Larry Mantle and KPCC film critics Tim Cogshell and Amy Nicholson review this weekend’s new movie releases including: “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows,” “Me Before You,” “Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping” and more. We'll also preview this summer's biggest blockbusters, including many with a predominantly female cast . TGI-FilmWeek!
FilmWeek: ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,’ ‘Me Before You’ and more
Larry Mantle and KPCC film critics Tim Cogshell and Amy Nicholson review this weekend’s new movie releases including: “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows” in huge release on more than 4,000 screens; a modern-day British romance called “Me Before You;” Andy Samberg starring in what seems to be a very long “Saturday Night Live” sketch called “Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping;” and more.
TGI-FilmWeek!
Tim's Hits
- "Me Before You"
- "Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping"
- "Chevalier"
- "Approaching the Unknown"
- "As I Am: The Life and Time of DJ A.M."
- "The Final Master"
Amy's Hits
- "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows"
- "Me Before You"
- "Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping"
- "Chevalier"
- "The Wailing"
- "As I Am: The Life and Time of DJ A.M."
- "The Final Master"
Mixed Reviews
This Week's Misses
Guests:
Amy Nicholson, Film Critic for KPCC and Chief Film Critic, MTV News; she tweets from
Tim Cogshell, Film Critic for KPCC and Alt-Film Guide; Tim tweets from
Analyzing 2016’s summer movie scene with Entertainment Weekly’s leading man
Hollywood saw the dollars stack up to about $9.5 billion in earnings during last year’s summer cycle and industry analysts are curious whether this year’s season can pass muster.
The outlook is positive given last month’s debuts of both “Captain America: Civil War” and “X-Men Apocalypse,” which both pulled in top dollar in the US and abroad.
Up ahead moviegoers are looking at a long list of more remakes, reboots and sequels from “Ghostbusters” and “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” to “Jason Bourne” and “Finding Dory.”
Entertainment Weekly’s LA Bureau Chief Sean Smith says 2016 could be the summer for women in the spotlight. Historically, Smith says, summer movies are a “boys town” but this year we’re seeing more female dominated casts with “Bad Moms,” “The Shallows,” and “Suicide Squad.” Hollywood is going to be eyeing the success of these films closely.
“‘Ghostbusters’ in particular is the big test,” said Smith, “and whether it soars or flops will impact greenlight decisions going forward. If you want more women in big movies, buy a ticket opening weekend.” In other genre news, there are about zero romantic comedies on the roster, but family friendly features like “The Secret Life of Pets,” “Ice Age: Collision Course,” and “The BFG” are poised to do well.
Could family flicks be responsible for the dearth of rom coms this summer cycle? Also, a look at how the 55 films slated for the May to August season score on the racial diversity front.
For more summer movie previews from Entertainment Weekly, click here.
Guest:
Sean Smith, Executive Editor of film coverage at Entertainment Weekly