Author: Alex Billington

"I don't want him in his own world, I want him in *this* world." Bleecker Street has finally unveiled the full official trailer for the heartfelt comedy film titled Ezra, an autism story about parents and their autistic child. This initially premiered at last year's Toronto Film Festival, with stops at the Sun Valley and Boulder Film Festivals earlier this year. Ezra centers on comedian Max co-parenting autistic son Ezra with his ex-wife Jenna. Faced with crucial decisions about Ezra's future, Max and Ezra decide to go on a life-changing cross-country road trip. Robert De Niro plays the father of the main character Max, a stand-up comic who is struggling with the situation & his family. Ezra stars Bobby Cannavale, Rose Byrne, Vera Farmiga, Whoopi Goldberg, Rainn Wilson, Tony Goldwyn; and introducing William A. Fitzgerald as Ezra with De Niro as Stan. Reviews from the fests praise the film, stating it's "warm, wise and wonderful. It's a captivating, funny and heartfelt journey well worth taking." Looks like a charming, right-in-the-heart movie. Here's the first official trailer for Tony Goldwyn's film Ezra, ...

"Now is the time to create a disruption within the healthcare system." TTP Docs has revealed the official trailer for a medical documentary film called The Pitch: Patient Safety's Next Generation, the latest work from Chicago-based doc filmmaker Mike Eisenberg (who also happens to be a friend of the site). The Pitch is Eisenberg's follow-up to his 2019 film To Err Is Human, a doc about patient safety and some of the problems with it. After shedding a light on the problems, the question is now - what can be done to prevent these errors? The Pitch tracks the new wave of technology & innovation to minimize risk. The film also looks at the medical industrial complex that is proving resistant to change from non-medical innovators. With an eye towards developments happening outside of the medical field that can also be applied to patient care, alternative approaches such as virtual reality in lieu of anesthesia and command center software are at the core of this eye-opening film. It's premiering at the 2024 Cleveland Film Festival this spring before a release ...

"You think this is a joke?" Blue Finch Films in the UK has debuted a new trailer for a proper re-release of a long lost sports comedy from Korea titled The Foul King. It originally opened in Korea in 2000 but never landed in the US. It also played at TIFF and the 2001 Berlin Film Festival but it was never released in the US and has never arrived in the west (though you can obviously import DVD copies of it). Beloved Korean actor Song Kang-ho stars as Dae-ho, a timid bank clerk who is going nowhere in his everyday life. After meeting a famous former pro wrestler, Dae-ho transforms himself into a Korean wrestling villain. From acclaimed writer / director Kim Jee-woon (of I Saw the Devil, A Tale of Two Sisters, and last year's Cobweb as well). Although he's not talented enough to ever become a top wrestler, Dae-Ho trains diligently at night... and he is turned into the villain known as "The Foul King". The rest is history! The cast includes Jang Jin-Young, Park Sang-Myeon, Jang Hang-Seon, ...

"It isn't about me... I'm just hearing their stories, they're the ones living them." Vertical has revealed their trailer for an indie film titled The Listener, a solo drama starring Tessa Thompson as the only person actually in the film. The latest work directed by Steve Buscemi, who also made the underrated Interview back in 2007. After first premiering at festivals in 2022 and playing throughout 2023 on the festival circuit, The Listener is finally set for a proper debut at the end of March this year. Beth is a crisis helpline volunteer that gets on the phone every night, fielding calls from people feeling lonely, broken, and hopeless. During tonight’s shift, the stakes rise: is this the night she will save a hurting soul - or lose one? Tessa Thompson stars as Beth; other voices heard on the phone come from actors Rebecca Hall, Derek Cecil, Margaret Cho, Blu del Barrio, Jamie Hector, and Logan Marshall-Green. It's similar to The Guilty, but with an entirely different premise with Beth and what she goes through on this end of the ...

"With food you can connect anybody." Catch the officiail trailer for a documentary titled Veselka about a restaurant called Veselka. The full title is Veselka: The Rainbow on the Corner at the Center of the World. This premiered earlier in 2024 and already opened in limited theaters a few weeks ago. We're just catching up with it now and happy to feature the trailer anyway (I've been to this place a few times when I lived in NYC!). As the second generation owner of New York's beloved Ukrainian restaurant Veselka (see Google Maps) reluctantly retires after 54 years, his son Jason faces the pressure of stepping into his father's shoes as the war in Ukraine impacts his family & staff. It documents Veselka following the pandemic when it becomes one of the main hubs in the city for supporting Ukrainians after the war breaks out in 2022. The doc is narrated by David Duchovny, and features saxophone solos by David Sanborn. It looks uplifting and charming, not only a good story about a NYC staple, also a story about how ...

