Don't Bogart My Blog: Movies Update: ‘Zola,’ ‘No Sudden Move’ and More

July 2, 2021

By Mekado Murphy

Movies Editor

Hey, movie fans!

Between the fireworks this holiday weekend, there are plenty of movie options to fit in both at home and in theaters.

Some high-profile streaming releases include "The Tomorrow War," the splashy Chris Pratt sci-fi film on Amazon; "No Sudden Move," the starry period drama from Steven Soderbergh on HBO Max; the acclaimed Harlem music festival documentary "Summer of Soul" on Hulu; the first installment in the "Fear Street" trilogy on Netflix; and the animated "Boss Baby: Family Business" on Peacock (and in theaters).

On the big screen there's the buzzy indie film based on a Twitter thread, "Zola." And for fans of the "Purge" series, a new one, "The Forever Purge," loudly and intensely makes its way to a theater near you.

If you'd like to take a dive behind the scenes of some of the latest releases, check out our interviews with the "Summer of Soul" director Questlove, the "I Carry You With Me" director Heidi Ewing and the star of "Zola," Taylour Paige.

Enjoy the movies (and the holiday)!

Claudette Barius/Warner Bros

'No Sudden Move' Review: Don't Forget the Motor City

Don Cheadle and Benicio Del Toro star in Steven Soderbergh's new film, a Detroit-set period thriller with a lot on its mind.

By A.O. Scott

Anna Kooris/A24

'Zola' Review: Twitter? I Hardly Know Her!

A notorious tweetstorm arrives onscreen, starring Taylour Paige and Riley Keough.

By A.O. Scott

Frank Masi/Paramount Pictures/Amazon

'The Tomorrow War' Review: Future Schlock

Chris Pratt leaps to 2051 to save our planet from aliens in this hyperventilating sci-fi spectacle.

By Jeannette Catsoulis

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CRITICS' PICKS

Simon Varsano/Screen Media

Critic's Pick

'Till Death' Review: My Relationship Is Dragging Me Down

Megan Fox leads this straightforward, but gleefully chaotic thriller about a woman handcuffed to the corpse of her husband.

By Beatrice Loayza

Array Releasing

Critic's Pick

'Cousins' Review: The Ties That Bind

This sprawling drama breathes cinematic life into the 1992 novel by Patricia Grace about the diverging paths of three Maori cousins in New Zealand.

By Devika Girish

Fred Scott

Critic's Pick

'Being a Human Person' Review: Watching a Surrealist

This documentary on the Swedish filmmaker Roy Andersson takes an unexpected turn.

By Glenn Kenny

Mubi	Critic's Pick 'White on White' Review: Problematic Images This striking, slow-burn portrait of a 19th-century Argentine archipelago considers a photographer's involvement in the horrors of colonialism. By Beatrice Loayza

Carol Martinez/Kino Lorber

Critic's Pick

'Lydia Lunch: The War Is Never Over' Review: A Punk Provocateur Endures

Beth B's documentary tells the story of an iconic underground New York City misfit and her durable career.

By Glenn Kenny

MOVIE REVIEWS

'America: The Motion Picture' Review: In Bros We Trust

The American Revolution gets a frat-style sendup in this irreverent animated comedy.

By Amy Nicholson

'Long Story Short' Review: Fast Forward to the End

After his wedding night, a workaholic gets cursed with previewing how his life will turn out, one year at a time.

By Nicolas Rapold

'The Boss Baby: Family Business' Review: Pacifier Be With You

It's more of the same in this sequel to the 2017 comedy featuring the voice of Alec Baldwin.

By Maya Phillips

'No. 7 Cherry Lane' Review: A Heady Daydream in 1967 Hong Kong

This nostalgic animated film follows a taboo love triangle.

By Isabelia Herrera

'The One and Only Dick Gregory' Review: A Peek at a Comic Legend

The documentary examines the many lives of the stand-up and activist who inspired a generation of performers.

By Jason Zinoman

'The Phantom' Review: The Death Penalty for a Doppelgänger

This documentary examines the circumstances of a 1983 killing in Texas, for which it contends the wrong man was convicted and executed.

By Ben Kenigsberg

'Some of Our Stallions' Review: At Least They Don't Shoot Horses

The film poses the cause-and-effect question about toxic masculinity and unhinged behavior.

By Glenn Kenny

'The Legend of the Underground' Review: Gay Activism in Nigeria

In this stylish documentary, young men discuss their country's laws criminalizing gay sex.

By Teo Bugbee

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ANATOMY OF A SCENE

A24	Anatomy of a Scene Watch a Poolside Crisis in 'Zola' The director Janicza Bravo narrates a sequence featuring Taylour Paige and Colman Domingo. By Mekado Murphy

NEWS & FEATURES

Netflix

10 Influences That Explain Why 'Fear Street' Seems Familiar

The Netflix horror epic might have you thinking about slasher movies, '90s rock and Scooby-Doo all at once.

By Mekado Murphy

Chantal Anderson for The New York Times

Taylour Paige on 'Zola,' Grace and Being Kinder to Herself

For the stripper tale, the actress was mindful of the real Zola's voice: "We're in service of the bigger truth, the way we as Black women go through the world."

By Candice Frederick

Andre D. Wagner for The New York Times

With 'Summer of Soul,' Questlove Wants to Fill a Cultural Void

"This just sat in a basement and no one cared," Questlove said about the Harlem Cultural Festival footage he watched on loop for months to make his new, acclaimed documentary.

By Salamishah Tillet

Loki Films

When Truth Melds With Fiction: Making 'I Carry You With Me'

Heidi Ewing directed a film about two of her friends and their love story, both following them in real life and using actors to portray them in narrative moments.

By Nicolas Rapold

Adam Amengual for The New York Times

How to Go From 'Veep' Scene-Stealer to Action-Movie Apprentice

After a turn on the HBO comedy, Sam Richardson now fights alongside Chris Pratt in "The Tomorrow War." But big-screen heroism isn't as easy as it looks.

By Kyle Buchanan

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