Disney’s most recent red carpet release is Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made which premiered at Sundance Film Festival 2020. Timmy Failure is a movie that is based off of a children’s book by Stephan Pastis that released in 2013. The book, a chapter book targeting middle school students, became a New York Times bestseller. Director Tom McCarthy and author Stephan Pastis wanted to make a film that both parents and children could enjoy. McCarthy was quoted as saying, “Kids are so sophisticated right now, so we doubled down and trusted that they would elevate to the movie.”
Timmy Failure follows the hilarious exploits of titular character Timmy Failure, a quirky, deadpan 5th grader from Portland who, along with a 1,500-pound polar bear named Total, operates Total Failure Inc., a detective agency. An outsider at his elementary school, Timmy is a clueless, yet confident, boy who wants to see his detective agency be the best in the world. He has a very active imagination, which gives life to his partner Total. The biggest challenge to his goal is that he must navigate the world of adults around him in order to find out what exactly normal means when you know you are different.
Directed by Tom McCarthy (‘Spotlight’) and written by both McCarthy and the storybook’s author, Stephan Pastis, the film had a red carpet release at Sundance Film Festival this past week. The movie stars Winslow Fegley as Timmy, Ophelia Lovibond as mother Patty, Wallace Shawn as teacher/enemy Mr. Crocus, Craig Robinson as guidance counselor Mr. Jenkins, and Kyle Bornheimer as Patty’s boyfriend Crispin. Produced by Jim Whitaker and Tom McCarthy, and executively produced by Michael Bederman and Kate Churchill, Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made releases on February 7, 2020. Although it had a red carpet premiere, the movie will be debuted on Disney+.
Sundance Film Festival is a 10-day movie marathon that has all different kinds of movie showcases. Among the movie showcases is one that has both horror pics and bizarre comedies known as the Midnight showcase. We will now go over the premieres that are in that showcase.
Amulet– Following an accident that leaves him homeless in London, former soldier Tomaz is brought to the rotting home of Magda, a lonely woman in desperate need of help as she looks after her dying mother. Though at first resistant, Magda eventually welcomes him into their lives and allows him to help her care for them. But as he worms his way into their routine and begins to fall for Magda, Tomaz starts to notice strange, unexplainable, and ugly phenomena. Something seems very wrong with the mysterious old woman who never leaves the top floor, and Magda may in fact be enslaved to do her otherworldly bidding. Directed and written by Romola Garai.
Bad Hair– Los Angeles, 1989. Anna Bludso (Elle Lorraine) is a scarred survivor of a scalp burn from a mild relaxer perm. She also has the smarts and ambition to be the next on-air star at Culture, a music video TV show. After years of struggling to be seen for her ideas and hard work, Anna fears the worst when her dreadlocked boss is replaced by Zora (Vanessa Williams), an ex-supermodel with a silver tongue. Zora warns Anna that her nappy look has got to go, so Anna bites the bullet and gets a weave. Turns out, her flowing new hair is the key to success—but it arrived with a mind of its own, and it bites back! Directed and written by Justin Simien.
His House– Many refugee stories end in the same place: a safe (if slightly bewildering) new home. And that’s where His House begins, with a Sudanese couple arriving in a quiet English town for their “happily ever after.” But as their acclimation process falters, we realize that there’s more to blame than cross-cultural misunderstanding. Things begin to go disastrously wrong. “Screaming nightmares” wrong. “Blood magic” wrong. And then, it gets much, much worse. Directed and written by Remi Weekes.
Impetigore– How do you escape a family legacy when it’s ingrained inside you—literally? This is what Maya wants to find out after a close encounter with death leaves her with questions about the parents she never knew and what they potentially left behind. Accompanied by her best friend, Dini, she ventures to the remote village where she lived as a young child. Immediately, they observe strange phenomena; most noticeably, there aren’t any children around. As they peel back the layers of the village’s secretive facade, they find themselves at the center of a story that transcends life and death. Directed and written by Joko Anwar.
