Tag Archives: Drama

Neighborhood Watch – Movie Review

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TL;DR – Anchored by two solid character performances, it does make for an interesting if slow watch.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I was invited to a press screening of this film.

Warning – Contains scenes and language that may cause distress.

Jack Quaid standing in the middle of an alley.

Setting the Scene

Today, we are looking at a very odd film. It is a very slow burn; you can never be entirely sure as to what is going on, and it is filled with fascinating performances. It is the kind of film that will captivate some, while leaving others cold, and that is an interesting intersection to explore.

So, to set the scene, Simon (Jack Quaid) has spent a long time in and out of hospitals, which has made much of his life, including getting a job, difficult. It is hard to make connections when someone is yelling in your head and only you can hear them. When Simon sees a woman get kidnapped, he tries to report it to the police. But no one believes him because of his medical past, but there is one hope, his neighbour Ed Deerman (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), who used to be the head of security of the local college. They are not the most convincing pair, but they may be this woman’s best hope, if she exists at all.   

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One Battle After Another – Movie Review

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TL;DR – This is a chaotic, uncomfortable, taut, and downright weird film, but it is also completely captivating from the opening frame to the closing credits.  

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid to watch this film.

A road meandering up and down over some hills.

Setting the Scene

2025 has been an odd year for noted Indie directors trying to tackle the political situation in America at the moment, because most of them have floundered in the attempt. They have been trying to capture the moment, but their stories get lost in comedic attempts or a poor understanding of the very topics they want to analyse. However, today we are looking at a film that just might have cracked the code with one secret weapon that gets lost in cinema at times, intentionality.   

So, to set the scene, we open as a number of self-labelled revolutionaries, including Pat Calhoun (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Perfidia Beverly Hills (Teyana Taylor), who are staking out an immigration detention facility near the border in California. In the middle of the night, they strike, liberating the camp and beginning their revolution against corporate and oppressive elements of America. The French 75 group places bombs in courthouses, robs banks, and causes general calamity. However, you don’t make that much noise without attracting foes, and little do they know that Colonel Steven J. Lockjaw (Sean Penn) is hunting them all down, or maybe just Perfidia.   

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Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale

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TL;DR – An odd finale full of charm from start to finish, but also a great deal of awkwardness.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There are mid-credit scenes.

Disclosure – I was invited to a press screening of this film.

Downton Abbey.

Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale Review Introduction –

It looks like we have reached the end of the grand experiment that was the Downton Abbey cinematic experience. After the original Downton Abbey film in 2019, and the follow-up Downton Abbey: A New Era back in 2022, I had wondered if there would be any more, especially after the passing of Maggie Smith’s character, who was such an anchor for the series. Well, today we get to see if they will land this series in a triumph or worse with an uninteresting thud.

So, to set the scene, it is now the 1930s, and grand changes are looming on the horizon of both England and the world. In Downton Abbey, this is marked by Robert Crawley, 7th Earl of Grantham (Hugh Bonneville), hoping that Lady Mary Crawley (Michelle Dockery) will be ready to take over running the entire household. This was meant to be a great handing over from one generation to the next. However, a scandal erupts throughout higher society when it is announced rather publicly in the press that Lady Mary is getting a divorce, an unmitigated scandal for those prim and proper people in polite society. Now the entire household has been shunned, and the question remains if this will be enough to shut down Downton Abbey for good.  

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Kangaroo (2025) – Movie Review

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TL;DR – This is a profoundly Australian film, and in that I mean more its structure than the narrative. But once it gets going, you can’t help but get caught up in the charm, because it has it in spades.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid to see this film.

Joeys.

Kangaroo Review Introduction –

While Australia is known as a place where big-budget films come to film, where you can walk down the street of Brisbane one day and suddenly it is New York for Thor. However, we also have a vibrant domestic film culture, or we do at the moment, looking at you politicians not doing enough to support the local industry. However, there are times when you could tell a film is Australian, even if no sound of an accent passed your ears, and today’s film is a good example of this.  

