6 Movies COMING TO THEATERS in April 2021

Theaters/HBO Max: Apr 23

Month #4 in 2021 seems to be looking up with potentially bigger movie releases, the first of which is Godzilla vs. Kong at the end of March/beginning of April leading to Mortal Kombat on April 16, both are from Warner Bros. and following their plan to have movies released in theaters and on HBO Max on the same day.

While the number of new theatrical releases is still very small, it looks like it will be increasing as we head into the summer months. Regal will finally be reopening many of its US theaters again soon, maybe.

On an incidental note, we’ve been seeing more people attending the theater. We’ve made it up to 17 movies seen in theaters in 2021 as of this writing.

For historical reference, we’re including the films originally planned for this month, delays and reschedules dates when available as of this writing.

We’re also including some notable streaming releases, but this list isn’t meant to be all-inclusive. Weekly on Thursdays usually we post a “WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEKEND” list covering streaming in more depth.

2021 Theater Releases
JAN | FEB | MAR | APR

If you’d like to see an UPDATED list of all movies released in 2021 click here (post will be continually updated throughout 2021).

All April 2021 movie release dates unless otherwise indicated are for the United States, the release dates in other countries can/may/will vary.

APRIL 2021 (6 movies)

• The Unholy (Apr 2) [LIMITED]
• French Exit (Apr 2)
• Voyagers (Apr 9)
• Mortal Kombat (delayed, moved from Jan 15 to Apr 16, move #2 to Apr 23)
• Together, Together (Apr 23)
• The Asset (Apr 23)
  
  STREAMING PREMIERE

• Concrete Cowboy – Netflix (Apr 2)
• Thunder Force – Netflix (Apr 9)
• Shadow and Bone (Apr 23)
• Tom Clancy’s Without Remorse – Prime Video (Apr 30)
• The Mitchells vs. The Machines – Netflix (Apr 30)
  
  DELAYED/MOVED
  • No Time To Die (delayed, moved from Apr 2 to Oct 8)
  • Nobody (delayed, moved from Feb 19 to April 2, moved UP #2 from Apr 2 to Mar 26)
  • Bob’s Burgers: The Movie (delayed, moved from Apr 9 to “TBA”)
  • Fatherhood (delayed, moved from Apr 2 to Apr 16, move #2 to June 16, 2021 Netflix)
  • BIOS (delayed, move from Apr 16 to Aug 13) Tom Hanks
  • Reminiscence (delayed, moved from Apr 16 to Sep 3)

The Unholy
(Apr 2)
[LIMITED]

French Exit
(Apr 2)

Voyagers
(Apr 9)

Mortal Kombat
(Apr 23)

Together, Together
(Apr 23)

The Asset
(Apr 23)

Which of these movies, if any, are you looking forward to seeing?

Of the list of movies above released or delayed, what are you most looking forward to seeing? Are you going to wait for these movies to come to streaming or venture into theaters? If you’re still in a holding pattern, it’s all good. Let’s chat about it in the comments.

As always, wishing you all happy viewing, whatever you’re watching!

Opening 3-31-2021 in Theaters: Godzilla vs. Kong

Theaters/HBO Max: 3/31/2021

Thursday, week #14 of 2021 (3/31 – 4/4/2021).

This week my most anticipated movie so far of 2021 is coming. It’s already making the rounds on theater screens internationally and doing our best to avoid early spoiler-laden reviews. We’ll have our norml non-spoiler review coverage after seeing on the big screen soon. No, we’re not planning on seeing this on HBO Max.

Am not sure how well the HBO Max deal is working, but for us, it’s pretty much a non-event. We’ve seen two of their releases so far on HBO Max. The first was because there were no theaters open and the second because we had limited interest in seeing it in theaters. We are AMC Stubs A-list members and our preference is to watch new movies in theaters first.

