There are a trio of Hollywood releases that warrant your attention. I reviewed “Challengers” last week and I highly recommend it. I love how IMDB classifies the film as a romantic sports drama. This art-house film directed by Italian filmmaker Luca Guadagnino, has an action film budget and three talented young stars. Zendaya, Josh O’Connor, and Mike Faist give great performances in a fast-paced romance that’s about a love triangle with a little tennis as the backdrop. Put it on your streaming list if you missed it but it’s still playing in some movie theaters and it’s best experienced on the big screen.
I’d also highly recommend planning a trip to see “The Fall Guy” on the big screen. Like “Challengers”, where Zendaya was the fulcrum of the story, Emily Blunt quite literally calls the shots in this film based on the 80’s TV series, “The Fall Guy”. Blunt is the first-time director, Jody Moreno, who puts stuntman, Colt Steavens, through his paces. She wields the bull horn and orders him to be set ablaze for multiple takes to get revenge for ending their previous romantic relationship. He ghosted her.
She and Ryan Gosling have great chemistry and their relationship is the best part of the film. The stunts are inventive and often thrilling, they really need to be enjoyed on the big screen. Unlike other action films with endless gun battles and car chases, “The Fall Guy” brings the audience in close for gripping hand-to-hand combat. It’s violent but not gory. The action scenes are over-the-top — well-choreographed and often hilarious. The film is a tribute to the stunt industry and director David Leitch, a stuntman and stunt coordinator himself, lets the stunts carry the action.
The film is light on story but the call outs to other action tv series, like “Miami Vice” and “The Six Million Dollar Man” are a lot of fun. There’s a cameo by the original Fall Guy, Lee Majors and his co-star, Heather Thomas. This is a big budget action romance that needs to be enjoyed on the big screen. A fun popcorn summer flick that will be fun for teens, but most enjoyable for audiences that will get the inside jokes.
If you’re looking for more adult fare that doesn’t involve a trip to the cinema, there’s a new Anne Hathaway romance. “The Idea of You” is streaming on Prime and is one of the better offerings for a steamy romance that’s not aimed at teens. It’s based on the best-selling book of the same name, written by American actress and author, Robinne Lee. There’s a meet-cute with a sophisticated LA Mom and a young rock star at Coachella. A romantic fling takes place when she jets off on the boy band’s European tour. This makes for some amazing location shots.
Nicholas Galitzine is a charmer as the British pop star. He’s been typecast as a prince in a lot of work: from “Cinderella” (2021) to “Red, White, and Royal Blue” (2023, sequel in the works) to the current steamy historical drama, “Mary and George” streaming on Starz. In “The Idea of You”, he sings and dances, performing with a boy band, August Moon, and as a solo act. Galitzine manages to combine a confident demeanor with a charming silliness that seems age appropriate and has a lovely singing voice.
Hathaway’s character calls the shots. She resists the flirty advances of this confident young man and tells him that she’s too old for him. Once she gives into temptation, the audience gets to enjoy some high-end lingerie and sultry love making. In a rare instance of female empowerment, the first sexual encounter involves the young lover giving her character pleasure. Once she goes back to her life, she presents an ultimatum to him and prioritizes her daughter’s mental health. The acting is top-notch in a genre that often celebrates surface over substance.
It’s important to note that Zendaya is a producer on “Challengers” as is Anne Hathaway on “The Idea of You”. For both of those productions, there’s a larger footprint of women artists involved, including other female producers. Plus, “The Idea of You” is based on a book written by a woman with a script co-written by a woman, Jennifer Westfeldt, who is also an executive producer.
If you enjoy a narrative with women in leading roles…stories that don’t relegate them to eye candy or victim status…you need to support these films. We need more quality entertainment that lets us see women as confident, ambitious, sexy (even at the “old age” of 40!). Women leading fulfilling lives.
Drinks With Films ratings
“Challengers”: 4 Arnold Palmers sipped courtside while wearing your tennis whites (out of 5)
“The Fall Guy”: 4 spicy margaritas on a beach taking a break between filming successful blockbusters (out of 5)
“The Idea of You”: 3 glasses of room service champagne while canoodling (out of 5)
Drinks with films 