The first full week of July brings a welcome number of independent and international films to movie theaters. Watching all these trailers to prepare this article, I was struck by the great variety in tone and approach between all these films.
For your planning purposes, here is what is opening this week in the wild and wonderful world of genre fare.
Evil Dead Burn
The film opens Friday, July 10, only in movie theaters, via Warner Bros. Visit the official site for locations and showtimes.
Demons, demons, and more demons. God help us. (But only if you have a strong constitution in the first place, and buy a ticket after watching the trailer.) Look for our review later this week.
Official synopsis: "Evil Dead Burn unleashes the franchise's most savage and terrifying ride to date, blazing onto big screens with an all-new chapter of carnage and demonic mayhem. After the loss of her husband, a woman seeks solace with her in-laws in their secluded family home. As one by one they are transformed into Deadites--turning the gathering into a family reunion from hell--she comes to discover that the vows she took in life live on... even in death."
The Isolate Thief
The film opens Friday, July 10, only in movie theaters, via Shout! Studios. Presented by Radial Entertainment.
The cast -- Mackenzie Foy, Odeya Rush, Jack Kesy, Ty Simpkins, Martin Sensmeier with Joe Pantoliano and Sean Bean -- looks quite good, and the trailer has a hushed quality about it that is quite appealing. Look for our review later this week.
Official synopsis: "One bitter-cold winter during the Civil War, a young woman becomes the lone caretaker of a remote Union Army outpost. When a stash of stolen gold falls into her lap, a gang of vicious outlaws comes looking for it. As they turn her home into a battleground, she must stay one step ahead of them in order to survive."
Moana
The film opens Friday, July 10, only in movie theaters, via Disney. Visit the official site for more information, including locations and showtimes.
I know, I know! When you saw Disney's animated original ten years ago, bolstered by Dwayne Johnson's booming voice, you said to yourself: "O you with little imagination! If only there were a live-action version." Well, your wishes just came true. Look for our review later this week.
Mockbuster
The film opens Friday, July 10, only in movie theaters, via Giant Pictures. Visit the official site for more information.
This looks very endearing. And quite independent.
Official synopsis: "Once-promising Australian filmmaker Anthony Frith lands a final shot at glory with Hollywood's kings of B-movie schlock, the Asylum, the studio behind Sharknado. Tasked with directing a lost-world dinosaur film in suburban Adelaide on a six-day shoot and a shoestring budget, he also turns the camera on himself, filming a behind-the-scenes documentary as the chaos unfolds.
"Between demanding LA execs, a bewildered cast, and his own creeping self-doubt, both productions push their first-time director to the brink. Mockbuster is a hilarious and unexpectedly tender documentary about chasing the dream through the absurd hustle of genre filmmaking, but finding a different kind of success behind the scenes."
Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass
The film opens Friday, July 10, only in movie theaters, via Sony Pictures Classics. Visit the official site for locations and showtimes.
On the title alone, I was disinclined toward the film. Then I watched the trailer.
Official synopsis: "Small town hairdresser Gail Daughtry is engaged to her devoted high school sweetheart, Tom. Her life takes a turn when a trip to a book signing leads to Tom meeting - and sleeping - with his 'celebrity pass'.
"Reeling from the betrayal, Gail impulsively joins her friend Otto on a trip to Los Angeles, where a psychic convinces Gail that the only way to save her marriage is to 'even the scales' with her own celebrity pass: Jon Hamm.
"Thus begins an epic journey through Tinseltown as Gail and Otto join forces with a talent agency assistant, a paparazzo, and actor John Slattery, all in the search for Hamm. Along the way, they collide with celebrities and are hunted by a group of Italian assassins as they get ever closer to finding the elusive star."
Reading Lolita in Tehran
The film opens Friday, July 10, only in movie theaters, via Greenwich Entertainment and Kanopy. Visit the official site for locations and showtimes.
This sounds somewhat didactic, until you watch the trailer.
Official synopsis: "A professor (Golshifteh Farahani) in revolutionary Iran secretly gathers her most dedicated students to read forbidden classics of Western literature."
Black Chariot (1971)
The film opens Friday, July 10, only in movie theaters, via Kino Lorber. Visit their official site for more information, including locations and showtimes.
Check out the trailer for its eye-opening opening scene, then keep watching to get a glimpse of a "landmark in Black cinema."
Official synopsis: "Robert Goodwin wrote, produced, and directed this lost gem of American independent cinema. Opening during a tense meeting between members of an underground Black Power group that leads to a stunning foot chase, Goodwin's film weaves past and present to tell the story of the social awakening of a character only referred to as 'the drifter' (screen legend Bernie Casey in his first starring role!).
"Shot on both 35mm and video and boasting a fierce, early performance from L.A. Rebellion icon Barbara O. Jones, Black Chariot is a fascinatingly iconoclastic revelation. Though world-premiered at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium in 1971, Black Chariot has remained under-screened for decades -- until now."
Crossing
The film opens Friday, July 10, only in movie theaters, via Well Go USA. Visit their official site for more information, including locations and showtimes.
War!
Official synopsis: "After the bloody Xiang River battle during the Long March in 1934, the Red Army faces a massive force of 400,000 enemy troops. Shifting tactics, the leadership guides the cornered men through the legendary four river crossings at Chishui in an effort to outmaneuver the enemy. Amidst the chaos, a veteran clinging to a sacred vow and a homeless orphan fighting just to survive forge an unbreakable bond on the frontlines."
Opening This Week celebrates the cinematic experience, in movie theaters and at home.