Final Destination: Bloodlines

Movie Name: Final Destination: Bloodlines
Year of Release: 2025
Director: Zach Lipovsky, Adam B. Stein
Starring: Kaitlyn Santa Juana, Teo Briones, Rya Kihlstedt, Richard Harmon, Owen Patrick Joyner, Anna Lore, Alex Zahara, April Telek, Tinpo Lee, Tony Todd, Brec Bassinger, Gabrielle Rose, Max Lloyd-Jones, Brenna Llewellyn, Natasha Burnett, Jayden Oniah, Mark Brandon, Yvette Ferguson
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 6
Watch it on Amazon

Synopsis and Review

Zach Lipovsky and Adam B. Stein made a name for themselves with the solid but sadly a bit sidelined "Freaks" which premiered in 2018. They have partnered on this most recent installment of the "Final Destination" franchise, with the writing team comprised of Guy Busick (who has been a writer on the most recent chapters of the "Scream" franchise, but also "Abigail" and the show "Castle Rock"), Lori Evans Taylor, and Jon Watts (who has been one of the creative forces behind the revitalizing of the most recent "Spider Man" series of films). This chapter of the franchise starts by introducing Iris Campbell and her boyfriend Paul, who in 1968 are going to the grand opening of the Sky View, a fancy high-rise restaurant tower. Iris has a premonition that all will collapse and there will be multiple fatalities. She warns people of the impending doom, and manages to save many. 57 years later Iris and Paul's maternal granddaughter, Stefani, is a college student, haunted by these recurring nightmares of the averted accident that Iris experienced. She decides to investigate more about what's happening to her, since these nightmares are also impacting her ability to stay focused in school, have good grades, and she's about ready to flunk. Upon returning home, Stefani is met with surprise from her father and brother, as she has rarely kept in touch. She decides to investigate more about Iris, asking her uncle about it, who confides in her that his mother had serious mental issues, which impacted his and his sister's upbringing (Stefani's mom who after giving birth to her and her brothers, one day decided to leave the family household and never returned). Stefani eventually discovers where Iris lives, an isolated and fortified space, and while initially Iris discourages her from coming in, she eventually agrees and tells Stefani what she thinks is happening. Iris has documented every aftermath of what has happened since the events of the Sky View, in the hopes of keeping her family safe. Stefani finds the story impossible, and Iris decides to come outside her safe space, sacrificing herself in the process, so Stefani believes what she just described. Stefani realizes that her family is all on the path for death to collect them all, and frantically goes after every one of them in the hopes of saving them.

The "Final Destination" series always abides to a consistent formula where a central character has a prediction about a fatal event, which he/she then avoids, alongside a few others who believe the prediction, only for all of them to become targets for a series of fatal accidents. This formula is on display once again with "Final Destination: Bloodlines", with a slight imaginative difference/departure. This narrative goes back in time to illustrate how Death haunts this generational enclave and how it crosses time in order to achieve its sinister intent. While the characters fail to have much dimension to them, the family dynamics are nonetheless fairly well established, in the sense that there's a certain amount of friction and tension between them all, something that this threat seems to change and eventually dissolve, nearly bringing them together, including the leading character's long lost mother. This attempt at stopping Death's sinister plan turns out to be the glue this fractured family needed to find a common ground. For all its shortcomings in terms of giving these characters something more substantial that makes them more authentic, the film moves surprisingly swiftly, and while its gory premise remains intact, the film isn't solely focused on this aspect, allowing for the narrative to feel fluid and sensical (something that the prior films at times battled with). It's a slick and polished B-movie at its best. The cast, particularly Brec Bassinger, Rya Kihlstedt, and Gabrielle Rose bring their characters to life with conviction, while the production team is solid, featuring some great production design work from Rachel O'Toole (the period elements at the beginning of the feature and the Mad Max inspired compound are inspired). It's an entertaining, even if at times gruesome, addition to the series. 

The Good House

Movie Name: The Good House
Year of Release: 2021
Director: Maya Forbes, Wallace Wolodarsky
Starring: Sigourney Weaver, Kevin Kline, Morena Baccarin, Rob Delaney, David Rasche, Rebecca Henderson, Molly Brown, Kathryn Erbe, Kelly AuCoin, Georgia Lyman, Beverly D'Angelo, Paul Guilfoyle, Jimmy LeBlanc, Holly Chou
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 7
Watch it on Amazon

Synopsis and Review

"The Good House" is the first credited release of the directing duo of Maya Forbes and Wallace Wolodarsky, though individually they've directed quite a few features of their own (Forbes directed "Infinitely Polar Bear" and Wolodarsky directed "Seeing Other People", and they have also written many other features including "The Rocker" and "Monster Vs. Aliens", to name but a few).  "The Good House" is an adaptation of the novel by Ann Leary and the directors/writers collaborated with Thomas Bezucha on the script. It focuses on the life of Hildy Good, a realtor in the beautiful area of Andover, who has been struggling to catch a break. She's gone through a divorce, and her former assistant Wendy, has stolen some of her clients while she was in rehab for alcoholism (at the insistence of her daughters). Hildy has been attempting to help a local family with an autistic child sell their home, and asks local handyman Frank, whom she has always been attracted to, if he can help them with some house renovations. Hildy also navigates the social ecosystem of the town, having befriended Rebecca, a recent addition to the community who is married to a well off man, but who is having an affair with Peter, the local psychiatrist, someone Hildy has known all her life. Hildy's life gets progressively more out of control, as her drinking escalates, and as she reminisces about her own mother, and what drove her to her sad ending. 