"You just have to keep one step ahead of her." Saban Films has unveiled the trailer for a crime thriller titled Cash Out, from a filmmaker known as "IVES", debuting to watch at the end of April. Yet another of these dime a dozen, extremely derivative crime thrillers. This one is about a bank robbery gone wrong. When his crew's bank heist goes wrong, Mason gets trapped with his team inside the bank they’re trying to rob, and then it all evolves to a hostage situation involving SWAT teams, the FBI and Interpol. How will they get out of this high stakes trap? John Travolta stars as Mason, with Kristin Davis, Quavo, Lukas Haas, Swen Temmel, Sean Astin, and Noel Gugliemi. Apparently there is already a sequel to Cash Out that's shot and ready to go - filmed in 2023 after this one filmed in 2022. Huh. This looks so forgettably bad and cheesy and not entertaining in the least. I am worried Travolta is starting to churn these out like Bruce Willis was. Here's the official trailer (+ poster) for ...

"So, shall we kick it off?" Warner Bros Japan + DC have unveiled yet another new trailer for the Japanese anime series Suicide Squad Isekai. The final release date is now confirmed for July 2024 this summer - though only in Japan to start. Who's ready for this series to drop?! The term "isekai" is a Japanese word for "another world" – which is also what the plot is about, with a ragtag team of DC villains landing in "another world." Super-Villains sent to ISEKAI!? The most dangerous and bizarre fantasy adventure unveiled!! The anime is produced by Warner Bros. Japan and it's animated by Wit Studio, directed by Eri Osada. The voice cast features Anna Nagase as Harley Quinn, Yūichirō Umehara as The Joker, Reigo Yamaguchi as Deadshot, Takehito Koyasu as Peacemaker, Jun Fukuyama as Clayface, and Subaru Kimura as the indomitable King Shark 🦈. With lethal explosives planted in their necks, there's no running or hiding, and failing the mission means a one-way ticket to the afterlife! This looks totally bonkers - the best trailer so far after the ...

"Dear Moviegoer, thanks for watching my trailer." You're welcome, Mister Poolman. Vertical has unveiled a teaser trailer for the wacky stoner comedy titled Poolman, marking the directorial debut of actor Chris Pine. He shot this film in 2022 when the pandemic was still on, and now it's set for release starting in May in theaters around the country. It originally premiered at the 2023 Toronto Film Festival last year, but got terrible reviews (and even a few walk outs) from most critics. Poolman is described a stoner riff on the noir classic Chinatown. It's about a hapless dreamer and would-be philosopher who spends his days looking after the pool of the Tahitian Tiki apartment block in sunny LA. When he uncovers the greatest water heist, he does what he can to protect his precious city. Chris Pine also stars as Darren Barrenman, the titular "poolman", with Annette Being, Danny DeVito, Jennifer Jason Leigh, DeWanda Wise, Stephen Tobolowsky, Clancy Brown, John Ortiz, & Ray Wise. Definitely a wacky trailer, sure I'm still curious. Here's the first look teaser trailer for Chris Pine's ...

"Consider what you are about to do, Paul Atreides..." Be wary of the path you are headed down, Muad'Dib... As with the two biggest movies of last year (Barbie & Oppenheimer), the biggest movie of 2024 so far is also an extremely dense, philosophically compelling, morally complex work of cinematic art. It's exhilarating and fascinating to ponder its epic story of control over the planet Arrakis, and even more exciting realizing that audiences are eating this up. Even if the philosophical ideas may not land as deeply with each viewer, it's proof that truly believing in moviegoers as smart people is actually the right path to take nowadays. Dune: Part Two is playing in theaters worldwide and after watching it three times at the cinema, I must dig into its philosophical side. The most obvious themes are power & control, along with fate & destiny. However, it also makes me wonder about a bigger quandary: what does it really take to overthrow an oppressor and is there actually a successful way to achieve peace & freedom for all? Or will ...