Upcoming new animated sci-fi thriller: Max Beyond

Max Beyond will be available for digital download starting April 23, 2024. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

In today’s movie news, I have some exciting news about a new action thriller that will be available as a digital download in the US next month. It’s an animated sci-fi movie called Max Beyond. Gamers should take notice of this movie because there will be a spin off video game coming next year and this movie serves as an introduction to the backstory and characters to the game that is currently in production. (HaZimation, 2024)

The Max Beyond game immerses the players into the same world, action and obstacles as seen in the movie, but taking a fresh approach of this being a co-op based game, where both characters have to help each other to restore reality and escape the facility known as Axion, with the engaging game mechanics and alternative timelines.

HaZimation is excited to share that their animated action-thriller Max Beyond will be available on US Digital Platforms from April 23, 2024.

Max Beyond tells the story of Max, a young boy held captive in a research facility. Using his ability to create rifts in the fabric of spacetime across parallel universes, he searches for the reality in which his brother Leon, a former-marine, manages to rescue him. With attempt after attempt ending in Leon’s death, the strain starts to take its toll on both brothers. When Max discovers his captors are using his power against him, he realizes he must stop focusing on how the story ends and rewrite the story from the beginning.

The cast includes BAFTA-award winning actor Jane Perry, Dave Fennoy, and Cade Tropeano. Motion capture performances from Ace Ruele and Alex Kong.

Max Beyond is directed, co-written and co-produced by Hasraf ‘HaZ’ Dulull, co-written by Stavros Pamballis, and co-produced by Paula Crickard.

“What if you had the ability to reset dimensions to find the right moment that will save your brother, but the more you do it, the weaker you get? Strap in for Max Beyond, a tour de force rollercoaster ride of big & intense action, with edge of the seat thrills and emotionally charged characters as the story pulls the audiences into the mind-bending multi-universe.” – Writer/director Hasraf ‘HaZ’ Dulull

The film’s executive producers are Yariv Lerner, Amy Gardner, and Jason Potter. The music score is by Miroshot, a band known for their experiential music featured in SXSW 2022.

Run Time: 92 Minutes

Max Beyond utilizes the latest ground-breaking Realtime animation technology called Unreal Engine, the same engine tech used to power video games like Fortnite. Using this approach has also enabled HaZimation to take a Transmedia view to expand the story and universe of Max Beyond into a video game (Consoles + PC).

Upcoming new movie release: Strictly Confidential

Elizabeth Hurley stars in the new thriller Strictly Confidential. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

In movie news today, releasing next month is the new thriller Strictly Confidential starring Elizabeth Hurley and Georgia Lock.

Lionsgate’s new thriller Strictly Confidential is the new feature film directorial debut of writer/director Damian Hurley. It stars Elizabeth Hurley, Georgia Lock, Lauren McQueen, Freddie Thorp, and Genevieve Gaunt and will be released in theaters and digital/on demand on April 5, 2024. (Lionsgate, 2024)

Strictly Confidential – A haunted young woman is lured into a seductive world of infidelity, betrayal and murder as she desperately tries to unravel the mystery surrounding her best friend’s sudden death.

Elizabeth Hurley and Georgia Lock star in a sensual thriller with a devilish twist. On the anniversary of Rebecca’s (Lauren McQueen) death, Mia (Lock) returns to the Caribbean paradise where she and her best friend shared her final days. As Mia and sets out to unravel the mysterious events of her passing, old passions rise, new secrets are uncovered and Mia is pulled into a seductive world of sex, betrayal and murder.

RATING: R
GENRE: Thriller
RUNTIME: 89 min.

Strictly Confidential still. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

New thriller movie release: Trunk: Locked In

The claustrophobic German thriller Trunk: Locked In is now available to view on Amazon Prime. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

If you enjoy action and thriller movies, today’s new movie release might interest you. Trunk: Locked In is a movie about a woman who wakes up disoriented in a locked trunk with no idea about what is going on or what to expect. This high octane rollercoaster ride of a movie follows a young woman in a race against time for survival. Sounds interesting, doesn’t it? It’s in German with English subtitles, but I like discovering thrilling foreign movies and subtitles are no problem for me. I know what I’m watching this weekend.

