An inflated Crowe is the centerpiece of "Nuremberg"

 

Courtroom dramas have, at least for me, exhausted most methods of surprising the audiences in new, inventive ways. In Nuremberg, the surviving Nazi officers, after Germany's fall in World War 2, are tried for their war crimes and crimes against humanity. Leading the charge is Robert H. Jackson (Michael Shannon), an American judge dead set on seeing Hermann Göring (Russel Crowe) get his comeuppance.

But the movie's main focus isn't so much the trial as the psychological state of the Germans. Douglas Kelley (Rami Malek) spends countless hours getting to know Göring. Kelley is hoping to fully understand what causes true evil, in order to prevent future humanity from succumbing to such malevolence again.

Naturally, the final verdict is hardly a surprise. At nearly two and a half hours, the movie is too long - by almost a third. Despite its attempt to inject a foray into the mental aspect, the movie feels like an unnecessary slog - especially when there're so many exciting films during the present awards season.

☆☆1/2

A post-mortum love triangle is elevated by Olsen's undeniable talent

 

After Joan (Elizabeth Olsen) dies and ends up in an afterlife transit city where she's to await her eternal dimension, she runs into Larry (Miles Teller), her husband on earth for sixty five years before his recent passing. But there's also Luke (Callum Turner), Joan's first husband, who died only two years into their long ago marital union. So given a forever, what's a girl to do?

Director David Freyne's Eternity recalls classics like Heaven Can Wait and Defending Your Life, where recently passed protagonists have to make difficult decisions in their new afterlife. The first hour is quite sluggish, and left me wondering how many times I'd check my watch before the final credits. But the final act more than makes up for it, thanks to Elisabeth Olsen's convincing turn as the conflicted Joan. As clever and creative as the production design is, the movie owes its sweet aftertaste due to her authentic, heart-wrenching turn.

☆☆☆

"Accident" is another bold, courageous work from Iran's fearless filmmaker

 

After their car strikes an animal on a rural dark road, the husband/father drives the car (with his wife and daughter) to the nearest garage to fix the damage. Once there, his voice suddenly strikes a familiar tone with one of the mechanics, who remains out of sight but within earshot. The mechanic secretly follows the family home afterwards, and the next day, ambushes the father and kidnaps him, believing him to be his once-upon-a-time captor, who mercilessly tormented and tortured him.

Winner of the 2025 Palme D'or, It Was Just an Accident is a gripping, intense, well acted drama, made in Iran illegally for being critical of the regime, as most of director Jafar Panahi's movies are. Its plot shares a lot of resemblance to the 1994 Roman Polanski thriller, The Death and the Maiden, which will take away some elements of surprise to those familiar with it. 

Nonetheless, It Was Just an Accident will surely be nominated for a International Film Oscar in a few months' time. As things currently stand, I don't see how it loses the award, regardless of the other nominees' quality.

☆☆☆

Leguizamo saves his best for a late career charmer in "Trevino"

 

It's not often that a small movie, featuring a handful of characters sneaks up on you during a busy late year movie season. But that's just what Bob Trevino Likes It manages to pull off. Featuring an overweight, low self esteem young woman, Lily (Barbie Ferreira), whose father, Bob Trevino (French Stewart) continuously neglects her to the point that she mistakenly adds the wrong Bob Trevino as a friend on Facebook. Turns out that this Bob (John Leguizamo) she thinks is her dad is just a construction company manager, himself bored with an uneventful life. Together, each fills the other's emptiness in life, and a surprising friendship emerges, one that transcends cliches and formulaic movie relationships.

Despite some less-than-authentic parts (Lily's father is such a piece of shit that I could hardly believe people like him existed), I was ultimately won over by the final scene. It was so heart-wrenching and  that even the biggest stoics will be moved. Leguizamo has finally, in his mid 60s, done something he'd never done before: he's created a character that many a person would be glad to call a friend.

☆☆☆

Perkins' "Keeper" is a somber example of filmmaking laziness

 

Osgood Perkins has made some memorable horror movies. The Blackcoat's Daughter, Longlegs, and 2025's The Monkey all possessed creepy, genuine thrills that were difficult to shake off. In Keeper, he resorts to kind of laziness uncommon for someone of his resume. By presenting us with a convincing heroine (Tatiana Maslany) who experiences strange visions after being isolated in her boyfriend's middle-of-nowhere cabin, Perkins resorts to low-budget, student short film stretched to feature length gimmicks: a disturbing payoff, preceded by a narrative so thin it may as well be non-existent.

Few actors, and even fewer locations, is sometimes a recipe for uncommon and original creativity. Sadly, however, that is not the case here. Perkins will surely make good movies again (he simply has to); as sure as he does, the horrid aftertaste of Keeper will be behind him - and his fans.

