Weekend Watch - June 2024 Recap

                Welcome back to the Weekend Watch where each week we take a look at a new piece of film or television media and give it a rating, review, and recommendation. This week, we’re looking back at the films released in the U.S. throughout the month of June, highlighting those most acclaimed by critics and audiences, putting them in a position to possibly make this blog’s list of the Greatest Films of All Time. You could also take these recaps as a way to find new films that you should check out that you may or may not have known about. As always, the films will be categorized based on their likelihood of making the blog’s list – Long Shots, Possible Things, and Sure Things – and we actually do have the year’s second Sure Thing that came out this month. June gave us one of the more promising slates of summer blockbusters in a while, delivering solid box office performances, strong reviews from critics and fans, and even a few indie releases that are also worth checking out, instigating what could be a cinematic resurgence for the back half of the year. Let’s get into it.

Long Shots:

Bad Boys: Ride or Die: The Bad Boys fourquel opened the month with a bang of a blockbuster, giving audiences what they’ve always loved about the previous films, and performing solidly at the box office for an R-rated film. Critics’ hesitancy to celebrate pure action comedy will undoubtedly continue to hold it back from actually making the all-time great list, but that shouldn’t stop you from seeing it.

I Used to Be Funny: After a limited festival run last year, the Rachel Sennott-led dramedy about a comedian suffering from PTSD is now widely available in the US, and it’s struck a solid chord with critics and even a generally favorable take from audiences. It will probably not be everyone’s cup of tea, but fans of the actress should have their craving for a new project sated.

Queendom: This SXSW documentary about a queer artist doing performance art in Moscow in defiance of Russia’s anti-LGBTQ laws is a full-on critical success, but a slew of what I can only assume to be Russian bots and homophobes review bombing it have left this film with dismal audience reviews (an increasing flaw in this blog’s system that I’m not really sure how to counteract). Awards love would go a long way in countering that narrative for this film, though.

Kinds of Kindness: Yorgos Lanthimos’s follow-up to his major critical success in last year's Poor Things does not carry quite the same weight with audiences or critics, proving much weirder and more divisive (I didn’t realize that was possible for Yorgos) now that it has a wide release. Fans of Yorgos and fans of Jesse Plemons have been enjoying certain aspects of it, but it’s not the universal hit that the director had last year.

Janet Planet: Annie Baker’s coming-of-age drama about a girl and her single mother in rural Massachusetts was made widely available in the U.S. this month, and critics seem to love it. Audiences have been more mixed, as is often the case with woman-led films (again, a flaw in the system), but it’s still generally positive, and if these types of stories are your thing, this’ll probably be right up your alley.

Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person: This French-Canadian dark comedy about exactly what its title implies became more widely available in the US this month, and looks to be one worth checking out, as both audiences and critics have been generally high on it. Expect this to end up more in the cult classic space than the all-time great space, but if it sounds like your brand, definitely check it out.

A Quiet Place: Day One: While it continues the downward trend of critical and audience responses that happened from the first to second film in its series, the positives in this film have garnered it a decent following with slightly above average reviews that keep it noteworthy. It’s certainly solid but doesn’t necessarily do anything new with its world or genre, so take it how you will.

Daddio: This hidden gem from last year’s TIFF is out now in theaters in the U.S., following Dakota Johnson as a woman taking a cab from JFK and conversing with her driver (Sean Penn) about their lives. It’s a fairly simple premise that probably won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but it sounds like a film that’s been solidly executed if it is something that you’re looking for.

Possible Things:

Hit Man: Richard Linklater’s crime/romantic comedy starring Glen Powell and Adria Arjona landed on Netflix and continues its run of solid critical reception even as the audience reviews have become more mixed (apparently, some people still think that killing cops is a bad thing and can’t suspend disbelief for a film). Powell’s star-power and Linklater’s prestige give this film an outside chance to get the awards love it deserves that’ll elevate it to an all-time status.

Robot Dreams: Last year’s surprise Best Animated Feature nominee actually can finally be watched by everyone not in the Academy in the U.S. now. Now that its watch numbers are increasing, it does look like it’ll maintain its stellar reviews, but I want to hold off on giving it the full Sure Thing treatment in case the wider audience doesn’t love it as much.

The Bikeriders: One of the more highly anticipated films of last year and now this year finally made its way to theaters (and soon now to streaming apparently) with Austin Butler, Tom Hardy, and Jodie Comer portraying a semi-true story of a Midwest motorcycle gang. It sounds like the hype oversold the film with most reviews being just slightly above average for the most part, but it’s still better than a lot of films from this year.

Fancy Dance: Apple TV+’s latest partnership with Lily Gladstone again follows a Native American woman fighting to keep her family together when things start unraveling, and again, critics seem to really like this one. The audience scores haven’t been as high with no Scorsese attached to the director’s chair, but her name recognition might give this film the lift it needs come awards season.

Copa 71: The documentary about one of the first women’s world cups that seeks to legitimize the tournament and establish its place in history is now widely available in the U.S. Its subject matter and nature as a sports documentary have made it popular and give it a shot at making the all-time greats list.

I Am: Celine Dion: The Amazon documentary about Celine Dion and her struggles with Stiff Person Syndrome has landed successfully with both audiences and critics. Dion’s worldwide fame and acclaim certainly also help this film, and a small push from the Oscars could land this film among the all-time greats.

