Gravitas Ventures has unveiled a new trailer and poster for the comedy film Brave New Jersey about a small New Jersey town that fell for the War of the Worlds hoax. Jody Lambert (People Like Us) co-wrote the script with Michael Dowling (Law & Order) and directed the alien invasion comedy starring Tony Hale (Veep), Anna Camp (Pitch Perfect), Sam Jaeger (Parenthood), Heather Burns (Manchester by the Sea), Dan Bakkedahl (Life in Pieces), Raymond J. Barry (Gotham), Erika Alexander (Last Man Standing), and Mel Rodriguez (The Last Man on Earth).
Brave New Jersey is set to open in theaters on August 4, 2017.
The Plot: It was the original Fake News story. In a small New Jersey town on the night of Orson Welles’s legendary 1938 “War of the Worlds” radio broadcast, the hoax that terrified millions into believing Martians were invading America, citizens face what they think is their last night on Earth. The over-worked town’s mayor Clark (Hale) will take a chance on love. The neglected housewife, Lorraine (Burns) will break free from her big-cheese husband (Jaeger). The demure schoolteacher Peg (Camp) will become a warrior. The aimless reverend (Bakkedahl) will rediscover his faith. The scared Sheriff (Rodriguez) will find his courage. And the reclusive war veteran (Barry) will become a hero as he convinces the town to fight the aliens. All these characters join forces for a final “battle” that leads to a surprising and hilarious outcome. An alien invasion comedy where the aliens never show up.
“This is my last chance, Cruz, LAST! If I lose I never get to do this again,” says Lightning McQueen (voiced by Owen Wilson) to his new young trainer, Cruz Ramirez (voiced by Cristela Alonzo), as he struggles to get ready for what could be his final race in the third installment of Pixar’s animated film franchise, Cars 3.
As the film begins, Lightning McQueen is enjoying racing against his old competitors and adding more wins to his list of accomplishments. As the racing season continues, however, McQueen finds himself blindsided by a new generation of extremely fast racers, in particular a rookie named Jackson Storm (voiced by Armie Hammer) who leaves Lightning eating his dust as he beats him time and again.
McQueen sees his old competitors and friends retiring or being forced out of racing to make way for the new speedsters and becomes determined to prove he’s still the fastest car on the track on the last race of the season. Unfortunately, McQueen ends up in a very bad accident near the end of the race, finishing the season with a new career low.
Four months later, McQueen’s friends in Radiator Springs – including Sally (voiced by Bonnie Hunt) and Mader (voiced by Larry the Cable Guy – encourage a depressed Lightning to start training again to get ready for the next big race. Realizing he will need to learn some new tricks and moves on the track, Lightning teams up with a new sponsor and a new trainer named Cruz. Lightning also heads out to seek the help of those who knew his old coach and racing legend Hudson Hornet to get ready to take on Jackson Storm and prove that his racing days are not yet behind him.
Charming, sweet, and visually dazzling, Cars 3 brings back to the animated series the heart, fun, and humor of the original film. The strong script wisely focuses on Lightning McQueen, his relationship with his friends, his lost dreams, the memory of his mentor and coach Hudson Hornet, and striving to end things on his own terms while creating a new beginning.
The voice cast is great, with most of the talent from the original film returning to bring these lovable characters to life once again. Chris Cooper, who voices Smokey, Hornet’s best friend back in the day, is a welcome addition to the film. Cooper’s Smokey fills the void still felt by the absence of the iconic Paul Newman and Hudson Hornet. Sadly, the addition of McQueen’s well-meaning but at times annoying new trainer, Cruz, comes up short on introducing a likeable or interesting character for the audience to care about or root for.
Cars 3 looks fantastic, with beautiful animation, bright colors, and some wonderful visual effects. It’s perhaps the most visually dynamic film of the series. The musical score is also a highlight of the film, adding tension and suspense, effectively evoking an emotional response from the audience.
With a solid script that has plenty of heart, lovable characters, and fantastic animation, Cars 3 is a first-rate animated adventure for kids 7-70. Don’t miss it.
Adam Pally as Ben, Fred Armisen as Dave, and Zoe Lister-Jones as Ann in ‘Band Aid’ (Photo Courtesy of IFC Films)
Zoe Lister-Jones wrote, stars in, and makes her directorial debut with Band Aid, a quirky, touching, and nuanced romantic dramedy. The chemistry, performances, and realistic situations in Band Aid elevate this indie film beyond the expected into something surprisingly engaging and refreshingly real.
