The Addams Family 2 (Theatrical Release Oct. 1)
Morticia and Gomez (voices of Charlize Theron and Oscar Isaac) lament that their children Wednesday (Chloe Grace Moretz) and Pugsley (Javon Walton) are skipping family activities to do whatever they like. Aiming to strengthen parent-child bonds, they pile the kids, Uncle Fester (Nick Kroll), Thing, and family butler Lurch (Conrad Vernon) into their haunted camper for a vacation. Stops include a visit to Grandma Addams (Bette Midler) and beach-time with cousin Itt (Snoop Dogg). Along the way the family garners the unwanted attention of malevolent scientist Cyrus (Bill Hader), leading to a comic, animated adventure. The film’s highly stylized animation trends more Tim Burton than recalling the original 1964 Addams Family television show, but Hollywood feels compelled to fix whatever ain’t broke. (Lisa Miller)
The Addams Family 2
Last Call (IFC Films DVD)
Yes, that’s Bruce Dern as the cranky but astute old-timer at the end of the bar. But he doesn’t play the lead role in Last Call (2020). The star is Jeremy Piven as Mick, a high-flying real estate developer who returns to his old Irish neighborhood when his mother dies. He finds that for his old buddies, time has stood still. Ditto his grumbling dad who owns the corner pub, complete with two photos of JFK above the bar. The old gang resent Mick for his success, yet he eventually bonds with them over a head-spinning night of beer drinking. But how will he respond when he encounters his childhood crush? And what about the real estate scheme that would raze the money-losing but community sustaining corner pub?
Last Call fits snugly into an outskirts-of-Hollywood genre we’ll call “nostalgia for Urban Irish America.” It wears its story and its social observations as lightly as its characters. Perhaps Mick’s dad gets the best line: “If you’re going to steal, steal a heart.” (David Luhrssen)
Last Call
Venom: Let There Be Carnage (Theatrical Release Oct. 1)
In 2018, popular comic book character Eddie Brock/Venom (Tom Hardy) got his first movie. Despite being critically panned, the film earned nearly a billion dollars. This time, the script delves into the problematic relationship between Brock and his extraterrestrial symbiote Venom. The two make a deal that allows tentacled, toothsome, poisonous Venom (who shares Brock’s body) to limit his craving for human meat to the worst of the worst offenders. As Brock struggles to reinvigorate his journalism career through interviews with convicted serial killer Cletus Kasady (Woody Harrelson), Kasady’s own symbiote alter-ego Carnage, enables Kasady’s escape from execution. Carnage resumes his killing spree, prompting Brock to state that if Venom defeats Carnage, he can eat anyone he likes. Michelle Williams returns to as Brock’s ex while Naomi Harris portrays Kasady’s love interest Shriek. Andy Serkis’s intimate understanding of CGI both in front and behind the camera, influenced his selection as director. (Lisa Miller)
