Sun Never Again (2024)

A father tries to shield his son from the darker side of life. in particular that there is a strong possibility that they may have to move from their home because of an expanding nearby mine. 

This is a beautiful little film. I'm kind of at a loss as to why this film hasn't gotten more notice because it is a film that tells a compelling story and has a presentation that is tactile. You watch the film, and you come away feeling as if you were in this place at this time.  I suspect that the reason people aren't talking about it is that it is low key. This is not a film that screams and yells about itself., this is a film that grabs you and pulls you into its embrace. It's a film that so forces you to deal with its wonders that you kind of forget to talk about it. That really isn't a knock, it's more a statement of the films power and hold on you - you don't want to talk about the film until you figure it all out.

I really like this film, to the point I'm still pondering it and it's magic. I mean I love how it forces us to see cinematric tropes from a different perspective. For example we have a character who is living through the imaginary world of his son, a world we never see. Director David Jovanovic is a director we need to watch.

If you want to see a lyric poem of a film see SUN NEVER AGAIN.

Catchup Capsules: THE MINECRAFT MOVIE (2024) and KILLERS GAME (2024)

 MINECRAFT MOVIE
Lowest common denominator filmmaking.  The story of humans who cross over into the Minecraft world and have to fight off an invasion. Weak jokes  rule the day as truly bad CGI effects never put anyone in the same location. Even in the purely animated sequences nothing seems to be in the same world. You can see the compositing lines everywhere.

This is awful. 

KILLERS GAME
Dave Bautista  plays a dying hitman who puts a hit on himself then changes his mind- but they won't call off the hit. High art? not on your life. But in its cliched minutes there are some great fights and funny one liners.

I had a blast

Say Hello (2025)

Actor David Graziano moves behind the camera for the tale of a corrupt cop forced to repay a debt to a gangster. It's a move that heralds the arrival of a director we need more from.

I liked SAY HELLO. Its a good little film. It's a twisty little film that doesn't do what we expect.  The film's one flaw is that the performances are a bit uneven. If you get the chance to see it you really should.

However while the film is good, Graziano's direction is something else. Graziano's work  behind the camera is something special. Looking at how he blocked out scenes and chose his shots I was impressed. I loved how he put the film together. I loved that he arranged everything so that he showed off the actors in the best way.  I was so impressed that I went to IMDB to see what else he directed and I was shocked that he only had one other film (SISYPHUS). How could it be one film since his hand is so rock steady that he has a better grasp than most established directors.

Someone give this man a feature.

Until then take a look at SAY HELLO.

Secret of a Mountain Seprent (2025) Venice 2028

 

In a small town a woman begins an affair with a stranger who comes to her town while her husband is away at war… 

Glacially paced film is going to be a delight for anyone who likes extremely slow films where not a great deal happens and the camera just observes things, as in various things, not all of the having to do with the characters. This maybe the slowest film I’ve ever seen.

About ten minutes into the film there is a title card about the legend of serpent who trapped a woman who promised to give up her daughter to the snake if he let her go. She then ran away never to return. This has caused women to be banned from ever entering the river. I’m not quite sure how that fits into things but it’s there.

I’m not what to say about the film. It is a beautiful film full of silences and not a great deal of motion. Dialog is at a minimum. There is a sense that the film was going to reveal itself to be about something special, but it never had that ah ha moment.

For fans of slow cinema only

Vice is Broke (2024)

Eddie Huang, chef, writer, and TV personality takes a look at his former home Vice Magazine and exposes how it went from an organization that was worth four billion dollars into bankruptcy. 

This is one of the great films of DOC NYC. Coming out of left field this film blew me away, sure I expected a film I was interested in, but I just didn't expect that the film would result in hours of discussion afterward. This is not only a portrait of Vice which went from one big outsider family to a corporate organization that had ideas on how tell stories on, to stories that were puff pieces payed for by corporations, but the film is also a look at how the media is being reshaped by corporate interests and stupid people.

I loved this film.  When it was done I didn't want to move on to the next film, I wanted to jump right back in and watch it again... I mean it's full of such great people and stories. 

This is great stuff- very recommended.

Father (2025) Venice 2025

I am going to be discussing the tragic event that sets FATHER in motion, so if you don’t want to know what happens until you see the film (it is worth your time), then move on.

This is a portrait of a loving father who makes a mistake that results in a terrible tragedy.

It’s been a while since I saw FATHER and I am still mulling what I think of the film.  While the cast is good, and many of the scenes feel like we are watching moments pulled from life, there is something about the presentation that makes it feel less than real.

The opening scenes feel like we are heading to tragedy, and then once the father and daughter get into the car we know it’s not going to end well. Because there is this sense of dread hanging over the proceedings, and because the film is constantly referencing the high temperature of the day we are very aware of what is happening and how it plays out it doesn’t completely feel right. It didn’t feel like an honest accident and felt more like it was something that the filmmakers did to kick the story into motion. I didn’t fully accept that he would have forgotten his daughter was in the car.  Afterward, as we watch the aftermath play out it feels a bit too formal in the presentation (say the framing of the images).

While I was intellectually engaged, I wasn’t emotionally. For me there was always a distance. It’s a shame since the cast is really good and I would have liked to have been emotionally broken by them.

What We Hide (2025)

The question I have about WHAT WE HIDE (formerly called SPIDER & JESSIE) is why this little gem of a film isn't being talked about. This little film is deeply emotional and moving. It is full of great characters and love. 

The film doesn't waste a moment and starts when two sisters Spider and Jessie, find their mother dead from a drug over dose. Fearing that child welfare will take them away and seperate them, the put their mom in a trunk in the shed in the back. As they try to act normally, complications arise.

This is a wonderful film. 

What makes this film work is the fact that the script doesn't over do it with melodrama. Everything is played close to real. While it clearly is a movie, things aren't overly contrived. Coupled with the perfect cast, the script pulls us in and opens up our heart.

This is a great film you are going to want to share.

Highly recommended.

Sanatorium Under The SIgn Of The Hourglass (2024) starts Friday at the Film Forum

With SANATORIUM UNDER THE SIGN OF THE HOURGLASS Timothy and Stephen Quay have turned several stories from writer and painter Bruno Schulz into a waking dream that takes us into another world. A mix of animation and live action this is a film that only the Quays could have made.