The premise is relatively simple: a married couple deal with problems in their relationship by writing songs describing their marital issues. The film revolves around Anna (Lister-Jones of Life in Pieces) and Ben (Adam Pally of Happy Endings) as they move forward after a devastating event rocks their marriage. Attempting to hold it together, the couple stumble upon the idea of creating a band and writing songs as a form of therapy.
Their quarrels provide fodder for catchy but cutting tunes, and with the help of their neighbor, Weird Dave (Fred Armisen), they hit the stage at open mic nights. The unconventional therapy works to a point, and the marriage occasionally hits a harmonious beat off-stage as well as on. However, until they’re able to address the life-changing event at the center of their dysfunctional relationship, the music is nothing more than a temporary distraction.
Lister-Jones establishes herself as a filmmaker to watch with her rookie feature film. Wearing multiple hats, Lister-Jones wrote believable, flawed characters and then gathered a talented ensemble to create this alternately hilarious and heartbreaking relationship tale.
Pally and Lister-Jones truly sell the idea this couple is genuinely in love and seeking to reconnect to what initially drew them together. Once they take up instruments and hit the stage, Band Aid really slips into a groove. Still, there are a few rough moments when Band Aid briefly loses its way in the third act with an abrupt change in tone. However, even with its rough spots Lister-Jones’ Band Aid is a must-see comedy that signals the arrival of a talented filmmaker with a keen eye and the ability to create relatable, authentic characters.
GRADE: B+
Release Date: June 16, 2017
Running Time: 94 minutes
Cast: Zoe Lister-Jones, Adam Pally, Fred Armisen, Hannah Simone, Brooklyn Decker, Angelique Cabral, Susie Essman, Retta, Ravi Patel, Majandra Delfino, Colin Hanks, Daryl Wein, Chris D’Elia, Jamie Chung, Erinn Hayes, Gillian Zinser, and Jesse Williams
Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular (Photo by NBCUniversal)
Hailee Steinfeld, Brad Paisley, and Lady Antebellum are confirmed to perform on NBC’s Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular, and American Ninja Warrior‘s Akbar Gbajabiamila, Matt Iseman, and Kristine Leahy are set to host this year’s holiday special. The 2017 July 4th special will include the largest fireworks display in 10 years backed by the West Point Band and Glee Club along with featured vocalists Heather Headley, Craig Campbell, and Jamie Barton & the USO Troupe of Metropolitan New York.
“Our lineup of amazing musical acts and personalities will be the perfect lead-in to the incredible fireworks display the nation waits for all year,” stated Doug Vaughan, Executive Vice President, Specials & Late Night Programming, NBC Entertainment. “NBC is proud to partner with Macy’s and these talented artists to create the ultimate destination to celebrate Independence Day.”
The two-hour broadcast will air at 8pm ET/PT, with an encore presentation at 10pm ET/PT.
Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular will feature a firework display over the East River. Per NBC, “The incredible pyrotechnic spectacle, igniting the skyline with more than 60,000 shells launched from five barges positioned in midtown, will be the country’s largest display in over a decade and promises to be a must-see show from coast-to-coast.”
Last year’s fireworks show was watched by more than 6.9 million viewers, up 2 million over 2015’s broadcast.
History’s set a July 11, 2017 premiere date for American Ripper, an eight-part limited series executive produced by Matthew Ostrom, Laura Palumbo Johnson, Jason Fox, Kristen Burns and Sean Boyle. American Ripper explores the possibility that America’s first serial killer was also Britain’s Jack the Ripper. Jeff Mudgett, serial killer H.H. Holmes’ great-great-grandson, leads the investigation into ties between Holmes and Jack the Ripper. Holmes claimed to have murdered 200 people in the late 19th century at the same time Jack the Ripper was butchering five women in London, and the new series delves into the brutal murders from a fresh prospective.
American Ripper will air on Tuesdays at 10pm ET/PT.
The Plot: Herman Mudgett, alias H.H. Holmes, was America’s first serial killer. No one knows for sure how many lives he took, but it’s believed he was responsible for killing as many as 200 people in the late 19th century. A con man, opportunist and evil genius, the crowning achievement of his dark deeds was the construction of a building later dubbed the Murder Castle: a hotel on Chicago’s south side that he engineered to be a factory of death, complete with a gas chamber, dissection room, trap doors and a basement furnace to destroy any trace of his sinister work. At the same time across the Atlantic, a killer was terrorizing the streets of London, murdering and mutilating at least five victims in the Whitechapel area of the city. To this day, the killer has never been caught or identified. He is known as Jack the Ripper.
