Movies
Moon (NY/LA)
“MOON, a sincere and heartfelt feature debut from director Duncan Jones, may not take home the box office cheddar, but mark my words, is a movie that will be worshipped by science fiction lovers for years to come.”
Deep, contemplative sci-fi is a hard sell. Even with loads of creative talent to back it up, 2002’s SOLARIS, directed by OCEAN’S wunderkind Steven Soderbergh and starring money-magnet George Clooney, had a hard time making it into the black. MOON, a sincere and heartfelt feature debut from director Duncan Jones, may not take home the box office cheddar, but mark my words, is a movie that will be worshipped by science fiction lovers for years to come.
Searching for an alternative energy source, Lunar Industries decides to mine the earth’s moon for He-3, a radioactive isotope of helium. Sam Bell (Sam Rockwell) is the single crew member assigned to moon base Sarang and his duties are basic: he keeps an eye on the four helium harvesters that constantly roam the surface, and he cruises out in the rover any time one of the harvesters drifts off course. Nearing the end of a three-year contract, with only his robot Gerty (voiced by Kevin Spacey) to keep him company, Sam is overwhelmed with boredom and loneliness. Spending his copious amounts of free time engaging in miniature wood carving or talking out loud to his clumsy collection of flimsy plants, he’s eagerly counting the remaining 14 days until his return to his wife and daughter on earth.
But then Sam begins…seeing things. Due to mechanical issues, he hasn’t been able to establish a live communications link for some time, having to resort to exchanged video messages with his wife and corporate bosses, and he suspects that his time alone on the moon is beginning to get to him mentally. While driving a rover out to check one of the harvesters, he’s distracted by a hallucination and crashes his rover in a bone-crunching collision. Awaking in the infirmary some time later, he finds Gerty watching over him, instructing him to rest until his strength returns.
Eventually rising from his bed in the infirmary, Sam limps down the hall and overhears Gerty carrying on a live conversation with the bosses back at Lunar Industries. But how can that be if the live communications are down? Gerty denies the exchange and informs Sam that he’s been sequestered to the base. Suspicious, Sam finds a way to briefly escape the base, driving an extra rover out the site of the collision. He finds the crashed rover and climbs inside to investigate. There’s a body behind the controls. It’s Sam’s.
Working from a thoughtful script by Nathan Parker, Rockwell is handed a load of work, and he carries the film admirably. MOON is essentially a one-man show, and Rockwell handles the challenge with a finesse that Will Smith couldn’t quite muster in I AM LEGEND. It’s a film that packed with well-developed, thought-provoking themes. The moral imperatives of big business, the value of family, the tranquility that comes with self-awareness; this is thinking man’s cinema, and it’s one of the best science fiction movies I’ve seen in years.
First-timer Jones uses elaborate miniatures to depict the rover scenes, and his skillful and consistent use of scale is convincing enough to allow complete immersion. He puts you on the moon with Sam, and you feel his pain. Three years is indeed a long time. Employing good writing and top-drawer acting to explore some difficult yet interesting questions is what good movies are all about. MOON asks some questions, offers some answers, and completely satisfies. Don’t miss this one.
This week’s big new horror release is of course Evil Dead Burn in theaters later in the week, but you don’t have to wait until this weekend to inject fresh nightmares into your eyeballs.
Five brand new horror movies have already released at home this week.
Here’s all the new horror that released on Tuesday, July 7, 2026!
Director André Øvredal’s (The Autopsy of Jane Doe, Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, The Last Voyage of the Demeter) new movie Passenger is now available on Digital at home.
Here’s the synopsis for Passenger: “A few weeks into their van life adventure, a young couple witnesses a horrific accident that leaves the driver dead. Soon they’re being pursued by a demonic stalker who’s impossible to outrun and follows them wherever they go.”
André Øvredal told Bloody Disgusting in an exclusive chat, “It’s a road movie, which is what I really fell in love with. It’s totally unique for me as a horror movie. Bridging the road movie with a haunting, essentially, on the road. I think it’s the scariest movie I’ve made.”
The cast includes Jacob Scipio, Lou Llobell, Melissa Leo, Tony Doupe, Bonni Dichone, Devielle Johnson, Jessica Cruz, Miles Fowler, and Alan Trong.
