Welcome to Trust Me, I Watch Everything, a weekly guide to all the new movies out each Friday.
This week’s buzziest release is the sixth entry in the Insidious horror franchise, Insidious: Out of the Further, which takes things in an exciting new direction. The latest film from Jane Schoenbrun, Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma, also expands nationwide, as does the Anthony Bourdain biopic Tony and Matthew McConaughey’s outstanding The Rivals of Amziah King.
If you’d rather stay home, you can now rent or buy Toy Story 5, one of the biggest box-office hits of the year.
Want to stick to a streaming service you’re likely already paying for? Steven Soderbergh’s The Christophers is well worth a watch on Hulu, and the jump-scare fest Passenger makes its way to Paramount+.
Let’s dive in!
🎥 What to watch in theatersThe biggest release: Insidious: Out of the Further
Why I liked it: Insidious: Out of the Further has to be one of the most inspired sixth entries in a franchise that I can think of, especially when you consider that it likely only exists because 2023’s Insidious: The Red Door was such a hit, despite being the weakest entry.
That film closed the, uh, red door on the Lambert family’s story, so in Out of the Further, we’re introduced to a new family and a bevy of spooky new ghouls. Gemma, a young mother raising her daughter in the house she grew up in, discovers that not only can she travel into the Further, but she also possesses a very special ability: She can bring what lives in the Further back to the real world. It’s a fun, goofy twist that brings a whole new dimension to the proceedings (pun intended).
Despite ultimately functioning as a metaphor for trauma — a modern horror trope so prevalent it’s barely worth mentioning at this point, just assume it’s the case — the movie works because it’s both scary and silly. The jump scares are incredibly effective, and the entities from the Further are unsettling and/or gross to varying degrees. It’s so earnestly committed to the movie’s world and its random rules that it’s easy to get wrapped up in it all.
The horror set pieces are truly excellent, including a standout sequence involving a pillow fort and endless couch cushions that brings Backrooms to mind, and another one involving the grossest visit to the dentist you’ll likely ever experience. (Hopefully, at least.)
It leans into the ridiculousness in the back half in a way that may lose some audience members, but really won me over. It’s visually inventive throughout, especially when the characters jump back and forth between the Further and reality. The childhood trauma stuff, despite earning a perfunctory eye roll from me up top, is actually well-established and unexpectedly satisfying on a narrative level by the end. They earned it!
It’s still so fun that scream queen Lin Shaye, 82, is a genuine movie star, and she’s well-deployed here, tethering this entry to the others in a fun way. Also, her annoying sidekicks are nowhere to be found, which is a plus, as far as I’m concerned.
Insidious: Out of the Further is a successful standalone entry in this long-running franchise. The most exciting part may be that the creatives involved here seem to have figured out how to keep things fresh moving forward. I hope it’s not long before we get Insidious: Back to the Further.
What other critics are saying: Reviews are split pretty much right down the middle. TheWrap’s Amelia Emberwing writes that it “overcomes a barely OK screenplay to be a fun (disgusting, sometimes terrifying and occasionally funny) ride with a good heart.” Johnny Oleksinski at the New York Post wasn’t a fan, writing, “Raw thrills, visual or psychological, would be fine if they didn’t come alongside so many gobbledygook explainers. Trying to pump logic into this is foolish and tiresome.”
How to watch: Insidious: Out of the Further is now playing in theaters nationwide.
Another option: Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma
Why I liked it: Jane Schoenbrun’s follow-up to the extremely personal I Saw the TV Glow is arguably even more personal, exploring an extremely specific feeling while saying so much about horror movies, sexuality, identity, shame and the intersection of all these things that it doesn’t matter if you don’t personally connect to every single element. Unlike its predecessor, which is deeply moving but also fairly humorless, Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma is laugh-out-loud funny and joyful. It couldn’t be further in tone from TV Glow despite exploring similar ideas. It’s fun!