In American Ripper, Holmes’ great-great-grandson, Jeff Mudgett, sets out to prove a controversial theory: that H.H. Holmes and Britain’s most notorious serial killer, Jack The Ripper, were the same man. After twenty years searching for the truth about his notorious ancestor, Mudgett partners with ex-CIA analyst Amaryllis Fox to launch an all new investigation, using 21st century science and methodology to unlock the secrets of one of the biggest cold cases of all time.
Mel Gibson arrives to ruin Mark Wahlberg’s Christmas in the trailer for the comedy sequel, Daddy’s Home 2. The action picks up with Wahlberg’s Dusty and Will Ferrell’s Brad now BFFs after a rocky start in 2015’s Daddy’s Home. However, the harmonic extended family is thrown for a loop with the arrival of Dusty’s dad. John Lithgow also joins the holiday comedy as Brad’s dad. Directed by Sean Anders, the sequel’s cast also includes Daddy’s Home‘s Linda Cardellini, John Cena, and Scarlett Estevez (Lucifer).
Daddy’s Home 2 arrives in theaters on November 10, 2017.
The Plot: Father and stepfather, Dusty (Wahlberg) and Brad (Ferrell), have joined forces to provide their kids with the perfect Christmas. Their newfound partnership is put to the test when Dusty’s old-school, macho Dad (Gibson) and Brad’s ultra-affectionate and emotional Dad (Lithgow) arrive just in time to throw the holiday into complete chaos.
Universal Pictures’ Happy Death Day‘s new trailer feels like 1993’s Groundhog Day minus Bill Murray and the weather-forecasting furry creature and with a gruesome murder. Christopher Landon (Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones) directed and co-wrote the script with Scott Lobdell.
The cast is led by Jessica Rothe (La La Land) and includes Israel Broussard, Ruby Modine, and Charles Aitken, Laura Clifton.
Happy Death Day arrives in theaters on October 13, 2017.
The Plot: Blumhouse (Split, Get Out, Whiplash) produces an original and inventive rewinding thriller in Happy Death Day, in which a college student (Rothe) relives the day of her murder with both its unexceptional details and terrifying end until she discovers her killer’s identity.
Musical Guest/Co-Host Miley Cyrus with Host Jimmy Fallon during “Google Translate” on ‘The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon’ (Photo by: Andrew Lipovsky/NBC)
The Tonight Show‘s Jimmy Fallon joined Miley Cyrus in singing popular songs after they’d been put through Google Translate. First up was Ed Sheeran’s “Shape of You” sung by Miley Cyrus and translated to “Your Body’s Curves.” Among the best lyrics following the translation were “We do not like pressure stones make” and the switch from “I’m in love with your body” which twisted into “I like that cadaver.” Jimmy Fallon handled the Google Translate version of Rick James’ “Super Freak” which had warped into “Really Weird.” The song was a mess after being translated from English and even the “She’s all right. She’s all right” didn’t come through the process unscathed, translating to “She is okay. She is okay.”
Cyrus took on Dusty Springfield’s classic hit, “Son of a Preacher Man” which became “A Minister’s Male Child.” The five-minute Google Translate Songs video finished up with Cyrus and Fallon dueting on Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell’s “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” translated to “Landforms Don’t Prefer to Get High.”
Issa Rae and Jay Ellis star in ‘Insecure’ (Photo: Anne Marie Fox/HBO)
HBO’s Insecure is teasing fans with a dialogue-less new 50 second trailer starring Issa Rae and backed by Calvin Harris’ “Slide” featuring Frank Ocean. The teaser finds Issa stuck in traffic and daydreaming, with “Hella Confused,” “Hella Tempted,” and “Hella Lit” popping up in different scenarios.
HBO’s critically acclaimed comedy returns for its second season on Sunday, July 23, 2017 at 10:30pm ET/PT. Insecure was created by Issa Rae and Larry Wilmore, with Rae, Prentice Penny, Melina Matsoukas, Michael Rotenberg, Dave Becky and Jonathan Berry executive producing.
The Plot: Starring Issa Rae, Yvonne Orji, Jay Ellis, and Lisa Joyce, the series follows the friendship of two black women as they deal with their own real-life flaws while attempting to navigate different worlds and cope with an endless series of uncomfortable everyday experiences.
Carrie Coon as Gloria Burgle and Ewan McGregor as Emmit Stussy in ‘Fargo’ season 3 episode 9 (Photo by Chris Large/FX)
FX’s Fargo season three episode nine is titled ‘Aporia’ which seems like the perfect title for this season’s penultimate episode. Episode nine begins with Marvin Stussy of St. Cloud, Minnesota quietly going about his morning routine, fetching his newspaper, and preparing his breakfast when he’s stabbed to death by Meemo (Andy Yu) while looking in his refrigerator.
