✹ WEEKLY FILM RUNDOWN: July 19-25

Jerod Ra'Del Hollyfield -

The latest releases and special screenings hitting Music City this week. For a complete list of upcoming releases, check out our 2024 Film Guide.

Twisters If anyone can make us forget the chemistry between Bill Paxton and Helen Hunt and the maniacal joy of Philip Seymour Hoffman in the 1996 storm-chaser blockbuster, it’s man of the hour, Glen Powell. Starring as the dudebro who just may be able to harness the power of the tornado alongside an enviable ensemble cast of Young Hollywood heavyweights like Daisy Edgar-Jones, Anthony Ramos, Kiernan Shipka, and Sasha Lane, Hollywood’s newest leading man looks to replicate the summer movie magic he helped bring to Top Gun: Maverick two years back. Throw in Minari director Lee Isaac Chung fresh from his well-deserved Oscar attention and equipped with his knack for rural local color, and our most-anticipated blockbuster of midsummer could also be one of the year’s best.

Crumb Catcher Two newlyweds hope their honeymoon will help gloss over their faltering relationship, but an inventor of a useless gadget intends to make them a captive audience in the biggest left-field surprise of the summer. Read our rave review here. Now playing at AMC Thoroughbred 20.

Seven Samurai Akira Kurosawa’s epic about a band of warriors protecting a village from bandits influenced everything from The Magnificent Seven to Star Wars. Celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Japanese classic with a new 4K restoration. Now playing at The Belcourt.

How to Come Alive with Norman Mailer The 20th Century’s bad boy of American letters gets the documentary treatment in a film that has full access to the Mailer estate archives and promises to lean into the nuance of the author’s tumultuous life. Now playing at The Belcourt

Ghost World and Welcome to the Dollhouse @ Belcourt Midnights Nashville’s nonprofit cinema celebrates the pinnacle of pre-9/11 angst with two of the area’s most enduring indies. First, Terry Zwigoff’s adaptation of the cult graphic novel about a wayward high school grad (Thora Birch) navigating the cultural bankruptcy of her smalltown life with her best friend (Scarlett Johansson) and an eclectic middle-aged nerd (Steve Buscemi) brings the caustic wit and Gen X ennui to Friday. Then on Saturday, a 35mm print of Todd Solondz’s suburbs-are-hell teen dramedy proves why he’s America’s most undervalued chronicler of the middle class. 

Oddity A year after his wife is murdered on their rural estate, a doctor tries to exact revenge on the entity responsible with the help of his former sister-in-law, who happens to be a blind mystic, in this well-reviewed indie horror entry. Now playing in theaters.

National Anthem A twentysomething construction worker (Charlie Plummer) falls in with a group of queer rodeo clowns in this hicklib agitprop fantasy. Now playing at AMC Thoroughbred 20 and Regal Hollywood 27. 

The Blues Under The Skin The classic documentary about the Delta Blues featuring appearances by B.B. King, Buddy Guy, Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee, Mance Lipscomb, Bukka White and Roosevelt Sykes celebrates its 50th anniversary. Playing Tuesday-Thursday at The Belcourt.

Disciples in The Moonlight “In the not-too-distant future the Bible has been outlawed in the United States of America and replaced with a government approved bible. A group of seven Christians from Indiana, are asked to smuggle the true Word of God to underground churches in Kentucky, Illinois, and Ohio. With Homeland Security hot on their trail, the smugglers must be willing to risk it all for the Word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ.” Trump/Vance 24. Now playing in theaters.

Bad Newz (Hindi) Two Punjabi men vie for the affections of a Christian-Hindu women one of them knocked up. Now playing at AMC Thoroughbred 20 and Regal Hollywood 27. Darling
(Telugu) A lowly tourist office employee saves up for his dream wedding. Now playing at Regal Hollywood 27.