New Releases for the week of November 8 - 14
Bill & Ted Face the Music
In current days, longtime best friends and middle-age parents Bill Preston (Winter) and Ted Logan (Reeves) have been unsuccessful in writing the song meant to unite the world and save life as we know it. As space and time are starting to collapse around them, The Great Leader (Taylor) informs the duo they only have until 7:17 p.m. that evening to complete the prophesized song or else humanity suffers. Faced with this dire ultimatum, Bill and Ted devise a plan to use the time traveling phone booth to steal the fabled song from their future selves. "Bill & Ted Face the Music" is the third film in the Bill & Ted series and the long-awaited sequel to the 1991 film "Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey."
Director: Dean Parisot. Stars: Keanu Reeves, Alex Winter, Kristen Schaal, Samara Weaving, Brigette Lundy-Paine, William Sadler, Anthony Carrigan, Erinn Hayes, Jayma Mays, Hal Landon Jr., Beck Bennett, Holland Taylor, Kid Cudi. 2020. 91 mins. Comedy.
Spontaneous
Just as high school senior Mara Carlyle (Langford) finally meets the boy of her dreams, her classmates begin to spontaneously explode. With no explanation for the sudden rash of human explosions, Mara and her classmates are expected to continue attending classes and study as their friends and classmates blow up without warning. Navigating her friendship with Tess McNulty (Law) and her ongoing crush on Dylan Hovemeyer (Plummer), Mara must adapt to her horrifying new day-to-day life.
Director: Brian Duffield. Stars: Katherine Langford, Piper Perabo, Charlie Plummer, Rob Huebel, Chelah Horsdal, Hayley Law, Kaitlyn Bernard, Yvonne Orji, Laine MacNeil, Luvia Petersen. 2020. 101 mins. Comedy.
Mortal
As lone wolf Eric (Wolff) discretely travels around the picturesque Norwegian landscape, hiding from his past, he is interrupted by a group of local youths. During this clash, Eric unwittingly unleashes god-like powers, similar to those found in ancient Norse mythology, resulting in the accidental death of one of the teens. When the local authorities capture Eric, he must uncover who — or what — he has become before the authorities condemn him.
Director: André Øvredal. Stars: Nat Wolff, Priyanka Bose, Iben Akerlie, Arthur Hakalahti, Per Egil Aske, Per Frisch. 2020. 100 mins. Action
Q: Was the scary movie "The Turning" based on anything? I thought it had that sort of feel.
It appears Hollywood is getting tired of the name "The Turn of the Screw," the novella by Henry James, which has been adapted as a film or TV show a whopping 36 times. One of the most recent adaptations is the 2020 film "The Turning."
Out of this world comedy: Aspiring astronauts shoot for 'Moonbase 8'
John C. Reilly, Tim Heidecker and Fred Armisen star in "Moonbase 8"
Out of this world comedy: Aspiring astronauts shoot for 'Moonbase 8'
John C. Reilly, Tim Heidecker and Fred Armisen star in "Moonbase 8"
Q: Why do I recognize the host of the "Spring Baking Championship?" I'm on Season 6.
I'm glad that you clarified, because Food Network's "Spring Baking Championship" has been through a few hosts in its six seasons on the air. Current host Clinton Kelly is now tied with original host Bobby Deen for the longest run, having fronted the past two seasons.
More essential than ever: 'Superstore' covers the coronavirus
America Ferrera as seen in "Superstore"
NBC's hit comedy "Superstore" has already put five successful seasons on the shelf and has now entered its sixth. This popular show has proven that it's not afraid to address real-world issues, including politics, unions and, now, the novel coronavirus pandemic. A new episode airs Thursday, Nov. 5, on NBC.
Q: Is "Hawaii Five-0" coming back?
Those were real emotions you saw in the last season finale of "Hawaii Five-0" — it was the whole cast saying "aloha" to each other and the show.
I won't go into the details, but the final episode of Season 10 ended with a pretty emotional goodbye. It was hefty material to work with, but the actors got an extra dramatic boost two hours before shooting when the showrunner, Peter M. Lenkov, informed them that the show had been canceled.
Late Laughs for the week of November 1 - 7, 2020
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
You can't steer the course of an illness by lying about it. That's why it's called "Make-A-Wish" not "Everything's fine, Mark Ruffalo just wants to meet you."
Once again [Trump] learns nothing. He's like if Scrooge woke up on Christmas morning and said, "I've been visited by three ghosts. Don't be afraid of them, folks, and don't let them dominate you."
Family fare: A cooking competition for the entire clan
Giorgio Locatelli, Nadiya Hussain, Zoe Ball and Rosemary Shrager in "The Big Family Cooking Showdown"