Thelma: One of the biggest surprises of the month is the action comedy starring June Squibb about a nonagenarian seeking revenge on a phone scammer. Overwhelmingly positive reviews from both audiences and critics make this one a film that everyone should see, especially with Squibb’s long-overdue leading performance getting the celebration it deserves.

Sure Thing:

Inside Out 2: The year’s first billion-dollar film has also struck the right chords with critics and audiences like its predecessor, earning stellar reviews for its animation, voice cast, and relatable themes. It’s not quite the tear-jerker that the first Inside Out was, but plenty of audiences have celebrated the film’s emotional connection, making it worth seeing.

Weekend Watch - June 2023 Recap

                Welcome back to the Weekend Watch where each week we take a look at a new piece of film or television media and give it a rating, review, and recommendation. This week, we are taking a look back at the month of June, making note of the films worth keeping an eye on that got a wide release in the U.S. in its thirty days. June has been a fairly disappointing month as of late, giving us such heaters as Hustle, Eurovision Song Contest: The Legend of Fire Saga, Luca, and Toy Story 4 – none of them bad films, but none truly in contention for the best films of their respective years. This June was different, giving audiences three really solid films (two all-time greats) in the midst of all the mediocrity. You have to go back to June of 2014 with the release of Edge of Tomorrow, How to Train Your Dragon 2, 22 Jump Street, and The Fault in Our Stars to get a June with this much heat all in one month. As always with recaps, we’ll be breaking the films into three categories – Sure Things, Possible Things, and Long Shots. Let’s get into it.

Long Shots:

Elemental: While it certainly wasn’t the worst animated release of the month, it wasn’t in the top two as it marked another drop in consistency for Pixar. It’s difficult to see such a well-intentioned film do so poorly, but it seems that audiences and critics agree that it just doesn't have that classic Pixar magic that endears the story to its viewers. It could still luck out with some success after its streaming release, so keep an eye on it.

The Flash: Another of June’s disappointing blockbusters was DC’s Flash movie. It leans so heavily on nostalgia that it makes audiences fairly happy but keeps critics low on the product due to its middling story. Some surprise visual effects nominations or a potential sudden surge in box office support could spell a bit more success, but I’d be surprised.

The Blackening: The horror comedy opened to higher reviews than most people anticipated, marking it as a sure thing for cult classic lists but still a long shot for much else. Its blend of genres don’t necessarily spell the success that it’ll need to see once awards start dropping to make it a true all-time great.

Extraction II: Chris Hemsworth’s action thriller sequel has proven to be an even bigger crowd-pleaser than his first. Netflix has found its niches in animation, romantic comedies, and movie star action thrillers (we’ll see if they can break into another when Rebel Moon drops later this year). Hemsworth’s sequel falls solidly into that third category, marking one of the streamer’s best offerings in the genre so far but probably still not an all-time great.

Asteroid City: Wes Anderson’s latest film has his fans buzzing, and that’s about it. It looks great and has his typical writing quirks that make him so popular in his lane. Unfortunately, wider audiences and critics haven’t been super high on this film, and with so many other well-produced films still to come this year, it’s believable that this’ll be left off most award nominations just like his last film (The French Dispatch).

No Hard Feelings: This film has done better than anyone gave it credit for, and that’s due purely to the two actors heading the thing up. Jennifer Lawrence and Andrew Barth Feldman have brought back the raunchy romantic comedy with a vengeance, keeping audiences laughing and critics happier than usual in such films. It’s still hard to see it making much more of a splash than this though.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny: The last of June’s disappointments came on its final weekend. It’s a fine action film but a half-hearted Indiana Jones film, and we’re left with a box office flop that sends the saga out with more of a whimper than a trumpet blast.

Possible Things:

Rock Hudson: All That Heaven Allowed: Max’s documentary about Rock Hudson and the contrast between his public ladies’ man persona and private LGBT+ lifestyle checks a lot of the boxes that the great documentaries do, but it happens to have released the same year as many other actor-centric documentaries also about relevant issues, so it’ll probably fall by the wayside even though it is pretty solid.

Nimona: I mentioned Netflix’s success in the animation department earlier, and this graphic novel adaptation is the perfect example. With a unique animation style, fun voice actors, and a quality story, this film marks itself as the current underdog to watch in the best animated movie of 2023 race (behind another June release that we’ll get to in a few minutes). Don’t let the other great animated film of this month be your only one of the year – give Nimona a shot as well.

Blue Jean: The British film about a closeted teacher under threat of being outed in the 1980s got its American release this month to a continuation of its success from across the pond. Critics and audiences have been solidly high on it. Unfortunately, this looks like a year with little room for much prolonged indie success, and that will probably be limited to just a couple of films that most likely won’t be this one. But it’s still better than most of the other June films, so keep an eye on it.

Sure Things:

Past Lives: Since its festival release earlier this year, Celine Song’s film about longing, immigrants, and memory has had people buzzing. With its theatrical release, that buzz has only grown, pleasing audiences and critics with its moving and realistic portrayal of its story. Song’s direction and writing and the performances have all garnered praise and will probably make some noise down the line as well (I’m rooting for a spouse showdown in the Original Screenplay category between Song and her husband Justin Kuritzkes who wrote the upcoming film Challengers, but we’ll see).

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse: This film already looks to be the best animated film of the year, with some going so far as to call it the best animated film of all time and even calling for it to win this year’s Best Picture awards. The follow-up to Sony’s first Spider-Verse film has succeeded in living up to the hype, and I’m excited to see where it ends up.