The Woman King

The Woman King; Vibrant storytelling filled w/dynamic, powerful performances from the entire cast. Using time worn Hollywood tropes to tell a story about people and places oft ignored by Tinsletown breathes fresh, invigorating air into the triumphant tale. Refreshingly joyful; A
 

The School for Good and Evil

The School for Good and Evil; The cast is having a blast, the visuals are scrumptious but the pacing & lore seems to struggle with whether this is a series, a franchise or an overlong feature film. Actors are excellently cast and play the dualities nicely. Overstuffed but fun; B-

The Black Phone

The Black Phone; Creepy, moody and disturbing tale based on pre-internet childhood fears of the neighbourhood “grabber”. Great performances all around give it a realistic intensity, even while horror elements offer unexplainable aspects. Genre fare elevated by its talents; B+

Slash/Back

Slash/Back; Arctic setting and authentic casting adds intriguing elements to this classic horror story. Though some scenes suffer from amateur acting, the characters are true to who they are and the film is better for it. Cultural themes offer a welcome layer to genre fare; B-

Minions: The Rise of Gru

Minions: The Rise of Gru; Knows its lane and delivers a fun soundtrack, animated gags, clever nods and silly jokes, all within 90mins. The cast is great, especially the newcomers and the animation continues to be inspired even if it’s no longer fresh. Franchise is fully milked; B

The Worst Person in the World

The Worst Person in the World; A fascinating portrait of a woman’s life journey, that’s never typical, sentimental or overly contrived. The storytelling and acting is raw, emotional and complex but equally funny, unsettling and uplifting. Very honest, realistic filmmaking; A-

Pinocchio

Pinocchio; Expertly crafted and filled with wonder and charm, an update or remake of a film oddly out of time. Hanks’ acting comes across hammy and ridiculous but the other cast members make the most of their roles. Many segments look good but not a wish we needed to (re)make; B

Licorice Pizza

Licorice Pizza; Stylishly captures an era that may be nostalgic for some but irrelevant to others. Very watchable but ultimately unfulfilling and meandering. To a detail, expertly executed, but as a sum of its parts, simply not for most audiences outside of 70s Valley kids; C+

Elvis

Elvis; A great job conveying & situating Elvis’ cultural influence/(s) & impact for a generation who may not know a lot about him. Butler nails the performance in physical, musical & emotional ways. Some moments get too music video or montage heavy yet ultimately satisfying; B+

Bullet Train

Bullet Train; Owes its tone to mid to late 90s films in the vein of Guy Ritchie and Tarantino. Funny, well choreographed, kinetically paced with excellent casting in all roles. A throwback that feels as fresh and fun as Pitt seems to be having delivering pure entertainment; B+

Drive My Car

Drive My Car; Clever, layered dialogue along with stylish visuals, meaningful looks, entangled circumstances and a play within a film, renders us a powerful story crafted beautifully to express our shared human experience. Quiet storytelling can be deeply moving in contrast; A-

The Bad Guys

The Bad Guys; Amusing sight gags from the animators tickle the funny bone, while the premise, pacing and plot are less amusing. However, give me this exact same cast in a live action remake and it’d make a great film. Would rather see them all, than only hear them. Funny cast; C+

Us

Us; More straight up horror from Peele, with some clever undertones of social commentary that layer the gore with deeper meaning. Like Romero’s Zombies, there’s a lot to unpack and what doesn’t connect is at least thoroughly entertaining to watch. Creepy on many levels; A-

The Gray Man

The Gray Man; Solid spy thriller that Russos have shown a special talent for. Refreshing to have action sans superheroes. Gosling and de Armas are fantastic, both at the action and the humour. Franchise ready from the outset due to excellent execution from all involved; A-

Nope

Nope; Creepily crafted horror with nods to cinematic greats, a Jaws for the current generation. Finely cast and cleverly paced, peeling back layers towards a thrilling climax, with plenty of allegory to dissect afterwards. What you’d expect, while offering plenty of surprises; A-

Zombies 3

Zombies 3; Overstaying its welcome, having lost its charm derived from its fine, young stars, this franchise has gone past camp, beyond ridiculous and can’t even offer up a song or dance number to save it from itself. Abysmal end (hopefully) to what was once silly, sweet fun; D

