The Monthly Movie Report – July 2026

July 31, 2026

In September of 2020, I went to a small theater near me to see Christopher Nolan’s Tenet in the only place I could watch it on the big screen.  You might recall that 2020 was kind of a strange year and it was the first time in six months that I was walking into a movie theater.  The large theater that I usually go to see big releases was still closed, but this small one was open and I was thrilled that I was back in the place that I love – a movie theater.  I remember the lobby smelling like a strong cleaning disinfectant (remember those fun days?) and everyone (including me) was wearing a mask.  Movie theaters were just starting to open up again and there was talk about not sitting right next to a stranger when choosing your seat.  I didn’t have that problem for my screening of Tenet, as I was the only one in the theater.  Strange days, indeed.

I was thinking about that day recently, in light of the incredible energy we are seeing for Nolan’s newest film, The Odyssey.  Screenings at theaters around the country are sold out.  Not just the big theaters in New York and Los Angeles.  I looked at the seating chart for a Saturday 8:00 AM screening at my local IMAX theater last weekend and there were only a handful of seats available.  That was at 8:00 in the morning!  People are excited to see a master filmmaker bring the talents of his cast and crew to the big screen and they want to see it as soon as possible.  The premier format (70MM IMAX) screenings are sold out for the next several weeks, including around the clock showings.  That’s not to say you can’t get a ticket – plenty of theaters are showing The Odyssey several times throughout the day, and it will likely be in theaters for a few more months. 

My son and I made the 85-mile drive to the Coolidge Corner Theater in Brookline, MA for our screening of The Odyssey during its opening weekend.  Why?  Well, the Coolidge is a beautiful theater that was screening the film in 70MM.  Last December, we saw Quentin Tarantino’s epic Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair in the same format at the Coolidge.  That trip was worth it, so we decided to make the same trek for Nolan’s latest.  To see this masterpiece on an enormous screen from an actual film projector was a really cool experience.  And yes, our screening in the biggest room at the Coolidge was sold out on a Sunday afternoon, as we were privileged to enjoy the film with over 400 other movie fanatics.  We’re already planning a second viewing at our local IMAX theater next week.  I’ll get to my review shortly, but you can probably guess that I loved it.

The Odyssey is another example of the excitement that movies have brought back to our culture the last few years since the pandemic pushed the theatrical industry to the brink.  The tide started to turn with Spider-Man: No Way Home in late 2021, then continued with Top Gun: Maverick, Avatar: The Way of Water, Barbie, Oppenheimer, Wicked, Sinners, Weapons, and so many more strong showings at the theaters.  This year alone, we’ve seen movies like Obsession and Backrooms defy gravity at the box-office.  I am even seeing this when I go to my local Cinemark theater during off-peak hours (weekday matinees).  A few weeks ago, I saw Disclosure Day for a second time (I just had to see it on the big screen again) and the theater was packed!  On a Monday afternoon, almost four weeks after the film was released! 

As a movie fan, nothing warms my heart more than seeing the excitement about new releases online or receiving a text or email from a family member or friend who wants to share their thoughts on what they just saw.  Earlier this month we went on a large family vacation and I had several conversations about movies, and there is genuine excitement about what has come out this year, and more new releases on the way. 

We’ll get to my thoughts on The Odyssey shortly, but we need to start with another one of my favorites from this past month.

A Terrific Cringe Comedy – The Invite

Olivia Wilde is back behind the camera for The Invite, her first directorial effort since 2022’s Don’t Worry Darling, a film that I think was unfairly maligned at the time.  It’s no masterpiece, but I was entertained and the publicity circus around its release clouded the movie’s positive attributes.  But that’s just one person’s opinion.  There are no such issues with Wilde’s latest film, in which she also co-stars with Seth Rogen, Penélope Cruz, and Edward Norton. 

