“Griffin in Summer” is the filmmaking debut for writer/director Nicholas Colia, who expands on his 2017 short, “Alex and the Handyman,” which explored a tale of obsession between a boy and his older object of desire. Such concentration remains in the movie, with Colia escalating the main character’s experiences in the arts and his management of family issues, also adding in some heavy Wes Anderson influences as the endeavor often resembles bits and pieces of 1998’s “Rushmore.” “Griffin in Summer” rides into a few rocky areas of tone and language when dealing with the romantic focus of a 12-year-old boy, but Colia handles these swings of intensity reasonably well. He also has a charming lead in Everett Blunck, who does an amazing job with a tricky character, offering full commitment to the passion of the personality and the screenplay’s direct understanding of hidden desire. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

An action comedy about a talented getaway driver pulled into a criminal situation that worsens by the moment. Surely 2017’s “Baby Driver” had some influence on the screenplay for “Eenie Meanie,” and likely helped to get the project into production. Shawn Simmons (a television writer making his directorial debut) isn’t quite as flashy a filmmaker as Edgar Wright, but he finds periodic rhythm for the picture, which examines a few points of pressure on a young woman who’s endured a troubled upbringing, trying to find peace while new challenges in life and love come to disrupt everything. “Eenie Meanie” submits a formulaic descent into crime world happenings and heist planning, and dramatic consistency isn’t always there. Simmons ultimately wants something a little more sincere out of the endeavor, which isn’t easy to achieve, but the feature finds periodic clarity in the world of stunts and the understanding of broken hearts. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Author Richard Osman struck literary gold with his 2020 novel, “The Thursday Murder Club,” creating a premise and a mystery that attracted plenty of readers. He expanded his world with three sequels, and Hollywood has come calling, with Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Entertainment producing the first of likely many features based on the book series. Director Chris Columbus oversees the endeavor, working with screenwriters Katy Brand and Suzanne Heathcote to bring the material to the screen, and they have an advantage with the cast, finding Helen Mirren, Celia Imre, Pierce Brosnan, and Ben Kingsley inspired choices to portray a collection of senior citizens who get easily charged up around crime, newly tasked with solving a murder that directly involves their retirement village. “The Thursday Murder Club” is exactly as easy on the senses as one expects it to be, creating viewer-pleasing entertainment with reliable talent and enough scripted turns to keep the picture in motion. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“What We Hide” has the atmosphere of a YA novel, examining the particular battle of a teenager trying to keep her little sister close after they attempt to hide the death of their drug addict mother from outside interests. Dan Kay makes a return to feature-length filmmaking after 2001’s “Way Off Broadway,” and while he’s struggled as a screenwriter in the intervening years (including “Pay the Ghost” and the ghastly “I.T.”), he finds the right tone for his latest endeavor, which carries a welcome gentleness at times, paying attention to emotionality. “What We Hide” has its less successful ideas, but Kay finds room for characterization to develop and he’s gifted a strong performance from star Mckenna Grace, who works to find some nuance in the lead role, bringing needed depth to scenes of distress. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Writer/director Sam Hayes investigates the troubled heart of a wayward college student in “Pools,” which represents his feature-length filmmaking debut. He’s not breaking new ground with the endeavor, following the low impulse control of a young woman going through plenty of things as she seeks to cool off during an impossibly hot day without access to air conditioning, seeking relief for more than just heat-related issues. The material is something of a “Breakfast Club” riff in the way it investigates a group dynamic of characters attempting to communicate with one another, but Hayes remains a tad livelier with the offering, which utilizes snappy moviemaking and an occasionally broad sense of humor. “Pools” isn’t profound, but it sustains interest in emotional lives and strange encounters, and Hayes mostly keeps the picture moving as he looks to depict the frustration of a person who feels trapped in their own life. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Last year, Ethan Coen, half of the famous Coen Brothers, attempted to launch a solo career with “Drive-Away Dolls.” Co-scripting with his wife, Tricia Cooke, Coen hoped to create the first chapter of the couple’s “lesbian B-movie trilogy,” only to have viewers keep their distance from the effort, and for good reason. Coen didn’t leave CoenLand with the endeavor, remaining with a crime comedy that looked cheaply made, featured a few unbearable performances, and generally wiped out when it came to delivering laughs and thrills. Because they work fast and frugally, Coen and Cooke are back with “Honey Don’t,” which represents the next chapter of their vision for violence and goofiness. And, well, lesbianism. Instead of learning from the severe shortcomings of their previous picture, Cooke and Coen submit another dud in “Honey Don’t,” which supplies unpleasantness, even more unbearable performances, and a central mystery that carries no cinematic weight. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“Americana” feels like a movie that was meant to come out in 1996. The picture (which was shot three years ago) seems like one of the many edgy indies that arrived after the unexpected success of 1994’s “Pulp Fiction,” with writer/director Tony Tost (making his helming debut) charging up his creative batteries on Quentin Tarantino energy, submitting his own take on criminal and relationship activity involving an assortment of characters. He even plays with time in the feature, which tries to deliver crime world thrills in the open world of South Dakota. “Americana” has some accomplished performances and early scenes of tension, but Tost can’t keep the endeavor upright as it moves into a meandering second half. There’s violence and a treasure multiple people are hunting for, but Tost allows the offering to slowly fall asleep instead of building to a thrilling finale. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The world is a pretty bleak place right now, and “Night Always Comes” offers a reminder of the hopelessness that permeates everything in this life. It’s an adaptation of a 2021 novel by Willy Vlautin, who explores the financial ruin of a thirtysomething woman as she spends an entire day trying to make one simple deal to own a home a possibility. There’s a lot on the mind of the material, and screenwriter Sarah Conradt is challenged to make it all make sense for director Benjamin Caron (“Sharper”), who’s also tasked with creating an approachable endeavor despite every moment of the feature being soaked in depression. “Night Always Comes” is almost two movies in a way, opening as a study of desperation before turning into a crime picture, and the mix of moods doesn’t always work. However, potent scenes remain in the offering, which successfully captures the way of life these days for the haves and have-nots. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Released in 2021, “Nobody” was put into theaters by Universal Pictures without any real clue if anyone would show up to see it. The pandemic world wasn’t kind to movie theaters as streaming began to take hold, and star Bob Odenkirk wasn’t exactly a star, primarily known for his comedy pursuits, not his mastery of action cinema. While hardly a major hit, “Nobody” found an audience ready for its very “John Wick”-ian ways, turning a profit during a time when such an achievement wasn’t easy. A four year wait for a sequel isn’t the optimum play for a feature like this, but now there’s a “Nobody 2,” with Odenkirk returning to destroy more bad guys, this time for director Timo Tjahjanto (“The Night Comes for Us”). Screenwriters Derek Kolstad and Aaron Rabin don’t come armed with a particularly inventive idea for “Nobody 2,” but they offer simple, violent entertainment, creating more of a group effort for the sequel to take some of the pressure off Odenkirk, who remains an oddball action figure. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“Highest 2 Lowest” isn’t meant to be an original film from director Spike Lee. It’s a remake of a beloved 1963 Akira Kurosawa picture and an adaptation of a 1959 novel. It’s familiar work for those who’ve enjoyed the story before, but Lee is utterly determined to make his own way with the tale, joined by screenwriter Alan Fox. The effort maintains Lee’s DNA throughout, finding the helmer making one of the best features of his career with this examination of a kidnapping and response involving a record label executive already facing all kinds of difficulties on the job. Lee reunites with actor Denzel Washington for their fifth creative collaboration, and the men submit a consistently surprising and dramatically exciting endeavor that finds the helmer firing on all cylinders once again, finding his way through family ties and business trials in unique ways, reconnecting with his artistic soul. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Screenwriter Justic Piasecki makes his feature-length debut with “Relay,” and he offers a very interesting idea about a relationship the develops between two people involved in a whistleblower event gone horribly wrong. It’s a fascinating story that blends procedural action with deep characterization, at times recalling some of the better paranoia thrillers of the 1970s. Director David Mackenzie (who hit a career high with 2016’s “Hell or High Water,” only to come back down to Earth in 2018’s mediocre “Outlaw King”) is tasked with maintaining steady pressure on the audience, creating unusual tension from scenes of communication and surveillance. For the first two acts, “Relay” is excellent, hitting a few logic gaps while generating an impressive amount of suspense, promising a great conclusion to come. A satisfying ending doesn’t arrive, but Mackenzie and Piasecki get most of the way there, handling the nail-biting needs of the tale and its unique study of planning and pursuit. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Writer/director Kate Beecroft makes a kind of docudrama with “East of Wall.” After spending time with horse wrangler Tabatha Zimiga and her family in South Dakota, she wanted to do something with their special energy, creating a loose story of grief and connection for a mix of professional and amateur actors. It’s not an experimental picture, but something that aims to be sincere, soaking in the atmosphere of the household and the locations as multiple personalities are examined. Beecroft has passion for the subjects and a love for ranch life, also offering an unusual dramatic focal point in Tabatha, who’s challenged to replicate her daily experiences and realize the script’s dramatic inventions. “East of Wall” is a modest offering, and doesn’t always provide a commanding viewing experience, but Beecroft’s attention to the family and their relationships maintains raw power at times, finding her ways into the aches and pains of these people and their remote Midwestern existence. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com