The plot, and I use that term loosely, has a chimney sweep trying to sell a magical box that has many lens. when you look through the lens on a certain day the cornea contained inside it will allow the viewer to see seven final moments from the life of the owner. In this case it reveals the story of a man named Josef, who takes an etherial train to a Santaorium that is out of sync with time. Its so out of sync that Josef's father who is dead, is still alive.

This film is its own world. It is a world that is best described in a dream world. Reality is subjective. Images repeat. Things shift from Quay style feral animation to real life. Things are cinematic one moment, theatrical at another. Aspect rations go from standard cinema ratios to ultra wide screen. Sone time the images are angular and sometimes something else. Everything exists only for the moment.

This is cinematic magic of the highest order. While the film may remind you of other filmmakers (Jiri Trnka, Peter Greenaway, Hans-Jurgen Syberberg , Walerian Borowczyk and others)  this film is actually more the work of the Quays. Their palette and sensibilities are all over this. 

And I am in awe of the the marriage of image and music. this has to be one of the greatest marriages of image and music that has ever been put on film. Rarely has any film used music so perfectly from start to finish. Neither lifts more than the other and the result is an emotional punch that leaves us haunted at the end.

While I think this film is possibly one of the best films of the year and of the Quays, I will freely admit that the pacing can be considered slow in the second half. I say this because I felt myself drifting off a bit. While normally that might has had me disengage, something that happened to some of my fellow writers, I stayed connected. The reason was the feeling that the whole affair is a dream. The drifting had me merging cinema and dream in the cheap seats.

Quibble aside, this is grand cinema. This is a true work of art and a masterpiece by two of cinema's masters. I highly recommend this film when it plays by you.

The Golden Head (1963)

One of the last true Cinerama films was effectively abandoned after a poor showing at it's premiere run in London. A co- production with a Hungarian film studio the film was pulled and then buried and never was shown in the US until the film was restored a couple years back.

The plot has the family of an art expert traveling the rivers of Europe. When he is spirited away to speak at a conference in the kids continue on by boat. Along the way they cross paths with art thieves George Sanders and Buddy Hackett who steal the titled object from a church. A game of cat and mouse ensues.

Part comedy, part travelogue and part Wonderful World of Disney mystery THE GOLDEN HEAD is wildly uneven. Stopping repeatedly to show the scenery the film drags on way past the point where it is welcome. (Chop a half hour out and this might be something). The real problem is the fact that this much too family friendly. By having the kids the focus, the whole mystery is softened and there never is any sense of danger. It's something that isn't helped by Sanders and Hackett being loveable bad guys.

On the plus side this film does have some killer travel sequences that delight. I can only imagine what this would have looked like on a Cinerama screen. Additionally, the chase that is the final 15 minutes is spectacular and worth the price of admission.

The film is currently out on home video from Flicker Alley

The Gospel Of Revolution (2024) is now streaming

I am trying to find the words to talk about GOSPEL OF REVOLUTION. I am saying this because while I have been watching meaty films over the last few months, a large number of them have been considerably less heady affairs. Lots of horror and action films, and not too complicated dramas. As a result, when a film like THE GOSPEL OF REVOLUTION comes along and requires my full attention I find it hard to step up my game once more.

This film is a look at Liberation Theology in Central and South America. The film was made by Francois-Xavier Drouet who is a lapsed believer who had become more interested in politics then theology. However, he found a point of interest in Liberation Theology which makes the teachings of the Christ political. The movement is such that that the people in power are afraid of it. The marriage of politics and religion is, as we see in the US currently, a powerful mix. Though unlike the mix in the US the mix outside of the us tends to be socialist which means American leaders hate it. They hate it so much that they instigated death squads to crush the church and the religious leader speaking out for basic humanity.

Director Drouet gives us a lot to take in. He shows us what happened in several countries and talked to people involved with the various movements who are still with us. It is a film that doesn’t talk down to us and assumes you are going to keep up. Honestly, I am glad I didn’t see it in a theater because I could pause it to process what I was seeing.

This is a great film.

Fantastic Golem Affairs (2023) opens friday

Odds are unless you've seen the earlier films from directors Juan Gonzalez and Fernando Martinez you've not seen anything quite like THE FANTASTIC GOLEM AFFAIRS. Trust me on this, this is a one of a kind film.

The film begins with a man named Juan being shocked not only that his best friend was killed by falling off the roof of his apartment building but that he shattered into a million pieces because he wasn't human, but a golem.  This sends him on a quest to find out what was going on, but also into very unexpected places.

I really can't explain what this film is like so you just have to see it. I am not saying that as a dodge not to review it but when you consider that it has it's own view which riffs on the visuals of THE ROOM, steals from Wes Anderson, TV sketch comedy shows, and a dozen other sources plus it has a cast that is fully invested in the loopiness by playing it essentially straight.This world exists two universes over from our own.

Watching the film blind as to it's insanity, I was kind of thrown off. The film was playing by a new set of rules. I mean films are not structured like this. GOnzalez and Martinez take the premise of movies being able to do anything to a new level by creating a film whose stories, while rooted in reality (these are all real people) have no boundaries. The film has it's own world and it operates on those rules. It is initially confusing, but once we realize we aren't in Kansas but some where else it all falls into place and we are willing to go with it anywhere.

In a weird way the film is kind of like the work of Quentin Dupieux, except it's less forced and more natural. Dupiex is usually trying to make a point and he curves things for his ends, Gonzalez and Martinez are telling you a story and bending things to do that. I think this actually works better since I came out feeling attached to the world and not just bits of a story.

If you want an off Hollywood experience that will show you their is still people doing wondrous things with film see THE FANTASTIC GOLEM AFFAIRS.

Brute 1976 (2025)

This homage/send up of both THE HILLS HAVE EYES and TEXAS CHAINSAW massacre has a group of friends going into the desert and meeting a masked 1970's style homicidal family.

I alternately loved BRUTE 1976 and hated it. I loved that it got every detail of the retro 1970's style down. It looks and feels exactly like a film from the 70's. While the clothing looks 70's Hollywood, it still feel period. The characters look and sound right. The script is very 1970's right down to it's portrayal of some of the various phobic characters. Its spot on perfect. And had the film played it straight this would have been a killer film.

The problem with the film is that it is way too knowing. There is is humorous aire to a lot of of it that takes the edge off the scares. I never felt frightened, I just kept feeling that if they played things more seriously this would have been better. This is especially true with the kills which are played for laughs and to turn you stomach (power tools and a member)

I was disappointed. Don't get me wrong I like the film, but I wanted to love it, especially when the opening impressed me.