So, to set the scene, Chris Masterman (Ryan Corr) is the local weather reporter for Channel 6’s Rise and Shine Australia. He wants to be more than the person they cut to in the morning when they need someone to get a bucket of water thrown at them. But no one takes him seriously. Well, Chris is going to change that when the opportunity to go viral presents itself. Unfortunately, it blows up so spectacularly in his face that not only is he not up for promotion, but he is fired and put on the instant reject list for every production team in Sydney and beyond. He has one shot to get his career back on track, and that is to drive to Broome and do some regional work. But when his car accidentally hits a kangaroo on the outskirts of Silver Gum, he is stuck in the small town waiting for his car to be fixed, but also looking after a now orphaned joey with the help of Charlie (Lily Whiteley).

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Honey Don’t! – Movie Review

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Honey Don’t! – No matter how much style, Honey Don’t! has, and it has a lot, none of that makes up for the hollow narrative that meanders around before realising it needs to finish at some point.

Rating: 2 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is an audio sting at the end of the credits, but it’s not something you need to stay for.

Disclosure – I was invited to a press screening of this film.

Warning – Contains scenes that may cause distress

HNYDONT number plate on a car.

Honey Don’t! Introduction –

Today, we are looking at a film that is confounding. Honey Don’t! has style, is filled with a strong cast, and an interesting setting. Throw in one of the Coen brothers, and this should have been absolute gold. But no matter what they threw at the screen, none of it stuck. To the point where it is almost interesting just how much it misses the mark
 
So, to set the scene, we arrive at a car crash, a lady drove over an embankment and ended up at the bottom of a canyon. Oddly, police detective Marty Metakawich (Charlie Day) from homicide is there, but why is Honey O’Donahue (Margaret Qualley), a private investigator, on the scene? Well, for you see Mia (Kara Petersen), who is now dead, we assume, was a potential client of Honey’s, and the question remains: was she killed before she could talk?   

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Primitive War – Movie Review

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TL;DR – Few films can sell me on a premise alone, but what if Dinosaurs were in the Vietnam War is 100% the way to go about it.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There are mid-credit scenes.

Disclosure – I was invited to a press screening of this film.

Warning – Contains scenes that may cause distress.

Warning – Contains scenes with flashing lights.

A boat glides up a Vietnamese river.

Primitive War Introduction –

Every now and again, you find a film that has been laser-focused on your interests. For me, you must work to make me not interested once you have mentioned the word dinosaurs. Start with the premise ‘what if dinosaurs suddenly showed up in the middle of the Vietnam War’, now you don’t just have my interest, you have my full attention

So, to set the scene, it is 1968, and the Vietnam War is in full swing. In the middle of the war, a Green Beret platoon was sent into a jungle valley to find out what the Russians were doing there, only for none of them to return, and a final radio call was cut off halfway through. General Amadeus Jericho (Jeremy Piven) needs the information the recon team collected. Still, he can’t have it known, so he sends in the Vulture Squad led by Ryan Baker (Ryan Kwanten), as they are a bunch of misfits. They find the remains of the Green Berets, but also an unusually large feather. It is clear that the Green Berets were not able to finish their recon before they were taken out, so the Vulture Squad trek into the jungle to find the Russian base, not realising what might be waiting, hiding, stalking in the bushes.  

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Outbreak – Movie Review

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TL;DR – Outbreak shows early promise, but weak character work and mounting frustrations prevent its ending from landing as intended.

Rating: 2 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I sent a screener of this film.

Warning – Contains scenes that may cause distress.

Outbreak Introduction –

2025 continues to be a standout year for the old Zombie romp. We have old franchises return with 28 Years Later, The Last of Us came out swinging with its second season, and even Star Trek has had a try. – Despite the crowded field, there’s always room for a surprise and Outbreak came close.  

