Happy Gilmore 2 review

 Coming Soon! 

The Fantastic Four: First Steps review

THE FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS: 

MARVEL’S SUPER-FAMILY’S MCU DEBUT TRULY IS “FANTASTIC”! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: **** out of 4

MARVEL STUDIOS

Ben Grimm/The Thing, Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic, Sue Storm/Invisible Woman, and Johnny Storm/Human Torch in The Fantastic Four: First Steps

 

            Marvel’s Super-Family returns to the big screen in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, the latest installment of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and second reboot of the Fantastic Four film series (Third if you count the 2005 film as a reboot). The Fantastic Four has had a…pretty bumpy history when it comes to bringing these classic comic characters into the world of film to put it lightly. 

            There was the 1994 Roger Corman Fantastic Four movie that was screened once and never officially released to the public, but bootlegs and YouTube helped make it a fascinating piece of comic book movie history. Obviously, you had the 2005 Fantastic Four movie and its 2007 sequel, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer produced by 20^th Century Fox following the success of the X-Men and Spider-Man films that will always have a special place in my heart even if they aren’t exactly good. 

            The 2015 Fantastic Four reboot from Fox is straight-up garbage and one of the worst comic book and superhero films I ever saw as it wasted a talented cast and equally talented director and turned some of Marvel’s most upbeat superheroes into a dull slog of a trainwreck. I even reviewed that movie nearly ten years ago, how time flies. 

            But then, something happened, a variant of Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic played by John Krasinski and Chris Evans reprising his role from the 2005-2007 movies as Johnny Storm/The Human Torch suddenly appeared in the MCU films, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and Deadpool & Wolverine and got people excited for Disney and Marvel to finally do this Super-Family properly. That’s where The Fantastic Four: First Steps comes in directed by Matt Shakman (It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Fargo, Game of Thrones) who had previously directed the MCU miniseries, WandaVision for Disney+.

            I was excited for this when I saw the trailers and could tell it was going to be a very different version of the Fantastic Four compared to previous films with a 1960s-inspired world, a comic accurate version of Galactus, and tons of campy visuals reminiscent of media from the era and the comics that inspired it. 

            Well, I’m happy to report that after two decades of mediocre or straight-up awful film adaptations of one of Marvel’s most iconic teams, this new version of Fantastic Four truly lives up to the name. People, superhero movies are back! Between this and the new Superman that came out a couple weeks ago, we’re starting to regain that excitement for superhero and comic book-based cinema again. 

            The film is set in a universe parallel to the Avengers and follows astronauts turned superheroes, Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic (Pedro Pascal-The Mandalorian, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, Materialists), Sue Storm/The Invisible Woman (Vanessa Kirby-Mission: Impossible franchise, Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw, Napoleon), Ben Grimm/The Thing (Ebon Moss-Bachrach-The Bear, The Punisher, Andor), and Johnny Storm/The Human Torch (Joseph Quinn-Stranger Things, Gladiator II, Warfare) who after being exposed to a cosmic storm of radiation are given extraordinary abilities thus becoming the Fantastic Four. But when Sue becomes pregnant with her and Reed’s child and intergalactic threats come in the form of the planet-eating, Galactus (Ralph Ineson-The Green Knight, Nosferatu, Frankenstein (2025)) and his messenger, the Silver Surfer (Julia Garner-The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Sin City: A Dame to Kill For, Weapons), this Super-Family must fight the giant space god and defend their planet before things get personal which…they do. 

            The film also stars Sarah Niles (Ted Lasso, The Toxic Avenger (2023), F1: The Movie) as Lynne Nichols, Matt Gatiss (Sherlock, The Favourite, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning/The Final Reckoning) as Ted Gilbert, Natasha Lyonne (Blade: Trinity, DC League of Super-Pets, The Bad Guys 2) as Rachel Rozman, and Paul Walter Hauser (Richard Jewell, Black Bird, Cobra Kai) as Harvey Elder/Mole Man. 

            Overall, The Fantastic Four: First Steps finally gives Marvel’s Super-Family the movie they deserved since at least 2005 by giving audiences a fun superhero adventure that blends flashy action, strong family dilemmas, and heart and isn’t afraid to be a comic book movie. Not putting the Marvel Studios intro in front of Captain America: Brave New World doesn’t automatically make it dark and gritty and listing a bunch of A24 movies in the trailer for Thunderbolts* doesn’t mean it’s a superhero version of an independent film, The Fantastic Four: First Steps embraces the retro comic book tone and gives exactly what it promises in the best way. 

            This movie looks amazing in terms of the cinematography and production design which makes it feel like a superhero movie if it took place in a futuristic world where Steven Spielberg’s Catch Me If You Can was like the second coming of Jesus. With tons of vibrant colors, technology reminiscent of 1960s tech that still feels high-tech, and campy visuals and retro scene transitions like media from that decade, it’s like “A Comic Book Movie” he-DOY? 