Godzilla vs. Kong

I enjoyed watching all the Godzilla vs. movies when I was younger. Godzilla seemed so big. I’ve started rewatching some of the classic Godzilla movies on HBO Max and a lot of it seems cheesier to me now then all those years ago. Given these movies were made a long time ago and special effects and budgets were tiny compared to what Warner Bros. has available in 2021.

Anticipation: 9/10

Wherever you are watching movies this weekend, happy watching to you

Nobody ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Nobody – PG-13 – 1 hr 52 min
NO SPOILERS Movie Review
Watched in theater Friday March 26, 2021
AMC Lakewood 12 – Kent, Washington
15th new movie seen in theater in 2021

Hutch seems like your typical father going through the motions: work, forgetting to put the garbage out on time and recapture that spark in his marriage when burglars break into their home and he holds back on protecting his property from theft. This brings out a darker side of his professional past on a bus leading to hurting the brother of a Russian singer and crime boss hellbent on revenge against Hutch.

There is a definite Liam Neeson type action film here a la Taken, although the only thing taken is Hutch’s normalcy, replaced by his prior shadowy life as an “auditor” working for the government. The shtick that he’s “nobody” is a curious, but somewhat limp part of the story. It’s too bad we never learn more about his prior life, except that what he did was secret.

From the trailer I thought this might be about his past life seeping into his current one — and while it does, certainly — it seemed like it might be a former job gone wrong. Instead, it’s just a completely random event on a bus that spirals Hutch back into the violent things he did in the past.

Props to Christopher Lloyd’s role as Hutch’s semi-retired father with his own twisted taste of violence. Lloyd skillfully and humorously channels Rutger Hauer in Hobo With A Shotgun (go see that film, BTW). Alas, I wish there had been more of the father-son duo than we got.

Kara and I leaving the theater felt pretty much dead on, pun intended, the same about this movie in our just left the theater video.

Lots of violence and some creative ways to kill people seems to be what (too) many of these new actions movies rely on. It’s not funny seeing a bad guy blown away at close distance with a 12-gauge shotgun and yet people in the theater were laughing. The creative kills reminded me of the ending sequence of Rambo: Last Blood, only it wasn’t with a character like Rambo.

It’s entertaining, sure, but not much more substance or originality to make us think. Oh, and it’s setup for a sequel, if anybody wants one. Not recommended.

Rating (out of 5 stars): ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (Todd) ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (Kara)

Opening 3-25-2021 in Theaters: Nobody

Theaters: 3/25/2021

Thursday, week #13 of 2021 (3/25 – 3/28/2021).

Another movie coming out that has been showing frequently in previews is this week’s wide screening. Love the title.

Nobody

This one has a quiet sort of vicious action charm to it. It seems from the trailer like a man is trying to move on from his former business which was very dangerous and violent. Apparently being a “nobody” isn’t going to be that easy when his new identity is discovered by various bad guys.

This is the kind of role we might have seen a younger Arnold Schwarzenegger in. Kind of a touch of True Lies meets Eraser, but this comparison based of the trailer below might be way off.

Anticipation: 6/10

Wherever you are watching movies this weekend, happy watching to you!

The Courier ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Courier – PG-13 – 1 hr 52 min
NO SPOILERS Movie Review
Watched in theater Sunday March 21, 2021
AMC Kent Station 14 – Kent, Washington
14th new movie seen in theater in 2021

In the early 60s, Businessman Greyville Wynne (Benedict Cumberbatch) is recruited by MI6 to courier top secret documents from Russia traitor Olen Penkovsky whom he befriends. If the KGB discovers their ruse, it could have deadly consequences. Based on a true story.

Generally, I’m a fan of historical true stories. The early 60s, when JFK was President of the United States was an especially compelling period of time. You could pick at least a half dozen different stories as juicy material. The lesser known ones, like this story, at least to us make good fodder for a movie.

