Category: Film Review

“Arco” represents the feature-length directorial debut for Ugo Bienvenu, also co-scripting the offering with Felix de Givry. The pair take on a science fiction tale of time travel, but they don’t obsess over the fine details of such adventuring, preferring to examine a more human response to unexpected friendship, and all the support it entails. It’s an animated picture working with a limited budget, but the production puts in great care when it comes to beautiful imagery and mysterious happenings, keeping viewers of all ages engaged while following the troubles facing a young boy from the future and the girl he befriends in a city of tomorrow. “Arco” is wonderful work from Bienvenu, who puts real care into the production, offering a tender understanding of emotional states and strong future world imagination. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

While “Mercy” is being promoted as something of a thriller involving the world of A.I. and its all-consuming presence in human life, it’s more of a “screenlife” viewing experience, where most of the feature focuses on a character exploring computer screens and accessing cameras. Screenwriter Marco van Belle has a premise that could work, putting a man accused of murder inside an A.I.-driven courtroom to speed through his case in 90 minutes, giving him a chance to defend his innocence in front of a computer judge. The details of this futureworld (well, just 2029) should be enough to fill an entire film, but director Timur Bekmambetov (who’s been involved in a few screenlife endeavors, including 2021’s “Profile”) insists on making a junkier picture with “Mercy,” going the B-movie route as logic and patience are set aside for cheap thrills and pure ridiculousness at times, while the digital adventuring gets old in a hurry. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“Pillion” is based on the 2020 book, “Box Hill,” with author Adam Mars-Jones exploring the loneliness of a gay man unable to find a connection in the world, eventually locating relief from a most unusual person and his particular demands of attention. The story has apparently been shifted around quite a bit by writer/director Harry Lighton, but the core experience remains the same, getting into the tightness of feelings between two men attempting to work out a dominant/submissive relationship. Lighton (making his feature-length directorial debut with the endeavor) examines some dark emotional spaces along the way, but he’s mostly invested in something a tad warmer than expected, focusing on the eternal battle of need with what’s mostly an askew story of commitment that teases some unusual romantic directions. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Screenwriter Patrick Whistler goes a dark place with “In Cold Light.” It’s a character study about a woman dealing with troubled family members, rough personal experiences, and a heavy past, attempting to find a way back to life after being released from prison. It’s a crime story, but not exclusively, as Whistler strives to add a potent psychological element to the feature, sticking close to behaviors and decisions instead of more action-y encounters. It’s a gritty offering of survival, and it’s mostly handled capably by director Maxime Giroux (“Felix & Meira”), who opts for a more visual experience, focusing on unsettled personalities as special life complications and troubles return to view. “In Cold Light” is dedicated to steely looks and threatening moments, and the picture ultimately finds its way to charged moments during its unusual odyssey into the depths of guilt. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

