Brief thoughts on Undertaker 2 (2025)

When a grandmother is struck by lightning, dies and then returns from the dead,  it forces everyone is a small town to ponder existence.

This film did not work for me. Yes, I know this and the previous films were mega hits, but this film didn't do anything for me.  I was told that I didn't need to have seen the first film to have this make sense but at the same time I kept feeling I was missing something.

Yes the meditation on life and death and everything in between is interesting but there was something about the tone of the film that never clicked so I never fully pondered what the film was trying to say.

No, it isn't bad, but it never grabbed me.

Fantasia Starts this week- The contractually obligated curtain raiser (no- really its true- they won't let me cover if I don't post this)

 

The always lovely Fantasia start this week, and the world is a better place.

One of the best festivals in the world it is a fest that while it focuses on mainly genre films and those not from Canada, it also makes damn sure that great films that might get overlooked will get their due. I say that because this year there is a killer film called TIGHT LETTUCE that is about a son trying to help his addict father. While the film has very serious subject and is heart breaking at times, it is also wickedly funny to the point that I think the big “important” festivals will be frightened by it.  Fantasia fears nothing (not even a papercut and lemon juice)

I love this festival. Almost two decades ago film director Ted Geoghagen pulled me aside and told me I had to cover the festival. It is a piece of advice that I will never be able to repay him for.

If you are in Montreal and love movies you have to go. (Someday I will)

As it stands now, I am waiting to wade into the festival’s goodness. I am planning on covering as much as humanly possible so keep reading.

Because the festival is not just premieres, I’ve already seen a typical person’s festival worth of titles. Below are links to what I’ve seen:

BAGWORM

BLADES OF THE GAURDIANS

BLAISE

COLONY 

GOZU - I am having issues finding my review of this. That said this is a must see from Takashi Miike since it's WTF nature made me fall in love with him as a filmmaker

IMPRINT

HONG KONG GODFATHER

KUNG FU is also playing this year's NYAFF after the screening at Fantasia (it plays the 16th). It is a knowing send up of martial arts cliches that demands to be seen with an audience. It smashes every cliche with glee. My review will run closer to the NYAFF screening - until then just buy a ticket and go.

PAPAYA

PONTY POOL

RECLUSE

REDLINE- I saw this ages ago in NYC at the Village Cinema and when I came out many of the guys who would become the Unseen Film Family were going in. That tells you this insane animated film is a must see- more so on the big screen where the films can blow your mind

SUSUKI = BAKUDAN look for a review this week tied to the Japan Cuts screening. This is one of the best thrillers you'll see all year as the police go head-to-head with a bomber. This is an absolute must see film

UNIDENTIFIED MURDER is playing NYAFF. This is a UFO-tinged puzzle box mystery with an all over the place tone.

WE ARE NOTHING is playing NYAFF soon. Herman Yau gives us his best film and his most soap opera like. The police investigate a bus bombing (no lie this part is some of the best filmmaking you'll see all year) while we are treated to the lives of the victims (pure pot boiling soap opera that will make you roll your eyes). The police procedural is why this is a must see.

And I need to put ATTACK ON PARADISE on your radar. I need to see this again because... well it kicks ass. The plot has a man coming home from prison and just wanting to be left alone and take care of his mom. But the gangs have taken over the apartment block and the police want to storm it... and what is a guy who loves his mom going to do? A review when the embargo drops but until then buy a ticket and bring a seat belt.

The festival opens Thursday and runs into August. Ticket and slate information can be found here.

And please keep reading because the reviews will start hitting when the embargos drop.

Mr Hero (2026) NYAFF 2026

 

A mega hit in Vietnam, MR HERO didn't work for me. 

The film is the story of a taxi cab driver who needs money badly. His daughter is sick and without a transplant she is going to die. In desperation he stages a fake rescue, hoping to get money from people on the internet. But the lies complicate everything.

A mix of social commentary (it's a brutal commentary on the health care system & the internet), comedy, soap opera and feel good family films, the film is tonally all over the place. What am I supposed to feel? I'm not sure. Its not that there is problem mixing tones when they are blended correctly. The problem here is its not always blended and I frequently felt out of sorts.

