Looking at the Weekend: Aug. 28-30, 2020

After two years of delays, Fox’s final X-franchise film is finally seeing release. Clearly being dumped on the second weekend of theaters across the country opening, it’s obvious Disney does not and never has cared about the film and is merely wanting to get rid of it so it can drop everything old and move forward with everything new. That said, the film had long promised to be the latest attempt by the old 20th Century Fox to infuse something inventive and original into the Marvel cinematic universe. With Logan and Deadpool before it, the idea was to go different directions. A grizzled old road movie, a foul-mouthed superhero, and a group of mutants being tortured and stalked in a horror environment were all attempts to tell unique stories and to latch onto the R-rated landscape that Sony and Disney never thought would be profitable for them. And now, with a whimper, the legacy of the Fox X Universe comes to a resounding thud. Perhaps we’ll see a surprise box office triumph for the film and that would tell Disney to button its lip about the prospects, but more likely is the film is going to fail with audiences not wanting to risk catching a deadly or debilitating virus and it will fade from existence proving Disney was right (which it isn’t).

Our Highest Rated Films: The Personal History of David Copperfield
Our Best Awards Ratings: No consensus

OTHER LIMITED RELEASES

Entwined (Virtual)
Ironbark (Limited)
The Garden Left Behind (Virtual)
Still Here (Limited)

Aug. 28-30, 2020
Film	Our Thoughts	Awards Chances
The New Mutants (Wide Release) See the original CinemaSight Trailer & Poster Preview	6.0 Wesley Lovell: (10) Peter J. Patrick: (3) Thomas LaTourrette: (5)	Nil Wesley Lovell: (Nil) Peter J. Patrick: (Nil) Thomas LaTourrette: (Nil)	Categories: None
	Individual Commentary:
	Wesley Lovell (WL): I have been eagerly anticipating this film for two years now. I’m disappointed that it’s being dumped on Labor Day weekend in the midst of a pandemic. Peter J. Patrick (PP): Long delayed X-Men spinoff doesn’t look particularly interesting. Thomas LaTourette (TL): The trailer has more of a horror movie vibe than the typical Marvel Universe film, so I am not really certain what they are trying for.
Film	Our Thoughts	Awards Chances
Bill & Ted Face the Music (Limited Release) See the original CinemaSight Trailer & Poster Preview	5.0 Wesley Lovell: (4) Peter J. Patrick: (5) Thomas LaTourrette: (6)	Nil Wesley Lovell: (Nil) Peter J. Patrick: (Nil) Thomas LaTourrette: (Nil)	Categories: None
	Individual Commentary:
	Wesley Lovell (WL): I never got into the original film nor its sequel, so I’m not at all anticipating this one. Peter J. Patrick (PP): The ingratiating charm of the lead characters could pull off this long overdue sequel. Thomas LaTourette (TL): I confess that I have never seen the original films, so I have nothing to base my expectations on. It looks like it could be fun, though it might wear out its welcome quickly.
Film	Our Thoughts	Awards Chances
Centigrade (Limited Release) See the original CinemaSight Trailer & Poster Preview	4.7 Wesley Lovell: (6) Peter J. Patrick: (2) Thomas LaTourrette: (6)	Nil Wesley Lovell: (Nil) Peter J. Patrick: (Nil) Thomas LaTourrette: (Nil)	Categories: None
	Individual Commentary:
	Wesley Lovell (WL): It’s an interesting concept, but the trailer doesn’t sell it very well. Peter J. Patrick (PP): Tedious looking thriller. Thomas LaTourette (TL): The claustrophobia of being trapped in a snowed under car comes through, though I am not sure that it knows where to go from there.
Film	Our Thoughts	Awards Chances
Fatima (Limited Release) See the original CinemaSight Trailer & Poster Preview	4.7 Wesley Lovell: (3) Peter J. Patrick: (5) Thomas LaTourrette: (6)	Nil Wesley Lovell: (Nil) Peter J. Patrick: (Nil) Thomas LaTourrette: (Nil)	Categories: None
	Individual Commentary:
	Wesley Lovell (WL): Another faith-based film about a supposed miracle. It looks only slightly more touching than some. Peter J. Patrick (PP): High profile remake of 1952’s Miracle of Our Lady of Fatima could be fairly decent. Thomas LaTourette (TL): I want to like this film about the Virgin Mary appearing to three children in 1917, but I worry that it will prove too heavy handed and too overtly religious to appeal to most moviegoers.
Film	Our Thoughts	Awards Chances
Hard Kill (Limited Release) See the original CinemaSight Trailer & Poster Preview	2.7 Wesley Lovell: (3) Peter J. Patrick: (2) Thomas LaTourrette: (3)	Nil Wesley Lovell: (Nil) Peter J. Patrick: (Nil) Thomas LaTourrette: (Nil)	Categories: None
	Individual Commentary:
	Wesley Lovell (WL): Some actors have to fill out contracts, but I just wish studios wouldn’t waste them. Peter J. Patrick (PP): Dumb looking thriller. Thomas LaTourette (TL): It looks like an exceptionally violent thriller with little going for it.
Film	Our Thoughts	Awards Chances
The Personal History of David Copperfield (Limited Release) See the original CinemaSight Trailer & Poster Preview	7.0 Wesley Lovell: (7) Peter J. Patrick: (5) Thomas LaTourrette: (9)	2.0 Wesley Lovell: (Nil) Peter J. Patrick: (Nil) Thomas LaTourrette: (6,Oscars)	Categories: Picture (TL) Director (TL) Actor (TL) Adapted Screenplay (TL) Production Design (TL) Costume Design (TL) Makeup (TL)
	Individual Commentary:
	Wesley Lovell (WL): It looks like a lively adaptation and has a sterling cast. It could be worth watching. Peter J. Patrick (PP): I’m always a sucker for a David Copperfield film of which the 1935 version has never been topped. Thomas LaTourette (TL): This rollicking adaptation of the Charles Dickens novel feels like the first possible Oscar nominee of the year since Onward opened March 6. However, with the Oscar season running into 2021, it may get lost in the later releases.