'Fatherland' A Review

Fatherland is a biographical period drama about the return to Germany of famous writer Thomas Mann(Hanns Zischler) to receive a Goethe Price accompanied by his daughter Erika(Sandra Hüller).

Both Zischler and Hüller give reserved, quiet performances, but with a lot going on below the service and a lot of emotion and information inferred. The acting style throughout is very still-waters-run-deep, it's not particularly energetic but it doesn't need to be. This is more of a vibe film, a feeling, a meditation.

In black & white with a truncated aspect ratio this plays almost like historical footage, there is incredible remove and restraint from co-writer/director Paweł Pawlikowski and it's effective, maybe not as transcendent or impactful as Ida or Cold War but any major release from Pawlikowski is a gift, worthy of eyes and consideration.

Subtle, at times overly subtle, but unobtrusively rich and speaking, through the lens of history, to our current time.

Currently in theaters.

See It.

'Hokum' A Review

Hokum is a horror movie about an author Ohm(Adam Scott) who takes a trip to rural Ireland to stay in the hotel where his parents honeymooned and finish his latest novel. After an incident Fiona(Florence Ordesh) the hotel bartender disappears which Ohm can help but investigate.

Scott gives his best film performance is several years, he anchors it perfectly. His depth of emotion and humor bring real human stakes to the horror. The limited supporting cast is wonderful- Ordesh, David Wilmot as Jerry a local vagrant, Will O'Connell as Alby the bellboy and aspiring writer- all give great, grounded, unflashy performances that create this absorbing environment.

Shot on location mostly at the singular location of the hotel, it looks great, with enough judicious practical effects to make the scares and the risk really palpable. Inspired by folktales this modern take on a haunted house story just works.

Small in scope, immersive in effect.

Currently available to stream on Hulu.

See It.

'Wicker' A Review

Wicker is a romantic fantasy film based on the short story The Wicker Husband set in the nebulous past about a solitary Fisherwoman(Olivia Colman) who commissions the local Basket Weaver(Peter Dinklage) to make her a husband. The Wicker Husband(Alexander Skarsgård) and the Fisherwoman fall in love and are the subject of derision and jealousy from the townspeople.

Colman, no surprise, is captivating. She brings emotion and vulnerability, and it has a comedic register she can work in(unlike last year's The Roses). She conveys and undeniable and relatable humanness. Skarsgård conversely is totally ethereal, otherworldly, but equally compelling and is similarly able to play with the humor with alacrity. They have great chemistry- romantically, comedically, and dramatically. By the end you're really rooting for them, probably one of the best pure romantic onscreen couples in recent memory. The supporting cast is wonderful, Dinklage of course is a stand out, and the other notable performer is Elizabeth Debicki who plays the mean girl heavy, providing needed contrast, tension and stakes but also a character(in opposition to Colman) that has real interiority. The entire cast just totally understand the tone and the intent, all giving deliciously layered performances to a purpose.

Visually the film is rich and evocative, it feels like a fairy tale but also never loses the reality of its place or people. The costuming is superb and whatever combination of cloths, prosthetics, and CG make up the Wicker Husband is stunningly effective. It just looks great, it has a scale and impact the belies its limited budget. But it's really the script and the themes its able to get across in such a simple and entertaining way that's the most impressive about it. It has something to say, about gender roles, marriage, inclusion and belonging, the whole gambit, and does so with such a gentle and undeniable preceision.

Thematically rich, tonally intricate, with two great lead performances whose romance will sweep you away.

Currently in theaters.

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'You Can See Everything' A Review

You Can See Everything is a documentary from Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim about biotech fraudster Elizabeth Holmes. Fielder and Oppenheim spend the last month with Holmes and her family in a rented beach house prior to her incarceration, not so much fly-on-wall footage as Fielder acts more as a house guest and periodically interviews the couple. After she is imprisoned Fielder & Oppenheim stage reenactments for conversations they were unable to record.

Oppenheim as a stylist soars here, his visual development compounds with each project, and his fascination with perverse and illicit subjects continues. That is to say the film looks amazing, the framing and patience of the shots, the truncated aspect ratio, the languorous but unrelenting pacing, the close-ups. It all serves to evoke an eerie discomfort and put the audience in the room.

