STACK #189 Jul 2020

FEATURE CINEMA

Directed by Saw veteran Darren Lynn Bousman – who has helmed three films in the franchise – and executive produced by original creators James Wan and Leigh Whannell, Rock surprisingly pulls double duty as a co- screenwriter on Spiral . A huge Saw fan, the comedian/actor pitched his ideas to Lionsgate CEO Joe Drake after a chance meeting at a friend’s wedding. The studio loved them so much they made him both executive producer and co-writer. While remaining reverential to Saw ’s legacy, Rock brings humour to the grisly horror franchise. Likening his concept to Eddie Murphy’s buddy cop film 48 Hrs , he says, “I’ve been a fan of Saw since the first film in 2004. I am excited by the opportunity to take this to a really intense and twisted new place.” New release date: May 20, 2021

when the door opened the water would fall down. At the sink, we would use black electrical tape on the sprayer nozzle so that when my mom and dad turned on the water they would get sprayed.” New release date: June 17, 2021

CAN’T WAIT? Check out Despicable Me (2010) and its two sequels (2013 & 2017). Also the 2010 video game of the same name, which lets players experience the thrill of being Gru. For more of Gru’s adorable yellow helpers, catch up on Minions (2015).

Spiral: From the Book of Saw

SCOOB! If Scooby-Doo fans are familiar with the young adult versions of the fab five, then Scoob! takes audiences back to their childhood where a painfully shy Shaggy first adopts our favourite four-legged friend at Venice Beach. Fast forward and the five – voiced by Zac Efron (Fred), Amanda Seyfried (Daphne), Will Forte (Shaggy), Gina Rodriguez (Velma) and Frank Welker (the voice of Scooby-Doo since 2002) – become firm friends, tasked with their

Funnier than the previous film, Wonder Woman 1984 introduces a more empowered Diana Prince, now hitting her stride and reunited with Chris Pine’s Steve Trevor. Directed once again by Patty Jenkins, it fast-forwards from WWI to the ‘80s where our heroine confronts two new enemies: Max Lord (Pedro Pascal) and The Cheetah (Kristen Wiig). Think padded shoulders, Madonna-esque costumes, bling and ostentatious displays of wealth. Gadot and Wiig may be enemies on the big screen but when STACK met them both in January, it was a positive love-fest. “We've become very, very close friends and it was instant. She's one of my favourite people in the whole world and I just love her,” declared Wiig, who brings her comic skills to the role before revealing herself as a deadly foe. Off set, she and Wiig recorded themselves singing and created their own videos. Now that we’d love to see! New release date: October 1, 2020

CAN’T WAIT? Binge all eight of the previous Saw movies, including Jigsaw .

MINIONS: THE RISE OF GRU Serving as a sequel to Minions and a prequel to Despicable Me , Gru brings out the naughty kid in all of us in this untold story of a certain 12-year-old’s dream to become the world’s greatest supervillain. Set in the 1970s, young Felonius Gru is a fanboy of a supervillain super-group known as Vicious 6, hatching a plan to become evil enough to join them. When Vicious 6 sacks its leader, the legendary fighter Wild Knuckles (Alan Arkin), Gru applies to become their new member. Needless to say, this does not go well and our anti-hero becomes the sworn enemy of the apex of evil. Steve Carell returns to voice the despicably evil Gru, and is joined again by Julie Andrews as his mother Marlena and Russell Brand’s Dr. Nefario. Newcomers include Taraji P. Henson as Belle Bottom, Jean-Claude Van Damme as Jean Clawed (hehe) and Lucy Lawless as Nunchuk. When STACK caught up with Carell, he confessed his own wicked past: “When I was growing up, my brothers and I used to prank my parents. We would change the salt and sugar. We put paper cups of water on the door so that

Scoob!

first mystery, involving future long-time nemesis Dick Dastardly (brilliantly voiced by Jason Isaacs) and his canine cohort, Muttley. Mark Wahlberg proves his comic chops as the impossibly vain Blue Falcon; Ken Jeong voices Dynomutt, Dog Wonder; and Simon Cowell makes a guest appearance thanks to his son, Eric, being a huge Scooby fan. “I was a bit nervous about having Simon involved because he is the world’s most critical man, but he was great,” laughed director Tony Cervone when he showed STACK some early footage at Warner Bros. Animation studios in Burbank. New release date: TBC

CAN’T WAIT? Get up to speed with the 2017 original, or time warp back to the ‘70s when Lynda Carter reigned supreme as TV’s super- powered goddess.

SPIRAL: FROM THE BOOK OF SAW Serving as the ninth installment of the Saw franchise, Spiral presents a terrifying new chapter in which a sadistic mastermind unleashes a twisted form of justice. Working in the shadow of Samuel L. Jackson’s esteemed police veteran, brash Detective Ezekiel “Zeke” Banks (Chris Rock) and his rookie partner (Max Minghella) take charge of a grisly investigation into murders that are eerily reminiscent of the city’s gruesome past. Trapped in a deepening mystery, Zeke finds himself at the center of the killer’s morbid game.

CAN’T WAIT? Check out the 2002 live action Scooby-Doo with Sarah Michelle Gellar and Freddie Prinze Jr., or revisit the classic cartoon TV series, which first aired in 1969.

Minions:The Rise of Gru

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