By Cayman Compass contributor Jarett Theberge
Of all the trends from the 2010s, I don’t think many people had the Minions pegged to remain as cultural mainstays almost 20 years later. But here we are, and the short, yellow, and often one-eyed cronies are back in theaters with “Minions & Monsters”. In this third installment, the Minions find themselves in 1920’s Hollywood where they’re tasked with making a monster flick. Their solution? Conjure real monsters from the depths of Lovecraftian horror to star in their movie.
Writers Pierre Coffin and Brian Lynch return to complete their Minion hat trick with Zoey Deutch, Jeff Bridges, Christoph Waltz, Jesse Eisenberg, Allison Janney and George Lucas (yes, that George Lucas) lending their voices. “Minions & Monsters” opens at Camana Bay Cinema on 3 July.
Disney understands, perhaps more than any other production company, that if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it. This is certainly the case with the live-action remakes of their hit animated features as “Moana” returns the big screen.
When a curse threatens the people of ancient Polynesia, a young girl sets out on the ocean to find the demigod, Maui, to help reverse the affliction. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson reprises his role as Maui in what is arguably the most beloved role of his acting career. If we get a live action remake of “Moana 2” soon, we may start calling him Dwayne “Maui” Johnson. For what it’s worth, he knows his role. See Moana starting 10 July.
Christopher Nolan was finally vindicated in the eyes of his adoring fans after winning Best Director for “Oppenheimer” in 2024. But that was never going to stop Nolan from making more high drama blockbusters as this month we get his retelling of “The Odyssey”. Odysseus (Matt Damon) must suffer a long and dangerous journey back to his home in Ithica, traversing the sea and battling vicious creatures. In typical Nolan fashion, we get a stacked cast featuring Anne Hathaway, Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong’o, Zendaya and Charlize Theron as Calypso. We may not have the “Barbenheimer” meme this time around, but that hasn’t quelled any of the hype for this Nolan epic. “The Odyssey” opens on 17 July.
The mega star newlyweds of Tom Holland and Zendaya are back to reprise their roles of Peter Parker and Mary Jane in “Spider-Man: Brand New Day”. Peter Parker now lives alone and virtually forgotten about, but his life as Spider-Man is in jeopardy as he experiences a mysterious change that alters his personality and powers. He must work to find the root cause before his powerful new enemies get the better of him. This mark’s Holland’s fourth time playing the web-slinger in a mainline Spider-Man movie, now tying Tobey Maguire’s record after his role in “Spider-Man: No Way Home”. See “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” starting 31 July.
Classics at the Cinema
Director Robert Zemeckis is no stranger to critical acclaim or producing grand technical achievements. “Forrest Gump” nabbed him Oscar awards for Best Director and Best Picture over stiff competition and his venture into motion capture with films like “The Polar Express” set a new standard for animation in the 21st century. But I say with complete confidence that “Back to the Future” will forever remain his most celebrated film. It’s a unique spin on time travel with lovable characters, iconic lines, a superb score and brilliant pacing. It’s not a long film at a hair under two hours, yet it manages to completely satisfy the hero’s journey in ways that longer films just can’t do. But perhaps it’s not fair to compare any film to “Back to the Future” outside its sequels. You can decide for yourself this month as “Back to the Future” plays at Camana Bay Cinema as part of the Classics at the Cinema programming on 21 July, followed one week later with “Back to the Future II” on 28 July.
Jarett Theberge is a US-based freelance entertainment journalist.
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