Worth a look if you're curious, but it didn't work for me.

Montreal, My Beautiful(2026) NYAFF 2026

Joan Chen stars as a Chinese immigrant to Canada who is trapped in a bad marriageand unhappy home life. When she meets a younger woman from Canada it begins a friendship that becomes something more.

This is a good, if very by the numbers tale. We've been here before in other stories and as a result we can more or less guess how this is going to play out. While Chen and the cast pull us in and keep us interested (even if some look the wrong age for their roles) so we will happily travel down this familiar road again.

Don't get me wrong I enjoyed the ride, I just wish it had more weight.

Worth a look.

Brief thoughts on Mockbuster (2026)

This is the story of Anthony Frith, who talks his way into directing features for Asylum Films despite not having any past in making features. 

For those who don't know Asylum is studio that makes homage (aka ripoff films) that piggy back blockbusters (New Toy Story, Alien Disclosure Day, Master of the Universe, Immortal Combat). They partly assume that the films people will pick their film by mistake, but mostly they know that their fanbase will try to watch the films because they will go witth the fun and perhaps so bqad its fun element and enjoy the movie. 

This is a wonderful look at Frith's journey to make his film and the story of the studio. Its a film about people who are in love with the art form and the art they make. (yes Asylum's films are art-they are so much fun). Its a film that makes us smile  because everyone is having a good time doing what they are doing.

This film is an absolute delight.

High recommended.

MOCKBUSTER is currently in select theaters and is on VOD.

Random thoughts

I am amused by what I’m reading on social media or in various think pieces on SUPERGIRL. So many are taking the film to task for not doing what they thought it should do. That would have made it a different film. People are also wondering why the film didn’t stop to explain little details or things that were unimportant or added shading to a real world. Why weren’t these odd bits explained? Because people on that would wouldn’t need them explained and if they did explain them you would have been up set that they were stopping the film for needless exposition.

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I think Dune 3 may open the NYFF- no reason but it’s a big film where the first one played NYFF

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There are some interesting films yet to play Japan Cuts, NYAFF and especially Fantasia

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If I seem down on doing Unseen and covering films, its got nothing to do with you or the films, more its simply that its lost the social aspect. I used to see a lot of friends. Now I maybe see a few at an occasional screening. Life has pushed us all apart, plus the way that the PR people want coverage, and doing press screenings at 10am now makes it hard pony up and go

The Jeju Uprsing films at NYAFF 2026: HALLAN (2025) and MY NAME (2026)

The New York Asian Film Festival has several films focusing on the Jeju Uprising which occurred in 1948 and 1949 on a small island off the Korean peninsula. 

The briefest and most basic of explanations tells the story of how in the wake of Independence Movement celebrations protests were organized, which were then crushed. This sparked revolts and those revolting fled into the forests on the sland. Authorities cracked down on everyone and people fled into the forests to get away. The authorities then moved into the forest to get the rebels which was anyone in the forests. Thousands were massacred. The incident was then covered up, especially in light of the Korean War which started shortly there after.

At least two films playing NYAFF tie directly into the Uprising (there maybe more, as I write this I haven't seen all the films).  I am mentioning this upfront because if you are not aware of the basic  history of the Uprising then these films are going to mean less to you. I say that because even though I ended up stopping HALLAN to read the Wikipedia entry, I still felt lost. While I give the festival credit for showing the films, I have to question their running films you need to have a background to fully get.

HALLAN
A mother and her daughter try and survive the horrifying events of the Jeju Uprising.

This is a well made and well intentioned war film that wears its heart on its sleeve. It not so subtlely looks to convict anyone and everyone who wasn't an islander of war crimes. There is no gray here and the film very much wants everyone to feel the pain. I'm not certain it always works since the film, for all the truth feels stacked. The result was the while ending wants to leave us broken I was simply ready to move onto the next film.

MY NAME 
The story of a mother and son trying to deal with their pasts and the damage it cost. The son has to deal with the issues that his name, and the trauma his mother fed him, causes him in life, while his mother has to deal with the hidden pain in her past- she was one of the survivors the Jeju Uprising.