            Given that this is Fantastic Four we’re talking about, the family dynamic is very strong in this movie with a lot of the fun coming from seeing and hearing the different four members interact with one another. These actors and characters are incredibly funny and charming while also being endearing and interesting especially Vanessa Kirby’s Sue Storm who is basically the emotional anchor of the film, a mother doing everything she can to protect her child and saying she’s the best live-action Invisible Woman would be a huge understatement. 

            The action is very creative and fun to watch especially on IMAX with my favorite being a fight with the Silver Surfer in a wormhole that could put Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar to shame. Also, the climactic fight against Galactus is great because it’s essentially four superheroes going up against a Godzilla-sized super-being, huge props for not causing the conflicts yourself, F4! 

            As someone who does have a soft spot for the Fox Fantastic Four movies from 2005 and 2007, The Fantastic Four: First Steps really is the only Fantastic Four movie that matters as it finally gives a film that’s worthy of Marvel’s Super-Family and reminds us why we fell in love with them to begin with. I’m sure it’ll make die-hard Marvel fans happy and moviegoers will have a “Fantastic” time at the theater as well; comic book and superhero movies are back! 

Eddington review

EDDINGTON: 

ASTER AND PHOENIX’S LATEST COLLAB DIDN’T BREAK ME THIS TIME, BUT…! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: ** out of 4

A24

Joaquin Phoenix, Pedro Pascal, Emma Stone, and Austin Butler in Eddington

 

            Joaquin Phoenix (Walk the Line, Her, Joker 1 and 2) and director Ari Aster (Hereditary, Midsommar, Beau is Afraid) reunite after 2023’s Beau is Afraid in the neo-Western black comedy, Eddington. Regardless of the film’s quality, I think Joaquin Phoenix is a very fascinating actor for better and worse as he’s almost always unhinged and gives a million percent onscreen, even in a film as bad as Joker: Folie à Deux, Phoenix wasn’t phoning his performance in and I both respect that and am terrified at the same time. 

            On top of that, Ari Aster is a fascinating director himself with Hereditary and Midsommar being some of my favorite films of 2018 and 2019 and his first collab with Phoenix, Beau is Afraid was such an ambitious and bizarre oddity, it broke me when I reviewed it. Needless to say, I was certainly interested in their next project, Eddington when it was making its rounds at film festivals and garnering very polarizing reactions. 

            After seeing it for myself recently…yeah, those mixed reactions were completely warranted because holy fuck! Eddington is a chaotic, often puzzling movie that leans into satire of the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 and social commentary with no real understanding of what it’s trying to say so it just comes off as confused and rather dull at times. 

            The film is set in Eddington, New Mexico during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic and chronicles a standoff between Sheriff Joe Cross (Phoenix) and Mayor Ted Garcia (Pedro Pascal-The Mandalorian, Materialists, The Fantastic Four: First Steps) which sparks a powder keg as neighbor is pitted against neighbor in the contested mayoral election and examines the political and social turmoil caused by it. Oh, and there’s a drunk homeless man screaming shit throughout the movie…kinda hits too close to home given the city I live in. 

            The film also stars Emma Stone (Zombieland 1 and 2, La La Land, Poor Things) as Joe’s wife Louise Cross, Austin Butler (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Elvis, Caught Stealing) as radical cult leader Vernon Jefferson Peak, Luke Grimes (American Sniper, Fifty Shades trilogy, Yellowstone) as Guy, Deirdre O’Connell (City of Angels, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Requin) as Dawn, Michael Ward (The Old Guard, Empire of Light, The Book of Clarence) as Michael, and Clifton Collins Jr. (Traffic, The Last Castle, Capote) as Lodge. 

            Overall, Eddington certainly has a lot going for it and will likely hit differently with moviegoers. For me, while there are things about it that are undoubtedly impressive like the production design, the performances by Phoenix, Pascal, and Butler, and how Aster shoots his scenes, I just found it too preachy to be fully invested. 

            There are some great scenes in this movie with incredible acting and the film touches on relevant social themes like racism and abuse of power, but they’re so awkwardly handled and when you see the big picture with everything put together, it’s a huge mess. It’s an example of a film that had a lot to say but didn’t know how to convey them in a coherent plot with compelling characters thus making it hard to care in the long run. 

            You have these big scenes with heated arguments, people screaming at each other, guns firing left and right, but all throughout it I was just asking “What is this movie trying to say!?!” I get that this is trying to dive into the impact and emotions of the pandemic, but this is 2025 so the shock value is gone. 

            Compared to the first Joker which was also a pretty divisive film, I understood its themes and social commentary a lot better while being captivated by its dark character journey and getting wrapped up in the plot. It knew how to convey its subject matter better in a feature film where this gets too focused on social themes that it loses any sense of intrigue or emotional investment it once had. 

Despite the lackluster material, Joaquin Phoenix still gives his all though I don’t think he’s really acting here, I think they just followed him around with a camera in 2020 and shot a movie around it. Tell me you wouldn’t be shocked if that was how Joaquin Phoenix acted during the COVID-19 pandemic, oh well, he’s a standout regardless! 

