Movies to watch this week: Booksmart, Ma, Godzilla and more
Our weekly guide to what films to watch in the cinema and on streaming services, freeview and Blu-ray...
Hello, and welcome to our new weekly pick of movies that you can feast your eyes upon over the next week – both in the cinema and at home (via freeview channels, streaming and Blu-ray/digital downloads).
With so much movie goodness available across so many platforms – not to mention all the new TV shows on offer – it can be tough planning your viewing schedule. But worry not: below, you’ll find a variety of the latest big screen and home entertainment releases, as well as some TV picks to get you up speed ahead of this summer’s big franchise entries.
So, here’s our round-up of the best movies available to watch between Friday 31 May and Thursday 6 June. And don’t forget to pop back next week for more recommendations.
At the cinema
Godzilla: King Of The Monsters
Out now
Godzilla is back, and this time he’s saving humanity (despite a lot of collateral damage) by taking on two terrifying new titans – three-headed dragon thing King Ghidorah and volcanic big bird Rodan. Luckily, he’s got help from an old pal – queen of the monsters herself, the luminous Mothra. Michael Dougherty’s love letter to the Toho universe is a big, silly spectacle.
Booksmart
Out now
Olivia Wilde (Tron: Legacy, Rush) goes behind the camera for her directorial debut: a heartwarming coming-of-age-comedy. Amy (Kaitlyn Dever) and Molly (Beanie Feldstein) are two high-school girls who’ve stayed in and swotted up all year to ensure they get into good colleges, only to find that many of their party-hard peers have been just as successful. Determined to have at least one amazing night before they graduate, they head to the hottest party in town… With Booksmart already gaining great word-of-mouth, we wouldn’t be surprised if it’s already on a lot of people’s top films of the year lists.
Ma
Out now
Don’t go into Octavia Spencer’s basement is the key takeaway from the latest chiller to come from horror hit-maker Blumhouse. In it, she plays a lonely woman who allows a bunch of kids to party at her place, as long as they obey her rules. Spoiler alert: they don’t. Juliette Lewis co-stars.
On streaming
Spider-Man: Homecoming
Netflix, from 3 June
With Spider-Man: Far From Home just over a month away, now’s a good a time as any to catch up with its predecessor. The 16th film in the gargantuan Marvel Cinematic Universe, Homecoming was the first solo MCU movie for Tom Holland’s webslinger (after his introduction in Captain America: Civil War), but it’s arguably Michael Keaton’s villain, the Vulture, who steals the show.
Searching
Sky Cinema/Now TV, from 31 May
Star Trek star John Cho takes centre stage in an innovative thriller that plays out through computer and smartphone screens (think that episode of Modern Family, but scarier). Cho plays a desperate dad who’s investigating the whereabouts of his missing daughter online, unravelling a dark and twisty tale.
On the telly
Kingsman: The Secret Service
Channel 4, Sat 1 June, 9pm
Matthew Vaughn propelled Rocketman star Taron Egerton into the spotlight with this bonkers, Bond-riffing spy comedy. Egerton plays Eggsy, a troubled youngster who’s inducted into the secret service of the title by kick-ass gentleman agent, Harry Hart (Colin Firth). The infamous church scene is still a humdinger, with Vaughn especially really proving his action credentials, while Sofia Boutella nails her breakout role as sword-legged assassin Gazelle.
Godzilla
ITV2, Sat 1 June, 8pm
A year before they were to become brother and sister in Avengers: Age Of Ultron, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Elizabeth Olsen played husband and wife in Gareth Edwards’ Godzilla, shoring up the human contingent in the titular big guy’s first Monsterverse outing. Neither have returned for King Of The Monsters (see above), but co-stars Sally Hawkins, Ken Watanabe and David Strathairn are all back for this year’s follow-up.
X-Men 2
Film4, Sun 2 June, 6:25pm
Before X-Men: Dark Phoenix – the final entry in the current X-Men series – hits cinemas next week, Film 4 is showing most of the X-movies over the coming week in preparation for the last hurrah. Best of the bunch is still 2003’s X-Men 2, a sequel stuffed with brains and brawn. Nightcrawler’s (Alan Cumming) White House break-in is just as spectacular now as it was back then, and the film as a whole still stands as one of the finest comic-book movies released to date.
On Blu-ray and digital download
Stan & Ollie
Out 3 June
Many felt Steve Coogan and John C. Reilly deserved more recognition during this year’s awards season for their performances as Laurel and Hardy in Jon S. Baird’s heartwarming dramedy. The two stars imbue the legendary comedy double-act with humour and pathos, with their chemistry lifting this above a bog-standard biopic.
Read our review
The LEGO Movie 2
Out 3 June
If you missed the second trip to Bricksburg during its big-screen run, you can now catch up with the adventures of Emmet (Chris Pratt) and co from the comfort of your own living room. This out-there sequel might not quite match the first movie, but it’s still a lot of fun. A word of caution: the film’s theme song, aptly titled ‘Catchy Song’, will get lodged in your brain no matter how hard you try to resist it. You have been warned.
The Mule
Out 3 June
Clint Eastwood directs and stars in this based-on-a-true-life-tale of a Korean War vet turned drug smuggler, who eventually falls on the wrong side of both a Mexican cartel and Bradley Cooper and Michael Peña’s DEA agents. As always, Clint keeps things classy both behind and in front of the camera.