This is an okay film that could have used another pass at the script stage. I say that because while the story of the mother finally coming to terms with the hidden secrets of her past is interesting and not quite something we've seen before , the son's story is much more by the numbers. It might have worked had that been the focus but the stuff involving the mother is so strong it makes the film seem weaker.

A pointer towards Gosh!! (2025) Japan Cuts 2026

 

I'm not really going to review GOSH!! The reason being that this is the sort of film you wither connect with or you don't. Based upon a Cult TV show the film is about a cop and his police dog, which is a man in a dog suit. The bicker like a married couple. They get involved with the disappearance of a volunteer and the case takes them across time and space in a mystery that involves glowing red doors that keep appearing.

I've seen enough films to know that this film is either going to click for you or its not. This is exactly the sort of off kilter tale that Japanese film and TV makers are very good at.  Its a kind of living manga/anime that makes no real world sense but is perfectlys fine in a cartoony sort of way.

I found it amusing at times but I'm not certain it all hangs together. That said it may work for you

ALL GREENS (2026) NYAFF 2026

Three girls want to get the hell out of their dead end town. They come up with a scheme to do so and it all goes sideways.

This is a bleak and biting black comedy that teeters on the knife edge of being truly horrifying and being catch in your throat funny (mostly). 

I don't  know what to say other than most of this film rocked my world. Until the final part of the the film I thought this was a brilliant meditastion on life in a small town and one of the darkest explorations of family dysfunction a dead end exploration I've ever seen.  Ye, there is humor here but at the same time it catches in your throat. There is a car accident early on and its shocking....and its darkly funny but the reaction of everyone involved in the scene speaks volumes about the dead soul of humanity.

I love this film. I loved that I didn't expect pretty much anything that happened. I loved it it's clear eyed look at life that is so brutal it blinds you to the ability to see goodness in humanity.

My problem with the film is the tone, it doesn't always work.  Some times the humor catches in your throat and some times it under cuts the feeling of dread. For the most part it all works, though the climax is the wrong sort of funny. It didn't kill the film for me but it lessened it.

On the other hand I am haunted by the darkness. 

One of the must sees at NYAFF

Coroner of theStars (2025) Opens July 14

This is a portrait of Thomas Noguchi the medical examiner and coroner who maybe best known for having dealt with numerous high profile cases (hence the title)  but who also broke through racial barriers.

This is a very good look at a man whose name most people know. Noguchi, was for his tenure as Los Angeles medical examiner, seemingly always around. If anyone died in LA he was on TV talking about it. The thing is, there was way more to the man then just press conferences and this film lets us know about that.

Covering all of Noguchi's 98 years the film tells the story from birth to now. It shows him growing up in Japan, coming to America, meeting his wife, getting a job in the LA coroners office and rising through the ranks. It shows how he his pursuit for the truth got him his job and ultimately got him in trouble (he didn't sugar coat findings when talking to the press.). It also shows how his breaking of the racial barrier (he was the first Asian in the office)  allowed him to break other barriers.

I really liked this film a great deal. It's a well told tale of a man who is part of entertainment history. While it doesn't break any new ground it entertains and informs, which is enough.

Recommended.

Colony at NYAFF

 

I saw Colony tonight at NYAFF and I was not a fan.

The audience loved it. I thought it was Yeon Sang-ho's least film with every turn foreshadaowing everything that will happen later, other turns that make no sense and a feeling that the real director was someone else trying to copy him. 

Its not bad, there are some killer sequences, but its the work of some one with less talent than Sang-ho.

As much as I want to post what looks like it is going to be a long piece looking at the problems, I'm going to hold off since no one has seen it in the US.  For now read everyone's reactions and make up your own mind. 

Look for my ffull thoughts when the film is released later in the summer.

Brief thoughts on Magical Secret Tour (2025) NYAFF 2026

Three women needing money begin to smuggle gold.

This is an odd mix of drama, crime and caper with a dash of humor. It's a film with a lot of plot threads running through it but it isn't always clear which one it wants to focus on. Don't get me wrong it isn't bad, and I enjoyed it all the way through, but when it was sone I kind of felt like it should have covered a bit more of some of the threads.

Worth a look for those wanting to be entertained.

