars blink out of existence – but why are there suddenly posters everywhere celebrating the mild-mannered Charles "Chuck" Krantz (Tom Hiddleston)? Flashbacks to Chuck's younger days unravel the cosmic mystery, but the best way to watch this inspirational Stephen King adaptation is not to know anything else about it in advance. "It's surprising and upsetting, funny and profound," says Kristy Puchko in Mashable. "I laughed hard, cried 'til my eyes ached, and once gasped so loud that I heard it echo across a theatre struck silent by a moment both shocking and tender. The Life of Chuck is glorious." Released on 6 June in the US and 11 June in France M3GAN 2.0 M3GAN was a hit in 2022 – although that may have had less to do with the film itself than with the way clips of its robotic anti-heroine took off on TikTok. Either way, a sequel seemed inevitable – and here it is, the return of the artificially-intelligent doll (Amie Donald, with the voice of Jenna Davis) which was designed by Gemma (Allison Williams). The director of both films, Gerard Johnstone, has followed the Terminator 2: Judgment Day path of pitting a former villain against another, even nastier robot. A murderous "autonomous android" has been built using Gemma's technology, and the only way to stop it is to upgrade M3GAN and let the two machines fight it out. "A sequel's got to be different enough from the first movie that people don't feel cheated," producer Jason Blum explained to Den of Geek, "but not too different from the first movie that people feel cheated, and that's the line we're trying to straddle with M3GAN 2, and I think we do that." Released on 27 June internationally Elio Cinema's most famous meeting between a boy and an alien was in Steven Spielberg's ET The Extra Terrestrial – and the boy was named Elliott. Could that be why Pixar's cartoon about a boy meeting aliens is called Elio? Given how meticulously everything is planned in Pixar films, you'd have to assume that the similar names are no coincidence, and that the studio is hoping to bring some Spielberg-style sincerity to their tale of a shy 11-year-old being mistaken for Earth's supreme leader by an interstellar council. If Elio does have the emotion of ET The Extra Terrestrial, it could move audience as much as Inside Out 2, which was the highest grossing film of 2024. "I do feel like Inside Out 2 really hit because we were able to talk about anxiety in a way that really resonated with audiences," Pixar's chief creative officer, Pete Docter, said in The Wrap. "And I think the core of this film… has to do with the feelings we all sensed a lot of times, that we're in this big world full of people, but we're alone. But we don't have to be." Released on 18, 19 and 20 June internationally 28 Years Later It's actually only 23 years since 28 Days Later came out, but who's counting? What matters is that the UK's favourite horror franchise is back at last. And, unlike the first sequel, 28 Weeks Later, this one has been masterminded by the creators of the original film, director Danny Boyle and screenwriter Alex Garland. Their big idea is that the virus which turns people into uncontrollable homicidal maniacs (they're not officially undead, so don't call them zombies) is now confined to Great Britain, and while most of the country is overrun by "the Infected", there is a small island where survivors played by Ralph Fiennes, Jodie Comer, Jack O'Connell and Aaron Taylor-Johnson are safe – for now, anyway. If 28 Years Later is half as nerve-jangling as its Kipling-soundtracked, folk-horror trailer, it should be the best instalment in the franchise so far. And it won't be the last. Rather than concluding the "Later" trilogy, this film is the first part of another trilogy – and part two has already been shot. "This is very narratively ambitious," Garland said in Empire magazine. "Danny and I understood that. We tried to condense it, but its natural form felt like a trilogy." Released on 18, 19 and 20 June internationally From the World of John Wick: Ballerina The John Wick series seemed to come to a definitive conclusion at the end of 2023's John Wick: Chapter 4, but fear not, Keanu Reeves' moody assassin is back – in a couple of scenes, anyway. The main character in this spin-off, though, is Eve Macarro, played by Ana de Armas, who showed off her action credentials in the last James Bond film, No Time to Die. Eve is a vengeful ballet dancer who is immersed in the franchise's byzantine mythology, and who meets some of the regulars, including Ian McShane and Reeves himself. But the director, Len Wiseman, believes that Ballerina has its own identity. "One of the things that was very important early on was that I was not setting out to do a female John Wick," he said in IGN. "This is an entirely different character – not somebody that's replicating what John Wick does. Eve is looking to become an assassin. John Wick is essentially trying to get out of the world." Released between 4 and 7 June internationally Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore Marlee Matlin was the first deaf actor to win an Oscar