‘Minions: The Rise of Gru’ July 1st (Theaters)
In the heart of the 1970s, amidst a flurry of feathered hair and flared jeans, Gru (Steve Carell) is growing up in the suburbs. A fanboy of a supervillain supergroup known as the Vicious 6, Gru hatches a plan to become evil enough to join them. Luckily, he gets some mayhem-making back-up from his loyal followers, the Minions. Together, Kevin, Stuart, Bob, and Otto - a new Minion sporting braces and a desperate need to please - deploy their skills as they and Gru build their first lair, experiment with their first weapons, and pull off their first missions. Love ‘em or hate ‘em, the Minions don’t appear to be going away anytime soon.
‘Thor: Love and Thunder’ July 8th (Theaters)
Thor's (Chris Hemsworth) retirement is interrupted by a galactic killer known as Gorr the God Butcher (Christian Bale) who seeks the extinction of the gods. To combat the threat, Thor enlists the help of King Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson), Korg (Taika Waititi) and ex-girlfriend Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), who - to Thor's surprise - inexplicably wields his magical hammer, Mjolnir, as the Mighty Thor. Together, they embark upon a harrowing cosmic adventure to uncover the mystery of the God Butcher's vengeance and stop him before it's too late. Love and Thunder marks Waititi’s return to the MCU after revitalizing it with Ragnarok, and makes Thor the only Avenger thus far to receive a fourth solo film.
‘Good Madam’ July 14th (Shudder)
Tsidi (Chumisa Cosa), a single mother, is forced to move in with her estranged mother Mavis (Nosipho Mtebe), a live-in domestic worker caring obsessively for her catatonic white ‘Madam’ (Jennifer Boraine) in an affluent Cape Town suburb. As Tsidi tries to heal her family however, a sinister specter begins to stir. A genre film entrenched in the ordinary everyday horrors in our society, Good Madam explores the generational trauma inherent to South African culture, sprawling from the past to the present day, with chilling delivery and haunting results.
‘Where the Crawdads Sing’ July 15th (Theaters)
Based on the 2018 novel by Delia Owens that has quickly become one of the best-selling books of all time, Where the Crawdads Sing tells the story of Kya (Daisy Edgar-Jones) an abandoned girl who raised herself in the dangerous marshlands of North Carolina. For years, rumors of the “Marsh Girl” haunted Barkley Cove, isolating the sharp and resilient Kya from her community. Drawn to two young men from town, Kya opens herself to a new and startling world; but when one of them is found dead, she is immediately cast by the community as the main suspect. As the case unfolds, the verdict as to what actually happened becomes increasingly unclear, threatening to reveal the many secrets that lay within the marsh.
‘This is GWAR’ July 21st (Shudder)
Directed by Scott Barber (Orange Years: The Nickelodeon Story), This is GWAR is the powerful story of the iconic heavy metal art collective, as told by the humans who have fought to keep it alive for over thirty years. The feature documentary includes interviews with the band members, both past and present, and other artists, including Weird Al Yankovic, Thomas Lennon, Alex Winter, Bam Margera, and Ethan Embry, including never seen footage of legendary GWAR frontman Dave Brockie (Oderus Urungus). It’s a rare look at the career of one of the world’s most outrageous heavy metal bands, known for their grotesque costumed characters and notoriously wild, fluid-soaked stage shows.
‘Nope’ July 22nd (Theaters)
Jordan Peele returns to cinemas once again with his third movie that once again promises to deliver the filmmaker’s distinct blend of horror, humor and social commentary. The thrills this time around center on caretakers at a California horse ranch who encounter a mysterious force that affects human and animal behaviour. The Haywood siblings (Daniel Kaluuya and Keke Palmer) appear to have gotten tangled up in business with extraterrestrial visitors, or perhaps that’s only what we’re being led to believe. The exact details concerning the plot of Nope are still being kept under wraps, guaranteeing that Peele’s latest will be full of surprises.
‘The Gray Man’ July 22nd (Netflix)
From Marvel box office titans Anthony and Joe Russo comes The Gray Man, an action-packed, globetrotting spy thriller. CIA operative Court Gentry (Ryan Gosling) is plucked from a federal penitentiary and recruited by his handler, Donald Fitzroy (Billy Bob Thornton). Gentry was once a highly-skilled, Agency-sanctioned merchant of death, but now the tables have turned and he’s become the target. Hunted across the globe by Lloyd Hansen (Chris Evans), a former cohort at the CIA who will stop at nothing to take him out, Gentry’s only real ally is agent Dani Miranda (Ana de Armas).
‘Vengeance’’ July 29th (Theaters)
Vengeance is the directorial debut from writer and star B.J. Novak (The Office). The film is a darkly comic thriller about Ben Manalowitz (Novak), a journalist and podcaster who travels from New York City to West Texas to investigate the death of a girl he was hooking up with. Also starring Issa Rae, Ashton Kutcher, Boyd Holbrook, J. Smith-Cameron, and Dove Cameron.
‘The Reef: Stalked’ July 29th (Theaters / Shudder)
Australian filmmaker Andrew Traucki made waves (pun intended) with his tight 2010 shark horror film The Reef, bringing Great Whites back onto the big screen in genuinely thrilling fashion. Over a decade later and Traucki has returned to his surprise hit with a sort of legacy sequel of its own. In an effort to heal after witnessing her sister's horrific murder, Nic (Teressa Liane), her sister Annie (Saskia Archer) and two close friends travel to a remote Pacific island for a kayaking and diving adventure. Only hours into their expedition, the women are stalked and then attacked by a massive Great White. To survive the women will need to band together, and Nic will have to overcome her post-traumatic stress, face her fears and slay a monster.
‘Resurrection’ July 29th (Theaters)
Margaret's (Rebecca Hall) life is in order. She is capable, disciplined, and successful. Everything is under control. That is, until David (Tim Roth) returns, carrying with him the horrors of Margaret's past and forcing her to confront the monster she’s evaded for two decades. This psychological thriller received rave reviews at its festival premiere earlier this year and Shudder has already secured the streaming rights after its initial theatrical release.