Fielder is a comedian and not a documentarian and his presence is both engaging and at times fumbling. He questions Holmes and her husband directly but a lot of the conversations get diverted into semantics. There's some situational comedy and a couple moments where Fielder attempts to explain comedy to them which is amusing. Fielder is a great foil through which to see the infamous Holmes and allows the film, by nature, to be more free-form and experimental.

It clearly aspires to get at greater themes of Truth but mostly fails, Holmes and her husband are clearly hustlers, this is apparent immediately. Holmes is a criminal and her husband is clearly aspiring to be one, even if we were to believe her semantic cartwheels her "belief" as she puts it is not relevant to her fraud charges and conviction. Not to mention, regardless of any of the particulars, it is also clear both Holmes and her husband are deeply mentally unwell. The fascination from both Fielder and Oppenheim comes across in some ways as privileged(these are not particularly unique subjects, they are hustlers and narcissists and sick people, the scope of Theranos downfall and the media attention are the only reason they are known) and they are unable to draw any meaningful conclusions from the project as a whole.

Unquestionably entertaining and beautiful looking, it feints at potent insights and teases discoveries but ultimately fails to deliver on the ecstatic. It seems to unnecessarily litigate two obvious truths- liars lie, hurt people hurt people.

Currently in theaters.

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'The Last First: Winter K2' A Review

The Last First: Winter K2 is a documentary about a 2021 record-breaking(and deathly) expedition to summit K2 in winter.

Through interviews, archival and on-site footage the selfishness, hubris, and tragedy is reported. Do we need more climbing docs? Particularly ones where participants inevitably die? I don't think so. There's nothing esteemable about these sad, narrow-minded, mostly rich people addicted to adrenaline, ego and social media.

One of the reasons Free Solo was such a sensation was because he didn't die, he's still alive, and the risk of what he was doing was clearly interrogated by the filmmaker. This feels like they had a contract that they needed to fulfill, itself culpable in some of the deaths. All around just gross and sad. You'd feel sorry for the climbers and families involved if they weren't so willfully ignorant.

Currently streaming on Apple TV.

Don't See It.

'Wildwood' A Review

Wildwood is a stop-motion fantasy based on the 2011 novel of the same name. Portland, OR teenager Prue(Peyton Elizabeth Lee) defies her parents nebulous warnings and takes her baby brother Mac out on the town when she is babysitting. He's abducted by a murder of crows and Prue, along with Curtis(Jacob Tremblay) a hapless classmate, follow them into the Impassable Wilderness where they discover a magical world of threat and adventure.

The voice cast, across the board, is fantastic. Lee, Tremblay, Carey Mulligan(as the heavy), Awkwafina(as a friendly rat), Tom Waits(as a coyote), on and on. Just wonderful, emotional, committed performances that bring the(absolutely stunning) stop-motion characters to life.

Visually the film is breathtaking, rich and magical that is to say perfect for the source material. The score is effecting and the story re-treads some classic fantasy beats but there's enough originality and style to make it fresh. There has not been a great young adult fantasy in years(if not decades) and this is reminiscent of some of those old classics Labyrinth and The Neverending Story because there is real danger here, real threat, and the parents are not present or not particularly helpful. It feels like a throwback to a kind of potent narrative that has sadly fallen out of vogue in deference for overly screened content. 

Whimsical, transportive, and engrossing with a sense of real physical and emotional stakes. Best of the year contender.

Currently in theaters.

Don't Miss It.

'Norm: The Tale Of Norm MacDonald' A Reivew

Norm: The Tale Of Norm MacDonald is a documentary about the late comedian directed by Judd Apatow. From primarily archival footage as well as photos and home movies his career and life are explored.

Refreshingly there are no talking-head interviews, any interview-style segments are taken from other works, sections of his stand-up and late night appearances are used extensively to show his style of comedy as well as how his personal life and interests came through in his material.

The result is a loving portrait of a kind introvert with incredible talent. Mostly all his material holds up and for a famously private person we do get a glimpse of who he was as a person. Some of his controversies and eccentricities are interrogated and if it's not exactly cinematic in construction it is engrossing and loving.