when she took home the best actress trophy for Children of a Lesser God in 1987. And, in fact, no other deaf actors won Oscars until 2022, when Troy Kotsur was named best supporting actor for playing the husband of Matlin's character in Coda. Now an acclaimed, empathetic documentary tells Matlin's story, which includes addiction, sexual abuse, political activism, and life as the only deaf person in her family. The film's director, Shoshannah Stern, is also deaf, and so their intimate interviews are conducted in American Sign Language. Leslie Felperin says in The Hollywood Reporter that this "engaging, exuberant portrait of the relentlessly likeable Matlin [is] immensely watchable, not least thanks to Matlin's still incandescent natural charisma". Released on 20 June in the US Happy Gilmore 2 One of Adam Sandler's earliest films, Happy Gilmore is a knockabout sports comedy about a short-tempered hockey player who realises that he can hit golf balls farther than anyone else around. It helped to establish Sandler as a big-screen star, but it's still amazing that now, almost 30 years later, the film has a devoted following, and Sandler's "Happy Gilmore swing" is imitated by amateur and professional golfers alike. Sandler's co-writer, Tim Herlihy, told the New York Times in 2021 that he could hardly believe the film's longevity. "To have that sort of staying power that people are even talking about it 25 years later? At the time, we were just trying to stay alive and have a movie career… we never thought these movies would end up in the Library of Congress." Not only that, but Happy Gilmore now has a sequel, which features Ben Stiller and Travis Kelce alongside Happy's old enemy (Christopher McDonald) and love interest (Julie Bowen). If they make two more sequels after this one, they can call the last one Happy Gilmore Fore. Released on 25 June on Netflix internationally F1: The Movie The team behind Top Gun: Maverick – including director Joseph Kosinski, screenwriter Ehren Kruger, producer Jerry Bruckheimer, cinematographer Claudio Miranda and composer Hans Zimmer – reunite for another big-budget drama about a veteran speed demon teaching the younger generation how it's done. There's no sign of Tom Cruise, though. Instead, F1 stars Brad Pitt as a Formula One driver who retired after a disastrous crash, but is persuaded by a former team-mate (Javier Bardem) to mentor a promising rookie (Damson Idris). The film was shot at actual Grand Prix events, and features actual Formula One racers, but it's Pitt's driving that's the impressive part. "When you see Brad driving, that's not acting," said Kosinski in Collider. "He's really concentrating on keeping that car on the track out of the wall during all those scenes… It required months – literally months – of training." Released on 25, 26 and 27 June internationally Sorry, Baby Eva Victor's debut film earnt rave reviews when it premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January. As well as writing and directing, Victor stars in Sorry, Baby as Agnes, a lecturer who teaches at the same New England college where she once studied. When her best friend Lydie (Naomi Ackie) comes to stay, it's clear that Lydie's life has moved on since they were students, whereas Agnes is stuck – perhaps because of a sexual assault that is explored in flashback. Kate Erbland in IndieWire calls Sorry: "a darkly funny and enormously tender film that is about what happens after the worst occurs, but with plenty of room to weave the light next to the dark… Something bad happened to Agnes. But life goes on. Big, wonderful, funny, horrible, strange, sad, great life. How lucky we are that Victor is here to chronicle just that." Released on 27 June in the US -- For more Culture stories from the BBC, follow us on Facebook, X and Instagram.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Top 10 summer movies: ‘Fantastic Four,' meet ‘Jurassic Park 7' and the new man from Krypton
Hey, how's the water? Pleasant? Sharks? Any shark trouble? Fifty years ago, a certain film franchise hadn't yet asked audiences those questions, in so many words. 'Jaws' the first, and by several hundred thousand miles the best, opened in 1975; three years later 'Jaws 2' arrived, dangling the marketing tagline 'Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water.' That first sequel wasn't much, but people went. That's what moviegoers did then, reliably. They went to the movies, in a time just before sequels clogged an entire popular culture's plumbing system. It's different now. 'Star Wars' and then Marvel Studios, among others, have ensured our risk of franchise fatigue, and a rickety industry's default reliance on a few big familiar name brands. So why am I cautiously optimistic — hope springs occasional, as they say — about the summer season, a time when all the franchisees come out to play and take you away from the sun? My reasoning is simple. A few weeks ago, 'Thunderbolts' — the 36th title in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and yes, that's too many — turned out pretty well. More recently, 'Final Destination Bloodlines,' the sixth in the 'Final Destination' killing spree, was fresh enough, in its blithe smackdowns between humans and Death, to remind us: You never know when one of these franchise entries will pay off, even modestly. 