908 – The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (2018)

The Ballad of Buster Scruggs is a 2018 American western anthology film written, directed, and produced by the Coen brothers. It stars Tim Blake Nelson, Liam Neeson, James Franco, Brendan Gleeson, Zoe Kazan, Tyne Daly, Harry Melling, and Tom Waits, and features six vignettes that take place in the American frontier.

The film was based on Western-themed short stories written by the Coens over a period of 20 to 25 years (accounts vary) that differ in mood and subject.

“All Gold Canyon” was based on a Jack London story.

“The Gal Who Got Rattled” was inspired by a story by Stewart Edward White and based in part on contemporaneous accounts, including those of heated arguments over pets.

the Coens intended the stories to be seen together, structured them that way in the script they submitted to Annapurna, and shot the script as written. (wiki)

imdb

0907 – Jailbreak (2017)

timespace coordinates: 2010’s Cambodia

Jailbreak (Khmer : ការពារឧក្រិដ្ឋជន) is a 2017 Cambodian martial arts action film directed by Jimmy Henderson. It was released in its home country in January 2017 and made available on Netflix in May 2018.

The cast features Dara Our, Cambodian female MMA champion Tharoth Sam, French-Cambodian stuntman Jean-Paul Ly, and former adult star Céline Tran (AKA Katsuni), making her action film debut. The film highlights the Cambodian martial art of bokator and also features slapstick humor. (wiki)

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906 – Heaven & Hell (2018)

timespace coordinates: early 90s Los Angeles

In 1990s Los Angeles, danger lurks around the corner after a freak accident leaves an undercover cop with supernatural abilities while also unleashing a horror that he must destroy before it destroys everything. (imdb)

0905 – Under the Silver Lake (2018)

timespace coordinates: 2011 Los Angeles

Under the Silver Lake is a 2018 American neo-noir mystery film written, produced and directed by David Robert Mitchell. Set in Los Angeles, it stars Andrew Garfield as a young man who sets out on a quest to investigate the sudden disappearance of his neighbour (Riley Keough), only to stumble upon an elusive and dangerous large-scale conspiracy.

Joshua Rothkopf of Time Out gave the film a perfect five rating, calling it “Hypnotic, spiraling and deliriously high” and stating “the ambition of Under the Silver Lake is worth cherishing. It will either evaporate into nothingness or cohere into something you’ll want to hug for being so wonderfully weird.” Eric Kohn of IndieWire gave a positive review, calling it “a bizarre and outrageous drama grounded in the consistency of Garfield’s astonishment at every turn. […] Aided by cinematographer Mike Gioloukas’ sunny visuals and a searching Disasterpiece score, the movie becomes a bittersweet ode to wanting answers from an indifferent world overwhelmed by superficial distractions. The homage can be irritating and some of the transitions work better than others across an unwieldy running time — but even the flaws speak to the movie’s beguiling raison d’être. It’s fascinating to watch Mitchell grasp for a bigger picture with the wild ambition of his scruffy protagonist.” 

Owen Gleiberman of Variety gave a positive review, calling it “a down-the-rabbit-hole movie, at once gripping and baffling, fueled by erotic passion and dread but also by the code-fixated opacity of conspiracy theory. The movie is impeccably shot and staged, with an insanely lush soundtrack that’s like Bernard Herrmann-meets-Angelo-Badalamenti-on-opioids. When it’s over, though, you feel like you’ve seen a meta-mystery made by someone who spent too much time scrawling notes in the margins of his frayed copy of Infinite Jest. (wiki)

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0904 – Bad Times at the El Royale (2018)

timespace coordinates: 1969, a shady hotel on the California–Nevada border

Bad Times at the El Royale is a 2018 American neo-noir thriller film written, produced and directed by Drew Goddard. (wiki)

Seven strangers, each with a secret to bury, meet at Lake Tahoe‘s El Royale, a rundown hotel with a dark past. Over the course of one fateful night, everyone will have a last shot at redemption… before everything goes to hell. Jeff Bridges, Chris Hemsworth, Jon Hamm, Dakota Johnson and Cynthia Erivo lead an all-star cast in BAD TIMES AT THE EL ROYALE. (rt)

imdb

903 – Elizabeth Harvest (2018)

Elizabeth Harvest is a 2018 science-fiction thriller film that was written and directed by Sebastian Gutierrez. The film stars Abbey Lee as the titular Elizabeth, a young woman who discovers that her new husband is hiding secrets.

imdb

0902 – Bird Box (2018)

Bird Box is a 2018 American post-apocalyptic thriller film directed by Susanne Bier and with a screenplay by Eric Heisserer, based on the 2014 novel of the same name by Josh Malerman. (wiki)

In the wake of an unknown global terror, a mother must find the strength to flee with her children down a treacherous river in search of safety. Due to unseen deadly forces, the perilous journey must be made blindly. starring Academy Award winner Sandra Bullock, John Malkovich, Sarah Paulson, and Trevante Rhodes.

imdb   /   670 – A Quiet Place (2018)   /   692 – The Happening (2008)