Both films are about movies, specifically examining how people discover more about themselves through the media they consume. We are what we eat, cinema-wise, so to speak. In Camp Miasma, Hacks star Hannah Einbinder plays a queer director making a slasher franchise sequel who becomes obsessed with casting the original film’s “final girl” — played by X-Files legend Gillian Anderson in full Sunset Boulevard Norma Desmond mode — leading both women into psychological and sexual chaos.
It’s easy to draw a line between the lead character, a Sundance wunderkind queer filmmaker, and Schoenbrun, who has likely been on the receiving end of offers similar to the one depicted in the movie. Einbinder gives a stunningly confident star-making turn here, and Anderson is having a ball with her Southern-fried nonchalance.
The movie cleverly connects the idea of a sexual awakening with the plot of a slasher film in which a masked killer, literally named Little Death — aka le petit mort, famously a French idiom for an orgasm — must be awakened from a deep slumber from a hole in the bottom of the lake before they go on a blood-soaked killing spree.
The film is at its most interesting when it explores the fake Camp Miasma franchise, clearly modeled after the Friday the 13th series but also drawing inspiration from other genre classics, including Sleepaway Camp and its problematic reveal. The opening credit sequence detailing Miasma’s trajectory over the years is an assured bit of filmmaking and a smart way to deliver exposition. There’s an unforgettable kill sequence scored to the last song you’d ever expect, and that anachronism inspires questions of how well we actually remember the content of the movies we love, and how much is tied up in nostalgia.
Both Camp Miasma and TV Glow don’t exactly require the context that filmmaker Jane Schoenbrun is transgender and had recently transitioned prior to making the latter film — there’s a lot more to explore in both works than just gender identity. But with that knowledge, both films open up and become deeply moving treatises on accepting yourself for who you really are and the benefits that come with it. The ultimate message of TV Glow is that if you’ve never felt comfortable in your own body, there is still time to figure that out and live a full, happy life once you’ve had that moment of self-enlightenment. In Camp Miasma, a character who has always disassociated during sex and never enjoyed it learns how to get out of their own head and enjoy the moment — with the help of the movies, of course.
Divorced from any gendered reading, I Saw the TV Glow is about the transformative power of watching art, especially art you’re too young to fully understand, and how it’s often the first place kids can see themselves in a truly deep and meaningful way. Before we figure out our own identities, the movies and TV shows we watch help us get there. Camp Miasma can best be summed up by a line of dialogue from the movie: “I think I saw too many movies as a kid, and it f****d me up real bad.”
What other critics are saying: It’s very well-reviewed. Rolling Stone’s David Fear writes, “It goes beyond being a paean to trash fandom, and transforms into something much deeper and grander. They have made their Miasma-sterpiece.” The AP’s Lindsay Bahr dubs it “a thoughtfully constructed fever dream that wears its high and low brow references on its sleeve.”
How to watch: Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma is now playing in theaters nationwide.
But that’s not all …
Jason Statham hits the high seas in Mutiny. (Dan Smith / © Lionsgate / Courtesy Everett Collection)
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Mutiny: Jason Statham’s latest Jason Statham movie delivers exactly what you’d expect from it, and not an ounce more. After witnessing his billionaire boss’s murder and being framed for the crime, Cole Reed (Statham) boards a cargo ship on a one-man crusade to avenge the death, only to discover an international human trafficking conspiracy. It’s about as boilerplate as it gets and plays more like a straight-to-video variant of this type of thing, though it does come alive in the action scenes. Unfortunately, there aren’t quite enough of those sequences for this to rank in the top tier of Statham joints. They’re selling it as “Die Hard on a boat” as if Steven Seagal didn’t already do that way back in 1992! Get tickets.
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It Ends: I never connected with this surreal, minimalist, no-budget indie, an alleged thriller about a group of recent college graduates who get stuck on a road that simply won’t end. The entire thing is meant to be taken as a metaphor for life itself — more specifically, about the existential dread people of that age might face nowadays amid the pandemic, A.I. and other developments that might make the transition from childhood to adulthood fraught and the future uncertain. There may be enough meat on the bone for an episode of The Twilight Zone, but it bored me at feature length. Maybe if it engaged with the supernatural horrors on the periphery instead of going all-in on its central metaphor, it would’ve been more fun. Your mileage may vary! Get tickets.
