Opening Today
Marco Gumabao (left) and Anne Curtis in “Just a Stranger” —INSTAGRAM
Just a Stranger
Directed by Jason Paul Laxamana; stars Anne Curtis, Marco Gumabao, Edu Manzano
A young man unexpectedly meets a woman who is dissatisfied with her marriage, leading to a one-night stand.
On being paired with Gumabao, who is nine years her junior, Curtis said, “I find it amusing that I’m now being partnered with younger men. But I don’t mind. You shouldn’t limit who you can work with as an actress.”
Mina-Anud
Directed by Kerwin Go; stars Dennis Trillo, Jerald Napoles, Lou Veloso, Dionne Monsanto
Two surfers discover tons’ worth of cocaine washed ashore and are tempted to profit from the situation.
Napoles told the Inquirer that costar Trillo “is a hardworking, timid, but all-out guy in terms of work ethic in acting. He will never make anyone feel less of a colleague.”
From left: Elisabeth Moss, Tiffany Haddish and Melissa McCarthy in “The Kitchen”
The Kitchen
Directed by Andrea Berloff; stars Melissa McCarthy, Elisabeth Moss, Tiffany Haddish, James Badge Dale
The wives of three imprisoned mobsters from Hell’s Kitchen take over their rackets and must confront their rivals.
Time’s Stephanie Zacharek says, “There’s not enough heat in this ‘Kitchen,’ but there’s nothing cool about it, either.”
San Francisco Chronicle’s Mick LaSalle thinks it’s “not a great film. Its graphic novel origins can’t be completely obscured. But it’s a very good film, and a deeply satisfying one.”
Gerard Butler in “Angel Has Fallen”
Angel Has Fallen
Directed by Ric Roman Waugh; stars Gerard Butler, Morgan Freeman, Jada Pinkett Smith, Piper Perabo, Danny Huston
In this third film in the “Fallen” franchise, a trusted agent is framed with an assassination attempt and must flee to prove his innocence.
On doing tough stunts for this film, Butler told Entertainment Weekly, “I’ve gone through a lot. I went through this movie pretty beaten up, so it wasn’t hard for me to portray that character, because it felt I was living it.”
Stuber
Directed by Michael Dowse; stars Dave Bautista, Kumail Nanjiani, Mira Sorvino, Betty Gilpin
A mild-mannered Uber driver picks up a passenger, a cop who’s hot on the trail of a killer.
According to Rolling Stone’s Peter Travers, “This buddy comedy traps two talented dudes—Kumail Nanjiani and Dave Bautista—in a car that’s going nowhere so fast that Thelma and Louise would hop right on.”
Chicago Sun-Times’ Richard Roeper thinks that the movie “is kind of dumb and a little clunky, but Nanjiani and Bautista click, the action sequences are well-filmed and sometimes brutally funny, and we’re happy to be along for this summertime escapist ride.”
“The Angry Birds Movie 2”
The Angry Birds Movie 2
Directed by Thurop Van Orman; features the voices of Peter Dinklage, Rachel Bloom, Josh Gad, Awkwafina, Danny McBride, Bill Hader
When a new threat emerges, members of the rival bird and pig groups form a truce.
Hollywood Reporter’s Stephen Dalton says the sequel “ticks plenty of lightweight fun boxes for its prime target audience of younger children, with just enough adult humor to keep parents from yawning, too.”
New York Times’ Bilge Ebiri discloses that it “tosses story, character and sense aside, and opts for a go-for-broke style of humor. The hoops our heroes jump through become increasingly surreal and hilarious.”
