The King of Staten Island

From IMDb: Scott has been a case of arrested development since his firefighter dad died. He spends his days smoking weed and dreaming of being a tattoo artist until events force him to grapple with his grief and take his first steps forward in life. Released June 2020

Clare: This actually looks lovely. I was a massive fan of Trainwreck, and if it’s going to be in a similar vein, I know I’ll love it. Massive fan of Apatow’s early work too, but glad he seems to have moved with the times too.

Lee: I’m with Clare, I think this looks great. Good characters, a story with real heart and emotion and some comedy thrown in. I’m generally a fan of Apatow’s work anyway and this one definitely looks like it’s worth a watch.

Matt: I’m afraid this one’s not for me… the dialogue seems a bit too forced and ‘literal’ that doesn’t allow any subtleties in the performances to come through, and ultimately it spoon-feeds the message. The emotional range of the film seems a bit one-note too, I wouldn’t expect this to have enough peaks and troughs to keep it interesting for long… I reckon the best bits are already in this trailer!

Mary: This didn’t look as bad as I was expecting I don’t really like the look of Pete Davidson to be honest but I would possibly give this one a go.

Unhinged

From IMDb: Unhinged is a psychological thriller that takes something we’ve all experienced – road rage – to an unpredictable and terrifying conclusion. Released July 2020

Matt: It’s very clichéd, definitely far from an original concept, and did make me snort a couple of times (bad manners sure can make a person flip their lid!) But I really want to see more of Russell Crowe being ‘unhinged’, I’m just not sure why… The action scenes actually look decent and quite ambitious, but this won’t be an objectively ‘good’ film by any stretch of the imagination!

Mary: Jeez! That was intense. Not your usual Russell Crowe performance. I’m sure it will cover all the usual tropes for this genre of film but with an unusually cast villain it might have something a little new.

Clare: Oh nooo. As a single woman with a teeny car who spends a lot of time on motorways with jackassess in big jeeps trying to intimidate me, this is one of my biggest fears…
I’m not a Crowe fan, but this does look good, in a ridiculous way.

Lee: This does look like something we’ve seen many times before, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I think the casting of Russell Crowe is spot on and there’s a hint that this is going to be one of those fun movies where the female victim eventually turns badass victor. Last years Ready or Not and this years The Invisible Man are fine examples of that. Really like the look of this one.

Alex Rider

From IMDb: The adventures of a reluctant teen spy on his missions to save the world. Released June 2020 on Amazon Prime

Matt: I’m not ashamed to say that I loved the original Stormbreaker film (though it was clearly far from the best film ever made!) and the first couple of books before that! But I’m a bit unsure about this at the moment… I don’t think it’s the best cut trailer, and the performances seem a little wooden. The new guy seems nice, but he’s no Alex Pettyfer! Saying that, they seem to be focusing mostly on the second book which hasn’t been adapted before, so that could be interesting to see?

Clare: I had to double check I hadn’t made up that this had already been made in to a film, and I was right. I wasn’t convinced by the start of the trailer, but actually by the end I thought it looked pretty alright. I’m not the key demographic, and it’s not my pick of genre, but I can see the source material being a much better tv series than film.

Lee: I’ve not seen or read anything of Alex Rider before, but he’s clearly a popular character. I think the world is ready for another decent teenage spy on screen – more Bond than Spy Kids – and I think this fits the bill nicely. Looking forward to watching this one.

Da 5 Bloods

From IMDb: Four African American vets battle the forces of man and nature when they return to Vietnam seeking the remains of their fallen Squad Leader and the gold fortune he helped them hide. Released June 2020

Matt: It’s an impressive trailer, but does it make me want to watch the film? Not particularly. I struggle with Spike Lee at the best of times, but I really wasn’t hooked on any sort of narrative here, and the more and more mixed media that was cut in, the less I felt like I was watching a film trailer. I do like films about the Vietnam War so that is a potential access point for me, but I don’t think it’s one I’ll rush to see that’s for sure!

Lee: Well, I’m not usually a fan of Spike Lee, although I did really enjoy 2018 movie BlacKkKlansman, but I’m with Matt here on this one. The trailer starts well, and I initially liked the style, but I quickly became bored and frustrated with it. Other than being set in the Vietnam war, I’ve got absolutely no idea what this is about and have no interest in watching it.

Mary: It’s not very often I come across a Spike Lee film that I think I want to see I just don’t think I’m his target audience. I found this trailer very confusing lots of ideas thrown in that I’m not entirely sure needed to be there, I think I’ll give this one a miss.

Clare: What a great use of music in a trailer! Like everyone else, I don’t know the whole plot of the film, but I thought it gave enough to keep interest. I know next to nothing about the Vietnam war, so I think a lot would be lost on me. I also don’t think I’ve ever seen a Spike Lee film… maybe I need to do a Lee-athon when this comes out!

The High Note

From IMDb: A superstar singer and her overworked personal assistant are presented with a choice that could alter the course of their respective careers. Released later this month

Mary: I’m not a Dakota Johnson fan but I like the look of this, not just a shallow concept, I like the idea behind this.

Clare: I saw a poster for this a few weeks ago and it looked like a terrible cheap budget thing. This trailer looks good! I struggle like Mary with Dakota Johnson, but I find she does comedy better (loved her in Peanut Butter Falcon) and she continues to grow on me, so hopefully this will be another good performance. I love films about music, so I think this’ll be added to my watch list – I just wish I could see it on a big screen!

Lee: This looks OK but not really my kind of movie if I’m honest. However, as the only male in my household, I can imagine this being the kind of thing that the ladies would keenly put on one evening while I sit there reluctantly watching, and eventually enjoying.

Space Force

From IMDb: The people tasked with creating a sixth branch of the armed services: The Space Force. Released later this month on Netflix

Mary: Nope nope, found this excruciating to watch, just not my style of humour. It will definitely have an audience I’m sure but I won’t be one of them I’m afraid.

Matt: Comedy that plays up awkwardness can go one of two ways… It can be geniously funny, or it can fall flat. I think this falls slightly flat, which is a shame because Steve Carell himself is a great comic performer! This feels a little wooden and unnatural, and it doesn’t help that the characters are so disconnected by the cinematography and static camera positioning. A few scenes in this style could pull off really well, but not a full series…

Lee: I’m a big fan of The Office and Parks & Recreation, so another TV show from the man behind those and more, Greg Daniels, is an exciting prospect for me. Admittedly, I don’t feel there are really any big laughs in this trailer but then both The Office and Parks & Rec didn’t really hit their stride until season 2 anyway, when they went on to be a huge success. There’s enough gentle humour and interesting characters/ideas shown here to get me interested though and I’m hopeful that this will develop into something pretty special over the course of the season.

Clare: It doesn’t look perfect, but there are few things I won’t watch with Steve Carrell, so I know I’ll be tuning in for at least the first episode. I just finished Greg Daniels new show Upload, and I was a bit unsure at first, but really got in to it by the end, so hopefully this will be the same. And just look at that amazing cast!!