Bring Her Back review

BRING HER BACK: 

UNHINGED SALLY HAWKINS IN STELLAR SOPHOMORE HORROR FILM FROM DANNY AND MICHAEL PHILIPPOU! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: **** out of 4

A24

Sally Hawkins in Bring Her Back

 

            Sally Hawkins (Happy-Go-Lucky, Paddington 1 and 2, The Shape of Water) shows the darker, more sinister side of her Mrs. Brown character from Paddington in Bring Her Back, the latest horror movie from A24 and YouTubers turned directors Danny and Michael Philippou (Talk to Me). I’ve been very impressed with what Danny and Michael Philippou have accomplished, they started off making comedic YouTube videos under their channel, RackaRacka(Many of which featured an exaggerated depiction of Ronald McDonald among other characters) and their first feature film directing effort was the phenomenal horror movie, Talk to Me which was one of my favorite films of 2023. 

            It was very much like when Jordan Peele who at the time was mostly known for comedy and Key & Peeleventured into horror with his directorial debut, Get Out in 2017. So, after being blown away by Talk to Me, I was looking forward to seeing what their next film was going to be like which brings us to Bring Her Back and holy shit! 
            I’m not sure yet which film I prefer between this and Talk to Me, but this movie is wild and like their previous film, completely subverted my expectations when it comes to horror. I doubt it will make a cultural impact like Ryan Coogler’s Sinners, but this is easily the second best horror movie released in 2025 so far. 

            The film follows step-siblings, Andy (Billy Barratt-Responsible Child, Invasion, Kraven the Hunter) and the visually impaired, Piper (Newcomer, Sora Wong who is also partially blind in real life) who after the death of their father are sent to the secluded home of their new foster mother, Laura (Hawkins). However, they soon discover they are actually caught in the middle of a terrifying ritual to bring Laura’s deceased daughter back to life. 

            Overall, Bring Her Back adds another chilling and unnerving horror film to Danny and Michael Philippou’s growing filmography with a brilliantly unhinged Sally Hawkins performance to boot. This might actually be my favorite performance of Hawkins as she does a phenomenal job flipflopping between being sweet and caring to full-on psychopath, the more I watch her the more it makes sense for Mrs. Brown to suddenly transform into Emily Mortimer in Paddington in Peru, but I digress. 

            Bottom line, she is magnificent and easily one of my favorite horror movie female performances in recent years. Billy Barratt is also a standout as the older brother, I’m not super familiar with his other work, but Barratt adds a lot of emotional weight as this guilt-ridden and traumatized teenage boy trying to protect his step-sister and you legit feel for him all throughout the film. 

            While the movie is technically horror and has moments of gory and grotesque imagery, it’s more along the lines of psychological thriller and mystery with a supernatural element. Whether it’s through grainy, video footage of the ritual that Sally Hawkins’ character is watching on the TV, Billy Barratt’s character flashing back to his father’s death by mysterious causes, camera work and cinematography, or very subtle details in certain scenes, it keeps you on your toes wondering where the film is going. 

            It’s a great counterbalance to when the movie gets gory and disgusting… seriously, this movie gets pretty nasty as it goes on with very shocking and unsettling moments. I even had verbal reactions in the theater as I was watching it and legitimately felt a little squeamish and that’s no small feat. 

            The movie does revolve around supernatural events, but ironically the real horror of the film comes from not accepting grief and moving past it. The psychological and emotional effects it has on Billy Barratt’s character is the stuff of nightmares and much of it is very frightening. 

            Where Talk to Me was a fun horror movie, this is more of a somber, slow-burn, and psychological look at emotional grief and the horrific consequences that come from not moving on from it that just happens to involve a ritual. It’ll probably be very interesting to hear what people think of this movie when they came in expecting something along the lines of Talk to Me. 

            Bring Her Back once again proves that Danny and Michael Philippou are a powerful force of nature in the independent horror genre as they crafted a truly disturbing, thought-provoking, and tension-filled horror movie about the effects of grief that I won’t be forgetting anytime soon. It kept me on the edge of my seat and I eagerly await what this directing duo will do next. 

Karate Kid Legends review

KARATE KID: LEGENDS: 

KARATE KID JOINS THE LEGACY SEQUEL CLUB WITH PASSABLE RESULTS! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: ** ½ out of 4

COLUMBIA PICTURES

Jackie Chan, Ralph Macchio, and Ben Wang in Karate Kid: Legends

 

            In the tradition of Ghostbusters: Afterlife and Spider-Man: No Way Home, Sony gives The Karate Kid the legacy sequel treatment in Karate Kid: Legends, the latest installment of the Karate Kid film series dating back to 1984 and the first movie released in nearly 15 years. The Karate Kid franchise isn’t really something I discuss in great detail, but I’ve enjoyed some of the films with the original still being the absolute best. 

            It’s quite impressive that the Karate Kid series went far beyond that original movie from 1984 as it spawned three direct sequels, the incredibly popular Netflix series Cobra Kai, and a 2010 spin-off/remake movie starring Jaden Smith and Jackie Chan set in China and revolved around Kung Fu. Which brings us to this new film directed by Jonathan Entwistle in his directorial debut and teams up original Karate Kid champion, Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio-The Outsiders, My Cousin Vinny, Ugly Betty; reprising his role from the original three movies) with Kung Fu shifu, Mr. Han (Jackie Chan-Drunken Master, Jackie Chan’s First Strike, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem; reprising his role from the 2010 film) to coach a new kid for the fight of his life. 

