Opening August 1 – 7, 2022 – Margaret Barton-Fumo reports
The Alliance of Women Film Journalists highlights movies made by and about women. With a vigilant eye toward current releases, we maintain an interactive record of films that are pertinent to our interests. Be they female-made or female-centric productions, they are films that represent a wide range of women’s stories and present complex female characters. As such, they are movies that will most likely be reviewed on AWFJ.org and will qualify for consideration for our annual EDA Awards, celebrating exceptional women working in film behind and in front of the camera. Our members are feature writers, columnists and regular contributors to a variety of media outlets and many of us publish regularly on the festival circuit. Our critical voices are widespread and diverse. We invite you to join us in tracking weekly releases of particular interest. And we welcome information about new films that will help us to keep our records updated and our critics alert. Below is a concise list of new releases set for the week of August 1 to 7, 2022 that are of particular interest. Film titles highlighted in red have links to full reviews.
- Bodies Bodies Bodies – A24 (Cinemas) – USA – Horror-comedy directed by Halina Reijn. When a group of rich 20-somethings plan a hurricane party at a remote family mansion, a party game turns deadly in this fresh and funny look at backstabbing, fake friends, and one party gone very, very wrong.
- Darlings – Netflix – India – Dramedy directed by Jasmeet K. Reen following the lives of two women as they find courage and love in exceptional circumstances.
- Holy Emy – Mubi – Greece / France / USA – Drama directed by Araceli Lemos. A young Filipina searches for the missing links between her strange bleeding condition and her faraway mother’s healing powers.
- Luck – Paramount / Apple TV+ – Spain / USA – Animated film directed by Peggy Holmes, written by Kiel Murray. The curtain is pulled back on the millennia-old battle between the organizations of good luck and bad luck that secretly affect everyday lives. Voice acting by Katie DiCicco, Jane Fonda and Whoopi Goldberg.
- Memory Box – Playtime (Cinemas; NY Premiere) – France / Lebanon – Drama co-directed by Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige. The lives of three women are connected by a box that resurfaces containing notebooks, photographs and audiotapes.
- Mija – Disney (Cinemas) – USA – Documentary directed by Isabel Castro. Follows Doris Muñoz, who began a career in music talent management and met Jacks Haupt, an auspicious young singer, and both share the ever-present guilt of being the first American-born members of their undocumented families.
- My Favorite Girlfriend – Saban Films (Cinemas; VOD Release August 9) – USA – Romance written and directed by Amanda Raymond that tells the story of Conrad and how he met the girl who’s just right. She has multiple personalities including Vanessa, Sarah, Silk, and more.
- Prey – Hulu – USA – Action film / prequel starring Amber Midthunder. The origin story of the Predator in the world of the Comanche Nation 300 years ago. Naru, a skilled female warrior, fights to protect her tribe against one of the first highly-evolved Predators to land on Earth.
- Resurrection – IFC Films (Cinemas, VOD) – USA – Drama written and directed by Andrew Semans, starring Rebecca Hall and Tim Roth. Margaret’s life is in order. She is capable, disciplined, and successful. Everything is under control. That is, until David returns, carrying with him the horrors of Margaret’s past.
- Tin Can – Epic Pictures (Cinemas) – Canada – Sci-Fi film starring Anna Hopkins. As the world faces a deadly plague, humanity’s hope for a cure lies with a scientist who awakens imprisoned in a metal chamber. She desperately works to escape her confined cell to save the last of humanity.
Film descriptions are adapted from press releases. Titles highlighted in red have links to full reviews. Stay tuned in for next week’s releases! Contact us if we’ve overlooked anything.
