Monthly Archives: June 2025

Outtakes

Mommy Can You Hear Me?

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Echo Valley

by George Wolf

The barn roof at the Echo Valley horse ranch is bad. Like $9,000 bad. And when Kate (Julianne Moore) makes the trip to her ex-husband Richard’s (Kyle MacLachlan) office for some financial help, we get some nicely organic character development.

In those few important minutes, director Michael Pearce and writer Brad Ingelsby let us know Kate and Richard’s daughter Claire may have some serious issues, and that Kate may be enabling her.

From there, we can guess that Claire (Sydney Sweeney) will be showing up soon.

She does, and says she’s clean. She just needs for Mom to buy her another new phone while she breaks away from her boyfriend Ryan (Edmund Donovan). But of course Ryan shows up, followed by their dealer Jackie (Domhnall Gleeson – a nicely subtle brand of menacing), and it isn’t long before a frantic Claire comes home wearing someone else’s blood.

The somewhat pulpy, kinda noir-ish pieces aren’t exactly new, but Pearce (Beast) and the terrific ensemble always find frayed edges that keep you invested. We’re set up to pull for the put-upon Kate, then continually given reasons to doubt that very support.

Does Kate’s aversion to tough love make her an easy mark? Maybe, but maybe Kate’s smarter than anyone expects. Especially Jackie.

Pearce keeps the pace sufficiently taut and supplies some hypnotic shots of a countryside that comes to play an important part in the mystery – as does modern tech. Instead of copping out with a 90s timestamp, Echo Valley leans into the texts and tracking. True, the resolve might not be water tight digitally, but the timeliness gives the tension some relatable urgency.

It’s also refreshing to find a streaming release that doesn’t continually cater to lapsed attention spans. From that opening meeting in Richard’s office, Echo Valley assumes you’re settled in for the ride, all the way through a rewarding deconstruction of events and a final shot that cements what the film was getting at all along.

New In Theaters

Proper Credit

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Materialists

by Hope Madden

Just two years ago, filmmaker Celine Song produced a breathtakingly original romance movies in Past Lives. With that film, she delivered a love triangle of sorts where no character felt cliched, no choice felt obvious, and every moment felt achingly true.

Now she sets her sights on something decidedly more mainstream, but that only makes her instinct for inverting cinematic cliché in search of authenticity that much more impressive.

Lucy (Dakota Johnson) is a skilled matchmaker at a high-end Manhattan boutique. When she attends the wedding of clients she introduced, she runs into her ex, John (Chris Evans). He’s handsome, thoughtful, clearly into her, and he’s catering. Actually, he’s a waiter working for the caterer.

Lucy also meets the groom’s brother, Harry (Pedro Pascal). In the parlance of Lucy’s profession, Harry is a unicorn: handsome, wealthy, smart, and single.

Immediately, we know this movie. Lucy’s job is to broker relationships. Check boxes. Create partnerships. And the film is going to teach her that a good match can’t hold a candle to the unruly nature of love.

It has been done to death. But the path Song takes to get there, and the insights and realities she explores along the route, never cease to fascinate.

Characters use the words value and risk a lot, terms that have a specific meaning in business but actually mean something quite different in the human setting. It’s interesting, in a society where women have agency and financial means, how different the vocabulary of love can be. Listening to women turn men into commodities, ordering as if from a buffet or build-a-bear, is simultaneously funny and horrifying.

Of course, Lucy has men for clients, too, and Song is quick to remind us of the entrenched language of objectification and conquest. And the different definitions of risk.

She also never asks us to root against anyone. Harry’s a gem. John’s a good dude. The one person whose flaws are explored is Lucy, and Johnson’s reflective, quiet delivery is characteristically on point, allowing those flaws to draw us closer to the character.

Materialists isn’t perfect, and to a degree, Song submits too much to formula. But the way she works within those confines is often magical.

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Thanks for the Memories

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The Life of Chuck

by George Wolf

Near the end of The Life of Chuck, a character enters a room and is careful to test the floor as he steps in. Organic dialog earlier in the film has let us know why he’s doing this, so no voiceover narration explaining the action is necessary.

This moment stands out, because it’s one of the few where viewers are given space to think for themselves.

This is a film that is impressively crafted, with an immensely likable cast and a broad, generically inspiring message that many people will be quick to embrace. Writer/director Mike Flanagan adapts the Stephen King novella with such earnest polish that the film can leave you feeling guilty for not liking it – and I didn’t.

