Indie Film Release Guide: June 4th [An ONTD Original]

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While last weekend was huge for the box office, this weekend will likely be a bit more chill. Last week's A Quiet Place Part II and Cruella will certainly continue picking up viewers, but the only two big studio releases this weekend are The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It and Spirit Untamed, both of which appeal to targeted audiences rather than the mainstream. The streamers aren’t releasing a ton this weekend, either, but there are still a lot of titles to peruse.

The films listed are from studios other than the “Big Six” - Paramount, Warner Brothers, 20th Century Fox, Universal, Columbia/Sony and Disney. 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: May 28th, May 21st, and May 14th.

Undine

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Stars: Paula Beer, Franz Rogowski, Maryam Zaree, Jacob Matschenz
Writer/Director: Christian Petzold
Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Mystery
Plot: Undine works as a historian lecturing on Berlin's urban development. But when the man she loves leaves her, the ancient myth catches up with her. Undine has to kill the man who betrays her and return to the water.
What you should know: At the 70th Berlin International Film Festival, Paula Beer won the Silver Bear for Best Actress.
Where to watch: In select theaters, and available VOD



The Carnivores

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Stars: Tallie Medel, Lindsay Burdge, Frank Mosley, Vincent James Prendergast
Writer: Caleb Michael Johnson, Jeff Bay Smith, Tallie Medel, Lindsay Burdge, Frank Mosley, Vincent James Prendergast, Jason Newman
Director: Caleb Michael Johnson
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Thriller
Plot: Alice’s jealousy of how consumed her girlfriend is with their sick dog makes her lose her grip on reality in this darkly comic thriller.
What you should know: This is writer/director Caleb Michael Johnson’s first feature film as a director.
Where to watch: In select theaters, and available VOD

The Real Thing

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Stars: Win Morisaki, Kaho Tsuchimura, Shôhei Uno, Kei Ishibashi
Writer: Kôji Fukada, Shintaro Mitani
Director: Kôji Fukada
Genre: Drama
Plot: A toy salesman rescues a woman whose car was stuck on the train tracks. Shewhisks him into a series of misadventures that turn his life upside down.
What you should know: It’s in Japanese, it’s 232 minutes long, and it’s based on the comic by Mochiru Hoshisato.
Where to watch: In select theaters, virtual cinemas, and available VOD.

Super Frenchie

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Writer: Andy McDonough, Chase Ogden
Director: Chase Ogden
Genre: Documentary
Storyline: From humble beginnings to top extreme athlete in his field, Matthias Giraud weighs his passion for skiing and BASE jumping against the grounding effects of raising a young family.
What you should know: This is the first documentary feature film from director Chase Ogden.
Where to watch: In select theaters, and available VOD

Bad Tales

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Stars: Elio Germano, Tommaso Di Cola, Giulietta Rebeggiani, Gabriel Montesi
Writer/Director: Damiano D'Innocenzo, Fabio D'Innocenzo
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Plot: Once upon a time, in a small family suburb on the outskirts of Rome, the cheerful heat of summer camouflages a stifling atmosphere of alienation. From a distance, the families seem normal, but it’s an illusion: in the houses, courtyards and gardens, silence shrouds the subtle sadism of the fathers, the passivity of the mothers and the guilty indifference of adults. But it’s the desperation and repressed rage of the children that will explode and cut through this grotesque facade, with devastating consequences for the entire community.
What you should know: It’s in Italian
Where to watch: At Film At Lincoln Center, followed by a national expansion to theaters and virtual cinemas. Available VOD on June 11th.

All Light, Everywhere

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Director: Theo Anthony
Genre: Documentary
Plot: An exploration of the shared histories of cameras, weapons, policing and justice. As surveillance technologies become a fixture in everyday life, the film interrogates the complexity of an objective point of view, probing the biases inherent in both human perception and the lens.
What you should know: Won the U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Nonfiction Experimentation at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival.
Where to watch: In select theaters

Grace and Grit

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Stars: Mena Suvari, Stuart Townsend, Mariel Hemingway, Frances Fisher
Writer/Director: Sebastian Siegel
Genre: Biography, Drama, Romance
Plot: Philosopher Ken Wilber and his wife Trey fall madly in love in 1980s California and are immediately faced with challenges that tear them apart. They overcome by discovering connection beyond this world and love beyond life.
What you should know: Based on the book by Ken Wilbur.
Where to watch: In select theaters, and available VOD

Chasing Wonders

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Stars: Edward James Olmos, Paz Vega, Jessica Marais, Carmen Maura
Writer: Judy Morris
Director: Paul Meins
Genre: Drama
Plot: A coming-of-age story set across the lush wine country of both Australia and Spain, a young man explores the nature of father-son relationships and the pathway toward understanding and forgiveness.
What you should know: This is the first feature film from director Paul Meins.
Where to watch: In select theaters, and available VOD

City of Ali

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Director: Graham Shelby
Genre: Documentary
Storyline: Details how the death of Muhammad Ali brought the people of his Kentucky hometown - and the world - together for one unforgettable week. Ali's passing came during a bitter U.S. Presidential election, a proposed Muslim ban and the global expansion of the Black Lives Matter movement. Yet, on the day of Ali’s funeral procession, more than 100,000 people lined the streets of Louisville to celebrate his life with a billion people tuning in worldwide.
What you should know: This is director Graham Shelby’s first feature film.
Where to watch: Virtual cinemas

Monuments

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Stars: Rivkah Reyes, Marguerite Moreau, Joel Murray, David Pasquesi
Writer: Rebecca Fons, Jack C. Newell
Director: Jack C. Newell
Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Drama
Plot: A young widower sidesteps grief, loss, and familial dysfunction when he steals his wife's ashes and sets off on an impulsive odyssey through America's heartland to find something he'd lost long before her death.
What you should know: This is the first feature film from writer Rebecca Fons.
Where to watch: In select theaters and virtual cinemas

More New Releases:

The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (Trailer) from Warner Bros
Sprit Untamed (Trailer) from Universal
Gully (Trailer) from Paramount
My Tender Matador (Trailer)
An Impossible Project (Trailer)
Death in Texas (Trailer)
’83 (Trailer)

New to Streaming:

Xtreme (Trailer) on Netflix
Trippin’ with the Kandasamys (Trailer) on Netflix
Raya and the Last Dragon (Trailer) on Disney+
Oslo (Trailer) on HBO Max

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What have you been watching lately, ONTD?