            The movie looked promising when I saw the trailers though it wasn’t really a film I was super excited for aside from seeing Macchio and Chan interact with each other. It just seemed like the same old Karate Kid formula from all the other movies which I’m perfectly fine with if it’s done well, not really expecting any game-changing stuff out of The Karate Kid. 

            Well, after seeing it I can say that there are a lot of things I like about this movie… and unfortunately, some things that bring it down. Karate Kid: Legends is significantly better than The Karate Kid: Part III and especially The Next Karate Kid, but it feels very chopped together specifically with the editing and pacing and lacks a lot of the emotional weight of earlier films. 

             The film follows Li Fong (Ben Wang-Mean Girls (2024), The Long Walk), a young Chinese boy moving from Beijing to New York with his mom (Ming-Na Wen-Mulan, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., The Mandalorian). He has a hard time fitting in until he meets a girl named Mia Lipani (Sadie Stanley-Kim Possible (2019), The Sleepover, Somewhere in Queens) who befriends him. 

            But when Mia’s ex-boyfriend and karate prodigy, Conor Day (Aramis Knight-Runt, Ms. Marvel, Into the Badlands) becomes jealous of Li and attacks him, his Kung Fu shifu and great-uncle, Mr. Han (Chan) and Miyagi-Do karate sensei, Daniel LaRusso (Macchio) arrive to New York to train Li for the ultimate karate competition. 

            The film also stars Joshua Jackson (Mighty Ducks trilogy, Dawson’s Creek, Fringe) as Mia’s father and former boxer Victor Lipani, Wyatt Oleff (Guardians of the Galaxy 1 and 2, It: Chapters 1 and 2, I Am Not Okay with This) as Li’s tutor and friend Alan, Shaunette Renée Wilson (Black Panther, Billions, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny) as Ms. Morgan, and Tim Rozon (Instant Star, Schitt’s Creek, Wynonna Earp) as O’Shea. 

            Overall, Karate Kid: Legends is objectively better than most Karate Kid sequels and the cast’s chemistry is genuinely strong but compared to the 1984 movie and even the 2010 Karate Kid, it doesn’t offer much to make it stand out. It’s not a terrible movie, but it’s a sequel that’s just going through the motions and quite literally hits the same beats people recognize from the other Karate Kid films. 

            I wouldn’t mind the recycled plot elements if the movie itself wasn’t so choppily edited and fast paced. The film is just over 90 minutes making it the shortest Karate Kid movie and by the time it got to the final match between Wang’s Li and Knight’s Conor, I was flabbergasted that we were already here and once the credits started I felt more indifferent than ecstatic which should not be the case for a film like this. 

            Aside from a few scenes where Conor’s being a douche to Li, the film doesn’t really build up their rivalry all that well because the first half of this 94-minute Karate Kid movie focuses on Li training Joshua Jackson’s character to fight so he can get out of a loan shark situation, I don’t care about this! It felt like an unfocused detour that yes, adds some emotional drama to a couple characters, but we came here to see the Karate Kid fight the kids that bullied him. 

            However, once Jackie Chan and Ralph Macchio enter the picture, it gets better and what the entire movie should have been, the OG Karate Kid and Jackie Chan training Ben Wang. All three of them have great chemistry and you just love seeing them work off each other and make a new Karate Kid out of Wang’s Li. 

            Honestly, the acting in general is strong and not just between the three leads, Wang and Sadie Stanley have a cute little romance that’s quite charming, Ming-Na Wen is a standout as Li’s mom who encourages her son not to fight, and even some of the side characters have some moments to shine. 

            The fight sequences are well-choreographed and should be exhilarating conceptually, but the film decides to put in a bunch of flashy effects like it’s a film adaptation of Street Fighter even right down to having Chun-Li from the 1994 movie herself in it and that ruins the intensity in my opinion. What made the original Karate Kid movie so gripping was that the fights felt real and legitimately intense which helped make Daniel’s inevitable victory all the more satisfying. 

            Here, it just seemed like Ben Wang kicked Aramis Knight’s ass with a VR video game with those Scott Pilgrim-like visual sound effects. It didn’t match the Karate Kid-style for me and took me out of the film sadly. 

            Karate Kid: Legends is a mixed bag as there are aspects of it that are done well, but through choppy editing, unfocused storytelling, and an overly fast pace, it can’t quite go for the gold like the 1984 classic. It’s less of a movie that will make you stand up and cheer and more like a movie you say “Good enough” at the end and it fades from memory shortly after. 

Friendship review

FRIENDSHIP: 

TIM ROBINSON AND PAUL RUDD’S OUTRAGEOUSLY DEMENTED BROMANCE! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: **** out of 4

A24

Paul Rudd in Friendship

 

            Tim Robinson (Saturday Night Live, Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers, I Think You Should Leave) and Paul Rudd (Anchorman 1 and 2, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Death of a Unicorn) join forces to bring I Love You, Man meets The Banshees of Inisherin in Friendship, the new black comedy from A24 and director Andrew DeYoung in his directorial debut. This was on my list to see the moment I saw the trailer in front of Death of a Unicorn (Another A24 project starring Paul Rudd that came out earlier this year) though it was initially released the same weekend as Final Destination: Bloodlines. 