A relatively comprehensive and deep look at a generational comedy icon.

Currently streaming on Netflix.

See It.

'Street Fighter' A Review

Street Fighter is an action/comedy based on the video game series of the same name. The movie opens on an animated sequence of the first World Warrior tournament and shows the tension between friends and adopted brothers Ryu(Andrew Koji) and Ken(Noah Centineo), flashforward 5 years and into live action, the two are estranged but reunite after being recruited for the second World Warrior tournament by  Chun-Li(Callina Liang) herself an undercover agent looking to take down the organizer of the tournament, the dastardly M. Bison(David Dastmalchian).

Koji and Centineo have great chemistry- bring some heart, give solid physical performances, and are able to thread through a fair amount of comedy. Liang is a nice grounding presence(as she was in 2024's Presence, nice to see her in a feature with more reach here) and Dastmalchian is deliciously baroque. The supporting cast, essentially a series of cameos, are all equally effective. They all understand the brief and the tone co-writer/director Kitao Sakurai is creating- this kind of high-octane martial arts fun that doesn't take itself too seriously.

Using animation for flashbacks, propulsive fight choreography, and judicious and well rendered CG visually the movie has a unique and effective style. The soundtrack is full of era-adjacent needle drops and the costuming is great, paying homage to the games but in a way that feels in-keeping with all the various design choices. It really works. Not as innovative as something like Resident Evil but as successful(a bit more so) than the Mortal Kombat reboot. Sakurai gives us action, enough story to engage, but doesn't overload on either. There's a good amount of comedy and just all-in-all it's a solid piece of popcorn entertainment.

Unabashed, straight-up fun.

Currently in theaters.

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'Sacrifice' A Review

Sacrifice is a satirical action dramedy about an out of favor movie star Mike(Chris Evans) who is starting out his image rehab with a charity gala on a remote Greek island. The event is attacked by a group of cultists lead by Joan(Ana Taylor-Joy) who selects three people to sacrifice in order to stave off an environmental calamity.

Evans brings his natural charm and sincerity to the role and imbues it with some necessary emotion, he's able to hit most of the comedy and puts in a valiant effort tightening up some of the issues with the script. Similarly Taylor-Joy, as always, is fully committed, her innate screen magnetism works well here and she and Evans have good chemistry. The supporting cast has some great talent- Selma Hayek, Sam Richardson, and John Malkovich- even though they don't have a ton to do it's nice to see them.

Shot in an actual mine(presumably?) as well as on the volcanic fields of Iceland the movie looks really striking. The story is mostly engaging if a bit ham-fisted at points, the environmental commentary is similar(but more successful) than Digger, and the premise itself is very similar to Knock At The Cabin with basically the same ending. For all that, there's a lack of pretention, a genuine effort to entertain, as well as populate the story with humans that have identifiable, relatable emotions. All things movies of this type typically tend to forgo.

A solid piece of entertainment with something to say, well anchored by Evans and Taylor-Joy.

Currently streaming on Netflix.

Rent It.

'Digger' A Review

Digger is an environmentalist satire about the titular oil magnet(Tom Cruise) as he's confronted with the destruction of the planet of which he is significantly culpable. There's a meta element that's introduced about 20 minutes in recontextualizing the main action.

Cruise gives the most dynamic, layered performance he has since 1999's Magnolia. He's actually acting here, he's not being a movie star, and it's great to see. Unfortunately the story is unable to justify that effort. The supporting cast has a lot of talent but they are almost unilaterally not given anything to which they can apply their talent. Cruise's character takes up a lot of room in the movie and what remainder is taken up by the production design and all the "ideas" so the supporting cast are basically just props.

The production design is incredibly evocative and meticulous, reminiscent of something like Synecdoche, New York, the camera movement, the color pallet, the score, all very beautiful and effective. Unfortunately tonally the film is very confused, the comedy elements and jokes don't really work, the themes and plotting are at times both incredibly obvious as well as incredibly pretentions. Some of the core ideas behind it are explicitly stated by characters, Iñárritu has built in dialogue to preemptively push back on criticism. The whole experience is pretty pedantic and grating, maybe most importantly not entertaining. If this came out in 1996 it'd be different, 30 years ago the story would have some bite, now it's just a retread of a retread in different trappings. It falls flat as a satire just like Don't Look Up and is as equally self involved and self satisfied as Megalopolis.