Relic– When octogenarian Edna inexplicably vanishes, her daughter Kay and granddaughter Sam rush to their family’s decaying country home and find clues of her increasing dementia scattered around the house in her absence. After Edna returns just as mysteriously as she disappeared, Kay’s concern that her mother seems unwilling or unable to say where she’s been clashes with Sam’s unabashed enthusiasm to have her grandma back. However, as Edna’s behavior turns increasingly volatile, both begin to sense that an insidious presence in the house might be taking control of her. Directed and written by Natalie Erika James, and written by Christian White.
Run Sweetheart Run– Timid and hardworking single mother Shari (Ella Balinska, Charlie’s Angels) brushes away hesitations and decides to dip her toe back into the dating scene after being spurred on by her coworkers. She’s thrilled when her boss sets her up on a blind date with Ethan (Pilou Asbæk, Game of Thrones), who initially proves every bit as charming and magnetic as his photo. Ethan can’t hide his true nature for very long though—and when things quickly turn sinister, Shari must find a way to escape. Forced to navigate the streets of LA after hours on foot, Shari learns Ethan is far more connected and violent than she ever imagined. Directed and written by Shana Feste.
Scare Me– Fred (Josh Ruben), a frustrated copywriter, checks in to a winter cabin to start his first novel. While jogging in the nearby woods, he meets Fanny (Aya Cash), a successful and smug young horror author who fuels his insecurities. During a power outage, Fanny challenges Fred to tell a scary story. As a storm sets in, they pass the time spinning spooky tales fueled by the tensions between them, and Fred is forced to confront his ultimate fear: Fanny is the better storyteller. The stakes are raised when they’re visited by a horror fan (Chris Redd) who delivers levity (and a pizza) to the proceedings. Directed and written by Josh Ruben.
The Night House– Reeling from the unexpected death of her husband, Beth (Rebecca Hall) is left alone in the lakeside home he built for her. She tries as best she can to keep together—but then the dreams come. Disturbing visions of a presence in the house call to her, beckoning with a ghostly allure. But the harsh light of day washes away any proof of a haunting. Against the advice of her friends, she begins digging into his belongings, yearning for answers. What she finds are secrets both strange and terrible and a mystery she’s determined to resolve. Directed by David Bruckner. Written by Ben Collins and Luke Piotrowski.
The Nowhere Inn– Annie Clark’s musical persona, St. Vincent, is a shapeshifting anomaly of sounds, styles, and acclaimed artistic ingenuity. But what about Clark offstage? “We snack on radishes,” says a bandmate. “Anything that tastes like dirt. We go to farmers’ markets.”
This comical disconnect between the fantastical Vincent and the quotidian Clark sparks the central tension of The Nowhere Inn, a playful, fictitious skewering of celebrity and the creative process that pits Clark’s best friend, filmmaker Carrie Brownstein (Portlandia), against an increasingly self-conscious Clark. She’s been told repeatedly that the music documentary Brownstein is making about her portrays nothing but boring ab workouts, Scrabble games, and sad scenes where she accommodates needy fans and critics. Directed by Bill Benz. Written by Carrie Brownstein and Annie Clark.
There are many ways to try and find out whether a relationship will last or not. That usually doesn’t entail having to clear your names of a murder. The Lovebirds sees a couple (Issa Rae & Kumail Nanjiani) experiencing a defining moment in their relationship when they have to do just that. Unintentionally embroiled in a murder mystery, their journey to clear their names takes them from one extreme – and hilarious – circumstance to the next. The question is whether or not they, and by extension, their relationship can survive the night.
The movie stars Kumail Nanjiani, Issa Rae, Paul Sparks, Anna Camp, and Kyle Bornheimer. The movie is directed by Michael Showalter and produced by Tom Lassally, p.g.a., Oly Obst, Martin Gero, Todd Schulman, p.g.a., Jordana Mollick, p.g.a. Executively produced by Issa Rae, Kumail Nanjiani, Aaron Abrams, Brendan Gall, Michael Showalter, and Ben Ormand, ‘The Lovebirds’ releases on April 3rd, 2020.
