In Order of Disappearance

BLOCKBUSTER OF THE MONTH

Suicide Squad

(Warner Brothers) Will Smith, Margot Robbie, Jared Leto, Jai Courtney. The DC Cinematic Universe got off to a rocky start with Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice even though the movie did well at the box office. The hope is that this movie will get the franchise moving in the right direction after fan and critic dissatisfaction with the bloated DoJ entry. With director David Ayer at the helm, this film brings together a group of super-criminals tasked to take on an impossible mission that either they succeed or die…literally. With a terrific cast, an appearance by Batman himself and a couple of trailers that serve notice this is going to be different than every other superhero film we’ve ever seen, hope springs eternal even for the hard-to-please fanboy contingent. August 5

INDEPENDENT PICKS

Front Cover

(Strand) Jake Choi, James Chen, Jennifer Neala Page, Elizabeth Sung. An up-and-coming Chinese actor comes to the United States to promote his film with a photo shoot; assigned to him is a gay American fashion stylist who has turned his back on his own Asian heritage. The two men who couldn’t be further apart in temperament and cultural appreciation start out detesting one another. However, in the grand tradition of American romance films, they begin falling for each other which could mean the end of the acting career if word gets out. August 5

My King

My King (Mon Roi)

(Film Movement) Vincent Cassel, Emmanuelle Bercot, Louis Garrel, Isild Le Besco. A woman is admitted to a rehab facility after a terrifying skiing accident. Addicted to pain killers, completely dependent on the medical staff, she begins to reminisce about her tumultuous relationship with a mercurial restaurateur. She considers how good it all was to begin with and how it inexorably turned bad over the years until she wondered how she got into that situation to begin with. Bercot won the Jury Best Actress award at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival for her performance here. August 12

Imperium

(Grindstone) Daniel Radcliffe, Toni Collette, Burn Gorman, Tracy Letts. A young FBI behavioral analyst with no field experience is thrust into the role of an undercover informant in the very dangerous world of white supremacist terrorists. The young agent must find a way to compromise his closely held beliefs while maintaining the identity that may help put away some dangerous men and save lives. This is inspired by an actual incident which means that what really happened is vastly different than what appears here, but if this is as good a thriller as it looks to be, who cares?. August 19

Ixcanul

(Kino Lorber) Maria Mercedes Coroy, Maria Telón, Manuel Antún, Justo Lorenzo. For the Kaqchikel tribe living on the slopes of an active volcano in Guatemala, life continues on much the way as it has for a thousand years. For Maria, a daughter of two tribesmen, her life is about to change when a marriage is arranged for her by her parents. When her suitor must spend several months working in the city, she finds herself in a world she can’t understand. August 19

Morris from America

(A24) Craig Robinson, Carla Juri, Lina Keller, Markees Christmas. A young wanna-be rapper has his world turned inside out when his father moves him to Germany. Young Morris is none too happy about the way things are turning out until he meets a young German girl who encourages him to find his voice as a rapper and perform in public. This was one of the most acclaimed movies to come out of Sundance and also played the Florida Film Festival this year. August 19

A Man Called Ove

(Music Box) Rolf Lassgård, Bahar Pars, Jerker Fahlström, Sofie Gallerspång. Deposed as the president of his condominium society, 59-year-old Swedish widower Ove is out to end it all, in the meantime ruling over the condo complex with an iron fist. A chance meeting with a new neighbor leads to something different…maybe even a reason to live. Director Hannes Holm, who has been at the helm for several of Sweden’s most side-splitting comedies, also wrote this based on a bestselling novel. August 26