With summer quickly approaching, big-name movies are starting to make their way to theaters. This weekend sees quite a few new films premiering: there is a drama about a woman who mourns the loss of her fiancé by sending texts to his old phone number – only to fall in love with the man given his phone number, a thriller about a time-traveling zombie hunter trying to save the man she loves, a film about a couple that sneak into an upscale Los Angeles home and are then coerced into spending time with the strange homeowner, the third installment following Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy, and much more!
Anxious Nation
Over the past three decades, the biggest public health threats to teenagers in the United States came from binge drinking, drunken driving, teenage pregnancy, and smoking. Today, these have been replaced by soaring rates of mental health disorders-especially anxiety. In a rare public advisory in early 2022, the U.S. surgeon general warned of a devastating mental health crisis among adolescents, creating a national emergency. Like pouring gasoline on an already out-of-control inferno, anxiety and its impact were intensely exacerbated by the pandemic. Academy Award-winning director Vanessa Roth and first-time co-director Laura Morton thoughtfully unfold the epidemic of anxiety and explore why we are such an anxious nation. The film sets out to lift the shroud of shame around mental health while giving emotional insights into how anxiety shows up in our children’s lives, impacts families, and what parents’ contributing role may be in the journey. Kids and families bravely share their stories, and the subjects will surprise you — the star of the high school basketball team, the premed college student, the all-American girl next door. Resolving anxiety is not a one size fits all answer. The filmmakers offer deep insights into how we got here and what we can do to harness anxious energy for good. Above all, the film offers hope. While there is no cure for anxiety, we can learn to manage it, so it doesn’t define us.
Directed by Laura Morton, Vanessa Roth
Starring: Jonah Burns, Meredith Burns, Nicole Cochrane, GC Coris
Release date: May 5
Big Fun
While sneaking into a swanky Los Angeles home, a young woman and her boyfriend are coerced into hanging out with the strange homeowner.
Directed by Jon Walkup
Starring: Rachel Rambaldi, Cheyann Dillon, Jon Walkup, Niamh O’Neill Culhane, Thomas Morrison
Release date: May 5
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (PG-13)
Still reeling from the loss of Gamora, Peter Quill rallies his team to defend the universe and one of their own – a mission that could mean the end of the Guardians if not successful.
Directed by James Gunn
Starring: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Karen Gillan
Release date: May 5
Jacir
A young Syrian refugee faces hard truths chasing the American dream on the streets of Memphis, Tennessee, while living in poverty, dealing with social injustice and witnessing his neighbor’s opioid addiction.
Directed by Waheed AlQawasmi
Starring: Lorraine Bracco, Malek Rahbani, Tutweezy, Tony Mehanna, Leila Almas Rose
Release date: May 5
Love Again (PG-13)
A young woman tries to ease the pain of her fiancé’s death by sending romantic texts to his old cell phone number, and forms a connection with the man the number has been reassigned to.
Directed by Jim Strouse
Starring: Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Sam Heughan, Celia Imrie, Russell Tovey, Lydia West
Release date: May 5
Slava Ukraini
From Kharkiv to Bakhmut to Kherson, filmmaker Bernard-Henri Lévy documents the ravages of the war in the Ukraine through testimonies from soldiers and civilians.
Directed by Bernard-Henri Lévy
Starring: Gilles Hertzog, Bernard-Henri Lévy
Release date: May 5
This Is Us
A young woman breaks things off with her boyfriend but finds out the universe has other plans. Desperate to move on, she is forced to literally relive the memories they’ve shared together. Pin-balling through time and space, she attempts to rewrite their shared history in hopes that she can find the man with whom she first fell in love.
Directed by Jerry J. White III
Starring: Amelia Brantley, Raymond Creamer, Ceasar Romero Evans Jr., Tracey Fairaway, Jessica Lynn Parsons
Release date: May 5
The Third Saturday in October
When a psycho goes on a murderous rampage after surviving a botched execution, only two survivors of his initial attack can stop him.
Directed by Jay Burleson
Starring: Darius Willis, K.J. Baker, Allison Shrum, Lew Temple, Antonio Woodruff
Release date: May 5
The Third Saturday in October Part V
Follow an implacable killer as he stalks and butchers the occupants of houses across the stretch of one lone country road while the residents prepare to watch a yearly college-football bout.
Directed by Jay Burleson
Starring: Kansas Bowling, Poppy Cunningham, Taylor Smith, Bart Hyatt, Autumn Jaide
Release date: May 5
What’s Love Got to Do with It? (PG-13)
In London, an award-winning film-maker documents her best friend’s journey into an assisted marriage in line with his family’s Pakistani heritage. In the process, she challenges her own attitude towards relationships.
Directed by Shekhar Kapur
Starring: Mim Shaikh, Iman Boujelouah, Lily James, Emma Thompson, Pakiza Baig
Release date: May 5
Zombie Traveler
A time traveling zombie killer travels through space and time to save the man she loves.
Directed by Lacey Franks, Addison Dawn Perry-Franks
Starring: Lacey Franks, Addison Dawn Perry-Franks, Jessie Everrett, Madison Frank, Danni Perry Franks
Release date: May 5