There was good tension in the early part of the film, setting up how dangerous it could be if the KGB discovered they were spies, but it takes a long time to get to any payoff on this threat. The KGB is never realized as anything more than a shadowy police presence. We don’t get to know any real KGB characters, other than very generic bad guy sketches. This ruins some of the suspense because we don’t get a good sense of who to root against. It’s like saying, the boogeyman is there, he’s in the shadows, he’s watching, but we don’t really get more of a sense than that. Missed opportunity.

Another disappointment is the portrayal of Greville’s wife, Sheila Wynne (Jessica Buckley). Again, she’s setup pretty one-dimensional. She’s a wife thinking her husband is cheating on her — again. Yeah, how many times has that story been told? We don’t really learn any more about her background, motivations, other than to be almost a stereotype. It’s unfortunate because more could have been done here.

The last quarter of the movie everything finally happens. Even though we didn’t know the history, it all seemed predictable. My favorite part was when the movie was over and we found out what really happened to everybody involved. Then we left the theater, recorded the video below and I learned more about the real people involved from Wikipedia.

If you want a more suspense-filled drama dealing with Russia and the Cuban missile crisis, there are several available, including one starring Martin Sheen (look it up!). As a businessman everyman turned into somewhat of an unwitting spy this was interesting enough — mostly due to the subject matter, not the telling of it — if that turns your crank, give it a look, but we can’t recommend.

Rating (out of 5 stars): ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (Todd) ⭐️⭐️½ (Kara)

Opening 3-18-2021 in Theaters: The Courier

Theaters: 3/18/2021

Thursday, week #12 of 2021 (3/18 – 3/21/2021).

Been seeing a lot of previews for this week’s wide release movie, but the biggest release this week is happening on streaming with the long awaited Snyder Cut of Justice League. I’d heard rumors this might be making some kind of limited theatrical run, but don’t see it playing at any of the theaters open in our area. Maybe it will appear on Friday somewhere. We’re going to be beach bound for a couple days, but will sneak in movies when/where we can, if not when we return this weekend.

The Courier

This espionage thriller has an intriguing trailer, see below.

This could be one we really enjoy — or not. I have enjoyed many stories based on true stories. A businessman turning into a spy isn’t as interesting as some other occupations perhaps, but guess it all depends on what type of businessman he turns out to be.

Anticipation: 5/10

Wherever you are watching movies this weekend, happy watching to you!

Long Weekend ⭐️⭐️½

Long Weekend – R – 1 hr 31 min
NO SPOILERS Movie Review
Watched in theater Friday March 11, 2021
AMC Lakewood Mall 12 – Lakewood, Washington
13th new movie seen in theater in 2021

Bart goes on a drinking binge and falls asleep in a movie theater after some bad news. He’s awakened by Vienna who wants to go out and have another drink. She doesn’t have a cell phone and carries around a bunch of cash in her purse and thus begins their brief romance surrounded by where she came from and why.

Since this is no spoiler, we can’t get into what Vienna’s secret origins are, but we find out early in the first act. The second act becomes about whether or not Bart believes her, even reaching out to his best friend. The third act comes to a most predictable conclusion.

Whether or not you like this movie will all come down to Vienna’s secret. We’ve seen too many movies, especially romantic comedies that have used this plot device before. Kara and I discussed this — but again we didn’t spoil it — in our just left the theater review below.

Kara disagreed with me, but I didn’t think Bart and Vienna had that much chemistry. For a romance to work, I need to want the characters to get together. Here I barely cared. They seemed more like drinking, hook up buddies than lovers.

The problem with Vienna’s secret badly impacts the ending. There is a major plot hole exposed that I couldn’t get past involving a bank and safety deposit box. If you decide to see this film, and we’re not recommending to do so, then maybe this plot hole will bother you, too. We’ve talked about how important endings are to films, that a great film finishes strong and a good film can be ruined by a subpar ending, in this case it’s a mediocre romance with a cliched story and an ending with a major logic gap. No, thank you.