☆

"No Other Choice" hovers around boldness, yet entertains little in its 136 minutes

 

When I first heard of No Other Choice a few weeks ago - and its admirable 100% RT score - I was excited to watch it. Not only is it directed by the great Park Chan-wook (Oldboy, The Handmaiden), it is also greatly praised in this competitive movie awards season. Marketed as a black comedy, it was bound to emerge as the underdog that outsmart the competition. Right?

Well, not exactly. The movie begins as a family drama about a dad/husband (Lee Byung-hun) who works for a paper company. Once he gets laid off, he's naturally distressed. Subsequently, he resorts to extreme measures to obtain the next job, where he - LITERALLY - eliminates the competition (other applicants). But instead of treating the protagonist's flight in a comical/clumsy way, reminiscent of wise dark comedies, Chan-wook ultimately leaves the murdering "hero" have his cake, and eat it, too.  It's like following a slasher movie killer as voice of reason, and see no harm come to him at the end.

Tonally, No Other Choice is unsure what it wants to be. A satirical commentary on the income and labor inequality the world over, or an examination of a man who, never having murdered, does it so easily that he never loses sleep over it? The entire concept felt awkward, if not plain wrong. The fact that the film was never truly entertaining or engrossing in the least is an altogether different matter, but alas - it's flatter than a pancake.

☆☆

"Dead Man" is short of previous duo's thrills, but Johnson still pleasantly surprises

 

Rian Johnson's Knives Out series is probably the most entertaining ongoing non-superhero franchise today. Featuring the southern accented Daniel Craig as the Sherlock Holmes-like sleuth, Benoit Blanc, the series repeatedly features a different A-list cast, in addition to some unforgettable locations. They come across as a modern version of Agatha Christie's whodunnit mysteries - but with a considerably higher elements of cinematic fun.

Third time around, Blanc is called to a New York small town rural community - more specifically, a gothic church where Father Monsignor (Josh Brolin) has been murdered. Liked by some, despised by many, his demise is a missed blessing for the locals. Among them is Jud Duplenticy (Josh O'Connor), a young priest whose own violent past haunts him. There're also Lee Ross (Andrew Scott) and Dr. Nat Sharp (Jeremy Renner), to name just a few. 

Wake Up Dead Man isn't quite up to par on its two predecessors, but that is hardly a surprise. Johnson has set such a high standard that it's natural if some inspiration isn't striking where it previously has. Nonetheless, Knives Out movies are still top notch entertainment. As long as Johnson keeps inventing new mysteries and attracting the best of Hollywood's acting talent, true cinema aficionados will be there in flocks. Here hoping for at least three more installments.

☆☆☆

"Running Man" remake tops the orignal, confims Powell as likeable action star

 

I never much cared for the original The Running Man. Other than featuring Schwarzenegger at the peak of his action movie star career, it was a cheap looking, B-movie, lazily written adaptation of a 1982 Stephen King novel. It was too short to be fully effective - something that Edgar Wright wisely corrects in his 2025 remake.

Glen Powell is perfectly cast as the titular hero, a common man living in an authoritarian dystopia where the rich and corrupt rule over the poor masses, and entertain them with the violent reality TV show. His man on the run climbs down buildings while wearing nothing but a towel, encounters revolutionary  influencers/podcasters who are fighting for the greater good, and engages in a shootout with killer pilots while boarded on an out-of-control crashing airplane. The movie's set pieces are impressive, the timely themes of income inequality quite relevant, and its implementation of advanced technology to fuel its narrative surpasses everything the original dished out.

It's unfortunate this did not find the theatrical audience it deserved. I suppose it could find a second life on streaming platforms, and becomes a cult-classic worthy of its production design. 

☆☆☆

Clooney's timeless charisma keep "Kelly" afloat despite several Fellini-esque tropes

 

Noah Baumbach's Jay Kelly might as well be George Clooney's swan song. Playing the titular character who very much resembles his real life persona, the actor conveys a nostalgic look at his life's successes and ups and downs and missed opportunities where he failed to properly connect with his daughters and old filmmakers who propelled his career into stardom.

Jay Kelly, along with his manager, Ron (Adam Sandler), take a trip to France, where they encounter curious passengers on an overcrowded train, visit Tuscany and meet with Jay's father (Stacy Keach), concluding their journey at a gala tribute in which Jay receives an lifetime achievement (or something along those lines) award. Throughout, both Jay and Ron reminisce about their pasts, and about what could have been, if only they'd made different choices.

The movie has shades of Federico Fellini's 8 1/2, with the nostalgia of an actor taking place those of a filmmaker. Not to be outdone, in an early small cameo, Billy Crudup steals the only scene he's in, as an old friend who's still bitter and holding on to squashed rage. Jay Kelly does not reinvent the wheel, but it is a fitting, timely narrative for one of Hollywood's nicest, kindest actors (from what I've heard).