Iñárritu appears more interested in the idea of the film rather than the film itself. More interested in the idea of art rather than producing it. Ambitious with a certain grandness, for all that pretty empty.

Currently in theaters.

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'Primetime' A Review

Primetime is a period thriller that dramatizes the production of the 00's TV show To Catch A Predator. Robert Pattison stars as the obsessive Chris Hansen. 

Pattison gives a big expressionistic performance, full of quirks and ticks and complete with an eerie imitation vocally. It's fun to watch no question. The supporting cast are equally intriguing- Merritt Wever as a producer is great, Phoebe Bridgers as one of the show's decoy's is amazing, Anna Faris and Alex Winter in what are basically cameos, and Eric Rahill brings some desperately needed levity. But the pitch perfect casting doesn't really come to anything because there seems to be no point to the any of it. A story about gross people doing gross stuff to other gross people. No matter how good the actors are, given the script, the task to make something compelling out of it is impossible.

Writer/director Lance Oppenheim's first narrative feature shows a lot of promise and deploys his unique, saturated, psychedelic inspired visuals and he gets incredible performances out his cast but like Spermworld the result seems only to revel in how compromised the situation and people are rather than making any broader statements or tapping into any larger themes(which he did successfully in Some Kind of Heaven and Ren Faire). So the result is something that is something that is excellent in regards to craft but almost meaningless as far as content. It comes across as particularly thin in the wake of 2025's much more incisive Predators. 

Inspired acting and captivating visuals wrap a narrative that has no purpose, empty calories.

Currently in theaters.

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'The History Of Concrete' A Review

The History Of Concrete is a documentary, basically an extended episode of John Wilson's HBO show How To with John Wilson. Through B-roll, narration, and random interviews the movie quickly diverges from the subject of it's title and explores random tangents. More stream-of-consciousness than themeatic.

Fans of Wilson's show will certainly be pleased with this but beyond that the appeal is doubtful. There's no focus, it's not actually about concrete, Wilson as a personality has the kind of Brooklyn hipster irony and apathy that has limited appeal(whether this be more comedy than documentary or vice versa). He even injects his difficulty making the film into the film in, what comes across as, a kind of petulant entitlement. Beyond a certain subset of older Gen Z, younger Gen Y, and New Yorkers this has little to nothing to offer.

Sprawling subject matter and uneven cringe comedic beats makes the movie basically an overlong, poorly paced version of Wilson's show.

A doc that purports to be about something but ultimately has nothing to say, a vague curiosity.

Currently in theaters.

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'Mother Mary' A Review

Mother Mary is a psychological drama about a pop star, the titular Mother Mary(Anne Hathaway) who returns to her estranged costume designer Sam(Michaela Coel) in a time of crisis.

Coel is incredible here- poised, present, and captivating. An absolute star. She's able to bring coherence and relatable emotion to an abstract and occasionally pretentious script. Hathaway is miscast. Whether her inclusion was more of a business decision to secure funding or she was simply not the first choice she really struggles in the role. She looks awkward in the pop star costuming, she looks clumsy in the choreography, and she's just generally not believable as a Gaga or Madonna stand-in.

Writer/director David Lowery has a sumptuous visual style and that is fully on display here, even on a limited budget the movie looks fantastic but he falls prey to the issues that have plagued his work on-and-off since the beginning, this proclivity for narrative vagueness and an artistic pretention that renders a lot of his film's somewhat inert.

Worth a watch for the visuals and Coel but don't expect coherence.

Currently streaming on HBO Max.

Stream It.

'The Death Of Robin Hood' A Review

The Death Of Robin Hood is a period drama, a gritty "realistic" take on the last days of the folk hero Robin Hood(Hugh Jackman) who(twist!) is actually a murderous villian.

Jackman is compelling and fierce in the role but the story itself is so bleak, so dull, so lacking in any kind of narrative purpose that it doesn't much matter. The supporting cast is good-to-great Jodie Comer is wonderful as a prioress and Bill Skarsgård is unrecognizable(in a good way) as Little John. But however good the cast is they cannot elevate or make sense of a script that is 100% DOA.