From the blockbuster producer of Girls Trip, the Ride Along franchise, and ten movies that have opened No. 1 at the U.S. box office, including Night School, No Good Deed and Think Like a Man, comes a sweeping love story about forgiveness, and about finding the courage to seek the truth. Producer Will Packer who produced Night School, No Good Deed and Think Like a Man worked with producer James Lopez and director Stella Meghie to make ‘The Photograph.’
Starring Issa Rae, Lakeith Stanfield, Chanté Adams, and Y’lan Noel, ‘The Photograph’ sees a woman’s estranged daughter becoming angry, hurt, and full of questions when her mother dies. She finds a photograph tucked away in a safe-deposit box that has her diving into her mother’s early life. Her following investigation eventually leads her to an unexpected romance with a rising journalist. Executively produced by Stella Meghie and Issa Rae, ‘The Photograph’ releases on Valentine’s Day 2020.
SpongeBob SquarePants has been an animation icon for years as well as the characters on the show. One of the strongest friendships on the show is the one between SpongeBob and his snail, Gary. We never really learned how those two best of friends even met for the first time. ‘Sponge on the Run’ gives us two stories to watch; one involving a search for a “snailnapped” Gary, and another that shows the meeting of the sponge and snail when they were kids. The main premise of the movie being SpongeBob and Patrick going on a rescue mission to save Gary, who has been “snailnapped” by Poseidon, and they travel to the Lost City of Atlantic City.
‘Sponge on the Run’ is directed by former series writer Tim Hill, who wrote the screenplay with Michael Kvamme, Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger. It is the first SpongeBob SquarePants movie to be fully animated in stylized CG instead of the regular traditional 2D animation. The regular series cast returns to reprise their roles. Tom Kenny voices SpongeBob Squarepants and Gary the Snail, Bill Fagerbakke voices Patrick Star, Rodger Bumpass voices Squidward Tentacles, Clancy Brown voices Eugene H. Krabs, Mr. Lawrence voices Sheldon J. Plankton, Jill Talley voices Karen Plankton, Carolyn Lawrence voices Sandy Cheeks, Mary Jo Catlett voices Mrs. Puff, and Lori Alan voices Pearl Krabs. Also cast in undisclosed roles, there is Keanu Reeves, Awkwafina, Reggie Watts, and Snoop Dogg. The movie releases to theaters on May 22, 2020.
One night is all it takes to change people’s lives and ‘The Vast of Night’ shows that. In “a realm between clandestine and forgotten” we see the story of one fateful night in 1950s New Mexico. ‘The Vast of Night’ follows switchboard operator Fay (Sierra McCormick) and radio DJ Everett (Jake Horowitz) as they discover a strange audio frequency that could change their small town and the future forever. Set at the dawn of the space-race and replete with uncanny and ironic period details, this movie falls down the rabbit hole of Rod Serling’s The Twilight Zone.
‘The Vast of Night’ stitches together a narrative scavenger hunt through dropped phone calls, AM radio signals, secret reels of tape forgotten in a library, switchboards, crossed patchlines and an anonymous phone call. The story is told with stealthy long camera movements and even an effective black screen. McCormick and Horowitz are joined by a cast of Texas and Oklahoma locals, including Gail Cronauer as an elderly woman with a dark secret, and Bruce Davis, whose voice we hear during a phone call scene. ‘The Vast of Night’ full of allusions to classic media, but is nonetheless original.
Director Andrew Patterson, an Oklahoma City native making his feature film debut, announces himself as a major new American voice in cinema and storytelling. He made sure that the film of shot entirely at night, even for internal scenes, and takes place almost entirely in real-time. The film stars newcomers Sierra McCormick and Jake Horowitz, as well as locals Gail Cronauer and Bruce Davis, as well as others. ‘The Vast of Night’s’ teleplay was written by James Montague And Craig W. Sanger. The movie was produced by Adam Dietrich, Melissa Kirkendall, and James Montague. It was executively produced by Eric Williams, and it will release through Amazon Studios on March 13, 2020.
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