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 There weren’t any major wide releases this weekend in July, but there were a few interesting films. Below is a look at the new movies I saw this week. You can keep up with everything I’m watching by following me on Letterboxd @knighthawk7734.

The Dink (Apple TV)
Starring: Jake Johnson, Mary Steenburgen, and Ed Harris
Synopsis: We all have dreams and sometimes, they don’t work out. When that happens, it can haunt us for the rest of our lives. But what happens if you remain stuck in what might have been? Well, that’s the struggle for Dustin Boyd (Johnson) in The Dink. Dustin, once dubbed The Hammer, was a great tennis prospect. He rose quickly through the junior ranks with the tutelage of his father, Chuck (Harris). He finally turned pro and seemed poised to set the tennis world on fire. But his first matchup with a young Andy Roddick pushed him in another direction. Now, decades later, he’s a tennis pro at his father’s club. He has a best friend, PJ (Aaron Chen), is more of a devoted fanboy. And Dustin teaches classes, but more frequently spends his days spinning yarns about his glory days and what might have been. When an old injury and his father’s lack of confidence pushes him to the edge, Dustin needs to find a way back. A doctor (Ben Stiller) offers a bit of creative advice—that Dustin try his hand a pickleball. At first dismissive, Dustin finds a passion for the game—and for a renewed purpose in life—thanks to his new pickleball partner, Candace (Steenburgen). Their unlikely friendship turns out to be the push they both need to move forward in life. This is a wild comedy that goes in some surprising directions. Johnson is a gifted comedian with a certain style. It is the ideal style for this type of project and this type of role. He is great as Dustin and really sucks you into the story. I also enjoyed his back-and-forth with Steenburgen. Their odd couple relationship is one of the most fun aspects of the film. The other fun relationship with Dustin and his father, with Harris providing some funny moments. But it’s a good cast all around that helps bring the story to life. This is a nice little streaming comedy that has a good pace and a solid story. I like what director Josh Greenbaum does with the story. The sequences on the court, particularly the final sequence with Johnson’s Dustin facing Roddick on the pickleball court is fun and full of tension. If you’re looking for a good time and a comedy with heart and charm, The Dink has it.
Rating: Rated PG-13 for strong language, and sexual material.
Verdict: Three and a half stars out of five

Motor City (Theaters)
Starring: Alan Ritchison, Ben Foster, and Shailene Woodley
Synopsis: Once upon a time, we had films that told complete and compelling stories without a spoken word. The silent film era created some of our most memorable stars, allowing these performers to tell the breadth of their story without their words. With the new action film Motor City, it’s clear the filmmakers are hoping to build on that style of the past. Motor City isn’t completely dialogue free, but it’s mostly free of the characters speaking in their own words. That isn’t to say it’s silent. The film has a rich and robust sound design and sound mix. And it relies heavily on a soundtrack of the time to help emphasize the feelings of what we’re being shown. The film is set in the 1970s in Detroit. We follow John Miller (Ritchison) as he meets Sophia (Woodley), and they fall in love. But she was connected to another man, Reynolds (Foster), whom John takes down and embarrasses in wooing Sophia. But he and Sophia fall in love. We see their love story play out to the point where he’s ready to propose. But as he does, his world comes undone. He’s the subject of a police raid, where they discover drugs in his car; a car that was previously stolen. He’s being framed, but it’s enough to torpedo his relationship with Sophia and land him in prison. It’s all thanks to Reynolds, who among other things has the police on the payroll. After letting John know he’s behind his misfortune, and further that he’s won Sophia back, John is left to rot in prison. But when he learns Reynolds is, again, abusing Sophia, he hatches a plan to gain his freedom and get his revenge. This is a fascinating concept for telling a story that has a somewhat standard plot. This is completely about the visuals, with the actors doing a lot of heavy lifting in telling the story with facial expressions, actions, and precious little in the way of dialogue. In fact, I’m not sure we hear John utter a single line until the closing of the film. That’s a novel achievement, and one that actually works in a somewhat compelling way. Ritchison, Foster, Woodley, Ben McKenzie, Pablo Schreiber, Lionel Boyce, and Amar Chadha-Patel serve as the primary cast. All of them do a great job of being able to tell this story in a unique manner. It lends itself to some rich performances that bring you into the story and hold your attention. I liked the style here. There is a great use of slow motion and visual storytelling, mixed with some strong scores, a great sound design, and a kicking soundtrack. That’s a credit to the whole team, but specifically director Potsy Ponciroli. He’s delivered some interesting films before, like Old Henry and Greedy People, but nothing quite as visually dynamic as this. It takes a bit to get used to being free of dialogue, but once you slip into the story it’s fascinating to follow the choices made and get drawn into a different kind of storytelling. There are a lot of cliches in the story, but it still works. It’s quite violent at times, particularly in a wild third act. I didn’t totally love the ending, but it works well enough. This is an interesting approach to the material, and a fascinating movie-going experience to round out July.
Rating: Rated R for strong bloody violence, some grisly images, drug content, sexuality/nudity and language.
Verdict: Three stars out of five

Reading Lolita in Tehran (Limited)
Starring: Golshifteh Farahani
Synopsis: We live in a free society, but others aren’t as lucky. The basic freedom of thought and exploration of ideas is something that many can’t take advantage of. That’s the premise of the new film Reading Lolita in Tehran, based on the memoir from Azar Nafisi. Nafisi was a professor who, along with her husband, chose to return to her home in Iran in 1979. It was with the promise of potential change, but that change proved hard to come by. As the country around her became more difficult and oppressive, she found a way to connect with similarly minded young women who needed some hope. The film focuses on Nafisi (Farahani) and her life in Tehran over the period of more than 20 years. She starts out with ambition, teaching English and classic works of literature at the university. But as a more conservative and repressive regime takes over, that opportunity dries up. No longer able to do her work and follow her passion in the open, she gets creative. After years of struggle, she starts a group in her home where like-minded women can gather, learn English, and study classic literature. It’s a place where knowledge and ideas flow, and where the bond between these women can continue to grow. But it’s not without its challenges. This film is based on Nafisi’s memoir, which tells her story of life over the period from 1979 through the early 2000s. It’s a large swath of history and it tries to take time, focusing on a few different intervals, to paint a picture of life for women in Iran. It’s not always happy and it’s rarely freeing. There are some good performances in the film, particularly from Farahani in the lead role. Director Eran Riklis does a nice job of creating some emotional moments. There are times, particularly in the scenes with Nafisi and her women’s group, that the story is particularly compelling. The issue here is this is a dense and important story that takes place over a long period of time. But the film doesn’t go deep enough in bringing it all to life. The intervals feel too short, and don’t allow enough time to fully invest in the others that are brought into Nafisi’s sphere, or to understand the depth of what’s happening in the struggle. I wanted more and I think this might have been better if it was longer or more focused on one specific interval. Still, this is an important story and one that feels timely. Reading Lolita in Tehran is now playing in limited release.
Rating: NA
Verdict: Three stars out of five