At the Movies: Black Beauty, The Croods: A New Age, Fighting Over Sioux, Happiest Season, Uncle Frank
BY SCOTTIE KNOLLIN
Black Beauty
Directed by Ashley Avis, Disney’s new adaptation of the classic 1877 novel of the same name stars Mackenzie Foy, Kate Winslet, and Claire Forlani and shares the story of a teenage girl and her bond with a wild horse.
Disney first announced the film in May 2019. Filming took place later in 2019 in South Africa.
The film has received little-to-no promotion, but critics who have seen it have offered mediocre-to-fine reviews. Many comment that there isn’t necessarily anything fresh or new about the adaptation and that the transition of the film to present day doesn’t add to the story’s success.
Now streaming on Disney+.
The Croods: A New Age
The sequel to the massive 2013 hit, “The Croods”, finds the all-star voice cast returning to the Stone Age. Among the voices are Nicolas Cage, Emma Stone, Ryan Reynolds, Catherine Keener, and Cloris Leachman.
DreamWorks Animations first announced the sequel in April 2013. By June 2014, the studio gave the film a November 2017 release. However, during Comcast’s acquisition of DreamWorks Animation in August 2016, 20th Century Fox removed the film from the release calendar, announcing the film would actually get a release by Universal in 2018. By November 2016, production on the film was officially canceled.
In September 2017, Universal announced the film was back in production with an updated script.
Post-production took place with employees working from home, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, the film’s original September 2020 release date was pushed to November. While it is receiving an exclusive theatrical run for Thanksgiving, “Croods 2” will be available for digital rental in early December.
Now Playing in Bismarck, Fargo, Grand Forks, and Minot.
Fighting Over Sioux
North Dakota filmmaker Matt Fern produced and directed this documentary about the battle over University of North Dakota’s 80-year-old athletics brand through one-on-one interviews with tribal leaders, students, alumni, bloggers, reporters, politicians, and superfans.
The film marks Fern’s feature documentary debut.
“Fighting Over Sioux” was filmed across North Dakota, including locations in Grand Forks, Fargo, and Bismarck, plus throughout the Standing Rock, Spirit Lake, and Turtle Mountain Indian reservations.
The film has played in several film festivals across the U.S. This weekend marks it North Dakota theatrical debut. It’s also available as a digital rental.
Now playing in Bismarck and available as a digital rental.
Happiest Season
Marking Clea DuVall’s feature film directorial debut, Hulu’s “Happiest Season” is a romantic comedy starring Kristen Stewart, Mackenzie Davis, Alison Brie, Aubrey Plaza, and Dan Levy.
Stewart stars as Abby, a young woman planning to propose to her girlfriend while attending her family’s annual holiday party. The only problem? Abby’s girlfriend, Harper (Davis), isn’t out to her family, putting Abby in a strange predicament.
In April 2018, TriStar Pictures acquired the rights to the film, with DuVall announced as its director. By November 2018, Stewart had signed to star. Work on the script and pre-production took place throughout 2019 and, by January 2020, the cast was finalized. Filming began in Pittsburgh at the end of January 2020, wrapping shortly before all productions halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The film was originally set for a November theatrical release, but Hulu purchased distribution rights during the pandemic. Internationally, the film will still see a theatrical release.
Critics have praised the film’s heartfelt script and cheerful performances, specifically bringing attention to supporting players Levy and Plaza.
Now streaming on Hulu.
Uncle Frank
Alan Ball, most known as the writer behind “American Beauty” and HBO’s “Six Feet Under”, helmed this original road movie about a gay man confronting his past. The film stars Paul Bettany, Sophia Lillis, and Peter Macdissi.
The film premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, where it received mostly positive reviews. Shortly after, Amazon Studios acquired the film’s distribution rights.
Now streaming on Prime Video.
Superintelligence
Melissa McCarthy stars in this action comedy written by Steve Mallory and directed by McCarthy’s husband, Ben Falcone.
The film has been in production since mid-2017. Filming took place in summer 2018, shortly after McCarthy finished filming “The Kitchen”. Most of the film was shot in and around Atlanta, including on the Georgia Tech campus.
HBO Max acquired distribution rights to the film after its original theatrical run in December 2019 was halted. Critics were not given the chance to screen the film prior to its digital debut.
Now streaming on HBO Max.
