TRADE THIS FOR THAT
Get your fix with different flicks
Spare a thought for The New Mutants. The X-men spinoff has been gestating longer than an elephant. Director and co-writer Josh Boone first pitched a potential film trilogy to 20th Century Fox way back in 2015. Casting happened in ’16 and filming in
’17 with a release planned for the following spring.
Then reshoots were scheduled. The studio moved the release date to allow time for that, and to avoid opening too close to Deadpool 2. Then they moved it again, to stay away from Dark Phoenix. It was finally set to open on
Aug. 2, 2019.
Then Disney bought Fox, and toyed with releasing New Mutants on its streaming service. The new studio gave The New Mutants a release date of April 3, 2020. Then on March 15, with the COVID -19 pandemic in full swing and cinemas going dark, it was removed from the schedule. The not-so-new Mutants has no release date at present.
It’s hardly alone in this new post-development hell, but it’s probably the worst example of blasted bad luck. So what can disappointed viewers do? We’ve compiled a handy list of alternate options for some of the big movies that have been delayed by the pandemic.
A QUIET PLACE PART II
Original release: March 20
New date: Sept. 4
Next best thing: If John Krasinski’s new film hadn’t been delayed by the coronavirus we’d never have seen him step up with his Some Good News videos on Youtube, so this is already somewhat of a win. But if you want terror and excellent sound design go back to 1979’s Alien (Apple TV). If you’re looking for something newer with a good-parent-in-bad-times theme you can check out Joel Edgerton in 2017’s It Comes At Night (Kanopy) or Viggo Mortensen in
The Road (2009) which seems to have been uploaded to Youtube for free viewing. If you’d rather pay you can also rent it there.
MULAN
Original release: March 27
New date: July 24
Next best thing: Of course you can watch the animated original from 1998 on Disney+. But for a similar mix of Asian culture and feminist fighting you can revisit Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Amazon Prime), a best picture nominee and best foreign language Oscar winner from 2000.
NO TIME TO DIE
Original release: April 10
New date: Nov. 25
Next best thing: No Time to Die is the 25th official Bond film, but these six titles will take you through the previous actors who played 007 over the years. Start with Sean Connery in 1964’s Goldfinger (all Bonds available on Apple TV), which included Bond Girl Pussy Galore (Honor Blackman, who died last month aged 94), villainous henchman Odd Job and the immortal line: “No, Mr. Bond! I expect you to die!”
From there it’s on to 1969’s On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, George Lazenby’s only outing, and one of the few films to openly admit its casting changes when he grumbles: “This never happened to the other fellow.” Next up, Roger Moore in 1979’s Moonraker, a.k.a. James Bond in Space. Then Timothy Dalton in 1987’s The Living Daylights. And Tomorrow Never Dies, the 1997 entry of the Pierce Brosnan era. Finally, Casino Royale, the sortof reboot from 2006 that introduced Daniel Craig and a darker mood, and that crazy parkour chase scene.
BLACK WIDOW
Original release: May 1
New date: Nov. 6
Next best thing: Scarlett Johansson has appeared as Black Widow (a.k.a. Natasha Romanoff ) in six Avengers movies since 2012, and only now gets her first stand-alone story. But she was always one of the lesser Avengers, alongside Jeremy Renner as ace bowman Hawkeye. Still, that first movie, The Avengers (Netflix, Disney+), offers a decent introduction, showcasing her fine fighting form against mere mortals and even versus Hulk
— a dust-up that, oddly, settled down into a friendship in the later films, with intimations of something more. They’re a complicated couple of characters.
THE PERSONAL HISTORY OF DAVID COPPERFIELD
Original release: May 8
New date: Undated
Next best thing: Combing the wit and genius of director Armando Iannucci, writer Simon Blackwell and one of the best talents of the 19th century, The Personal History of David Copperfield looks like a hoot. To see what Iannucci and Blackwell can do on their own you can check out their new setin-space series Avenue 5 (Crave) or The Death of Stalin (Netflix). If you don’t know Dickens, you can watch the 1968 best picture winner Oliver! (Apple TV) or a young Charlie Hunnam in 2002’s Nicholas Nickleby (Hoopla).
THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW
Original release: May 15
New date: Undated
Next best thing: Amy Adams stars in a mystery thriller that is clearly looking to be the next Gone Girl (Apple TV). But I kept thinking of 2016’s The Girl on the Train (Kanopy). Or the underappreciated 2018 thriller A Simple Favor (Amazon Prime), with Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively. Or you could go back to the source with Hitchcock’s Rear Window (Apple TV) from 1954.
F9
Original release: May 22
New date: April 2, 2021
Next best thing: Sure, you could watch all the preceding Fast & Furious chapters plus Hobbs & Shaw, but that’s 17 hours and who knows how many repetitions of Vin Diesel saying: “It’s all about family.” Instead, spin your wheels with Ryan Gosling in 2011’s Drive (Apple TV) or Ansel Elgort in 2017’s Baby Driver (Netflix).
WONDER WOMAN 1984
Original release: June 5
New date: Aug. 14
Next best thing: The 2017 movie Wonder Woman (Apple TV) is too long, too slow and too messy, but Gal Gadot is great in the title role, and she and Chris Pine have some lovely chemistry. Or you could go old-school with Lynda Carter in three seasons of the ’70s TV show, which Apple TV will sell for $15 per season, or $30 for all three.
GREYHOUND
Original release: June 12
New date: Undated
Next best thing: Tom Hanks adapted the 1955 novel The
Good Shepherd and plays a U.S. destroyer captain in this Second World War movie, which allows for plenty of Hanksian crossovers. Hanks at war? 1998’s Saving Private Ryan (Amazon Prime). Or, if you like, 1994’s Forrest Gump (Netflix). Hanks at sea? Captain Phillips (Apple TV) from 2014. Hanks lost at sea? 2000’s Cast Away (Apple TV).
TOP GUN: MAVERICK
Original release: June 24
New date: Dec. 23
Next best thing: When was the last time you saw the original Top Gun? Might it have been 1986, when it came out? Or maybe never? Either way, you’ve lost that lovin’ feelin’, and Amazon Prime can set you straight.
FREE GUY
Original release: July 3
New date: Dec. 11
Next best thing: Ryan Reynolds as a non-playable character in a video game who achieves sentience? Have you seen Wreck-it Ralph (Disney+) from 2012? Or for a more highbrow take on the concept there’s Will Ferrell as a self-aware character from a novel in 2006’s Stranger Than Fiction (Netflix).
MINIONS: THE RISE OF GRU
Original release: July 3
New date: July 2, 2021
Next best thing: The law of diminishing returns would suggest that this fifth movie in the Despicable Me franchise (original plus two sequels and two prequels, each more Minion-y than the last) might not be worth the extra year’s wait. In either case, why not revisit the charming 2010 original on Apple TV?