We are officially into the Dog Days of Summer. Actually, that may not be true. Is there an official start to the Dog Days of Summer? Do they put that on calendars? Maybe it’s in August, I don’t know. What I do know is that it feels like summer has been here forever and it feels like it will never end. I’ve grown really tired of having nothing but blockbusters at the movie theater. I’m ready for cooler weather, leaves changing colors, the end of mowing my yard, and some new Oscar contenders to watch.
There is no relief coming this week from the Blu-ray releases. There is very little of anything to note and the big release is from none other than Steven Spielberg. One would think a big summer movie from the guy who invented big summer movies that is all about the nostalgia over big summer movies from Steven Spielberg in the 1980s would be awesome. But reviews for Ready Player One were pretty mixed.
The film is about a dystopian future in which everybody plays some kind of virtual-reality game where they become avatars of all sorts of ’80s pop-cultural artifacts. As someone who grew up in the ’80s watching Spielberg movies and now enjoys watching them with his daughter, that sounds like a lot of fun, even if it also sounds pretty shallow. [Read Gordon S. Miller’s review.]
Also out this week that looks interesting:
Gravity Falls: The Complete Series: I’ve not watched (or even heard of) this Disney animated series before now. It stars Kristen Schaal and Linda Cardellini and has recurring guest voices played by J.K. Simmons, Neil deGrasse Tyson, Nathan Fillion, amongst others. It’s about a group of kids spending the summer at a mysterious tourist trap in Roadkill County, Oregon. Sounds fun.
The Con Is On: Uma Thurman, Sofia Vergara, Tim Roth, Maggie Q, and Alice Eve star in this con artist/heist flick about a couple of cons who flee England for Los Angeles and get involved in a convoluted plot to steal jewels.
The Navigator: A Medieval Odyssey (Arrow Video): During the Black Death in 1348, a young boy suffering from apocalyptic visions convinces his village to dig a tunnel into the earth where about they then emerge in 1980. Presumed hilarity ensues. Shawn Bourdo has our review.