Worth a look for horror fans

BABY ASSASSINS 3 (aka BABY ASSASSINS NICE DAYS) 2024

 This is a modified review of when the film world premiered at NYAFF in 2024

The third in the Baby Assassins series world premiered at the New York Asian Film Festival.  For a while it didn't look like it was going to happen because the digital file had issues. After an hour they substituted a screener copy and held the event. They also managed to give the Daniel A Craft Award for Action to director Yugo Sakamoto, hold off the next screening long enough so that people who had tickets could go, and a 15 minute Q&A.

Bravo to the staff.

The plot of the film has Chisato and Mahiro sent to the city of Miyazaki on a hit. The pair are using the trip to site see and to celebrate Mahiro's birthday. The plan is to kill a nebish because he embellished a large sum of money. When they find their target they also find another hit man there about to kill him. A battle ensues... and when all is done the girls are in trouble because they didn't make the kill and because there is freelancer on the loose. Hooking up with another team, they now have to take out the freelancer and their target.

While this film isn't as good as the first film, it is light years ahead of the second. This is a film that's worth seeing, despite the fact that it is also a mess because the bits that work are great.

I'm not going to lie; the narrative is a wildly uneven. After an unfunny silly opening the film shifts into action mode when they go on the hit. This introduces the villain, a lone wolf killer who is looking for his 150th kill. He's a psychotic nutjob with near superhuman ability. He is a chilling foe... who quickly disappears for large chunks of the film. This would be fine if director Sakamoto managed to make him have a presence in the scenes he's not in, but it never happens. Even when he is spoken about, and even when the girls are going through his house, there is so sense of him hanging over the proceedings.  He is either a danger on screen when he is battling with the girls or gone from the film's memory. It's a disastrous move that leaves us with no one to fear. The film is so bad at making the villains menacing (there are other assassins) there is no sense of danger. Well, okay, in the fights there is a sense of danger because the girls get their asses kicked but when there is no action there is no suspense. Frankly there is a great villainous performance here looking for a script up to that level.

The plot also doesn't make a hell of a lot of sense. Plot threads jump. We often don't know how we get from one part to another. For example at the end everyone is fighting outside when suddenly the girls are in a building and battle their nemesis. How did they know he was there? More to the point how did the bad guy get from the cars to the building?  We don't know. The film looks like Sakamoto and his crew cut out all the connecting material.

You can't think about you just have to go with the action.

Speaking of action, I don't know why Sakamoto got the Daniel Craft Award for Action.  I say that in part because Sakamoto hasn't done enough careerwise to warrant it. Yea the fights in the first film are great but the rest of the films aren't that great. Here the fights are serviceable but not great. Part of the problem is that they are wickedly uneven. In some moments there is copious amounts of blood, and in other moments there is none. In some moments things have effects on the combatants there is none.  Worse a lot of the fights feel a half step slow. Yea there are some great moments, but mostly it's a lot of good. (Compare the action in this film with the action in TWILIGHTS OF THE HEROES: WALLED IN which closed the fest or WOLF HIDING which played earlier in the fest and you will be scratching your head about the award.)

What works and what makes the film worth seeing is the development of Chisato and Mahiro. The girls are arcing, as are the characters around them, with the result that this film sings despite its flaws and the Baby Assassin series is something you want to see. We are watching how the girls grow up. their relationship deepens. The characters around them are growing too. Even the assassins the girls work with in this film arc. It's fantastic- I mean truly fantastic to the point that you want them to lose the stupid humor and some of the action nonsense and instead give us more time with the characters caring for each other and being real people. It's this growth that makes this third film worth seeing not the okay action. 

While not as bad as the last film, and not the equal to the first, it's still worthy follow up to the first film.

Recommended for the fans of the series.

213 Bones (2025) Fright Fest 2025

A class of forensic anthropologist students who are participating in a test to solve a fake murder end up being hunted by a mask weilding maniac.

Horror and humor mix in this knowing send up opf 1990's slasher films. Filled with all the expected cliches as well as a large selection of 1990's tunes 213 BONES entertains on it's own terms.

As enjoyable as this film is the film has one problem that hurts it, and that is the film is much too light weight. The film never creates a sense of a real world. We are in some cinematic universe where things are sent up. While the film never sends anything is truly sent up to the point of belly laughs, the film still seems feels like a TV show.

Reservations aside, 213 Bones is worth a look.

 Some quick bits: 

• Yes, there will be a coverage of Locarno, Venice and Toronto. I am working on reviews from all three festivals for the next few weeks
• Yes, I really liked the films at Big Bad Film Fest a great deal. They were pure popcorn.
• I should know at the beginning of the week how NYFF is going to be covered. I’m hoping that both Peter and I get credentialed.
• I am suddenly very aware that Unseen is really disconnected from the new release cycle except as we repost festival coverage. I am forever either way ahead of the curve via fetival coverage or way late when something i streaming

Shadows Edge (2025)

 Possibly the least interesting Jackie Chan film I've seen. Yes he's made some stinkers but this is the first time I was largely bored.

Cobbled together from any number of better techno thrillers, this film has a bunch of bad guys lead by a ghostly former government assassin trying to run a couple of robberies in order to get the required tech and passwords to still billions in cryto. When the police find that their systems are compromised they bring in a retired "hunter" to bring the crooks down the old fashion way.

This film is a mess. From a script that doesn't explain anything either at all or well, to action sequences that make no sense (the 20 minute opening sequence has the bad guys peeling off disguise after disguise after disguise despite having nothing under the clothes they were just wearing), to long periods where nothing happens (The training in the streets sequence), this is a film that cries out for a new editor who is willing to remove stuff. One that can actually match up the action in a sequence so it actually flows and doesn't have to be helped along by our imagination and letting things slide.

Yes, Chan is fine, but he isn't given much to do until late in the game (hell, he doesn't come into the film until almost the laf hour mark).  The rest of the cast is equally good but they to are not given anything to do. We don't know who anyone is so early sequences fall flat, and we aren't clued in until almost a hour in when we start to get long monologs that fill us in. That would be okay, except it's so late we don't care.

The film also isn't focused. is it about the cops at the start? The bad guys? Chan? the daughter of Chan's dead  partner? What is everyone's relationship? The film doesn't know and doesn't do anything until it needs to pull something out of its bottom to drive things forward again.

