El Aguila Blanca 

Malignant is a roller coaster ride of slow-build scares, moments of wonderfully absurd camp, and explorations of autonomy.

As this critic continues to look back at some of this Summer's films I have taken in, I would be remiss if I didn't mention one of the most overall unsettling trends in Hollywood over the last several years.....sequels, reboots, and remakes. Look, I am all for seeing more than one film for certain originals that made a splash, ie: "Jurassic Park", "Pirates of the Caribbean", "Transformers", etc.

Two Distant Strangers (2020) centers around Carter James (Joey Bada$$) as he tries to get back home to his pitbull, Jeter, after spending a night at the apartment of his date Perri (Zaria Simone). What gets in the way of Carter reuniting with his dog is that every time he tries to leave Perri’s apartment,  he is killed by police and wakes up back in her bed in a never-ending cycle. It addresses the issue of police brutality which rightly has been in the public eye more and more with the unjust deaths caused at the hands of law enforcement.

Amsterdam is a confusing movie with a meandering plot amidst a beautiful rendering of 1930s New York

A 3D animated film centered on chasing fame in the humble stomping grounds of middle school. Unfortunately, while the protagonist dreams big, the plot falls short and fails to capture even a semblance of diversity.

The original Mothra is a fun monster movie that has way stronger lore, music, and special effects than most of its contemporaries.