Junk World (2026) Japan Cuts

"I am god. You will bend your knee to me and be given wisdom"

Follow up to 2017's mind blowing JUNK HEAD,  JUNK WORLD shows us more of the world of the future where mankind shares the planet with other life forms.  The film focuses on the battle between humans and the other species who want to remove mankind.

When I saw JUNK HEAD a few years back I was godsmacked. The film was unlike anything I had seen before. Sure I had seen stop motion films before but the world it was imagining it was something else entirely. The world was unique. Its rules were new. I fell into it. WhenJUNK WORLD was announced as playing this year's Japan Cuts it jumped to the top of my must see film at the festival.

I've seen the film twice now and to be honest it took me two  screenings to fall in love with it. This does not mean that the film that is bad, rather it is to say that the film was not what I expected and I had to see it the second  time so I could see it for  itself. Yes the film is still visually unique. Yes the details are delightful one of a kind. The problem with the film is that the narrative is, for the most part conventional. a good chunk of it it a chase film mixed with a clash of factions. We've been here before.  I had to see the film a second time to get past the obivious. I needed that second screening to truly see the film discussions about societies and peoples interaction. There is a lot going on here and when I saw how much I warmed to the film.

I like the film a great deal.  Do be honest I think the first film is better, but this film is still great.

(And no, you don't need to see the first film to understand this one. Actually that might be the better way to see it.)

By a ticket and go.

Seoul Station is playing NYAFF on July 13

They ran SEOUL STATION originallyran in a late night slot at the New York Asian Film Festival years ago and it provoked two reactions. The first was nervous laughter from those in the audience who couldn’t see animation as anything other than something to entertain kids or tell jokes. The other, more pervasive, reaction was a deep dark sense of unease and dread not to mention a feeling that the film was extremely “f-ed” up. Ultimately it was a film that everyone who was there shamed those who weren’t with talk that they should have been there.

The feeling that people should have been there was intensified when Yeon Sang-ho next film the epic zombie mega hit TRAIN TO BUSAN hit theaters and stayed there for months, literally. Suddenly everyone wanted to know what he had done before and was shocked that the animated SEOUL STATION was the film before it. Everyone had to know how the films related to each other and in many circles there was a mad quest to track down copies of the film.

And now, some 11 months after the film played the New York Asian Film Festival SEOUL STATION is hitting iTunes. Knowing that everyone who saw and loved TRAIN TO BUSAN was going to be rushing to see the first film I decided to revisit the film in case my review needed to be updated.

While I’m not going to update my original review, which follows, I do want to say a couple of things.

First despite the way it’s being touted by fans and the releasing company, SEOUL STATION is not really a prequel to TRAIN TO BUSAN. While it came out first the films do not lead into each other. If anything BUSAN should be seen as the first film since it explains how it all starts where SEOUL STATION is simply one event happening at the same time, more or less. I’ve heard that director Sang-ho said that the two films are not really related and that the fact that they are both zombie films was just happenstance relating to his wanting to tell two stories set against similar backgrounds. I'm not sure it's true, but it kind of makes sense since the two films are ultimately different.

The next thing I wanted to say is that don’t let the animation get in the way of your enjoying SEOUL STATION’s story. Just think of it as a damn good horror film. While there is no doubt that it could have been told live action, the scale of some sequences would have made it cost prohibitive. Yes they could have used computers like in Train to Busan, but the scale here is bigger. Animation made it possible to tell the story the way it should be told.

Lastly realize that the film is not about zombies. The plot is really a different kind of story that’s set during a time of monsters. I know the ending bothered some people who saw it last year and I’m guessing that is going to be the case again now that it can be widely seen. Sang-ho is simply using the tropes of horror to tell the story of a search.

Ultimately take SEOUL STATION on its own terms and if you do that I think you’ll like it. For me it was one of the best films I saw in 2016, which is as high a rave as I can give.

Here now is the review I ran right after SEOUL STATION blew me away last June.

Numerous story lines collide- an old guy with a neck wound wanders back into the city and his "brother" attempts to find medical help for him. A young woman has trouble with her boyfriend who wants to pimp her out via the internet. Meanwhile a father looks for his missing daughter. Elsewhere in and around the Seoul Station various homeless people cope with the late night. Everyone wants to settle in for the night - except that the old guy isn't just wounded but carrying the infection that will begin the outbreak of a condition that will see the dead rise and attack the living.

