MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:
In Hollywood, Memorial Day weekend is typically the start of summer season blockbuster season, or at least it was prior to the pandemic. Last summer, despite the best efforts of the “Quick & & Furious” team and Marvel’s “Black Widow,” no blocks were busted. But this year, “Physician Strange” and “Leading Weapon: Radical” have actually primed the pump. And critic Bob Mondello says there are more where those came from.BOB MONDELLO,
BYLINE: Somewhere in the Rockies, snow falling gently as we hear the pitter-pat of raptors in the woods.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, “JURASSIC WORLD: RULE”)
ISABELLA PREACHING: (As Maisie Lockwood) Blue had a baby. That’s impossible.MONDELLO: In”Jurassic World: Rule”… (SOUNDBITE OF FILM,”JURASSIC WORLD: DOMINION “)CHRIS PRATT: (As Owen Grady)Hey, girl.SERMON: (As Maisie Lockwood)You look
much like your mother.MONDELLO: … Jurassic Park is long gone, and we share the whole planet with dinosaurs. As always, bad folks have designs on them-in this case, on the baby. It’s great that Chris Pratt still has a relationship with its mama.(SOUNDBITE OF MOVIE,”JURASSIC WORLD: RULE”)PRATT:(As Owen Grady) I guarantee you, I am going to get her back.MONDELLO: That’s a
pledge Pratt takes seriously. And if Pratt is Jurassic World’s raptor whisperer …(SOUNDBITE OF MOVIE,”JURASSIC WORLD: RULE”)PRATT:( As Owen Grady )I made a promise we would bring her home.JEFF GOLDBLUM:(As Dr. Ian Malcom)You made a pledge to a dinosaur?PRATT:(As Owen Grady)Yeah. Why?MONDELLO: … In the Marvel Universe, he’s ended up being a Thor whisperer to a superhero who’s all of a sudden everything about peace and love.(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, “THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER”)PRATT:(As Star-Lord) Remember what I informed you-you ever feel lost, just check out the eyes of the people that you enjoy -not me.CHRIS HEMSWORTH: (As Thor) What? I was just listening.MONDELLO:
You can forgive the Viking god for being a bit distracted in”Thor: Love And Thunder.”(SOUNDBITE OF FILM,” THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER “)HEMSWORTH:(As Thor )Jane?MONDELLO: Ends Up he’s not the only one who can hurl a hammer
.(SOUNDBITE OF FILM,”THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER “)HEMSWORTH:(As
Thor)The old ex-girlfriend. NATALIE PORTMAN:(As Jane Foster) What’s it been, like, 3, 4 years?HEMSWORTH:(As Thor)8 years, 7 months and six days-provide or take.MONDELLO: There are likewise two
films in which teenagers suspect a superhero may be concealing in plain sight-“Secret Head office “and”Samaritan.”And the directors of the last 2” Avengers “movies, the Russo brothers, are obviously wishing to start a various sort of franchise with their CIA thriller. In”The Gray Male,”Chris Evans is an assassin …(SOUNDBITE OF MOVIE, “THE GRAY MAN”
)CHRIS EVANS:(As Lloyd Hansen) Wish to make an omelet? You’ve got to eliminate some people.MONDELLO: … Who pursues assassin Ryan Gosling. (SOUNDBITE OF MOVIE,” THE GRAY GUY” )ANA DE ARMAS:(As Dani Miranda)You hurt?RYAN GOSLING:(As Court Gentry )I mean, my ego’s a little bruised.MONDELLO: Gosling is the title’s gray male, so I’m thinking his ego will recover. Another assassin-on-assassin film,” Bullet Train
,”discovers Brad Pitt identified to play nice
, although he’s the only one of 5 worked with killers on the super-fast train who isn’t equipped.
(SOUNDBITE OF MOVIE,”BULLET TRAIN”)BRAD PITT:(As Ladybug )You stabbed me?BAD BUNNY:( As Wolf)I will destroy your life the way you messed up mine.PITT:(As Ladybug)Guy,
I do not even understand you.MONDELLO: If all this sounds a little frenzied,
rest assured there are gentler summertime movies. In the comedy “Brian And Charles,”Brian may sometimes want to kill the mechanical man he’s constructed.( SOUNDBITE OF FILM,”BRIAN AND CHARLES “)DAVID EARL:(As Brian)A very, really cheeky robot.CHRIS HAYWARD:(As Charles )Cheeky.MONDELLO: But you can inform he and Charles have a bond
.(SOUNDBITE OF MOVIE, “BRIAN AND CHARLES”)HAYWARD: (As Charles) Cheeky bot.EARL:(As Brian
)Saucy bot?HAYWARD: (As Charles )Saucy bot sit in the front, Brian.EARL: (As Brian)Stop stating front.HAYWARD: (As Charles) Front. Front.