'Mission: Impossible - the Final Reckoning,' already in theaters, will soon be joined by dinosaurs, superheroes, naked guns and men in capes, all familiar, most having endured earlier big-screen adventures somewhere between bleh and much, much better than bleh. If many can't help but favor the forthcoming releases promising something new, or -ish, well, the ones that succeed have a way of ensuring the industry's future. And every time a stand-alone of populist distinction like this year's 'Sinners' finds an audience, an angel gets its wings. Here's a list of 10 summer offerings, five franchisees, five originals. Release dates subject to change. 'Materialists' (June 13): Writer-director Celine Song's second feature, after the quiet triumph of 'Past Lives,' stars Dakota Johnson, Chris Evans and Pedro Pascal, aka the Man Who Is Everywhere, in a romantic comedy about a high-end matchmaker's triangular conundrum. Song knows the value of a triangle; in an apparently glossier vein, her 'Past Lives' follow-up should make it crystal clear and, with luck, a winner. '28 Years Later' (June 20): Ralph Fiennes brings nice, crisp final consonants to a ravaged near-future in director Danny Boyle's return to speedy, menacing rage-virus junkies, with a script from franchise-starter Alex Garland. This is my kind of continuation; the first two films, '28 Days Later' and '28 Weeks Later,' both worked, in interestingly different ways. Jodie Comer and Aaron Taylor-Johnson co-star. 'Elio' (June 20): Pixar's back, which historically and statistically means good news more often than not. This one's about an 11-year-old accidentally but not unpleasantly beamed into outer space's 'Communiverse' after making contact on Earth with aliens. Can Elio save the galaxy while representing his home planet well and truly? The directors of 'Elio' are Madeline Sharafian (who made the Pixar short 'Burro'), Domee Shi ('Bao,' 'Turning Red') and Adrian Molina ('Coco'). 'Sorry, Baby' (June 27): I've seen this one, and it's really good. The story hinges on a maddeningly common incident of sexual assault, this one rewiring the life of a future college English department professor. But 'Sorry, Baby' is not a movie about rape; it's about the days, weeks and years afterward. Writer-director-star Eva Victor (who played Rian on 'Billions'), here making a sharp-witted feature directorial debut, proves herself a triple threat with a wide-open future. 'F1' (June 27): 'Top Gun: Maverick' director Joseph Kosinski returns for what sounds a little like 'Top Gun: Maverick: This Time on Wheels, and the Ground.' Brad Pitt plays a former Formula One superstar, now mentoring a reckless hotshot either to victory and wisdom, or defeat and a tragic embrace of his character flaws. Damson Idris, Javier Bardem and Kerry Condon co-star. 'Jurassic World Rebirth' (July 2): The latest in a hardy multi-decade franchise that has known triumph as well as 'Jurassic World Dominion.' Heartening news on the director front: Gareth Edwards, who did so well by Godzilla in the 2014 'Godzilla,' wrangles the new storyline, with Scarlett Johansson leading an ensemble of potential snacks (humans, that is) in and out of digital harm's way on a secret research facility island fulla' trouble. 'Superman' (July 11): The whole double-life thing has gotten to the Kryptonian strongman by now, and in director James Gunn's take on the 'Superman' myth, he's determined to resolve his Smallville upbringing and Clark Kent newspapering with the wider galaxy's perilous demands. David Corenswet leaps into the title role; his co-stars include Rachel Brosnahan (Lois Lane) and Nicholas Hoult (Lex Luthor). 'The Fantastic Four: First Steps' (July 25): Despite two of the least grabby words ever to fill the right-hand side of a movie title's colon, 'First Steps' already has stoked the enthusiasm of millions with a pretty zingy trailer, which of course automatically means the film is a classic. (Kidding.) We'll see! The motley yet stylish quartet, led by Pedro 'Everywhere, All the Time' Pascal, squares off with the ravenously evil Galactus and Galactus' flying factotum, the Silver Surfer. 'The Naked Gun' (Aug. 1): First there was 'Police Squad!', the one-season 1982 wonder that introduced America's most serenely confident law enforcement know-nothing, Frank Drebin, originated by the magically right Leslie Nielsen. Then came the 'Naked Gun' movies. Now Liam Neeson takes over in this reboot, with a cast including Pamela Anderson and Paul Walter Hauser. 'Caught Stealing' (Aug. 29): In director Darren Aronofsky's 1990s-set NYC thriller, a former pro baseball player (Austin Butler) attempts the larceny equivalent of stealing home once he's entangled in the criminal underworld. This one boasts an A-grade cast, with Zoë Kravitz, Liev Schreiber, Regina King and Vincent D'Onofrio taking care of goods and bads alike.
