Parallel Mothers

Two women, Janis (Cruz) and Ana (Smit), while sharing a hospital room in the maternity ward have realized that they both share a very similar situation: each woman is single and has become pregnant by accident. The difference is middle-aged Janis doesn't regret the pregnancy and is, in fact, overjoyed, while Ana, much younger and more unprepared, is scared, traumatized and regrets finding herself in this position. Janis tries to encourage her as they share the space and await their new lives as mothers, and even though they may not know it yet, the conversation they have with one another will go on to change both of their lives forever.

Director: Pedro Almodóvar. Stars: Penélope Cruz, Milena Smit, Israel Elejalde, Aitana Sánchez-Gijón, Rossy de Palma, Julieta Serrano. 2021. 120 mins. Drama.

Scream

Twenty-five years after Woodsboro, California, was plagued by a streak of brutal murders, a new killer appears donning the infamous Ghostface mask. The first wave of targets is a group of college students, and when Tara Carpenter (Ortega) becomes the first among the victims, her older sister, Sam (Barrera), has no choice but to enlist the help of old friends to go after the killer.

Director: Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillet. Stars: Melissa Barrera, Mason Gooding, Jenna Ortega, Jack Quaid, Marley Shelton, Courteney Cox, David Arquette, Neve Campbell, Roger L. Jackson. 2022. 114 mins. Horror.

Vicious Fun

National horror magazine critic Joel (Marsh) is letting life pass him by, drinking his best years away at bars until one wrong turn causes him to stumble into a secret underground self-help group for serial killers. Now a part of something beyond his wildest dreams, he is forced to match wits with five vicious killers before he can make it through the night alive and warn his crush, Carrie (Goldfarb), and her boyfriend, Bob (Millen), about the odd threat.

Director: Cody Calahan. Stars: Evan Marsh, Amber Goldfarb, Ari Millen, Julian Richings, Robert Maillet, David Koechner. 2020. 101 mins. Comedy/Horror.