From Speak No Evil to Uglies, Should You Add These To Your Watchlist?
From dystopian worlds and AI robots to mushroom trips and scary new friends, here are the movies you need to add to your watchlist… and the ones you can skip.
My Old Ass
What if you got a chance to get advice from the older version of yourself? In My Old Ass, Elliott (Maisy Stella) meets her older self after an 18th birthday mushroom trip. When older Elliott (Aubrey Plaza) warns her about her life, she has a transformative summer as she rethinks love and family.
This film is written and directed by Megan Park who is brilliant at what she does. I loved her directional debut with The Fallout and My Old Ass didn’t disappoint. While I wish they showed a bit more of the family bonding, My Old Ass is a funny, moving, and relatable story of making the most of the time you have with the people you love. Maisy Stella is an absolute star, delivering one of the best performances of the year.
My Old Ass is playing in theaters.
Speak No Evil
Vacation Friends meets Split in Speak No Evil! A remake of the 2022 Danish film, it follows two families who bond while on vacation. When they decide to visit the couple at their country home for a weekend holiday, the situation escalates to a terrifying degree.
Speak No Evil is the best Blumhouse movie I’ve seen all year. James McAvoy’s acting range is unmatched. He’s so charming and psychotic in the best ways. My theater was both roaring with laughter and screaming at the screen. It’s an absolute blast!
Speak No Evil is playing in theaters.
Subservience
There’s a new AI Megan in town!
When his wife falls sick, a struggling father (Michele Morrone) purchases a lifelike AI robot named Alice (Megan Fox) to help with housework and raising his kids in Subservience. But when Alice wants a more intimate connection with her owner, she’ll do anything — even kill — to get it.
Megan Fox fully commits to her role as the eerie and sensual Alice in this formulaic film. It’s almost less of a thriller and more like 50 Shades of AI. There aren’t many kills and the world building could use some work. The end of the film leaves room to expand the story, but I don’t think it has the legs to become a cult classic worth continuing.
Subservience is available on digital now and hits on demand on September 20.
Uglies
Having read the Uglies book series by Scott Westerfeld in high school, I couldn’t wait for the new Netflix adaptation led by Joey King. Set in a futuristic world, Tally is eager to join the rest of society that gets cosmetic surgery at 16 to make everyone equal and beautiful. But when her new friend runs away, she is tasked with saving her in a journey that changes everything she thought she wanted.
Uglies would’ve been an absolute hit in the early 2000s, but, as much as I love these actors — including King, Chase Stokes, Keith Powers, Brianne Tju, and Laverne Cox — it feels outdated. The script is awkward and the social commentary is stale. I wish they took bigger risks and updated the source material.
Uglies is streaming on Netflix.
