Submarine thriller goes deep, Sabrina gets a spellbinding reboot
MOVIES
Big release (Oct. 26): Hunter Killer
Big picture: Submarines are yesterday’s action-plot driver. It’s been 28 years since Sean Connery played the most Scottish Russian submarine captain who ever lived in The Hunt for Red October, and 23 years since Gene Hackman and Denzel Washington battled for undersea supremacy in Crimson Tide. This time around we get an American submarine helmed by Captain Glass (Gerard Butler) that finds itself deep in frigid enemy waters amid a Russian coup. Its crew must undergo a mad-cap mission to rescue the
kidnapped Russian president and bring him back to safety. Since I missed last week’s film forecast, I would be haunted by regret if I didn’t mention the new instalment of Halloween that opened Oct. 19. Jamie Lee Curtis reprises the role of iconic horror heroine Laurie Strode, who faces off against masked killer Michael Myers one more time.
Forecast: I predict a crossover sequel entitled Aquaman vs. Captain Glass.
TV
Big events: The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (Oct. 26, Netflix); The Bodyguard (Oct. 24, Netflix)
Big picture: Sabrina the Teenage Witch gets the Buffy
the Vampire Slayer treatment. Or at least Diet Buffy. Mad Men’s Kiernan Shipka will leave you spellbound as the titular witch from the Archie Comics. Originally developed as a spinoff to CW’s Riverdale, it shares the same creator, Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa. Sabrina battles forces of darkness — and her half-witch heritage — in the town of Greendale. Finally, The Bodyguard is a hit British series starring Game of Thrones’ Richard Madden as a PTSD-suffering Afghan war vet hired to protect a British politician (Keeley Hawes).
Forecast: Abracadabra! The new Sabrina is far more enchanting and edgy than the TGIF original that starred Melissa Joan Hart.
MUSIC
Big releases on Oct. 26: Shad (A Short Story About a War); John Legend (A Legendary Christmas)
Big picture: Canadian hiphop hero Shad releases one of the best albums of the year — proving that hoisting a microphone is a much better fit for him than hosting Q. Meanwhile, let’s face an undisputed fact. John Legend took the laziest road possible in his Christmas album title.
Forecast: Lazy success is a recipe for imitation. Get ready for Christmas 2019 with Jack White Christmas, John Mayer’s Your Body is a Christmas Wonderland, and Justin Bieber’s Santa Baby, Baby, Baby.