The Invite takes place almost entirely in the apartment of Joe (Rogen) and Angela (Wilde), whose marriage is on the rocks.  They can’t seem to agree on anything, carry deep resentment towards each other, and you often wonder throughout the movie if they even love each other anymore.  Angela has invited their upstairs neighbors Hawk (Norton) and Piña (Cruz) down to their place for a friendly dinner party.  They have casually talked in the hallways of their apartment building, but don’t really know them.  Joe is not happy about the party, because he thinks he will have nothing in common with them.  Oh yeah, he’s pissed at them for making so much noise while they have sex.  As the couples get to know each other, a big fact is revealed.  Hawk and Piña are polyamorous and host sex parties in their apartment with other couples.  As the uncomfortable conversation continues, Hawk and Piña invite Joe and Angela to join them.  Then things get really awkward. 

The Invite is one of the funnier movies I’ve seen in a long time, and it helps if you can find the humor in uncomfortable situations.  The film is also an insightful story about middle-aged couples reckoning with their marriages and their choices in life.  There are some truly emotional moments as each couple confronts the issues in their relationships.  Everyone goes through this dynamic in their 40s and 50s and to see it portrayed on screen will likely resonate with most viewers.  And to be clear, I’m talking about the relationship part of the movie, not the sex parties plotline.  Just so we’re clear.

Rogen and Wilde are perfect in their roles, portraying Joe and Angela with a nervous, frenetic energy, trying to process what they’ve learned from their neighbors.  Norton and Cruz are also terrific, especially as their characters’ idealistic lifestyle starts to show its cracks as the movie progresses.  It’s worth pointing out that a film like this (four actors in one location) only works if you have a talented director like Wilde, who knows how to move the camera and capture the emotion and humor of a story like this.  It also helps if you have a top-notch script (written by Will McCormack and Rashida Jones and based on a 2020 Spanish film) that will likely be nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay at the Oscars.  If you lament that studios don’t make comedies for adults anymore, put this film at the top of your list.  The Invite is now playing in theaters.

Avoid at All Costs – Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass

Now, normally I don’t like to spend time on movies I despise.  Sure, I will write about big titles that disappointed me (The Mandalorian and Grogu comes to mind), but should I waste time on a smaller movie that was terrible?  Usually I would say no, but earlier this year I mentioned a Sundance film in my 2026 preview that I managed to see this month, and I’m here to tell you that if you see Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass show up as an option to rent or watch on your streaming service, do not click on it. 

This film has a cute premise.  A wholesome woman (played by Zoey Deutch) finds out that her fiancé used their celebrity sex pass to hook up with Jennifer Aniston.  Her co-worker at the hair salon convinces her to join him on a trip to Los Angeles and find her celebrity sex pass – Jon Hamm – to even the score.  Seems like a fun idea, right?  Especially with Hamm and his Mad Men co-star John Slattery among the cast.  Nope.  This movie was downright awful.  Lazy attempts at humor, a tonal mess with everyone barely trying, and let down by a terrible script.  This is easily my biggest disappointment of 2026.  Normally at the end of each review, I share where you can find the movie to watch.  This one is so bad, I’m not even going to do that.  Let’s move on to a better option that you can watch at home.

Try This Instead – The Dink

If you are looking for a cute, charming comedy that will actually make you laugh, but doesn’t take itself too seriously, I recommend trying The Dink.  I didn’t have this movie on my watchlist this year, and even when I heard about the talented cast, my antenna went up because this film was released directly to Apple TV+.  Usually a “straight-to-streaming” release is a warning sign, but after reading a few decent reviews, I decided to watch this one with my wife last week and we were glad we did.

Jake Johnson stars as Dusty, a washed up former tennis prodigy who teaches at his father’s tennis club.  Things have been stressful for his dad Chuck (Ed Harris) because of the new fad encroaching on his beloved tennis courts – pickleball.  The tennis purists hate the sport, mock the players, and want no part of their desire to get some improvements to their court.  When Dusty injures his wrist, he takes up the sport as a way to keep his tennis skills fresh, and finds a liking in his fellow pickleball players, particularly Candace, played by the legendary Mary Steenburgen.