An absolute rarity in the zombie genre, a film with honest to god characters. Not only that its a zombie film with real scares. And its animated.

Normally I hate the zombie genre. I mean I HATE IT, so when I tell you SEOUL STATION IS really good believe me, this is REALLY GOOD. Actually it's quite amazing especially since the zombie film has been so badly raped by lazy hacks and would be comediennes that that to me the genre is pretty much worthless (do not get me started about WALKING DEAD). Yes we'd occasionally get a good film but it as always buried in the middle of 25 turds.. this is one of the best I've seen in years, decades if you want a straight on balls to the wall horror film as opposed to something like MAGGIE or MISS ZOMBIE which use the tropes for other purposes.

SEOUL STATION works for two reasons. First is the characters. Pretty much everyone is a real person. If they aren't a full fleshed out person then we have enough to think there is more to them than just being a cardboard cut out. We car about the people- even the ones we don't like.

The second reason the film works is that the film is set at the start of an outbreak. The characters don't know what is happening so their panic feeds our panic. We don't know the rules because no one knows whats happening so they haven't figured them out. The hordes are not your typical zombie masses but something else. They are fast but clumsy, they fall down a lot. While there is little doubt that they are in a direct line to the George Romero ones, a head shot is needed to kill them and the film riffs his DAWN OF THE DEAD, there are enough differences that it keeps things interesting. It also allows for some scary funny moments as we can't always be sure if someone infected or not. Best of all it feels real and you get the sense that this is how is would probably go (the governmental response is just as chilling as the zombies).

I was scared and on the edge of my seat for most of the film.

And do I really need to mention the social commentary that runs rampant but unobtrusively all through the film? And when you consider this was made by Yeon Sang-ho who made the bleakly depressing KING OF PIGS you can be sure its not a happy film.

One of the best films at NYAFF and one of the best horror films of 2016. A must see.

After Moonrise (2026) Welcome to Chinatown

A mother mourning the death of her husband during a sacred fast, is visted by her daughter who is worried about her. Her mother's grief had pushed her away, however a silence has made her return home.

Vinamrata Singal's film is a small gem of a film. Why do I say yes to unsolicited films? Becauase more often then not I find little treasures such as this.

A small  capture of a moment in time, AFTER MOONRISE nicely reveals the depth of emotion families have even with those who unintentionally drive us away.  We do make each other crazy, but at the same time there is love.

I was moved. 

Playing a full up community screening in New York's Chinatown as part of a Welcome to Chinatown event, AFTER MOONRISE is a film to track down.

Sato and Sato (2026) Japan Cuts 2025

The course of a relation ship from 22 to 27 as two people named Sato meet, fall in love, have a child and divorce.

This film kicked my ass for reasons outside of the film. Echoing a relationship with an ex of mine this film kicked up a great many emotions expressed and unexpressed.  It made me feel things I did not want to. I am saying this up front because on certain level my feelings for the film objectivey are compromised.

On the other hand his film is a great film on it's own terms. Its a beautifully acted film that perfectly uses a fragmented/time jumping style in order get maximum emotional response from the audience. If the film was straight forward it would not have worked as well. The fact that the film can move through time and mash the echoes is what gives this film its power.

My unobjective feelings or not this is one of the best films at Japan Cuts this year and an absolute must see when it plays this weekend.

Light in the Ether (2026)

A young girl is trapped in an escape pod in space after an attack. She is all alone and things are getting worse.

This is a super film that makes clear that being trapped in space can end up being incredibly boring. There is a super sense of  place. There us a real sense of claustaphobia that you never get in science fiction films. you can feel the closed in nature of our heroine's situation. Its a brilliant move that gets under your skin and makes you really feel for the girl on the screen.

At the same time the film has one on problem that may make it not work for some people and that is the film is very deliberately placed. Yes, I mean that the film is slow.  At the same time the slowness is intentional. Its there in order to make us feel what it is like to be trapped in space.  Its a move that gives us a real sense of what it's like but at the same time it may make it tough for someone looking for an entertainment.