Thor: Love and Thunder

Thor: Love and Thunder; Tries to tonally tie together parental grief, a rom com, Norse mythology & deity exploration into a MCU film, w/about as much success as one can expect. Cast is fully on board for fun, while Bale gives a master class in acting, in an entirely other film; B

Trois Fois Rien

Three Times Nothing; Starts off as a cringy comedy seemingly disparaging homeless people by making buffoons of them, then slowly morphs into a family drama attempting to tug deeper at our emotions, w/mixed success. You may care for the makeshift family or be even more put off; B-

Kimi

Kimi; Another of Soderbergh’s economical thrillers, focused on the present in its storytelling, not bothering w/deeper background or investigation of the themes that are presented. Entertaining in the moment but ultimately unfulfilling from the questions it leaves unanswered; B-

Midsommar

Midsommar; Exquisitely crafted and shot for maximum effect, both beautiful & haunting. A slow burn that will stay with you long after the final frame. Long run time isn’t felt at all, as the film ratchets up the tension, foreboding and stakes. Pugh is captivating. Stellar; A
 

Day for Night

Day for Night; Before DVD extras made the mystery of filmmaking commonplace, this film flies through production while the fly on the wall viewer marvels at the machinations and shenanigans of a movie set. Clever, quick, funny and winking, a masterful take on the film industry; A

Sing 2

Sing 2; Another fully stuffed animated explosion of symphonic colour that somehow manages to offer many characters their own tidy storylines. Movie works best operating in music video style montages and pantomime. New voices are welcome alongside the returning stars. Very fun; A-

The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent

The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent; Meta narrative suits Nic Cage well, as his self-aware performance is game for layers of action, family & self-reflection propelling this film. At times hilarious, at others quite touching, it’s all the greatness of Cage one expects; B+

Crush

Crush; Sweet leads Cravalho & Blanchard play out a teen rom com that’s more reflective of the times by being true to the emotions and dialogue of young love. Witty, quick and stylistic, the film won’t surprise as much as it will entertain with its cast, art and soundtrack; A-
 

Reminescence

Reminiscence; Great looking cast on great looking sets solving a noir like mystery elevates this film above its clumsy execution of its interesting premise. Ideas are intriguing yet written so ploddingly that it disservices itself. A film w/promise that can’t quite deliver; B-

Lightyear

Lightyear; Fine animation with several nods to space adventures past and present. Never cared for the character much and this doesn’t change anything but there’s mild fun to be had and a few great action moments. Missed seeing the usual Pixar short film beforehand; B

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore; With each successive movie this franchise gets less interesting, more annoying and needlessly convoluted. Who are they making these films for? Rowling may be able to write a book, but she’s miserable at screenplays; D+

Pig

Pig; Soulful, sweet, yet haunting meditation on what we value most in life and how we deal with losing it. Shows that with the right script and director, Cage continues to be capable of impactful performances with great emotional depth. Layered in unspoken meaningful moments; A-

Studio 666

Studio 666; Fun to see the band goofing it up in a blend of gore, ridiculousness, rock & horror. Acting ability range makes it funny and creepy, with some fun supporting roles by comedy pros. Not the film I thought it would be, but filled with gruesome effects and solid rock; B+
 

Beastie Boys Story

Beastie Boys Story; A fun way to hear a history of the group. A film of the stage show works but last 10 minutes makes a case for a straight up documentary as well. Like the Boys themselves, one genre/way of telling their story isn’t enough. Glad to have this one among others; A-
 

Scream

Scream; What should be a tired reboot (or requel) actually entertains w/enough familiarity & twists to keep viewers guessing. Young cast is quite good & could hold their own without legacy stars showing up. Ghost face is the one thing that hasn’t aged well, more like a joke; B

Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers

Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers; A fun romp stuffed chock full of cartoon cameos and nods to animation history. The premise is funny and the voice actors have the comedic timing to keep up with the cartoon lunacy. Not cinematic level material but perfect for a streaming feature; B+

Maudie

Maudie; A peek into folk artist Maud Lewis is buoyed by Hawkins and Hawke’s lead performances and the maritime setting. Her artwork pops on screen but it would be better if her life story came across with more pronounced drama and emotional impact. Cute, yet lacking in parts; B-

Sneakerella

Sneakerella; Grabs you from the opening number w/its fresh, talented faces & clever twists on the age old fantasy. It’s hard not to be swept along w/the sneaker theme on account of how sweet & fun the family & friendship dynamics are played out through catchy musical numbers; A-
 