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The Rivals of Amziah King: This genre-bending indie gem, starring Matthew McConaughey, is wholly unique and incredibly charming, with a few moments of genuine “movies don’t get any better than this” transcendence. McConaughey is excellent — the best he’s been in ages and maybe ever. Read my full review here as the movie expands to a nationwide release. Get tickets.
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Tony: Canadian filmmaker Matt Johnson (Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie, Blackberry) leaps into the mainstream with Tony, a melancholy yet always charming coming-of-age dramedy. It also happens to be a biopic about Anthony Bourdain, covering a very specific chapter of the late chef’s early days, loosely adapted from his breakthrough book, Kitchen Confidential. Read my full review here as the movie expands to a nationwide release. Get tickets.
💸 Movies newly available to rent or buyThe best option: Toy Story 5
Why I liked it: Toy Story 5 continues the storied franchise’s tradition of laughs, tears and, frankly, just being damn good movies that both kids and adults can enjoy.
When Bonnie receives a Lilypad tablet as a gift and becomes obsessed, Buzz, Woody, Jessie and the rest of the gang have to go head-to-head with the all-new threat to playtime.
What’s most impressive here is the way the movie understands the multi-pronged threat that technology poses to children: how it changes the very nature of “play” to the point where playing with toys is discouraged, and why using a tablet to communicate with your classmates as the only way to connect, especially for shy kids, can be a big disadvantage.
It took becoming a parent for me to realize that every single one of these movies is, quite obviously, about parenting. In case that wasn’t made clear enough, there’s a shot toward the end of the film that makes it fact, with Bonnie’s parents and Buzz and Woody positioned so we’re watching both sets of “parents” react.
It may not reach the highs of the original trilogy, but it has a renewed sense of purpose that wasn’t quite present in the fourth entry. By focusing on the very real threats children face from our societal push toward “smart” toys and the proliferation of iPads and tablets, Toy Story 5 more than justifies its existence, even if the messaging stops short of going full “analog is better, and tech is inherently bad for children’s development.” Reminding children that nothing can replace face-to-face contact, and that simply hanging out, playing and using your imagination is the best way to form community, is an important lesson, particularly relevant today. But there is some cognitive dissonance required when the movie tries to have its cake and eat it too about tech’s invasion into our lives — they have to sell Lilypad, after all.
What other critics are saying: It’s getting mostly positive reviews! Nick Schager at the Daily Beast writes: “A cute and funny sequel that treads well-worn territory and yet manages to elicit its fair share of waterworks, it’s not the series’ best but, in most respects, is still better than the rest.” TheWrap’s William Bibbiani, meanwhile, calls it “enjoyable but repetitive.”
How to watch: Toy Story 5 is now available to rent or buy on Apple TV, Prime Video and other VOD platforms.
📺 Movies newly available on streaming services you may already haveMy pick: The Christophers
Why I liked it: Steven Soderbergh’s latest film sees the prolific filmmaker dropping all pretense and making the “it’s about making art!” element the text instead of the subtext. In the film, the estranged children of a once-famous artist (Ian McKellen) hire a forger (Michaela Coel) to complete his unfinished works so they can be “discovered” and sold after his death.
It’s a moving examination of the aging artist: what inspires you and what stops you from seeing it through, as well as the meaning hidden in the work that maybe even the artist wasn’t cognizant of but is absolutely there.
McKellen is sensational as the ornery reclusive artist, and Coel is equally brilliant as the one who forces him to reckon with the unfinished works and why exactly they’ve been stuck in the attic for years. In a just world, McKellen would be an Oscar frontrunner here, and Ed Solomon’s clever screenplay would be nominated as well.
What other critics are saying: It earned incredibly strong reviews. Clarisse Loughrey at the Independent writes, “I’m certain there’s a piece of [Soderbergh’s] soul in The Christophers, if you look hard enough.” San Francisco Chronicle’s Mick LaSalle calls it “intelligent and original.”
