by Emily Nagle
The last weekend of September was the highest-grossing one all month. Two major releases broke into the top 5 this week, and were both met with rave reviews.
Top 5 Highest Grossing Films for September 23-25, 2022
5. Pearl ($1.9 million)
4. Barbarian ($4.8 million)
3. Avatar [2022 re-release] ($10 million)
2. The Woman King ($11.1 million)
1. Don’t Worry Darling ($19.2 million)
This weekend’s biggest release was thriller film “Don’t Worry Darling”, which boasts an all-star cast that includes Harry Styles, Florence Pugh, and Olivia Wilde. With the immense success of Styles’ “Love on Tour”, it’s no surprise the film shot to number one for its premiere weekend. Despite its praise for its cinematography and production design, it’s been met with criticism for its writing and direction. Additionally, viewers have found Styles’ performance in the film to be inadequate, with one critic calling it “surprisingly dull and low-wattage”.
In preparation for James Cameron’s upcoming film “Avatar: The Way of Water”, its predecessor, the 2009 science fiction epic film “Avatar“, was rereleased in theaters this weekend. More than a decade after its initial premiere, it remains the highest-grossing film in box office history (right ahead of “Avengers: Endgame“), making more than $2.8 billion worldwide. Its elaborate motion-capture visual effects paved the way for an increase in 3D animated films. While critics have praised “Avatar” for its stunning visuals, they criticize its predictable story and underlying social and political messages.
by Emily Nagle
Let’s-a go! The first trailer for Illumination’s long-anticipated Super Mario movie is finally ready to premiere. It will make its debut to the attendees of New York Comic Con on October 6, 2022.
Illumination’s untitled Mario film was announced back in 2018, and confirmed to be co-produced by Nintendo’s representative director Shigeru Miyamoto and Illumination’s CEO Chris Meledandri. Ever since, it’s been subject to many rumors from fans, especially after the cast list was released last fall. It’s set to feature an all-star voice cast, including Chris Pratt as Mario, Charlie Day as Luigi, Anya Taylor-Joy as Princess Peach, and Jack Black as Bowser.
After being delayed from a release date of December 2022, the “Super Mario Bros.” movie is set to release in theaters next year, on April 7, 2023. After it leaves cinemas, it’ll be available to stream on Peacock for 45 days.
by Emily Nagle
After a long summer, “Abbott Elementary” is back in session. The sophomore season of ABC’s mockumentary-style workplace comedy following an underfunded public school in Philadelphia premiered tonight at 9PM EST, and was watched by thousands of excited Twitter users who live-tweeted the episode under the hashtag #AbbottElementary. The show’s official Twitter account interacted with many of viewers’ tweets, is continuing to do so as the episode makes its premiere on the west coast a few hours later.
On the heels of a breakup with longtime boyfriend Tariq (Zack Fox), optimistic second-grade teacher Janine Teagues (Quinta Brunson) is returning to Abbott for development week, where she and her fellow teachers will prepare for the students’ return.
Stakes are high less than halfway through the episode as we watch Janine struggle to heal her broken heart; with her infectious positive attitude, Janine is always looking out for others (especially her students), but because of this she tends to forget to take care of herself as well. Instead of focusing on picking herself back up after the split, she’s irritated over incompetent principal Ava (Janelle James) hosting a tailgate in the school parking lot.
In only 18 minutes, Janine gets multiple parking tickets, faces a possible eviction due to Tariq barely paying rent, and accidentally books the wrong day for popular Philadelphia Flyers mascot Gritty to show up and welcome students back to school. It feels like the end of the world for Janine, until her coworkers – most notably her mentor Barbara (Sheryl Lee Ralph) and fellow second-grade teacher Melissa (Lisa Ann Walter) – remind her that it’s okay to grieve.
Janine’s situation is depicted in a realistic way that’s sure to hit home for many viewers; overbooking is a common response to avoid coping with complicated feelings. Not to mention this is Janine’s first breakup (she started dating Tariq in eighth grade!), so she’s not quite sure how to deal with all these new emotions.
Now that Janine is single, one can only wonder what will happen between her and first-grade teacher Gregory (Tyler James Williams), who’s had eyes for Janine since the day they met. There’s 21 episodes left in this season, so only time will tell!
Episodes of the upcoming season of “Abbott Elementary” are set to premiere on ABC on Wednesdays at 9PM EST.
by Emily Nagle
While the past couple of weeks were relatively quiet for movie theaters across the United States, this past weekend saw plenty of new releases across lots of different genres. From creative documentaries to comedic murder mysteries, this weekend offered up something for viewers with lots of different tastes.