            But now that I got that, Lilo & Stitch, and Mission: Impossible out of the way, I can finally talk about Friendship after hearing all the hype it got and extremely positive word of mouth. Yeah, everyone’s right, this movie’s a blast though not exactly in a “feel-good” sort of way, more on that later. 

            The film follows Craig Waterman (Robinson), a socially awkward marketing executive who yearns to be friends with his neighbor, a charismatic but unfulfilled weatherman named Austin Carmichael (Rudd) after a package mix-up in the mail. However, as their bond strengthens, Craig becomes infatuated with Austin to the point where his attempts at making an adult male friend threatens to ruin both of their lives. 

            The film also stars Kata Mara (Brokeback Mountain, House of Cards, The Martian) as Craig’s wife Tami, Jack Dylan Grazer (It: Chapters 1 and 2, Shazam! 1 and 2, Luca) as Craig’s son Steven, Josh Segarra (Orange Is the New Black, She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, Scream VI) as Devon, Billy Bryk (Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Hell of a Summer, Saturday Night) as Tony, Jon Glasser (Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Delocated, Parks and Recreation) as Big Sam, Conner O’Malley (Palm Springs, Bodies Bodies Bodies, I Saw the TV Glow) as Patton, Daniel London (Patch Adams, Rent, Concussion) as Stan, Whitmer Thomas (Poor Paul, Stone Quackers, Weapons) as Ian, Raphael Sbarge (Carnosaur, The Guardian, The Exorcist: Believer) as Garrett, and Ivy Wolk (Anora) as Jen Peyser. 

            Overall, Friendship is a hilarious, unpredictable, and darkly fascinating “Bromance” about… well, friendship told in the most A24 way imaginable. It is definitely still a comedy and is quite funny, but a lot of the humor comes from how far Tim Robinson’s Craig will go to be friends with Paul Rudd’s Austin which gets a lot of laughs yet you also pity the poor man at the same time because he is clearly not right in the head and almost comes off like a slasher movie villain. 

            

            I was often reminded of the Seinfeld episode where Jerry tries to break up with an annoying friend played by Kevin Dunn as I was watching it, but with a much sicker sense of humor and leans more into the unexpected. One minute you’re laughing at Tim Robinson accidentally whamming into a sliding door at Paul Rudd’s house and the glass shatters and the next you’re watching him break into said house and take a handgun that Rudd was hiding in a box. 

            It’s the kind of movie where you’re laughing, but you’re not always proud of what you’re laughing at onscreen. It is not a studio comedy and the majority of laughs will depend on your tolerance of certain kinds of humor. 

            I haven’t seen Tim Robinson in many other things, but I thought he was pitch perfect in this movie as an awkward man who just wants to be friends with Paul Rudd and the lengths he’ll go to make it happen. He does a spectacular job finding comedy in the most pitiful of situations and loved seeing his inevitable descent into lunacy while also legit feeling sorry for him at the same time. 

            Paul Rudd is also great as the neighbor Robinson befriends who starts off as a quirky weatherman, but after a few scenes becomes the straight man to Robinson’s anarchy. I found him very believable in this movie and the scenario he’s in is pretty relatable for those who has or had a friend that was obsessive about their friendship. 

Rudd questions whether or not he should be friends with this guy but also doesn’t want to come off as a rude jackass for telling Robinson the truth. Robinson and Rudd carry the entire film and it wouldn’t be nearly as entertaining if not for their involvement. 

Friendship is definitely not for everyone, but if you have a tolerance for comedies with a dark and twisted sense of humor like The Cable Guy or The Banshees of Inisherin, this is worth checking out and it’s especially fun to watch in a theater with a crowd laughing and reacting along. Grab your friends, head out to the theater, and watch the most unexpected story of friendship you’ll ever see told in pure A24 insanity. 

Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning review

MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – THE FINAL RECKONING: 

TOM CRUISE’S SUPPOSED SENDOFF TO HIS LONG-RUNNING FRANCHISE IS A GOOD TIME AT THE MOVIES! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: *** ½ out of 4

PARAMOUNT PICTURES

Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning

 

            Tom Cruise (Top Gun 1 and 2, Minority Report, Edge of Tomorrow) returns for (supposedly) one last mission in Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, the eighth installment of the long-running Mission: Impossible film series based on the TV show of the same name. Hard to believe it’s been nearly 30 years since Tom Cruise’s Ethan Hunt bungeed his way onto the big screen with the 1996 Brian De Palma-directed original movie and now it’s one of the most successful action movie franchises of all time. 

            Granted, the franchise didn’t become truly great until 2011’s Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol (The fourth film) which revitalized the series and took it to the next level thus finding a winning formula in the process. Which brings us to The Final Reckoning once again directed by Rogue Nation-Dead Reckoning director Christopher McQuarrie (The Way of the Gun, Jack Reacher) which was originally conceived as Part 2 of Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning with the first part coming out in 2023, but the title was changed. 

            Of course, this was going to be one of my most anticipated films of the year, I thoroughly enjoyed the Mission: Impossible movies especially Ghost Protocol-Dead Reckoning Part One and given that this may or may not be the final time I get to see Tom Cruise as Ethan on the big screen, it’s got a lot to live up to. So, what’s my verdict on Final Reckoning? I really like it though admittedly it is the weakest of the modern Mission: Impossible movies. 

