Matt Damon (left) and Christian Bale in “Ford v Ferrari”
Ford v Ferrari
Directed by James Mangold; stars Christian Bale, Matt Damon and Jon Bernthal
As it examines the friendship of automotive designer Caroll Shelby and driver Ken Miles, the film follows the true story of the 1966 Le Mans race and the American racing team hired by Ford Motor Co. to defeat Ferrari, which had won the race for six consecutive years.
Gregory Ellwood of The Playlist calls the movie “the sort of cinematic entertainment that sucks you in and won’t let you go until you cross the finish line.” For his part, Eric Kohn of IndieWire commends its lead actors, saying that Bale and Damon “are such magnetic onscreen figures that it doesn’t take much to inject their various arguments, smarmy asides and high-stakes bets with plenty of intrigue.”
JoemBascon (left) and Lovi Poe in “The Annulment”
The Annulment
Directed by Mac Alejandre; stars Lovi Poe and Joem Bascon
The film follows the story of a couple whose whirlwind romance leads to marriage. Shortly thereafter, a crack in the relationship prompts the woman to seek annulment.
“Making this movie made me realize how hard it is to keep a relationship going,” Lovi told Inquirer Entertainment. “You have to make sure that you’re right for each other. What happens to the lead characters is something I wouldn’t wish even on my worst enemies.”
Two Love You
Directed by Benedict Mique; stars Yen Santos, Lassy Marquez, Arlene Muhlach and Hashtag Kid Yambao
The relationship of a gay man and his younger sister are put to the test when they fall in love with the same man.
In a press conference for the film, Yen said the movie made her realize that love isn’t really defined by gender.
The Art of Ligaw
Directed by Jourdan Sebastian; stars KZ Tandingan and Epy Quizon
A womanizer going through midlife crisis pursues a millennial “probinsyana” from Davao.
Epy sees his role in the rom-com as an apology to all the women he didn’t take seriously. He’s glad to have been given the opportunity to work with KZ, whose charisma he likens to that of Nora Aunor’s.
Ella Balinska (left) and Kristen Stewart in “Charlie’s Angels”
Charlie’s Angels
Directed by Elizabeth Banks; stars Kristen Stewart, Naomi Scott and Ella Balinska
When a systems engineer blows the whistle on a dangerous technology, Charlie’s Angels from across the globe are called into action, putting their lives on the line to protect society.
The latest reboot of the popular franchise is a marked change from its two cinematic predecessors, in which star-producer Drew Barrymore insisted that the Angels use no guns at all aside from their own martial arts skills.
Talitha Eliana Bateman in “Countdown”
Countdown
Directed by Justin Dec; stars Elizabeth Lail, Jordan Calloway, Peter Facinelli, Anne Winters and Talitha Eliana Bateman
When a nurse downloads an app that claims to predict exactly when a person is going to die, it tells her she only has three days to live. She must find a way to save her life before time runs out.
According to William Bibbiani of TheWrap, despite its deficiencies, the film has “just enough eccentricity and self-awareness to entertain.” John DeFore of The Hollywood Reporter describes it as “a jumble of cheap jump scares made watchable by likable leads.”
“Red Shoes and The Seven Dwarfs”
Red Shoes and The Seven Dwarfs
Directed by Hong Sung-ho and Jang Moo-hyun; featuring the voices of Chloe Grace Moretz, Sam Claflin and Gina Gershon
In this “parody with a twist,” princes who have been turned into dwarfs seek the red shoes of a lady in order to break the spell.
Some journalists at the Cannes film fest this year found its “misogynistic, body-shaming content” offensive— that a shorter and rounder Snow White is less appealing than a thinner and taller version of herself.
While the film shows a lot of promise, says Grace Han of asianmoviepulse.com, “it wrestles with tricky elements, getting tangled up in its internal tug-of-war between female objectification and feminism, over-the-top voice acting and underdone visuals.”