Top 5 Highest Grossing Films for September 16-18, 2022
5. Bullet Train ($2.6 million)
4. See How They Run ($3 million)
3. Pearl ($3.1 million)
2. Barbarian ($6.5 million)
1. The Woman King ($19 million)
The best-selling movie for this weekend was new historical epic “The Woman King”, which has been met with positive reviews from critics ever since its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. Starring Viola Davis as General Nanisca, leader of the all-female Agojie warrior tribe in West Africa, “The Woman King” follows her and her team as they protect the kingdom of Dahomey during the 1820s. Audiences particularly praised the film’s casting and action choreography.
Another new arrival in theaters this weekend was A24’s “Pearl”, which became the third highest-grossing film for the weekend. This indie slasher film serves as a prequel for “X”, having been simultaneously shot in secret earlier this year. It tells the origin story of Pearl (Mia Goth), the villain from the film, by taking viewers back in time nearly six decades before the original film. Set in 1918, “Pearl” introduces viewers to the murderer as a 16-year-old, showing how she ended up as the murderous housewife we saw last spring in “X”. It’s been met with generally positive reviews from critics, who loved Goth’s performance as well as its tributes to classic films.
Trailing slightly behind “Pearl” was “See How They Run”. This whodunit starring Sam Rockwell, Saoirse Ronan, and Adrien Brody is set in 1950s London, and tells the story of a film crew who recruit an inspector and a constable to solve who murdered one of the main team members.
by Emily Nagle
“Fakes” is just one of the new Netflix originals that rolled out this month. This Canadian teen drama follows Becca and Zoe, two best friends who accidentally build one of the biggest fake ID empires in North America. After anxious, studious Zoe (Emilija Baranac) prints a fake student card so she can go to the library, rich party girl Becca (Jennifer Tong) convinces Zoe to print a fake ID for her. When the teens expand their services to their classmates, Zoe and Becca find themselves in more danger than they could have ever imagined.
This show has a unique narrative style, with each episode being from a different character’s point of view. It’s almost always from Becca’s or Zoe’s perspective, but it does focus on the girls’ Jesse Pinkman-like boss, shady drug dealer Tryst (Richard Harmon) in one episode. They break the fourth wall often, turning to the camera to provide commentary on what’s happening. The story is also told starting from the end – in the present-day cutaways in which the girls comment on the past events, Zoe is sitting in a jail cell sporting an orange jumpsuit, while Becca is still living her lavish life like nothing ever happened.
The best part about “Fakes” is that it’s not just a criminal origin story. As tensions rise and Becca and Zoe realize that what they’re doing is very much illegal, the girls’ friendship gets rocky. Printing fake IDs is all fun and games at first: they move their business into a ritzy penthouse, where their biggest problem is deciding which fast-food place they want to order from for dinner. But when orders increase and they recruit more girls to run the business, including quirky Sally (Matreya Scarrwener), keeping their operation discrete proves to be tricky.
Vibrant visuals, zippy pacing, and a peppy soundtrack add to the youthful feel of this show. The way the girls explain things to the viewer is fun and reminiscent of other teen shows; for example, when Zoe runs us through the process of creating a fake ID, explaining how printing one that even a computer-savvy 5-year-old could do it. They spend a lot of time texting, and instead of just showing us their phone screen, the creative team decided to superimpose the message bubbles into the environment, making them pop.
Zoe and Becca’s adventures are set to high-energy hip-hop and house beats. Which is super fitting, considering their escapades bring them immense fortune (the girls can make as much as $30,000 in one order!), escalating them to a high-profile life complete with designer clothing, vodka, and wild, Euphoria-esque parties. It’s the stuff dreams are made of for 17-year-olds itching to leave home for college.
With only 10 episodes that are all less than half an hour in length, “Fakes” is on the shorter side, making it an ideal binge! If you’re a fan of crime shows like “Better Call Saul”, but also enjoy teen dramas like “Never Have I Ever”, you’ll love “Fakes”. Here’s to hoping it gets renewed for a second season – I can’t wait to see where the story goes!
by Emily Nagle
Top 5 Highest Grossing Films for September 9-11, 2022
5. The Invitation ($2.7 million)
4. Top Gun: Maverick ($3.2 million)
3. Bullet Train ($3.3 million)
2. Brahmastra Part One: Shiva ($4.5 million)
1. Barbarian ($10.5 million)
Although this past weekend was the lowest grossing one for the box office for this entire year, it saw 2 new releases breaking into the top 5. Horror film “Barbarian” was the top release, exceeding box office predictions of $8 million for its opening weekend. It stars Georgina Campbell as Tess, a young woman renting a Detroit home that turns out to be occupied. When she stays the night, she discovers dark secrets in the house.
“Brahmastra Part One: Shiva” had a limited release to less than 1,000 theaters, but made it to number two after grossing an average of $5,609 per theater. This Hindi film was distributed by Disney in the United States, and has been met with mixed reviews from critics.
Get Some Strange!