Visually the film is dark and atmospheric, beautifully moody and transportive. The score is at times incongruous but period appropriate and evocative. The big and glaring issue is the story itself, the "take" on the Robin Hood legend the premise of which is- what if that was all a lie and he's actually just a thoughtless violent selfish murderer? Which like, fair I guess, if he ever did exist this is probably more "true" but this "spin" is not entertaining, it has nothing to teach the viewer, there is no lesson to be learned, no discoveries. The film basically opens with a child murder(the first of several) and although the fight choreography is compelling in-and-of-itself the context in which it exists is mostly repugnant and/or woefully uninteresting.

Successful at what it sets out to do but spectacularly miscalculates that that outcome is in anyway something people would want to see. Maybe worth a distracted viewing for the cast and the production for those with a strong stomach.

Currently available to rent on most VOD platforms, streaming soon on HBO Max.

Stream It.

'Heart Of The Beast' A Review

Heart Of The Beast is a survival thriller about a veteran James(Brad Pitt) and his dog Odin(Uber, Seeka, Ryker, and Hondo) who crash in the Alaskan wilderness and have to trek out injured and ill equipped.

Pitt here isn't able to exude his typical movie star wattage and as a result an already flimsy story falters pretty much from the jump. The various Odins fair a lot better but the script overly relies on the emotional heft having a dog(or any pet) in a movie carries and as the runtime clicks along it feels pretty transparently like emotional manipulation.

Shot in New Zealand it looks like Alaska(ish) but the CGI animals are really bad and a lot of the survival beats feel perfunctory and recycled. There's just not a lot to this, we've seen in several times in recent years, and this adds nothing to the genre and doesn't execute it particularly well on top of that.

Too mediocre to be offensive, too cookie-cutter to be interesting.

Currently in theaters, coming soon to Paramount+.

Don't See It.

'Resident Evil' A Review

Resident Evil is a horror comedy, an adaptation of the video game series. Medical courier Bryan(Austin Abrams) gets a a last-minute delivery to Raccoon City in the snowy Colorado mountains. After accidentally hitting a woman wandering the snowy roads things turn weird when she disappears. The film follows Bryan as he is confronted with a series of challenges and increasingly grotesque monsters.

Abrams is superb here, channeling a kind of bumbling slacker everyman that grounds the whole story and provides emotional authenticity as well as a good dose of necessary levity. The support cast is relatively minimal and doesn't have much to do. The actors with names you recognize are good but are onscreen for less than 5 minutes each. Jo Martin as a receptionist in the beginning probably makes the biggest impact, she's amazing. But ultimately it's really a one-hander and Abrams shoulders that burden with an ease and effectiveness that his filmography doesn't necessarily indicate(at least up until now). His bumbling charm and earnestness is pitch-perfect and integral in making this film work.

Visually the film is evocative, the pacing relentless, the movement of the camera appropriately restless, and the judicious use of 1st and 3rd person POV shots extremely effective. The creature design and blood work is both horrific and at times appropriately absurd. The grotesque is mined for both scares and laughs. The plotting is relatively simple, follows Bryan on his journey to deliver his package, one stop and then the next. That simplicity allows for both Abrams to shine and just to streamline the narrative creating this propulsive, thrilling ride that feels like a Resident Evil game without being overly beholden to any of the games plots or lore. If there's a hiccup it's that the ending(because of the pedal-to-the-metal pacing) is quite abrupt but doesn't ultimately detract.

The most successful video game adaptation made to date. A near-perfectly constructed horror/comedy, a great piece of popcorn entertainment to start the Fall.

Currently in theaters.

Don't Miss It.

'Siren: The Voices of Shelley Beattie' A Review

Siren: The Voices of Shelley Beattie is a documentary about bodybuilder and performer Shelley Beattie, aka Siren from American Gladiators. Narrated by and featuring Marlee Matlin as she and director Irene Taylor interview people from Beattie's life, cut with archival footage, home movies, and animations of Beattie's journals and artwork.