Pedro Pascal isn’t quite as prominent as Joaquin Phoenix, but he gives a solid performance in the amount of screen time he has with the banter between him and Phoenix coming off as both frightening and comedic sometimes simultaneously. Austin Butler and Emma Stone have some amazing moments too, but they’re nowhere near as focused on as Phoenix and Pascal. 

The cinematography is amazing and I love how Aster shoots his outdoor scenes with tons of wide shots; the movie is a mixed bag but at least it looked great on the big screen. Also, like Beau is Afraid, Ari Aster pretty much went for broke with this movie and even though I didn’t really enjoy the film much, I have to respect him for sticking to his vision. 

Eddington is the kind of movie that will certainly be discussed a lot amongst film enthusiasts and honestly, nobody is wrong with their opinions on this film. One may see it as a confused slog with dated pandemic satire and another will admire the ambition and tenacity behind Aster’s vision, I am genuinely curious to know what people think of this movie because it truly is…a movie. 

Smurfs review

SMURFS: 

OOF, THIS ONE MADE ME “BLUE”! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: * ½ out of 4

PARAMOUNT ANIMATION

Smurfette and her friends are back in Smurfs (2025)

 

            Oh boy, here we go again, those cute little blue creatures from Peyo’s comic strip pages and classic cartoon are back on the big screen in this new movie version of Smurfs. If you read my reviews for The Smurfs 2 (2013) and Smurfs: The Lost Village (2017) then you know I don’t have any nostalgic connections with the Smurfs franchise, I don’t hate or even dislike it, it was just never my thing. 

            Needless to say, I wasn’t particularly enthusiastic when Sony Pictures’ Smurfs movie from 2011 was released which took the Smurfs out of their magical mushroom village and threw them into modern day New York City to have shenanigans with Neil Patrick Harris and a ton of product placement, it was bad and so was its sequel though I give Hank Azaria some credit for at least trying to get something out of his performance as the evil wizard, Gargamel. 

            However, Sony’s fully animated Smurfs movie, Smurfs: The Lost Village from 2017 I actually thought wasn’t that bad and felt a lot closer to what a Smurfs movie should be like compared to the previous two films. It isn’t anything spectacular and I wouldn’t seek it out ever again, but compared to the live-action Smurfs movies, The Lost Village was a huge improvement over them. 

            Now we have this new film from director Chris Miller (Shrek the Third, Puss in Boots) and Paramount Pictures who originally had the feature film rights to The Smurfs until Sony acquired them and we got The Smurfs (2011). Truth be told, their original idea for a Smurfs movie sounded promising with an animated fantasy movie approach reminiscent of The Lord of the Rings and The Princess Bride, but then the rights landed at Sony who instead tried to make their own Alvin and the Chipmunks movie out of it because that was successful. 

            That didn’t seem like the movie we were going to get when the trailers first came out, it just looked like another bad Smurfs movie except it’s from a different studio with focus on the multiverse (Because if it worked for Spider-Man and the Marvel Cinematic Universe then clearly it’ll work for Smurfs). Despite not being won over by the previous Smurfs movies and unimpressed by the marketing, I tried to keep an open mind with this new Smurfs film and…it’s bad, but…! 

            I do think this Smurfs movie is better than the ones from 2011 and 2013 as the film does get creative with the crazy worlds the Smurfs explore, the animation style is appealing, and most of the voice acting is decent. But it still falls flat in terms of the writing, logic, and overreliance on tired kids movie tropes, in other words Paramount is basically copying what Sony did. 

            The film follows Smurfette (voiced by Rihanna-Battleship, Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets,Ocean’s 8) and No Name Smurf (voiced by James Corden-Into the Woods, Peter Rabbit 1 and 2, Trolls 1 and 2) leading the Smurfs on an adventure to rescue Papa Smurf (voiced by John Goodman-The Big Lebowski, The Emperor’s New Groove, Monsters, Inc. 1 and 2) after being captured by the evil wizard brothers, Razamel and Gargamel (Both voiced by J.P. Karliak-X-Men ‘97, New Looney Tunes, Skylanders). This leads them outside their mushroom-housed Smurf Village and into the real world where they encounter an International Neighborhood Watch Smurfs group, Papa Smurf’s long lost brother, Ken (voiced by Nick Offerman-The Lego Movie 1 and 2, Dumb Money, Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning), and a whole dimension of Smurfing insanity on their quest to save Papa Smurf. 

            The film also features the voices of Dan Levy (Schitt’s Creek) as Joel, Amy Sedaris (Elf, Strangers with Candy, BoJack Horseman) as Jaunty, Nathasha Lyonne (American Pie franchise, The Fantastic Four: First Steps, The Bad Guys 2) as Mama Poot, Sandra Oh (Grey’s Anatomy, Killing Eve, Raya and the Last Dragon) as Moxie Smurf, Alex Winter (The Lost Boys, Bill and Ted trilogy, In Search of Darkness) as Hefty Smurf, Maya Erskine (Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Scoob!, Wildwood) as Vanity Smurf, Xolo Maridueña (Parenthood, Cobra Kai, Blue Beetle) as Brainy Smurf, Miller as Grouchy Smurf, and Billie Lourd (American Horror Story, Star Wars franchise, The Last Showgirl) as Worry Smurf. 

