The Marvels (2023), Brie Larson, Marvel Entertainment
A new unexpectedly refreshing trailer just landed. One that has a very promising cast that happens to be largely female.
Directed by Nia DaCosta, The Marvels stars Brie Larson, Iman Vellani, Teyonah Parris and Samuel L. Jackson in a follow-up to 2019’s Captain Marvel.
Outside of the rather recent Wakanda Forever (2022), it’s been a while since I committed to watching more than just the trailer of new superhero movies. Today however, I find myself curious about the dynamic between the younger and the more established female superheroes in this trailer. I mean, I’m certainly a fan of Iman Vellan and the energy she brings to her role as as Ms. Marvel.
If there’s a chance for a new superhero movie to pull me back in, perhaps it’s this one. Has this trailer had a similar effect on you?
Zawe Ashton, Park Seo-joon, Mohan Kapur, Caroline Simonnet Kamara Benjamin Barnett, Michael Oladele and Tony McCarthy also star.
I had a good time watching writer / director Dan Gilroy’s latest movie, Velvet Buzzsaw. The fact that it’s set in sunny Miami Beach, Florida only has a little something to do with it.
Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, John Malkovich, Zawe Ashton, Toni Collette and Billy Magnussen, Velvet Buzzsaw is a comedy / crime / fantasy movie about a group of art lovers who become revenge targets for a supernatural force. The catalyst for the vengeance being, the art lovers helped themselves to pieces of art they really shouldn’t have.
I immediately liked the early scenes where the different characters along with all their various motivations are established. Yet, I did definitely watch these scenes while somewhat impatiently waiting for the vengeance to begin. The true extent of my impatience didn’t really reveal itself until after the very first bit of rather thrilling revenge is enacted. Reason being, some of the scenes after that point weren’t always especially engaging.
Velvet Buzzsaw (2019), Zawe Ashton
For me personally, thanks to my favourite characters in the movie, the ones played by Gyllenhaal, Ashton and Natalia Dyer, I feel as though Velvet Buzzsaw had enough to make the nearly two hours I spent watching the movie worthwhile. I mean, I wouldn’t say it’s quite as good as Nightcrawler (2014) – my favourite Gyllenhaal and Gilroy collaboration, but it does have some standout moments that I won’t soon forget. Especially in regards to the creative ways revenge is enacted upon the greedy art lovers. There’s also the moments of gorgeous cinematography featuring rich, vibrant colours.
Another good movie that came to mind as I watched Velvet Buzzsaw is Final Destination (2000), a horror / thriller that did a very memorable job of thrilling and shocking its audience because of the very well executed death sequences – something Velvet Buzzsaw doesn’t do too badly at either.
Watch it if you’re so curious. Other reasons include the ‘funny’ replacement personal assistant, the chance to see Gyllenhaal really having fun in this role.
Last but not least, watch it and be surprised by how much you actually enjoy the very last ‘piece of art’ shown in this movie. I know I did. I really could have looked at it for a while, if I were less busy.
Starring Chloë Grace Moretz, Isabelle Huppert, Maika Monroe, and Zawe Ashton; Greta is a Neil Jordan directed thriller about a young woman who befriends a lonely widow, and lives to regret it.
For me, this trailer is two things. One, a healthy reminder to return lost and found items to the police station, not the stranger’s house. Two a movie that couldn’t help but have me get happy for Moretz because she got to work with a ‘Greta’ talent such as Huppert. Yes, I just did that.
Additional cast includes Stephen Rea, Parker Sawyers, Colm Feore, Angela Thompson and Graeme Thomas King also star.
The Movie My Life 