January has become a very intriguing release destination over the last couple of years and it’s nice to have a month that throws caution to the wind and doesn’t worry about being too pretentious while we are all getting caught up on “Best Of” lists from the previous year and wade knee deep in Awards’ Season. All genres are welcome in January and I’m totally here for it!
Close (Expands)
Director: Lukas Dhont | Writers: Lukas Dhont, Angelo Tijssens
Stars: Eden Dambrine, Gistav De Waele, Émilie Dequenne
This is one of those carryovers from 2022, but it’s borderline. It did the festival circuit for much of ’22 and was still doing it when it started releasing in some countries in November, but it only got screens in Los Angeles and New York in December of last year. Now it has an Oscar nomination for Best International Feature under its belt for Best International Feature, which will hopefully give it some legs. I think I previewed it at the end of last year, but since I can’t remember I’ll let it lead off.
*Infinity Pool (Theaters) – Editor’s Pick*
Written & Directed by: Brandon Cronenberg
Stars: Alexander Skarsgård, Mia Goth, Cleopatra Coleman
The latest creepy mind-bender only a Cronenberg could come up with hits theaters this weekend as Brandon Cronenberg continues in his father’s footsteps with his follow-up to Possessor. How deep the rabbit hole goes is anyone’s guess as the lady on the thumbnail for the trailer is wearing a butthole-face mask. I like the cast and I like Cronie, and I have no qualms about weird for the sake of weird. I’m looking forward to this one.
Life Upside Down (Theaters + VOD)
Written & Directed by: Cecilia Miniucchi
Stars: Bob Odenkirk, Radha Mitchell, Danny Huston
Speaking of a cast that I love, that’s the biggest selling point for me with this film about the pandemic lockdown and how that brought further complications to relationships. I don’t know if films like this are going to create their own subgenre now but I did enjoy the James McAvoy/Sharon Horgan film Together which examines their life specifically in a similar scenario, so I am more inclined to give it a chance now versus say 2020.
Maybe I Do (Theaters + VOD)
Written & Directed by: Michael Jacobs
Stars: Richard Gere, Susan Sarandon, William H. Macy, Diane Keaton
It’s really Emma Roberts and Luke Bracey whose romance is at the center of this story, but I have zero interest in that. However, seeing their parents intertwined in a weird cross-pollinated love four-square is what I’m interested in. No disrespect to Robert and Bracey, but I would be more interested in this idea if their characters weren’t in it at all and it was just about the parents’ convoluted relationships.
You People (Netflix)
Director: Kenya Barris | Writers: Jonah Hill, Kenya Barris
Stars: Jonah Hill, Eddie Murphy, Laren London, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Nia Long, David Duchovny
Oddly enough, here’s another movie about a young couple whose parents are going to have a very contentious interaction, but for very different reasons. I am more interested in this after watching Jonah Hill’s Stutz but I am definitely more into this for Eddie Murphy, Nia Long, David Duchovny, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus having super awkward conversations. Much of the supporting cast is great too, but the mediocre reviews so far tell me that maybe it’s a little bit too much on the nose.
One Fine Morning (Theaters)
Written & Directed by: Mia Hansen-Løve
Stars: Léa Seydoux, Pascal Greggory, Melvil Poupaud
Ready to get sad? Well, it looks like Hansen-Løve’s follow-up to Bergman Island has got you covered. Léa Seydoux is one of those performers I always want to see more of in a leading capacity and I’ll be curious to see how she plays this because the theme of dealing with aging parents hits close to home.
WHAT ELSE IS NEW…
Cairo Conspiracy (Theaters)
Written & Directed by: Tarik Saleh
Stars: Tawfeek Barhom, Fares Fares, Mohammad Bakri
Because I am unfamiliar with the socio-political structure of Egypt the context is lost from the outside looking in, but the trailer looked pretty intense. Word of mouth has been pretty good so far and the undercover aspect of this seems very intriguing.
Kompromat (Theaters)
Director: Jérôme Salle | Writers: Caryl Ferey, Jérôme Salle
Stars: Gilles Lellouche, Joanna Kulig, Louis-Do de Lencquesaing
We get another international thriller and this one is filled with some dirty underhanded subversion as well. This film looks at a French diplomat who gets targeted by Russian intelligence while on foreign soil. There are few things more tangibly scary than getting on the wrong side of Russian government agencies. I am interested, but this is more of an at-home movie for me.
Shotgun Wedding (Prime Video)
Director: Jason Moore | Writer: Mark Hammer
Stars: Jennifer Lopez, Josh Duhamel, Lenny Kravtiz
If you blindfolded me, told me J-Lo and Duhamel were doing together, and asked me to describe, I probably would get pretty close to something like this. After the surprising success of The Lost City, I guess action-adventure-rom-coms are going to be the new thing. However, I did enjoy the former and I am more inclined to give this a chance as a result. It’s a couch watch, so what’s the worst that can happen?
Fear (Theaters)
Director: Deon Taylor | Writers: John Ferry, Deon Taylor
Stars: Joseph Sikora, Ruby Modine, Annie Ilonzzeh
I have seen the trailer a couple of times and I am still not sure what I am supposed to be afraid of. I honestly got bored and started messing around on my phone and that’s not a good sign at all. The good news is, if I ever do see it, my expectations will be so low that I may be pleasantly surprised. I won’t be going out of my way for it though.
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