This isn't bad as such, but it isn't anything we haven't seen before (EYE IN THE SKY any one? MISSION IMPOSSIBLE?  How about any other recent techno thriller with a hacker who can get into anything? How about any film where a young cop is trying to make their dead parent proud while watched over a misunderstood ex-partner?)

I was bored and kept reaching for the remote.

Pig Hill (2025) Fright Fest 2025

 

A young woman begins to look into a series od strange disappearances in her town with the help of her brother and a friend. The disappearances appear to have something to do with “the pig people” a legendary bunch of people who do terrible things.

This is a nifty little thriller. I’m not going to say it breaks any new ground, but I will happily say that the film instead takes something similar to tales we’ve heard before and dresses it up so well that we fall in love it. There is a reason that some frequently told tales are more loved than others and it is in the hands of the storyteller. In this case it’s director Kevin Lewis who shows after the very fun WILLIE’S WONDERLAND that he is one of the best directors working today.  Lewis has made two great popcorn films and his work will make you want to see what he is doing next.

I had a blast watching this and I wish I had seen it at a packed festival screening where the energy of a similarly focused group of people makes it something greater. I will be seeing this again.

This film is a blast

Recommended.

A few brief thoughts on FLUXX (2025) which hits digital August 26

FLUXX is a frustrating film. What starts out as a seeming time loop film goes sideways as it reveals itself to be something else that isn't as compelling.

The film is about an actress named Vada. She wakes up in a bathtub uncertain what happened or where her husband is. She begins replaying events and dealing with some shady characters.  We are left to wonder what is going on or if Vada is losing her mind.

The problem here is the focus. The trapped actress trying to escape portion of the the film is really well done, but the fact that it is paired up with long flashbacks of Vada's life makes it less fun. The flashback sequences, while good, are nothing special. We've seen this Hollywood story way too many times before, so we can fill in the blanks ourself. Worse is that when you compare the drama to to the thriller the drama comes up lacking. 

While FLUXX isn't bad, it's uneven parts make it less than the sum of its parts.

SPL 2 aka Kill Zone 2 closes the Big Bad Film Festival

With SPL2 playing The Big Bad Film Festival this is a repost of my review from when it played Fantasia years ago.

In name only sequel to 2005's KILL ZONE has Tony Jaa as man who takes a job as prison guard in order to make money to pay for his sick daughters care. Meanwhile in Hong Kong a human organ trafficking ring is giving the police fits. When an undercover cop from Hong Kong who was on the trail of the traffickers ends up in his prison Jaa realizes the cop maybe an organ match for his daughter so he has to keep him alive.

To be honest the plot means nothing- what you want to see is the action. Sequence after sequence of action from the intake of the cop into prison to the shoot out in the terminal  to the centerpiece prison riot to the final confrontations its all about the breaking of bones.  Outside of the WTF ending what you are going to remember about this film is the seemingly endless parade of flying fists and lethal kicks.

As a name only sequel the film actually is keeping in line with the first film. The original film launched star Donnie Yen into super stardom internationally because he shone brightly in the endless and bone crushing fight scenes, which were the only thing I remember about the first film. The first film was one you talked about and recommended because of the fights and that is the deal here. The plot is secondary, if not ludicrously unnecessary.

I like this film a great deal, It was a shot of adrenaline into my system

Trust me you want to see this big where you can get lost in the mayhem on screen.

A must see for action fans.

DEAD TO RIGHTS aka NANJING PHOTO STUDIO - Further thoughts

A few days ago I wrote a piece on DEAD TO RIGHTS after I saw it at a badly projected screening at a local theater. (Those thoughts can be found here) I liked the film but wanted to see it under better conditions. I spoke with the PR firm handling the film and they arranged for a screener for me. Now having seen the film a second time where I could really focus on the film, I wanted to say a few more things.

Seeing the film a second time increased my opinion of the film.  I think it is an excellent historical drama about what happened in Nanjing during the invasion. Yes, the film takes a lot of dramatic liberties (the photos were smuggled out by missionaries) and it is a film that reveals probably every sort of atrocity that happened, but it creates a definite headspace that is like concentrated trip into hell.

The other big reaction that I had was the film seemed much more melodramatic. Seeing the film a second time and freed of being on the rollercoaster of wondering who was going to live and who was going to die, I could really focus on the drama, and it reveals itself very much to be a pot boiler. In this case, telling a story with a very urgent and emotional bend to it is understandable.

The one thing that really bothered me this time through was how blatant the jingoistic Chinese point of view the film is. While I am okay with there being (almost) no European faces in the film, it's truly clear that anyone other than anyone who is Chinese, is evil. The first time through I was shocked at the shading of the Japanese photographer as someone who wasn't all evil. Chinese films like this don't usually do that. But watching it again, knowing of his turn to violence changed his character in my eyes. I realized that he never had any humanity and like the rest of Japanese viewed the Chinese as pets. It isn't done that well and it became cartoonish. This really is a complete us versus the world film (as I said the film alters history and removes anything to do with anyone European having any part of anything going on in Nanjing). I know I shouldn't have expected anything less, but the way the film comes off on the first viewing, keeping the focus small, fooled me into thinking that aspect of the film was more under control.

Jingoism aside, I do like the film. As I said it's a balls to the wall, take no prisoners view of what happened almost 90 years ago. It's a moving and affecting portrait of the human spirit.

Blind Bargin (2025) Fright Fest 2025

Inspired by a lost Lon Chaney silent film, which was itself based on an 1890 novel, the film follows a young man who makes a deal with a doctor (Crispin Glover) to get help for his problems if he submits his mother to an experiement. The man's desperation  doesn't allow him to see that the doctor doesn't have his best interests at heart.

This is a great little thriller. Yes, the film has horror elements but the chills are more thrills. The film also has the right amount of gallows humor in it. The filmmakers know that the situations are completely of another era when you could let the pot boil. They know that it's over the  top and arch, so even though they have the cast play it perfectly straight, they allow the humor to exist. The result is a film that perfectly walks the tightrope of humor and horror, even to the point of doing a pirouette.

What a joy. This is a film that feels like an old school drive-in movie from the 1970's or 80's in the best sort of way. 

I loved this.  See it.

Showdown in Little Tokyo (1991) Plays the Big Bad FIlm Festival tomorrow

SHOWDOWN IN LITTLE TOKYO is primarily known as one of the few films to star Brandon Lee before he was killed while making the first CROW film.  It’s a burden the film really shouldn’t be carrying because the gloom of Lee’s death colors the film for no good reason other than our minds work like that.