Flanagan, who has already done stellar King adaptations (Doctor Sleep, Gerald’s Game) and whose own great work (Midnight Mass, The Haunting of Hill House) can have a distinct King feel, keeps the story’s reverse chronology intact.

In chapter one, teacher Marty Anderson (Chiwtel Ejiofor) and his ex-wife Felicia (Karen Gillan) try to make sense of repeated ads thanking Charles Krantz for “39 great years!” as the world seems to be ending.

From there, we see how the buttoned-up accountant “Chuck” Krantz (Tom Hiddleston) learned to rediscover his love of dancing.

And finally, we go back to two different periods in the life of young Chuck (Benjamin Pajek and later, Jacob Tremblay), as he’s raised by his caring grandparents (Mark Hamill and Mia Sara) to find joy in dance and fear of the cupola upstairs.

It’s wonderful to see Sara back in a feature for the first time in 14 years, and I wouldn’t be surprised to hear Oscar talk for Hamill. The film is often warm hearted and lovely, but the familiarity of the cosmic profundities and the constant narration from Nick Offerman reduces its overall effect to that of a pop-up audiobook.

Causes, effects and motivations are provided at nearly turn, diluting potential magic down to mundane and undercutting the power of the film’s eventual sleight-of-hand reveal.

It’s a twist you may see coming, you may not. But you will understand the surface deep lesson being sold. The Life of Chuck leaves no room for nuance or interpretation, just take your dose of bland inspiration and move on.

So yeah, thanks Chuck. I guess.

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Fire in the Sky

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How to Train Your Dragon

by Hope Madden

If it weren’t for Toy Story, How to Train Your Dragon would be remembered as the finest animated trilogy ever made. The tale of outsider love, parental expectations, physical limitations and dragons was as emotionally satisfying as it was visually stunning. So, it was both disappointing and inevitable to learn that it would be given the live-action treatment.

Dean DeBlois, co-writer and co-director of the animated features, returns with a surprisingly game adaptation.

Mason Thames is Hiccup, the puny, brainy son of Viking chieftain Stoick the Vast (Gerard Butler, reprising his role from the animated series). A disappointment as a Viking, Hiccup eventually finds that his weakness (empathy) is, indeed, his greatest strength. Next, to convince the thick-headed Vikings that the dragons they fight and fear are really, really cool.

And they are cool.

Hiccup’s new bestie, Toothless—the last of the Night Furies—is as beautifully, charmingly, mischievously feline as fans of the original remember. Wisely, DeBlois and team lean the balance of dragons more toward live action. They’re detailed and intimidating—decidedly less kid-friendly than their animated counterparts. One of them is always on fire, which is badass.

The ragtag gang of Vikings-in-training (Julian Dennison, Bronwyn James, Harry Trevaldwyn, and Gabriel Howell) endear and amuse. Likewise, Nick Frost cuts a fun, comical figure as wizened old Gobber, Viking trainer.

Butler, who brought power and pathos to the cartoon, is perhaps even more effective in the flesh (though under pounds of makeup and prosthetics). His confused affection, misdirected pride and aching tenderness lend real humanity to the tale.

Too bad the leads can’t muster the same. Thames and Nico Parker, as Hiccup’s rival/love interest Astrid, share no real chemistry. Parker lacks the fire the role calls for, and Thames can’t mine his fish-out-of-water moments for comedy.

DuBlois also inexplicably cuts the legs from under the original film’s all-is-lost moment, rushing to emotional safety and limiting the power of the film’s breathless climax.

But whatever its flaws, once How to Train Your Dragon is airborne, it’s pure cinema. DuBlois takes to the skies with an untamed wonder that makes the ride both real and magical. Though it may not be the masterpiece of its animated predecessor, this live action dragon adventure is a worthwhile trip.

Shudder Premiere

Good Night and Good Luck

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Best Wishes to All

by Hope Madden

Filmmaker Yûta Shimotsu has seen a few Takashi Miike films. Everyone should. He’s one of the world’s greatest and most prolific genre filmmakers, so that’s not a drag on the Best Wishes to All (also known as Best Regards to All) writer/director.

His first feature follows a nursing student (Kotone Furukawa) visiting her grandparents over break. They’ve gotten odd. Or have they always been odd and she’s just blocked it out more effectively until now?

Shimotsu’s film, co-written with Rumi Katuka and based on his own 2022 short, is a nimble little beast. What begins as a reckoning with the horrors of aging twists into something else altogether. And then, something else. Because what the unnamed granddaughter learns is that her family is keeping a secret from her. But what’s even more disturbing than the secret itself is the nonchalance with which it’s held, and that the secret does not belong to her family alone.

