This blog is on short hiatus while I move house - expect to return with more reviews later this Summer (2026)!
Tuesday, 14 July 2026
Monday, 15 June 2026
VOD: Is This Thing On? (dir: Bradley Cooper, 2025)
"Is it funny?"
Middle-class middle-aged couple Alex (Will Arnett) and Tess (Laura Dern) face the end of their marriage just as Alex accidentally stumbles into an unexpected life as a confessional stand-up comedian at a city bar comedy club. Shot in a naturalistic semi-documentary style, dialogue flows easily and both the city and the marital home become places of curious alienation, and the comedy club scenes are quick-witted and feel low-key authentic. Arnett and Dern smash their roles and have great on-screen chemistry and honesty as the faded couple . With moments of uncomfortable awkwardness, brutal honesty, profound melancholy and introspective loneliness, Is This Thing On? is a mature, thoughtful, intimate, rather sad but very satisfying exploration of navigating and negotiating uncharted territory in a long-standing relationship, delivered with aplomb by two great leads and a confident director.
FILM: Disclosure Day (dir: Steven Spielberg, 2026)
"No."
"Are they people?"
"No."
"Are they human?"
If you want evidence that Steven Spielberg is still a storyteller supreme, Disclosure Day kept a cinema audience still and spellbound for over two hours. From an excellently-constructed and tight David Koepp script, in some respects this is Close Encounters filtered through the lens of an old-school conspiracy thriller, as parallel narratives steadily bring together the lives of Margaret (Emily Blunt), a local weather presenter, and Daniel (Josh O'Connor), a renegade Government cyber-security specialist, both with particular 'gifts' that stem from mysterious childhood events and who are destined to change the world by revealing long-hidden secrets. It has great set pieces, some typically smart Spielberg visual flourishes, and a superb and surprisingly tight core cast that includes an impressively excellent performance from Emily Blunt (particularly in the final act), more winning character work from Josh O'Connor, and Colin Firth exuding barely-restrained menace as the pair's nemesis. Typical Spielberg themes of religion, fairy tales/Disney, all inform this (for the most part\) restrained yet powerful film. childhood trauma, covert Government goings-on and - yes - extra-terrestrials in this (for the most part) quite restrained yet powerful film. With heightened modern geopolitics pushed to the background, Spielberg's eternal optimism for humanity may play a little quaintly in the current climate, but this fusion of classic and modern Spielberg is both impressive in its storytelling and absorbing to watch.
VOD: Twinless (dir: James Sweeney, 2026)
In this unusual and extremely accomplished drama, Roman (Dylan O'Brien) and Dennis (James Sweeney) meet at a support club for bereaved twins and strike up an awkward friendship, two very different people but seemingly linked by their experience of grief and struggling in their own ways, but they are also connected by a slowly-revealed secret that looms over the second half of the film in particular and ultimately explodes. It is creatively constructed and presented, exquisitely written and beautifully played by the two leads as it explores loss, loneliness, identity and male friendship by going in truly unexpected directions. This is a film to be savoured and enjoyed as it unfolds; even the trailer misdirects intriguingly. Twinless is a quirky, admirable, intimate and singular drama that breaks your heart and makes you laugh out loud unexpectedly, and it is a terrific achievement by actor?producer O'Brien and writer/director/actor Sweeney.
VOD: Primate (dir: Johannes Roberts, 2026)
A professor adopts a chimpanzee, names him Ben and develops his intelligence and communication skills, and after her death her daughter Lucy returns to the family's fabulous isolated Hawaiian home with her group of pretty young people, but an unfortunate case of rabies turns Ben from cute animal friend to murderous enemy who traps, terrorises and picks off most of the disposable cast. After the well-constructed shock prologue, the tale flashes back to tell the events of the preceding thirty-six hours with rather slow set-up, but the film then switches up a few gears to become a zippy and atmospheric thriller/slasher, in which the young women take centre stage and the males are the Shreddies. The film makes clever use of limited sets/locations, with Carpenter's original Halloween a clear touchstone here. Inclusion through sign language and the deaf father is a positive integral part of the plot, it certainly does not skimp on the quite nasty injury detail, and this simple, low-key tale is delivered very efficiently and effectively enough for genre fans.
