Previews

Highest 2 Lowest

Spike Lee and Denzel Washington reunite for an ambitious film, the fifth in their professional relationship. Joining Washington are Jeffrey Wright, Ilfenesh Hadera, and A$AP Rocky.

When a titan music mogul (Denzel Washington), widely known as having the “best ears in the business”, is targeted with a ransom plot, he is jammed up in a life-or-death moral dilemma. Brothers Denzel Washington and Spike Lee reunite for the 5th in their long working relationship for a reinterpretation of the great filmmaker Akira Kurosawa’s crime thriller High and Low, now played out on the mean streets of modern-day New York City.

Highest 2 Lowest arrives in theaters August 15; streams on Apple TV+ on September 5.

HIM

Justin Tipping’s highly anticipated sports horror arrives next month. Previously titled GOAT, HIM follows a young NFL hopeful — the rising Tyriq Withers (Atlanta, I Know What You Did Last Summer) — who earns the once-in-a-lifetime chance to train with his hero, portrayed by Marlon Wayans (Bel-Air, Scary Movie). What should be what dreams are made of gradually turns into a nightmare as the rookie quarterback is exposed to violent conditioning, ritualistic practices, and a sinister cult-like devotion to the craft. What will he be willing to sacrifice to be the greatest of all time? See HIM on September 19.

Streaming

Apple TV’s Chief of War is a cinematic-level adaptation centuries in the making

I’m going to make a demonstrative statement: people enjoy Jason Momoa. Universally. The former Baywatch teen actor who has shaped his career with roles typically pitched to retired wrestlers seems to be a nice guy all around (the bar is in hell). Apart from being extremely easy on the eyes, he remains cordial with his ex Lisa Bonet and her ex, Lenny Kravitz. He doesn’t take himself too seriously, embracing internet culture and memes. And he’s collected enough resources and clout in the industry to do things his way. Things outside of what we would figure is a box.

First, it was the underrated series See. While it may not have been a mainstream hit, it did conjure critical acclaim during Apple TV+’s infancy. Now, lightning is striking a second time with the historical drama, Chief of War. A more personal project for Momoa, who has always shone light on his Polynesian heritage, tracks the civil war and forced colonization of what is now known as Hawai’i. Throughout three episodes, it’s shaping to be quite an achievement in storytelling and vital representation, something lacking in this current entertainment climate.

Momoa is Ka’iana, the son of Maui and a late war chief who deserted his homeland and army after senseless killing at the hands of a greedy king. Seeking a life free of bloodshed, he and a small community are refugees on a neighboring island, Kaua’i, as war rages on. His peaceful solitude is broken when Temuera Morrison’s King Kahekili recruits him not for war, but to fulfill a long-believed prophecy.

For centuries, the four islands — Hawai’i, Kaua’i, O’ahu, and Maui — have waited for a son of the islands to rise and unify the kingdoms as one. Kahekili believes Ka’iana may be the savior they’ve been waiting for.

Of course, things do not go as planned as ulterior motives are revealed, throwing the separate factions back on the battlefield. But when outsiders arrive with their agenda, Ka’iana and the four kingdoms must quell their inner fighting to eliminate a much dangerous threat.

The show is gorgeously shot, with actors of mostly Polynesian descent portraying the people who lived these real-life events. The writing is solid with a steady narrative pace. And the action sequences are grand, especially in the first episode. The show also does a great job of showcasing more than brute force; it shines a lot on the humanity of the people indigenous to these islands. Often, the retelling of West's expansion is from the colonizer’s perspective, via a single white savior who finds compassion for the alleged savages (here’s looking at you, Cameron’s Avatar). Here, much like Apple’s adaptation of Pachinko, the story is repossessed by those on the right side of history. In a world that wants to whitewash facts, it’s reassuring to see the reclaimation of history from those who survived it.

New episodes of Chief of War arrive every Friday.

An unsolved crime and unhealed trauma are explored in HBO’s docuseries Yogurt Shop Murders

In 1991, four teenage girls were found burned unrecognizable inside an Austin, TX, yogurt shop. After extinguishing the flames, first responders discover that each victim had been shot. Thirty years later, four families remain broken by the unsolved murder, as the one convicted for the crime is exonerated. Through interviews with victims’ family members and investigators, archival footage, and the filmmaker’s perspective, she revisits her unfinished 2009 documentary about the crime to explore how one exists in a tunnel of untamed trauma.

Before Austin was the tech-forward metropolis of today, it was a simpler, calmer collection of colorful college students, suburban middle-class ranchers, and mall-roaming teenagers. That all changed that winter, when four best friends closing their local I Can’t Believe It’s Yogurt storefront were interrupted by unknown assailants. Revisiting the case, the first episode captures how, despite time’s distancing from the incident, many who lived it remain embossed in that moment. One victim’s father recites the exact length of time, down to the days, since he lost his daughter. Another, the mother of two sisters taken, reminisces about the final seconds she saw them alive. Each minute detail etched in her memory like a computer’s hard drive. Even the building, now a Cash-n-Advance store, remains intact. The store manager recalls how the shop’s furniture was arranged, down to the countertop cash register.

The four-part series opens strong, given the participants’ willingness to share. Care has been taken in handling the material, even with the man we meet in the first 10 minutes. Once his identity is revealed, viewers can surmise our author has taken into consideration ALL perspectives of this heinous crime, and its effect on families, police, and the community.

Episode two arrives Sunday at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT on HBO Max.

Streamed

Eyes of Wakanda is a fun exploration of Marvel’s most unique & mysterious nation

As the MCU recalibrates with a thinner agenda, Marvel is 2/2 with the bold Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man and now, the criminally short limited series, Eyes of Wakanda. Executive produced by Ryan Coogler and directed by Todd Harris, the four-episode series takes fans through Wakanda’s illustrious history through the covert eyes of Wakandan War Dogs. They explored the outside world to procure information for the protection of the isolationist nation.

Through unique artwork, crafty narrative writing, and a stacked voice cast, the series excels at expanding Wakandan lore within half-hour episodes. They also manage to deliver consequences without voluminous amounts of gore, making this a series the family can enjoy. Remaining within MCU canon, the creatives manage to tell a complete, standalone story that doesn’t require much previous knowledge to enjoy.

My favorite episodes were probably the first, “Into the Lion’s Den,” and the third, “Lost and Found.” Both merge comic lore and history for fun, exhilarating experiences.

Until Black Panther returns to the big screen, Eyes of Wakanda is a perfect holdover for devout Wakandan ex-pats.

All four episodes are available on Disney+.