The Bat Cave

Anticipation Meter
6 – Epic
5 – Very High
4 – Strong
3 – Moderate
2 – Low
1 – Nonexistent

MOVIES

The Dark Tower (4th) – I never read the Stephen King novels and I wasn’t all that excited about this movie, but the casting of Idris Elba as The Gunslinger and Matthew McConaughey as The Man In Black is intriguing and the trailer looks interesting enough. My dad was always trying to get me to read the novels when I was growing up and I feel like I heard the later books got weird/bad and I never wanted to invest myself in an epic series that wasn’t strong throughout. This seems like a good way to start. I never knew The Dark Tower series had anything to do with our world, so that’s another surprising element that makes me want to see this movie. Anticipation Meter – 3

Detroit (4th) – Kathryn Bigelow has been one of the strongest filmmakers of recent memory, with both The Hurt Locker and Zero Dark Thirty receiving overwhelming critical acclaim. Her next film, Detroit, boasts a strong cast that features John Boyega, Anthony Mackie, and Will Poulter, plus a trailer that hooked me in the first time I saw it. This film looks like a gritty, gut-wrenchingly good time at the movies.
Anticipation Meter – 4

Kidnap (4th) – You don’t really think about it, but Catwoman ruined Halle Berry’s career. Before that, she had a three year run where she got cast as Storm in the X-Men franchise, played a Bond girl, and won an Oscar for Monster’s Ball. Since then, her best role has arguably been as herself in a theatrical introduction to a Kevin Hart comedy special. This movie doesn’t look to be breaking the cold streak. Anticipation Meter – 1

Annabelle: Creation (11th) – I haven’t seen the original Annabelle, which was spun off from The Conjuring, but this sequel is currently sitting at 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. Horror movies typically get a bad wrap from the critics, so when a sequel to a spin off is getting rave reviews, it’s hard not to take notice. I probably won’t see this in theaters since I haven’t seen the first one yet, but I’m definitely interested in checking it out. Anticipation Meter – 3

The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature (11th) – Nope. Anticipation Meter – 1

The Glass Castle (11th) – I’ve seen the trailer for this drama starring Brie Larson, Woody Harrelson, and Naomi Watts a couple of times now and it looks like it could be Oscar fodder… or really boring – I’m not sure. Writer/director Destin Daniel Cretton is responsible for Short Term 12 which is one of the most lauded films of the past decade that I still haven’t seen, so I suspect it could be pretty good. Brie Larson is definitely an actress I’m checking for right now. Anticipation Meter – 3

Ingrid Goes West (11th) – Aubrey Plaza and Elizabeth Olsen star in this offbeat satire of social media. I just watched the trailer and it looks kind of crazy and Plaza has proven she can do crazy pretty well (see: “Parks and Recreation”). This probably won’t get a wide release, but I’m curious to see it. Anticipation Meter – 3

Good Time (11th) – This will probably be another limited release, but it’s getting incredibly strong reviews and the trailer looks good to me. The story centers around a young man racing around New York City trying to get his brother out of Riker’s Island. Robert Pattinson is getting rave reviews for his performance and I’ve never really liked his work, so I think it would be cool to see some great acting from him. Anticipation Meter – 3

The Hitman’s Bodyguard (18th) – The premise of the world’s top protection agent being assigned to protect the life of one of the world’s most notorious hitmen is kind of interesting and so is the combination of Ryan Reynolds and Samuel L. Jackson, but the trailer looked pretty weak to me. My interest will depend entirely on word of mouth for this one. Anticipation Meter – 2

Logan Lucky (18th) – Another heist movie from director Steven Soderbergh except this time his group of robbers are headed by a couple of slow-witted brothers played by Channing Tatum and Adam Driver and the plan is to rob what looks like a NASCAR race? Daniel Craig seems to be playing very against type in this movie and I’m not sure it’s going to go well. There’s some pedigree here but Soderbergh’s peak was about 15 years ago. Anticipation Meter – 2

Patti Cake$ (18th) – I saw the trailer for this for the first time today and it kind of shocked me. It’s basically 8 Mile except instead of the one of the best rappers of all time in the starring role, we have an unknown big white girl? I’m willing to keep an open mind and the film has gotten some good praise, but I’m also a hip-hop snob, so for this movie to have any chance of hitting home with me this girl better be exceptional. I’m wary, but an underdog movie centered around rap music is something that definitely interests me. Anticipation Meter – 3

Birth of the Dragon (25th) – A Bruce Lee biopic set in 1960s San Francisco and centered around an epic fight between Lee and kung fu master Wong Jack Man. Trailer looks good. Anticipation Meter – 3

Polaroid (25th) – A horror movie along the lines of The Ring in which anyone whose photo is taken by the camera in the movie… dies. Doesn’t seem very groundbreaking and the trailer looks okay at best. Anticipation Meter – 2

Tulip Fever (25th) – A period piece set in Amsterdam about a young woman that marries a wealthy merchant to escape poverty but falls for an artist hired to paint her portrait. Alicia Vikander, Christoph Waltz, Dane DeHaan, and Judi Dench headline a very good cast. Vikander and Waltz have done some really good work in the past decade and that’s enough reason for me to see this movie. Anticipation Meter – 3

MUSIC

There are literally zero albums listed for August that I’m interested in. I’ve been on a Kendrick Lamar and Travis Scott kick the last week or so because I’m seeing their show at the Tacoma Dome tonight. I have a pretty busy August coming up, but maybe I’ll finally get around to doing my next profile write up and catch up on some 2017 album ratings.

Notable Netflix Additions

Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later (1st)
Jackie Brown (1st)
The Matrix (1st)
The Matrix Reloaded (1st)
The Matrix Revolutions (1st)
The Founder (2nd)
Marvel’s The Defenders: Season One (8th)
Death Note (25th)