The filmmaker mines unease, even queasy dread, surrounding obligation to an older generation, the notion of one day turning into that same monstrous burden, or even worse, the realization that you never were anything other than a monster yourself.

Stylistically, Best Wishes to All recalls some of Miike’s more absurd horrors, Gozu in particular. But Shimotsu stitches the absurdity of Gozu or The Happiness of the Katakuris or even Ichi the Killer to pieces of grittier horror. Not quite Audition, but in that zip code. But he can’t strike a tone that can carry the two extremes.

The grotesquerie is always in service of a tale that’s more folk horror than body horror. This doesn’t always work, but it’s never less than interesting.

Kurukawa is delightfully absorbing as the obedient granddaughter utterly gobsmacked by her grandparents’ behavior. What appears to townsfolk as naiveté actually mirrors the audience’s horrified confusion, making the poor girl all the more empathetic.

But what is it, exactly, that’s expected of her? And why? Best Wishes to All is frustratingly unclear in terms of the narrative’s underlying mythology. This limits the satisfaction of the climax and robs the film’s final image of its necessary impact.

It’s a weird one, though, and certainly entertaining. Shimotsu can’t quite pull it all off, but it’s fun even as it falls apart.

Nightmares Film Festival

Mommy Issues on Steroids

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The Matriarch

by Brooklyn Ewing

Have you ever found yourself gripping the edge of your seat while watching a movie? Well, Jayden Creighton’s The Matriarch had me holding on for dear life. 

The film kicks off when 13 year old Missy Taylor, (Juliette Greenfield) kills her addict mother’s nasty boyfriend in self defense, and is subsequently terrorized by her very own mother all night long. This horror thriller offers up some incredible cat and mouse moments that had me yelling at the screen. 

Fans of The Evil Dead, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and The Shining will love spotting Creighton’s horror homages. I found myself excitedly watching for more influences as the film progressed. If you love the tension in movies like Hush or Don’t Breathe, then you will absolutely fall in love with The Matriarch. 

Creighton created a mother we don’t want to love, and it was a blast rooting for Missy as she does everything in her power to survive the night. Newcomer Greenfield knocks it out of the park. Taking on such strong material and really going for it is hard for any actor, and she nailed it.

Kate Logan tackles her character Annette, the mother, like a monster. If you love the jacked-up delivery of Bruce Campbell and Jack Nicholson, then get ready to see Logan take it there. She’s a true talent who isn’t afraid to push this movie into the absurd and terrifying. It’s fun to watch her work. 

The Matriarch features a killer score that reminded me of classics like The Evil Dead, and a lot of 90s and early 2000s horror. It moves the already quick paced flick to full fledged heart attack mode. This would be a really fun movie to watch in the dark with a group of friends who scream during great jump scares. 

If you have Mommy issues, or just love a great game of hide and seek on the big screen, then The Matriarch is a do not miss. 

Outtakes

I Fought the Law

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The Prosecutor

by Brandon Thomas

Age isn’t much of a factor for action stars these days. Liam Neeson, Sylvester Stallone, Harrison Ford, and Tom Cruise (c’mon, dude is 63) are still throwing punches, shooting guns, and hanging off planes when most actors are looking for cushy dramas. However, guys like Donnie Yen take it to another level by still pumping out movies like The Prosecutor, where Yen continues to showcase his martial arts prowess. 

Fok Zi Hou (Yen) leaves the Hong Kong police to help fight crime from a different vantage point: the prosecutor’s office. As Fok takes on his first case, he quickly realizes that fighting crime in the courtroom can be just as dangerous as fighting it on the streets. Teaming up with a young detective from his former unit, Fok dives into a vast conspiracy that seeks to destroy the life of a wrongly imprisoned young man.

Let’s get this out of the way first: rooting against Donnie Yen is tough. The man is charisma personified. Even without the impressive martial arts skills, Yen would still be wooing audiences with his dashing good looks, quick wit, and devilish sense of humor. Most action stars are lucky to have one of those qualities. 

Yen – also serving as the film’s director – isn’t afraid to touch on his character’s (and his own?) age. Fok routinely comments on how he’s aged out of running down bad guys on the streets. You’d never know it, though, as Yen doles out serious whoopins with ease. It’d be easy to see this subtle commentary as Yen taking a meta look in the mirror.

And speaking of the action, while it might be a bit more sparse than I would’ve liked, when the movie comes alive – it really comes alive. From the opening shootout to the climactic fight on a moving train, Yen keeps the energy up and the fights fresh. It’s a testament to Yen’s longevity in the business that even after 40 years of doing movies, his creativity as an actor and filmmaker is still growing and flourishing. 