Now, set your expectations accordingly, because this is not “great cinema”, but you could do a lot worse than The Dink for a streaming movie.  And to be honest, if Johnson wasn’t the lead actor, I don’t know that I would have even given it a shot.  I find him hysterical, particularly his role as Nick on the sitcom New Girl from 2011 – 2018.  He just has that lovable loser energy that always works for me, and that is certainly the case with The Dink.  Steenburgen is her usual charming self, Harris plays the tough guy Dad perfectly, there are some great pickleball player characters, and we even get a few funny cameos from John McEnroe doing commentary of the climactic match, and tennis legend Andy Roddick as Dusty’s big rival.  If you are looking for some wholesome fun, The Dink is now streaming on Apple TV+.

Stick to What Works – Spider-Man: Brand New Day

Death, taxes, and a Spider-Man movie dominating at the box-office.  Yup, those are three of the few guarantees in life.  The only film that can stop The Odyssey at the box-office is the fourth installment with Tom Holland starring as your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.  Spider-Man: Brand New Day is in theaters this weekend and is projected to have a massive opening frame, maybe the biggest one ever, and leading to a likely spot in the top five grossing movies of the year.  I managed to see it yesterday and I’m happy to report that it’s a fun superhero movie that seems to buck the recent trend of subpar films in that genre.

Holland is once again perfect as Peter Parker and Spider-Man, in a story that picks up after the end of 2021’s No Way Home.  At the conclusion of that film, Peter made the sacrifice of allowing a spell to be cast that would save the world, but would also make everyone forget who he was.  That meant losing the love of his life, MJ (Zendaya) and his best friend, Ned (Jacob Batalon).  As Brand New Day opens, we see Peter as a lonely young man, still capturing criminals and keeping New York safe.  But he desperately misses MJ and Ned, who have gone off to MIT.  When they return to New York City after graduation, he reconnects with them, but since they don’t remember him, the relationships are gone.

So, on the one hand, Brand New Day has an emotional arc as we feel the pain Peter is experiencing from his lost relationships.  He is also mourning the loss of his Aunt May, who died in an earlier film.  Marissa Tomei is back for a few flashback sequences.  But let’s not get too sentimental – this is a Spider-Man movie, after all.  Our hero is also facing a new villain, who has the ability to telepathically hop from one person to another, take over their consciousness while doing so, and advance their mission, which we eventually learn about.  That individual is not revealed until the second half of the movie and we learn that it is Jean Gray, portrayed by Sadie Sink (Stranger Things).  The details of her mission become clear as the story unfolds, but I won’t spoil them here.

I had a terrific time during my screening of this movie yesterday, mostly because it is a great combination of fun action sequences, comic book lore (some of which I followed, some of which went over my head) and some true emotional moments between Peter and MJ.  It helps that Holland and Zendaya have been a couple for a decade and were recently married.  So, yeah, they have great chemistry.  The back and forth throughout the movie of “Will they remember Peter?” makes for a good counterbalance to the action sequences.  A few scenes, in particular, had me truly admiring the acting of Holland and Zendaya, portraying what felt like real people, not just comic book characters.

Speaking of which, overall I found them pretty entertaining, even if the CGI is a little too much at times.  And the movie does try to cram a lot of plot and side characters into the story (you can feel that 2 hours and 25 minutes run time), which I’m sure is important to help set up future films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.  So, you also get some nice supporting performances from Bruce Banner / The Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Yelena Bulova / Black Widow (Florence Pugh) and Frank Castle / The Punisher (John Bernthal).  By the time we get to the climactic sequence where Spider-Man needs to save the day, I did feel like I was ready for it to end.  But that being said, it’s a helluva fun time at the movies.  If you like Spider-Man, I highly recommend heading out to buy your ticket to enjoy the show.  Spider-Man: Brand New Day is now playing in theaters.

Believe the Hype – The Odyssey

We are simply running out of superlatives to describe the films of Christopher Nolan.  I covered his career three years ago, shortly after the release of Oppenheimer, where I noted that he has not really made a bad movie.  Sure, you could argue that his debut film (Following) is slight, but it’s still a well-crafted story for a first-time director.  Yes, The Dark Knight Rises suffers in comparison to the masterpiece that preceded it in Nolan’s Batman trilogy, but it’s still pretty good.  And no, I will not tolerate any slander about Tenet – that movie rocks, even if I don’t fully understand it. 