            Overall, Smurfs (2025) is to put it simply, another dumb Smurfs movie that I can only recommend to very young kids and even then, that’s a stretch when there are other family films out in theaters or on streaming that are much better. I can’t say this film made me angry while watching it as it gave me what it advertised and mostly found myself bored by it aside from when the film decides to get crazy. 

            I’m going to say a few nice things about it; I like the animation style of this movie and does capture the look and feel of the cartoon except brought in a 3D world, they even do some cute visual gags with comic word bubbles. It honestly made me wish I was just watching a Smurfs movie set in Smurf Village with this colorful animation without the real world. 

            The voice acting is decent and I don’t mean Rihanna and James Corden, John Goodman was a fine choice for Papa Smurf as he naturally has that gruff, dad-like voice and plays it well here. JP Karliak is entertaining as both Razamel and Gargamel despite the material not really doing him any favors, he can at least deliver it in a humorous way and is giving his all. 

            This film plays around with the multiverse a lot which shows the Smurfs entering different universes with various animation styles like stop-motion, 8-bit video game, and anime. That was when I was starting to admire the film’s energy, but it was in the climax and I wanted more of that instead of this uninspired kids film nonsense. 

            Aside from those things, this movie did absolutely nothing for me and just hits those beats I was expecting from a film like this, dumb jokes with Smurfs in place of words, modern talk, and I do not need to say what this film ends with because you already know. I wouldn’t mind some of these rehashed things if the movie was clever or compelling and it isn’t either. 

            This movie manages to somehow have less of a reason to go to the real world than the Neil Patrick Harris Smurfs movies, the characters barely interact with the live-action environments and to make it even more confusing, the logic of animated characters living in the real world for no reason. Yeah, Razamel and Gargamel’s castle is in the real world and inside there are a bunch of cartoon characters and animated interiors, was it trying to be like Who Framed Roger Rabbit where toons and humans co-exist or were the writers on Blue Meth again? I’m guessing the latter! 

            Yeah, Smurf this Smurfing movie and go see any other movie! Smurfs (2025) has energy and appealing aspects, but at the cost of entertainment value and cleverness as another grim example of adapting a classic cartoon to feature film. 

I Know What You Did Last Summer review

I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER: 

LEGACY SEQUEL TO A HORROR MOVIE THAT DOESN’T HAVE MUCH OF A LEGACY! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: ** out of 4

COLUMBIA PICTURES

The Fisherman has returned in I Know What You Did Last Summer (2025)

 

The notorious Fisherman Killer has resurfaced to stalk another group of people in I Know What You Did Last Summer, the legacy sequel to the 1997 slasher film of the same name. The film is directed and co-written by Jennifer Kaytin Robinson (Sweet/Vicious, Thor: Love and Thunder, Do Revenge) and once again produced by Neal H. Moritz (Fast & Furious franchise, XXX 1 and 2, Sonic the Hedgehog trilogy). 

The original I Know What You Did Last Summer is a very formulaic horror movie that was obviously made to capitalize on the success of Wes Craven’s Scream which was released a year prior (Even right down to it being from the same writer), but the performances by the leads are strong enough and there’s a fair amount of creative kills. The 1998 sequel, I Still Know What You Did Last Summer and the 2006 direct-to-DVD standalone third installment, I’ll Always Know What You Did Last Summer are hot garbage with the latter being one of the worst films I’ve ever seen and I’ve never seen the 2021 miniseries on Amazon Prime Video. 

            Well, after the success of the Halloween and Scream legacy sequels, of course, I Know What You Did Last Summer has to get in on the action where new protagonists team up with the old characters to stop the current killer (I should be expecting an Urban Legend legacy sequel in the near future). It makes sense, the original I Know What You Did Last Summer was made to cash-in on the popularity of the first Scream and now this movie is cashing in on the success of Scream’s 2022 legacy sequel…the catch is this one is not as good as the 2022 Scream or its follow-up. 

            I Know What You Did Last Summer (2025) is technically the best installment since the original (Though that isn’t saying much given how terrible the other films are), but it’s a very by the numbers legacy sequel that’s clearly trying to ride the coattails of Halloween and Scream with tons of nostalgic callbacks and returning cast members, but nothing to make it stand out. 

