DVD/Blu-ray Release Calendar: July 2018

▣ Beirut Trailers

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▣ Blockers Trailers

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Pitch Perfect writer Kay Cannon’s directorial debut stars Leslie Mann, Ike Barinholtz, and John Cena as parents who discover their daughters’ plan to lose their virginity on prom night. The parents spend the night trying to stop the girls (Kathryn Newton, Geraldine Indira Viswanathan, and Gideon Adlan), resulting in moments both hilarious and heartfelt. The film proved to be a pleasant surprise when it debuted at SXSW, with critics praising its intelligent writing even though Blockers falls a bit short of classic status.

▣ Chappaquiddick Trailers

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Jason Clarke stars as Ted Kennedy in this recounting of the events of July 18, 1969, when Kennedy drove his car off a bridge on the titular Massachusetts island, killing Mary Jo Kopechne (Kate Mara). Directed by John Curran (Tracks) from a script by Andrew Logan and Taylor Allen, the film received generally good reviews, though a few reviewers found it a bit pointless or a bit tame.

▣ Lean on Pete Trailers

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When it premiered at the Venice Film Festival last year, writer-director Andrew Haigh’s latest drama was a bit more divisive than his previous two features, 45 Years and Weekend, though critics seem to have warmed to the film this year. Adapted from Willy Vlautin’s 2010 novel, Pete stars Charlie Plummer (All the Money in the World) as Charley Thompson, a 15-year-old boy who moves to Portland, Oregon with his single father. While working at a local racetrack, Charley forms a bond with an aging horse bound for slaughter, leading him to escape with his new friend across the American wilderness in search of his aunt. The strong supporting cast includes Steve Buscemi, Chloë Sevigny, Travis Fimmel, and Steve Zahn.

▣ A Quiet Place Trailers

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The first half of 2017 produced an unexpected critical and commercial horror movie hit in the form of Jordan Peele's Get Out. Filling that role in early 2018 is A Quiet Place, by far the most successful directorial effort to date from one-time The Office star John Krasinski (Brief Interviews with Hideous Men, The Hollars). Krasinski stars alongside his wife, Emily Blunt, in this thriller about a family whose only way to survive is by being silent—because any noise will wake deadly creatures that hunt what they hear. The film is almost dialogue-free and also stars Wonderstruck’s Millicent Simmonds as their deaf daughter.

▣ Disobedience Trailers

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Sebastián Lelio directs Rachel Weisz, Rachel McAdams and Alessandro Nivola in this adaptation of Naomi Alderman’s 2006 novel about a woman who returns home to her orthodox Jewish community and rekindles a romance with her cousin’s wife. It's Lelio’s third straight hit with critics, following Gloria (which he’s currently remaking with Julianne Moore in the lead role) and the Academy Award-winning A Fantastic Woman.

▣ I Feel Pretty Trailers

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In her latest lead role, Amy Schumer stars as an ordinary woman who struggles with insecurity until a fall in SoulCycle class results in her believing she’s the most beautiful woman in the world. This somewhat unsuccessful feature directing debut from writers Abby Kohn and Marc Silverstein (How to be Single) also stars Busy Philipps, Aidy Bryant, Emily Ratajkowski, Michelle Williams, Lauren Hutton, Naomi Campbell, and Tom Hopper. After starting her film career with the acclaimed Trainwreck, Schumer has now starred in a pair of duds (including last year's Snatched), suggesting that she may want to return to writing her own material.

▣ Isle of Dogs Trailers

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Director Wes Anderson's second stop-motion tale, like Fantastic Mr. Fox before it, is a hit with reviewers. Based on an original story by the director, Roman Coppola, Kunichi Nomura, and Jason Schwartzman, Dogs is set 20 years in the future, when 12-year-old Atari Kobayashi searches for his dog, Spots, on Trash Island, where dogs have been quarantined. The film features voice work from Anderson regulars Bill Murray, Ed Norton, Jeff Goldblum, Bob Balaban, and Tilda Swinton, as well as newcomers Bryan Cranston, Liev Schreiber, Greta Gerwig, and Scarlett Johansson.

▣ Super Troopers 2 Trailers

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This sequel to the 2002 cult comedy from the Broken Lizard troupe continues the story of highway patrolmen Mac (Steve Lemme), Thorny (Jay Chandrasekhar), Foster (Paul Soter), Rabbit (Erik Stolhanske), and Farva (Kevin Heffernan). The story picks up in the present day as the patrolmen and their captain (Brian Cox) are tasked with establishing a new Highway Patrol station on the now disputed U.S. and Canada border. Rob Lowe, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Tyler Labine, and Will Sasso join the fun this time around. Critics didn't like either film all that much, but if you enjoyed the original, you'll probably have a good time with this one, too.

▣ You Were Never Really Here Trailers

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At last year’s Cannes Film Festival, Joaquin Phoenix won best actor, and writer-director Lynne Ramsay (Ratcatcher, Morvern Callar, We Need to Talk about Kevin) took home a share of the best screenplay award for this adaptation of Bored to Death creator Jonathan Ames' novella. The critically lauded film stars Phoenix as Joe, a traumatized veteran who specializes in finding young girls kidnapped into sex slavery. When a New York senator hires him, Joe finds himself trying to survive in a morass of corruption.

▣ Happy End Trailers

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When the latest from writer-director Michael Haneke premiered at Cannes last year, the film received good reviews, but not the overwhelming positive reception of his previous competition films Amour and The White Ribbon. A look at the pathological sickness of a bourgeois family in Calais, Happy End boasts a strong cast (Isabelle Huppert, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Mathieu Kassovitz) and features Haneke’s typical precision, but critics were a bit underwhelmed by his reliance on themes he already investigated in previous films.

▣ Ready Player One Trailers

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Steven Spielberg’s adaptation of Ernest Cline’s 2011 science fiction best-seller stars Tye Sheridan as Wade Watts, a gamer who spends his time in the virtual reality world of the OASIS under the avatar of Parzival. When the creator of the Oasis dies, he offers his fortune to the first person to find an Easter egg. Battling other players and an evil corporation, Wade goes on a high-stakes 1980s pop-culture treasure hunt to retrieve the Easter egg. It's far from Spielberg’s best film, but it proved to be a decent enough box office success, especially overseas.

▣ Final Portrait Trailers

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Actor Stanley Tucci’s latest film as director is based on A Giacometti Portrait, writer James Lord’s memoir of his time sitting for a portrait by artist Alberto Giacometti. Set in 1964, the film provides a unique look at the creative process as Armie Hammer’s Lord observes a frustrated Giacometti (Geoffrey Rush) strive for something he can’t complete, delaying Lord’s return home several times. Critics generally liked the result, making it Tucci’s best directorial effort since Big Night.

▣ Tully Trailers

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Director Jason Reitman has been on a bit of a losing streak lately (Men, Women & Children and Labor Day), but a reunion with his Juno and Young Adult screenwriter Diablo Cody seems to have righted the ship. His newest film stars Charlize Theron as Marlo, a mother of three, whose newborn pushes her to the breaking point until Tully (Mackenzie Davis), a night nurse, arrives to ease her burden. Supporting roles are filled by Mark Duplass as Theron’s brother and Ron Livingston as her husband.