Ranking the Nine New Movies I Watched in August: From Alien Romulus to Strange Darling

Here’s my ranking of the nine new movies I watched in August. At nine I have the Crow. There was only one sequence in this entire movie that I was able to enjoy. The rest of it had me wishing I was just watching the 1994 Brandon Lee version. At 8 I have it ends with us. Definitely not as bad as I thought it was going to be, but I wouldn’t say I found it good either. At 7 I have Jackpot. I like its screwball premise, but ultimately I didn’t find it all that funny and it just doesn’t leave much of an impression. At 6 I have oddity, although I don’t think it totally stuck the landing. All things considered, I still think this is a solid ghost story that did a pretty decent job of spooking me. At 5 I have cuckoo, A surreal, strange, and morbidly fun blend of SCI fi, horror, and mystery, featuring noteworthy work from Hunter Schafer and Dan Stevens. At 4 I have trap. While its reception has been divisive, this is probably my favorite M. Night film since 2000. The village. It’s got a thrilling concept, eye catching cinematography, and a delightfully unhinged lead performance from Josh Hartnett. At 3 I have Janet Planet, A gentle, melancholic, and thoughtful portrayal of a flawed mother daughter relationship that’s very well acted and directed. At 2 I have Alien Romulus. I didn’t expect to see it three times within a week, but I did, and I have no regrets. I do think it over relies on fan service at times, and I wasn’t a fan of the digital resurrection of a particular actor, but. But other than that, the movie looks great, it sounds great, it has frighteningly ferocious set pieces, and both Kaylee Spainy and David Johnson are welcome additions to the alien franchise. And at number one I have strange darling, one of 20 Twenty Four’s best surprises so far. A stylish, razor sharp, vicious and darkly funny thriller that continually subverted my expectations. If you’re feeling fatigued by all the IP related sequels, reboots and remakes out there, and you’re looking for something that stands on its own, this is worth checking out.