With so much grabbing for your attention and dollars these days, it’s easy to miss when the latest releases are heading to a cinema near you. So come back every week as we here at So, Is It Any Good? preview the new movies hitting screens, and give you the lowdown on what to watch this weekend.
This weekend we start off with something a little special, Event Cinemas George Street starts their 2016 season of cult classics with their In The House screening of Big Trouble In Little China. Space definitely is the final frontier in Star Trek Beyond, horror fiends will revel in the darkness of Lights Out, Kate Beckinsale and Chloë Sevigny bust out the corsets and the witty banter in the name of Love & Friendship, and finally, disciples of the Caped Crusader will want to catch the one day screening of the animated Batman: The Killing Joke.
In The House: Big Trouble In Little China
Where: Event Cinemas George St Sydney
When: Friday July 22nd at 7pm
Rating: M
Starring: Kurt Russell, Kim Cattrall, Dennis Dun
Synopsis: An All-American trucker gets dragged into a centuries-old mystical battle in Chinatown.
Trailer:
Why you should care: Event Cinemas George Street’s In The House cult film festival is back for another year, and kicking off the season is the John Carpenter classic Big Trouble In Little China. for a measly $13 this bad boy has it all, big Kurt rocking a tank top, Kim Cattrall being sexy long before she was all about Sex. Green eyed girls, Chinese triads, mystic warriors, evil sorcerers… you name it, it’s there. The action is great, the characters and one-liners are awesome as you’d expect from a Carpenter film, and put simply you’re just gonna have a good time.
Who should see it: Trouble makers
Get your tickets below
Star Trek Beyond
Starring: Simon Pegg, Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoë Saldana, Karl Urban, Anton Yelchin, John Cho, Sofia Boutella, and Idris Elba
Synopsis: The USS Enterprise crew explores the furthest reaches of uncharted space, where they encounter a mysterious new enemy who puts them and everything the Federation stands for to the test.
OUR VERDICT
Trailer:
Why you should care: Beam me up! Star Trek was a rollicking reboot to a stodgy franchise (don’t hate me Trekkies), and although the series lost a little steam with the followup Into Darkness, a switch of directors (Justin Lin subs in for J.J Abrams) looks to have given this third entry a bit of juice. It’s heavy on the action, but in true Trek fashion leaves enough time to let the characters breath and develop too. Live long and prosper indeed.
Who should see it: Trekkies, obviously, but everyone else as well.
Lights Out
Starring: Teresa Palmer, Maria Bello, Billy Burke
Synopsis: A woman is haunted by a creature that only appears when the lights go out.
Trailer:
Why you should care: A feature adaptation of the 2013 short film, Lights Out by director David Sandberg, this looks to have been given the Midas touch by horror wunderkind James Wan, here acting as a producer. The story is pretty basic, but if the jumps are jumpin’ and the scares are scary, horror fans with eat this up.
Who should see it: Those that aren’t afraid of the dark
Love & Friendship
Starring: Kate Beckinsale, Chloë Sevigny, Xavier Samuel
Synopsis: Lady Susan Vernon takes up temporary residence at her in-laws’ estate and, while there, is determined to be a matchmaker for her daughter Frederica — and herself too, naturally.
Trailer:
Why you should care: Normally I would be instantly turned off by the period setting and stiff upper lip of the whole thing, but there’s a brilliantly subversive comic undertone to the whole proceedings. This is English pomp, but with bite. Beckinsale looks to be relishing the opportunity to actually act for once (not a skin-tight catsuit in sight), and Sevigny is always reliably good. One for the period piece crowd, and they’ll eat it up, but my hunch is that those that are normally turned off by corsets will find a lot to like here.
Who should see it: Social climbers
Batman: The Killing Joke
When: This Sunday 24th
Where: Event Cinemas George St
Starring: Mark Hamill, Nolan North, Tara Strong
Synopsis: As Batman hunts for the escaped Joker, the Clown Prince of Crime attacks the Gordon family to prove a diabolical point mirroring his own fall into madness.
Buy Tickets
Trailer:
Why you should care: One of the most loved graphic novels in the Batman canon, The Killing Joke has finally been given the movie treatment, much to comic nerds’ delight. It looks great, and features fan-favourite Mark Hamill reprising his iconic version of The Joker from the animated series. This is your chance to catch the DVD release on the big screen, for a very limited engagement of one session on Sunday – so get in quick!
Who should see it: Bat-fans
So, who’s getting your hard earned dollars this weekend? Hit us up in the comments and let us know what you’ve watched, and if it’s any good!