Is it a great film? Probably not. The film is a typical police buddy film with Lee teaming up with Dolph Lundgren, the "star"of the film,  to take some bad guys down. It’s an entertaining popcorn film on it’s own terms. Is it the greatest thing since sliced bread? Absolutely not but it it’s a breezy film that entertains in it’s 78 minutes. It does what it does and gets off. I saw it when it came out in theaters and I’ve seen it numerous times since then and I’ve enjoyed it every time since then.

What I like about the film is that show cases Brandon Lee. He gets to do more than be a brooding messenger of death. Yes he did some films before this (mostly low budget action films with little for him to do) and Rapid Fire after (where he was more a standard action Hero), and two Kung Fu TV movies (which were meh) but SHOWDOWN allowed him to play off a real star (Lungren)  and not just be “the hero”. He is a name actor, but he isn’t really the star so he gets to play more than just a tough guy.  

Do I know what would have happened if Lee hadn’t died? No. I don’t think he ever had a role that really showed us what he was capable of. He definitely would have been an action star but who knows beyond that, even if SHOWDOWN indicates there was a possibility of something, like comedy.

I  like the film. For me, it is a perfect excuse to sit in theater and munch popcorn with like minded people.

Recommended

Dongji Rescue (2025)

This is a fictionalized account of the sinking of the Lisbon Maru off  the coast of China in 1942.. The ship was being used by the Japanese to move prisoners of war taken during the Battle of Hong Kong. The ship was not marked as carrying prisoners so an American submarine thought it was fair game and fired a torpedo. As the ship began to sink the Japanese sealed the prisoners in and then fled, machine gunning anyone who made it on deck. The sailors from a near by island rushed to aid the sailors trapped in the ship and managed to rescue almost 400 men. This film focuses on two brothers who live on the island, which is under Japanese control, and their part in the events.

This is a great looking film. If you can see the film on the big screen, do so since the underwater sequences and the actual sinking sequence which runs the better part of the final 90 minutes is spectacular. Trust me, you will get carried along with what is happening. This is what big screen movie going is all about.

While the actual sinking sequence is great the earlier section of the film is just okay. Actually, it is better than okay, it just pales compared to the long amazing final sequence. The trouble is that the film doesn't really have characters. Yes, we are focused on the two brothers who get mixed up in the events, but they aren't particularly well drawn. There is a shorthand to their construction. It's something that prevents us from truly connecting on real level. But you won't care because the sinking/rescue is so well done.

This isn't to say the film is bad. It's not. This is kind of like a Chinese version of one of the big American blockbusters which are all motion and little else, though this one has the weight of history behind it. It definitely is a must see for the sinking sequence.

(Note: I do recommend that if you are interested in the full story of what happened you do some research. There is a lot more to the story that the film doesn't fully cover.)

ISOLATED (2025) BIG BAD FILM FEST

When you see ISOLATED  you need to know something that will make the film make a hell of a lot more sense. It will explain why there is almost no exposition and just fights and sequences that give you the sense that you are missing something. This, according to what I read on line when I was trying to find out about the film,  is a side film in series of films that number over 70 entries so far called THE UNIFICATION OF JAPAN. I have no idea what those films are about, other than they are an on going yakuza tale. You don't need to know any of that, except that it explains why this feels like this is the middle of something.

But don't let that stop you, this is a really just a 90 minute film made up of a series of fights as a yakuza soldier fights the ba dguys who kidnapped his boss. Its guns, knives, swords and fists all around. It is a violent ballet for 90 minutes. It starts in the middle of the action and then just goes, flashing back to the events leading  up to the present bloodbath. Is it the greatest thing since sliced bread? No, but it's intriguing enought that I'm curious about the series it comes from.

I had a blast watching this. Finding small gems like this with connections to roads I want to explore are why festivals like Big Bad are so important. Through these fests we see that there is a thriving life outside the main studios.

See this film and have a big bucket of popcorn.

Samurai Fury (2025) Big Bad Film Fest on Saturday

 Yu Irie's epic samurai film is about a band of outsiders who take on the evil shogun.

This film is full of great set pieces and deeply moving moments. It's a film that has some great action and if that's all you need, go for it.  If you need more then this film is going to be a long haul.

The problem with this film is it is crafted to be something other than just a samurai film. In particular this film echoes the spaghetti westerns which were crafted using the rhythms of the samurai films of the late 50's and 60's. The film also lifts the attitudes and smart-ass remarks of the modern Hollywood action films. It would have worked if they had blended it all together better, but they didn't with the result that this feels like a dress up retread.

I never felt connected. Worse once the table was set I kind of knew where this was going to go.

I was disappointed. 

Is this a bad film? No, but I don't know what this is doing at NYAFF. It's nothing remarkable and like a number of other films playing the festival this year which is that it's here to fill a slot or a ticky box (It's this year samurai movie), not because it' anything super spectacular. 

Worth seeing for action fans at the fest, otherwise you can wait.

Captain America (1990) The Albert Pyun Directors Cut

Thirty five years ago Albert Pyun helmed the first big screen feature version of Captain America. The film was not well received. Pyun insisted that if we could see his cut of the film it wouldn't be as disliked as it is. Where many directors will say that about their cuts which no longer exist, Pyun could prove his point because he had a 35mm print of his cut. While the film was released as a limited edition DVD-R, the film is  now making a tour of festivals and people are finally getting a chance to not only see his cut, but getting to see it on a big screen, something almost no one has done.

I will not  get into the story behind the making of Albert Pyun's CAPTAIN AMERICA. There is simply too much to the tale for tell it quickly. All you need to know is that what was kind of released to theaters was not what Pyun wanted. The film was shortened, about 15 minutes was removed. It was also restructured so that the film was told in chronological order. This was never meant to be told that way and as a result the theatrical cult had issues.

My problem with the original cut of the film was that the best stuff was the Captain America action sequences that bookended the film. The rest of it was too talky and awkward. The pacing seemed clunky and awkward. It was a grand swing and a big miss.  Pyun's cut improves the film greatly. It's not the disaster that many feel the theatrical cut is.

This isn't to say that this version doesn't have problems, it does (there is a juvenileness to bits, and the budget resulted in a certain cheapness). However, in this cut the problems are considerably less. The story actually flows from start to finish. It's a move that shifts the plot from one about a decades long plot of the Red Skull and saddles it more toward the characters then the action. It's clear that Pyun was looking to do more than just tell a comic book story. The original structure gives the film more weight.