Chicago Tribune
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Top 10 summer movies: ‘Fantastic Four,' meet ‘Jurassic Park 7' and the new man from Krypton
Hey, how's the water? Pleasant? Sharks? Any shark trouble? Fifty years ago, a certain film franchise hadn't yet asked audiences those questions, in so many words. 'Jaws' the first, and by several hundred thousand miles the best, opened in 1975; three years later 'Jaws 2' arrived, dangling the marketing tagline 'Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water.' That first sequel wasn't much, but people went. That's what moviegoers did then, reliably. They went to the movies, in a time just before sequels clogged an entire popular culture's plumbing system. It's different now. 'Star Wars' and then Marvel Studios, among others, have ensured our risk of franchise fatigue, and a rickety industry's default reliance on a few big familiar name brands. So why am I cautiously optimistic — hope springs occasional, as they say — about the summer season, a time when all the franchisees come out to play and take you away from the sun? My reasoning is simple. A few weeks ago, 'Thunderbolts' — the 36th title in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and yes, that's too many — turned out pretty well. More recently, 'Final Destination Bloodlines,' the sixth in the 'Final Destination' killing spree, was fresh enough, in its blithe smackdowns between humans and Death, to remind us: You never know when one of these franchise entries will pay off, even modestly. 'Mission: Impossible — the Final Reckoning,' already in theaters, will soon be joined by dinosaurs, superheroes, naked guns and men in capes, all familiar, most having endured earlier big-screen adventures somewhere between bleh and much, much better than bleh. If many can't help but favor the forthcoming releases promising something new, or -ish, well, the ones that succeed have a way of ensuring the industry's future. And every time a standalone of populist distinction like this year's 'Sinners' finds an audience, an angel gets its wings. Here's a list of 10 summer offerings, five franchisees, five originals. Release dates subject to change. 'Materialists' (June 13): Writer-director Celine Song's second feature, after the quiet triumph of 'Past Lives,' stars Dakota Johnson, Chris Evans and Pedro Pascal, aka the Man Who Is Everywhere, in a romantic comedy about a high-end matchmaker's triangular conundrum. Song knows the value of a triangle; in an apparently glossier vein, her 'Past Lives' follow-up should make it crystal clear and, with luck, a winner. '28 Years Later' (June 20): Ralph Fiennes brings nice, crisp final consonants to a ravaged near-future in director Danny Boyle's return to speedy, menacing rage-virus junkies, with a script from franchise-starter Alex Garland. This is my kind of continuation; the first two films, '28 Days Later' and '28 Weeks Later,' both worked, in interestingly different ways. Jodie Comer and Aaron Taylor-Johnson co-star. 'Elio' (June 20): Pixar's back, which historically and statistically means good news more often than not. This one's about an 11-year-old accidentally but not unpleasantly beamed into outer space's 'Communiverse' after making contact on Earth with aliens. Can Elio save the galaxy while representing his home planet well and truly? The directors of 'Elio' are Madeline Sharafian (who made the Pixar short 'Burro'), Domee Shi ('Bao,' 'Turning Red') and Adrian Molina ('Coco'). 'Sorry, Baby' (June 27): I've seen this one, and it's really good. The story hinges on a maddeningly common incident of sexual assault, this one rewiring the life of a future college English department professor. But 'Sorry, Baby' is not a movie about rape; it's about the days, weeks and years afterward. Writer-director-star Eva Victor (who played Rian on 'Billions'), here making a sharp-witted feature directorial debut, proves herself a triple threat with a wide-open future. 'F1' (June 27): 'Top Gun: Maverick' director Joseph Kosinski returns for what sounds a little like 'Top Gun: Maverick: This Time on Wheels, and the Ground.' Brad Pitt plays a former Formula 1 superstar, now mentoring a reckless hotshot either to victory and wisdom, or defeat and a tragic embrace of his character flaws. Damson Idris, Javier Bardem and Kerry Condon co-star. 'Jurassic World Rebirth' (July 2): The latest in a hardy multi-decade franchise that has known triumph as well as 'Jurassic World Dominion.' Heartening news on the director front: Gareth Edwards, who did so well by Godzilla in the 2014 'Godzilla,' wrangles the new storyline, with Scarlett Johansson leading an ensemble of potential snacks (humans, that is) in and out of digital harm's way on a secret research facility island fulla' trouble. 'Superman' (July 11): The whole double-life thing has gotten to the Kryptonian strongman by now, and in director James Gunn's take on the 'Superman' myth, he's determined to resolve his Smallville upbringing and Clark Kent newspapering with the wider galaxy's perilous demands. David Corenswet leaps into the title role; his co-stars include Rachel Brosnahan (Lois Lane) and Nicholas Hoult (Lex Luthor). 