There’s always a lot of talk about indie cinema, especially movies already backed by corporate financing, but The Adams Family appears to be the real deal when it comes to the idea of creative independence. The clan returns to screens with “Mother of Flies,” once again claiming most of the credits as they add to their growing list of genre endeavors, this time examining the strange ways of woodland witchcraft and the unspoken pain of mortality. Writer/director/stars John Adams, Zelda Adams, and Toby Poser (joined by Lulu Adams) look to creep into viewer minds with this decidedly slow-burn endeavor about witchcraft and manipulation. If you’ve seen other Adams Family endeavors (such as “Hellbender” and 2024’s “Hell Hole”), you might be more prepared for the stillness of the offering, but such awareness doesn’t magically help the filmmakers and their amateurish ways. “Mother of Flies” has a few interesting ideas on the state of finality and acceptance, but one as to work through stilted dialogue and stiff performances to get there. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The producers of 2025’s “28 Years Later” were certainly assuming interest in the return of the zombie thriller franchise would be sky high, taking a risk by putting a sequel into production right after the first feature finished shooting. Seven months later, there’s now “28 Years Later: The Bone Temple,” which picks up right after the last chapter of the “28 Days Later” saga, this time without the guidance of director Danny Boyle, who left his somewhat aimless movie in a state of shock with a last minute set-up for a sequel that involved a gang of bewigged youths in track suits delivering martial art moves to stomp the infected. It seemed the next stop on this cinematic journey would be a dive into complete camp, but, mercifully, “The Bone Temple” pulls out of this tonal tailspin, offering a darker, more story driven focus on the pains of this ruinous world. And, thankfully, all the flipping and fighting is gone. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Roughly a decade ago, writer/director Joe Carnahan was preparing his vision for “Bad Boys 3,” only to be fired from the project as it was in the final stages of coming together. “The Rip” plays a bit like possible remnants of the project, bringing Carnahan back to Miami for a study of police temptation and paranoia with some truly bad boys. Matt Damon and Ben Affleck reteam once again for the picture, and while Carnahan (who’s last film, 2025’s “Not Without Hope,” went virtually unseen) gets to his happy place with gunfights and car chases, he finds some real suspense for the first hour of the endeavor, getting into tight psychological spaces with agitated characters as they confront a difficult choice of duty. “The Rip” is crisply acted and well-paced, providing a dark exploration of character that stays within the helmer’s love of testosterone-laden confrontations, non-stop cursing, and gritty happenings with untrustworthy people. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Viewers coming to see “Killer Whale” will likely have an extremely specific movie in mind before the picture begins. It has an exploitation-ready title, and marketing efforts have been quick to emphasize the horror elements of the offering, highlighting a battle of survival between two stranded women and an orca on the hunt to devour them. Co-writers Katharine McPhee and Jo-Anne Brechin (who also directs) certainly try to provide some suspense and near-misses in the endeavor, but they’re also pursuing a relationship story here, which often takes command of the feature. “Killer Whale” isn’t exactly a thriller, and perhaps stabs at deeper characterization get in the way on occasion, but Brechin manages to secure a passable amount of tension with B-movie elements, giving the release some needed jolts of energy while the writing hopes to make a more meaningful nature-gone-mad effort. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Prolific French filmmaker Quentin Dupieux returns to screens with “The Piano Accident,” and he’s not exactly changing his moviemaking ways just yet. Dupieux offers another wholly bizarre look at human behavior and absurdity with the endeavor, also adding a touch of media commentary with his tale of an online influencer finding her lust for life drained during the pursuit of clicks. “The Piano Accident” remains in line with other Dupieux productions, maintaining a short run time and relaxed pacing, though the new film takes a more circuitous route to an understanding of character and motivations, making it slightly inert before the material starts to get moving in its final act. Sagginess is present, but laughs remain, and Dupieux reaffirms his love of dark personalities experiencing self-made torment, still providing the offering with a few kicks before it concludes. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Superhero cinema goes to the dogs once again. No, it’s not an “Underdog” reboot, but “Charlie the Wonderdog” isn’t exactly trying be something radically different when it comes to the concept of a canine with special powers determined to help others in peril. The animated picture is directed and co-written by Shae Wageman, who aims to deliver a high-flying adventure comedy for family audiences, and one that adheres closely to comic book-style ideas of heroism and supervillainy, stretched out some by cartoonish extremes. “Charlie the Wonderdog” has the right idea for a good time with wacky characters and action beats, but the feature struggles with momentum and storytelling issues, as Wageman overstuffs the script with too much plot and payoff, making the endeavor play too heavy when it desires to be a livelier understanding of companionship and heroic duty. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Co-writer/director Ryan Prows (“Lowlife,” “V/H/S/94”) attempts to go ambitious with “Night Patrol,” which initially presents itself as a corrupt cop saga before transitioning into a genre film, blended with a tale of tribal purpose. The movie is all over the place, and that messiness seems to interest Prows the most, delivering what’s meant to be a wild ride of action, heart, and horror for those who enjoy some aggression and confusion with their daily dose of cinema. “Night Patrol” has a lot of elements speeding around the picture, making focus difficult for Prows, who chases numerous ideas without much editorial and thespian support. It’s a big swing from the helmer, which is also welcome, but also mostly a whiff, as the feature lacks enough structure to help support a commanding viewing experience, often going noisy instead of interesting. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The last time writer/director Jim Jarmusch was in theaters, he was trying to play around with zombie cinema in 2019’s “The Dead Don’t Die.” It was an odd picture, but successfully retained the helmer’s interests in dry humor and unusual characterization. He’s back to less apocalyptic happenings in “Father Mother Sister Brother,” overseeing a triptych exploration of familial relationships, and all the secrets and stunted conversations these reunions contain. The feature is as small as can be, largely focusing on personalities coming together to discuss their lives and fudge some personal details, also examining connections they once believed they understood, only to recognize many unsolvable mysteries. “Father Mother Sister Brother” is specialized work, really only out to reach the Jarmusch faithful, and while it doesn’t penetrate with any sort of dramatic power, the endeavor remains compelling through performances and the occasional offering of absurdity. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Director Brett Haley has been effective when trying to find authentic emotion in material that could easily spin into pure cliché. In pictures such as “Hearts Beat Loud” and “All Together Now,” Haley has managed to support character-based tales of heartache and bonding, limiting the melodrama that typically fills such endeavors. He challenges himself once again with “People We Meet on Vacation,” which is an adaptation of a 2021 book by Emily Henry, handling light material (scripted by Yulin Kuang, Amos Vernon, and Nunzio Randazzo) with an interest in learning more about the personalities involved in the tale and their battles with the unpredictable nature of love. “People We Meet on Vacation” isn’t completely successful when it comes to shaking up romantic comedy expectations, but Haley gets most of the way there with help from stars Emily Bader and Tom Blyth, who bring charm and energy to the offering. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