I actually like this version. No it isn't a great film but I think it's a good film. 

This is definitely worth a look, especially if you love the character. 

Cinerama Russian Adventure (1966)

 

Cut from 17 hours of Soviet Cinerama style footage RUSSIAN ADVENTURE was an effort to try and thaw the cold war by showing people around the world what Russia was really like. The result was film that played for two years in theaters across the globe.

This is one of the best Cinerama films. Filled with spectacular sequences such a reindeer races, a ride down a river and ice skating, the film absolutely delights the eye. It moves like the wind as the editors took the best sequences and linked them up with narration by Bing Crosby. I was so floored I watched several sequences twice. This was a case of where taking the best of what was available resulted in a masterpiece.

If there is any real flaw in the film it is two long theatrical sequences, one of a folk dance and the other the Bolshoi closer which grind things to a halt. It is not that they are bad but simply they are two sequences that don't move. Everything else is constant motion except for these bits and the lack of momentum is felt.

I absolutely love this film.  For my money, if you want to only see one Cinerama film this is it

The Dark And The Wicked (2020) closes Scary Movies XIII August 21

This is a repost of my review from 2020 when I caught THE DARK AND THE WICKED on the festival circuit.

This is going to be a two part review. The first part is a general non spoilery basic review and the second part will be a bit more detailed. Where the first part is a look at the film if you just watch it and don’t think about it the second part goes into a couple of things more deeply.

Part 1

THE DARK AND THE WICKED is a creepy little horror machine that is full of tension and unease. The story of a brother and sister who go home to say good bye to their dad and help their mom is scary . We are moments into the film when we the dark presence haunting the farm among the goats and it just gets darker from there. It has a twisted dream logic and some deeply disturbing scenes. It is, taken purely on face value a scary little film that is worth your time and money.

Part 2 (Spoilers)

As much as I really like THE DARK AND THE WICKED it is film you can not think about. A finely tuned a machine as it is, the plot makes zero sense and in one of the lulls I realized that the film was simply set up to scare you (which it does) but it’s really dopey.

Don’t get me wrong everything from the images to the sound design is geared to make you feel scared. This is great but the scares are uneven. Say what you will director Bryan Bertino knows how to make you feel ill at ease but almost every one of the scares involves a jump scare. I should add that it’s a jump scare that is telegraphed. Not once did I not know the jump was coming. I jumped but it wasn’t as big as it should have been. I think the only genuine scare came when a dead character is seen floating in the front yard.

Part of the problem is the script doesn’t make sense. Told in a series of chapters that match days events things play out if it was much longer amounts of time. One character is found hanging and then what seems to be days later we see them at a funeral parlor. It’s only after the police report comes in that they realize its wrong. Didn’t they talk to the cops? Emotions come and go ad needed. Having just lost my dad the way the pair reacts about the death of one of their parents is completely not right. Had they been cold and uncaring maybe but their lack of reaction just seemed wrong. (of course the constant music may have washed it away)

Things just happen. There is often no rhyme or reason. Watching how scenes play out I was amazed at how things just happened because we need a scare here or we have to have this bit happen there. Characters come and go at random. There is sense of any connection to the real world only the movie’s needs. The first appearance of the home health aide or nurse seemed off. How other characters interacted just seemed wrong. I kept wanting to know about where the cops were when some of this was going down.

The thing is as much as all of this is bothering me- I didn’t notice it at first. I just went along. I was getting scared and didn’t want to watch. And then things slowed for a minute and I started to ponder, and then the death of the parent thing just broke it apart. I started to see holes everywhere. Yea the film was still scary but the edge was dulled because I started to see the machine creating the illusion.

Yes I like the film, and yes I recommend it, but I am slightly disappointed I didn’t absolutely love it.

An aside:

There is a drinking game connected with this film certain to get you smashed- any time anyone asks “who’s out there” or “who’s there” take a drink. It seemed to happen in way too many scenes and it was making me laugh.

Under Fire (2025) Big Bad Film Festival

 UNDER FIRE is the hidden gem of the Big Bad Film Festival. A film that I initially thought was going to be a good little film destined for his year the direct to video market ended up being one of the best action films I've seen this year.

An FBI agent and a DEA agent, both working under cover and unaware of the others identity are running guns for drugs. The deal goes bust. Trying to salvage it they make a new deal. The new deal puts them in the middle of a shootout where a sniper has them pinned down.

Yes, the setup is old hat, but what follows is not. This isn't series of action sequences but one standoff. It's a brilliant move because the tension never lets up. Sure, there are some laughs, but mostly this is a nifty little self-contained thriller.

That it works as well as it does is do the script which keeps things tense, and funny, and the cast, specifically Dylan Sprouse and Mason Gooding who sell it. If they didn't sell it the film would collapse since they are front and center for the whole film. The guys sell it so well you'll want to see another film with them in the leads.

I loved this.

An absolute popcorn film of the highest order.

Ariela Rubin on RELAY (2024) which opens Friday

In Relay, Riz Ahmed specializes in negotiating payoffs between corrupt corporations and the individuals threatening to expose them. His latest client is played by Lily James, who had planned to reveal that a food company’s product could cause serious harm to people, and the company wasn't letting people know. However, after being harassed, all she wants now is to return the documents and be left alone.

Riz’s character, whose name we don’t learn until near the end, uses a telephone relay system, typically used for the deaf or people who are hard of hearing, to keep his identity hidden. The system involves a third-party operator who relays typed messages to the other person. None of the calls are logged, and they are bound by confidentiality. It's a smart way for him to remain anonymous while managing these high risk deals.

I think it's best to go into this movie without knowing much. I would describe it as a slow-burn thriller. It kept me curious the whole time. There are no big car chases etc, so some people might be bored? I certainly wasn't though. I really enjoyed it. There was a moment near the end that made me say, “What?!” out loud, something I didn't expect. I'm still not sure if I loved the direction the film went from there on.

Overall, I thought Relay was excellent. It’s one of my favorites of the festival so far, and I’d definitely recommend it.

ROW (2025) just played Scary Movies XIII and opens in UK cinemas August 29

A young woman is rescued off the coart of Scotland from a small boat designed for ocean rowing. She was part of a crew who were trying to break a record by rowing from Newfoundland to Ireland in under 28 days. Someething went horribly wrong, but what.