"The Good House" is an interesting film that experiences a rather darker tonal shift midway through it, but one that remains thoroughly engaging very much due to the impeccable central performance from Sigourney Weaver. As the narrative commences, Hildy's breaking the fourth wall and addressing the audience directly, feels very much like a series of snarky and very self aware comments about her own life and those in it. These comments are incisive and funny, and give Hildy this loose and relaxed vibe that instantly make her charismatic and relatable. However as the narrative progresses, and her issues with alcohol abuse become more pronounced and her ability to lead her life seem to evaporate further and further, that joyous tone also becomes less and less visible, revealing a woman who has been avoiding addressing certain issues and problems in her life. It's a very interesting narrative progression, since initially the film has some winks and nudges to the dark humor of Sam Mendes' "American Beauty", but then it shifts into something definitely more heartfelt and even more dramatic. This journey is one worth going through with Sigourney Weaver, who hasn't had a part this dynamic in years, and she has a great partner in Kevin Kline, whom she shares great chemistry with (they made a great couple in Ivan Reitman's "Dave", and also the illicit adulterers in Ang Lee's "The Ice Storm"). Sadly the supporting characters are rather thinly characterized and developed, including Morena Baccarin's Rebecca, Rob Delaney's Peter, and Kathryn Erbe's Wendy, all characters who could have benefited from a bit more attention. The production team on the film is solid, with highlights going to Andrei Bowden Schwartz's cinematography, Theodore Shapiro's score, and Carl Sprague's production design. It's a nicely crafted film with some fantastic performances worth watching. 

Weapons

Movie Name: Weapons
Year of Release: 2025
Director: Zach Cregger
Starring: Josh Brolin, Julia Garner, Alden Ehrenreich, Amy Madigan, Cary Christopher, Benedict Wong, Austin Abrams, June Diane Raphael, Whitmer Thomas, Callie Schuttera, Toby Huss, Sara Paxton, Justin Long, Clayton Farris, Aaron Quick Nelson, Scarlett Sher
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 8
View the Trailer

Synopsis and Review

Following the well received "Barbarian", writer/director Zach Cregger has returned with a more ambitious, and even more effective dark and original story. The film takes place in Maybrook, a town in Pennsylvania, where as the narrator lets us know, seventeen children get up in the middle of the night, and leave their houses. They're all students of Justine Gandy, a discrete and somewhat timid teacher. The police seek their whereabouts, and nothing is uncovered, no bodies are found, nothing is traceable. The principal of the school, Marcus Miller tries to bring parents and teachers together to collectively try to deal with the situation, but the situation quickly escalates as the angry parents hold Justine responsible for what happened, without any proof or reason for doing so. The narrative then focuses on different lead characters of the narrative, starting with Justine, whom we encounter having to resort to drinking to cope with the trauma of the situation. She also hooks up with a married prior boyfriend of hers, a local police officer by the name of Paul. She tries to understand what has happened to all the children by following the only boy who didn't disappear, the quiet and shy Alex. Alex was interviewed by the Police and everyone at school and has no idea where his colleagues are. As Justine continues her investigation, she's accosted by one of the parents of the missing children, Archer Graff. As he's questioning her at a gas station, she's viciously attacked by Marcus, who is intent on killing her (out of nowhere). As the narrative focuses on different characters, including Archer, Paul, James (a local drug addict), Marcus, and Alex, we begin to realize what took place in the days leading to the disappearance of the children, and all the ties that intersect these characters' lives. 

"Weapons" is one of those rare films that manages to hold one's attention, by asking a very simple question. What if a collective traumatic event happened in a small community, and there was absolutely no way to figure out what had caused that event? The massive trauma that occurs to these families jumpstarts this narrative, that then takes us on a journey of understanding these singled out characters, but also slowly starts uncovering the nefarious and darkness reasonings that lie beneath all the events that have and are  happening. The first two thirds of the film are truly a lesson in being able to create an environment that is primarily one of anguish, and anger, and as the third chapter comes along, and all the pieces start coming together, some additional questions do appear, but the overall darkness of what is taking place becomes both more apparent and disturbing. This is indeed Zach Cregger's version of Paul Thomas Anderson's "Magnolia", in the sense we all get to understand a bit of all these lead characters and why their lives intersect, but with a sinister and supernatural take on it, which eventually dictate their outcomes. Without spoiling what takes place in the narrative, the film is finely crafted in terms of illustrating the context in which these characters exist, and giving just enough dimension to all of them which allows us to understand their plight. The writer/director also provides just enough horrific moments which jolt the film with a certain energy, never gratuitously being overly grotesque. The cast is uniformly fantastic, with Josh Brolin, Julia Garner, Alden Ehrenreich, Austin Abrams, Cary Christopher, Benedict Wong, and Amy Madigan all excelling in their compositions. The production team is equally impeccable, in particular Larkin Seiple's cinematography, Ryan & Hays Holladay (with Zach Cregger)'s score, and Tom Hammock's production design. A very good film worth watching. 

The Naked Gun

Movie Name: The Naked Gun
Year of Release: 2025
Director: Akiva Schaffer
Starring: Liam Neeson, Pamela Anderson, Paul Walter Hauser, Danny Huston, CCH Pounder, Kevin Durand, Liza Koshy, Eddie Yu, Michael Beasley, Moses Jones, Chase Steven Anderson, Cody Rhodes, Busta Rhymes
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 6
View the Trailer

Synopsis and Review

Writer, producer, director Akiva Schaffer, has a long career in comedy, including long writing stints with Saturday Night Live, and with the occasional foray into feature films, including the Andy Samberg vehicle "Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping". Schaffer, alongside Doug Mand, and Dan Gregor have tackled the original concept from the ZAZ creative team in revisiting "The Naked Gun", which was originally an extension of the cancelled TV Show "Police Squad", which featured the now iconic duo of Leslie Nielsen and George Kennedy (with the support of Priscilla Presley in the feature films). This new version of "The Naked Gun" follows the story of Lieutenant Frank Drebin Jr. of the LAPD Police Squad, whom we first encounter tackling an armed robbery on a bank. However, this isn't your typical robbery - in reality the robbery is a decoy for the real goal of the assault: stealing a gadget named "PLOT Device" from a safe deposit box. Drebin's intervention gets him in trouble with his boss, who reassigns him to another case, a fatal car crash whose victim was a software engineer named Simon Davenport. The deceased's sister, Beth, a crime novelist, communicates with Drebin and indicates she thinks her brother was killed. As Drebin starts investigating, the leads start pointing in the direction of the billionaire Richard Cane, who has some nefarious plans he intends to set in motion with the "PLOT Device" gadget. 

What was always a staple for the ZAZ authored feature films and their sole TV series, was their ability to mine the seriousness of different genres, particularly the police story/thriller genres, and introduce the nonsense within the parameters/tropes of that genre, asking their actors to perform all events as if though they were indeed in a dramatic situation. They applied this concept to "Airplane", but also "Top Secret" (the WWII genre), "The Naked Gun", and as they went in separate directions, they leveraged different sources to reference in their output, namely military films of the 80s for inspiration on "Hot Shots" and in the early 2000s, horror/suspense films with their take on "Scary Movie". Akiva Schaffer and his creative team do quite well with the assignment, in this modernized take on "The Naked Gun". Gone are indeed the winks to films and TV shows of the 1970s and 1980s (while Danny Huston is a wondrous actor, one can't help but miss the stupendous Ricardo Montalban or Robert Goulet as the main villains), but the film introduces funny takes and jabs on modern cultural references, including the ever present coffee drink, electric cars, and the omnipresent technology. This creative team however doesn't quite know what to do with the supporting characters, something that the original films solved a lot better, placing George Kennedy and Priscilla Presley always in the right hilarious moments (and the romantic and sex scene montages between Leslie Nielsen and Priscilla Presley in the original films were themselves ridiculous and superlatively funny). There are aspects this film could have lived without, namely the bodily functions humor, but Liam Neeson fully commits to the role, at times bringing to mind his role in Sam Raimi's "Darkman", but his seriousness in the embodiment of Drebin Jr. and his easy rapport with Pamela Anderson, all entwined with the silliness of the situations themselves, keep the laughs coming. It's a nicely crafted successor to the original films, even if it doesn't reach the tone, including the lunacy, of the original. Worth watching. 

In the Lost Lands

Movie Name: In the Lost Lands
Year of Release: 2025
Director: Paul W. S. Anderson
Starring: Milla Jovovich, Dave Bautista, Arly Jover, Amara Okereke, Fraser James, Simon Loof, Deirdre Mullins, Sebastian Stankiewicz
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 4
Watch it on Amazon

Synopsis and Review

Writer, producer, director, Paul W. S. Anderson is back following his prior video game adaptation, "Monster Hunter" which premiered in 2020 during the pandemic (to anemic results, even if the film itself was actually somewhat entertaining). This time around, he and Constantin Werner are adapting a short story from George R. R. Martin. The narrative takes place on a dystopian wasteland called The Lost Lands. What is left of the civilized world is ruled by an Overlord, while policing and order is maintained by the Church. One of the targets of that church is Gray Alys a witch, whom we originally encounter being hanged by them. Leveraging her powers she manages to evade them. She is subsequently sought after by The Queen, wife of the Overlord, who wants the power of shapeshifting. Gray Alys states she can never deny someone's request/wish, and therefore she agrees to deliver the Queen's request. The Queen's long time friend, Jerais, also visits Gray Alys and also performs a request, aiming to stop the Queen's aspirations. Gray Alys knows that in order to get the powers of a shapeshifter she'll need some additional assistance, and she seeks out the help of man by the name of Boyce (who is coincidentally one of the Queen's lovers). While Boyce isn't thrilled by the prospect of going deeper into the Lost Lands, they eventually set their course, knowing they only have a few days to make it there. 

Paul W. S. Anderson is a director who has worked in genre films for so long that he has acquired a consistent following. While his output isn't as uniquely distinctive and "auteur" driven as say John Carpenter, some of his films do manage to be quite entertaining, even if the screenplays of his films always have some issues that are never fully well resolved. That seems to be the case with "In the Lost Lands", which starts really strongly, illustrating a new world in broad strokes, and placing one of the central characters in a dire situation, which she manages to escape thanks to her resourcefulness and powers. Sadly much of the information about that character, Gray Alys, or her sidekick Boyce, are largely eschewed in detriment of the mission in which they find themselves, and also of the buddying relationship emerging between them. These are some of the aspects of the film that feel a bit stunted, since both the relationship between Alys and Boyce could be more openly developed, the same going for their backstory, which feels remarkably shallow. Mr. Anderson is always quite good at staging action scenes, which is also the case on this film, but sadly this one also lacks a powerful enemy force, one that counterbalances Alys and Boyce, and ends up robbing the film from a satisfactory arc. All these aspects aside, there's quite a bit to enjoy from this film, starting with the easy chemistry between Milla Jovovich and Dave Bautista, and also the world building the director is able to illustrate. The cast is dominated by those actors, with the production team also doing a solid work of illustrating this dystopian universe, starting with Glen MacPherson's cinematography, Lukasz Trzcinski's production design, and Milena Jaroszek's costume design. It's a film with limitations, but watchable nonetheless. 

Superman

Movie Name: Superman
Year of Release: 2025
Director: James Gunn
Starring: David Corenswet, Nicholas Hoult, Rachel Brosnahan, Skyler Gisondo, Nathan Fillion, Edi Gathegi, Isabela Merced, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Sara Sampaio, Bradley Cooper, Angela Sarafyan, Alan Tudyk, Michael Ian Black, Wendell Pierce, Neva Howell, Zlatko Buric, Frank Grillo, James Hiroyuki Liao, Anthony Carrigan, Sean Gunn, Milly Alcock, John Cena
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 7
View the Trailer

Synopsis and Review

Following the successful wrap up of his trilogy for Marvel Studios of the "Guardians of the Galaxy" films, writer/producer/director James Gunn has turned his attention to the DC universe, and has started his creative overhaul for the properties/characters with what has turned out to be one of the best renditions of the Superman character. The narrative focuses on the adventures of Clark Kent/Superman, whom we initially witness being pummeled, and suffering a defeat at the hands of what seems to be an unstoppable villain (one named "Hammer of Boravia"). As Superman recovers in his fortress of solitude, we realize the mastermind behind his painful defeat is none other than the intense and focused Lex Luthor. Superman also finds himself in trouble after preventing a nation by the name of Boravia from invading a neighboring country by the name of Jarhanpur (he acted on his own, without consulting with any other nations). Luthor manages to infiltrate the Fortress, robbing personal items belonging to Superman, including his birth parents damaged final message, Krypto the dog, and destroying all the robots maintaining the facility. While Luthor is doing that, he has unleashed a kaiju on Metropolis, something that Superman with the help of Green Lantern, Mister Terrific, and Hawkgirl, has to tackle. As Luthor manages to manipulate public perception of Superman, eventually convincing the government that he is an alien threat, he's brought into for questioning. Luthor however captures Superman, dropping him on a parallel universe, with a super-powered being who can emulate Kryptonite. However, and as Superman looks at all the people Luthor has imprisoned, he realizes everything Lex has done has even more nefarious intents than just killing him.

One of the most amazing aspects about this film is how incredibly intelligent and relatable to our current times it actually is. It's an entertaining film that, much like the best art, is political, opinionated, while still being escapist, and impeccably well crafted. James Gunn has always been able to craft films that have a stylistic point of view, while balancing a well positioned sense of humor, while also never taking himself or the source material dramatically seriously. He understands that a film can be a fickle piece of entertainment, but he nonetheless makes a spectacle of his features, and does so by giving his characters an arc and actual complex situations to overcome. At his worst, James Gunn's films can be a bit self indulgent, which was the case of the weakest of his recent features, the second episode of "Guardians of the Galaxy". However when he manages to marry his B-movie appetites, with the larger canvas of a comic book universe, he manages to produce output as memorable as what he did with "Suicide Squad" (still one of the best recent adaptations of a comic book). With "Superman" he summarizes in the best way possible everything that has descended upon modern society, including villainous individuals who manipulate information to pursue their agendas, brutally silencing critical voices, bullying and invading other countries, viciously attacking and destroying others with no morals, no ethical considerations, literally everything we can witness just by watching every day news. And while one would be tempted to think the film is "preachy" and overtly political, Mr. Gunn smartly takes the film in directions of delight and humor, by always making us realize that Clark/Superman, is both human, but also a better version of that species, effectively saving the world from the problems it creates for itself. The film does have some character development issues, but for the most part, it successfully creates an engaging universe, and populates it with believable characters. The cast is solid, particularly David Corenswet, Nicholas Hoult, Nathan Fillion, Skyler Gisondo, Sara Sampaio, and Pruitt Taylor Vince, all of which manage to leave a solid mark and have great chemistry with each other. The production team also excels, particularly Henry Braham's cinematography, John Murphy and David Fleming's score, and Beth Mickle's production design. It's a very entertaining and well crafted film worth watching and rewatching. 

Get Away

Movie Name: Get Away
Year of Release: 2024
Director: Steffen Haars
Starring: Nick Frost, Aisling Bea, Sebastian Croft, Maisie Ayres, Ville Virtanen, Eero Milonoff, Anitta Suikkari, Jouko Ahola, Verneri Lilja, Kari Kinnari
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 5
Watch it on Amazon

Synopsis and Review

"Get Away" is in reality the second collaboration of writer/actor Nick Frost and director Steffen Haars to be released in 2024 (the other one was the poorly received "Krazy House", which co-starred Alicia Silverstone). "Get Away" follows the narrative of the Smith family, who are in Sweden for a much needed vacation according to them. They have booked an Air BNB located on a small island, so they can witness a local holiday known as "Karantan" (translates to Quarantine). Prior to boarding the ferry to the island, they stop to get some food, and are quickly informed by the owner that they should avoid the island and the celebration altogether. Undeterred, the 4 continue to the island, and are greeted with a considerable degree of animosity by the locals. They're eventually saved by the host of their Air BNB, who takes them to their lodgings. The family isn't dissuaded from staying and in the days prior to the holiday/staging of the historical mark, go about enjoying the placid and serene surroundings of the island. While doing so, they're also being observed and recorded in the house they're renting. The day of the "Karantan", things start taking a dark turn, as their host decides to drug them, expecting to take the family on a different type of ride, only for the tables to quickly be turned on him and on the village itself.

"Get Away" is Nick Frost's first sole writing credit, and much like the best work he is well known for, such as Edgar Wright's trilogy of "Shaun of the Dead", "Hot Fuzz", and "The World's End", is a dark comedy, always with a wink and a nudge. The film that it immediately brings to mind in terms of a similar concept and approach is of course Ben Wheatley's "Sightseers", where an apparently affable and lovely couple who while on vacation, go on a killing spree whenever something or someone rubs them the wrong way (one could even go further back in terms of references, and include the dark comedy "Man Bites Dog" from directors Remy Belvaux, Andre Bonzel, and Benoit Poelvoorde). The most interesting aspect of "Get Away" is how Steffen Haars manages to quickly illustrate the complicity in the Smith family, and the opposing distaste that the tight Swedish community has towards them. While none of these characters have much dimension beyond that of a cartoon, the situations themselves evolve as a bit of a satire on modern traveling families who want to predate on local habits for their own entertainment, even if their presence is not welcomed or warranted. As mayhem ensues in the third arc of the film, the facade of everyone finally drops, and while the lunacy is rampant, one can't help but smile at the cartoonish violence that is taking place. The lead actors are all solid, with Nick Frost in particular fitting nicely into this patriarchal type of role he has leaning into more recently. The production team is solid, including Joris Kerbosch's cinematography and Pirjo Rossi's production design. It's watchable, even if not entirely memorable. 

The Amateur

Movie Name: The Amateur
Year of Release: 2025
Director: James Hawes
Starring: Rami Malek, Laurence Fishburne, Caitriona Balfe, Holt McCallany, Rachel Brosnahan, Julianne Nicholson, Danny Sapani, Jon Bernthal, Tiffany Gray, Adrian Martinez, Michael Stuhlbarg, Marthe Keller
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 3
Watch it on Amazon

Synopsis and Review

James Hawes has a long directorial career, one shaped mostly by TV shows and TV movies, with "The Amateur" being his feature sophomore directorial effort, following his debut with the well received "One Life" with Anthony Hopkins and Helena Bonham Carter. "The Amateur" follows the narrative of Charlie Heller, a CIA cryptographer, who is married to Sarah and leads a rather serene existence. Sarah goes to London on a work trip and while there is shot and killed during a terrorist attack. Charlie is devastated and has a difficult time overcoming the situation, and presses his bosses to do something about it. He decides to do his own investigation of what happened, and courtesy of his technological abilities, he is able to uncover the originators of the attack. He shares this information with leadership who still do nothing to bring those parties to justice. Charlie eventually uncovers that there's been some off the cuff activities being commandeered by his boss, and he leverages that knowledge, blackmailing them into letting him go into the field and seek revenge on what happened to his wife. He goes through a brief training period with Hendo, who explains to Charlie his considerable limitations in being a field agent, but that doesn't deter him in the least. He manages to evade everyone and goes off to Europe where he stars pursuing the terrorists involved in the incident, with his boss, and the new CIA lead also looking into what is happening.

"The Amateur" is in a lot of ways the polar opposite of Robert Ludlum and what Paul Greengrass created with "The Bourne Identity" film series (and the character Jason Bourne for that matter). One would be tempted to think with that angle that "The Amateur" would be a more grounded character driven, almost similar to John Le Carré, type of film. Sadly it isn't, and it's ultimately a film that has a rather banal tone to it, taking giant leaps of believability (which one can tolerate), and where characters pop in and out without much relevance or context. Charlie and Sarah never get much background on who they are, we get some Hallmark vignettes of what their relationship was like. The only character we get a sense of color and dimension to is Caitriona Balfe's Inquiline, who provides a brief but relevant explanation of who she is, why she does what she does, and her reasonings for eventually helping Charlie. It's a film where the director does try to emulate the aesthetic of Paul Greengrass' "Bourne" films, but it lacks the conviction, sense of urgency or danger, and ultimately fails in conveying what is really at risk (also it's difficult to understand how long are these events going for, is it days/weeks/months?). Also, and just peppering the ridiculousness of the third arc of the film, the rather Shakespearean exchange between Rami Malek's Charlie and Michael Stuhlbarg's Horst, just keeps on going, and is completely nonsensical. The cast is a bit all over the place, with Caitriona Balfe, Laurence Fishburne, Holt McCallany, Julianne Nicholson, and Danny Sapani getting off this experience with their reputations unscathed, however Rami Malek (who won a series of awards a few years back lip-syncing to Freddie Mercury), demonstrates just how limited his range is, while it's puzzling as to why Rachel Brosnahan took such a thankless part on this film. The production team is solid, particularly Martin Ruhe's cinematography. It's a mediocre endeavor and a film everyone will quickly forget. 

Drop

Movie Name: Drop
Year of Release: 2025
Director: Christopher Landon
Starring: Meghann Fahy, Brandon Sklenar, Violett Beane, Reed Diamond, Gabrielle Ryan, Sarah McCormack, Jeffery Self, Ed Weeks, Travis Nelson, Ben Pelletier
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 4
Watch it on Amazon

Synopsis and Review

Writer/director Christopher Landon who has had a significant career in the thriller/paranormal genre is back, this time around directing a feature he did not write (his career took off after his participation in the "Paranormal Activity" franchise). The narrative focuses on the story of Violet, a single mom, who after a traumatic experience with her ex-spouse, now lives very comfortably in the Chicago area, working as a therapist specialized in abuse situations. She decides to go on a date with a man she's been interacting with from the dating apps, and asks her sister to babysit her young son Toby. She arrives at the restaurant a bit early, and her date is also running a bit behind, so she decides to wait by the bar. There she meets another man who mistakenly believes her to be his blind date. They part after a few niceties, and her actual date arrives soon after. While at the table she acknowledges some drop messages that have been coming to her phone, and the tone of those messages escalates, when she realizes the person has cloned her phone, and knows everything she's doing in the restaurant. The person on the phone demands she kills her date (by poisoning him), otherwise there's someone on standby by her home to kill her child and sister. Checking on the security camera, Violet realizes that is indeed the case. As she navigates the interactions with her very patient and kind date, Violet questions herself, if she's willing to do so, and how she can successfully get out of that predicament.

"Drop" interestingly reminded me of Anatole Litvak's "Sorry, Wrong Number", with the late, great Barbara Stanwyck, whose character was bedridden and heard of a murder plot over the phone and spends the film trying to thwart it. "Drop" isn't nearly as interesting, nor nearly as compelling as that film, but it tries to be economical in its narrative strategy, placing an abused and traumatized victim as the target of some nefarious people trying to do more wrongful things. And while the nugget of the storyline is indeed interesting and compelling, there's a whole credibility to the situation that takes implausibility to a whole different level. For starters, and that's enough to kill the entire premise of this film, there isn't a single male individual, of whatever sexual orientation he may be, who would tolerate even a third of the actions and behaviors Violet throws at him. A widower who spends all her time on the phone, checking messages from her son (or so she says), goes off to the bathroom and other places for considerable amounts of time, all of this while her date sits placidly waiting. As much as Mr. Landon illustrates the lethal aspect of the messages that are coming, the overall claustrophobic environment of not knowing where to turn and what to do, never truly comes across very explicitly. And Violet, while trying to stay cool and fresh so her date doesn't suspect anything, never seems truly frazzled or disconcerted by what is happening. It's a threadbare plot that doesn't really give much dimension to these characters, nor to the situation in which it drops them into. It lacks believability in what it sets out to illustrate, and that it's ultimately why it's not a very successful endeavor. The cast tries their best with the material they have, and while Meghann Fahy doesn't do much with her character (fairly generic), at least her interactions with Brandon Sklenar don't feel entirely rigid. The production is solid, with highlights going to Marc Spicer's cinematography, Susie Cullen's production design, and Bear McCreary's score. It's another miss for Blumhouse studios.

Elyas

Movie Name:  Elyas
Year of Release: 2024
Director: Florent-Emilio Siri
Starring: Roschdy Zem, Laetitia Eido, Jeanne Michel, Dimitri Storoge, Sherwan Haji, Eric Savin, Nabil Elouahabi, Toussaint Martinetti, Frederic Maranber, Aguibou Ba, Leonid Glushchenko, Sieme Miladi, Olivia Bonamy
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 4
View the Trailer

Synopsis and Review

Director Florent-Emilio Siri is well known for his work directing music videos, but also for having directed the Bruce Willis led, "Hostage" which came out in 2005."Elyas" is his most recent feature directorial endeavor since his last effort released in 2015, "French Cuisine". The film focuses its attention on Elyas, a former Special Forces soldier dealing with some trauma from his experiences in Afghanistan, who gets a new job courtesy of a referral as a security guard for a wealthy/affluent family. While not exactly something he was looking forward to tackling, he agrees to it, since they pay is solid and the job itself seems rather low risk. He is tasked with protecting a young girl by the name of Nour and her mom Amina. While initially cold and distant, Nour slowly ingratiates herself with him, and a bond of friendship is built around Elyas and the young girl. However their placid existence is thrown into disarray when the castle is invaded, with a highly skilled team of mercenaries trying to kidnap Nour. Elyas' security team is all killed, and it eventually falls down to him to successfully prevent Amina and Nour from being taken.

"Elyas" covers ground that many other films have already done so in the past. The most obvious reference is of course Tony Scott's "Man on Fire" with Denzel Washington and Dakota Fanning, which this film appears to attempt to remake, just moving the action to a different continent and reframing some of the context of the narrative. The film also bears influences from Paul Greengrass' "The Bourne Identity" films, in the way the action set pieces are orchestrated and shot. The film is in essence another take on the action films Luc Besson's Europa Corp has been producing, with directors such as Olivier Megaton, Louis Leterrier, Xavier Gens, Pierre Morel, and more recently George Huang. Slick and polished B-movies, not that different in spirit from the genre pictures that the late Charles Bronson was doing with director Michael Winner. "Elyas" doesn't provide much in terms of character development for any of the characters, and much of the rapport that is shaped between the lead characters feels very much like a cliché already captured in other films, but it illustrates the connection between them until the action set pieces begin. The action is adequately captured, without the frantic sense of urgency and authenticity as Paul Greengrass has been able to do in his "The Bourne Identity" films, but it's effective and gives the film the jolt of energy that it needs. The film and its creative team, don't take the material or themselves very seriously: they know they're crafting a B-movie made of car chases and fight scenes, and that's essentially what they deliver. There are some hints of character development with Elyas references to his past, but they're altogether brief. The cast is led by the talented Roschy Zem, who creates Elyas as a credible, stoic and unstoppable individual, while the supporting players do a fairly competent job with the limited material they have. The production team is equally competent. It's a watchable and unmemorable feature. 

They Came Together

Movie Name: They Came Together
Year of Release: 2014
Director: David Wain
Starring: Paul Rudd, Amy Poehler, Cobie Smulders, Bill Hader, Ellie Kemper, Michael Ian Black, Jason Mantzoukas, Christopher Meloni, Melanie Lynskey, Teyonah Parris, Ed Helms, Ken Marino, Jack McBrayer, Kenan Thompson, Michaela Watkins, Randall Park, Noureen DeWulf, Lynn Cohen, Michael Murphy, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Michael Shannon
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 6
Watch it on Amazon

Synopsis and Review

The creative team of David Wain/Michael Showalter/Ken Marino/Paul Rudd, reunited with "They Came Together" shortly after the release of "Wanderlust", which was a middle of the road endeavor for all parties involved. "They Came Together" is a satire/spoof on all the tropes of romantic comedies, recycling elements from all sorts of films in particular the Nora Ephron ones such as "You've Got Mail" and even "Sleepless in Seattle". The narrative focuses on the couple comprised of Joel and Molly, who are having a casual dinner with their friends Kyle and Karen. During dinner they start reminiscing about how they got together and how their path to happiness came about. Molly originally owned an independent candy store that was slowly being pushed out of business by a bigger one, who was Joel's employer. Molly had gone through a divorce, while Joel had a girlfriend who was cheating on him with a rival coworker. They end up being set up by friends unknowingly, and although they initially dislike each other, they eventually warm up to each other and start bonding over mutual likes. They experience some additional fumbles, but seem to resume their relationship, meeting Molly's parents in the meantime. While that event initially takes place without much controversy, Joel is later horrified to notice Molly's parents are white supremacists. They once again argue, and break up, resulting in them falling into other relationships. Joel goes back to his cheating ex, while Molly starts something with a banker who simply tries too hard. Molly gets proposed by her new partner, but Joel can't stop thinking of her.

Paul Rudd and Amy Poehler have a long standing career of collaborating with David Wain. They worked together on "Wet Hot American Summer" which came out in 2001, and since then Paul Rudd in particular has been in "The Ten", "Role Models", "Wanderlust", and "They Came Together". There's a level of comfortability between all involved in the film, since they've all been collaborating with each other for quite some time, a troupe of sorts, similar to what Christopher Guest has done with his series of mockumentaries and his collaborators (Catherine O'Hara, Eugene Levy, Michael McKean, Parker Posey, Jennifer Coolidge, Bob Balaban, Jane Lynch, to name but a few). Paul Rudd of course is part of David Wain's troupe but also of Judd Apatow's troupe ("40 Year Old Virgin", "Knocked Up", "This is 40"). While this camaraderie is wonderful and generates an easy rapport between the characters on screen, "They Came Together" while funny in many parts, it also never truly seems to land or generate that riotous moment. Part of the challenge of this satire, is that unlike what ZAZ did with "Airplane" and "The Naked Gun", the tone on "They Came Together" is self-aware of the elements of the romantic comedy they're mocking/spoofing. What was always so brilliant about ZAZ was how over the top their films were, and how deeply committed to that satire they actually were. "They Came Together" touches on so many funny bits and clichés of the romantic comedy genre, but is somewhat tame and perhaps just too tasteful to really shred it to pieces, something that "Airplane" for instance never feared (the more serious or referential something seems to be, the easier in principle it should be to tear it down). As it stands, the film is a good showcase for the talents of Paul Rudd, Amy Poehler, and all the supporting cast that is comprised of a plethora of very talented comedians. The production team is competent but not particularly memorable, which in the end is how this film can be summed up: it's funny, but not particularly memorable. 

Sinners

Movie Name: Sinners
Year of Release: 2025
Director: Ryan Cogler 
Starring: Michael B. Jordan, Hailee Steinfeld, Miles Caton, Jack O'Connell, Delroy Lindo, Wunmi Mosaku, Jayme Lawson, Yao, Li Jun Li, Omar Benson Miller, Sam Malone, Dave Maldonado, Lola Kirke, Peter Dreimanis, Saul Williams, Nathaniel Arcand
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 7
View Trailer

Synopsis and Review

After back to back Marvel produced features, writer/director Ryan Cogler is back to his own original material, with far better results than the somewhat formulaic comic book fare that he has tackled to considerable audience results. This time around the narrative focuses on the story of twin brothers Smoke and Stack Moore, who in 1932 return to Mississipi after years spent in Chicago working for organized crime (and a stint in the World War as well). They decide to buy a sawmill from a racist landowner in order to start a juke joint. One of the artists they've recruited is their cousin Sammie, a young man who is the son of a local pastor, who states that blues music opens the gateways to a supernatural world. The brothers recruit a variety of people to their team, including local Chinese shopkeepers Grace and Bo Chow, field worker Cornbread as a bouncer, Smoke's partner Annie as a cook, and Delta Slim, the local music legend, as a pianist. The opening night shows a lot of promise, and Mary, Stack's ex-girlfriend shows up as well, even though their shared history is a lengthy one. Sammie, Delta Slim, and Pearline, the latter one a married singer whom Sammie is infatuated with, perform to great success, however Sammie's musical abilities manages to attract Remmick, and Irish-immigrant who is also a vampire. He's turned a few locals into vampires as well, and they all show up at the joint wanting to come in. When the brothers and their team suspect something unseemly with Remmick and his acolytes, they deny them entrance, but as Mary investigates further, things start taking a much darker turn during the evening.

There's a fluidity and a sense of pleasure in "Sinners" that is the biggest takeaway from the film. Or at least it was so for me. Ryan Cogler doesn't necessarily bring too much dimension to any of these characters - he mostly gives telegraphic and essential information about who they are, and their entwined relationships, which enables his talented cast to bring them to life. The film is indeed a polished and deftly executed genre picture, but through the perspective of someone with a firmly established point of view, that is informed by his ancestry, and by the race history in North America. It's a film that is able to bring to the surface so much of Black culture, history, the joy of creation and music, but also mix it with a supernatural potboiler where vampires are musically seduced, but lethal and vicious nonetheless. The film does have a fluidity to it (there are no lulls), though there are aspects that could have benefited from some additional development, such as the twins relationships with the women they're bonded with, but as the film evolves there are echoes of John Carpenter's "Assault on Precinct 13" in the sense of the imminent invasion of the space by a larger group of foes, and there's even some pulp-like nods to Quentin Tarantino's scripted "From Dusk Till Dawn". The most striking aspect about this film is the fact that it manages to balance nods to Africanism, Blues/Music, Religion, Racism, and a supernatural twist, without ever feeling forced. The cast is uniformly solid, with highlights going to Michael B. Jordan, Hailee Steinfeld, Delroy Lindo, Wunmi Mosaku, and Jack O'Connell. The production team is also impeccable, including Autumn Durald Arkapaw's cinematography, Ludwig Goransson's score, Ruth E. Carter's costumes, and Hannah Beachler's production design. An overall deftly crafted and entertaining film worth watching. 

Final Destination 5

Movie Name: Final Destination 5
Year of Release: 2011
Director: Steven Quale
Starring: Nicholas D'Agosto, Emma Bell, Arlen Escarpeta , Miles Fisher, Ellen Wroe, Jacqueline MacInnes Wood, P.J. Byrne, David Koechner, Courtney B. Vance, Brent Stait, Tony Todd
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 5
Watch it on Amazon

Synopsis and Review

After the disappointing "The Final Destination" (or "Final Destination 4" from director David R. Ellis), the fifth installment of the series gave the creative reigns to the team of director Steven Quale and screenwriter Eric Heisserer, who has since written the films "Bird Box" for director Susanne Bier and the multiple award nominated "Arrival" for director Denis Villeneuve. The narrative this time around focuses on a young professional in sales by the name of Sam Lawton who is about to go on a company retreat with his colleagues. Sam has been contemplating a change of career and has the opportunity to go to Paris and work for a well know restaurant, something he has always dreamt of. The morning before embarking on the bus to go on the retreat, his co-worker and also girlfriend, Molly, breaks up with him, devastating him. During the trip he has a premonition that the bridge they're crossing collapses, and most of his co-workers and himself die in that premonition. Sam wakes up, manages to stop the bus, and get some of his closest friends and co-workers out of the bus, before the bridge collapses, taking the remainder of their team, and many other cars and people in them to the bottom of the sea. The police who starts investigating the case suspects foul play, and that Sam is somehow involved in it all. Soon after the dramatic accident, each one of the survivors start dying due to extreme and unusual occurrences, starting with Candice, the intern and girlfriend of Peter, who is crushed to witness her death. And the deaths don't stop with Candice, all of them start getting picked by the order in which they would have died, had they stayed on the bus.