Outside the Club is excited to announce the global release of their latest feature, Marc Schießer’s pulsing thriller Trunk: Locked In, as an Original feature on Prime Video. Trunk: Locked In is available on Prime Video in over 240 countries and territories around the world. (Justin Cook PR, 2024)

Trunk: Locked In was written and directed by Marc Schießer, making his feature directorial debut after his work on the German series “Wishlist.” Schießer and his partner Tobias Lohf produced under their Outside the Club banner. Award-winning Berlin actress Sina Martens (The Perfumier, Tatort) headlines the single location thriller, with Artjom Gilz, Luise Helm and Poal Cairo in other roles. Trunk: Locked In made its world premiere at Filmfestival Cologne and went on to win the Best Thriller Feature at Nightmares Film Festival.

Trunk: Locked In – 28-year-old medical student Malina wakes up disoriented in a locked trunk and must realize with horror that she is missing more than just the memory. With her phone as the only connection to the outside world, the intelligent young woman wages a desperate fight for survival while the vehicle races relentlessly toward a terrible secret. Even if she makes it – she will never be the same.

95 minutes/Germany
German with English subtitles

Upcoming new horror movie: Alice and The Vampire Queen

Alice and The Vampire Queen will be available on digital starting February 13, 2024. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Breaking Glass Pictures, a leading independent film distribution company based in Philadelphia, is thrilled to announce its collaboration with acclaimed writer-director Dan Lantz on the upcoming horror film Alice and The Vampire Queen. CEO Rich Wolff expresses excitement about working on multiple projects with Lantz, stating, “Dan’s unique vision and storytelling prowess continue to captivate audiences, and it has been a pleasure collaborating on multiple films with him.” Alice and the Vampire Queen will rise this February 13 on digital. (October Coast, 2024)

Directed by Dan Lantz, and starring Shelby Hightower, Graham Wolfe, Brenna Carnuccio, Rachel Aspen, Danielle Muehlen, Xavier Michael, Chris James Boylan, and Aaron Dalla Villa, the film centers around an ex-con, Alice Oldman, who struggles to overcome her past scars. A mysterious stranger offers her a deal: create one special dish for his boss, the Vampire Queen.

The film, the latest from director Lantz (Alpha Rift, Bloodrunners) had a successful limited theatrical run in 2023. Produced by Dan Lantz, Richard Wolff, and Susan Helfrich, it explores themes of resilience, transformation, and the power of choice as Alice confronts not only the external threats posed by the supernatural forces at play but also the internal demons she must conquer to forge her path to redemption.

Upcoming new horror movie: Midnight Peepshow

Midnight Peepshow will have a digital release on February 13, 2024. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Attention horror movie fans! As I always say, it’s always the perfect time for a horror movie. There’s a new horror/thriller movie coming to digital on February 13, 2024. Perhaps in just in time for Valentine’s Day, if you and your valentine like these types of movies. Don’t miss Midnight Peepshow.

In Midnight Peepshow, we are introduced to an unnamed Madame who owns and operates a peepshow offering patrons a tailor-made experience wrapped around their deepest desires, fears, and sins. Tonight, it welcomes a businessman who has a unique connection to an extreme fantasy website on the dark web. He soon becomes a witness to three stories of victims who found the same website, and now the Midnight Peepshow has found him. It will only be a matter of time before he is made to pay the ultimate price for dabbling in the dark side of his own desire. (October Coast, 2024)

Director: Airell Anthony Hayles, Andy Edwards, Jake West, Ludovica Musumeci

Cast: Zach Galligan, Chiara D’Anna, Richard Cotton, Sarah Diamond, Jamie Bacon, Derek Nelson, Jack Fairbank. Miki Davis, Ryan Oliva, Ocean M. Harris