Beginning toward the end of the tale and then flashing backward through found footage and the woman's fragmented memories, this is a tale that we have to piece together. It is a tale where we don't have all the bits until the end and we have to stay present and engaged so that we pick up everything we need to.

It's a spectacular film that has some of the most visually over powering images you'll see all year. We are there, on the ocean in fair weather and foul. The images go a long way to keeping us interested and if the year end awards and the Oscars noticed small films like this it would be on near the top of the list.

The spectacular images help distract the audience from noticing that the rest of the film is a mess. 

Beginning with a cast, none of whom look like long distance rowers, the film quickly loses credibility. Seriously, the cast looks good but none of them look like they could row for 28 days. Their bodies look like regular people and not like the the cut musicular people who normally do this ort of thing. Their hands, other than some bandages don't  have the calases that they would have from holding oars for hours.

The script also doesn't make a great deal of sense. From the crew of a World record attempt just heading out alone with no fan fare and no sense of them having a support team (they should have something as the recent ocean rowing doc ROW FOR LIFE shows), to characters throwing needed equipment overboard to make the boat lighter, to questions about why no one touches the rescue beacon, to the final denouncement which mght explain a few things, but also comes across as a huge WTF on a couple of levels (it potentially throws out most of what we've seen with one sentence because of the implication), all of this is just nonsense if yout think about it. I suspect the fragmentary telling is to hide the flaws. .

I completely understand why this film has played numerous festivals (Raindance and Scary Movies), it looks so good that if you get lost in what is happening as it happens and you don't think about anything it is great, but the problem is the pacing  allows doubts to appear and that final turn just made my jaw drop. Perhaps if this wasn't two hours and moved faster this would have played better and I wouldn't have cought the "errors".

While not bad, it just isn't as great as the visuals.

Welcome Home Baby (2025) Scary Movies

A young woman receives word that her father has died and that his house is ow hers. She goes back home in the hope of selling the house and making a quick buck only to find her relatives and others overly welcoming and not wanting to let her leave too soon.

A good set up kind of goes into a familiar track as the ominous uncertainty of the opening gives way to the feeling we've been here before. This film plays like any number of films from the 70's or 80's where the prodigal child finds out there is weirdness in the family tree. There was a point where I realized I may not have known the details but I sure as hell knew where the film was going.

While the film isn't bad, and I like the way it feels retro in style and music, I was disappointed that the great early part of the film became rather predictable.

While the film is definitely worth a look, your best bet in falling in love with this film is to see it at a drive-in movie.

The Big Bad Film Festival starts this week

This is just a quick heads up that the wonderful Big Bad Film Festival (Information here) starts Friday.  The festival is at the Look Dine in theater in Glendale California.

The festival is a three day affair specializing in action films. The selections are a mix of old and new films. This year the film will be screening th classic SPL2, the truly fun SHOWDOWN IN LITTLE TOKYO. They are also screening Albert Pyun's Director's cut of his CAPTAIN AMERICA film.  The new films include the world premieres of the opening night film  GLADIATOR UNDERGROUND and AFFINITY, as well as films like SAMURAI FURY which I saw at this year's NYAFF.

This is good stuff. Some of it is classic and some of it soon will be.

I am just beginning to put my coverage together but based on what I've seen I think that if you can, you need to go.

For tiickets, the schedule and more information click on this link

Brief words on DEAD TO RIGHTS (2025) (aka NANJING PHOTO STUDIO) until I can see it again

 I will post a full review on DEAD TO RIGHTS as soon as a see it again under better circumstances. I say this because I saw the film at the AMC Raceway in Westbury and the bulb was so dim that it was hard to see a chunk of this because it is a dark film.  I also was not happy with the fact that while the print had subtitles for all the dialog, it didn't have any of the writing subtitled. For an espionage film where what is written is important it resulted me being a bit in the dark.

My issues with the film aside this is a very good film. The film is the story of a postal worker during the start of Nanjing Massacre. As the Japanese invade the the city chaos reigns. In order to save himself, a Postal worker says he can develop film. With the help of the owner of the shop, who is in hiding, he begins to develop the pictures of the atrocities that the Japanese are taking as glowing record of what they did in the war.  Realizing that people need to know what was happening, the group in the studio have to figure out how to remain alive long enough to escape with the photos.

This is a bleak film.  It is a film full of man's inhumanity to man as well as the light that shines in some people. It is a film about doing the right thing in moments of darkness. Do not go into this film hoping to come out singing zip-a-dee- do-dah.

I liked this film, because of the circumstances of the screening I don't know how much. I will say that I liked that there is some slight shading regarding some of the Japanese. At the same time some of the turns probably didn't need so melodramatic.

Ultimately it is recommended but I do need to see this again under better circumstances. (And my saying I want to see it again sooner than later speaks volumes about how good it is.)

Noise (2024) Scary Movies 13 Fantasia 2025

A deaf woman returns to her sisters apartment after her sister disappears. The sister had been having issues with loud noises coming from the apartment above hers.

This is an interesting film where sound is used to mess with the audience. Its a film with one realy great scare, and a lot of creepy moments. For the better part of an hour this is an intriguing, and then it goes off the rails.

Even before the one hour mark this was a batshit crazy film. The longer this film goes on the less sense it makes. Whe it hits the one hour mark the film throws the script goes into the shreader. Nothing in that final half hour makes one lick of sense. I dare you to explain to me what exactly was going on when the end credits roll. You explain to me how the demon like monster, angry ghost, serial killer, crazed tenant, and one or two other things fit together. I also dare you how some one standing on a floor can pull someone out a window eight feet up in the air. And what about the jagged glass in that window? And...there is more, but I won't go into it. This film just throws everything, and I mean everything, at the screen to see what sticks. Unfortunately nothing does.

I went with it for a while but there was a moment as the film was winding down when I just threw my hands up. 

After an intriguing start the film crashed and burned

Yard of Jackals (2025) Scary Movies 13

In 1975 a man who quietly works for the military in Chile, finds his nights interupted when the house next door begins having unpleasant noises come from it.

The horrors of Chile's past come back to haunt the people of a quiet neighborhood. This tale of life under a military regime is not really a horror film but is more a political allegory.  This is a film about the things that happened on the other side of the wall.  Or not, a late in the game time jump kind of resets the board and alters what we thought we knew.