            The film follows five friends consisting of Danica Richards (Madelyn Cline-Boy Erased, Outer Banks, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery), Ava Brucks (Chase Sui Wonders-Generation, Bodies Bodies Bodies, The Studio), Milo Griffin (Jonah Hauer-King-World on Fire, The Little Mermaid (2023), Doctor Who), Teddy Spencer (Tyriq Withers-Legacies, The Game, Rich Wigga, Poor Wigga), and Stevie Ward (Sarah Pidgeon-The Wilds, Tiny Beautiful Things, The Friend) getting together for an engagement party on the 4^th of July. Things take a terrifying turn when they inadvertently cause a deadly car accident and the group makes a pact never to speak of it. 

            One year later in Southport, they start receiving mysterious messages that read “I Know What You Did Last Summer” and an unknown hook-wielding killer starts axing them off forcing them to confront the survivors of a similar massacre in 1997, Julie James (Jennifer Love Hewitt-Party of Five, Can’t Hardly Wait, Heartbreakers) and Ray Bronson (Freddie Prinze Jr.-Head over Heels, Scooby-Doo 1 and 2, Star Wars: Rebels) in hopes of getting their help in stopping this new Fisherman killer. 

            The film also stars Billy Campbell (The Rocketeer, Bram Stoker’s Dracula, The Killing) as Grant Spencer, Gabbriette (Idiotka) as Tyler Trevino, Austin Nichols (One Tree Hill, The Day After Tomorrow, The Walking Dead) as Pastor Judah, Joshua Orpin (Titans, Home and Away) as Wyatt, and Isaiah Mustafa (Shadowhunters, It: Chapter Two, Boy Kills World) as Andrew. 

            Overall, I Know What You Did Last Summer is a very standard legacy sequel to a horror movie that doesn’t really have much of a legacy to begin with. It’s clearly trying to be like the recent Halloween and Scream movies with all the nods and references to the earlier films, but it just hits every tired trope from these kinds of movies without doing anything that unique or surprising (Aside from one twist in the last third that was completely fucking bonkers!). 

            But I am willing to excuse this film’s lack of originality if the lead characters are compelling and sadly, aside from maybe Madelyne Cline’s Danica and Chase Sui Wonders’ Ava (The two main female protagonists), I didn’t care for this new group of protagonists. They mostly just ranged from obnoxious douchebags to stock characters that are just there to die. 

            I’m not saying the characters in the original film were super deep or complex, but at least they were memorable and I gave…enough of a shit about them especially Jennifer Love Hewitt’s character. Sure, she’s no Jamie Lee Curtis’ Laurie Strode from Halloween or Neve Campbell’s Sidney Prescott from Scream, but I was invested in Hewitt’s Julie James and wanted to see her escape the Fisherman in the previous movies and it was nice to see her again in this though she’s not as prominent as Curtis and Campbell were in the recent Halloween and Scream films. 

            There are some fun and inventive slasher movie kills in this like the one involving the outdoor pool lights shown in the trailers and the Fisherman staging scenes with the corpses of his/her victims for someone to react horrifyingly to. Plenty of gory hook deaths and speargun shooting with blood on the floor that I actually wouldn’t mind watching again…as clips on YouTube after the film leaves theaters. 

            I Know What You Did Last Summer tries to revitalize a dead iconic horror franchise with a legacy sequel to follow in the footsteps of Halloween and Scream, but it really misses the mark and becomes a generic and ultimately forgettable slasher movie revival. It just goes to show, some legacies don’t need to live on especially those that didn’t really have one from the start. 
            Also, someone should tell Disney executives that “Nostalgia is overrated!”. 

Superman review

SUPERMAN: 

LOOK UP IN THE SKY, IT’S A DAMN GOOD SUPERMAN FILM! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: *** ½ out of 4

DC STUDIOS (WARNER BROS. PICTURES)

David Corenswet in Superman (2025)

 

            James Gunn (Super, Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy, The Suicide Squad (2021)) kicks off DC Cinematic Universe Attempt #2 with this new film version of Superman, based on the DC Comics superhero of the same name. The Man of Steel has had quite a history in terms of film adaptations ever since his inception whether it’s through film serials, the first two Christopher Reeve movies from 1978 and 1980 which are often seen as classics and hailed as some of the greatest comic book films ever made, and the bumpy first attempt at a DC Universe with the DCEU. 

            Now James Gunn has left the Marvel Cinematic Universe after completing Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 3 to give DC the shared universe it so rightfully deserves…hopefully. It’s hard to determine how great a cinematic universe will be just off of its first entry, but as a movie goes, I thoroughly enjoyed this Superman. 

            While I can’t say this film reaches the height of Superman: The Movie (1978) or its sequel, it understands the character a lot better than Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel and his subsequent films in the DC Extended Universe and gives audiences an upbeat, entertaining, but not lazily assembled summer escape movie. In an age where comic book movies feel the need to be dark and challenge its audience, sometimes simple lighthearted “Super” fun with compelling characters and enough emotional levity is all you need. 