Beattie's life, career, deafness, and struggles with addiction are explored with a thoughtfulness and depth this kind of celeb profile doesn't usually have. She was a trailblazer, an inspiring figure, but she also had a darkness and rage, all of which is shown, this is not a curated pick-and-chose portrait like Taylor's previous I Am Celine Dion which was more entertainment than documentary. There's sorrow here as well as hope, success as well as despair. A complete, compelling and human story.

A feature that has a necessary vitality to it, Beattie deserves to be remembered, her story to be known, and this accomplishes that with grace and insistence. A shame this didn't get theatrical distribution.

Currently streaming on HBO Max.

See It.

'Mayday' A Review

Mayday is an action comedy set in the cold war, pilot Troy(Ryan Reynolds) crash lands in the Russian wilderness after he is shot down during a black op. He's rescued by Nick(Kenneth Branagh) America obsessed disgraced KGB, and the adventures and jokes ensue!

Reynolds deploys his patented schtick and it's not ineffective but it doesn't totally fit. His wise-cracking veneer is never penetrated and it just feels like something we've seen over-and-over from him especially the past 5 to 10 years. By comparison Branagh is a revelation, he's so funny and also emotionally present and authentic. In this kind of buddy action flick his unflinching commitment is what really sells it. The support cast is not really germane as they don't have much to do, other than, kinda, Marcin Dorociński as the heavy who's fun.

Writers/directors John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein can make movies, no question, it looks good, soundtrack is banging, pacing is relatively tight, got a good mix of heart and jokes. It's no Game Night but it's not bad. Surprising that Apple dumped this on streaming really. The only real hiccup is the casting of the lead, Reynolds just kinda washes out what could be a fun 80's throwback.

Diverting enough with an inspired Branagh.

Currently streaming on AppleTV.

Rent It.

'Onslaught' A Review

Onslaught is an action horror flick about veteran sniper Celeste(Adria Arjona) who is confronted by a trio of rabid super soldiers who have escaped from a black ops site headed by Nazi scientist Hans(Dan Stevens).

Arjona does a good job as the lead, you believe the toughness, she's clearly doing some/most of her stunts, physically it's a compelling performance. Emotionally it's a bit more shaky, the PTSD, the divorced mom stuff is a bit rote, she does what she can with it but it's more a result of the pulpy underwritten script. Stevens is having a ball and he's always a pleasure to see especially in genre fare where he can cut loose. The supporting cast is stacked full of talent with some inspired bits of casting- Reginald VelJohnson(absolute joy to see him in a wide release), Michael Biehn, Rebecca Hall, and Eric Wareheim to name a few. Just all around eclectic talent, interesting actors, and it makes for a really punchy ensemble.

Shot on location in New Mexico on a budget, visually the film has a quantifiable look and tangible feel with some really engaging flourishes at various points. The soundtrack is absolutely stuffed with diegetic and non-diegetic needledrops that really create a propulsive and thrilling atmosphere but at points it becomes a bit much, encroaching. But the only real issue is the script, lot of good ideas, just doesn't quite come together and the big climax peters out, makes it seem like the production just kind of ran out of steam. Still a solid, original piece of entertainment.

A decent B-movie, grindhouse throwback. 

Currently in theaters.

Rent It.

'Late Fame' A Review

Late Fame is a drama about NYC poet turned mailman Ed Saxberger(Willem Dafoe) who is "re-discovered" by a trust-fund would-be artist Meyers(Edmund Donovan) and his affluent group of friends that includes the mysterious actress Gloria(Greta Lee).

Dafoe is always watchable(as he is here) but the character is so kind of obvious, oblivious, and thin, the script so upper-class arts-school thesis-project there's nothing he can do. Donovan is both interesting and funny as is Lee but neither can really contend with how bludgeoningly undergraduate the whole affair is.

Shot on location in NYC the place at least feels authentic, unfortunately seemingly every other aspect does not. For a movie about a poet there's very little poetry, for a movie about artists there's very little art, the whole thing just feels very flat, uninspired, and predictable. It comes across as written by someone who's lead a privileged life trying to tell a story about a struggle they have only fantasized about.

An insult to poetry and poets.

Currently in theaters.

Don't See It.