For this week's HCA What to Stream podcast, Jana and I discuss our streaming picks which include Eugenio Derbez's new Apple TV+ bilingual comedy series, Acapulco, Dave Chappelle's new Netflix special, The Closer,On My Block's fourth and final season and two other series picks.
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Daniel Craig brought depth to the James Bond character and in NO TIME TO DIE Craig brings heart to 007 in a satisfying and bittersweet way.
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Tom Hardy returns as Eddie Brock along with his pal Venom for a bromance-filled plot lacking in action in the follow-up to 2018's VENOM. The main attraction is Hardy's hilarious and endearing performance in the buddy comedy, but on the superhero front VENOM: LET THERE BE CARNAGE doesn't live up to the title.
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Joe Carnahan directs the ultra-violent COPSHOP starring Gerard Butler, Frank Grillo, Toby Huss (Dickinson, Reno 911!) and the sole woman Alexis Louder (THE TOMORROW WAR, Watchmen) in your run of the mill action movie but Louder outsmarts the men for a scene-stealing performance.
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On this week's Hollywood Critics Association's 'What to Stream," Jana Nagase and Lupe Haas of CineMovie discuss EVERYBODY'S TALKING ABOUT JAMIE, Clint Eastwood's CRY MACHO, Jake Gyllenhaal's THE GUILTY, THE PROTEGE starring Michael Keaton, Maggie Q, and Samuel L. Jackson and the docuseries LulaRich.
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Two different sorts of princesses make their debut this weekend on streaming. Camila Cabello is a progressive Cinderella in Amazon Prime Video's new movie while a sword-wielding princess in YAKUZA PRINCESS is kicking butt and taking names for in a theatrical run and VOD rental. On Hulu, Selena Gomez joins comedic veterans Steve Martin and Martin Short for a true-crime /murder mystery series. Watch full reviews with my HCA "What to Stream" cohost Jana in the video below.
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You would think a movie relegated to a streaming service automatically meant it was subpar but VACATION FRIENDS with John Cena and Lil Rel Howery is a blast with the actors playing against type and polar opposites.
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Candyman is a boogeyman like no other, born out of social injustice. CANDYMAN is a sequel that updates the urban legend in an equally horrifying way. Like the original, the real horrors behind the monster are rooted in the sins of the past and present.
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SHANG-CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS is so beautifully crafted, the Marvel movie will leave you wanting to see it again and again. Simu Liu is perfectly cast as the MCU’s newest Avenger as one who exudes heart, humor and kick-ass martial arts skills. Tony Leung as the real Mandarin also steals the show and rights past MCU wrongs. SHANG-CHI is a very different sort of MCU film and a welcome one to kick off the next phase in the MCU.
Add a commentOn this week's Hollywood Critics Association's 'What to Stream," Jana Nagase and Lupe Haas of CineMovie discuss Marvel's first-ever animated series What If...?, Taika Waititi's new series Reservation Dogs, and the latest theatrical releases with FREE GUY, DON'T BREATHE 2 and the Aretha Franklin biopic RESPECT with Jennifer Hudson.
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Ryan Reynolds and FREE GUY is just what the doctor ordered in these dark times. However, FREE GUY should come with a warning label. "Please wear your mask at all times in FREE GUY" because the whole audience will be laughing their a**es off. The Ryan Reynolds flick will have you smiling from start to finish with its good-natured humor.
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James Gunn sets things right with the new Squad. It's raw and DCEU's grittiest and most irreverent movie to date. While it doesn’t exactly reach DEADPOOL-level humor, it’s close. There are few issues with THE SUICIDE SQUAD. Luckily the new character's charming qualities and the group's chemistry outweigh the weakest part of the movie - the human villains.
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How did a movie boasting an ensemble cast that includes Kate Beckinsale, Bobby Cannavale, Jai Courtney, Laverne Cox, and Stanley Tucci go so wrong? JOLT is a mess from start to finish with horrible acting all around, a ridiculous premise worthy of a She-Hulk storyline, and a twist you see coming a mile away. On the guilty-pleasure side, you do get a rush watching Beckinsale kick butt despite the idiotic premise. It’s no wonder JOLT went straight to Amazon Prime Video.
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Whether you like or dislike SNAKE EYES: G.I. JOE ORIGINS may depend on how invested you are in the GI JOE characters prior to watching the origins story starring Henry Golding. SNAKE EYES is gorgeously shot with stunning-looking locations and dazzling action sequences that showcase the actual actors performing the majority of the martial arts sequences.
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Mary (Alexandra Daddario) and Ben (Diego Boneta) are star-crossed lovers in DIE IN A GUNFIGHT, a violent Romeo & Juliet-inspired story. While director Collin Schiffli makes some interesting storytelling choices, it’s too hip for its own good.
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Taylor Russell and Logan Miller return for more deadly games in the sequel to ESCAPE ROOM. ESCAPE ROOM: TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS is more of the same with all new traps and puzzles that heighten the stakes. Russell remains the heart of the movie as the babyface protagonist.
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Karen Gillan, Lena Headey, Michelle Yeoh, Angela Bassett, and Carla Gugino star in the action-comedy, GUNPOWDER MILKSHAKE streaming on Netflix. Despite the false advertising, the Netflix movie is Karen Gillan's movie with the other actresses showing up when some butt-kicking is needed. The film is a fun cross between JOHN WICK and KILL BILL.
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SPACE JAM: A NEW LEGACY is more of a remake than a sequel with fancier graphics. Except in this follow-up, Don Cheadle is the MVP of this court rather than the star LeBron James. You get more of the same in his version with the Looney Tunes providing the laughs and over-the-top acting from the basketball star.
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There’s a film for everyone hitting movie theaters this weekend and on Digital. The next chapter in THE PURGE franchise racks up more bodies, THE BOSS BABY sequel entertains the whole family, and WEREWOLVES WITHIN is a riotous whodunit comedy for those looking for some escapism.
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