Upcoming new movie release – Reflect

The sci-fi metaphysical thriller Reflect will be released on cable Video On Demand and Digital HD on January 9, 2024. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Cranked Up Films is excited to kick off their 2024 slate with the North American VOD release of Reflect, the feature film debut of writer/director/star Dana Kippel. The sci-fi metaphysical thriller follows a group of friends on a spiritual obstacle course hoping to improve their lives, but they don’t know they are being monitored by mysterious hooded entities, eager to take over their bodies. Reflect debuts on Digital VOD January 9, 2024, including Prime Video, Apple TV, Google Play, and Vudu. (Justin Cook PR, 2024)

Dana Kippel headlines the film as Summer, rounded out by a cast including Grace Patterson, Jadelyn Breier, Marissa Patterson, Ariana Williams, Corey Brooks, Eric Scott Woods, Dash Katz, Maya Knell, Ryan Jack Connell, and Joe Filippone. Kippel produced under her Crazy Carrot Films shingle, alongside Zac Coats, Ryan Jack Connell, Brian Duss, Grace Patterson, Loan Thach, and Rhiannon Moller-Trotter. Michael DeLano of COTU Media served as executive producer.

Reflect world premiered at the Chandler International Film Festival and went on to screen at the Boston Science Fiction Film Festival, the Sydney Science Film Festival, and the ETHOS Film Awards International Film Festival.

Reflect

Unhappy with her current relationship, Summer sets out on a road trip to Sedona, AZ, accompanied by her four gal pals to a spiritual obstacle course. Upon arriving, they are greeted by their uncanny host, Hermes who leads them into the vast desertscape which becomes the foreground for the interdimensional game show they unknowingly are participating in.

Transported, they begin a colorful, surrealistic journey of the soul, diving into issues surrounding trauma, mental health, and female relationships. The girls start to go missing one by one as we discover mysterious hooded figures are following them. As the tension rises, who will figure out how to escape this and become the last one standing, ultimately winning The Game of Life?

Upcoming new movie release: First Time Caller

The podcast turned sci-fi thriller comes to Video On Demand on January 12, 2024. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Buffalo 8 is thrilled to open their 2024 line up with the North American VOD release of First Time Caller, the feature adaptation of the fan-favorite podcast “The Earth Moves” from directors J.D. Brynn and Abe Goldfarb. Based on Gideon Media’s acclaimed podcast, First Time Caller is a darkly hilarious look at success, power, loneliness, and the apocalypse. First Time Caller debuts on Cable and Digital VOD on January 12, 2024, including Prime Video, Vudu, Vubiquity, Cox, and Comcast. (Justin Cook PR, 2023)

First Time Caller – Brent Ziff is an internet shock-jock at the top of his game. Fans and followers tune in from coast to coast to be insulted and enlightened by their favorite on-air provocateur. But on one very unusual night, Brent’s world is rocked by a long-time listener who calls in with a grave message.

75 Minutes/USA

Abe Goldfarb and Brian Silliman reprise their roles from “The Earth Moves” as Brent and Leo, alongside vocal performances from Greg Proops, Ophira Eisenberg, and Ashlie Atkinson. Mac Rogers, who wrote the original podcast, adapted the script. Patrick Terry produced for Cinedata. Gerry Ohrstrom, Thomas Campbell Jackson and Lawrence Starr are executive producers, alongside Buffalo 8’s Matthew Helderman and Luke Taylor, Nikki Stier Justice and Grady Craig.

First Time Caller world premiered at the Seattle Film Festival and earned the Grand Jury Prize, along with awards for Best Actor (Goldfarb) and Best Director (Goldfarb and Brynn). The film went on to win Best Feature Film at the Brooklyn SciFi Film Festival and was the headliner as the Opening Night Feature at the Bowery Film Festival. On the festival circuit, Film Threat hailed First Time Caller as “extremely inventive, quite a ride!”

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Upcoming new horror movie release: Nightmare on 34th Street

Nightmare on 34th Street will be available on digital starting December 5, 2023. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

I like the holiday season, but for me, there’s nothing like a good horror/slasher movie to get into the mood, especially if Krampus is involved. That brings me to today’s new movie news: Nightmare on 34th street is coming to digital (Plex) on December 5, 2023 from Wild Eye Releasing. So if you’re not ready to let the creepy season go yet, check it out.

