Hidden gems are worth digging for
The summer movie season came out swinging on Memorial Day weekend, with “A Quiet Place Part II” and “Cruella” blitzing the box office and helping theaters recover to their prepandemic blockbuster form.
Major studio movies will be hitting reopened cinemas in the coming months, but there are plenty of hidden gems and smaller art-house fare for the hardcore cinephiles, too. Festival favorites are making their appearances in theaters, some hot docs are bringing true stories to the masses, and you might even see some players in the upcoming Oscar season begin their runs before the fall. (We see you coming, Adam Driver.)
Here are 10 must-see movies coming to theaters, streaming services and video-on-demand platforms that should definitely to be on your radar between now and Labor Day:
‘The Sparks Brothers’
Those who have no clue about the art-pop glam band Sparks – or musical brothers Ron and Russell Mael – might have the best time with director Edgar Wright’s documentary. Using animation and interviews with the likes of Mike Myers and Beck, the film tracks the California-raised siblings’ 50 years in the music business, their epic ups and downs and their astounding evolution through the decades.
• Where to watch: In theaters June 18
‘Werewolves Within’
In director Josh Ruben’s horror comedy based on a virtual reality party video game (no, really), Sam Richardson stars as a newly arrived forest ranger in a snowbound New England town where the residents are divided over a proposed gas pipeline. Oh, there’s also a fearsome, murderous creature on the loose, and things get really hairy when a group of folks hunker down in the local inn with a killer among them.
• Where to watch: In theaters June 25, VOD July 2
‘Zola’
An absolutely bonkers Twitter thread comes to the big screen with Janicza Bravo’s crime dramedy/reallife stripper saga. Zola (Taylour Paige) is a Detroit waitress who befriends a customer named Stefani (Riley Keough), and the two go on an insane road trip to Florida that involves hedonism, pole dancing, gangsters and one very dumb boyfriend during a series of stranger-than-fiction adventures.
• Where to watch: In theaters June 30
‘First Date’
Imagine Quentin Tarantino making an art-house teen comedy, and you’ve got Manuel Crosby and Darren Knapp’s violent spin on a familiar trope. Mike (Tyson Brown) finally gets a chance to take out his crush (Shelby Duclos), but his parents have taken the
family van. To get some wheels, Mike buys a 1965 Chrysler clunker, a car that soon embroils him in a mess full of colorful cops, crooks and various weirdos.
h Where to watch: In theaters and on VOD July 2
‘Summer of Soul’
With never-before-seen footage and new interviews, Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson’s directorial debut looks back on the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival, a seminal event that brought a divided community together to celebrate Black culture and music. If you’re a music-doc nerd, the performances are phenomenal, from 19-year-old Stevie Wonder to the supremely soulful team-up of Mahalia Jackson and Mavis Staples.
• Where to watch: In theaters and on Hulu July 2
‘The Green Knight’
Directed by David Lowery (“A Ghost Story”), the dark fantasy adventure features Dev Patel as Sir Gawain, King Arthur’s headstrong nephew. The axwielding protagonist ventures out beyond the round table on an epic quest to find and confront the enigmatic Green Knight, a journey that brings him into contact with a talking fox, Alicia Vikander, giants, ghosts and other characters while testing his honor and strength.
• Where to watch: In theaters July 30
‘Nine Days’
The existential sci-fi drama is a showcase for upand-coming writer/director Edson Oda and leading man Winston Duke (“Us,” “Black Panther”). Living an isolated life in a desert landscape, Will (Duke) is a reserved sort who determines which souls will be given life on Earth. When one of his favorite souls dies, Will judges a new crop of candidates, including Emma (Zazie Beetz), who unlocks a hidden human side within him.
• Where to watch: In New York and L.A. theaters July 30, nationwide Aug. 6
‘Annette’
The opening film at July’s Cannes Film Festival, director Leos Carax’s musical centers on a celebrity couple – a stand-up comedian (Driver) and an international singing superstar (Marion Cotillard) – and how their lives change with the arrival of their baby daughter. Pro tip: You’ll want to have watched “The Sparks Brothers” beforehand, since the film’s soundtrack is pretty much an entire Sparks album.
• Where to watch: In theaters Aug. 6, Amazon Prime Aug. 20
‘CODA’
The Sundance smash hit stars Emilia Jones in this heartwarming drama as a teenage girl who’s the only hearing member of her deaf family. When not in school, she works long and hard hours for her parents (Marlee Matlin and Troy Kotsur) on their struggling fishing boat but has a hard choice to make when she begins to realize her passion and talent for singing.
• Where to watch: In theaters and on Apple TV+ Aug. 13
‘The Night House’
Directed by David Bruckner (“The Ritual”), the psychological chiller stars Rebecca Hall as a widow coming to grips with her husband’s unexpected suicide. A mysterious letter left in the wake of his death, as well as ghostly visions at night, send her down a rabbit hole digging into his dark secrets, including the rather strange blueprints for the lake house he built for her.
• Where to watch: In theaters Aug. 20