Meanwhile, Emmit (Ewan McGregor) has turned himself in and prepares to be interviewed by Deputy Gloria Burgle (Carrie Coon). Although three police stations are closer, he wants to speak with Gloria because she gave him her card. He begins by telling her anyone who claims to be his lawyer should not be let in. He doesn’t want to speak with anyone and says, “Don’t trust anyone who comes, if they do, which they may not.”
Emmit admits Ray was right and that he did trick him out of a fortune. Their dad played tennis every Saturday and on one such day Emmit was in the driveway throwing a ball against the house and Ray was inside eating. Their dad returned home, stepped out of the car, and fell to the ground, dead. Emmit attempts to keep his emotions under control as he tells the story. He then blurts out that he killed Ray.
“First, I tricked him. Then, I killed him,” says Emmit. Even though there were years in between the events, it was like no time had passed when he killed Ray in his apartment. Emmit asks Gloria if she believes there’s a special level of hell for those who kill loved ones on Christmas Eve and she doesn’t respond. He reveals that at 17 he wanted his dad’s stamps, not his red Corvette, and he hinted to his chubby brother that he’d get laid (for the first time) if he had the car. Ray begged Emmit for the car as if it was his idea. Emmit feels horrible for tricking his brother and for cutting his throat, leaving him to bleed out on his floor.
Gloria asks for more details and Emmit explains he sold all but the 2-cent stamp to start and fund his business. He framed the 2-cent stamp but knows that stamp was “like a stick in the eye” every time Ray saw it. It meant Emmit won and Ray lost. He recalls the events of the night Ray died, beginning with how he brought the stamp to Ray and apologized. Emmit wanted to settle the feud once and for all, but Ray was still mad and that’s when the frame broke and the glass pierced Ray’s neck. Emmit says he didn’t mean to do it, and he didn’t hit him with the frame. It just happened. But, Emmit’s not saying it wasn’t murder as he believes he’s been slowly killing his brother for 30 years.
Meanwhile, Meemo meets with Varga (David Thewlis) in the 18-wheeler parked in a Stussy lot. Varga reminds him what matters is that Emmit sign the papers. They also have to get Emmit out of the police precinct ASAP.
Varga takes off and Meemo, accompanied by a small assortment of goons, leaves the lot and drives the 18-wheeler. Meemo’s in the 18-wheeler with one associate while two others follow close behind in a car. They’re stopped at a red light when suddenly the passenger side window crashes in and Nikki’s standing right outside the door, tossing in a grenade. Meemo leaps from the truck and takes cover in a nearby pickup while Mr. Wrench (Russell Harvard) opens fire on Varga’s men in the car.
Nikki jumps into the truck’s driver’s seat and she and Mr. Wrench drive away with it after she tosses the fake grenade (which is actually a paperweight) out the window. They drive the truck to what looks like a salvage yard and then check out what’s in the back. Varga’s complete monitoring setup is there, with its computers, cameras, etc. Nikki doesn’t say anything as they look around inside, grabbing a briefcase, books, and hard drives before leaving. They get into a car mere feet from the truck and take off, leaving the backdoor of the truck wide open. (Nikki meticulously planned out this attack!)
Meemo makes it back to the Stussy Lots office just as Varga receives a call from Nikki. He quickly figures out who he’s talking to and in response, she calls him by the name of one of his Cayman Island account numbers and then lists off one more account number. He’s briefly shocked but recovers enough to tell her numbers mean nothing without passwords and the answers to six security questions. She demands to know what his initials, V. M., stand for and then tells him she wants $2 million to be delivered to the lobby of the Clarion Hotel, reminding him to come alone.
Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Nikki Swango and Russell Harvard as Mr. Wrench in ‘Fargo’ season 3 episode 9 (Photo by Chris Large/FX)
Back at the station, Emmit’s escorted to a holding cell while Gloria gives Winnie Lopez (Olivia Sandoval) a call. Winnie’s out at a crime scene and after Gloria asks about her conversation with Ruby Goldfarb at the restaurant the night of Ray’s murder, Winnie has news of her own to share. There’s a dead man in his kitchen with his throat cut by a piece of glass and the weird thing is, his last name’s Stussy.
Gloria’s son, Nathan, shows up at the station with lunch for his mom. They’re discussing upcoming weekend plans when Goldfarb calls saying she’ll come in for an interview. Gloria’s happy about how the case is moving along and believes she’s close to closing it.
