Author: Alex Billington

"It has a vending machine! I love this place!" Illumination + Universal have revealed the first official trailer for the next sequel in their never-ending Minions franchise - Despicable Me 4. Yep, they're going back to the ol' Gru storyline again, which wrapped up with Despicable Me 3 back in 2017. This sequel is set to open in July, the usual spot for these movies. In the first Despicable Me movie in seven years, Gru, the world’s favorite supervillain-turned-Anti-Villain League-agent, returns for an exciting, bold new era of Minions mayhem, with an introduction of another new family member - Gru Jr. They face a new nemesis in Maxime Le Mal (voiced by Will Ferrell) and his femme fatale girlfriend Valentina (voiced by Sofia Vergara), and the Gru family is forced to go on the run. The voice cast features Steve Carrell back as Gru, plus Kristen Wiig, Miranda Cosgrove, Dana Gaier, Madison Polan. With fresh new characters voiced by Joey King, Stephen Colbert, and Chloe Fineman, plus Pierre Coffin as the Minions and Steve Coogan as Silas Ramsbottom. This looks ...

"We're about to making a journey, we ask for your blessing." Altitude Films in the UK has unveiled another brand new UK trailer for the film Io Capitano, made by the acclaimed Italian filmmaker Matteo Garrone, best known for Gomorrah, Reality, Dogman. Now it's officially nominated for an Academy Award in the Best International Feature category. This first premiered at the 2023 Venice Film Festival and won the Best Director prize there, with stops at AFI Fest and San Sebastian last year as well. Opening in theaters soon. Io Capitano is a Homeric fairy tale that tells the adventurous journey of two young boys, Seydou and Moussa, who leave Dakar to reach Europe. A modern Odyssey through the dangers of the desert, the sea and the ambiguities of the human soul. Starring newcomers Seydou Sarr and Moustapha Fall. This incredible film is one of these examples of filmmaking where I just have no idea how they pulled off and filmed certain jaw-dropping scenes, it's all so astonishing to watch. The film is set for a US release starting in February ...

"How valuable can a story be – as an alternative to truth?" Cranked Up Films has revealed a trailer for an indie psychological thriller titled Ghostwritten, from filmmaker Thomas Matthews. This has been finished up for years now, but it only premiered at a few film festivals last year. Finally ready for a VOD release this February. Thomas Matthews' Ghost-Written (aka Ghostwritten), follows a one-hit novelist who is out of his depth on a winter residency, and perhaps losing grip on reality... "From a bird's eye view it's funny and up close it's tragic. Maybe unconsciously we were shooting for that - as it pertains to our movie... I thought the audience would have the best time if they came in thinking about nostalgia, ego and solving a puzzle without getting too serious." Jay Duplass stars as Guy Laury, with Maria Dizzia, Kate Lyn Shiel, and Thomas Jay Ryan. This looks like smart, small-scale indie that is meant to get people lost in their own mind. Enjoy. Here's the main official trailer (+ poster) for Thomas Matthews' Ghostwritten, direct from YouTube: Clinging ...

The official awards for the 2024 Sundance Film Festival, held in Park City, Utah every January, were announced this morning with a small ceremony held in person in Utah. This always marks the end of the fest, with a few days of screenings left. The festival played on this week with an at-home online series of viewings in addition to all the in-person premieres. It was a fairly impressive year, with a handful of terrific films, along with plenty of duds as well – and a smaller line-up with only around 92 new films premiering (compared to over 100 last year). The main winners for 2024 include In the Summers, taking home Grand Jury Prize & Directing Award; along with Sean Wang's Dìdi (弟弟) winning the coveted Audience Award and a U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for Ensemble. In addition, the festival favorite is the documentary titled Daughters, playing in the U.S. Doc competition section. As always, if any of these films interest you, we hope you note them down and catch up with them as soon as you can. All ...

"Today we dance!" Disney has unveiled the official trailer for an acclaimed short doc film titled Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó, made by filmmaker Sean Wang. This is a huge month for Wang, who not only received an Academy Award nomination for Best Documentary Short for this film, he also just premiered his feature debut Didi at Sundance, where it also won the prestigious Audience Award. He's breaking out in a big way! Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó is a personal love letter from director Sean Wang to his Nai Nai and Wài Pó, a grandma super team that dances, stretches, and farts their sorrows away. It originally premiered at the 2023 SXSW Film Festival. "Introducing: my Nǎi Nai (奶奶) & Wài Pó (外婆). I hope you love them as much as I love them." Starring Chang Li Hua and Yi Yan Fuei. This will be streaming on Disney+ next month right before the Oscars - where it might just end up winning. This looks absolutely amazing - yeah looking forward to watching soon. Here's the official trailers (+ clip / ...