            It really tries to build itself up as the last time we’ll see Ethan and his team kind of like what Furious 7 did before Fast & Furious 8-10 got made and Cruise himself did say that he would do as many Mission: Impossible movies as he could. Regardless of what the future of the franchise holds, the action is still spectacular, the tension is high, and the plot keeps your interest. 

            The film is set after the events of Dead Reckoning and follows IMF agent, Ethan Hunt (Cruise) and his team racing to put an end to the artificial intelligence known as the Entity and its agent, Gabriel (Esai Morales-Caprica, Ozark, Titans) which has been out for a couple months now and is corrupting people’s minds and controlling nuclear systems. After Ethan gets a vision from the Entity of a coming nuclear apocalypse, he, former thief turned IMF agent Grace (Hayley Atwell-Marvel Cinematic Universe, Christopher Robin, Paddington in Peru), computer technician Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames-Pulp Fiction, Lilo & Stitch, The Wild Robot), technical field agent Benji Dunn (Simon Pegg-Cornetto trilogy, Star Trek franchise, Paul), and French assassin Paris (Pom Klementieff-Oldboy (2013), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Killer’s Game) begin one last Mission to plant a malware device into the Entity to shut it down for good before the world ends. 

            The film also stars Henry Czerny (The Other Half, Ready or Not, Scream VI) reprising his role as Eugene Kittridge, Angela Bassett (Malcolm X, Notorious, Black Panther 1 and 2) reprising her role from Fallout as Erika Sloane, Nick Offerman (Parks and Recreation, Jump Street, Dumb Money) as General Sidney, Hannah Waddingham (The Fall Guy, The Garfield Movie (2024), Lilo & Stitch (2025)) as Admiral Neely, Tramell Tillman (Severance) as Captain Bledsoe, Shea Whigham (True Detective, Fast & Furious franchise, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse) reprising his role from Dead Reckoning as Jasper Briggs, Greg Tarzan Davis (Tales from the Hood 2, Top Gun: Maverick, Grey’s Anatomy) reprising his role from Dead Reckoning as Theo Dagas, Charles Parnell (The Venture Bros., Top Gun: Maverick, The Killer) reprising his role from Dead Reckoning as Richards, Mark Gatiss (Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, The Favourite, The Fantastic 4: First Steps) reprising his role from Dead Reckoning as Angstrom, Rolf Saxon (Tomorrow Never Dies, Saving Private Ryan, Woman in Gold) reprising his role from the first Mission: Impossible as CIA Analyst William Donloe, Katy O’Brian (The Mandalorian, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, Love Lies Bleeding) as Kodiak, and Stephen Oyoung (John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum, Terminator: Dark Fate, Twisters) as Pills. 

            Overall, Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning leans a little too hard in sentimental value and nostalgia bait at times, but it’s still a spectacular action movie that ends the franchise on a strong note… if it stays that way. I like how this movie does tie a lot of loose ends and acknowledge events and characters from much earlier installments (The films from 1996-2006) like the CIA Analyst who discovers Ethan’s knife after the vault heist from the first movie returns and the Rabbit’s Foot from Mission: Impossible III is prominent in this film’s story so it definitely feels more like a celebration of the entire Mission: Impossible film series. 

            This is probably the most relevant of the Mission: Impossible movies given the rise of AI over the past few years and almost plays out like a Mission: Impossible version of a Terminator movie where the IMF has to essentially stop a super computer from causing Judgment Day with the Entity basically being like this franchise’s version of Skynet. It is relevant, but in a much more exaggerated, over-the-top way. 

            The action set pieces are amazing and worth experiencing on an IMAX screen with the two highlights being a tension-filled sequence involving Tom Cruise maneuvering through a submarine filled with water and an epic plane chase between Cruise and Morales that’s an absolute blast to watch on the big screen. Even a Mission: Impossible entry that doesn’t fully live up to its predecessors is still infinitely better than the majority of Hollywood action movies and that’s no small feat. 

            I will say, I felt the runtime a bit during this movie which I didn’t feel in Fallout or Dead Reckoning, this is a nearly 3 hour-long Mission: Impossible movie and there are a few times where the film drags a little. It’s not headache-inducing, butt-numbing Michael Bay Transformers movie dragging, but this film could have been trimmed down at certain points or refined better. 

            Despite a few shortcomings, Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning is a fun summer action movie that gives what it promises, Tom Cruise doing his shtick at spectacular levels with a thought-provoking story woven into the over-the-top silliness you’d expect from the series. It may not be the Avengers: Endgame of Mission: Impossible, but it’s still a “Mission” worth accepting. 

Lilo & Stitch review

LILO & STITCH: 

DISNEY’S BAFFLING YET SOMEWHAT CHARMING UPDATE OF BELOVED 2002 ANIMATED FEATURE! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: ** ½ out of 4

DISNEY

Experiment 626 in Lilo & Stitch (2025)

 

Everyone’s favorite Hawaiian girl and alien experiment disguised as a dog are back on the big screen in Lilo & Stitch, the latest of Disney’s live-action remakes based on the 2002 animated film of the same name. The original Lilo & Stitch I will go on record and say is one of my all-time favorite Disney movies, I was eight years old when it came out so I was the target audience for the film at the time and I loved it back then and love it even more now as an adult. 

