Nate at the Movies: July 2026 Roundup 🍿

Hey, Reader! Welcome back to another month of movies. Let's find you something worth watching.

🌟 This Month's Must-See Movies

The Odyssey (2026)

You don't need me to tell you to go see The Odyssey—everybody and their mom (and my mom!) has seen it. Whether it's one of Nolan's best is up to you, but between the impossible scale, amazing practical filmmaking, and the deafening sound, I'd say "Nolan's best" is within reach.

"Imposing, intense, emotional, and grand, The Odyssey was one of the most awe-inspiring movies I’ve seen, and a perfect adaptation of one of the oldest stories in human history".

Read the full review

The Invite (2026)

While The Odyssey doesn't need any more marketing, I will gladly beat a necessary drum for The Invite. This movie was clever and awkward and hilarious—the second funniest movie of 2026, again behind NtBtStM—and I don't think enough people have seen it. If you're in DFW, I'll go see it with you!

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Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026)

I've become not just a huge fan of the MCU, but an even bigger fan of Spider-Man. Brand New Day accomplished what most of the MCU Spider-Man movies have failed to do: develop Spider-Man and Peter simultaneously. I also loved how connected Peter became to his community in this one—a quality I value in my superheroes, be it Spider-Man or the Fantastic Four—and the cinematic moments were in high supply.

Read the full review

💎 My Favorite First-Time Watches This Month

July was the month that I hit my stride with my summer series, and There Will Be Blood (2007) was king among them. This movie was intense, inspiring, upsetting, and immaculately crafted, both from the director's chair and the cast. I haven't seen much Daniel Day-Lewis, but I don't know if I'll see much better than his performance here. Also, Quentin Tarantino can kick rocks; Paul Dano was excellent!

Pulp Fiction (1994) was the next best movie of my summer series that I watched in July, and it was just as iconic as I expected it to be. What I didn't expect was such a violent, captivating comedy-thriller with a killer soundtrack and numerous quotable lines. That Tarantino guy I mentioned earlier? He can be a bit rude sometimes, but I think he has a bright future as a filmmaker.

Surprise, surprise—another summer series movie! Zodiac (2007) really surprised me, mainly because I knew nothing about the Zodiac Killer before watching. David Fincher has a unique talent for bringing me into his movies and keeping me on the edge of my seat the whole time, be it this movie or Fight Club or The Social Network.

🎯 Works in Progress

Adaptation Appreciation (7/12): This month's read (or, should I say, last month's read—I was scared that I wouldn't finish it before seeing the movie if I started it on July 1) was Emily Wilson's translation of The Odyssey. While I've lauded the movie on here already, I'll take a second to shout out Wilson; her translation was modern without losing the weight or regality of the story, and reading all of those iconic moments so prevalent in pop culture for the first time was really cool.

MCU (37/37): I've done it! After more than a year, I've seen every currently released MCU movie, and the final stretch was a great microcosm of the whole saga. Captain America: Brave New World was bland and aimless, Thunderbolts* and The Fantastic 4: First Steps executed well on clear, unique visions with fun characters, and Spider-Man: Brand New Day meaningfully and cinematically expanded on the best character in the current Marvel landscape. The MCU is forever a mixed bag, but I'm still looking forward to Doomsday, even if the trailer was underwhelming.

Harry Potter (4/8): The rising film tide in July really did lift all boats, including Harry Potter! I've loved every entry in the franchise so far, but The Goblet of Fire—my favorite when I first watched these movies as a kid—took the cake. It brought the joy back to the franchise while also taking it to darker depths. What's not to love?

Summer Series (9/12): I mentioned above that we caught fire in the summer series in July, and we sure did. It's an impressive month at the home theater when Mulholland Drive was my least favorite of the four movies I checked out as part of this series. Zodiac, Pulp Fiction, and especially There Will Be Blood blew me away. So did Mulholland Drive, but man, was I confused for a lot of it.

🎶 While I Wasn't At The Movies

I've always been a big fan of Randy Newman, thanks to his Pixar soundtracks and scores, but I've taken a deep dive into his discography this summer and become fully obsessed. The two albums I've really loved this summer are Trouble in Paradise (1983) and Land of Dreams (1988), but don't think that's all Randy has to offer. Sail Away (1972) and Good Old Boys (1974) will knock you on your back.

🚨 Next Month's Movie Radar

Though we're officially out of summer blockbuster season, there are still a few August movies that have me excited, chief among them being Coyote vs. Acme (2026). Warner Brothers tried to kill this one, but thank goodness for Ketchup Entertainment. They've resurrected one of my most anticipated movies of the year!

I'm also looking forward to One Night Only (2026)—Morgan and I's next press screening—as well as Tony (2026) and The End of Oak Street (2026). I don't know the last time there was a non-Jurassic Park dinosaur movie in theaters!