Author: Alex Billington

"It was like the sound of waves at the seashore. But a thousand times stronger." Another stellar animated short film is now available to watch online after playing on the film festival circuit for a few years. Tsunami Girl, also listed as The Girl and the Tsunami, is an animated film telling a true story about an island off of the coast of Chile (see Google Maps). It's made be a collaboration of filmmakers from Argentina and other countries. In early 2010, on a remote island in the Pacific Ocean called Juan Fernandez, everyone slept in town. But a 12-year-old girl felt a tremor and warned of imminent danger. The short was commissioned to tell help spread awareness of alert systems for tsunamis, especially in remote places like this small island. "Because if Martina had not alerted her neighbors, the story would have been very different, and even more terrible." It's amazing that she was able to get up the hill and bang the gong in time to get everyone out and safe before the tsunami arrived. The earthquake was ...

"Perhaps you will be able to make this world a more harmonious place than I could." GKids has debuted one more official trailer for Studio Ghibli's The Boy and the Heron to announce their re-release of the film. Hayao Miyazaki's latest hand-drawn story just won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. To celebrate this achievement, GKids is sending The Boy and the Heron back to theaters on March 22nd - for everyone to catch up with & experience this beautiful film on the big screen. "A young boy named Mahito yearning for his mother ventures into a world shared by the living and the dead. There, death comes to an end, and life finds a new beginning. A semi-autobiographical fantasy about life, death, and creation, [and] in tribute to friendship, from the mind of Hayao Miyazaki." With an original score by Joe Hisaishi. Described as a "big fantastical film", it follows a boy who discovers an abandoned tower in his new town and enters a magical, mystical world guided by a strange talking grey heron. The English-language dub version ...

"The dark forces are never to be underestimated." Silver Lining Entertainment has unveiled the full trailer for an international fantasy thriller titled Nine, made by actor turned filmmaker Chris Attoh. This Ghanaian production is an English-language movie about supernatural powers and strange ritualistic killings. Not to be confused with any of the other movies also titled Nine (including this stop-motion one). When a series of witchcraft-related murders plague Ghana, a homicide detective and an elite, all-female group of assassins must track down the killer before supernatural warfare is unleashed on Earth. They decide to bring in this detective from the US who looks a lot like Kevin Hart. The Nine cast is a mix of South African, Nigerian, American and Ghanaian actors led by Rosemary Zimu, Chris Attoh, Kate Henshaw, and Damien D. Smith, with Chasity Saunders, Juliet Ibrahim, Adjetey Anang, & Zynnel Zuh. Doesn't look like it's going to take the world by storm, but it's cool to see Ghana trying out some Hollywood movies of their own. Here's the main official trailer (+ poser) for Chris Attoh's Nine, direct ...

"I want rural America to vibrant again, that's my motivation here." Yes! Magnolia Pictures has unveiled an official trailer for a documentary sequel titled Food, Inc. 2, from filmmakers Robert Kenner & Melissa Robledo. This is a follow-up to the acclaimed, industry-shaking doc Food, Inc. from 2008 - both this film & its sequel are also based on books of the same name. This sequel is premiering at the 2024 CPH:DOX Film Festival in Denmark this month. Their intro: "Turbo chickens, plant-based steaks and a pandemic. A lot has happened since the first Food Inc. film, and it's time for a fresh in-depth look at the food industry and at possible solutions." Food Inc 2 centers around innovative farmers, future-thinking food producers, workers' rights activists and prominent legislators such as U.S Senators Cory Booker and Jon Tester, who are facing these companies head-on to inspire change and build a healthier, more sustainable future. Let's hope this actually makes a difference! Because it only seems to be getting worse out there, especially with all this bad inflation recently. Seems like the ...

"Sometimes something so bad happens that the soul cannot rest... until you put the wrong things right." Lionsgate has unveiled the first full trailer for The Crow, the latest modern movie adaptation of the comic book series by James O'Barr. This has been in development for a long time, they've tried to adapt it again for a decade. As everyone knows, the original 1994 movie is a cult classic, but it's also haunted by the death of Brandon Lee who was killed on set while filming a death scene. Bill Skarsgård takes on the iconic role of Eric Draven aka The Crow in this modern reimagining of the original story. Soulmates Eric and Shelly are brutally murdered when the demons of her dark past catch up with them. Given the chance to save his true love by sacrificing himself, Eric sets out to seek merciless revenge on their killers, traversing the worlds of the living and the dead to put the wrong things right. In addition to Skarsgård, this new The Crow movie stars FKA Twigs as Shelly, along with ...

