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Pressure (2026)
Brendan Fraser, Damian Lewis, Chris Messina, Con O'Neill, Andrew Scott, and Henry Ashton in Pressure (2026)
Pressure
(In Theaters May 29)
In this tension-filled D-Day drama, predicting the weather becomes a major point of contention. Brendan Fraser appears as General Dwight D. Eisenhower. He must work with Scottish meteorologist James Stagg (Andrew Scott), who's assigned as lead weather forecaster for the invasion. Also on hand, American meteorologist Irving Krick (Chris Messina), determined not to upset the intimidating general with disappointing information. Temperamental British General Bernard “Monty” Montgomery (Damian Lewis) is vocal regarding his own opinions about what should or shouldn’t be risked. It falls to Eisenhower’s personal secretary Kay Summersby (Kerry Condon) to try and smooth over the contentious atmosphere. With victory or defeat hanging in the balance, director Anthony Maras delivers an edge-of-your seat thriller that stands at an 83% Rotten Tomatoes approval rating. (Lisa Miller)
Smother
(IndiePix DVD)
The bass-level soundscape is the pointer: Smother will not be a simple family drama—thought it involves family and drama—but a horror genre picture.
Austrian director Achmed Abdel-Salam’s story is primarily a mother-daughter tale of intergenerational trauma. When Michi’s estranged father dies, she inherits his house—her childhood home—in a remote patch of countryside. Her mother died by suicide in that house; Michi struggles with alcoholism and depression. She sends her husband back to Vienna and decides to stay in the house with their eight-year-old, Hannah, while sorting out her past and her limited inheritance. They are a struggling middle-class couple and could use some cash from selling the house. But the realtor offers little, explaining that the locals tell stories about the property …
Like the best horror films, Smother probes human psychology with greater acuity than most Hollywood “realistic” movies. The past never goes away and haunting reminders will surface. Take away: You can’t keep pretending everything’s fine when it’s not. Abdel-Salam tells much of the story visually and builds tension slowly. (David Luhrssen)
