Our weekly look at what’s weird in theaters, on hot-off-the-presses DVDs, and on more distant horizons…
This is when the movies take the week off, ceding the field to the latest iteration of Star Wars. (Many repertory theaters even take this opportunity to close for renovations.) We should have more for you next week. The 2018 season kicks off in earnest in January at Sundance.
Mother! (2017): See description in DVD above. No extras on the DVD, Blu-ray or even the 4K release. Buy Mother! [Blu-ray].
“A Town Called Panic: The Collection”: Crazy, smart kiddie animation from Belgium, featuring the surreal adventures of Cowboy, Indian and Horse. Please note: the feature film is not included in this 2+ hour collection of shorts, but it does have the specials “Christmas Panic” and “Back to School Panic.” Buy “A Town Called Panic: The Collection” [Blu-ray].
Our weekly look at what’s weird in theaters, on hot-off-the-presses DVDs, and on more distant horizons…
Trailers of new release movies are generally available at the official site links.
IN THEATERS (LIMITED RELEASE):
Kaleidoscope (2016): Psychological thriller in which a recently-released prisoner finds his domineering mother is interfering with his ability to reintegrate into society. The second feature from Rupert Jones (brother of Kaleidoscope‘s star, veteran character actor Toby Jones); his first was an opera (2013’s The Answer to Everything) cast with homeless people. Kaleidoscope official site.
NEW ON DVD:
“Twin Peaks: A Limited Event Series” (2017): The story of “Twin Peaks” picks up 25 years after the cult series’ cancellation. Rather than just rebooting the soap opera, David Lynch confounded casual viewers by taking the series beyond the Black Lodge; review coming soon. Buy “Twin Peaks: A Limited Event Series”
Our weekly look at what’s weird in theaters, on hot-off-the-presses DVDs, and on more distant horizons…
Trailers of new release movies are generally available at the official site links.
IN THEATERS (WIDE RELEASE):
The Disaster Artist (2017): A fictional account of the making of the notorious disaster The Room, starring 2013 Weirdest Actor winner James Franco as Tommy Wiseau. OK, it’s not quite the heights of bizarreness we aspire to here, but you know you want to see it. In major cities today, with a wider rollout coming next week. The Disaster Artist official site.
Psychopaths (2017): Mickey Keating brings us a “psychedelic fever dream” of four maniacs possessed by the spirit of a serial killer, let loose on a one-night rampage. Reviews have generally been of the “we’re glad they tried something different, but…” variety. Psychopaths official site.
The Shape of Water (2017): Guillermo del Toro‘s adult fairy tale about a cleaning woman who falls in love with a merman. We suspect it will be marginal to our coverage (though we also expect it will be excellent); at least one reviewer used the “w”-word, however. Like Disaster Artist, it will go into wider release next week. The Shape of Water official site.
VIDEO-ON-DEMAND EXCLUSIVE RELEASES:
Somebody’s Darling (2016): A fraternity president becomes obsessed with a fellow student. Microbudget psychological horror with contemporary social relevance. Rent Somebody’s Darling.
IN DEVELOPMENT (POST-PRODUCTION):
City of Pirates (2018): Not a version of 1983 Raoul Ruiz classic of the same name, this is instead a politically-incorrect Brazilian cartoon. Or at least, that’s how it started, before the author of the original property, Laerte Coutinho, underwent gender-reassignment surgery and rejected her old work and characters. Her objections put the film on hold for almost two decades, but rather than abandon it, adapter Otto Guerra went the metafiction route and wrote Coutinho’s character into the script. No idea if this will create a magnificently weird movie, but the backstory is certainly a hit. Read about it at Variety.
Woodshock (2017): A grieving woman (Kirsten Dunst) smokes synthetic cannabinoids in the woods and hallucinates a lot. It’s savaging by critics makes it possibly A24’s first critical flop. Buy Woodshock.
“The Usurper King”: Elevator Movie‘s Zeb Haradon hasn’t made another fictional film since his 2004 debut, but he has written a couple of absurdist novels in the meantime. His latest involves an alternate universe where Ted Bundy is never apprehended for his murders, and becomes President; the protagonist discovers a clue to the Chief Executive’s secret while competing on a game show that involves predicting the future by reading animal entrails. There may be some references to the current political climate. Buy “The Usurper King”.
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