While there have been more big releases than normal during August, this is a bit more of a low-key week that still has a few things to offer. This set of write-ups includes a survival thriller, a psychological drama, a coming-of-age story, a documentary about comedians, a one-long-night thriller, and a mature animated comedy. The following features reviews for Eden, Lurker, Pools, Anxiety Club, Night Always Comes, and Fixed.
Eden: 4 out of 10
The Setup: A group of disillusioned Europeans settles on a remote, uninhabited island in the Galápagos. They soon discover that their greatest threat isn’t the brutal climate or deadly wildlife, but one another. As tensions spiral and desperation takes hold, a twisted power struggle unfolds, leading to betrayal, violence, and death.
Review: Not to cast aspersions on what a filmmaker is capable of, but throughout Eden, I kept wondering what director Ron Howard was doing here. Given how the film plays out like a mid-tier history lesson with a gorgeous cast, I suppose that does lean into areas he’s explored before, but also speaks to the potential a film like this could have had if it wanted to lean more into its lurid side, let alone add a more satirical context to a movie that essentially plays like Lord of the Flies, but now they’re greedy adults.
Jude Law, Vanessa Kirby, Sydney Sweeney, Daniel Bruhl, and Ana de Armas make up the cast, and among them, only a couple truly stand out. Sweeney, interestingly, does enough with her shy and reserved character, while De Armas is designed to have the most fun as a Baroness who couldn’t care less about the conditions these people have forced themselves to live in.
Does the question of “why don’t they just leave this place?” come up? Yes, but not as often as I would have liked, let alone in a manner delved into in a way that doesn’t feel like a half-baked attempt at finding grander meaning in watching a micro version of society exist this way. I suppose this narrative is never dull, but even with some striking cinematography choices, the soap opera-level screenplay holds this film back from accomplishing more.
Where To Watch: Opening in theaters on August 22, 2025.
Lurker: 7 out of 10
The Setup: A retail employee (Theordore Pellerin) infiltrates the inner circle of an artist (Archie Madekwe) on the verge of stardom. As he gets closer to the budding music star, access and proximity become a matter of life and death.
Review: While taking in the heightened lifestyle of a popstar who isn’t famous enough to not be able to go outside, but has enough going for them that they can live a posh lifestyle, it’s interesting to see how relatable Lurker starts, as far as watching an awkward outsider nestle into the friend group. The fact that they are both embraced by some and seen as competition by others does plenty to challenge how fame and power can corrupt in different ways. With that in mind, given that this film eventually pushes more into psychological thriller territory, we know this can’t last. Even in the editing choices, ominous looks from the actors, and the general feel of a very handheld-friendly feature suggest a danger waiting to come forth.
That said, writer/director Alex Russell (The Beef, The Bear) has worked on television stories focused on high-pressure scenarios a lot, and does well to bring that energy out in this film, despite devoting so much of what we see to feeling like a hangout movie in its own way. Key to all of this is the work from Pellerin and Madekwe. We must know something is up from the get-go, given how easily Matthew slides into the life of Oliver and his music star entourage, but there’s a fun that comes with being complicit to a point. Meanwhile, Madkwe is ostensibly a kid, and while he may detect those trying to be on his good side, seeing him balance the nature of wanting to have a good time and taking what he sees as useful from those trying to be close to him is a tricky part to make likable. Not hurting is the messy conclusion that avoids certain tropes in favor of something a bit smarter.
Where To Watch: Opening in select theaters on August 22, 2025.
Pools: 7 out of 10
The Setup: In the midst of her whole life falling apart, Kennedy (Odessa A’zion) attempts to somehow reconnect with her dead father, searching for permission to live her own life within a wild pool-hopping escape through the elaborate estates of her college town.
Review: There’s something that felt refreshing and alive about this latest look at teenage angst butting heads with the incoming end of summer. Whether or not writer/director Sam Hayes is feeling inspired by things like The Breakfast Club, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, or even The Way Way Back, among many other films of this ilk, it’s never a bad sign when the results still allow for what feels like an original voice coming through. It doesn’t hurt that this movie is quite funny and lives on the eccentric personalities of the cast.
