It’s been fourteen long years since the last five-film franchise only seems to have grown since then. That bodes well for the new entry, Final Destination Bloodlines, which is having all sorts of fun with its marketing campaign. Earlier this year, Matt Goldberg ranked the best deaths in the franchise so far for Journal, and the new one certainly has some strong contenders. Adam is ready to declare it “easily the best of the franchise so far”, and says that it’s “more meticulously crafted than it needs to be… and it’s made for the long-time fans and for those who enjoy being traumatized”. Correct! I am also in agreement with Brett when he expresses his appreciation for “how much reverence this has towards Final Destination 2, the best one!” Marcel likes that it “brings a breath of fresh air without reinventing the wheel.” “The trauma from the MRI scene will be generational,” cautions Laura. Now in theaters the world over.

It Comes at Night writer-director Trey Edward Shults, whose most recent film Waves enjoys an impressive 3.9 average on Letterboxd, teamed up with musical artist Abel Tesfaye/The Weeknd to make Hurry Up Tomorrow, an adaptation of the recently released album of the same name. Or perhaps it’s the other way around. Tesfaye plays a version of himself, and is ed by two of the most in-demand actors of their generation: Jenna Ortega and Barry Keoghan. It feels like this is far enough removed from The Idol—the poorly received 2023 drama series in which Tesfaye also played a pop star not a million miles away from his public persona alongside a hip young Hollywood cast—so as not to suffer too much from the association. And this is, like, a totally different thing. Now in theaters in the US, UK, Ireland, , Italy and .

America’s Next Top Model cycle 22 winner Nyle DiMarco teams up with An Inconvenient Truth director Davis Guggenheim to make Deaf President Now!, a documentary about an incident in 1988 when students protested the installation of a hearing president over several Deaf candidates at Gallaudet University, a college for the Deaf. DiMarco, who also won season 22 of Dancing with the Stars, is a graduate of the university. And Guggenheim also made one of my favorite no-guilt guilty-pleasure movies, Gossip. Jaime likes how the co-directors “are utilizing the soundscapes so that they can capture the worlds of Deaf students as they are leading a revolution in the making, just to ensure that their voices will be made loud and clear for hearing people.” Scott calls it “a really moving illustration of why this moment was such a turning point for this community.” Ben says it’s “obvious that this was directed by a Deaf man. You can tell how personal it is to the production team in the best way possible.”  Now on Apple TV+.

British Indian filmmaker Karan Kandhari’s directorial debut Sister Midnight premiered at Cannes in 2024, and Kandhari was nominated for Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer at this year’s BAFTAs. Radhika Apte stars in the black comedy as a woman who goes through a dramatic change after entering an arranged marriage in Mumbai. You might think the nature of that change is denoted by the film’s poster, so specifically evoking the original one-sheet for Taxi Driver, but it isn’t. There’s a conceptual element here that many reviews casually reveal—so tread lightly if you wanna stay clean! BeBraveMovern calls it a “hilarious feminist-horror fable with tight, comic editing and a wonderfully dialed-down performance from Radhika Apte.” Phil reckons it “feels tonally like one of the deadpan indies out of 1980s NY. Early Jarmusch vibes for days.” Stryflon describes it as “an absurdist feminist satire grappling with identity politics… that’s stylistically adjacent to a Wes Anderson film.” Clarisse says she “was already locked in and then the stop motion goats turned up.” In US theaters May 23.

It still made a mountain of coin, but there was something of a perception that Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning didn’t live up to expectations. To the degree that they changed the title of the ostensible last (nobody believes you!) entry in the venerable action franchise to Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning. Or maybe that was the plan all along. It’s worth noting that this series was originally conceived to have each film be a showcase for the specific directorial leanings of noted stylistic auteurs, with two of the best in the business—Brian De Palma and John Woo—handling the first two entries (I’ll go to my grave defending Woo’s film). But since Rogue Nation (or, unofficially, since Ghost Protocol), it has been Christopher McQuarrie’s playground. Leo reckons that “cinema will never top this.” It’s an “exhilarating adrenaline rush for the head and heart and immersive, awe-inducing stuntacular of the highest order,” according to Courtney. “McQuarrie knows how to grab the audience and never let go,” says Daniel, who goes on to assert that it’s “a thrilling end, should they choose to accept it.” In theaters the world over May 23.

It’s a given that everybody wants more films that are like National Treasure movies. Guy Ritchie’s new adventure Fountain of Youth couldn’t be more overt in its Indiana Jones-chasing, with every second shot in the fun-but-familiar trailer looking like something from George Lucas and Steven Spielberg’s beloved franchise, and much of the rest looking like something from The Da Vinci Code. John Krasinski and Natalie Portman lead the cast as bickering siblings. Which I suppose is a new element. They should do an Indiana Jones movie where the MacGuffin is the ability to successfully recreate the vibe of an Indiana Jones movie. On Apple TV+ May 23.

Like The Jane Austen Book Club and Austenland, new French film Jane Austen Wrecked My Life declares its intentions to exist in the milieu defined by the iconic author of Pride & Prejudice, Emma and many more books that continue to feel like the last word in the circuitous rally that is romantic fulfillment. Camille Rutherford stars as a bookshop clerk/aspiring author whose emotional entanglements begin to resemble those found in the works of… well, you know. “Absolutely charming, so delightful, captures the magic of love, literature and life,” says Sherry. Genevieve reckons it’s the “definition of precious!! One of the best and most authentic rom-coms I’ve seen in a very long time.” Any movie with scenes in bookshops is worthy, and this one showcases one of the world’s best: Shakespeare and Company in Paris. In select US theaters May 23 before going wide on May 30.