Press Play talks about the latest movie releases with Carlos Aguilar, film reviewer for the Los Angeles Times and AV Club, and William Bibbiani, film critic for the Wrap and co-host of the Critically Acclaimed Network.
“Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania”
The latest in the Marvel Cinematic Universe finds Paul Rudd reprising his role as Ant-Man, who dives into the quantum realm with his daughter. It’s the third film in the Ant-Man franchise.
Aguilar: “It just feels like another formulaic entry into this multiverse franchise that just feels [like it’s] repeating itself. There's a villain who is trying to find a powerful artifact to take over the world, or destroy the universe, or destroy the multiverse. And it just feels repetitive and devoid of any originality. The CGI just feels not particularly interesting or visually compelling.”
“Of An Age”
This Australian film is about two young men and their whirlwind 24-hour romance. It’s from director Goran Stolevski, an openly gay man.
Aguilar: “I just love the way in which the chemistry between the two characters feels just natural, organic. You really believe that in these 24 hours, there was an instant connection that can last a lifetime. And then, the movie moves forward a decade later, and so we get to see what happens when they reconnect, many, many years later.”
Bibbiani: “This movie absolutely captures what I think is the absolutely heavenly fantasy of just hanging out in a car with a really handsome guy, listening to the soundtrack to a Wong Kar-wai movie, and talking about your favorite books and gradually realizing, boy, I am really queer. And there's something just really just wonderfully romantic about that. But also very believable, very honest.”
“Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey”
Winnie the Pooh, the adorable little bear from the Hundred Acre Wood, gets twisted into your worst nightmare in this horror flick.
Bibbiani: “It's a slasher movie. Pooh and Piglet are killing everybody. It's really, really violent. … It's very badly acted. It's very badly written. … It's not very well thought out. But there is something magical and just seeing a creation that has been exploited in one way for 60 years, suddenly be exploited in an altogether different way, for an altogether different capitalistic purpose. It's fun for that alone, but it is bad.”