While the action portions of The Prosecutor jump right off the screen, the section focused on the legal drama isn’t able to match the former’s passion and energy. Clearly, Yen was attempting to inject something a bit more meaningful into this otherwise “by the books” action film. Unfortunately, this clash of tones makes the entirety of the film feel a bit undercooked and unsatisfying. 

While portions of The Prosecutor don’t live up to expectations, you’ll get everything you want and more when Donnie Yen is kicking dudes in the face.

Outtakes

Hunting Season

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Predator: Killer of Killers

by Hope Madden

In 2022, director Dan Trachtenberg reinvigorated the Predator franchise by taking the story back in time and investing in character. Prey (especially the Comanche language dub) unveiled thrilling new directions for the hunt to take—directions Trachtenberg picks up with three short, animated installments in Hulu’s Predator: Killer of Killers.

The anthology moves between three different earth-bound time periods: Viking conquest, feudal Japan, and WWII. Each short is focused on an individual warrior—one whose cunning and skill draws the attention of a predator on the hunt.

While the overall animation style can be tiresome, there are sequences that impress, even wow. This is not a kids’ cartoon. There’s carnage aplenty, and when it’s at Ursa’s (Lindsay LaVanchy) hands, it’s nasty business gloriously rendered.

The first and best installment, that of Ursa the Viking, packs the screen with visceral action and memorable characters. It also hits on themes of family, loyalty and vengeance that Trachtenberg and co-writer Micho Robert Rutare return to in the second installment. Here, Samurai brothers do battle with the beast, before an alien invader sets his sits on a cunning young mechanic turned fighter pilot in WWII.

Each story boasts a quick, engaging, violent narrative that adds a bit of fun to the canon. The wrap up, which enshrines these individual tales into a larger mythology, feels cynical and uninspired by comparison.

Credit Trachtenberg, along with co-director Joshua Wassung, for continuing to push the IP in new directions. But the Predator series has long understood its flexibility and shown a willingness to experiment. Some of these experiments (Prey) have worked better than others (Alien vs. Predator: Requiem). But most of the efforts have been, at the very least, entertaining.

Predator: Killer of Killers likewise entertains. And it fills the gap between 2022’s top tier Predator effort and Trachtenberg’s next adventure in the series, due out later this year.

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Fun With Hand Grenades

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From the World of John Wick: Ballerina

by Hope Madden

Who are the greatest female action heroes? Ellen Ripley, obviously. Beatrix Kiddo makes a good case for herself. Viola Davis cut one badass figure in G20 last year. Let’s not forget Atomic Blonde.

Ana de Armas is the latest to throw her hat in the ring — her tutu on the stage? — as Eve, orphan turned assassin in From the World of John Wick: Ballerina.

Why is she a ballerina? No idea. Zero actual narrative reason for it. But how much of Ballerina are we going to hold to that high a standard of logic?

Ironically, director Len Wiseman’s action choreography is less balletic than what we’ve come to expect from the franchise. It certainly lacks the elegant choreography that delivered the bloodshed in John Wick 4. But what Ballerina lacks in grace it makes up for with brute force. Most of the action sequences (most—not all) are on a smaller but more brutal scale than the norm for the series. This has much to do with Eve’s fondness for hand grenades.

The result is a colorful, messy but impressive bit of action.

The spectacle is still there, as is the fun mythology where essentially every third person on the planet is secretly a highly trained assassin bound to rules and consequences set by the High Table.

Ballerina remains true to that mythology. Keanu Reeves makes an appearance, as do Anjelica Huston, Ian McShane, and the much missed Lance Reddick. We visit the Continental, and the film even expands the legend to include a snow globe like little town of killers.

The spinoff film fits into that legacy, of course, because it’s the spawn of the same writing team. Derek Kolstad, who penned even the 2014 original, and Shay Hatten, who joined the project for its 2019 third installment, stay within the confines they set for the universe, just changing perspective by delivering a different killer’s POV.

So, they’re true to the idea, if not the timeline. Funny how we’re willing to suspend disbelief when giant flamethrowers are involved, but some fuzzy math with dates on the calendar is troubling.

The plot is irrelevant, which is lucky because it’s pretty trite and overused. Vengeance over a puppy? That was new. You killed my father, prepare to die? I feel like I’ve heard that one. So, the colorful shell feels pretty empty, but sometimes pretty colors are enough.