Nightmare on 34th Street – A mysterious and psychopathic Santa Claus visits a small, rural town with a bag full of unusual gifts and twisted holiday stories featuring Krampus, a murderous St. Nick, and killer carol singers that are certain to ruin the Christmas season forever. Caroline Boulton, Lucy Pinder, Dani Thompson, Ewen MacIntosh, Andy Gatenby, Adam Greaves-Neal star in a James Crow film. (October Coast, 2023)    

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New movie release: 5000 Space Aliens

5000 Space Aliens will be available November 21, 2023. Photo: Google

Director Scott Bateman and Producer Lucas A. Ferrara are excited to share the trailer for their new genre-bending animation, 5000 Space Aliens, which is coming to digital download worldwide on November 21, 2023. Get ready to meet a new space alien every second in this bonkers and groundbreaking one-of-a-kind animated film. (October Coast, 2023)

Imagine meeting a space alien. Now imagine meeting one space alien every second. This is what happens in Scott Bateman’s groundbreaking animated film 5000 Space Aliens. Scott Bateman has turned found footage, vintage photo studio pictures from Venezuela and Romania, scraps from a 100-year-old psychology textbook, and more into 5000 one-second shots of animated characters.

Instead of a typical narrative, 5000 Space Aliens is more like a ride: You just let the hypnotic rhythm of images wash over you. This one-of-a-kind animated extravaganza was made by just one animator, director Scott Bateman. Bateman also created the electronic-tinged soundtrack.

5000 Space Aliens was Medusa Underground Film Festival’s ‘Best Picture’ and has received multiple ‘official selections’ at a raft of international festivals. Pulled from the mind of Director Scott Bateman whose previous work includes The Bateman Lectures on Depression and You Your Brain & You. Not your average filmmaker, Bateman took the incredible leap to fund his projects via game shows, winning $100,000 (and a cruise) on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, as well as becoming a one-day Jeopardy! champion.

On making the film, Scott Bateman says, “Storytelling is everywhere these days, it’s ridiculous. But not everything has to tell a story. I believe movies can do other things as well, and still be fun and entertaining to watch. So with 5000 Space Aliens, I set out to create an entertaining, non-narrative film.

5000 Space Aliens has a visual rhythm of one shot per second, and it is an absolutely hypnotizing movie-going experience. It’s like a ride: you don’t have to think, you just let it wash over you. The music acts as a thread through the whole film, your friend who’s on the ride with you.

I’m very happy that it all worked. 5000 Space Aliens is a very fun movie to watch with a group of friends at home or in a theater. There are so many ‘What did I just see?’ moments, and it’s highly re-watchable.

But also, I wanted to make a film but had no money at the time. So I was looking for a way I could make a movie all by myself. This was a fun challenge, as it’s been one so rarely. I did all this animation, created all this music, did the editing, all of it. I had a blast making this film, and I’m so happy it’s a blast so audiences can experience this groundbreaking, one-of-a-kind film. There’s never been another film like this.”

“…If you’re looking for something quirky, off-beat, and extremely entertaining, check out this unique film. And while you’re at it, you’d best fasten your seatbelts, as you’ll likely encounter some turbulence as this mesmerizing movie takes you on a fast-paced, high-speed joyride. An engaging alternate reality awaits.” – Lucas A. Ferrara, Producer

New horror comedy movie release: Project Z

Project Z is now available for streaming on Vudu and Apple TV. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

In today’s movie news, for true zombie fans, it is always a good day to watch zombie movies. From distributor Dark Star Pictures comes the Norwegian (with English subtitles) comedy horror movie Project Z. It is now available to rent or buy on Vudu and Apple TV. It stars Eili Harboe, Regina Tucker, Vebjorn Enger, Jonis Jesf, Iben Akerlie, and Arthur Berning and is directed by Henrik Martin Dahlsbakken. (The Write Way, 2023)

Project Z – A group of film students bring along three out of work actors to an old motel in the Norwegian mountains to make zombie films. When a mysterious asteroid crashes nearby strange things begin to happen, blurring the line between fiction and reality. Suddenly their fiction is turned into reality, as the undead have seemingly began attacking the crew and they must fight for their lives – or is it a part of their story?

Courtesy photo, used with permission.