            The film hits a lot of familiar beats as other beloved classics like E.T. and The Iron Giant, but through brilliant storytelling, memorable and endearing characters, and strong emotional weight it feels like you’re hearing this kind of story for the first time. It was also a huge critical and box-office success especially during a dark time for Disney fare in theaters and spawned three direct-to-video sequels, a TV series on the Disney Channel that also featured crossover episodes with other cartoons on the network like Kim Possible and The Proud Family, tons of merchandise, and even an anime. 

            So, of course the studio behind the cinematic masterpieces, Mufasa: The Lion King and the recent Snow White remake has to give this the live-action remake treatment which was originally set for a Disney+ release before going theatrical. Despite acknowledging Disney’s remake history being rather bumpy numerous times in the past, I didn’t really have any expectations when it was announced and not even after trailers and posters came out for it. 

            I thought the design of Stitch looked fine and cute (Thankfully, not another Ugly Sonic situation) and the little girl playing Lilo seemed incredibly charming. Plus director Dean Fleischer Camp (Marcel the Shell with Shoes On) who directed one of my favorite animated films of the 2020s, Marcel the Shell with Shoes On is helming the project so, there was some hope here… *sighs*. 

            Look, I’m probably going to be a small minority on this and there are aspects of the film I admire, but I did not enjoy this update of Lilo & Stitch all that much. I don’t think it’s godawful or anything and there are aspects about it that are worth praising, but it really pales in comparison to the original movie which did so much so right whereas this one does some things right but gets a lot completely wrong. 

             The film follows an alien experiment known as 626 AKA Stitch (voiced by Chris Sanders-How to Train Your Dragon, The Wild Robot; who also directed and voiced Stitch in the original film) escaping from an intergalactic council and crash landing on Earth, but not just on Earth… Hawaii. He disguises himself as a dog and is adopted by a young girl named Lilo (Newcomer, Maia Kealoha) and her older sister and legal guardian Nani (Newcomer, Sydney Elizebeth Agudong) who soon realize their new pet is quite a troublemaker, causing tons of mischief wherever he goes. 

            However, through Stitch’s antics, Lilo, Stitch, and Nani learn the importance of family (Ohana) and that nobody gets left behind or forgotten. All the while Stitch is being hunted by his mad scientist creator, Jumba (voiced by Zach Galifianakis-The Hangover trilogy, Puss in Boots, Bob’s Burgers) and his Earth expert sidekick, Pleakley (voiced by Billy Magnussen-Into the Woods, Bridge of Spies, Aladdin (2019)). 

            The film also stars Courtney B. Vance (Space Cowboys, Final Destination 5, The Photograph) as Agent Cobra Bubbles, Kaipo Dudoit as David Kawena, Tia Carrere (General Hospital, Wayne’s World 1 and 2, Easter Sunday) who originally voiced Nani in the 2002 film as Mrs. Kekoa, Amy Hill (Max Keeble’s Big Move, Big Fat Liar, 50 First Dates) who originally voiced Mrs. Hasagawa as Tūtū, and Jason Scott Lee (The Jungle Book (1994), Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny, Mulan (2020)) who originally voiced David as Nani and David’s Manager; and features the voice of Hannah Waddingham (The Fall Guy, The Garfield Movie (2024), Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning) as the Grand Councilwoman. 

            Overall, Lilo & Stitch (2025) technically is one of the better Disney remakes that thankfully isn’t completely soulless like some of their other ones, unfortunately its autopilot pacing and questionable changes made make it an “Experiment” that struggles to recapture what made the original animated movie so captivating. First some positives, Stitch’s design looks great and captures the mannerisms and expressions from the animated version quite well and the film does have fun with Stitch’s shenanigans in different ways than the original but still feels in-character. 

            The actress playing Lilo is fantastic who perfectly plays up the troublemaking and kooky personality of her animated counterpart while also being the emotional core of the movie through genuinely sweet moments with both Stitch and Sydney Elizebeth Agudong’s Nani. I don’t think the sister dynamic is as strong as the original, but Kealoha and Agudong do a great job anchoring the film. 

            It’s a shame the rest of the movie couldn’t live up to their charm because this film makes some of the worst Disney remake changes you could imagine whether it’s pointlessly introducing new characters that weren’t present in the original, completely changing a character or characters’ motives, or flat-out removing a character that was prominent in the source material (There’s no Captain Gantu to be seen in this film). This is a remake that says “You know what this great animated movie that didn’t need a villain needs? A villain!” and they do something to a character that appeared in the original and had a small yet effective arc in the animated movie that left a sour taste in my mouth. 

            The first half of the movie is horribly paced with the film rapid firing through plot elements from the original with no real flow to anything. It was as if I was watching a Cliff Notes version of Stitch’s escape from the United Galactic Federation and not a re-imagining of that opening sequence, not helping matters is it does a lot of “Hey, remember that from the original?” throughout the movie. 

            I’m sure kids and families will enjoy this movie and it’ll likely be very successful at the box-office, but Lilo & Stitch (2025) is a lesser version of Lilo & Stitch (2002) that aside from some charming moments and once in a while a creative sequence continues to bring the point home for what’s wrong with these Disney remakes. It’s not clever, it’s not unique, it doesn’t even retell the original story that well, it’s just another middling remake of a beloved Disney classic that’s better than some but is still a long way from home. 

