What to Watch This Weekend: Without Remorse, Tu Me Manques, Golden Arm, Limbo, Mitchell vs. Machines, Nomadland, Guns Akimbo, Marijuana Conspiracy

For Michael B. Jordan Action: Without Remorse (Amazon)
Without Remorse is a good action movie made great by Michael B. Jordan, some exciting effects and sound, and a story with plenty of intrigue.  For more information, check out the review!

For A Powerful Love Drama: Tu Me Manques (Digital)

Tu Me Manques is a beautiful, bittersweet, and poignant look into love, the need to be yourself, and the homosexual stigma in Latino culture.  For more information, check out the review!

For An Over-the-Top Sports Comedy: Golden Arm (Theaters and Digital)

Golden Arm flexes its movie biceps with its over the top characters, fun cameos, and strong female protagonists, making for a golden opportunity for a good time!  For more information, check out the review! 

For A Subdued and Entertaining Refugee Drama: Limbo (Hulu)

Limbo uses its stylish, subdued cinematography and stoic performances to tell a poignant and utterly entertaining tale that both entertains, humanizes, and provides biting commentary about the refugee experience.  For more information, check out our review!

For A Hilarious Family Trip: The Mitchells vs. The Machines (Netflix)

The Mitchells vs. The Machines is a modern animated film, with a great use of memes and internet culture, laugh out loud moments, and a story that has #allthefeels.   For more information, check out the review!

For Those Longing To Go Outside: Nomadland (Redbox and Hulu)
Nomadland highlights a different, beautiful lifestyle with a very human performance by McDormand, amazing cinematography, and a wonderful sense of community.  For more information, check out the review!

For The Gamer In Your Life: Guns Akimbo (Amazon)

Guns Akimbo is a thoroughly enjoyable video game-style movie with a ridiculously entertaining premise and plenty of video game effects and references to make sure you don’t say game over.  For more information, check out our review!

For Those Looking For A Drama Based on A True Story: The Marijuana Conspiracy (Digital)
Critically panned but with good reviews, Kin is not a great movie, but it is an enjoyable science fiction film with some fresh new talent.  For more information, check out the review!

What to Watch This Weekend: July 17, 2020

The Fun, Indie Road Trip: Easy Does It (Digital)

Easy Does It is a breath of fresh indie air. The film's cast of quirky, fun characters, entertaining story, style, and fantastic music fuels a wonderfully enjoyable road trip!  For more information, check out our review!

The Quirky, Colorful Japanese Dark Comedy: We Are Little Zombies (Digital)
We Are Little Zombies has a flashy, distinctive style and a dark comedy story fueled by youthful counterculture and a social media obsessed lesson.  It will not be for everyone, but it is a unique enough experience to make it worth checking out.  For more information, check out our review!

For The Hamilton or Hip Hop Lover: We Are Freestyle Love Supreme (Hulu)
We Are Freestyle Love Supreme is a beautiful documentary about friendship and love, with some amazing performances and lyrical feats to keep you entertained.  For more information, check out our review!

The Suspenseful Descent Into An Asylum: Into the Dark: The Current Occupant (Hulu)

Into the Dark: The Current Occupant takes a convincing cast deep into the depths of an insane asylum for a creepy, brutal stay with the potential president.  For more information, check out our review!

The Emotional Family Roller Coaster: Waves (Showtime)

Waves is simply a treat: an emotional roller coaster about a suburban black family with phenomenal acting, insightful writing, and a story that demonstrates the folly and boundless optimism of youth.  For more information, check out our review!

For The Gamer In Your Life: Guns Akimbo (Amazon)

Guns Akimbo is a thoroughly enjoyable video game-style movie with a ridiculously entertaining premise and plenty of video game effects and references to make sure you don’t say game over.  For more information, check out our review!

For The Action Fan: Mission Impossible: Fallout (Hulu)

Tom Cruise is still one of the greatest action stars and Mission Impossible: Fallout cements that. The movie is exciting, tense, and action filled, with some big explosions, insane sequences, and a plot that will keep you guessing.  

Review: Guns Akimbo

Release date: February 28, 2020
Running time: 95 minutes
Starring: Samara Weaving, Daniel Radcliffe, Natasha Liu Bordizzo 

Guns Akimbo might be the best video game movie ever made, or at least the one that feels most like a video game.  Miles (Radcliffe) becomes an unwilling participant in a real life fight to the death called Schizm.  Schizm forces two individuals to fight it out and broadcasts this online, to the delight of thousands.  So when Schizm chooses Radcliffe and literally bolts guns to his hands, he has to quickly learn how to play this game and avoid getting killed.  

The premise of this film is ridiculous, but it also doesn't sound much different than a mid tier video game, which is definitely by design.  Guns Akimbo embraces this aspect and runs with it.  There are video game inspired music and sound effects throughout.  Often times the camera will cut to what looks like a first person perspective.  And some of the sequences and fight scenes seem to come straight from a video game.  Additionally, the lighting uses a lot of colored lights that give splashes of bright color to scenes, another effect that seems straight out of a game.  On top of this, many character make video game references that are on point and funny.  And the acting is very over the top, but also enjoyable.  Both Radcliffe and Weaving do a fantastic job as the two main characters; Radcliffe an unwilling normal guy forced into this life or death situation and Weaving as a seasoned killing machine with not a care int he world.  

However, Guns Akimbo is not without its faults.  First and foremost, the film relies heavily on CGI for a lot of the effects, leading to unrealistic looking (more so than you would expect) gun fights and blood effects.  The blood, the bullet casings, the fire are all clearly CGI and it really detracts from what should be very enjoyable fight scenes.  Additionally, although the story is ridiculous and enjoyable, it has some very convenient plot points that are thrown in to connect characters and move the story along.  But that being said, Guns Akimbo is still plenty of ridiculous fun. 

Guns Akimbo is a thoroughly enjoyable video game-style movie with a ridiculously entertaining premise and plenty of video game effects and references to make sure you don’t say game over.  

Rent it