'The Fantastic Four: First Steps' (July 25): Despite two of the least grabby words ever to fill the right-hand side of a movie title's colon, 'First Steps' already has stoked the enthusiasm of millions with a pretty zingy trailer, which of course automatically means the film is a classic. (Kidding.) We'll see! The motley yet stylish quartet, led by Pedro 'Everywhere, All the Time' Pascal, squares off with the ravenously evil Galactus and Galactus' flying factotum, the Silver Surfer. 'The Naked Gun' (Aug. 1): First there was 'Police Squad!', the one-season 1982 wonder that introduced America's most serenely confident law enforcement know-nothing, Frank Drebin, originated by the magically right Leslie Nielsen. Then came the 'Naked Gun' movies. Now Liam Neeson takes over in this reboot, with a cast including Pamela Anderson and Paul Walter Hauser. 'Caught Stealing' (Aug. 29): In director Darren Aronofsky's 1990s-set NYC thriller, a former pro baseball player (Austin Butler) attempts the larceny equivalent of stealing home once he's entangled in the criminal underworld. This one boasts an A-grade cast, with Zoë Kravitz, Liev Schreiber, Regina King and Vincent D'Onofrio taking care of goods and bads alike.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Fans Have a Lot to Say About Pedro Pascal's Flirty Photoshoot With Dakota Johnson & Chris Evans
Fans have quite a bit to say about Pedro Pascal's recent cozy photoshoot with his Materialists co-stars, Dakota Johnson and Chris Evans. The official Instagram account for the production company A24 shared some behind-the-scenes videos from the photoshoot on May 20. Johnson wore a satin cream dress, while both Evans and Pascal sported button-down shirts tucked into jeans. For the first round of photos, a giggling Johnson stood between Evans and Pascal. Another clip showed Pascal holding onto Evans' waist while the Captain America actor held onto Johnson's midsection. Evans and Pascal also gave Johnson a cuddly hug while photographers snapped their cameras. In addition, the Instagram post showed Pascal and Johnson embracing while Evans threw rose petals, which seemed to delight the Last of Us star. The caption of the post referenced that Johnson's character, Lucy, is in a love triangle with John, played by Evans, and Harry Castillo, played by Pascal, in Materialist, directed and written by Celine Song. "Never breaking up this love triangle. Behind the scenes with @Materialists stars Dakota Johnson, Pedro Pascal and Chris Evans. Opens in theaters June 13," read the post's caption. Several fans took to the comments section to share their thoughts about Pascal, Evans, and Johnson's flirty photoshoot. "What did Dakota do in her past life to be this lucky," wrote a commenter. "Idk who's the luckiest😭," added another. "This is why i have longed for Rom Com Pedro Pascal 😍😍 WE WON ❤️❤️," shared a third person. "Pedro on fire 🔥❤️ 🕺🏻," wrote a commenter. "THEY'RE SO FREAKING CUTE I LOVE THEM 😍," commented an Instagram user. "WOW just WOW 🔥," chimed in a different fan. Johnson opened up about working with Evans and Pascal while filming Materialists during a September 2024 interview on the Happy Sad Confused podcast. "I really loved it so much," said Johnson. "It's one of those special moments I think in my work, that every moment I felt so inspired. And connected to both of those dudes and [my character] and everyone on that set. It was just a wonderful experience." Johnson also shared that she has a close friendship with Pascal. "He's truly one of my favorite people in the whole world," said Johnson during the podcast interview. She also described Evans as "the best" and a "cutie pie."
Buzz Feed
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Buzz Feed
Dakota Johnson's Adorable Photos With Evans & Pascal Has Got Me Envious
The world woke up to this photoshoot, and it's fair to say... the internet lost their minds. Excuse me? That is supposed to be me in the middle of these two hunks. These three form the cast of the upcoming film Materialists— directed by Celine Song, who won accolades for her 2023 film, Past Lives. The production house A24 released pictures from the press photoshoot—sending everyone (me included) into a jealous frenzy. The more I look at it, the more I can feel my heart breaking into tiny tiny pieces. Captain America AND The Mandalorian at the same time! The world really is unfair. The film follows an ambitious young matchmaker in NYC, torn between her perfect soulmate and her imperfect ex. Instagram: @a24 / Via Instagram: @a24 The chemistry between the trio is bursting through the screen. Clearly, the internet cannot wait to see the magic of Celine Song with this amazing cast. With 3 weeks remaining, the internet is expecting to see more press interviews and photoshoots—and I do not know if we will be able to handle all of this hotness and tension. To rouse a little more jealousy in you, here's a behind-the-scenes video of the photoshoot:
