New movies to watch in July

Can Deadpool & Wolverine (July 26) save the superhero genre? Uniting two of the most popular Marvel characters, Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman join forces as two morally flexible and reluctant superheroes to fight a common enemy. Montreal-born Shawn Levy directs one of the most anticipated blockbusters of the year. 

What’s better than a Twister? Twisters (July 19), obviously. Adopting the James Cameron Alien$ titling strategy, one of the most popular films of the 1990s is revived for a new generation. Glen Powell stars in this update of the 1996 classic, which centres on a pair of storm chasers who risk their lives in an attempt to test an experimental weather alert system.

Believe it or not, it’s been well over a decade since minions were unleashed onto the world with the release of the first Despicable Me film back in 2010. While the yellow banana-loving monsters have now utilised their popularity in the original film, they’re back to supporting roles this summer in Despicable Me 4 (July 3). Gru, a criminal mastermind, adopts three orphans as pawns to carry out the biggest heist in history. His life takes an unexpected turn when the little girls see the evildoer as their potential father. The film features (as always) an all-star voice cast including Steve Carell, Will Ferrell, Julie Andrews, Will Arnett and many more.

In his collaboration with Mia Goth, in X and Pearl, horror director Ti West has finally made his mark on the mainstream. With MaXXXine (July 5), the two reunite to close out the unofficial slasher trilogy about fame, as we rejoin adult movie star Maxine and her attempt to break into the mainstream in 1985 Los Angeles. (Read our review of MaXXXine here.)

For more spookiness, hype has only been growing for the Nicolas Cage film Longlegs (July 12). Cage stars as FBI Agent Lee Harker, who’s assigned to an unsolved serial killer case that takes an unexpected turn, revealing evidence of the occult. Harker discovers a personal connection to the killer and must stop him before he strikes again. The supporting cast includes Maika Monroe, Alicia Witt and Kiernan Shipka. Preview audiences are already calling it one of the best horror films of the decade. 

For a lighter horror comedy adventure, We Are Zombies (July 17) is the latest film from homegrown favourites RKSS (Turbo Kid). In a city infested with the living-impaired — aka non-cannibal zombies — three slackers after easy money must fight small-time crooks and an evil megacorporation to save their kidnapped grandma.

For an old-school romantic comedy with a 1960s twist, check out Fly Me to the Moon (July 12) starring Scarlett Johansson and Channing Tatum. Marketing maven Kelly Jones wreaks havoc on moon-mission launch director Cole Davis’s already difficult task. When the White House deems the mission too important to fail, Jones is directed to stage a fake moon landing as a back-up.

One of the biggest crowd pleasers to premiere at TIFF last year is finally hitting cinemas. Sing Sing (July 19) is based on the real-life Rehabilitation Through the Arts program at Sing Sing Maximum Security Prison. The film focuses on a group of inmates involved in the creation of theatrical stage shows through the program. It stars professional actors Colman Domingo and Paul Raci, alongside many real-life, formerly incarcerated men who were themselves alumni of the program. 

Back once again for all your Asian and genre cinema needs, the Fantasia International Film Festival runs this year from July 18 to Aug. 4. Some of the announced lineup includes the world premiere of Bookworm (starring Elijah Wood), YouTuber turned filmmaker Chris Stuckmann’s Shelby Oaks and Nobuhiro Yamashita’s Confession are among the early announcements. For more highlights of the 2024 Fantasia program, please click here.

Every summer, the Cinémathèque Québécoise does an expansive thematic series. This year, they will shed a spotlight on science fiction films featuring over 100 films including Metropolis, Solaris, The Matrix, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Interstellar, and Arrival. To round up the program, they will also feature a special sub-program called Spielberg and Lucas, The Beginnings, dedicated to the early works of these American masters. The cycle opened on July 2 with a screening of Terry Gilliam’s 12 Monkeys and Chris Marker’s short film La Jetée. It runs until the end of August. 

For some other seasonal activities, be sure to head to the free outdoor screening series Film Noir au Canal, which begins its season on July 14 and will run every Sunday for just over a month. ■

This article was originally published in the July 2024 issue of Cult MTL. See what’s screening in local cinemas here.

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