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A look at the new movies I saw this week.

Audible (Netflix)
Synopsis: This new documentary tracks athletes and their families playing for a football team at a deaf school in Frederick, Maryland. The film features interviews with the athletes, families and coaches. It's only about 38 minutes, but it provides a snapshot into not only the athletic experience but the daily lives of those involved. I thought it was an interesting story and a unique perspective, though it didn't dive deep enough into the lives of the players and coaches in the story for my liking. It's OK and interesting, a well-made documentary.
Rating: Rated PG-13 for thematic material and brief strong language.
Verdict: Two stars out of four

Bill & Ted Face the Music (Hulu)
Starring: Keanu Reeves, Alex Winter, Kristin Schaal, Samara Weaving, Brigette Lundy-Paine, Erinn Hayes, and Jayma Mays
Synopsis: This third installment in the Bill & Ted franchise find an older Bill (Winter) and Ted (Reeves) not living an excellent life. They still haven't crafted the song that will unite the world, though they keep trying. This was one of the anticipated comedies last summer, now available to stream on Hulu. I was curious from a nostalgia point-of-view, but this one wasn't great. It feels like a concept that could have been left in the dust bin of history. The story is lame and it never really lands, despite the fact the film often feels like it's trying too hard. This is a big time miss. Bummer.
Rating: PG-13 for some language.
Verdict: One star out of four

The Boss Baby: Family Business (Theaters/Peacock)
Starring: Alec Baldwin, James Marsden, Amy Sedaris, and Jeff Goldblum
Synopsis: This one picks up after the events of the first film and finds brothers Tim (Marsden) and Ted (Baldwin) grown up and living separate lives. Ted is a success in business, while Tim is a family man, staying at home to raise his daughters. When his youngest Tina (Sedaris) turns out to be a boss baby with a mission for the brothers, they use some magic to grow young again and battle a nefarious school leader (Goldblum) who has plans to rule the world. This one is ponderous and doesn't land its jokes. The first film was OK, this one felt very much like a forced concept and an unnecessary follow up. It debuted in Theaters and on Peacock the same day, giving families an animated option at a discount if they so choose. If it were me, I'd skip it.
Rating: Rated PG for rude humor, mild language and some action.
Verdict: One star out of four

No Sudden Move (HBO Max)
Starring: Don Cheadle, Jon Hamm, Benicio Del Toro, Brendan Fraser, David Harbour, Matt Damon, and Amy Seimetz
Synopsis: This new drama from director Steven Soderbergh made its debut Thursday on HBO Max, where it is streaming exclusively. The film is set in 1954 in Detroit and follows a group of criminals tasked with pulling a heist. As things go sideways, they begin to realize they're being pulled into a larger plot. While the plot of the film is at times tough to follow, it ties back to true events. The major car manufacturers conspired to keep research hidden to prevent them from having to add expensive hardware that would make cars run cleaner. Eventually that word got out, but this film focuses on the successful efforts in the 1950s to keep that under wraps. Cheadle and Del Toro are the main characters here, and both do a nice job. I liked the work from Harbour and Seimetz, as well, and Damon has a fun cameo near the end. This one didn't always flow incredibly, but it was a fun premise and stylishly put together. It's well worth checking out.
Rating: Rated R for language throughout, some violence and sexual references.
Verdict: Three stars out of four

Summer of Soul (Hulu)
Synopsis: This documentary from Questlove made its debut at the Sundance Film Festival this winter and now is getting a wide release in theaters and on Hulu. It chronicles the Harlem Music Festival, which took place from June through August in Harlem during the summer of 1969. Woodstock happened that year, as did the moon landing, but for many the most important thing that happened during those warm summer months was this celebration of music and culture amid changing cultural times. The documentary uses footage that was recorded at the time but never made it to air while also including interviews with performers and those who took the festival in. It's a beautiful and loving tribute, and one of the best films I've seen this year. It should be a player in the documentary competition at the Oscars.
Rating: Rated PG-13 for some disturbing images, smoking and brief drug material.
Verdict: Three stars out of four

The Tomorrow War (Amazon Prime)
Starring: Chris Pratt, Yvonne Strahovski, Betty Gilpin, J.K. Simmons, and Sam Richardson
Synopsis: This latest action film from Amazon is a high-concept, big-budget summer blockbuster released on the streamer to help it compete with theaters and rival streamers. It features Pratt leading a great cast in a film that pits the world at war with an alien race that threatens to wipe it out. So warriors from 2051 travel back to 2022 to recruit warriors to help save the future. Dan Forester (Pratt) is a former soldier who is now a teacher that is conscripted and gets more than he bargained for. This is a stylish film that tells a fascinating story. It's perhaps a touch too long and some of the action sequences could be better. But there's a true emotional arc between Pratt and Strahovski, who plays the commander of the forces in the future that need his help. In addition, I appreciated the work of Simmons as Forester's estranged father, recruited to help with the fight, and Richardson, another scientist and civilian drawn into the fray and struggling to make the adjustment. This one isn't deep but it was sufficiently entertaining and felt like a decent summer blockbuster.
Rating: Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action, language and some suggestive references.
Verdict: Three stars out of four