2020’s “Greenland” was by no means a major box office hit, but it found a decent sized audience for its display of extinction level event happenings and family struggles. It also offered a mostly definitive ending, with little left to explore with the characters and the state of the world after it’s mostly destroyed by a comet. The very existence of “Greenland 2: Migration” (titled simply “Greenland: Migration” on the film) is a bit puzzling, but apparently there’s money on the table the producers don’t want to leave behind, electing to stir up the semi-peaceful resolution of the original picture to create a whole new journey for the characters as they try to dodge disaster once again. Director Ric Roman Waugh returns to duty for the sequel, and he arranges a few effective scenes of threat and panic, but he can’t avoid the general nothingness of “Migration,” which lacks big thrills and a sense of dark discovery that helped the 2020 release best most of its competition. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Director Johannes Roberts has enjoyed a very odd career. He achieved an unlikely hit in 2017’s “47 Meters Down,” overseeing a low-budget offering of shark cinema that somehow found an audience. He proved himself competent with 2018’s “The Strangers: Prey at Night,” which, as of this writing, is the best installment of “The Strangers” series, giving Roberts a chance to show his stuff. Disappointments followed, including an unnecessary sequel in “47 Meters Down: Uncaged,” and a needless revival of a burned out franchise in 2021’s “Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City.” For “Primate,” Roberts (who co-scripts with Ernest Riera) gets back to business with a simply structured tale of animal horror, going lean and mean with this riff on Stephen King’s “Cujo.” “Primate” won’t win hearts and minds, but as a B-movie, the endeavor is compellingly violent, giving viewers a chance to be frightened by this exploration of a chimp gone mad. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Chevy Chase. He’s not a man with a golden reputation, making any effort to create a documentary about his life and times a delicate operation. Director Marina Zenovich (“Robin Williams: Come Inside My Mind,” “Richard Pryor: Omit the Logic”) makes a valiant attempt to understand the whole machine of mockery that drives the comedic performer, with “I’m Chevy Chase and You’re Not” hoping to pry open the subject and understand how he works. Chase’s appearance in the picture pretty much kills such a plan, even telling Zenovich she’s not intelligent enough to comprehend his thinking, commencing a tour of unlikability that’s blended with an examination of career and personal issues. “I’m Chevy Chase and You’re Not” doesn’t quite pull off the documentary approach, with present-day Chase (now an 82-year-old man) factoring into too much of the endeavor, breaking up more interesting and informative stretches of behavioral analysis and professional exploration. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Viewers are used to seeing actor Michael Jai White in action film roles. He’s been in the business for quite some time, frequently gravitating to parts that emphasize his martial art skills and his obvious desire to develop an intimidating screen presence. “Oscar Shaw” is White’s latest effort, and, surprisingly, there really isn’t much brutality in the feature, offering the star a shot at displaying more range than what’s usually asked of him. The screenplay (by Don Roff) has something different in mind when it comes to the ways of criminal life in the big city, periodically focusing on the devastating effects of violence and crime, endeavoring to add bits of social commentary to the usual in cops vs. bad guys. “Oscar Shaw” is concerned about the way of the world, but sincerity is stuck in a largely inert mystery, limiting the potency of its messages as dramatic momentum never takes command of the picture. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Gus Van Sant has only made three movies over the last decade. 2015’s “The Sea of Trees” was arguably one of his worst pictures, and 2018’s “Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot” was one of his best, but Van Sant has been away from screens for quite some time, now returning with “Dead Man’s Wire,” which is based on the true story of Tony Kiritsis and his violent effort to expose corruption occurring with a mortgage company. The saga was previously covered in a 2018 documentary (“Dead Man’s Line”), and now screenwriter Austin Kolodney looks to dramatize the hostage event, trying to find the tension, frustration, and even humor in the central situation, also giving star Bill Skarsgard a juicy role as Tony, a hotheaded man of questionable sanity. Perhaps there’s not enough in “Dead Man’s Wire” to carry an entire feature, but Van Sant works well with editorial ideas and anti-capitalist themes to keep the offering involving. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Writer/director Brandon Auman tries to turn his 2024 short film into a feature-length horror endeavor in “Sleepwalker,” hoping to expand on an original idea that only ran seven minutes. The picture concerns a different type of haunting, with Auman looking to creep into the deep recesses of motherly guilt and fear to inspire a terror show highlighting a woman’s efforts to battle the trickery of her brain and the destruction of her family. The writing has something to follow in the processing of extraordinary pain, but “Sleepwalker” is more of a “Twilight Zone” episode with increasingly tedious jump scares and acting that can’t quite sell the frightmare developing over the run time. The helmer struggles to keep the movie scary and meaningful, and the stretchmarks of a laborious adaptation challenge show throughout the viewing experience. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

As an actress, Kristen Stewart has never been consistent. However, she’s definitely experimental, often taking on unusual roles in strange movies to keep herself challenged and perhaps entertained. Stewart has been around for decades, but now she’s trying something new, making her debut as a writer/director with “The Chronology of Water,” daring to create an adaptation of Lidia Yuknavitch’s 2011 memoir, which offered readers an intense ride of memory and description as she confronted many demons in her life. Stewart puts in the work to respect such intimacy, keeping the offering to hushed thoughts and editorial jumps, placing viewers into Lidia’s POV, which is a place of torment and extremity. Creative ideas are executed well by the helmer, but she comes up short when securing a reason why this book needed to become a film, as “The Chronology of Water” isn’t a commanding viewing experience, missing an emotional grip as the screenplay burns through Lidia’s life events. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com