VOD: The Long Walk (dir: Francis Lawrence, 2026)
Another day, another Stephen King adaptation, and The Long Walk sees fifty young men (supposedly older teens), one from each US state, competing in the titular brutal contest in an impoverished dystopian near/alt-future, with the simple premise that the competitors keep walking, having to keep up with the pace or be shot mercilessly, last one standing winning a fortune. Originally reflecting young soldiers being sent to the Vietnam War, it is reframed unforgivingly here to reflect the current social, economic and political climate. Starting off seemingly light with the competitors getting to know each other through easy banter on the first few miles (reminiscent of Stand By Me), but it does not take long before the first brutally visceral shock execution of the first participant to fall occurs. As an effective metaphor for how economic stresses can drive people to extreme measures and a commentary on reality TV (like a stripped-back Hunger Games), the film's lean and simple concept and unwavering focus keeps it morbidly engaging throughout, especially as the weather, exhaustion, injuries and even bodily functions take their toll on the ever-diminishing group. With a strong and invested cast, Brit David Jonsson is a clear standout from the start. As the film progresses and even the core cast members start to be picked off, this excellent but grim and distressing watch leads to an inevitable final head-to-head and a conclusion that the viewer knows is coming and does not want to see.
VOD: The Strangers Chapter 3 (dir: Renny Harlin, 2026)
Picking up from Chapter 2's ending, with the unfortunate Maya having still eluded the now-revealed killers, the inevitable happens and she is taken captive, her only option to stay alive being to become one of the murderous gang whilst the town's hidden past starts to unravel. There is a difference between atmospheric and slow, and here the film crawls along with astonishing pauses in the delivery of dialogue in the first act in particular, demonstrating the thinness of the material once again. There are some positives - some atmospheric lighting, a decently-staged jump-scare early on, brief and sudden acts of violence to keep the viewer awake and a fair sequence with a caravan - but little of consequence happens in this empty and largely uninteresting trilogy-capper to a weak series.
Friday, 22 May 2026
FILM: The Mandalorian And Grogu a.k.a. Star Wars - The Mandalorian And Grogu (dir: Jon Favreau, 2026)
"I try to avoid violence..."
Seven years on from Star Wars IX in cinemas, and with Andor wrapped up with a satisfying conclusion, the second of the more successful Star Wars-universe TV series makes the jump to the big screen with this completely stand-alone/side-mission tale that sees Din Djarin and his sidekick/ward working for the New Republic to find an Imperial warlord via Jabba The Hutt's twin siblings. with Jabba's son held prisoner by the bad guys and Mando also tasked with retrieving him. With Favreau as director/co-writer, it cleaves closely and authentically to its TV roots and looks great, with sufficient expansion to justify its cinematic format here. It flits briskly from planet to planet as action set-pieces are delivered efficiently, (mostly) effectively and feel over quite quickly. There are plenty of nice fan-service details and moments to please the die-hards right from the start, but sometimes over-familiar tropes (another Hutt pit, another arena battle royale, another high-speed chase through a Blade Runner-esque city) lack invention although executed well. Ludwig Goransson's score is terrific, mixing classical-style Williams nods with signature modern/ethnic themes and stylings from the TV show. Its two titular stars are inevitably the big draw here, with Pedro Pascal delivering more of what makes his characterisation so successful, Grogu - as always - an utter delight, notably when he gets more extended screen time in the second half of the film, and Sigourney Weaver fits well as Mando's Republic boss. It is also interesting to see a younger and more active Hutt in action, with the great Jeremy Allen White making Rotta (in voice acting) a sympathetic Hutt. Not quite 'classic' Star Wars, all of the ingredients are here, but oddly you spend a lot of the movie waiting for a big 'moment' that never quite happens which suggests a slight lack of storytelling ambition, and there is never any real sense of jeopardy which neuters the narrative to a degree. Overall The Mandalrian And Grogu is a very good, solid and entertaining enough outing for the much-loved duo that sticks to its TV origins whilst making just enough development for a cinema showing.
VOD: Remarkably Bright Creatures (dir: Olivia Newman, 2026)
Starting off with a voiceover from a smart old octopus called Marcellus, who is trapped in a public aquarium, the film then introduces the aquarium's night cleaner Tova (Sally Field) facing an old-age life change and drifter Cameron (Lewis Pullman), whose camper van breaks down in the sleepy waterside town of Sowell Bay, and the story brings together the unlikely trio as they learn life lessons and how to face the future in this gentle, whimsical and contemplative drama. It is, of course, all one big metaphor for looking beyond that which limits you and escaping your confines, as well as dealing with family and reconciling with the past. The writing is excellent, as Tora and Cameron gradually find common ground and learn from each other as their cross-generational friendship develops. Sally Field is - as expected - simply wonderful, Lewis Pullman is very strong as a foil to her straight-talking ways whilst establishing his character and arc very well in his own right as the directionless Cameron, and Colm Meaney does another of his effortlessly watchable character performances as the local store owner. The conclusion is perhaps expectedly mawkish (if have not by that point pieced together all the clues), but overall Remarkably Bright Creatures is a simple tale that is delivered impeccably.
VOD: Song Sung Blue (dir: Craig Brewer, 2026)
Based on real events and set in the extraordinary world of low-rent music tribute acts, Mike (Hugh Jackman), part-time singer and recovering alcoholic, meets single-mother Claire (Kate Hudson), and they develop a Neil Diamond 'experience' alongside their personal relationship, with a shock mid-point tragedy that moves the film into darker territory and explores their personal struggles and triumphs. The film smartly reflects the strange duality of the tribute act, simultaneously knowingly artificial but striving to providing an authentic experience of the artist. With Neil Diamond's music providing the core of the film, one banger after another reminds us of the power and joy of his back catalogue which is deployed beautifully here. Both Hudson and Jackman are utterly charming, heartbreaking and likeable here in a film which certainly gives them range to convey, using their easy-going chemistry to good effect and both leaning into their now-more-mature star personae for their characters that works very well. Song Sung Blue is a sweet musical romantic drama that blends its darker moments and heartwarming comedy in a way that is ultimately entertaining and uplifting
VOD: Send Help (dir: Sam Raimi, 2026)
Send Help is a quintessential Sam Raimi horror-comedy that blends the genres effortlessly as has characterised much of the director's early output in particular. Rachel McAdams and Dylan O'Brien - two dependable and likeable actors - play antagonistic business colleagues, the dowdy, overlooked and downtrodden Linda and the cocky, unpleasant new young President of the company, Bradley. When they survive a storm-hit aeroplane on a business trip (a brief but very effectively-staged sequence) that leaves the pair stranded on a remote tropical island, their battle to survive becomes increasingly antagonistic, with Linda's reality-TV-survival shows fixation playing against Bradley's ruthlessness as they battle to survive. The film has a lovely Danny Elfman score, the humorous moments are genuinely funny, the twists work well and Raimi's signature visceral/bodily-fluids moments are suitably gross. The two leads inhabit their roles utterly and make a great pairing on-screen. The talky mid-section lull - although well-played by the lead duo - builds well towards the final act when the gloves really come off. Overall, the odl-fashioned goofy screwball comedy feel mixed with the full-on thrills makes for a very entertaining ride.
VOD: A Nice Indian Boy (dir: Roshan Sethi, 2024)
"Um... embarrassed?"
"By the bigness of love."
Based on a play, this well-received rom-com tells the story of Naveen (Karan Soni), a quiet, closed-off gentle doctor from a traditional Indian family, who tentatively falls for photographer Jay (Jonathan Groff), and the film follows the development of their relationship culminating in their wedding. The film has a genuinely touching and funny contemporary script, and a beautifully quiet restraint, with Soni and Groff playing off each other superbly, and Naveen's family (Sunita Mani as his snippy sister, the great Harish Patel as his conflicted father and the barnstorming Zarna Gard as his non-nonsense mother) consistently stealing scenes and creating touching moments. Scene after scene knocks it out of the park, the accidental proposal and the first meeting as a couple with Naveen's parents are two of the most delightful scenes you will see all year. Even familiar cinematic and thematic touchstones such as arranged marriage, changing times and attitudes and even Bollywood are considered and deployed thoughtfully and with good humour. Gentle, warm, funny and utterly charming, A Nice Indian Boy is smart, sensitive and a joyful delight from start to finish.
VOD: Altered (dir: Timo Vuorensola, 2026)
In this standard sci-fi potboiler, Earth has rebuilt itself after nuclear strikes into a shiny new genetically-enhanced Apple-store future, with a struggling and rebellious underclass ('Specials') trying to get by in a grimy low-tech-augmented existence, focussing on a wheelchair-bound hustler Leon (Tom Felton) and his sassy 12-year-old sassy sidekick ward Chloe (Elizaveta Bugulova) and other rebels set to target an imminent unification concert. There is a reasonable if limited attempt at world-building to differentiate between the simplistic social divide, but it is hampered by lacklustre performances across the board and the story limps along listlessly. Low-budget international co-productions with eclectic casts rarely work well, and Altered is no exception that leaves little impression.
VOD: How To Train Your Dragon (2025) (dir: Dean DeBlois, 2025)
This live-action remake of the first film of the successful animated film trilogy is one of the more successful examples of the recent trend, feeling faithfully authentic to its cinematic predecessor in both look and spirit to an extraordinary degree. Two key elements for this version to get right were the central relationship between Hiccup and Toothless, which it does really well right from their first tentative encounter, and the action sequences which are delivered energetically. The dragons, especially Toothless, retain the cartoonish style that is recognisable and accessible to younger viewers, integrated into the live action elements very well. The occasionally mock-operatic score feels at times unnecessarily overblown as it thunders along in the background, but design and world-building are both consistently engaging and effective, clearly having been giving the resources to make this film work. Mason Thames does a really good job of humanising Hiccup, and other key characters - from his gruffly humorous father to his eclectic band of buddies - are realised extremely well in this format. This 2025 version is an efficient, well-made and entertaining version in its own right, perhaps unnecessary but certainly strong enough to stand on its own merits.
VOD: Alien Rubicon (dir: Adrian Avila, 2024)
This surprisingly ambitious sci-fi mockbuster from The Asylum once again takes its cue from Independence Day as single father scientist Jeff (Preston Greer) discovers an alien sphere approaching Earth, its destructive properties and intentions unleashed as a precursor to a full-on invasion. The first two acts have all the limitations of microbudget movies - small sets, slow talky scenes, low-impact acting - but the larger-scale finale picks up the pace a little, raises the stakes and tries hard to deliver. It benefits from a lean running time and from storytelling shortcuts that keep the story moving along, although the often limp dialogue tends to be delivered somewhat carefully. Veteran Michael Pare plays P.O.T.U.S - but he is no Bill Pullman - and remarkable Asylum veteran Paul Logan is as stoically tightly wound as ever, with the scientist's teen children delivering well. The film is decently shot, with crisp visuals and shiny VFX work, and on its own terms (and within its obvious limitations, this is one of the more effective examples of The Asylum's output.
VOD: Night Stage a.k.a. Ato Noturno (dirs: Filipe Matzembacher and Marcio Reolon, 2026)
The Hard Paint duo bring this tale of Matias, a handsome young actor/dancer in a troupe two weeks from opening a new show, who hooks up with Rafael, a property developer and budding mayoral candidate, and they develop a relationship that thrives on increasingly risky public sexual encounters just as both of their career profiles rise. Almodovar is a clear inspiration here as recognisable territory is explored, from celebrating the arts - providing a narrative and metaphorical backbone - to objectifying male beauty, the tension between personal life and public image, and ambition and fame. For its contemporary setting and issues, the film feels surprisingly a little old-fashioned and restrained, rather than gaudy and melodramatic. For what might have once seemed edgy, Night Stage sits comfortably in the age of more adult streaming drama output. The story holds no real surprises, but the film is performed and presented well in all respects.
Thursday, 14 May 2026
VOD: Je m'appelle Agneta (dir: Johanna Runevad, 2026)
Middle-aged, fed-up and taken for granted, Francophile Agneta leaves her husband and her dull life in Sweden behind for a big new life adventure as an au pair in picturesque rural Provence in this lovely Swedish Netflix comedy-drama that is charming, thoughtful and good-humoured throughout. When the job turns out to be not quite what she expects, the film becomes a wistful but also uplifting journey of self-discovery flecked with moments of simple everyday pleasures, utter joy and positive life-affirmation. Eva Melander is an utter delight on-screen from start to finish in a quartet of accomplished lead performances of colourful characters. This is not the typical light, sunny fish-out-of-water rom-com but a mature, reflective rear-view-mirror ode to life, love and experience that is both warm and tinged with some sadness. The gorgeous soundtrack is cleverly entwined with the storytelling, at times narrating Agneta's experiences and discoveries, and even smartly reframing ABBA's The Winner Takes It All to make the female protagonist the victor. The film is a timely reminder that all lives are worth celebrating and living to the full, and it does so quite beautifully.
VOD: Anaconda (dir: Tom Gormican, 2025)
Jack Black and Paul Rudd's silly meta-comedy/horror sees a group of childhood friends reunite years later and hatch a plan to make a reboot of the 'cult classic' in three weeks on the fly in the Brazilian rainforest, but their attempt at making the movie is derailed by the appearance of a real monster snake on the rampage. The film echoes Tropic Thunder in its approach (though far less entertainingly), but it veers haphazardly between styles and levels of success. It does have its tongue firmly in its cheek and a self-awareness of its own limitations and the campy nonsense of the original movie, but it is nevertheless not as funny as it perhaps thinks it is, and not all of the (improvised) material lands, especially in the more obviously drawn-out scenes. Oddly, there are some moments that suggest a serious, straight take on the material could work, but this 2025 version is a clear example of falling between two stools.
VOD: The Conjuring 4 - Last Rites (dir: Michael Chaves, 2025)
New Line's last go-round for the surprisingly successful Ed and Lorraine Warren-inspired paranormal franchise/universe gets off to a suitably creepy start with its 1964-set prologue that resonates down the years as the story picks up in 1986 with a blast of The Cure and the reappearance of a possessed artefact that slowly wreaks havoc on an ordinary Pennsylvanian family and proves to be the Warrens' final case that brings everything full circle to their own family as well. The Poltergeist, Paranormal Activity and The Exorcist films loom large over the action, although this entry feels a little more restrained than many recent examples of its type. It could be argued that the domestic scenes make the film a tad flabby, but they only serve to highlight the strength and importance of Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga in the series, with the ever-reliable Brit Ben Hardy (playing American) a useful addition here as their daughter's fiance. Offering some nicely-delivered set-ups and a couple of decent jump-scares and a typically messy peer-through-the-darkness finale, Last Rites leaves the door slightly ajar for a Next Generation continuation if the studio wishes to exploit the franchise further, but this film is a routine if acceptable conclusion to the Warrens' story.
VOD: Wuthering Heights (dir: Emerald Fennell, 2026)
Emerald Fennell's somewhat singular vision for this version of the classic novel - and it is certainly 'inspired by' rather than a straightforward adaptation - is frequently tiresome, from its irritating and wayward music score (including its whiny sub-Enya Charli XCX interludes) to the over-obvious modern use of camera and editing flourishes. Sex and violence/death are awkwardly and inextricably linked from the very start, and the film flits between grim realism and jarringly heightened artificiality. Margot Robbie plays the rather self-serving Cathy wringing everything she can from every single line, and Jacob Elordi's more thoughtful take on Heathcliff sometimes works well, although neither seems a particularly good fit here, but Hong Chau does nice work as Cathy's constant companion Nelly. The film works best when Robbie and Elordi interact in the quieter moments, but these are juxtaposed with scenes delivered as screeching hysteria or painful melodrama. Overall, this is a potentially interesting but overwrought and inconsistent film that drags and is ultimately disappointing.
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