Front. Front. Front.MONDELLO: Other comedies consist of”Honk For Jesus. Save Your Soul,”embeded in a Black Atlanta megachurch, and “Easter Sunday,” in which comedian Jo Koy demonstrates how his Filipino family fuels his standup act.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, “EASTER SUNDAY”)
LYDIA GASTON:(As Susan Valencia) Joseph, are you coming for
Easter?JO KOY: (As Joe Valencia)I do not understand, Mama. I’m actually busy. I just evaluated for this pilot.GASTON:(As Susan Valencia)You’re going to be a pilot?KOY: (As Joe Valencia)
A network pilot for, like, a television show.GASTON:( As Susan Valencia) Ah, you’re playing a pilot on the TV show.KOY:(As Joe Valencia )No, a lawyer.GASTON: (As Susan Valencia)You
could have been an attorney if you
only used yourself.MONDELLO: Also based on reality, “The Phantom Of The Open”-the story of a common person who heard someone say on television that you can do anything you set your mind to and resolved right then and there.(SOUNDBITE OF MOVIE,”THE PHANTOM OF THE OPEN “)MARK RYLANCE:( As Maurice Flitcroft)I’m going to at the British
Open.MARK LEWIS JONES AND JOHANN MYERS:(As Cliff and Willie)Golf?UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR # 1:(As character)You have actually never even played bloody golf prior to, Dad.RYLANCE:(As Maurice Flitcroft) Mind your language on the course. Flippin’heck (ph). MONDELLO: Also pursuing a relatively unattainable dream, a widowed 1960s maid in”Mrs. Harris Goes To
Paris”- her dream’s a Christian Dior gown.(SOUNDBITE OF FILM,” MRS. HARRIS GOES TO PARIS”) LUCAS BRAVO: (As Andre Fauvel) Please, let me escort you out.LESLEY MANVILLE:(As Ada Harris
)No, no, no. Hold on a minute. I conserved every penny scrubbing floorings so I can by this frock.LAMBERT WILSON: (As Marquis de Chassagne)Excuse me, but it would be my honor to have you view the collection as my guest.MONDELLO: Enter the boss.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, “MRS. HARRIS GOES TO PARIS”)
MANVILLE: (As Ada Harris) Who’s that bloke?WILSON:( As Marquis de Chassagne )That’s the master
himself, Mr. Dior.MANVILLE:(As Ada Harris)He appears like my milkman.MONDELLO: And another British widow
chooses to offset a life time of sexual dullness in “All the best To You, Leo Grande”by employing a male escort. Being an ex-teacher, Nancy comes prepared.
(SOUNDBITE OF MOVIE,”BEST OF LUCK TO YOU, LEO GRANDE”)EMMA THOMPSON:(As Nancy Stokes)So I’ve made a list of things that I wish to get through.DARYL MCCORMACK:(As Leo Grande)Oh,
I believe we’ll certainly make a significant damage in it.THOMPSON: (As Nancy Stokes) Excellent. That’s good.
Good.MONDELLO: Nancy is played by Emma Thompson, Leo by Daryl McCormack.(SOUNDBITE OF FILM,”GOOD LUCK TO YOU, LEO GRANDE “)THOMPSON
: (As Nancy Stokes) You will just be the second man I have actually ever had sex with. Oh, God.MCCORMACK:(As Leo Grande)Now,
Nancy … THOMPSON:(As Nancy Stokes )This is crazy.MCCORMACK:(As Leo Grande)
Nancy.THOMPSON: (As Nancy Stokes )It’s dreadful. It
‘s wrong.MCCORMACK: (As Leo Grande) Nancy.THOMPSON:(As Nancy Stokes)Yes?MCCORMACK: (As Leo Grande )Let’s go to bed.THOMPSON: (As Nancy Stokes )OK.MONDELLO: “All The Best To You, Leo Grande”was a hit at the Sundance Film Fest this year, as was the charmer,”Cha Cha Real Smooth, “about a 22-year-old whose life changes when his mommy makes him take his little brother to a bat mitzvah.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, “CHA CHA REAL SMOOTH”)
COOPER RAIFF: (As Andrew) I can’t think college is over.ODEYA RUSH:(As Macy )You have a job now, or … RAIFF: (As Andrew) We’re not enabled to speak about tasks at the bat mitzvah party.RUSH:(As Macy)So you
either don’t have a job, or you have a bad job.BRAD GARRETT:(As
Stepdad Greg)How much does a celebration starter get paid, I wonder.
(SOUNDBITE OF AUTOMOBILE HORN HONKING)RAIFF:(As Andrew)
I have a bad job, yeah.MONDELLO: For those excitedly awaiting the 3rd season of” Bridgerton, “there will be a Regency outfit funny at the multiplex that
‘s every bit as diverse. It’s called” Mr. Malcolm’s List.”( SOUNDBITE OF MOVIE,”MR. MALCOLM’S LIST”)ZAWE ASHTON:( As Julia )If we were to permit him to find
that you have a list and he does not satisfy the requirements on your list, that would be an ideal sort of poetic justice.MONDELLO: Hollywood isn’t all brilliant and upbeat in heat.
