At the Movies: Come Play, His House, Holidate

BY SCOTTIE KNOLLIN

Come Play

Starring Gillian Jacobs and John Gallagher Jr., this horror thriller from Jacob Chase follows the parents of an elementary school student with autism as they try to protect their young son from getting abducted.

The film was first announced in October 2018 as an adaptation of Chase’s short film, “Larry”. Focus Features originally planned to release the film in July 2020, but rescheduled to Halloween weekend due to the pandemic. It will serve as the widest new release of the holiday weekend.

Critics have been surprisingly positive about the film and its clever scares, also calling attention to Jacobs’ performance.

Opening this weekend in cinemas across North Dakota.

His House

Remi Weekes’ film celebrated its world premiere at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. It was first announced in 2017 as a project development between Starchild Pictures and The Weinstein Company. Starchild retained the film’s rights after TWC’s falling out.

In March 2018, Wunmi Mosaku and Sope Dirisu joined the cast of the film.

After its Sundance premiere, Netflix acquired the film for worldwide distribution rights. The horror film earned positive reviews from critics at Sundance and is expected to play well during the Halloween weekend.

Now streaming on Netflix.

Holidate

John Whitesell directs Emma Roberts, Luke Bracey, Jake Manley, Jessica Capshaw, Frances Fisher, and Kristin Chenoweth in this holiday romantic comedy.

The light-hearted film is one of a slew of Netflix holiday features released over the past couple of years as the streaming service continues to cast its original content net wide.

Roberts was the first cast member to join the project in March 2019. Production took place in May 2019 in Atlanta.

Critics have given the film mixed reviews, commenting that it is fun, but unoriginal.

Now streaming on Netflix.