“I’m Your Woman”
Cast: Rachel Brosnahan, Marsha Stephanie Blake, Arinzé Kene
Synopsis: A woman is forced to go on the run with her baby after her husband betrays his partners in crime.
What You Need to Know: Aside from a slight misstep in this year’s “Stargirl” adaptation, which is more due to the source material than her direction, Julia Hart has continually impressed since her 2016 debut film “Miss Stevens.” While “Fast Color” may still be her most imaginative, “I’m Your Woman” once again has the filmmaker pivoting in tone and genre, showcasing an ease in adapting to new stories and means of telling them. Rachel Brosnahan stars in the film, which gives the actress ample opportunity to shake the image that she’s created in the popular Amazon series “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.” Our critic who saw the film at the 2020 AFI Film Festival wrote, “’I’m Your Woman’ is a stunner that will take you to unconventional places, if you have the patience to let it sweep you up in its quiet visceral moments.”
Release Date: December 4 in a limited release, then December 11 on Amazon Prime Video.
“Let Them All Talk”
Cast: Meryl Streep, Dianne Wiest, Candice Bergen, Lucas Hedges
Synopsis: A young man finds romance with a literary agent while taking a trip with the woman’s famous aunt and her friends.
What You Need to Know: Director Steven Soderbergh is always changing up his style and, within just the last few years, has already shot two films on an iPhone. His latest venture with a star-studded cast that includes Meryl Streep, Dianne Wiest, and Candice Bergen, tackles a new kind of challenge. The film was reportedly shot in only two weeks and was entirely improvised. With the cast on board, it should be a treat to see what miracle they were able to whip up in such a short amount of time with such a loose structure. Having been picked up by HBO Max, the film won’t only be yet another chance for Soderbergh to showcase why he’s one of the more innovative directors around; it will also be a good chance for fans of Streep to see her return to a more grounded character, especially with her stint in “The Prom” arriving that same week.
Release Date: December 10 on HBO Max.
“Minari”
Cast: Steven Yeun, Youn Yuh-jung, Han Ye-ri, Alan S. Kim
Synopsis: A Korean American family searches for a better life when they move to a small farm in Arkansas.
What You Need to Know: As one of the big breakout hits of the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, “Minari” has yet to lose its momentum as one of the most anticipated and buzzed-about films of the year. A24 and Plan B Productions always inspire confidence, and it’s well earned here in Lee Isaac Chung’s tender-hearted story about a Korean American family looking for success and fulfillment when the patriarch of the family – played with quiet vulnerability by Steven Yeun – decides to take on a new occupation. Yeun again proves his immense talent as a character who borders on being unlikable. The cast is terrific across the board, from newcomer Alan S. Kim in the leading role to a devastating supporting turn from Will Patton. Our critic who saw it back at Sundance wrote, “By telling his story Chung has hit a peak as a filmmaker that might have been unthinkable just a few years ago.”
Release Date: December 11 in select theaters.
“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”
Cast: Chadwick Boseman, Viola Davis, Taylour Paige
Synopsis: Tensions rise when trailblazing blues singer Ma Rainey and her band gather at a recording studio in Chicago in 1927.
What You Need to Know: With the passing of Chadwick Boseman still so fresh in everyone’s minds, much of the upcoming “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” is going to be associated with that loss. This is especially true when reviews call it perhaps the best performance of the actor’s too short career. The film itself has brought in positive reactions, especially for Boseman and Viola Davis. Directed by George C Wolfe (“The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks”), the film is based on the play of the same name by August Wilson (whose work has brought out some of Davis’s best work to date in the “Fences” adaptation.) Our critic wrote, “‘Ma Rainey’ is dynamic, vibrant, and extravagant, and will hopefully not only revive interest in Wilson’s work, but remind people “Fences” is not the only firecrackers that exist in his insightful arsenal.”
Release Date: December 18 on Netflix.
“Soul”
Cast: Jamie Foxx, Tina Fey
Synopsis: Joe is a middle-school band teacher whose life hasn’t quite gone the way he expected. His true passion is jazz — and he’s good. But when he travels to another realm to help someone find their passion, he soon discovers what it means to have soul.
What You Need to Know: It’s been as interesting as it is frustrating to witness what films major studios are willing to toss to whichever streaming platform they’re tied to. In the case of “Soul,” the latest Pixar film directed by Pete Docter and Kemp Powers, you can’t help but feel the loss of some of the more heightened visuals of the film that would have stunned on the big, all-consuming screen. That said, it will likely also make for a nice at-home holiday gift, even with subject material that, as can be the case with some Pixar films, become a little heady for younger viewers. It seems with each new Pixar release; a debate is to be made on which of the studio’s films is their best and, while this may not rise in the ranks of the very top tier the studio has to offer, it comes close, especially with a score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross which makes every big moment land with a greater punch. Our critic wrote, “It’s a ravishing ode, too, to gestures, touches, smiles, and pithy, pointless conversations; in “Soul,” the tiny human interactions that we so often brush overcome under the magnifying glass.”
Release Date: December 25 on Disney+.