Plenty of fun comes from A’Zion, Mason Gooding, Tyler Alvarez, Ariel Winter, and others, who eventually all find themselves having fun pool-hopping, connecting in unique ways, and participating in other activities that allow the camera to remain drenched in chlorine water and twilight/night sky lighting handled for the better. You could practically say this movie has a tan, given the sun-soaked nature of what we are watching, but the further complexities of A’Zion, our protagonist, do a lot to keep the film from feeling like nothing but a lark.
Where To Watch: Opening in select theaters on August 22, 2025. Expanding wide on September 5.
Anxiety Club: 7 out of 10
The Setup: The experience of anxiety through the eyes of comedians and their efforts to overcome their angst.
Review: Whether or not it is acknowledged enough that a good number of comedians suffer from extreme depression, surely the idea of them being so ridden with anxiety also comes with the territory. I have several comedian friends, and whether or not I can see, let alone deduce, problems they may be facing, it’s understandable where it can come from. Taking life experiences and finding ways to break them down into relatable stories designed to make a room full of people laugh or at least remain intrigued, only to get the satisfaction of that working and attempting to repeat it night after night already sounds stressful. That’s not even taking into account a variety of other aspects of what makes up the life of a comedian, but Anxiety Club is an effective enough portrait of comedians who are willing to share enough about themselves to at least get across some ideas as to why.
A solid lineup includes Marc Maron, Aparna Nancherla, Mark Normand, Tiffany Jenkins, Joe List, Baron Vaughn, and Eva Victor (who is currently riding a wave of success with her wonderful comedy-drama, Sorry, Baby). Regardless of any overlap, speaking to the nature of anxiety, there are plenty of effective choices made in letting us understand where these comics are coming from and what they are working on. It also doesn’t hurt that comedy naturally comes with a doc like this, so there is entertainment to be found, even when someone like Jenkins makes the severity of their issue so emotionally challenging. Director Wendy Lobel has a keen eye for making it clear that people can take away some interesting thoughts and even advice from a film like this, essentially meaning this film is doing good work.
Where To Watch: Now available to stream on digital.
Night Always Comes: 4 out of 10
The Setup: Facing eviction in a city her family can no longer afford, a woman (Vanessa Kirby) plunges into a desperate and increasingly dangerous all-night search to raise $25,000.
Review: As happy as I am to see Kirby throw herself into a “one-long-night” style crime thriller, because Halle Berry can only headline so many of those, it’s a shame Night Always Comes doesn’t have much more to play with beyond a manipulation of emotions to the highest degree by way of obvious scenarios when considering the greater of two evils, what’s at stake, and zero regard for what’s going to happen to our lead in the near future (and this film’s endpoint only does so much to account for it). Still, as a direct-to-Netflix endeavor, I can understand why it would capture the attention of audiences not asking for much.
Director Benjamin Caron, who made the similarly flimsy yet compelling in the moment Sharper, does get plenty working in his favor thanks to the efforts of Kirby, a strong performer to watch battle challenging scenarios. Jennifer Jason Leigh also continues her streak as being “the worst” when the time calls for it. I also wasn’t opposed to seeing Randall Park playing way against type in one of the more grounded yet unfortunate scenarios. Still, while there’s sympathy to be had for Kirby’s character and the people in reality she stands for, the movie works so hard to erase any real nuance that it all feel to easy and slapped together by way of plot contrivances, as opposed to feeling like a sharp script that organically layers in social commentary as well as unpredictable thrills.
Where To Watch: Now available to stream on Netflix.
Fixed: 2 out of 10
The Setup: After learning he’s getting neutered, a dog, Bull (Adam DeVine), has 24 hours to squeeze in one last balls-to-the-wall adventure with the boys.
Review: I’ve said for a long time that Genndy Tartakovsky is a real talent and should be able to do more than just sequels to Hotel Transylvania. Well, while Cartoon Network let him finish Samurai Jack and deliver another awesome action animated series, Primal, Netflix had other plans. Fixed is crude nonsense, lacking the joy I’ve found in other Tartakovsky works, whether in the style or the incorporation of homages to past cinematic inspirations. Instead, Fixed is just a one-note joke that I simply didn’t much care for. Sure, perhaps it just comes down to me. I didn’t much care for Strays either, so maybe my patience for foul-mouthed, sexed-up dogs is very low. Still, I’m all for laughing, and the cast assembled for this is pretty great (Idris Elba, Kathryn Hahn, Fred Armisen, Beck Bennett, Bobby Moynihan), yet I just wasn’t having it.
Where To Watch: Now available to stream on Netflix.