            The film follows Kal-El/Clark Kent/Superman (David Corenswet-House of Cards, Pearl, Twisters), an alien with extraordinary powers who was sent as a baby to Earth after his home planet, Krypton was destroyed and now protects the planet under the alias, Superman. When billionaire, Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult-X-Men franchise, Mad Max: Fury Road, Juror #2) conducts an evil plan to turn the public against him, Superman must prove that he is the world’s protector with the help of Daily Planet reporter, Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan-The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, The Courier, The Amateur) and a few Justice League (Oh sorry, Justice Gang, huge difference!) members…oh, and Krypto the Superdog too!

            The film also stars Edi Gathegi (Gone Baby Gone, Twilight 1 and 2, X-Men: First Class) as Michael/Holt/Mister Terrific, Anthony Carrigan (The Forgotten, Gotham, Death of a Unicorn) as Rex Mason/Metamorpho, Nathan Fillion (Firefly, Castle, DC Animated Universe) as Guy Gardner/Green Lantern, Isabela Merced (Transformers: The Last Knight, Dora and the Lost City of Gold, Alien: Romulus) as Kendra Saunders/Hawkgirl, and Skyler Gisondo (The Amazing Spider-Man 1 and 2, Booksmart, Licorice Pizza) as Jimmy Olsen. 

            Overall, Superman (2025) takes the Man of Steel back to his upbeat comic book roots with a bright and colorful superhero flick with solid action scenes, great performances by the leads, and it doesn’t shy away from heavier or dark moments either. I doubt it will become a classic like the first two Christopher Reeve Superman movies, but as a start to a new cinematic universe, I found this movie very entertaining and it got me interested in the future of this DC Universe. 

            The film takes the Spider-Man: Homecoming, Batman (1989), and The Batman (2022) route and has the character already established without going beat for beat into the backstory because let’s be real, everyone already knows Superman’s origin story just as much as they know Batman and Spider-Man’s. But the core elements are still there and his past is brought up at various points in the film so nothing is really lost here. 

            James Gunn and the rest of the crew knew this so they decided to focus this movie on Superman trying to prove his worth to the planet as its protector by facing off against Lex Luthor and saving lives along the way and I think it’s done very well. Seeing Superman interact with the citizens of Metropolis whether as the Man of Steel or Clark Kent is an integral part of the character that gives him his humanity which is something I felt the Zack Snyder Superman was severely lacking despite Henry Cavill clearly trying to make the films work. 

            This Superman saves a squirrel from Lex Luthor’s destruction and let me tell you, if Henry Cavill did something like that while fighting General Zod in Man of Steel, it easily would have been a far better movie. The movie understands Superman and him being a symbol for hope and empowerment and a lot of that does come down to David Corenswet’s performance as the Man of Steel. 

            I’ve only seen him in a handful of things, but I thought David Corenswet was perfect in the role of Superman and I love too that while this is a more uplifting and positive portrayal, he isn’t trying to replicate Christopher Reeve from the original four movies or Brandon Routh from Superman Returns. I’m sure Corenswet was probably inspired by those performances in some shape or form, but he is clearly giving his own take on Superman and portraying him as a man who wants to do good and inspire those around him while still understanding the seriousness of the situations he’s in.

            However, I will say this movie makes the strange but interesting decision of downplaying David Corenswet as Clark Kent which is usually just as important as when he’s Superman. Aside from a scene in the beginning, there is barely any Clark Kent in this movie and I don’t know how I feel about that. 

            Rachel Brosnahan played a good Lois Lane and I enjoyed her chemistry with David Corenswet’s Superman as sort of an on-again, off-again relationship, but in a charming way. They don’t make her the damsel in distress like in other Superman media and she even helps him out during the action at times such as flying a spaceship. 

            Nicholas Hoult is probably one of the last actors I’d expect to play Lex Luthor, but he effectively captured the charismatic and threatening businessman from the comics and is easily my second favorite movie Lex Luthor behind Gene Hackman from the original films. Now I’m convinced, if he had better material and direction maybe Jesse Eisenberg could have played a decent Lex had things been different. 

            The action is very exciting though it is reliant on a lot of CGI that doesn’t always look convincing, but they do cool things with it especially with characters like Green Lantern and Mister Terrific. It isn’t just flashy superhero fights between giant monsters and other super people, sometimes it’s just Superman rescuing an alien baby from a collapsing pocket dimension or a gleefully silly sequence involving Krypto that puts Hulk and Loki from Avengers to shame. 

            Despite a few hurdles, Superman (2025) is the upbeat, fun, and positive superhero movie we need especially with so much negativity in the world lately. If you’re looking to escape all that then go to your local theater and see this feel-good summer blockbuster. 

The Old Guard 2 review

THE OLD GUARD 2: 

A TEDIOUS AND SURPRISINGLY DULL CONTINUATION OF 2020 NETFLIX ACTION FILM! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: ** out of 4

NETFLIX

Charlize Theron in The Old Guard 2

 

            Charlize Theron (Monster, Mad Max: Fury Road, Atomic Blonde) and KiKi Layne (If Beale Street Could Talk, Captive State, Don’t Worry Darling) are back as immortals, Andy and Nile in The Old Guard 2, the much anticipated sequel to the 2020 Netflix superhero film, The Old Guard based on the graphic novel series of the same name. I thought the first movie was alright though I hadn’t thought about it since 2020, but I remembered liking it and thought it was an interesting take on superheroes, less The Avengers and more like M. Night Shyamalan’s Unbreakable if I had to compare it to something. 

