By John Corrado

New releases for the week of August 25th, 2023.

Theatrical Releases:

Dreamin’ Wild (Limited Release): This new music drama from writer-director Bill Pohlad tells the true story of brothers Donnie (Casey Affleck) and Joe Emerson (Walton Goggins), who are thrust into the limelight when the album they recorded as teenagers gets reissued. Like in his Brian Wilson biopic Love & Mercy, Pohlad tells this story through flashbacks that draw parallels between past and present, with the brothers played as teens by Noah Jupe and Jack Dylan Grazer. The result is a touching music biopic that resonates thanks to its rich performances, with Affleck matched by a soulful turn from Beau Bridges as the father, and the quietly impactful work of Goggins. (Full Review)

Gran Turismo: Based on a True Story (Wide Release): This latest from South African director Neill Blomkamp (District 9) is based on the racing video game of the same name, and is inspired by the true story of Jann Mardenborough (Archie Madekwe), a young gamer who becomes a professional race car driver with the help of a washed up former driver (David Harbour). From the trailers, Blomkamp’s film looks like a pretty typical underdog sports movie. I haven’t seen it yet, but reviews are generally decent, and the racing scenes look fun, at least.

Iron Butterflies (Limited Release): Ukrainian filmmaker Roman Liubiy’s new documentary Iron Butterflies sets itself up as an investigation into the downing of Malaysian airlines flight MH17 over eastern Ukraine, which was accidentally shot down by a Russian anti-aircraft missile in 2014. I actually reviewed this one virtually during Sundance (it also played at Hot Docs), and Liubiy’s film unfolds as a somewhat experimental video essay culled together from a variety of sources. But if you are looking for more of an art project than a standard investigative documentary, you’ll probably find something of value here. (Sundance 2023 Review)

More Releases: Golda (Limited), Scrapper (TIFF Bell Lightbox)

Streaming Releases:

You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah (Netflix), Vacation Friends 2 (Disney+), Beautiful Disaster (Prime Video)