So, to set the scene, Neil Morris (Billy Burke) is a local ranger at Mourning Rock State Park, going on what they thought was a routine callout to a dog with rabies. But Neil is not at ease with what is going on, as this is the third dog in weeks to become infected, which is made worse by the fact that Chief Mike Cortez (Raoul Max Trujillo) got bitten by the dog in the scuffle and Neil is still dealing with the death/disappearance of his son Ben (Kylr Coffman). But as Neil was out walking in the state park, he was attacked by a woman in partial decomposition, and she was not alone, as screams of others puncture the day.

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Holy Cow (Vingt Dieux) – Movie Review

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TL;DR – A delightful romp set in the French countryside, in a world of cheese, stock cars, and the perils of growing up.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid to watch this film.

Comté cheese.

Holy Cow Introduction –

One of my favourite films to review is when directors/writers have been putting in the work to build their craft and finally get the chance to bring their first feature outing to the big screen. Today’s entry is just such a film, with Louise Courvoisier bringing so much of herself to the big screen. Well, it is time to fly to rural France and into the world of cheese.  

So, to set the scene, Totone (Clément Faveau) has just left school and is enjoying that time in his life where all he needs to do in a day is have fun, go drinking with his friends, and occasionally get into fights with kids from the other village. However, his entire life is upended when his father is killed in a car crash, and suddenly, he must care for his young sister Claire (Luna Garret). Totone must sell almost everything to survive; however, when he discovers there is a €30,000 prize for the best Comté cheese. Well, Totone takes it upon himself and commits some minor theft to make the best cheese in the valley.

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Eddington – Movie Review

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TL;DR – While the cast is giving their all, the production quality is there. Unfortunately,  what we get is a film that is weird but not interesting, a satire that does not have the strength to interrogate the themes it is working in, and a third act that dulled me to the point I desperately wanted it to be over and done with.

Rating: 2 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I was invited to a press screening of this film.

Warning – This film contains scenes that may cause distress.

Joaquin Phoenix and Pedro Pascal stand off against each other.

Eddington Introduction –

Today, we are looking at a film that could be best described as controversial. It is a black comedy, satirising the current political situation in the United States, which in itself would be a fascinating exploration. But add in the guiding hand of vanguard Indy director/writer Ari Aster, and you should have something intriguing. Unfortunately, for me, the word ‘should’ is the operative word in the last sentence.   
 
So, to set the scene, in the Colorado town of Eddington, people are struggling with the new lockdown laws as COVID-19 runs through the country. It is only May 2020, so we are fumbling around trying to see what would work. In this space, we have Joe Cross (Joaquin Phoenix), Eddington’s sheriff, who may have only got the job because he married Louise (Emma Stone), the daughter of the last sheriff. He struggles with many ailments and is struggling with the COVID-19 restrictions put in place by local mayor Ted Garcia (Pedro Pascal). After several confrontations, Cross decides to contest the current mayoral elections, which is where everything descends into chaos.

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The Life of Chuck – Movie Review

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TL;DR – A profoundly weird film, steeped in sadness, leaving you disconnected, right up until the moment you find yourself captured by the story.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I was invited to a press screening of this film.

Warning – Contains scenes that may cause distress.

Chuck with hands on either side of his head.

The Life of Chuck Review –

When I walked into the cinema last night, I had no idea what I was expecting. I knew that Tom Hiddleston was in the film because that was the only thing of note on the posters. But I was not prepared for what I was going to see, a feeling that was confirmed the second the ‘Act 3’ appeared in the opening moment.   

So, to set the scene, we open as Marty Anderson (Chiwetel Ejiofor) is desperately trying to get his students interested in Walt Whitman. However, the class is disrupted by the news that an earthquake has struck Los Angeles and California is slipping into the ocean, which is when the internet fails for the final time. In the past 14 months, the world has degraded after wave after wave of disasters have stretched everything to breaking. But amongst all the disasters, something odd is happening. Throughout the town, signs bearing “Charles Krantz: 39 Great Years! Thanks, Chuck!” begin appearing in honour of Charles “Chuck” Krantz (Tom Hiddleston). But no one knows who Chuck is.   

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