Chief Moe Dammik (Shea Whigham) arrives at a different crime scene where a man is sitting in his kitchen, dead. He’s taped to a chair and has his nose and mouth glued shut. His name: George Stussy. Chief Dammik thinks all these Stussy deaths were committed by one person, and a neighbor wrote down the license plate of a maroon Cadillac that left the scene in a big hurry.
The cops find the “killer” at a gas station and he’s taken into custody.
Ruby Goldfarb isn’t happy about being called in for additional questioning, putting on an attitude as Gloria attempts to get to the truth about her dinner date with Sy Feltz and Emmit Stussy. As they’re going over the timeline for the dinner, there’s a rush of activity in the station. Gloria checks it out and Chief Dammik is overjoyed and proud of himself that he solved the murders. Gloria doesn’t understand since Emmit confessed, but Dammik insists all the murders were committed by a man who hated the Stussys. The “killer” had a stockpile of evidence from each of the murder scenes in his trunk – and he confessed to all the murders.
Meemo informs Varga that Emmit Stussy will be let out soon and that the operation is moving to “stage 5.”
Varga appears overconfident as he meets Nikki in the hotel lobby, ready to hear her demands. They verbally spar and Nikki more than holds her own. She describes why she loves playing bridge and he expresses his detest for games. He offers her tea which she wisely refuses. Instead of handing over the money, he offers her a job and is impressed when she calls him on his line of bullsh*t about being in middle management. He adds a zero to her salary offer and still she refuses.
Varga wonders what Nikki’s game plan is and she lays it out. She’s not sure the briefcase he’s carrying has the money in it, but she is sure Meemo is somewhere close by watching them and ready to shoot her if she hands over the books and the hard drives. (Meemo is in fact listening in on this from a floor above, rifle aimed at Nikki’s head.) Nikki continues laying out her plan, saying Varga is a distinctive-looking guy and this is a public meeting spot. But when he tells her to look around, every single man in the lobby is dressed exactly like him. She compliments this move while at the same time Mr. Wrench has located Meemo and holds a gun just inches from the back of the assassin’s head.
Mr. Wrench signals Nikki through her earpiece and she lays her cards on the table, telling Varga his man has been spotted and is no longer part of the equation. She demands her money as Varga confirms for himself that Meemo is no longer covering him. Varga wants his property but Nikki threatens to turn one hard drive over to the police since he didn’t comply with her demands. Varga warns her she can’t win this game and reminds her she’s asking for petty cash while he’s offering her a fortune. Nikki then reveals the kicker to this plan: it’s all about hurting him, not the money.
Varga tells her Emmit actually killed Ray, but Nikki knows Varga was behind the attempt on her life in jail and flipping the bus. Varga admits he doesn’t like her and Nikki’s fine with that. She gives him another day to get her money and then casually walks out of the lobby along with Mr. Wrench.
Back at the police station, Gloria’s ordered to let Emmit go and he’s just as confused as she is. She explains what’s happened since he’s been locked up and that a serial killer who hates people named Stussy has confessed to all the murders. Emmit can’t believe people were killed just because they share his last name. Gloria asks who’s pulling the strings, acknowledging she believes it was the man she met in his office. Emmit’s about to say something and stammers a little before apologizing. He doesn’t divulge the puppet master’s name, so Gloria simply opens the door and sets him free.
Meemo is waiting outside to pick him up and Emmit looks like a dead man walking. He sits next to Varga in the backseat of the car as Varga explains, “The problem is not that there is evil in the world. The problem is that there is good.”
After a rough day, Gloria meets up with Winnie at a bar. Gloria believes the good guys lost, but Winnie says, “Jesus wins in the end.” Gloria talks about the sci-fi books her stepdad wrote and that she feels like the android in his stories. She also confesses to feeling “unreal,” that automatic doors don’t open for her, sinks and soap dispensers don’t work for her, and no one hears her when she makes a phone call. Gloria believes she doesn’t actually exist. Winnie pokes her and then instead of making a speech, she tells Gloria to stand up. Gloria does, and so does Winnie. Winnie hugs her long and hard, and it’s exactly what Gloria needed.
Tears in her eyes, Gloria heads to the restroom to clean up before they get down to heavy drinking. For the first time, the sink turns on when she places her hands under the faucet. The soap dispenser also senses her presence and works.
And now a player from episodes five and six puts in a surprise appearance. IRS Agent Larue Dollard (Hamish Linklater) arrives at his office and discovers a large manila envelope in his chair. Inside is a huge stack of papers and a flash drive. The camera zooms in to show the top paper is labeled, “Stussy Lots Ltd. Accounts Payable Record.”