The screenplay is written by Zachary Donohue (The Den) and T.W. Burgess (Mister Howl). Former Warner Bros production executive Walter Hamada, who steered the Conjuring and It franchises, is producing via his 18hz as part of his first-look deal with Paramount. It screenwriter Gary Dauberman is also producing via Coin Operated.
Supernatural horror, psychological suspense, and an eye-catching creature take center stage in The Leaching, now available on Digital from Dark Star Pictures and Uncork’d Entertainment.
“After waking up in a grave on her father’s isolated forest property with no idea of who she is or how she got there, Vivian must use her limited memory to piece together the nightmarish truth, all the while being tormented by the undead, a giant leech monster, and her ‘father.’
“Over the next few days, she will uncover the framework of a truly nefarious supernatural scheme, but will it be too late?”
The Leaching is written and directed by Evan Showalter (Ante Mortem, Bad Music Terry).
“The Leaching is an exploration of faith, the loss of self, and the monsters (literally) that emerge when people surrender themselves to something greater than they can understand,” says Showalter. “It’s an isolating horror film that plays with a very uncomfortable question.”
A film student finds herself trapped in a giallo nightmare in lo-fi horror movie City Wide Fever, which is now streaming exclusively on the Midnight Pulp streaming service.
The meta horror movie is from debut writer/director Josh Heaps.
In City Wide Fever, “Sam, a young film student, discovers a USB detailing the life and career of forgotten Italian horror director Saturnino Barresi.
“As she begins to investigate his mysterious disappearance, Sam finds herself pulled into a violent conspiracy eerily similar to those of the films she adores.”
Diletta Guglielmi, Angelica Kim, and Nancy Kimball star with Onur Tukel (Summer of Blood), Larry Fessenden (You’re Next), Carolyn Farina, and comedian Ian Fidance.
Paul Lê wrote in his review for Bloody Disgusting, “This isn’t just a case of throwback filmmaking that’s been achieved with contemporary technology; the director used era-authentic equipment to help create this striking and nostalgic piece of modern horror. The end result is a movie… teeming with enough verve and style to make it feel fresh.”
A Gen Z slasher that pays homage to ’90s teen slasher movies, You’re Dead to Me is now available on Digital outlets at home courtesy of distributor Dark Star Pictures.
In the slasher film, “Three high school seniors skip prom for a secluded weekend party free from parents, school, and responsibility, but their escape turns terrifying when they learn one of their classmates has been brutally murdered.”
Denise Richards (Valentine) stars alongside Siena Agudong (Sidelined: The QB and Me, Sidelined 2: Intercepted), Jessica Belkin (“Baywatch” ), Ella Anderson (“Henry Danger,” Song Sung Blue), and Conor Husting (“Boo, Bitch”, Hollywood Stargirl).
The film was directed by Juan Pablo Arias Munoz.
You’re Dead to Me was co-written by Sarah Howard and Terry Castle, the daughter of the legendary producer and filmmaker William Castle (House on Haunted Hill, The Tingler).
Steven Quale (Into the Storm, Final Destination 5) directed the supernatural thriller Black Box, which has now taken flight on Digital outlets courtesy of Aura Entertainment.
The film is based on the short film The Vessel, and an original screenplay from horror writer Stephen Susco (The Grudge, The Grudge 2, Texas Chainsaw 3D, Hell Fest).
Black Box (Flight 298) follows the supernatural events surrounding Vero Airlines 298 from New Orleans to Seattle.
Tom Brittney, Holly Leena White, Betsy Blue English, Dane Whyte O’Hara, Kaja Chan, Asa Ali, Boadicea Ricketts, Ceallach Spellman, Georgina Leonidas, Molly Belle Wright, Hanneke Talbot, Danny Mack, and Weronika Rosati star in Black Box.
Hammerstone Studios’ Alex Lebovici (Barbarian, Boy Kills World) and Jon Oakes (Drive, The Guilty) will produce alongside Capstone’s Christian Mercuri and David Haring (Bill & Ted Face the Music), Warren Zide (The Final Destination, American Pie), and Susco. Ruzanna Kegeyan and Roman Viaris of Capstone, and Clark Baker (Vessel) will executive produce.
What happened to Flight 298? Find out on Digital outlets now.
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