The second weekend in August brought a packed slate of new films, including some big theatrical releases. Below, I give my thoughts on this week’s new movies. If you want to keep up with everything I’m watching, follow me on Letterboxd @knighthawk7734.

Borderlands (Theaters)
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis, Edgar Ramirez, Ariana Greenblatt, Florian Munteanu, and Jack Black
Synopsis: This film from Eli Roth—who co-wrote the script with Joe Abercrombie—is based on a video game. It’s set in a world where everyone is searching for a hidden vault with alien technology that promises to provide new, unstoppable weapons. We follow a bounty hunter, Lilith (Blanchett), who is hired by a wealthy tech mogul Atlas (Ramirez) to find his kidnapped daughter (Greenblatt). When she arrives on Pandora, she finds that said daughter Tina isn’t kidnapped, isn’t truly his daughter, and might be the key to finding the treasure. Lilith teams with the rest of Tina’s allies (Hart, Munteanu, and Curtis) to try and save the world. This is a brightly colored and action-packed adventure. There’s some humor and some interesting set pieces. As someone not familiar with the game, it felt odd getting dropped into a strange world that feels only partially formed. I like the cast, and Blanchett is always good, but this movie feels disjointed. There were reportedly some big cuts made in the final edition, which might make a difference to how this feels. I had hopes for a fun ride, and there is some mindless fun in this film. But it’s also awkward, sometimes dull, and meanders. It feels like something meant to build a franchise but it’s not good enough to sustain interest in this story, let alone a future franchise.
Rating: Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, language and some suggestive material.

Cuckoo (Theaters)
Starring: Hunter Schafer, Dan Stevens, Jessica Henwick, Mila Lieu, and Marton Csokas
Synopsis: It’s been a big year for horror movies with a number of unique and entertaining releases. Into that comes Cuckoo, a new horror film from Neon. This one is set in the Bavarian Alps in Germany where 17-year-old Gretchen (Schafer) is forced to move with her father (Csokas) and his new wife (Henwick) and daughter (Lieu). Ostensibly they are there to build a new resort property for Herr Konig (Stevens). But this is a strange place. Gretchen is in the midst of grief, having lost her mother and then her home. But she takes a job at Konig’s original resort only to discover things in her new home aren’t what they seem. I liked the set up and potential here. There’s a creepy mood to the setting, while Stevens plays his part well. Schafer does a nice job in the lead role, too, serving as the entry point to this world. There are also some richly emotional moments as Gretchen tries to move on from her loss and learns to accept and bond with her new sister. There are some Third Act moments between Schafer and Lieu that I liked very much. But this is a film that doesn’t all come together. I won’t spoil the surprises here but suffice to say it’s a clever idea that doesn’t feel fully fleshed out. That creates some up-and-down moments and creates some overall narrative drag. This isn’t a misfire, but it fails to be what it could have been. It’s unique and shows promise for young writer/director Tilman Singer, but this doesn’t quite come together.
Rating: Rated R for violence, bloody images, language and brief teen drug use.

Matthew Fox is a graduate of the Radio, Television and Film program at Biola University, and a giant nerd. He spends his free time watching movies, TV, and obsessing about football. He is a member of the FSWA. You can find him @knighthawk7734 on Twitter and as co-host of the Fantasy Football Roundtable Podcast.