I'm not sure what I really think about this film. Honestly the film's insistance that it is about something kind of works against it. I kept waiting for a big twist or something truly horrible, but I don't think the uexpected horror is there. Yes the film is well made, but the thrills weren't there for me since the film seemed to want to say something important.

Astral Plane Drifter (2024) and HACKED (2025) Popcorn Frights 2025

ASTRAL PLANE DRIFTER
A dude who can travel the astral plane takes on vampires from space and other baddies in an effort to rescue the woman he loves.

This is a nice solid little film. Not taking itself too seriously, it ends up being a grand popcorn film.

At the risk of sacrilege, I loved the narration. I think the narration is the best part of the film and it carries the whole film. I would love a series of audio adventures or books on tape

Worth a look

HACKED
HACKED is a goofy film said to be the result of the filmmakers being scammed and turning that into a wish fulfilment tale of revenge. It’s a film where everyone is having a good time on screen and it bleeds off the screen into the seats. 

Is it something I need to see again? Probably not, it never shakes the sense it’s a private joke with the cast and crew, but I had a good time.

Worth a look

Anxiety Club (2024) is on Digital August 18

Wendy Lobel looks at how we deal with anxiety and the related issues through the lives and experiences of comedians Marc Maron,  Baron Vaughn, Aparna Nancherla, Mark Normand, Eva Victor, Joe List and especially Tiffany Jenkins who takes us into her therapy sessions with her therapist.

This film is impossible to really review. That's not a slap or snark, it's simply a statement of fact. Because the film is exactly what the write up says it is, no more, no less, you will know exactly what you are getting going in. 

You will forgive my brevity but this film is similar to GROUP THERAPY which played earlier this year at Tribeca and was a filmed group therapy sessions between comedians. That film covered similar ground and was much more raw and in the moment with no cut aways for jokes

My quibble aside, ANXIETY CLUB is very funny and thought provoking  and recommended.

American Cryptid (2025) Popcorn Frights 2025

In AMERICAN CRYPTIDS the split between monsters and monster hunters collides. As some monsters quietly living in the guise of humans are put on the radar of some monster hunters, but there are complications.

This a solid little monster film. While it doesn’t break any new ground, the film does everything right and is an absolutely fun ride. Its an old school monster film with practical effects and real characters working to create real tension and emotion instead of gross out shocks. It’s so rare to see a film that felt so wonderfully old school in all the right ways.

Honestly, I don’t have any notes. I can’t complain about anything because I was feeling to warm and scrunchy sitting in my seat with a tub of popcorn.

This small gem is recommended to anyone who loves old school monster films.

Making Megaforce (2025) Popcorn Frights 2025

Making Megaforce is a loving look at the much maligned (non) blockbuster from Hal Needam about a super cool super force taking on bad guys with super weapons and flying motorcycles.  It was crushed by the critics and died at the box office.

I kind of like Megaforce (my piece on the film is here ). The film is entertaining which is enough. I liked it enough to be curious about how they would do a feature look at the making of the film.

The documentary isn’t bad. It is very much a labor of love for everyone on screen and behind the cameras. Barry Bostwick the star of Megaforce is all over this film and was one of the producers.  It’s an interesting look at how the film came to be, what the people hoped for it to be and what happened after.  There is a chunk of the film on fandom.

It’s a solid look at the film and it’s legacy. At the same time, I’m not sure if I need to see it again. I say that because some of the film is more interesting than others (I’m not a fan of the fan stuff)

Worth a look for the curious.

Johatsu (2025) Scary Movies 13

 

A woman who works in a morgue becomes suspicious when a woman comes in to identify her husband. She thinks he may have faked his death.

The title of the film is reference to the Japanese practice of leaving your life and going off to start over under a new identity. As the film goes on the morgue worker becomes obesessed with this notion.

Despite being in a scary movies series, this film isn't scary. Heck, it isn't really compelling. It's kind of obvious where this film is going to go from the start.  The problem here is that despite all of the twists and turns in the plotting the film never swerves from the preset course. You know what the ending is  about ten minutes in and it never changes.  It does't help that the twists either amout to much nor make much sense. Too much is ot explained simply because its happening to distract us, ot because the plot is going that way.

While it isn't a bad film, it just isn't a great one.

THE HOME (2025) Scary Movies 13

One the true horror films playing at this year's Scary Movies concerns a man who puts his mother in a rest home for people with memory problems. She can no longer care for herself. However, once she gets situated thing begin to take a turn for the worse, as she becomes unexpectedly violent...worse she might be possessed by the spirit of her dead husband who was an abusive bastard.  This is a solid thriller horror film that raises a lot of issues as well as goose bumps.\

Recommended. 

(Sorry thats all I can say, I have a length limit)

Mermaid (2025)Popcorn Frights 2025

Down on his luck man drives off into the ocean in order to disappear and finds a mermaid in distress. He takes it home and tries to care for it.

Bleak comedy is not so much a variation on Splash, but rethink as a nightmare. The mermaid is animalistic, it isn’t human, and the attempts to care for is spin off in unexpected ways. This is a comedy that wants to disturb us and our notions of our interactions with nature and our interactions with each other.

This is a film I admire more than I like. I love the edge and the refusal not to follow the expected path. On the other hand, there is deep sadness to this film We feel pity for our hero. He is just a sad little man who probably is overwhelmed tying his shoes. His efforts for do good and help a creature just because he feels he must, not because he should, goes horribly wrong. Yes, it results in some uncomfortable laughs, but the whole films uncomfortable as well and it makes this feel like some place we don’t want to visit. As I said I admire this more than I like it.

My not connecting to this aside, this is a super film on its own terms and if you like to be disturbed with sadness as you laugh, give this a shot.

Suspended Time (2024)

I've finally seen an Olivier Assayas film I don't really care for. This is a lot of people sitting around talking about things that aren't particularly  interesting.

Assayas started writing the script when he was sick during the time of covid, but not with covid.  He put together some random scenes on paper and eventually turned it into the tale of a filmmaker who travels to the country with his girlfriend and hs brother. He is desperate to finish a project. Lots of talk results.

Yes, the cast is fine, and yes, some of the dialog is okay, but it doesn't add up to anything. I really don't know why Assayas was asking us to take this ride.  I say that as large fan of the director. I've always liked his films and he is important to me because his film CARLOS was the first film I ever covered as credentialed press. I will see anything he creates. I will revisit all the films...or I would have until this film. This film will not get a rewatch.