☆☆☆

"Influencers" not only tops its predecessor; it sets up an even bigger finale in a potential trilogy concluding chapter (fingers crossed)

 

As engrossing and original as 2022's thriller Influencer was, this sequel - which not only adds an extra S at the end of the title - surpasses it in tension and body count (to say nothing of the blood soaked finale). Back is the mysterious Catherine Weaver (Cassandra Naud), a sociopath who steals identities of famous influencers and monetizes off their accounts. To say the story is of a timely nature is an understatement; to state that it's as exciting as any thriller in 2025 is just as accurate.

Writer/director Kurtis David Harder once again takes us across glorious global attractions (France and Bali), and incorporates the modern social media obsession to an exciting effect. Catherine isn't just a bad guy with highly questionable morals: she is also, in a way, someone whose life most of us would like to live, if only we dared to turn off our conscience and morality meter from time to time. 

The final act in Influencers, staged at a luxurious house with a glossy swimming pool, surpassed even my wildest expectations. Hopefully it is a set up for a yet another chapter to encapsulate this engrossing trilogy. I, for one, can not wait.

☆☆☆1/2

Lawrence's raw emotion emboldens otherwise pedestrian "Love"

 

Unlike many snobbish film 'aficionados,' I don't necessarily find Lynn Ramsey's movies fascinating. At least not solely based on her name being attached to them. And every argument can be made that her latest piece, Die My Love, works mostly because of Jennifer Lawrence's fearless performance.

Lawrence plays a bored, lonely wife, Grace, to Jackson (Robert Pattinson). She lives in an isolated house in the middle of nowhere countryside, taking care of her infant boy, while her husband works for extended periods away from home. Suffering with a major case of writer's block, she's haunted by a mysterious motorcycle rider, sporting a dark, concealing helmet; she also crawls, either inside her house or in the lush outdoor fields, a few too many times, either playfully or out of sheer madness - a product of sexually unfulfilling solitude. 

As a story, Die My Love offers little in form of a riveting narrative. But just as Lawrence saved the otherwise unwatchable No Hard Feelings a few years back, here she also inserts herself, body and soul, into Grace's despair. This is not a movie many will say claim to want to see again, but as a vehicle for its uber-talented star, Lawrence's portrayal is up there, along with other notoriously tormented wives (Gena Rowlands and Isabelle Adjani come to mind) of the big screen. 

☆☆☆

"Badlands" overreaches by trying to turn the murderous alien sympathetic

 

Dan Trachtenberg has, in the last decade or so, done more for the Predator franchise than even John McTiernan and Shane Black, the director and writer of the original 1980s Schwarzenegger spectacular sci-fi action movie. Trachtenberg's 2022 Prey was an original portrayal of female empowerment, set in distant history of pre-colonial America. Not to be outdone, this year's animated anthology, Predator: Killer of Killers, is my personal favorite. For him to have now delivered two expensive, high-octane action blockbusters is a major achievement.

But where Trachtenberg has lost me - sort of - is in presenting the typically villainous, murderous extra-terrestrial as a being we should identify with. To top it off, here the anti-hero is presented without his emblematic mask. Watching his ghastly mug was difficult to get past - despite Elle Fanning's humanoid synthetic upper half spitting comic relief and hanging on his back on a planet that hosts the legendary Kalisk - the most difficult thing to kill in the entire universe.

Predator: Badlands is a well made action sci-fi fare. But such a bombastic extravaganza of explosions, bullets, slicing and dicing of blades on flesh, and general cacophony of noise, can be burdensome, after a while. Its narrative is not unlike the much superior Prey, where an undermined warrior has to prove him/herself to their tribe. It will undoubtedly spawn numerous sequels; and just as likely will - eventually - exhaust even its most ardent fans.

☆☆

Pulling few punches, "Christy" is nonetheless stuck in biopic cliche limbo

 

As Christy Turner, the female boxer that made headlines in 1990s and early 2000s, Sydney Sweeney sports an outdated mullet, one that is permanently 1983-ish. She's also rounder than usual, her character struggling with her sexuality in the conservative boonies of West Virginia, and is fiercer than a wild cat in a boxing ring.

Much like Rocky Balboa fifty years prior, Christy is a small time underdog against her bigger name opponents - at least early on. She soon develops into a respected, overachieving woman boxer, hampered from fully reaching her potential only by the counter-progressive stubborness of her trainer turned husband (Ben Foster). He's the ultimate cliche: the kind of man who beats up on his spouse because she justly enquires about him secretly splurging her earnings.