The Grey Fox

The Grey Fox; Charming, quaint little tale of an old time train robber having a hard time giving up the thrill. Masks its small budget by using the great scenery of British Columbia to fill the screen while other scenes are pitifully compressed in cheap production design; B-

Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness; Horror/witchcraft genre comes to Marvel with mixed results. Much like Raimi’s previous work, it straddles hokey/horrifying by way of interesting/cheesy visuals. Acting talent of Cumberbatch and McAdams shine above all once again; B

Worth

Worth; Interesting behind the scenes of the work most people wouldn’t ever want to be tasked with. Dynamite actors Keaton and Tucci give nuanced performances reflecting the type of nuance required to determine what a life is worth. Slightly elevated from melodrama; B

The Matrix Resurrections

The Matrix Resurrections; Pointless return to a franchise that truly could have stopped after one. The ideas always seem to be interesting until they are actually played out to little effect. Nothing visually groundbreaking or particularly memorable. A waste of effort from all; C
 

Willy's Wonderland

Willy’s Wonderland; Exactly what you expect it to be: a nightmare Chuck E. Cheese of animatronics gone wild requiring a mute janitor drifter Pinball Wizard with power up pops to clean house. Silly, with enough mechanical oil gore and splatter to satisfy; B-
 

The Adam Project

The Adam Project; Time travelling sci-fi can often get messy w/plotting and logic, so Reynolds’ ability to weave comedy, action & drama keeps it entertaining while the film struggles to connect the dots. Cast and budget make it well worth the watch but it lacks lasting effect; B

Everything Everywhere All At Once

Everything Everywhere All At Once; This movie is everything. Everything film was made for in order to convey the totality of the human experience. Imaginative, thrilling, hilarious, inventive. A family drama kung fu multiverse comedy with a Michel Gondry visual style. Epic; A+

Palm Springs

Palm Springs; Groundhog Day premise taken in a different direction with a duo, hits all the right notes in exploring existential reflection, love, absurdity, regret, and acceptance. Succeeds in that Lonely Island way of goofy hilarity grounded in highly executed craftsmanship; A-

Run Woman Run

Run Woman Run; Bias aside, this enjoyable film shines a light on the not so simple struggles we encounter and how hard it can be to love ourselves so we can be there for others. Stellar shots of Six Nations show a love of community, language, history and family; A

Sonic the Hedgehog 2

Sonic the Hedgehog 2; Knows how to have fun with CGI characters and over the top villains. Apart from a weird side story involving a Bridezilla and FBI agents, when focused on Sonic and friends and Carrey’s robot dreams the film offers thrills and chuckles aplenty; B-

The Bubble

The Bubble; Some exceptionally enjoyable & hilarious actors, along with some Apatows, make a silly thing about a silly time when we were in early stages of Covid-19 protocols. Mocks actors for their faux hardships while being partially reflective of what we all went through; B-

The Batman

The Batman; Best Batman story yet, true to the characters & detective work of a Year Two era caped crusader. Moody, atmospheric, more wholly real than ever, plausibly mirroring the corrupt, unhinged, destructive forces in our past & present, makes us wish for our own Batman; A-
 

Death on the Nile

Death on the Nile; Exquisite production design and spectacularly filmed gorgeous locations and people can’t rescue the time it takes for this mystery to start to intrigue. Sure, a novel can take its time to unravel but the way this story is told makes it DOA despite it all; C
 

Pink Skies Ahead

Pink Skies Ahead; The charm of Barden propels this study of anxiety that is equally parts funny and distressing, earning each of those tones by way of a cast adept at playing both. The cloud of anxiety that floats over every moment is a realistic portrait of true anxiety; A-

The Scent of Green Papaya

The Scent of Green Papaya; A film so uneventful yet still mesmerizing in its examination of finding beauty in servitude & sensuality through sights, sounds and cinematography. The voyeuristic camera peeks into and peels back layers of longing and pining for love over a decade; B+

Olivia Rodrigo: driving home 2 u

Olivia Rodrigo: driving home 2 u; A rearrangement of her album Sour, with gorgeous scenery of the western U.S. states, gives us more insight into the artist while seemingly not offering behind the scenes moments that go deep enough. The musical performances are stellar; B+