How to watch: The Christophers is now streaming on Hulu.
Another option: Passenger
Why I liked it: Passenger is an extremely silly horror movie that nevertheless does exactly what it says on the tin and delivers the scary goods.
After a young couple witnesses a gruesome highway accident, they soon realize they did not leave the crash scene alone. A demonic presence that won’t stop until it claims them both turns their #VanLife adventure into a nightmare. In short, it’s a haunted house movie, but set in a van.
The opening scene, in particular, is incredibly effective at setting the stage for what follows; I was most impressed by how casually funny it was right off the bat, making you laugh immediately with characters you’ve only just met. The scene that unfolds is tense, and the cut-to-title had the crowd I saw it with screaming with delight.
You’ll be checking your watch, however, any time the movie slows down to let the characters talk about their inner lives. It’s not the kind of movie that requires much relationship backstory, and whenever the boyfriend gets earnest about his ambitions for his van, it’s hard not to laugh at how thinly drawn they are. But all the spooky set pieces are well-constructed enough and will make you jump, so it’s worth enduring the boring bits.
Norwegian filmmaker André Øvredal has yet to top his debut feature, The Autopsy of Jane Doe, but Passenger is his most fun work since that truly great horror film, after the duds The Last Voyage of the Demeter, Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark and Umma, which nobody saw.
What other critics are saying: Not everyone is as kind to genre flicks as I am, so it’s more of a mixed bag. Alison Foreman at IndieWire is on my side, however, writing that it “may lack the interpersonal and mythological complexities required of a proper, obsession-worthy classic. But Øvredal is nevertheless skilled at trapping his audience inside a disorienting, semi-liminal space where anything can happen.” The Guardian’s Benjamin Lee was not wowed, writing, “We’re never really thrust onto the road with the film, occupying a seat alongside them. Instead, we’re stuck half-watching from afar, dozing our way through a journey that takes us, and the horror genre at large, back rather than forward.”
How to watch: Passenger is now streaming on Paramount+.
But that’s not all …
Anne Hathaway transforms into a pop star in Mother Mary. (Frederic Batier /© A24 / Courtesy Everett Collection)
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Mother Mary: This totally dull disappointment from David Lowery (The Green Knight, Ain’t Them Bodies Saints) is about art, you see. In a metaphorical sense. Anne Hathaway plays an iconic pop star who reunites with her estranged best friend and former costume designer, played by Michaela Coel, on the eve of her comeback performance. It’s presumably meant to be a treatise on the creative process and who or what inspires the art, but its nonlinear approach and repetitiveness make it a chore to watch. “These metaphors are exhausting” is an actual line of dialogue in the film, and also functions as a succinct review! If you want to watch Michaela Coel in a movie about art, check out The Christophers, reviewed above. Now streaming on Hulu.
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Buffet Infinity: This bizarre Canadian indie gem splits the difference between sketch comedy and a sprawling horror epic, weaving its wild story entirely through fake local TV commercials. It plays like a feature-length adaptation of what used to air on Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim block in the middle of the night, but more nightmarish. The synopsis is as follows: A local restaurant faces the looming threat of the new dining behemoth in town: Buffet Infinity. As Buffet Infinity endlessly expands, engulfing everything in its path, a sinister conspiracy unfolds and unfathomable powers begin to seep into the vulnerable community of Westridge County, Alberta. It’s easier to experience it than describe it. Now streaming on Shudder.
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I Swear: This BAFTA-winning film, which you likely heard of due to the controversy at the ceremony, is now available in the U.S. on streaming, and it’s charming enough to recommend even if its attempts at comedy sometimes rub up against its earnestness. The film follows the true story of John Davidson’s journey from a misunderstood teenager in 1980s Britain to a present-day advocate for the understanding and acceptance of Tourette’s syndrome. Now streaming on Netflix.
That’s all for this week! We’ll see you next Friday.
Looking for more recs? Find your next watch on the Yahoo 100, our daily list of the most popular movies of the year. And for family-friendly picks, check out our kid-approved summer movie guide.