            Clearly it must have been a big hit for Netflix especially since it came out while everyone was locked inside their homes so now we have a sequel once again produced by Netflix and Skydance, but this time with Victoria Mahoney (Yelling to the Sky) taking over directing duties from Gina Prince-Bythewood. I was curious about the sequel even if the first movie went in one ear and out the other for me, but I’m always down for more Charlize Theron kicking ass, what’s not to love about that? 

            So, I put the movie on, gave it a watch, and…it’s not as good as the first in fact, it’s even more forgettable than the first. The Old Guard 2 strips what made the original unique and replaces it with extensive and tedious lore and exposition and an unfocused narrative, it just feels like a sequel that was strung together because the first movie was popular. 

            The film follows Andy (Theron) and her team of immortal warriors still on their mission of protecting the world. But when Andy’s former teammate and lover, Quỳnh (Victoria Ngô-Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny, The Princess, The Creator) escapes her underwater prison seeking revenge courtesy of the first immortal, Discord (Uma Thurman-Pulp Fiction, Gattaca, Kill Bill 1 and 2), Andy, Nile (Layne), Joe (Marwan Kenzari-Wolf, Aladdin (2019), Black Adam), Nicky (Luca Marinelli-The Great Beauty, Don’t Be Bad, Diabolik), and James Copley (Chiwetel Ejiofor-12 Years a Slave, Doctor Strange 1 and 2, The Life of Chuck) enlist the help of Tuah (Henry Golding-Crazy Rich Asians, A Simple Favor, Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins), an old friend who may hold the key to unlocking the mystery behind their immortal existence. 

            The film also stars Matthias Schoenaerts (Black Book, Rust and Bone, The Mustang) reprising his role as Booker. 

            Overall, The Old Guard 2 is a prime example of an uninspired sequel that was made only because its predecessor was a success and to set up future movies in the franchise. I’m not saying the first Old Guard was a great movie, but at least it had something going for it and it did explore this society of super-people that can’t die with decent world building. 

            This one leans right into lore and tedious exposition at the cost of a captivating story and good character development. Outside of Charlize Theron I didn’t give a shit about any of the characters in this because the majority of them aren’t given much to do here and often take a backseat for exposition dumping complete with “Important whispering”. 

            The sad part is there are a few interesting ideas being explored, but not enough time is devoted to them like Henry Golding’s character keeping record of all the immortals throughout history in a Doctor Strange-like sanctum and Uma Thurman’s Discord’s backstory. I would have liked to have seen more of those, but they’re shoehorned in with a bunch of other underdeveloped plot points. 

            I also felt there needed to be more time with Charlize Theron’s Andy and Victoria Ngô’s Quỳnh together as that was the emotional anchor of the film it seemed. But aside from a couple scenes early on and a scene during the climax, they don’t do much with this which honestly makes me favor the Peter Parker VS Harry Osborn conflict in Spider-Man 3 because despite that movie being overstuffed, that aspect was more focused and they had plenty of scenes together to make it work. 

            The acting is fine with Charlize Theron obviously being the biggest name attached to it, even in lackluster material, she’ll always find a way to give a strong performance with this being no exception. Uma Thurman’s a pretty enjoyable villain and thankfully not an embarrassing one like her Poison Ivy from Batman & Robin, but she seems to enjoy chewing on her hammy dialogue while still posing a genuine threat. 

            The action scenes are more of the same from the first and for the most part they’re shot and choreographed well with the best being a full-on duel between Charlize and Uma, Furiosa VS The Bride, fuck yeah! I may have thought this movie was a dull slog, but I am grateful to have been gifted this glorious moment. 

            But yeah, aside from a few interesting ideas, decent action scenes, and fine performances, The Old Guard 2 is a lackluster and surprisingly dull continuation of the first movie that focuses more on franchise-building rather than telling a good story. The movie ends on a damn cliffhanger so I am assuming we’ll be getting an Old Guard 3 in the coming years, but if it’s anything like this second installment, no thanks! 

Jurassic World: Rebirth review

JURASSIC WORLD: REBIRTH: 

GARETH EDWARDS TRIES TO INJECT NEW LIFE IN THE LONG-RUNNING FRANCHISE, BUT THE WOW FACTOR IS GONE! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: ** ½ out of 4

UNIVERSAL PICTURES

Scarlett Johansson in Jurassic World: Rebirth

 

            The dinosaurs are running wild again just like the Weird Al song in Jurassic World: Rebirth, the seventh installment of the Jurassic Park film series dating all the way back to 1993 with Steven Spielberg’s groundbreaking original landmark. However, ever since that first film’s success, Hollywood has been trying to recapture that magic with varying results and the closest being 2015’s Jurassic World (The fourth entry) which was an enjoyable summer popcorn movie but still didn’t hold a candle to the first Jurassic Park. 