I like this film a great deal. If you want to see a realistic film of survival in space give LIGHT IN THE ETHER a shot when it begins streaming July 31.

Reading Lolita in Tehran (2024) opens Friday

 

This is an adaption of Azar Nafisi’s autobiography of her return to Iran after the 1979 revolution in order to teach literature but finding complications and repression from the new Islamic government. She eventually ends up meeting with some her students to secretly read banned books.

I’m not going to get into the minor controversy connected to the film about the director being an Israeli making a movie about Iran at exactly the wrong time (Gaza and the heating up of the situation with Iran). Instead, I am simply going to talk about the film as a film.

As a film READING LOLITA IN TEHRAN is perfectly fine. In a way I think the film is probably going to work best if you haven’t read the book since the film compresses things to fit into a 100 minute movie.  It’s a film that tells its story, makes its points, and gets off. That is not a knock, simply a statement that the film leaves things out.

While the film is very good on its own terms it does have one real problem and that it never really connects us to the here and now, or really why Nafisi would return to Iran. We know that there will be issues with the Islamic Revolution. We know there is going to be repression. Unless they are very unaware anyone seeing the film knows that. The trouble is that the film never really makes us forget how things were and are. Since we don’t forget we know how this is going to play out, in generalities if not in details. There is only a limited amount of suspense as a result. Its not fatal but it makes the film less than it should be.

At the same time what is here is good enough that it is worth a look.

Initial D plays NYAFF on July 12

 

MY IMDB review:

Chinese adaptation of a Japanese comic is not you typical race film. Probably will play better if you don't know the source and are open to different take in a race film

Takumi is a high schooler who often delivers his fathers tofu late at night. His late night trips have made him adept at the winding down hill run of Mt. Akina, which is a course used by the street racers of the area as the ultimate test of skill. When an unintentional race brings him to the notice of the racers, his life changes as he has to field numerous offers to actually see who is the best driver.

Based on a Japanese comic and cartoon, Initial D is a live action Chinese film thats broken box office records across Asia. Despite being a huge animation fan I've never seen the animation nor have a I read the comic. I'm not sure if thats a good thing or a bad thing, but seeing how many fans of the source material are unhappy with the film I would say its a good thing.

Flat out I liked this movie. It did take a while to warm up to, but once I began to take it for what it is I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Is it a great film? In someways yes and in others no. As I said this takes a bit to get going. The lead is a bit too closed mouth for my taste, barely uttering a word for the entire two hours. Its a bit too teen angsty. Still you have great characters and great performances by pretty much everyone in the cast (even if everyone was speaking three or four different languages when this was filmed.

The racing is excellent. Its mostly seems to have been done with out CGI enhancement. I like that there are no horrific crashes, police chases or other clichéd events that are so rampant in American movies. And while I was initially apprehensive by the fact the racing is always on the same stretch of road, I warmed to the idea since by doing that we really got to see who was best. (If you want American style racing in many different environments stay away)

Definitely worth a look see, especially if you want to see a race film that is not like all of the rest. 7.5 out of 10 rounded up to 8 out of 10 for IMDb purposes.

On the Phone(2026)

The film is the story of Lily and Brandon, influencers, who are trying to make a film.

Matthew Kyle Levine is one of the great directors that most of you haven't heard of. His film are small gems that have moments that haunt me. The images and the head space of ON THE PHONE haunt me. Shot on film, the images feel as though I've seen them for years and are part of my life. The image below being one of them.

What I love about Levine's films is that there is a sense of reality. Yes, we are watching a film, and the story is very deliberate in construction. However, at the same time the film feels like we are watching reality. We are on this farm.  We are with these people, and we are witnessing their lives.  What makes Levine's films so staggeringly good is that he doesn't stage his films on sets. Levine places us in real places. We are in Lilly's mom's home. We can walk into this place and really be there. 

Levine also gives us real characters. He picks actors who don't seem like actors. He gives them dialog which seems natural and what Lilly or Brandon would say, even the monologues are not theatrical but self absorbed people speaking.

This is an awesome film.

Mathhew Kyle Levine needs to make a feature - and you need to track this film and his others down and watch them.