![]() ![]() But spins its wheels toward mediocrity, instead. An expansion by Sophie Kargman of her same-titled 2020 short, “Susie Searches” aims to be about loss and loneliness, and isolation and recognition. ![]() The first 25 minutes of “Susie Searches” is so tight, so hilarious and original, beaming with a buoyant teenage energy that could kickoff an entire film series of adventures, that it’s shocking how unyielding, mismanaged and sappy the next hour of the movie becomes. “Susie Searches” (directed by Sophie Kargman) Make no mistake, Smith announces wordlessly from behind the camera: I have arrived to change the game. You can hear it in the unexpected needle drops and deep-cut tracks, and you can feel it in her lyrical cuts that find small moments of beauty in everyday compositions. You can see it in the staccato contrast of light and dark in her elegant black-and-white photography. “Kokomo City” may be her filmmaking debut, but this songwriter innately understands the rhythms and beats that make compelling cinematic storytelling. How lucky we are that she found this medium. From the rollicking opening scene of “Kokomo City” - her luminous documentary portrait of four Black trans sex workers which she shot, edited, and directed - it’s clear the terms are being set by a visionary artist who just happened to funnel her interdisciplinary talents into filmmaking for this particular project. Smith knows how to make a person stand up and pay attention. Both a gifted satirist - see: “Dear White People,” a 2014 Sundance hit that was later expanded into an even more brilliant and cutting Netflix series of the same name - and also someone who’s previously displayed a clever mind for comic horror (“Bad Hair”), Simien couldn’t seem any better-suited to revamp this creaky IP for contemporary audiences. It might chill a decent chunk of its target audience, easing the pre-teen crowd into PG-13 horror in much the same way as the younger-skewing likes of “Goosebumps” or “The Addams Family” (2019) may have prepared kids for this, but it certainly won’t haunt them into revisiting it with kids of their own one day.Īs with the previous “Haunted Mansion” movie, this misfire certainly isn’t hurting for talent. “Haunted Mansion” (directed by Justin Simien)Ī sleepy, hollow story about a headless ghost and the gaggle of humans trapped in his murder house, as Justin Simien’s first studio feature neither follows through on its promises nor makes good on its threats. “The First Slam Dunk” (directed by Takehiko Inoue) ![]() “The Beasts” (directed by Rodrigo Sorogoyen) Week of July 24 – July 30 New Films in Theaters Also of note: Riley Keough and Gina Gammell’s Cannes winner “War Pony” gallops into theaters, while Netflix is offering up the cozy-sounding rom-com “Happiness for Beginners.”Įach film is now available in a theater near you or in the comfort of your own home (or, in some cases, both, the convenience of it all). ![]()
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