In “Criminal offenses Of The Future,” David Cronenberg will visit a surgery-obsessed society where evolution’s in a kind of overdrive.( SOUNDBITE OF FILM,”CRIMES OF THE FUTURE”)VIGGO MORTENSEN:(As Saul Tenser )They do not like what’s happening with the body, in specific what’s happening with my body, which is
why I keep sufficing up.MONDELLO: While Cronenberg peers inward, Jordan Peele
wants to present-day Hollywood … (SOUNDBITE OF MOVIE,”NOPE”)DANIEL KALUUYA:(As James Haywood)What’s a bad miracle?MONDELLO: … And to the skies in his most current sci-fi
scary legendary. It’s called “Nope. “(SOUNDBITE OF FILM,” NOPE “)KEKE PALMER:(
As Jill Haywood) Yeah. Nah, nah, nah.MONDELLO: Nope would likewise work as a title for 2
culture-clash dramas-” The Forgiven,
“in which Ralph Fiennes incorrectly believes wealth and opportunity can safeguard him after he inadvertently kills a regional teenager in Morocco, and”Where The Crawdads Sing,”in which a girl who’s grown up isolated in a North Carolina marsh finds herself
on the other side of the financial divide. Even the genie-in-a-bottle dream”3 Thousand Years Of Longing” has its dark side.(SOUNDBITE OF FILM,” 3 THOUSAND YEARS OF YEARNING”)TILDA SWINTON:(As Alithea Binnie )There’s no story about wanting that is not a cautionary tale.MONDELLO: But happily, there are likewise dreams created for households.( SOUNDBITE OF MOVIE,” LIGHTYEAR”)EVANS:(As Buzz Lightyear)Buzz Lightyear mission long, stardate 3901- after a full year of being marooned, our first hyperspeed test flight is a go.UZO ADUBA: (As Commander Alisha Hawthorne )Who are you talking to?EVANS:( As Buzz Lightyear )Uh, no one.ADUBA:(As Leader Alisha Hawthorne) You were narrating again.EVANS: (As Buzz Lightyear) I was not.MONDELLO: Pixar
‘s”Lightyear”is sort of”Toy Story 5, “and the “Minions”prequel,”Rise Of Gru,”amounts to”
Despicable Me 5. “(SOUNDBITE
OF MOVIE,”MINIONS: THE INCREASE OF GRU”) TARAJI P HENSON:(As Belle Bottom)This undersized, little child thinks he can be a villain.STEVE CARELL:(As Gru)I am quite despicable.MONDELLO: And the animated”DC League Of Super-Pets “comes from the Superman-Batman world. All of that makes the snail hero of
“Marcel The Shell With Shoes On “feel disarmingly fresh.( SOUNDBITE OF MOVIE, “MARCEL THE SHELL WITH SHOES ON”)JENNY SLATE:(As Marcel)My cousin went to sleep in a pocket, which’s why I don’t like the saying whatever comes out in the wash due to the fact that in some cases it doesn’t-or often it does, and they’re simply, like, a completely different person.MONDELLO: “Marcel The Shell With Shoes On “is what you might call an arthouse family movie focused on critical audiences that might likewise appreciate, state, the documentary “Bitterbrush”about two Midwest cattlewomen …(SOUNDBITE OF DOCUMENTARY,”
BITTERBRUSH”)COLIE MOLINE: Maybe I’ll simply be so good at it, I’ll become a millionaire and can purchase my own ranch.MONDELLO: …”Official Competition”about a pair of Spanish actors who have really various
designs …( SOUNDBITE OF FILM,”OFFICIAL COMPETITORS “) ANTONIO BANDERAS:(As Felix Rivero, speaking Spanish). OSCAR MARTINEZ: (As Ivan Torres, speaking Spanish). MONDELLO: …”Neptune Frost,”
an Afro-futurist musical from Rwanda …(SOUNDBITE OF FILM,”NEPTUNE FROST”
)UNIDENTIFIED PERSON:(Singing)Once upon
a time,(non-English language spoken)… MONDELLO: … Or the biopic”Eiffel “about the man
who built that popular tower.(SOUNDBITE OF MOVIE,” EIFFEL “)ROMAIN DURIS:(As Gustave Eiffel, speaking French). MONDELLO: However it’s a biopic from Baz Luhrmann that has the market abuzz this summer. (SOUNDBITE OF FILM, “ELVIS “)UNIDENTIFIED STAR # 2: (As character
)He’s a young singer from Memphis, Tenn.
Provide a warm Hayride welcome to Mr. Elvis Presley.MONDELLO: The once-and-future king will be played by Austin Butler, with Tom Hanks as his manager, Colonel Tom Parker.(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, “ELVIS”)UNIDENTIFIED STAR # 3
:(As character )Get a hairstyle, buttercup.(LAUGHTER)
TOM HANKS: (As Colonel Tom Parker )In that minute, I enjoyed that skinny young boy transform into a superhero.( SOUNDBITE OF SONG, “BABY LET’S PLAY HOUSE”) AUSTIN BUTLER:( As Elvis Presley, singing )Well, you may go to college.
You might go to school.MONDELLO: Worth eagerly anticipating, right?I’m Bob Mondello. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
Source: https://www.ualrpublicradio.org/2022-05-30/a-preview-of-this-summers-biggest-movies