            After several bumpy entries in the franchise, director Gareth Edwards (Godzilla (2014), Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, The Creator) steps in to hopefully breathe new life in the series with Rebirth under a script penned by the original film’s writer, David Koepp (Panic Room, Spider-Man, Black Bag). The trailers didn’t grab me all that much mainly because I was heavily disappointed in 2018’s Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom and 2022’s Jurassic World: Dominion, but I was hopeful that with a new cast and crew helming it maybe Rebirth could bring this series back to its glory days…eh, sort of! 

            Jurassic World: Rebirth is an improvement over Fallen Kingdom and Dominion as it doesn’t involve any bizarre subplots with a little girl who’s a clone or locusts and does attempt to recapture that Spielberg magic from the original movie at times. Unfortunately, it never really takes the series anywhere new and repeats a lot of things seen in the earlier films. 

            The film follows covert operation expert, Zora Bennett (Scarlett Johansson-Lost in Translation, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Under the Skin) and paleontologist, Dr. Henry Loomis (Jonathan Bailey-Elizabeth: The Golden Age, Testament of Youth, Wicked 1 and 2) being tasked with a top-secret mission to receive biomaterial samples from the three largest prehistoric specimens which hold the key to a new heart disease treatment. Zora and Henry along with their team leader, Duncan Kincaid (Mahershala Ali-Moonlight, Green Book, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse) embark on their expedition to retrieve their samples from the dinosaurs that have since been living around the equator and mayhem ensues. 

             The film also stars Rupert Friend (Pride & Prejudice, Companion, The Phoenician Scheme) as Martin Krebs, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo (The Magnificent Seven (2016), Sicario: Day of the Soldado, 6 Underground) as Reuben Delgado, Luna Blaise (Fresh Off the Boat, Manifest, Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe) as Teresa Delgado, David Iacono (St. Vincent, Fresh Kills, Fear Street: Prom Queen) as Xavier Dobbs, and Ed Skrein (The Transporter: Refueled, Deadpool, Alita: Battle Angel) as Bobby Atwater. 

            Overall, Jurassic World: Rebirth is better than most of the previous Jurassic Park sequels and should make for an enjoyable enough popcorn film for the summer if that’s all you’re looking for. But coming off of Steven Spielberg’s original Jurassic Park movie which revolutionized CGI and special effects while also having a gripping story and memorable characters, it feels cheapened and never takes the franchise anywhere new. 

            The movie starts off simple enough with a fetch quest led by Black Widow, Fiyero from Wicked, and The Prowler to retrieve the dinosaur DNA samples to cure diseases, but as it goes on and more characters and plot elements are introduced, it gets overly complicated and crowded. The classic case of two different Jurassic World 7 scripts being smushed together into one. 

            I was with the Scarlett Johansson, Mahershala Ali, and Jonathan Bailey plot where it was just about the three of them embarking in the jungles to extract the dinosaurs’ DNA, but then the film introduces a family that was pleasure cruising around the Dino Island (Because that makes sense!) but they get stuck on the island and have to escape. So now you have a family to worry about on top of Plot A involving Scarlett, Mahershala, and Jonathan and they hardly ever correlate with each other. 

            Despite the film’s messy script, I’ll give it credit that the performances are decent particularly from Scarlett Johansson, Mahershala Ali, and Jonathan Bailey who bring a lot of likable charm to a dinosaur/monster movie where…I only care about those three people. They have their fair share of fun quirks and banter and I wanted to see them survive and achieve their goal in the end; I honestly cared more about them than Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard from the previous entries. 

            There are some thrilling sequences with tons of dinosaur tension, most notably a scene involving a sleeping T-Rex and an inflatable raft (Which apparently was a segment from Michael Crichton's original Jurassic Park book that never made it into the film) and another where a group of characters escape a dinosaur in a sewer. But a lot of them feel like copy and paste versions of scenes from the other Jurassic Park movies, one of which literally felt like a retread of the raptors in the kitchen sequence from the first film except in an abandoned convenience store on the island…also, the human characters have way too many close calls with these creatures! 

            The dinosaur effects really lean into CGI this time around and while I can’t say they’re bad-looking, they just look like graphics from a video game. Compared to the first Jurassic Park which had a ton of ingenuity and craftsmanship with methods like animatronics and puppetry among other practical effects on top of the computer graphics, it just doesn’t feel that special anymore. 

            Jurassic World: Rebirth is a fine enough summer blockbuster for those looking for large-scale thrills to marvel at while munching on popcorn (Actually, despite this being a very mid review, I don’t regret watching this on the big screen). I admire Gareth Edwards for his efforts at trying to inject new life in this franchise, but as with every Jurassic Park sequel since 1997, Spielberg did it best the first time around in 1993 and nothing can top it, but who cares? This movie will still gross over a billion dollars.