Indie Film Release Guide: June 8th [An ONTD Original]
Hereditary doesn't have the fashion, bling, or Rihanna of Ocean’s 8, but it does have a scary dead grandma, better reviews, and Toni Collette. And both are opening wide this weekend! This is not to shade Ocean’s 8, since I personally plan on seeing that, too, but it’s always fun when an indie studio opens a movie in wide release. Info and trailers for Hereditary and the rest of this week’s releases can be found below - after a few weeks of mostly duds, it’s a good week for independent film and Ann Dowd.
Note that some of the movies listed are in their first week or two of limited release in the USA, so it may take them a few more weeks (or months) to show up in your local arthouse theater or on VOD. Check out the posts from the past few weeks for more movies that may have just opened near you: June 1, May 25, and May 18.
Hereditary
Click to viewStars: Toni Collette, Gabriel Byrne, Alex Wolff, Ann Dowd
Written and directed by: Ari Aster
Genre: Drama, Horror, Mystery
Plot: When the matriarch of the Graham family passes away, her daughter's family begins to unravel cryptic and increasingly terrifying secrets about their ancestry.
What you should know: This is only the fourth A24 film to get a wide release, and the reviews are generally fantastic.
Opens in: Wide release
Hearts Beat Loud
Stars: Nick Offerman, Kiersey Clemons, Ted Danson, Toni Collette
Writer: Brett Haley, Marc Basch
Director: Brett Haley
Genre: Drama, LGBT
Plot: A father and daughter form an unlikely songwriting duo in the summer before she leaves for college.
What you should know: Autostraddle calls it the “quirky, queer rom-com we all deserve” (!!!)
Opens in: NYC & LA
Won’t You Be My Neighbor?
Director: Morgan Neville
Genre: Documentary
Storyline: An exploration of the life, lessons, and legacy of iconic children's television host, Fred Rogers.
What you should know: Bring your tissues.
Opens in: Select cities
Hotel Artemis
Stars: Sofia Boutella, Sterling K. Brown, Jodie Foster, Jeff Goldblum
Written and directed by: Drew Pearce
Genre: Action, Crime, Sci-Fi
Plot: Set in riot-torn, near-future Los Angeles, 'Hotel Artemis' follows the Nurse, who runs a secret, members-only emergency room for criminals.
What you should know: Father John Misty makes a cameo in this not-reaaaally-indie-but-mish-mosh-of-production-companies-film, which stars everyone you can think of from Charlie Day to Zachary Quinto.
Opens in: Wide release
2036 Origin Unknown
Stars: Katee Sackhoff, Julie Cox, Steven Cree, Ray Fearon
Writer: Hasraf Dulull, Gary Hall
Director: Hasraf Dulull
Genre: Sci-Fi
Plot: A mission controller teams up with an artificial intelligence system to investigate a mysterious object below the surface of Mars that could alter Earth's future.
Opens in: NYC, LA
Nancy
Stars: Andrea Riseborough, Steve Buscemi, Ann Dowd, John Leguizamo
Written and directed by: Christina Choe
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Plot: Nancy becomes increasingly convinced she was kidnapped as a child. When she meets a couple whose daughter went missing thirty years ago, reasonable doubts give way to willful belief.
What you should know: Reviews for this one are a mixed bag
Opens in: NYC, LA
Westwood: Punk, Icon, Activist
Director: Lorna Tucker
Genre: Documentary
Storyline: The first film to encompass the remarkable story of one of the true icons of our time, as she fights to maintain her brand's integrity, her principles - and her legacy.
What you should know: This is the director’s first film.
Opens in: NYC
Zoo
Stars: Toby Jones, Penelope Wilton, Art Parkinson, Ian McEllhiney
Written and directed by: Colin McIvor
Genre: Family, History, War
Plot: Young Tom and his misfit friends fight to save 'Buster' the baby elephant during the German air raid bombings of Belfast in 1941.
Opens in: On demand
The Workers Cup
Director: Adam Sobel
Genre: Documentary, Sports
Storyline: Inside Qatar's labor camps, African and Asian migrant workers building the facilities of the 2022 World Cup compete in a football tournament of their own.
Opens in: NYC, LA
Bernard And Huey
Stars: Jim Rash, David Koechner, Mae Whitman, Sasha Alexander
Writer: Jules Feiffer
Director: Dan Mirvish
Genre: Drama, Comedy
Plot: Two old friends reunite, which causes complications.
What you should know: Based on characters from a Village Voice comic strip dating back to 1957.
Opens in: NYC, LA, and available on demand
The Valley
Stars: Alyy Khan, Suchitra Pillai, Jake T. Austin, Agneeta Thacker
Written and directed by: Saila Kariat
Genre: Drama, Mystery
Plot: Devastated by his daughter's suicide, an immigrant entrepreneur working in high-tech seeks answers to his lingering questions.
Opens in: Select cities, and available on demand
211
Stars: Nicholas Cage, Sophie Skelton, Michael Rainey Jr., Dwayne Cameron
Written and directed by: York Alec Shackleton
Genre: Action, Drama, History
Plot: Officer Mike Chandler and a young civilian passenger find themselves unprepared and outgunned when fate puts them squarely in-the-crosshairs of a daring bank heist that is being carried out by a fearless team of highly trained and heavily armed men.
What you should know: It looks bad even by Nicolas-Cage-movie standards.
Opens in: Los Angeles
To a More Perfect Union: U.S. v Windsor
Director: Donna Zaccaro
Genre: Documentary
Storyline: The film chronicles unlikely heroes -- octogenarian Edie Windsor and her attorney, Roberta Kaplan, on their quest for justice: Edie had been forced to pay a huge estate tax bill upon the death of her spouse because the federal government denied federal benefits to same-sex couples - and Edie's spouse was a woman.
What you should know: It’s only an hour long.
Opens in: Select cities
The Quest of Alain Ducasse
Director: Gilles de Maistre
Genre: Documentary
Storyline: With 23 restaurants and 18 Michelin stars, Alain Ducasse continues to push the boundaries of his profession toward new horizons. Follow the renowned chef as he travels around the world for two years to perfect his perpetually evolving craft.
What you should know: It’s in French, because this guy is French as hell.
Opens in: NYC, and available on demand
Half the Picture
Director: Amy Adrion
Genre: Documentary
Storyline: This woman-directed documentary about the dismal number of women directors working in Hollywood uses the current EEOC investigation into discriminatory hiring practices as a framework to talk to successful women directors about their career paths, their struggles, their inspiration, and their hopes for the future.
Opens in: NYC
Also opening: Believer (Trailer), On The Seventh Day (Trailer), Guilty Men (Trailer), Middleground (Trailer)
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Have you seen anything lately? What are you planning to see this weekend?