Final Destination: Bloodlines review

FINAL DESTINATION: BLOODLINES: 

GUARANTEED GORY FUN THE SIXTH TIME AROUND! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: *** ½ out of 4

WARNER BROS. PICTURES AND NEW LINE CINEMA

Death Runs in the Family in Final Destination: Bloodlines

 

            Death is back with a vengeance after a near 14-year hiatus in Final Destination: Bloodlines, the sixth installment of the long-running Final Destination film series dating all the way back to 2000. The Final Destination movies as far as horror franchises go are a ton of fun despite the concept (A group of people survive a horrific accident after someone has a premonition about their deaths only to be killed off one by one in gruesome and outlandish ways) and even the worst installments (Final Destination 3 and 4 IMO!) still have some memorable death scenes at least. 

            They aren’t trying to be game-changing horror masterpieces, they’re just entertaining and bloody movies about people cheating Death as if it’s a literal slasher movie villain with tons of creative and over-the-top deaths and a sick sense of humor about it. The formula worked in 2000 and it still works today in 2025. 

            Which brings us to this sixth film released nearly 14 years after 2011’s Final Destination 5 and takes the franchise formula to a new level… and by that, I mean Death going after families that weren’t supposed to exist. I don’t often talk about the Final Destination movies, but I have to say this one might actually be my favorite of the series as it focuses on the strengths of the other movies while adding a new spin to the formula. 

            The film follows Stefani Reyes (Kaitlyn Santa Juana-The Flash), a college student who’s haunted by a recurring nightmare of a 1968 tower collapse. Turns out that wasn’t a nightmare, it was a premotion her grandmother had of her and several other people’s deaths as she saved a lot of lives that evening, but Death came back and started targeting the victims’ families for several decades. 

            Desperate for answers, Stefani, her younger brother Charlie (Newcomer, Teo Briones), her cousins Erik (Richard Harmon-The Killing, If I Had Wings, The 100), Bobby (Owen Joyner-100 Things to Do Before High School, Knight Squad, Julie and the Phantoms), and Julia Campbell (Newcomer, Anna Lore), and her estranged mother Darlene Campbell (Rya Kihlstedt-Dexter, Superman & Lois, Obi-Wan Kenobi) turn to an expert on surviving Death, William Bludworth (Tony Todd-Candyman franchise, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 (2023 Video Game); in his final film role) in hopes of breaking the cycle and saving themselves from their inevitable grisly demise. 

            The film also stars Gabrielle Rose (The Stepfather, Timecop, Double Jeopardy) as Stefani’s grandmother Iris Campbell, Brec Bassinger (The Haunted Hallways, 47 Meters Down: Uncaged, Stargirl) as Young Iris, April Telek (The Immortal, Aliens in America, Brazen) as Stefani’s aunt Brenda Campbell, and Alex Zahara (Stargate SG-1, The 13^th Warrior, 2012) as Stefani’s uncle Howard Campbell. 

            Overall, Final Destination: Bloodlines gives exactly what you want to see in this franchise, people getting brutally killed in over-the-top and ridiculous ways (Which there are plenty of here) while also expanding upon ideas that were explored throughout the earlier films and giving some of the best protagonists since probably Final Destination 2. If you’ve seen any of the previous entries then you should be familiar with the setup, what I really like about this one is that it’s not about someone having a premonition about a group of people’s deaths that’s going to happen, but rather the aftermath of a person’s premonition from 50 years ago and successfully preventing everyone’s deaths which resulted in families that weren’t supposed to exist. 

            It’s a neat take on the Final Destination premise and the film has fun with it with plenty of nods and references to the earlier films sprinkled throughout. Even the infamous Flight 180 and Log Truck get some representation here. 

The characters I wouldn’t say are deep or complex, but I gave a shit about them and wanted to see most of them prevail. Nobody here is a stock character just there to die, everyone has a fun quirk to make you invested in them whether it’s through their personalities or banter with the other leads with the sibling dynamic between Stefani and Charlie being the emotional core of the film. Even characters who if they were done in lesser hands would have been stock and obnoxious shine like the douchebag cousin who works in a tattoo parlor and hates everyone gets some good laughs and has a few touching moments. 

Enough plot and character discussing, let’s finally talk about the deaths which range from outlandishly cartoonish to wince-inducing. The opening dream/premonition of the people falling to their deaths by the collapsing sky tower is very suspenseful and tense with the occasional dash of dark humor though I doubt it will have the same cultural impact as the logs in the beginning of the second film or even the plane crash from the first, but it’s still a well shot and edited opening sequence. 

You also got the glass shard falling into the ice box and being scooped into someone’s drink that sets off a horrific domino effect and the painful-looking nose piercing getting stuck on a fan chain from the trailers which are great for different reasons. But then, you get deaths by vending machine springs and radiation machines that are so ridiculous and creative, you just can’t help but laugh. 

Final Destination: Bloodlines knows what it is and isn’t trying to be a new horror masterpiece, it’s a fun, gory ride from beginning to end that takes the franchise and its tropes to new levels with endearing lead characters to boot. It also ends with a lovely tribute to the late, Tony Todd and part of me hopes the franchise stops here because I don’t know how you could top this, I guess the box-office will be the judge of that. 

