The last week of July is also another quiet week for new theatrical releases, with only three of interest to genre-film fans.
Even so, the three we highlight below are all from good-to-great filmmakers, are markedly different from each other, and will likely appeal to different segments of our readership.
We've already reviewed one of them -- review link below -- and hope to have reviews of the other two later this week.
Read onward to plan your week ahead.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day
The film opens Friday, July 31, only in movie theaters, via Marvel.
What's amazing is that it's been 10 years since Tom Holland first essayed the role of Peter Parker (aka Spider-Man) in Captain America: Civil War (2016) and he's still going strong. His latest super-adventure finds himself working full-time as Spider-Man -- full-time work, what a drag, am I right? -- while his former life as Peter Parker has faded away. (Trust me, I know the feeling.)
Directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, whose previous superhero feature, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, certainly showed some promising new twists on the premise, the new film definitely has potential. (Note the flying ninjas in the trailer.) Look for our review later this week.
Official synopsis: "Fighting crime full-time as Spider-Man in a world that doesn't remember him--and the pressure of seeing his old friends move on without him--sparks a change in Peter he may not have the power to control. But that transformation might also be the only thing that can stop a shocking new threat to the city and those he loves--a powerful villain no one can even see."
I Want Your Sex
The film opens Friday, July 31, only in movie theaters, via Magnolia Pictures & Magnet Releasing.
Olivia Wilde and Cooper Hoffman star in Gregg Araki's new film. Wait: Gregg Araki has a new film?!
This is the one we've already seen. And by "we," I mean our indefatigable co-lead critic Mel Valentin, who saw it at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year and filed his review, which reads in part: "For all of its deliberately confrontational sex talk and frank imagery, not often seen outside of streaming porn, I Want Your Sex isn't quite as radical or outrageous as Araki and his White Bird in a Blizzard co-screenwriter, Karley Sciortino, apparently intended for their decade-in-the-making follow-up."
Official synopsis: "When fresh-faced Elliot (Hoffman) lands an exciting job for renowned artist, icon and provocateur Erika Tracy (Wilde), his fantasies come true as Erika taps him to become her sexual muse. But Elliot soon finds himself out of his depth as Erika takes him on a journey more profound than he ever could have imagined, into a world of sex, obsession, power, betrayal and murder."
The Samurai and the Princess
The film opens Friday, July 31, only in movie theaters, via Janus Films.
Master filmmaker Kiyoshi Kurosawa continues to expand his horizons. Look for our review later this week.
Official synopsis: "When Lord Murashige Araki (Masahiro Motoki) rises up against the tyrannical Nobunaga Oda (Bando Shingo), he finds himself besieged within the walls of his own castle. Isolated, he is confronted with a series of mysterious crimes that shatter the fragile order of his court, plunging the fortress into fear and suspicion.
"With Oda's army closing in and a traitor hiding among his ranks, Murashige is forced into an uneasy alliance with Kanbei Kuroda (Masaki Suda), a brilliant yet dangerous strategist held prisoner in the dungeon. Helped by his wife Chiyoho (Yuriko Yoshitaka) and his most loyal generals, Murashige must uncover the truth before the castle falls."
Opening This Week celebrates the cinematic experience, in movie theaters and at home.