Christy presents us with a real-life heroine, one whose small-town-Americana birthplace likely got in the way of a bigger success. Sweeney does as well as she can, given the blandness of the script. It all plays out like a gritty made for TV fare, truth being told. In an ocean of late year movie releases, this is bound to get buried and quickly forgotten - much like Dwayne Johnson's redundant "The Smashing Machine."

☆☆ 

 

Joachim Trier's latest evokes the cinema of Bergman - much to its detriment

 

For nearly twenty years, Joachim Trier has been the most universal filmmaker from Norway. Movies like Reprise, Oslo August 31st and Louder Than Bombs reached international success far beyond Scandinavia. In his latest, Sentimental Value, Trier touches upon themes of the great Swedish director, Ingmar Bergman. An elderly father, himself a filmmaker (Stellan Skarsgard), estranged from his two daughters (Renate Reinsve and Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas), reappears in their life. Subsequently, old wounds are reopened, and an unpleasant tension begins to hang in the air during their family gatherings.

In comparison to Trier's fantastic The Worst Person in the World (2021), Sentimental Value drags under its own slow, meticulous pacing, weighed down by children-vs-father bitterness that never quite reaches the dramatic arc it seeks. It ends with a muffled whimper, rather than any memorable bang.

At 130-something minutes, Value is much longer than it needs to be. It's also hampered by Trier's own previous success: when compared with his earlier fare, it's sometimes pretentious and often dull, when it should be emotional and engrossing.

☆☆1/2

"Predators" exposes questionable ethics of legal procedure for sake of ratings

 

For two decades, NBC's Dateline show, To Catch a Predator, was the most engrossing hour of television. Focusing on the capture and public humiliation of pedophiles (potential and current) caught in mid-act, it put America's sensation starved public in a living room with Chris Hansen. He almost always resorted to a simple question, "What were you planning to do here today?" None dared to place ourselves in the perpetrator's shoes, yet many did anyway.

David Osit's insightful documentary asks the difficult question: other than humiliating these men, who certainly had the worst of intentions when willfully arriving at the home of the "minor" they met online, is anyone anywhere, at all, working on ra ehabilitative program to help these people face the demons that own them? The final sequence is certainly unique in its audacity, and had me on the edge, waiting for the unexpected. I held my breath, worried that Hansen would get jumped by men in SWAT gear, they way those he had no problem shaming in front of running cameras were. 

Predators will, unfortunately, get buried under an avalanche of late-year award winning cinema, and will not nearly get the audience it deserves. It's a shame, because for those familiar with Dateline's (in)famous reality series, it's as riveting as it gets.

☆☆☆1/2

Ethan Hawke recites poetry, quotes movies and ponders about better times in sentimental "Moon"

 

In Richard Linklater's Blue Moon, Ethan Hawke plays Lorenz Hart, a devastated, melancholic, near has-been song writer, pondering about the successful past, while his creative partner, Richard Rodgers (Andrew Scott), celebrates his latest play sensation. With a clever bartender (Bobby Cannavale) and a young beauty (Margaret Qualley) lending him their ears at the bar (the film's only setting, for the most part) to his soliloquies, the movie plays out more like a play with only a handful of characters than a cinematic experience.

Yet Hawke manages to charm and impress, as he nearly always does when matched with Linklater. As Hart, he emits an intellectual, glowing somberness that's masked under a thin layer of denial about his career's inevitable cessation. Named after Hart & Rodgers' famous 1934 hit song, Blue Moon is - more or less - a one man show that overachieves where other, more ambitious movies have failed. It's a celluloid version of the song itself, executed with delicate skill and perhaps Hawke's greatest performance yet.

☆☆☆

Lanthimos/Stone magic may be exhausted in tiresome "Bugonia"

 

For three movies (The Favorite, Poor Things, Kinds of Kindness), Greek filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos has teamed up with Emma Stone to (mostly) successful results. In Bugonia, their latest project, the two time Oscar winning actress plays a bossy CEO of a big corporation who is kidnapped by two conspiracy theory loons (Jesse Plemons and Aidan Delbis) who believe her to be an extra terrestrial. They keep her locked up in a basement, shave her head, and eventually torture her via electroshock.

The movie begins with an interesting premise, but quickly becomes another dull, mundane portrayal of a captured victim pleading with her tormentors to let her go because blah blah blah (I don't mean to demean the dialogue; I honestly thought no more of it than I've listed here). There is a good hour in the middle of the film that is a tiresome bore, a frailty typically uncommon in Lanthimos' best work (The Lobster and The Favorite). By the time we reach the (surprising? not really, but you be the judge) twist towards the end, the result is a whimper instead of a bang.

Perhaps it's time for Lanthimos and Stone to part ways for some time, and find inspiration with others Hollywood creatives. If last year's Kinds of Kindness was long and underwhelming, Bugonia is an equally uninspired mess that depends too much on shock value than any actual narrative or character cleverness.

☆☆