Now, after conquering the 2023 Oscars where Oppenheimer took home seven awards, including Best Picture and Best Director, Nolan may have outdone himself with The Odyssey.  As I drove home from my viewing earlier this month, I was counting up the likely Oscar nominations in my head.  I got to twelve, before considering any acting nods, for which there will definitely be a handful.  In other words, don’t be surprised if we have a repeat of 2023 at the Oscars early next year, where Nolan is once again the king of Hollywood.  If the preceding paragraph didn’t give you a sense of how I feel about The Odyssey, let me be clear – this film is a masterpiece. 

Even if it has been a long time since you read one of the many interpretations of Homer’s epic poem from almost 3,000 years ago, you likely know the basic plot line.  Odysseus (Matt Damon) has been away from his kingdom in Ithaca for several years following the Trojan War and desperately wants to get back to his family.  Along the way, he encounters numerous obstacles and phenomena that jeopardize his life and those of the men in his army, eventually ending up on a beach with Calypso (Charlize Theron).  Meanwhile, his wife Penelope (Anne Hathaway) is fighting off the suitors who try to convince her that Odysseus is dead and that she should marry one of them so they can take the throne as the new king.  Her son Telemachus (Tom Holland) schemes to prevent the uprising and find out what really happened to his father.

That’s the basics.  It’s the story of one man’s journey home, with a lot of action and palatial drama.  What sets The Odyssey apart from your average film about someone trying to get home is that Nolan created an incredible spectacle that is also a throwback to the epic films from Hollywood’s golden era.  Let’s start with the cast (deep breath).  Leading the way is Matt Damon, giving easily his best performance in an already terrific career, which I covered here. You have Anne Hathaway, Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Charlize Theron, Zendaya, Lupita Nyong’o, John Bernthal, and Elliot Page, just to name a few.  There are outstanding supporting performances from veterans John Leguizamo and Samantha Morton, both of whom may score Oscar nods.  Rapper Travis Scott shows up as a bard to introduce the story.  Frequent Nolan contributor Himesh Patel is excellent as the second-in-command to Odysseus.  Simply put, the cast is magnificent.  It helps that anytime Nolan calls an actor, the answer is likely “What day would you like me on set?”

Damon is headed for his fourth Oscar nomination for acting and is definitely the leader in the clubhouse.  Sure, there are several months to go and we could see momentum for Tom Cruise in Digger (although after seeing that trailer I am officially worried) and some love for Ryan Gosling in Project Hail Mary, but Damon is the one to beat.  I was blown away by what he did with this role, and the commitment he made to portray Odysseus.  I absolutely loved Hathaway’s performance as the tortured queen, trying to remain devoted to her missing husband, but ready to unleash vengeance at the suitors whenever they get too close.  She is having a hell of a year, following Mother Mary and The Devil Wears Prada 2, with two more films coming later this year – the dinosaur action film The End of Oak Street next month and the domestic thriller Verity in October.

The leader of Penelope’s suitors is Antinous, played to slimy perfection by Pattinson, who is also having quite the year.  He was excellent in The Drama, he’ll play another villain in Dune: Part Three, he has a juicy part as Chris Hansen, the host of To Catch a Predator in Primetime, and will co-star with Denzel Washington in the Netflix action-thriller Here Comes the Flood.  Oh yeah, he’s now filming The Batman Part II.  You can take any actors in their early 40s – I’m banking on anything that Robert Pattinson and Anne Hathaway choose to star in – they make bold choices and have great taste. 

Now we simply must talk about the craft of The Odyssey.  The film was shot on location in seven countries, including Greece, Iceland and Morocco.  Practical effects were used wherever possible.  That enormous Trojan Horse for one of the most famous sequences in history?  That’s real.  The buildings, armies, battles, sequences on the ocean – all real.  There is very little CGI used by Nolan because he doesn’t want to cheat the audience.  He wants you to experience the film as if these events really happened.  The sequence where Odysseus and his men battle Polyphemus (the Cyclops) leverages old-fashioned animatronics and puppetry and looks fantastic.  You can bet that I had a huge smile on my face during that scene, which felt like a horror movie.  The same was true for the scene where Circe (Morton, who is outstanding) feeds the army a curious stew before putting a spell on them.  The scene where Odysseus and his men battle the giant Laestrygonians was created through the use of forced perspective and stunt people of dramatically different heights.  Needless to say, you will not watch one frame of this movie and say, “Wow, that looks like shit,” like we do all too frequently during big-budget blockbusters these days.

