Vesper

In the near dystopian future where wealthy citizens house themselves in luxurious enclaves called Citadels, teenager Vesper (Chapman) and her father, Darius (Brake), who has transferred his consciousness into a floating orb, traverse Earth’s hostile ecosystem after its collapse. They are forced to scavenge and trade seeds for basic necessities. One day while exploring, Vesper comes across a refugee from a Citadel named Camellia (McEwen), and the pair work to transform the desolate landscape into a thriving environment for all inhabitants.

Directors: Kristina Buozyte, Bruno Samper. Stars: Raffiella Chapman, Eddie Marsan, Rosy McEwen, Richard Brake, Melanie Gaydos, Edmund Dehn. 2022. 114 mins. Sci-Fi.

Angry Neighbors

When a ghastly mega mansion starts to be erected next door, retired writer Harry March (Langella) sees red. Up until this point, he had been living peacefully with his talking dog Hector (Marin). Now, Harry sees no other option but to destroy this symbol of unfettered capitalism being built next door to him in the Hamptons. Concocting a scheme to bring down the monstrous house, Harry goes toe-to-toe with not only the mansion’s contractor, Kevin (Cannavale), but those in the community who believe he has lost his mind.

Director: Warren Brock. Stars: Bobby Cannavale, Ashley Benson, Stockard Channing, Frank Langella, Katie Parker, Cheech Marin, Jared Gilman, Stelio Savante. 2022. 120 mins. Comedy.

Poker Face

Tech billionaire and notorious gambler Jake Foley (Crowe) has a penchant for taking people’s money. When Jake invites three of his oldest friends over for a game of poker, the stakes have never been higher as Jake covertly administers a truth serum to each of them. Each dealing with a powerful secret, Jake offers his friends Mikey (Hemsworth), Paul (Bastoni) and Alex (Young) a choice: take one of his $1-million cars or risk $5 million in chips. Those issues are quickly pushed aside as armed gunmen infiltrate Jake’s palatial residence, just as his wife, Nicole (Satchwell), and teenage daughter, Rebecca (Grace), arrive home to the estate, leading Jake and his friends to try their luck one last time.

Director: Russell Crowe. Stars: Russell Crowe, Liam Hemsworth, RZA, Aden Young, Steve Bastoni, Daniel MacPherson, Brooke Satchwell, Paul Tassone, Molly Grace, Elsa Pataky. 2022. 94 mins. Action.