1st Reviews

  Ballerina  isn’t just another action movie: it’s got a madness and energy that only this franchise has. But it doesn’t just fit perfectly into the  John Wick  universe, it elevates its world-building and makes a strong case for this new protagonist Eve and her potency. Much of that is thanks to Ana de Armas, who is a powerhouse and gives Eve a deep pain that is weaponized into her expertly brutal assassin skills. That’s quite the main theme here and an interesting one — hate and trauma being weaponized into violence and vengeance, and the illusion of fate and a lack of choice. The actress wonderfully takes on action scenes and stunts so intricate they give some scenes from the main  John Wick  franchise a run for their money. Best of all, it never feels like its recycling too much from those films, whether from a visual or choreography perspective, even if the settings and musical score aren’t trying to hide that this is a  Wick  movie, and the ...

  The John Wick franchise has cemented itself as a staple of modern action cinema, giving us four incredible films and a handful of in-universe spinoffs. Ballerina is a thrilling companion piece to the John Wick films, delivering high-octane action in spades. Even though it’s not so graceful in its storytelling, this is a worthy addition to the Wick-verse.  Whereas past spinoffs like Nobody and Atomic Blonde channeled the franchise’s spirit, Ballerina ties itself tightly to the core Wick lore. We visit familiar locations, are reintroduced to familiar faces, and the in-universe rules are tightly followed. From the get-go, it’s clear Ballerina isn’t simply cashing in on the John Wick name - this is a true extension of the legacy built in Chapters 1 through 4. It’s also not a copy-cat, as it forges its own style while staying true to the fundamentals this series was built on.  Ironically, given the film’s title, the gorgeously choreographed ballet-style action is absent here...

  There’s something to be said about a bad 80s horror movie. For how corny, poorly written and incredibly dated they are, they’re truly a product of their time, with a sort of undeniable charm. Fear Street: Prom Queen competently replicates bad 80s horror. It feels like something I’d rent from the video store as a kid because it had cool cover art. A bad movie is still a bad movie, though, and a 2025 release can’t fall back on the “product of its time” excuse.  Let’s start with what works - This really brought me back to a lot of the slasher flicks I watched growing up, and that much was clearly intentional. The camera work, lighting, editing and a lot of the dialogue are ripped right out of your favourite 80s guilty pleasure horror. It feels stiff, and low budget, avoiding modern filmmaking flourishes for the most part. Apart from a plethora of iconic needle drops (which would’ve been far too expensive to license at the time), and some lousy CGI blood, this emulates the genre...

  The Last of Us: Part 2 is arguably the best video game story of all time. With exceptionally written characters and a beautiful, thematically challenging story - it rivals (and often surpasses) the quality seen in prestige film and television. Adapting it faithfully was always going to be a tall order, but season two mostly succeeds, even if some of the strongest elements are lost in translation.  The toxic visceral reaction the game brought out in “fans” only reinforced the core message at the heart of its story, and judging by much of the online discourse, season two seems to have done the same. The narrative approach is a little more watered down, and lacks the nuance seen in the game, but the themes surrounding revenge are well preserved. The framing of the narrative - including key punctuating scenes - is restructured to fit the show’s format. Some of the changes are for the better, trimming gameplay sections into more narratively concise scenes. Sadly, there are also s...

  Four close friends and renowned filmmakers in 1959’s Yugoslavia are out to make a feature film of the war. They have a unique perspective and are able to discuss the war as decorated war veterans. Lovro, Nenad, Stevan and Ivan use film to express themselves and criticize society but that doesn’t sit well with the Yugoslavian Communist Party. As The Party steps in to control the film for propagandistic reasons, the four filmmakers fear it may be to gain insight on their sexual orientation. Emir Hadžihafizbegović is entrusted by the head of the Communist Party to oversee the films production but is also told by the party to sabotage the film by any means necessary. Emir as well as our four filmmakers are all exceptional in this film. The dynamic between these five actors is a wave of emotions as Emir hides his true intentions and the filmmakers hide their sexual orientation from the world. The film is in a gorgeous black and white and boasts absolutely stunning cinematography from ...

  One of the most notoriously enormous franchises ever in scale comes to a close with its most ambitious instalment yet. Tom Cruise’s practical commitment to the action is again breathtaking, especially the set pieces including planes and submarines. Christopher McQuarrie and Cruise are again dedicating everything to creating something gigantic that warrants the moviegoing experience, with nail-biting stakes, jaw-dropping sets, and stunning direction. It’s got a genuine feeling of danger, that the team’s loss could result in truly destructive consequences. It also pushes Ethan to the brink of his values and abilities, as each last film before it has challenged how impossible of a mission he can actually go up against, as well as personal decisions he is faced with. The ensemble cast surrounding him is great, particularly Simon Pegg, while Hayley Atwell sometimes feel pushed too far into the mix to stand out as much as she did in  Dead Reckoning  and Esai Morales’ villain ...