Steven Quale started his career as a second-unit director for James Cameron's "Titanic" and has since then also worked in that same capacity for his other well known directorial endeavor, "Avatar". Mr. Quale's directorial debut was actually the documentary he co-directed with James Cameron, "Aliens of the Deep", though "Final Destination 5" is in reality his scripted feature directorial debut. Working within the parameters of the series and with a solid script from Eric Heisserer, who actually goes in slightly different directions than the other features of the series. "Final Destination 5" is a worthy continuation to the work James Wong did with "Final Destination" and "Final Destination 3", both of which leaned a bit more heavily into the supernatural aspect of the series, and not solely on the gratuitous aspect of the gore afflicted death scenes. This film gives the characters something more substantial to do and react to, providing some extra context into the relationships between the co-workers, and even giving some additional (even if limited) information on Sam and Molly's relationship. The film still illustrates the gruesome accidents, as it has become a staple of the series, but it smartly takes its time in setting up the scenarios. It also benefits from actors who are more subtle about their performances, creating characters that feel more authentic than the ones that paraded around on the prior chapter of the franchise (even if most of the characters on this chapter aren't the most layered ones of the whole series of films). The production team is competent even if unremarkable, but overall this film is an average addition to the series. 

The Old Guard 2

Movie Name: The Old Guard 2
Year of Release: 2025
Director: Victoria Mahoney
Starring: Charlize Theron, Kiki Layne, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Matthias Schoenaerts, Marwan Kenzari, Luca Marinelli, Veronica Ngo, Henry Golding, Uma Thurman, Kamil Nozynski
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 3
Watch it on Netflix

Synopsis and Review

Five years after the release of the first film, "The Old Guard" is back, with a new director in charge of what seems to have been a troubled production. The narrative picks right after the events of the first feature. Andy, now a mortal, is still leading her team of immortals, this time around with the addition of Copley as their logistics team member. Joe in the meantime has been keeping tabs and regular contact with Booker, who was exiled from the group due to his treasonous behavior from the prior film. His partner Nicky is disappointed in his behavior, but the group agrees to reconnect with Booker. He lets them know that Quynh, Andy's former companion and partner who all believed to be lost at sea, has been saved and retrieved. She has been brought back by the first immortal, a woman going by the name of Discord, who sets Quynh on a path of retribution and revenge against Andy, but who has agenda of her own. 

Victoria Mahoney has a considerable directorial career on her resume, the large majority of it focused on Television/Streaming shows. And much like the shows she's worked on, the imprint that is left on this film is equally generic and without much of a point of view. What the original film set in motion, namely a group of immortals who work together, and have been changing humanity throughout the years, is largely set aside to focus on a pseudo revenge tale, one that doesn't make much sense, and that as the story continues to develop, gains less and less traction and believability. The script hailing from Greg Rucka (who wrote the original graphic novel) and Sarah L. Walker (who has mostly written TV Shows and TV movies), gives no additional information on any of these characters, not to mention providing very little in terms of background on the new characters who are added, including Tuah and Discord. For a film that was apparently shot in 2022, and has been lingering in this post production limbo since then, it's surprisingly meager how little this film adds to the mythology that the original film tried to establish. It's a film that feels rushed, lacking development in the relationships between the core group, stealing much of what made this group of characters so interesting to begin with, namely their different relationships, including the romantic couple of the team, who this time around is downplayed to what seems a buddy partnership. Everything the first film set in motion, even if it did so in a contrived and limited manner, was further sanded down, leaving all these characters without much of an arc, without much of a presence, and without much of anything to make them memorable (including edge or humor). The cast tries their best with the material they have, and the film is watchable largely because of the luminous Charlize Theron, who is as always a striking presence, but even she can't save this generic drivel. Uma Thurman, Matthias Schoenaerts and Chiwetel Ejiofor as good as they are, also have very little to do. The production team is sadly equally less than impressively. Barry Ackroyd, a formidable veteran cinematographer (he works with Paul Greengrass quite frequently, and lensed Kathryn Bigelow's "The Hurt Locker"), lights this film in such a way, that there's no specific tonality in the film, everything is so brightly lit that it renders the film as something cheap. The production design, the costume design, is equally unimpressive, which is saying something for a film that is supposed to cover such a wide timeline. This is a head-scratcher, considering all the talent involved. A barely watchable head-scratcher. 

My Mom Jayne

Movie Name: My Mom Jayne
Year of Release: 2025
Director: Mariska Hargitay
Starring: Jayne Mansfield, Mariska Hargitay, Mickey Hargitay, Nelson Sardelli, Tony Cimber
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 8
View Trailer

Synopsis and Review

"My Mom Jayne" is a documentary, as the title indicates, tracing who actress Jayne Mansfield was, from the perspective of her daughter, actress and film-maker, Mariska Hargitay. The documentary has a heartfelt premise: Mariska was only 3 years old when her mother died as a result of a car crash (where Mariska and two of her siblings were also on board), something that has become an event of its own (popping up for instance on David Cronenberg's seminal work "Crash"). What starts as an investigation of Mariska into who the person behind the larger than life actress her mother was, uncovering more details about her mother in the process, thanks to numerous interviews she performs, including with her siblings, the film also starts peeling away at who she actually is, her own roots, her relationship with her father Mickey Hargitay, stepmother, and some discussions that never happened about her own ancestry. It's a thoughtful documentary, one that shies away from salacious topics, nor does it investigate the star factory of Hollywood of the 1950s, but one that chooses to investigate who Jayne Mansfield "the mother" actually was, and subsequently how Mariska Hargitay herself came about, and her position in the family and all the ties her mother created. There's quite a bit of vulnerability and self-exposure from Ms. Hargitay in this documentary, which is always a rather tricky option to tackle in a documentary, which by default, should always be as objective as possible. There's a risk of losing a bit of self-awareness, and presenting oneself in a particular way, and there are indeed certain parts of the documentary where the author itself becomes too much of the center of a narrative that started being about someone else, but it's nonetheless a touching document and homage to a figure, to family, and to ultimately a testament to the fact that everyone is fallible, filled with limitations, and even some regrets, no matter how glamorous or publicized someone's life may be. It's worth watching.