Regardless, this series of horror films continue to be watched and talked about for over the past two decades and if accident-prone deaths will be relevant for several more decades, Final Destination will truly be the franchise about people dying that will never die. I also survived the 4DX version of this movie! 

Another Simple Favor review

ANOTHER SIMPLE FAVOR: 

ANNA KENDRICK, BLAKE LIVELY, AND CAPRI DAZZLE IN LESSER CAPER! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: *** out of 4

MGM AND LIONSGATE (PRIME VIDEO)

Blake Lively and Anna Kendrick in Another Simple Favor

 

            Anna Kendrick (Scott Pilgrim VS the World, 50/50, Pitch Perfect trilogy) and Blake Lively (The Age of Adaline, The Shallows, It Ends with Us) are back as best frenemies, Stephanie and Emily in Another Simple Favor, the much anticipated sequel to Paul Feig’s (Bridesmaids, The Heat, Spy) 2018 dark comedy mystery, A Simple Favor. I loved the first Simple Favor and will go on record and say it’s my favorite film Feig directed (Who was mostly known for comedies like Bridesmaids at the time) with an intriguing plot filled with twists, dark humor, and powerhouse performances by Kendrick and Lively who alone make the movie. 

            Now we have the sequel that skipped a theatrical release and landed on Amazon Prime Video with Feig returning as director and Kendrick and Lively reprising their roles. I was skeptical when it was announced because the previous film was a pretty self-contained movie and didn’t know how it could be continued, but if it meant more Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively together then I’m all for it. 

            So, I put the movie on and… it’s alright. Apparently, this film is getting mixed reactions from critics and audiences seem to not like it very much and honestly, I don’t think it’s bad, but coming off of a stellar predecessor, this does feel like a significant downgrade by comparison despite a lot of enjoyable aspects of it. 

            The film is set five years after the first and follows single mother and vlogger, Stephanie Smothers (Kendrick) who is now a true crime novelist and wrote a book about her friendship with Emily Nelson. Suddenly, Emily (Lively) appears at Stephanie’s lecture and book signing and asks her to be her maid of honor at a wedding in Capri. 

            Despite the events of the last film, Stephanie agrees to come with her to Capri, but as expected people start getting killed and this vacation turns into a race to find the culprit who may or may not be Emily. 

            The film also stars Henry Golding (Crazy Rich Asians, The Gentlemen, The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare) reprising his role as Emily’s ex-husband Sean Townsend, Andrew Rannells (The Book of Mormon, Big Mouth, Invincible) reprising his role as Darren, Bashir Salahuddin (Marriage Story, Cyrano, Top Gun: Maverick) reprising his role as Detective Summerville, Elizabeth Perkins (Big, The Flintstones (1994), Cats & Dogs) replacing Jean Smart as Emily’s mother Margaret McLanden, Michele Morrone (365 Days trilogy, Subservience, The Housemaid) as Emily’s fiancé Dante Versano, Elena Sofia Ricci (Burro, Love Burns, Diamonds) as Dante’s mother Portia Versano, Allison Janney (American Beauty, Juno, I, Tonya) as Aunt Linda McLanden, Alex Newell (Glee, Geography Club, Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist) as Vicky, and Taylor Ortega (Kim Possible (2019)) as Agent Irene Walker. 

            Overall, Another Simple Favor is a perfectly fine continuation of the story with dazzling scenery of Capri and the equally dazzling reunion of Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively, but it lacks a lot of intrigue and dry wit of the first thus making it a mostly standard whodunnit. 

            The first film was a legit good mystery because it wasn’t made clear whether Blake Lively’s Emily simply disappeared or died until Anna Kendrick’s Stephanie started investigating it to find out the truth. It kept you on your toes throughout and shocked you when the twist of Emily killing her sister in order to stage her own death was revealed. 

            This one, while it definitely had a twist I didn’t see coming felt more like they were trying to do what Kenneth Branagh did with his Murder on the Orient Express movies or Rian Johnson’s Knives Out films where the mystery is simply who is committing the murders and that isn’t as fun compared to the first. The movie is more than watchable, but it feels cheapened in that regard sadly. 

            I also thought the comedy wasn’t quite as snappy as in the previous film, that’s not to say there aren’t any funny moments in this, there are and the best ones come from the cast’s line deliveries. But then, you have some of the side characters trying to go bombastic with a joke or this really drawn out scene with Anna Kendrick getting high off of truth serum that’s more awkward than it is funny and Kendrick is a legitimately funny actress. 

            Where the movie does shine however is the chemistry between Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively, even in a lesser sequel they work together so wonderfully. I love watching and listening to them interact with each other where you have the normal and restrained single mother in Kendrick’s Stephanie and the unhinged, vulgar, and suspicious Lively’s Emily, polar opposites that probably shouldn’t be together yet they work remarkably well. 

            The movie also has gorgeous shots of Capri to the point where I wish this movie wasn’t dumped on streaming because a lot of these shots would have looked spectacular on a movie theater screen. Even though I didn’t fully get into this movie, I was marveling at it from a cinematography standpoint and makes me want to visit Capri again because of how beautifully shot it was here. 

            Another Simple Favor can’t quite recapture what made A Simple Favor a brilliant and spine-tingling mystery, but Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively’s incredible onscreen chemistry and a few solid laughs and twists make it an entertaining enough second caper. Nothing about it really screams “Don’t watch it” because there are a lot of impressive things about it and if you enjoyed the first one (like me) and want to see what happens next, put it on and enjoy the glamor and blood. 