In addition to the incredible production design, the rest of the craft work – score, cinematography, sound, costume design (at this point, I’m just rattling off Oscar categories) – are all fantastic.  It shows that when Nolan has a project, he assembles his team of department heads and they set out to make the best film they’ve ever done.  If any of this nerdy “How did they make the movie?” shit interests you, then I highly recommend watching the featurette now on Peacock that shares behind-the-scenes footage, including interviews with the cast and crew.  Additionally, watch any interview that Damon is giving (and he’s doing a lot of them to promote the film).  He gives great insights into how he prepared for the role, and his admiration for Nolan and the rest of the cast and crew.  As a movie nerd, I find all of these interviews fascinating.  I have also been devouring everything I can about the film, including any review I can get my hands on (thanks to my brother-in-law Joel for sending me some) and I can’t get enough of it. 

One last comment about The Odyssey is the story structure that Nolan chose in writing the screenplay.  He based the script on the interpretation of Homer’s epic poem by Emily Wilson, an academic and classics professor.  Incidentally, she just gave an interview that was heavily critical of the film, particularly the portrayal of Odysseus.  I have read other criticisms of the movie that focus on the “accuracy” of the story compared to Homer’s original poem, and other interpretations of it.  And no, I’m not talking about the right-wing lunatics who criticized the casting decisions.  I mean people whose critiques were deep comparisons that when I finished reading them could be summed up in my simple mind as, “Guess they liked the book better.”

I was particularly interested in what Nolan wanted to say about this man’s journey and what he learned from the decisions he made during his life, particularly during the war.  Nolan chose to tell The Odyssey in a nonlinear fashion which I think was brilliant, as we get to hop back and forth in time to see how various events shape other events later in the timeline.  Seeing the sack of Troy play out near the end of the film hits different than earlier in the story, when we didn’t have Odysseus’ full perspective.  I am certain that, like most of Nolan’s films, this story choice will be rewarded on rewatch.

In fact, there are many echoes of Nolan’s movies in The Odyssey that I thought of since seeing it.  Whether it’s shifting timelines (Dunkirk, The Prestige), a man’s journey to get home (Inception, Interstellar), or reckoning with the choices he’s made (Oppenheimer), or struggling with memories of his past (Memento), these are themes that Nolan has come back to again and again.  As much as we admire Nolan’s vision as a filmmaker, it was Nolan the screenwriter who impressed me just as much with The Odyssey, even if some people are critical of the colloquial language that’s not “historically accurate.”  My advice is to lighten up and enjoy an epic movie.

It’s hard to know where to place The Odyssey in the Nolan pantheon.  I do know that it made me want to rewatch his filmography, which I will likely be doing soon.  What’s certain is that he has done something that is very rare for a director – follow up a masterpiece with a film that is equally impressive, if not better.  If The Odyssey were to win Best Picture and Best Director, Nolan would accomplish something that has not happened in over 60 years (winning both prizes for consecutive films) when David Lean directed The Bridge on the River Kwai and Lawrence of Arabia.  Ever heard of them?  That’s an apt comparison because as I was watching The Odyssey, I thought of historical epics in Hollywood history and wondered if what I was feeling was similar to what people sitting in a theater in 1962 were feeling while watching Peter O’Toole starring in one of the greatest films of all time.  I know one thing for certain – movies like The Odyssey are why I will never doubt the power of a great film on the big screen.  The Odyssey is now playing in theaters.  Do yourself a favor and see it on the big screen.

That’s all for this week.  I’ll be back next month for a look at more new releases.  Thanks for reading and if you would like to be notified about future posts, you can subscribe below.