Actor Jesse Eisenberg is one of many actors who have made the leap into filmmaking, making his feature directorial debut with the film When You Finish Saving the World that premiered in 2022 at the Sundance Film Festival. That one was quickly forgotten, despite some solid performances. As talented as he certainly is as actor, he's still honing his craft behind the lens. Eisenberg returned to the 2024 Sundance Film Festival to premiered his second feature titled A Real Pain, and this is the one he's going to be really remembered for. The title seems to be a clear riff on the phrase "a real pain in the ass", referring to one of the characters in the film. However, there is an additional layered meaning that only becomes apparent once you've seen the film, connecting deep with what Eisenberg is trying to express with his script. It's one of the best films at Sundance that has remained on the top of my mind even after watching many films following the premiere. A Real Pain is both written & directed by Jesse ...

"What do you want to show me?!" Ugh. Gravitas Ventures has unveiled an official trailer for an indie horror thriller titled Cellphone, which ranks high on the list of the laziest, most generic film titles ever. Especially considering it is a tech horror about a cell phone with prophetic images on it. How frightening. This is set for a debut in February. Wynne, who is suffering PTSD from the death of her fiancé, starts seeing disturbing images on her cell phone about her future. If she doesn't figure them out in time, she will die. The film stars Whitney Rose Pynn as Wynne, Malcolm McDowell, Justin Malik Jackson, Jared Noble, Isaac Versaw, and Katherine Barber. The scene where she's yelling at her phone is hilarious - perfect example of why this concept just doesn't work. Way more creativity is necessary to actually make this a scary movie. Here's the official trailer (+ two posters) for Luke Sommer's Cellphone, direct from Gravitas' YouTube: Wynne, who is grieving the death of her fiancé, starts seeing disturbing images on her cell phone about her future. ...

"Are you a fraud, sir?!" Time to unleash the wrath of laughs! Prime Video has revealed an official trailer for a new comedy called Ricky Stanicky, arriving to watch in March streaming. It's the latest wildly hilarious comedy from Peter Farrelly, one half of the Farrelly Brothers now making his own movies including Green Book and The Greatest Beer Run Ever before this one. Ricky Stanicky is a laugh-out-loud R-rated comedy about a childhood prank gone wrong and decades-long lie gone too far. Zac Efron, Andrew Santino, and Jermaine Fowler lead the cast as childhood friends Dean, JT, and Wes who create the fictional character & best friend, Ricky Stanicky. John Cena portrays celebrity impersonator "Rock Hard" Rod who is hired by the trio to impersonate their fictional friend "Ricky Stanicky." Also starring Lex Scott Davis, Anja Savcic, Jeff Ross, with William H. Macy. This doesn't look as bad as expected, thanks to Cena dropping in with the funniest lines. I can see why it's skipping theaters, tho it still seems like a gather-your-friends fun watch. Here's the official trailer (+ ...

"Just one small ember can burn down everything." Universal + Monkeypaw Productions have revealed the official trailer for Monkey Man, an action thriller revenge film from Dev Patel. Yes, this is Dev Patel's feature directorial debut – he stars in, directs, co-wrote the script, and produced this – along with Jordan Peele producing and many others involved. Really does look like Patel is making his own John Wick. If he can't play James Bond, we'll take this instead! Oscar nominee Dev Patel achieves an astonishing, tour-de-force feature directing debut with an action thriller about one man’s quest for vengeance against the corrupt leaders who murdered his mother and continue to systemically victimize the poor & powerless. Packed with thrilling & spectacular fight and chase scenes, Monkey Man is directed by Dev Patel from his original story and script with Paul Angunawela and John Collee (Master and Commander). The cast includes Sharlto Copley, Sobhita Dhulipala, Pitobash, Vipin Sharma, Ashwini Kalsekar, Makarand Deshpande, Adithi Kalkunte, Sikandar Kher. This a full-on, 3 minute long trailer! And it kicks ass!! Fire it up below. Here's ...

"We're all just out running something." Shudder has unveiled an official trailer for an indie horror thriller titled You'll Never Find Me, made in Australia by filmmakers Josiah Allen & Indianna Bell. This initially premiered at the 2023 Tribeca Film Festival, with screenings at Sitges, Fantastic Fest, Bucheon, Screamfest, Glasgow, and a few others. A thunderstorm brings a mysterious woman to Patrick's isolated mobile home. As the night unfolds, secrets and realities blur. Will she be able to leave? Or is something darker keeping her there? The film is an impressive indie creation set in mostly one contained space, featuring unsettling sound design and tricky performances to pull you into the horror game afoot. You'll Never Find Me stars Brendan Rock as the man and Jordan Cowan as the "guest" who shows up. If you love sneaky, mind-game horror this is definitely one I recommend - playing on Shudder in March. There's some good twists waiting within. Here's the main trailer (+ poster) for Josiah Allen & Indianna Bell's You'll Never Find Me, on YouTube: Patrick (Brendan Rock), a strange and lonely ...