By Chris Kavan - 07/19/17 at 08:02 PM CT
Sorry for the slight delay, the bulletin wasn't up quite in time to get it by the morning, but believe me, the wait is worth it. Arguably Stephen King's magnum opus, and several years in the making, The Dark Tower is finally coming to theaters and now it has its rating. The (supposedly) last trip for the Bellas, Pitch Perfect 3 also gets its due along with An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power (which has been pushed back due to increasingly stupid decisions and massive ice shelves that continue to break off) and the thriller The Commuter. It's looking like one of those good updates, let's get started.
Having been a long-time Stephen King fan, this year is turning out to be one of the most exciting (movie-wise) in pretty much forever. First, we have the straight-up horror film It and we have the intricate and deep The Dark Tower. King's series of novels about The Man and Black and the Gunslinger who chases him features several references to King's other works, as well as an appearance by King himself (referencing his real-life accident that nearly took his life). I honestly didn't know if we would ever get an adaptation - at one time there was talk of a movie and TV series - but here we are. Idris Elba plays our gunslinger, with Matthew McConaughey taking on the Man in Black and Tom Taylor playing Jake Chambers, a young boy who will play a big part in this story. While I am a bit skeptical about McConaughey being able to nail such an evil part, the first trailer looked badass and, for those who have read the novels, they will know this is not a straight-up adaptation, but rather a continuation and can go in a completely different direction without losing any impact. I hope this turns out to be good and leads to more chapters, but I'll have to wait and see. Rated PG-13 for thematic material including sequences of gun violence and action.
I admit that I have yet to see either Pitch Perfect or the sequel, though I am by no means against it, it's just that it isn't on any of the streaming services I use. In any case, Pitch Perfect 3 once again has the acapella Bellas back for one last round. Even after winning the World Championships, the Bellas find life after competition isn't all its cracked up to be. The girls have gone their separate ways and find their musical talents are not in demand as most have to take demeaning jobs to make ends meet. But they find one last chance to come together for a USO tour, where they face their biggest challenge yet: a female group who can sing and play instruments. Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson, Hailee Steinfeld, Brittany Snow, Anna Camp, Alexis Knapp, Hana Mae Lee, Ester Dean, Shelley Regner, Chrissie Fit and Kelley Jakle all reprise their roles at the Bellas while Ruby Rose plays the lead singer, Calamity of their rivals. John Lithgow and Matt Lanter also join the cast. The film looks to follow the same formula as the previous two, a formula that has proven effective. Music, comedy, friendship, coming out on top - if this is truly the last of Bellas, I'm sure they'll go out with a band. Rated PG-13 for crude and sexual content, language and some action.
It's not often that you have to delay a film because something so spectacularly awful happens that you just have to make sure you address it, even if it requires pushing back your film. The documentary An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power had to do just that after President Trump (an oxymoron if there ever should be) decided to announce that the U.S. was going to withdraw from the Paris Climate Accords - you know, the deal that pretty much every other country in the world is a part of. The follow-up to An Inconvenient Truth, ten years after, takes a look at the progress that has been made to battle climate change, the continued growth of renewable energy and, of course, the Climate Accords. Too bad he didn't consider how bad our president would set things back, first by appointing someone who actively wants to get rid of the EPA as the new head of the EPA - Scott Pruitt - and then announcing the withdrawal. If his actions are any indication, anything we have gained in the last 10 years is likely to be undone in a single year, unless a radical change is enacted (which I'm totally all for at this point). Politics aside, Truth to Power should be an eye-opening next chapter in the ongoing saga to combat climate change. Rated PG for
thematic elements and some troubling images.
Finally we have The Commuter, which, once again throws poor Liam Neeson in the center of a criminal conspiracy. Neeson plays Michael Woolrich, not a man with a certain set of skills, but rather a typical businessman who, while driving home on his daily commute, just happens to stumble in to a far-reaching criminal enterprise. There's not a lot to go on this one, yet, but the supporting cast includes Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, Jonathan Banks,Sam Neill, Elizabeth McGovern, Dean-Charles Chapman and Florence Pugh. I'm going to go out on a limb and predict that Neeson with punch, kick and possibly shoot someone, possible several someones during the course of this film. Rated PG-13 for some intense action/violence, and language.
Those are the big movies for this week but, as always, the full MPAA Ratings Bulletin follows below:
AMERICAN SATAN
Rated R for strong sexual content, nudity, drug use throughout, pervasive language, and some violence.
THE COMMUTER
Rated PG-13 for some intense action/violence, and language.
THE DARK TOWER
Rated PG-13 for thematic material including sequences of gun violence and action.
THE FLORIDA PROJECT
Rated R for language throughout, disturbing behavior, sexual references and some drug material.
THE GOOD CATHOLIC
Rated PG-13 for language including a sexual reference.
AN INCONVENIENT SEQUEL: TRUTH TO POWER
Rated PG for thematic elements and some troubling images.
THE LAYOVER
Rated R for language throughout, sexual content and some drug material.
MOST LIKELY TO MURDER
Rated R for crude sexual content, language throughout, some graphic nudity and drug material.
MUBARAKAN
Rated PG-13 for some drug material.
OLAF'S FROZEN ADVENTURE
Rated G.
PITCH PERFECT 3
Rated PG-13 for crude and sexual content, language and some action.
PROFESSOR MARSTON & THE WONDER WOMEN
R for strong sexual content including brief graphic images, and language.
SCHOOL LIFE
Rated PG-13 for brief strong language, and smoking.
THE WILDE WEDDING
Rated R for language, sexual content and drug use.
