What to watch this weekend

So it’s Friday. Maybe you’re unwinding, coming down off a stressful week and are looking for something fun or entertaining to watch and relax with. Or maybe your week is just getting started, and you want a good movie or show to get your work schedule off on a pleasant start, or to watch while you commute. We’ve got you covered, here’s what’s new and notable in theaters or on the small screen this weekend!


First up, we have the big release this weekend of It: Chapter 2. Chapter 2 continues the story of The Losers’ Club of Derry as adults when they reconcile and return to Derry to deal once and for all with the evil demon-clown Pennywise. Directed by Andy Muschietti, and starring Bill Hader, Jessica Chastain, James McAvoy, Isaiah Mustafa, Jay Ryan, James Ransone, Andy Bean, and Bill Skarsgard, It: Chapter 2 has a long running time of 169 minutes. That’s nearly three hours of crazy clown carnage. It, as of this writing, has a 66% Tomato meter rating, and an 86% audience score.


Next up is Hobbes and Shaw. While Hobbes and Shaw has been out since the beginning of August, it has managed to maintain its top spot at the box office since debuting, becoming one of the few blockbusters this year that isn’t from the House of the Mouse; Disney. We reviewed Hobbs and Shaw back nearer its premier, which you can read all about. Hobbs and Shaw is directed by David Leitch, and stars Dwayne Johnson, Jason Statham, Idris Elba, Vanessa Kirby, and Helen Mirren. It currently has a 67% Tomato meter rating, and an 88% audience score.


If more horror is what you’re looking for after It: Chapter 2, there is the highly entertaining Ready or Not. In this movie, Hide and Seek goes so very wrong, as a young bride visiting her in-laws is subjected to the family’s tradition of hunting the newcomers. Ready or Not is darkly funny, and violent. As Grace must survive her ordeal until morning, dodging in-laws that are out to kill her. I’m sure anyone who’s married has felt similar dealing with in-laws at some point. Directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, Ready or Not stars Samara Weaving, Adam Brody, Mark O’Brian, Henry Czerny, and Andie MacDowell.It has a Tomato meter rating of 87% and an audience score of 79%.


Rounding out our movie recommendations for movies this weekend is Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark. Opening up almost a month ago, Scary Stories is a good way to spend a weekend afternoon or evening for the horror-inclined. In a small town, a group of teenagers are terrorized by a tome of horror stories come to life. If anyone is like me and read the short story collections of the same name as children, this movie’s frightening scenes will bring back all the memories of reading the books. Perfect as we move from summer into autumn and Halloween starts its slow lurch up to our doorsteps for tricks or treats. Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark is directed by Andre Øvredal, and stars Zoe Colletti, Michael Garza, Gabriel Rush, Austin Zajur, Natalie Ganzhorn, Austin Abrams, and Dean Norris. It’s sitting at 79% for its Tomato meter, and 72% for its audience score.

For those of you preferring something to stream from the comfort of your own home, there are lots of good choices on the streaming services. Here are three recommendations.


First off we have Carnival Row, streaming on Amazon Prime. Carnival Row is a grim urban fantasy set in a steampunk, late Victorian society populated by an underclass of fantasy races such as faeries, satyrs, centaurs, trolls, and more. The human states, lacking the mystical capabilities of the other races, focused on technology and science, eventually leading to airships, telegraphs, machine guns, and other advanced weapons. This results in an internecine war between the Burgue and the Pact fought over who would dominate the non-human continents of Tirnanoc and Ignotia. Years after the war ends, the Burgue has taken in many refugees from the fae races, treating them little better than an exploitable indentured servant class. Amidst this, a detective from the Burgue, Rycroft Philostrate, investigates a series of murdered faeries, leading to a dark conspiracy that goes far beyond mere street crime. Carnival Row stars Orlando Bloom and Cara Delavingne as the two protagonists, Philostrate and Vignette Stonemoss, a faerie. Carnival Row has a 55% Tomato meter score, and an 88% audience score.


Next on our streaming recommendations is The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance. Based upon the Jim Henson movie The Dark Crystal (1982), Age of Resistance serves as a prequel setting up the events of the original movie. Follow the gelflings of Thra as they try to resist the evil machinations of their skeksis oppressors. Using all puppets and practical effects, Age of Resistance is a fitting tribute to Jim Henson’s groundbreaking puppetry work. It takes a lot of heart, dedication, and attention to detail to use puppets to the degree we see in the Dark Crystal saga. Season one is streaming on Netflix. Age of Resistance is directed by Louis Leterrier and features the voices of Taron Egerton, Anya Taylor-Joy, Nathalie Emmanuel, Simon Pegg, Mark Hamill, Jason Isaacs, Caitriona Balfe, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Andy Samberg, and Helena Bonham Carter. It currently has an 85% Tomato meter score, and a 92% audience score.


Last up is a Netflix special that’s been in the news a lot lately. Dave Chappelle’s Sticks & Stones. Dave Chappelle’s a massive presence in the comedy world. Chappelle’s return to the front and center of the comedy stage has garnered a lot of media attention, not all of it good. His latest special, Sticks & Stones, sees him double down on his irreverent humor and hot takes on the world as he sees it. His special has created a lot of dialogue on the nature of free speech and our current cultural and political climate. The best way to judge the effectiveness or offensiveness of his special is to see it yourself and make your own call. Sticks & Stones currently has a 30% Tomato meter rating and a 99% audience score, both numbers in and of themselves have been the source of headlines recently.

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