LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Something to distract you on Valentine's Day, or are just looking for a new movie to watch, we have some options!
Film critic Josh Bell has two pics that have received several recent award nominations.
We're right in the middle of a belated awards season, with two movies opening this week that have been nominated by multiple awards groups. First is "Judas and the Black Messiah", now playing in theaters and streaming on HBO Max. This biopic about civil rights leader Fred Hampton (played by Daniel Kaluuya) focuses on his associate Bill O'Neal, who was a paid FBI informant. O'Neal (played by Lakeith Stanfield) infiltrated the Black Panthers to gather information, and the movie shows how FBI agents coerced and manipulated him. Daniel Kaluuya brings the charismatic and passionate Hampton to life, while Lakeith Stanfield gives a more internal performance as a man caught in an impossible position. It's a fresh and vital take on a historical era that's been portrayed in dozens of movies. That's "Judas and the Black Messiah", now in theaters citywide and on HBO Max.
Also up for numerous awards is the tender family drama "Minari", now playing in theaters. Writer-director Lee Isaac Chung tells the story of a Korean immigrant family who buy a plot of land in Arkansas to start a farm. It's a universal story of the immigrant experience, including the generational differences between the parents who've moved from overseas and the young children born in the U.S. And it's also about this particular family's struggles, arising from the larger ambitions of the father, played by Steven Yeun. It's a bittersweet movie about pursuing the American dream while also holding onto the values and relationships of your native land. That's "Minari", now in theaters citywide and out Feb. 26 on VOD.
