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Val

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Humans have long searched for their purpose and a way to define their identity. For some its tied up in what we do, for others it’s just a matter of where we’re from. This week’s new movies on VOD all tell stories of people who are looking for the thing that makes them uniquely them. In Pig, Nicolas Cage plays a truffle hunter whose beloved pig is kidnapped, and as he searches for the kidnappers, he reveals a sensitive, philosophical side to himself that takes the film places you didn’t think it would go. In Val, Hollywood leading man Val Kilmer reflects on his career highs, lows, and missed opportunities on a documentary he filmed himself over the course of his career.

And while we’re talking about self-discovery, Pixar’s Luca is now widely available for rent. The story of a young sea monster named Luca who strikes up a friendship with another sea monster named Alberto who teaches him that they can shape shift into human boys is all about embracing your true self, and competitively eating pasta along the way. Luca and Alberto journey to a nearby Italian village where everyone has it out for sea monsters, yet they make friends with a girl named Giulia who desperately wants to win a triathlon where the three events included are biking, swimming, and eating pasta. Forming a team together, the three train in order to beat the reigning champ, the smug and deceitful Ercole Visconti, all while keeping their sea monster identities a secret. Spoiler alert: Their identities are ultimately revealed and they’re accepted for who they are. PHEW.

These are just a few of the titles that are available to watch on Amazon Prime Video, iTunes, YouTube, and through your cable service this week. Check out what movies are available to buy or rent on demand now!

Val

As a kid, I remember talking about Top Gun with a friend who gushed over how hot Val Kilmer was as Ice Man. I was too basic to understand the appeal of a bad boy, opting instead for Tom Cruise’s safe All-American charmer Maverick. But on reflection, Ice Man’s story is a story of overcoming toxic masculinity when he finally squashes his rivalry with Mav and acquiesces to his invitation to be his wingman. Personal growth badge unlocked!

Kilmer has always been Ice Man, self-assured and arrogant, often badly behaved, but using that to his advantage to perfect his craft. But in Val, the documentary he made thanks to thousands of hours of home video he shot over the course of decades, Kilmer himself addresses everything from his difficult image of the ’80s and ’90s to his current health issue dealing with throat cancer which has rendered him unable to speak without a voice box (the film is narrated by Kilmer’s son, Jack). In Val, he positions his life into an arc that hopefully includes a smidge of self-awareness and redemption at the end. SEO value aside, I’m just bummed they didn’t call it The Iceman Cometh.

Where to stream Val

Pig

Nicolas Cage can pretty much do any kind of movie these days and no one will bat an eye. So when a film like Pig shows up with the log line “A truffle hunter who lives alone in the Oregon wilderness must return to his past in Portland un search of his beloved foraging pig after she is kidnapped” turns up, you can most definitely see him as a vengeful truffle hunter because it’s just too weird. But John Wick this is not, Cage’s character is less hit-man and more of a quiet, observant man who desperately just wants his pig back. Though Cage looks grizzled, as if he truly has been living in the woods far from society, the role harkens back to his portrayal of Ronny in Moonstruck, a combative, sad man with a tough exterior who opens up his heart once he finds something to truly care about. (In this metaphor, I guess Cher is the pig?)

Where to stream Pig