By John Corrado

New releases for the week of October 13th, 2023.

Theatrical Releases:

Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour (Wide Release): Taylor Swift is already dominating the music industry, and now she is set to take over the box office as well with this filmed version of her ongoing Eras Tour. Seeing a record number of ticket pre-sales (rivalling that of a comic book movie), this is a phenomenon that is already set to become the highest grossing concert film of all time in its opening weekend alone (surpassing Justin Bieber: Never Say Never). And I couldn’t be more pumped. As a film critic who is also a Swiftie, this feels like one of those truly special crossover events for me (on a Friday the 13th, no less!). I’m seeing it tonight, so will report back. (Full Review)

Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person (TIFF Bell Lightbox): This French-Canadian vampire romance explores the bond that forms between a teen bloodsucker (Sara Montpetit) who can’t bring herself to end a life, and a suicidal teen (Félix-Antoine Bénard) who no longer wants to be alive. I really dug this one during TIFF. A confident and stylish (not to mention memorably titled) feature debut from Quebec filmmaker Ariane Louis-Seize, it’s a dark comedy with a beating emo heart that mixes the aesthetic influences of both Tim Burton and Wes Anderson to offer something unique and surprisingly sweet. (TIFF 2023 Review)

More Releases: Foe (TIFF Bell Lightbox), The Mission (TIFF Bell Lightbox), Silver Dollar Road (TIFF Bell Lightbox), Butterfly Tale (Limited), Dear David (Limited)

Streaming Releases:

The Burial (Prime Video): This second film from director Maggie Betts (Noviate) takes a contract law trial from the 1990s and turns it into an entertaining, old school courtroom drama. Tommy Lee Jones stars as the aging owner of a small chain of family-run funeral homes in Mississippi who is taking a corporate giant to court, and Jamie Foxx is the slick personal injury lawyer that he enlists to represent him. I had caught this one during TIFF in the middle of an exhausting four film day, so just watched it again last night, and I think it played even better for me on a second viewing. It’s built around a pair of strong performances from its veteran stars, with Foxx doing compelling work. (Full Review)

More Releases: Mr. Dressup: The Magic of Make-Believe (Prime Video), Lessons in Chemistry (Apple TV+), Messi Meets America (Apple TV+), Goosebumps: Season 1 (Disney+)