Rating (out of 5 stars): ⭐️⭐️ (Todd) ⭐️⭐️½½ (Kara)

The Father ⭐️½

The Father – R – 1 hr 37 min
NO SPOILERS Movie Review
Watched in theater Thursday March 11, 2021
AMC Lakewood Mall 12 – Lakewood, Washington
12th new movie seen in theater in 2021

Alzheimer’s, Dementia, senility, whichever of these fearsome ills of aging is your nightmare, they are a reality for Antony (Anthony Hopkins).

Will start with the positive. I like when filmmakers show instead of tell. There was a strong attempt to make us feel as disoriented as the protagonist. Unusual and unexpected time, place and sub-character shifts. This is clever at first and quickly becomes frustrating.

We have to be able to understand what is reality and what is not and the reality is exactly what we see: we’re inside Antony’s head — and it’s a scary place. If you’re closer to his age than to youth, anyway.

As always, Anthony Hopkins’ performance is strong. I mean, we’re talking the guy who played Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs opposite Jodie Foster, but he doesn’t have a meaty, coherent story here sadly. Even the great Hopkins can’t save this mangled mess.

We left the theater staving off sleep and boredom in parts of this very slowwwwwwww film.

This was based on a play and that’s where it probably worked better. The sets were minimal, it wasn’t much to look at cinematically, more to feel through the dialogue and character performances. Not enough happens unfortunately given the runtime and it’s too depressing. It’s very artsy, which might appeal in Oscars voting, but there have been much better films in the last year. Not recommended.

Rating (out of 5 stars): ⭐️½ (Todd) ⭐️ (Kara)

Opening 3-11-2021 in Theaters: The Father, Long Weekend

Theaters: 3/11/2021

Thursday, week #11 of 2021 (3/11 – 3/14/2021): two new movies this week, a drama and a romantic comedy. Am running a bit behind checking out the movie entertainment scene as work — you know, that day job — has been keeping me very busy lately.

It’s good to see new movies continuing to be released in theaters. We still haven’t seen one of the three from last week, but tonight we’re springing for tickets for one of the new ones (we’re still deciding which as this is being written, but leaning toward The Father). By the time this is posted (12:01am Friday 3/12) we’ll have already made our choice.

The Father

Anthony Hopkins is the standout reason to see this film here. He’s a great actor. Does this script about an elderly father facing the ravages of time.

Anticipation: 5/10

Long Weekend

Not much is sticking out in this trailer. Sort of the standard fare rom-com trailer.

Anticipation: 4/10

Which one of these movies most interests you? Wherever you are watching movies this weekend, happy watching to you!

Chaos Walking ⭐️⭐️⭐️½

Chaos Walking – R – 1 hr 30 min
NO SPOILERS Movie Review
Watched in theater Sunday March 7, 2021
AMC Kent 12 – Kent, Washington
11th new movie seen in theater in 2021

A spaceship crashes on a planet, leaving only a female survivor named Viola. A young farmer finds her named Todd. The men on the planet have their thoughts radiating around them and can be heard and yet the town has no women in it. Todd then tries to secret and Viola “space girl” from the townsfolk.

If you can see this in a theater, like most (all?) sci-fi fantasy films, it helps. There was enough mystery in the storyline to keep me entertained, but this wasn’t Kara’s type of movie. Listen to what she has to say about in our just left the theater below.

Great sound effects. Cinematography was good. The story wasn’t cliched, was a little redundant, but had a little bit of a Planet of The Apes vibe running through it. Runtime was too long, again, due to the redundancy.

I liked this one. It was “different” as Kara stated while we left the theater. When you see as many movies as we do, different is nice and appreciated. Is it that great a movie? No, but the whole idea of men leaking thoughts, while women can suppress theirs is intriguing. They kind of pulled it off, too.

Rating (out of 5 stars): ⭐️⭐️⭐️½ (Todd) ⭐️⭐️ (Kara)