"I love how music can do that... pull you back to some moment in time." Searchlight Pictures has unveiled an official trailer for an indie romantic drama called The Greatest Hits, the latest film from filmmaker Ned Benson (of The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby films). Premiering today at the SXSW Film Festival in Austin before it lands on Hulu for streaming in April. Written and produced by Benson, Harriet experiences a unique connection between art and reality. She discovers that specific songs have the power to transport her back in time, driving her to relive special moments with her ex-boyfriend. Her time-traveling begins to bleed into the present when she meets someone new. Throughout the journey, she explores the mesmerizing link between music and memory, facing her with difficult decisions of whether altering the past is a choice worth making. Lucy Boynton stars with Justin H. Min, David Corenswet, Andie Ju, Retta, Austin Crute. This looks great! Not really a romcom at all, more of an emotional story about music, grief, and love. Here's the official trailer (+ poster) for Ned ...

"Often when women start talking politics we get shut down." Apple TV has revealed the official trailer for the documentary film Girls State, the highly anticipated follow-up to the 2020 doc film Boys State by the same filmmakers - Amanda McBaine & Jesse Moss. This premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, just as Boys State did, and it will be streaming on Apple TV+ this April. "There's something in the air—it’s politics." What would American democracy look like in the hands of teenage girls? A political coming-of-age story and stirring reimagination of what it means to govern, Girls State follows young female leaders — from wildly different backgrounds across Missouri — as they navigate an immersive experiment to build a government from the ground up. Sundance also adds: "McBaine and Moss stay embedded in Girls State, following several charismatic candidates, but these aspiring change-makers keenly take note of the Boys State program, and the differences between the programs, sparking outcry and awakening." I caught this at Sundance - great film, even better than Boys State, with ...

"Think about your daughter and do the right thing!" Capstone Pictures has revealed an official trailer for a sci-fi survival thriller titled Breathe, the latest by a director named Stefon Bristol, who also made the small scale sci-fi comedy See You Yesterday previously. This is his latest creation, directing a script about a future on an uninhabitable Earth - as depicted with a heavy orange filter. Lots of climate change near-future sci-fi movies doing this nowadays. Air-supply is scarce in the near future, forcing a mother and daughter to fight to survive when two strangers arrive desperate for an oxygenated haven inside their bunker. Breathe stars Jennifer Hudson and Quvenzhané Wallis (from Beasts of the Southern Wild) as mother and daughter, with Milla Jovovich, Sam Worthington, Common, Raúl Castillo, James Saito, Dan Martin, and Kaliswa Brewster. Yet another surprise sci-fi film arriving in theaters soon! It's also debuting on VOD on the same day, which isn't a good sign. Something is off about this, doesn't seem like it's going to work at all. Here's the full official trailer (+ poster) for ...

"You got 10 guys that need this place." Paramount has revealed an official trailer for a sports comedy called Sweet Dreams, a new film directed by the producer of sleeper hit The Peanut Butter Falcon previously. Opening in theaters in April this spring to enjoy. This fresh new comedy is a wild journey of second chances. Forced into rehab, Morris agrees to coach a misfit softball team of recovering addicts from his own house to prove that everyone, despite their past, can hit a home run. And maybe he will get his own life back on track, too. Johnny Knoxville stars as Morris, with an ensemble cast featuring Mo Amer, GaTa, Bobby Lee, Theo Von, Brian Van Holt, Jonnie Park, Shakewell, Adam Faison, plus Jay Mohr & Kate Upton. This doesn't look like it has the most original script, but it still does seem quite wholesome and amusing in an obnoxiously entertaining way. This trailer comes across much more sentimental than all-out humorous. Here's the official trailer (+ poster) for Lije Sarki's Sweet Dreams, direct from Paramount's YouTube: Johnny Knoxville, Mo Amer, ...

"I'm sorry Lupe, but this is the only way to save her." Lightbulb Film Distribution has unveiled an official trailer for the UK release soon of a modern western film titled The Stolen Valley, formerly known as Alta Valley when it premiered at a few small film festivals lat year. The debut feature from Jesse Edwards, the movie stars Briza Covarrubias and Allee Sutton Hethcoat as two outlaws, attempting to outrun those hunting them. To save her dying mother, Lupe, a Mexican-Navajo mechanic bands together with an outlaw cowgirl. In order to safely reach Alta Valley, they must venture together across the desert, outrun criminals, & confront a corrupt landowner. "The relentless action and stunning cinematography will leave audiences on the edge of their seats. And who doesn’t love a gruffly-voiced baddie?!" It also stars Micah Fitzgerald, Paula Miranda, Paulette Lamori, Oscar Balderrama, Ricardo Herranz, & Danny Arroyo. Looks solid, though obviously it's rather cliche and derivative, but it has some intense action at least. Check it out. Here's the official UK trailer (+ poster) for Jesse Edwards' The Stolen Valley, ...