Thunderbolts* review

THUNDERBOLTS*: 

FUN, CHARACTER DRIVEN SUPER ROMP WITH THE MOST UNEXPECTED TEAM OF MARVEL HEROES! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: *** ½ out of 4

MARVEL STUDIOS

Taskmaster, Ghost, Bucky/Winter Soldier, Yelena, Red Guardian, and John Walker in Marvel’s Thunderbolts*

 

            Marvel’s most unexpected team of heroes aside from the Guardians of the Galaxy assemble in Thunderbolts*, the latest installment of the Marvel Cinematic Universe directed by Jake Schreier (Robot & Frank, Paper Towns) and the final film of Phase Five. After the colossal impact of 2019’s Avengers: Endgame, the MCU entries following that have been very hit or miss with successful films like Spider-Man: No Way Home and Deadpool & Wolverine and installments that couldn’t quite connect with audience that much like The Marvels and Captain America: Brave New World. 

            I didn’t really have any expectations with Thunderbolts*, I’ve never read their comics and most of my knowledge of them came from previous MCU movies and shows. It looked to be sort of like a Guardians of the Galaxyand Suicide Squad type of superhero film revolving around a group of people that are the least likely to save the day with a lot of bickering, arguing, and fighting. 

            Well, the formula worked for Guardians of the Galaxy and eventually Suicide Squad with the 2021 film so, does it work for Marvel’s antihero team? The answer is yes. 

            I enjoyed this film quite a bit though I wouldn’t call it a game changer like what a lot of other people are saying, but the stuff it does right, it does spectacularly well specifically the character dynamics. Unlike many of the other Post-Endgame MCU outings where they felt like they were dumped out by a committee and pretty soulless, this one felt like the cast and crew really cared about what they were making and it shows in the final product and the reactions it’s been getting. 

            The film follows Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh-Midsommar, Little Women (2019), Oppenheimer; reprising her role from Black Widow and Hawkeye), Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan-I, Tonya, Dumb Money, The Apprentice; reprising his role from previous MCU projects), John Walker/U.S. Agent (Wyatt Russell-Black Mirror, Overlord, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters; reprising his role from The Falcon and the Winter Soldier), Antonia Dreykov/Taskmaster (Olga Kurylenko-Quantum of Solace, Oblivion, Extraction 2; reprising her role from Black Widow), Ava Starr/Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen-Black Mirror, The Stranger, Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City; reprising her role from Ant-Man and the Wasp), and Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian (David Harbour-Stranger Things,Hellboy (2019), Violent Night; reprising his role from Black Widow) finding themselves caught in a death trap by Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus-Seinfeld, The New Adventures of Old Christine, Enough Said; reprising her role from previous MCU projects) and are forced to work together and embark on a dangerous mission to confront the darkest corners of their pasts. 

            The film also stars Lewis Pullman (The Strangers: Prey at Night, Bad Times at the El Royale, Top Gun: Maverick) as Robert “Bob” Reynolds/Sentry/Void, Geraldine Viswanathan (Blockers, Bad Education, Miracle Workers) as Mel, Chris Bauer (The Wire, True Blood, For All Mankind) as Holt, and Wendell Pierce (The Wire, Selma, Jack Ryan) as Gary. 

            Overall, Thunderbolts* is a fun, witty, and surprisingly human MCU film and a step in the right direction for their Post-Endgame run. It’s a Marvel movie that focuses on the strengths of its characters over overblown action scenes and special effects which Marvel has done many times before with successful results dating all the way back to the first Iron Man movie. 

            The characters are all very likable and much like other Marvel heroes such as Iron Man, Thor, or the Guardians of the Galaxy, they’re flawed individuals which makes their journey all the more compelling. The actors do a great job balancing comedic banter and genuinely heartfelt moments with David Harbour’s Red Guardian giving Florence Pugh’s Yelena a pep talk that’s as touching as it is hilarious without it ever feeling forced. 

            The humor feels natural and comes from the characters rather than Marvel jokes thrown into a script because Mickey demanded it. It’s Avengers 1 and Guardians of the Galaxy banter and witty exchanges between the characters and just like those movies, I actually could have gone with an entire movie just about the Thunderbolts sitting around and talking to each other for 2 hours and still leave happy because these actors and characters are so much fun to listen to. 

            The character moments are the film’s strongest points because the action is pretty standard Marvel sequences. It isn’t reliant on green screens and excessive CGI and it is great to see Marvel action actually shot on sets again, but you’ve seen a lot of this stuff before in other Marvel projects and aren’t quite as spectacular as the character development aside from a very creative sequence where the Thunderbolts fight the villain through their pasts and memories in sort of a Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness-style climax. 

            I also felt the villain was kind of weak which isn’t too surprising given other MCU villains, I dug the concept of it, but I thought the main threat should have been just as built up as the heroes. Still, it’s not done bad or anything, I just wished there was more to it. 

            Despite a few shortcomings, Thunderbolts* is easily one of the best Post-Endgame MCU entries that brings the focus back on captivating characters and deeply personal storytelling. I look forward to watching it again soon and hopefully this will help set the groundwork for future Marvel projects moving forward with The Fantastic Four: First Steps on the way in a couple months.