Cinematic Chronicles

"I don't need tips because my fake boyfriend, Derek, makes bank." If you weren't satisfied with Grace MacCaullay outlasting her husband and his entire family in that initial, twisted game of "Hide and Seek", Samara Weaving is back to reprise her role seven years later -- as several elite families attempt to murder Grace and her estranged sister, Faith. Warning: there are spoilers ahead. Following Grace's unlikely victory on her wedding night -- and the subsequent demise of the entire Le Domas family -- the remaining members of an elite Council reunite with a simple goal in mind: kill Grace before dawn to acquire the High Seat and a mysterious ring of power. Elijah Wood enters the fray as "The Lawyer", explaining the rules of this new game to the remaining family members (because nobody knows more about mysterious rings than that man). Contenders for the High Seat include siblings Ursula and Titus Danforth, Wan Chen Xing, Viraj Rajan, Ignacio El...

"I should probably go." "You should probably stay." Colleen Hoover's Reminders of Him tells the story of Kenna Rowan (Maika Monroe), a young woman who seeks to reconnect with her daughter after serving a prison sentence. Warning: there are spoilers ahead. After pleading guilty to vehicular manslaughter for an accident resulting in the death of her boyfriend, Scotty Landry, Kenna is forced to spend half a decade in prison. Upon her release, she moves back to her hometown in hopes of finally meeting her five-year-old daughter Diem, who is being raised by Scotty's parents. Kenna ultimately stumbles into a bar where she finally meets Ledger Ward (Tyriq Withers), Scotty's lifelong best friend who was an NFL player during their relationship. When Ledger realizes Kenna's true identity, he is furious -- blaming her for Scotty's death, he refuses to introduce her to Diem. However, a series of flashbacks soon reveal that Scotty's death was, indeed , an...

A film for those who think Lake Bell kinda sucks. Regal Theatres Monday's Mystery Movie (3/16) was revealed to be Fantasy Life , written and directed by Matthew Shear. Warning: there are spoilers ahead. Shear concurrently stars in the film as Sam, an anxious tax lawyer who pays a visit to his therapist after being let go from his job. As Sam exits the office, his therapist's wife/secretary suggests that he babysit their granddaughters. Her son David and his wife Dianne have three daughters between the ages of 6 and 11, and at a generous rate of $300 per night, this setup might have worked well for Sam -- had he not fallen for Dianne (Amanda Peet). Dianne is a former actress who has lost her sense of purpose following a decade of unemployment. When Sam enters her life, she finally feels seen again. Meanwhile, her husband David is portrayed as an alcoholic, wanna-be rockstar who leaves the continent on tour and practically thrusts his wife into the arms of their "manny...

So you want to catch a movie released on Friday the 13th . . . In an era of horror dominated by jump scares, Ian Tuason's Undertone is a minimalistic film that relies almost entirely on sound and unconventional camera shots to create an unsettling atmosphere. The protagonist of this story is Evangeline "Evy" Babig (played by Nina Kiri), who runs a horror podcast alongside her off-screen friend Justin (Adam DiMarco). Warning: there are spoilers ahead . As the plot develops, Justin receives an anonymous email containing ten audio files, recorded by an unknown couple -- Mike and Jessa.  Mike has recorded Jessa at night to capture evidence of her talking and singing in her sleep.  During their podcast, Evy and Justin begin playing these recordings in reverse to uncover secret messages within Jessa's ramblings. Mike, kill all. Lick the blood off. Come in, Abyzou. In her breaks from podcasting, Evy has been tasked with caring for her comatose mother. She feels very guilty a...

Who doesn't love a self-aware animated film? "Guys, this is like Avatar !" exclaims Mabel Tanaka, protagonist of Daniel Chong's  Hoppers . "This is nothing like Avatar !" cries Dr. Sam in response. Spoiler alert... it was kind of like Avatar . Warning: there are actual spoilers ahead . Pixar's latest installment revolves around a teenage girl with a particular affinity for animals.  Inspired by her late grandmother, Mabel seeks to protect a nearby glade from being destroyed by (perceived antagonist) Mayor Jerry's freeway project.  After discovering experimental technology allowing a human mind to “hop” into a robotic animal body, Mabel transfers her consciousness into a robotic beaver and decides to live among the animals to better understand their society. While in disguise, she befriends Mammal King George and helps unite a variety of species in the forest while battling a guilty conscience about her true identity. In this film's climax, the a...

Regal Theatres present Monday's Mystery Movie: Horror Edition (3/9) .  For just $5, fans gain access to a movie before its official release date, with the sole caveat being that the film remains a mystery to all until house lights are dimmed. This week's film was revealed to be  Slanted , starring Shirley Chen and Mckenna Grace.  Warning: there are spoilers ahead. Written and directed by Amy Wang, Slanted tells the story of an insecure Chinese-American girl who undergoes experimental ethnic modification surgery to appear white. As the story progresses, our protagonist Joan Huang becomes Jo Hunt in an effort to gain peer acceptance and be voted Prom Queen -- to the exasperation of both her parents and best friend. While there are elements of horror, specifically in the film's final scene as Joan frantically attempts to tear off her new face, it was tough as an audience member to shake the expectation of a horror film and adjust to this Disneyesque story about societal pres...