Heads Of State (2025)

 

Cartoonish in execution. The production value was plenty high, but they skimped on the script. Nothing feels believable, so the danger isn’t suspenseful. 

Rating: C-

Thunderbolts* (2025)

I dabble in Marvel shows from time to time to remind myself why I generally avoid them. They often start out with promise, like this one, before becoming a jumbled mess of superpowers and explosions. Thunderbolts at least had some interesting characters with bits of humor. 

Rating: C-

Ballerina (2025)

 

Another surface level John Wick universe shoot-em-up. Little in the way of creative storytelling. Typical action movie tropes. Non-sensical plot devices. They make these girls study ballet for years, but never provide rational justification. It’s not like the boys are becoming licensed plumbers as part of their training.

Time is only a concept. Wick appears to be just up the road; able to hop on a 30 minute train ride to the big finale when called upon, despite the lair being a super-secret remote village. It’s lazy writing that most action films subscribe to. 

How terrible is this assassin cult at their job of assassinating if one fly weight ballerina can dispatch their entire village in one evening? 

Rating: D+

The Ballad Of Wallis Island (2025)

 

A very unconventional musical, of sorts. It’s quirky, funny, sweet, and sad. I enjoyed the songs and characters. 

Rating: B-

28 Years Later (2025)

 

After being blown away watching 28 Days Later at Sundance, I was excited to see Danny Boyle taking the reins again for this third installment. I expected it to be a similar tone and style, but he made some odd choices this time around. Some I liked, some I didn’t. 

Plenty of tense scenes and gore to keep your heart rate up. The film is almost completely devoid of humor, except for an unexpected bit in the middle. I wish they would have leaned into that more. Not as good as I had hoped. 

Rating: C+

Deep Cover (2025)

 

Improv actors recruited to help ensnare low level crooks get in way over their heads, yet stay committed to their roles. As far-fetched as that sounds, the script is quite good. Nice combination of violence and humor. Reminiscent of the HBO series Barry. 

Rating: B-

Fight Or Flight (2024)

 

Everything about this script is preposterous. It makes Bullet Train look like a documentary. And if you get that reference, then like me, you tend to cut action movies a little slack in pursuit of quenching your bloodlust. Bust out your best slack cutting scissors for this one. It’s terrible. 

Rating: D-

Becoming Led Zeppelin (2025)

 

Led Zeppelin fans will love this documentary. Not because it’s groundbreaking in cinematic style or anything. But because it’s the origin story for one of the greatest rock bands of all time. 

Hearing how they came together, created their music, and the journey along the way, was magical. I appreciated that they aired performances of songs in their entirety. Something music docs rarely do. Narration is almost entirely comprised of interviews with the four members. It’s a bare bones doc filled with incredible content. 

Rating: C+

Predator: Killer Of Killers (2025)

 

The latest in the Predator franchise. I didn’t realize it was an animated movie until I pressed play. I find it difficult to get fully engaged in a cartoon. The story and action were fine, but it lacked the suspense that comes from a live action feature. 

Rating: C

The Man From Nowhere (Ajeossi) (2010)

 

A lot of similarly looking Korean dudes are thrown at you right from the start. It’s hard to keep everyone straight, since there’s not much character development beyond the main protagonist. Plenty of gruesome fight scenes throughout. Acting and dialogue took a backseat. 

Rating: C

The Accountant 2 (2025)

 

The original film made my Top 10 list for that year. This sequel suffered from muddled storylines bookended by adequate action sequences. 

Rating: C

Friendship (2024)

 

Tim being Tim. The film plays more like a bunch of interconnected comedy skits rather than a traditional feature. If you haven’t seen Tim’s previous stuff, you might be left wondering what the F you are watching. Despite the weirdness of it all, I laughed a lot. Some scenes are hilarious, but you would be hard pressed to explain why. 

Rating: C+

The Farewell (2019)

 

Character-heavy Chinese drama about a family who come together to celebrate their mother/grandmother before she passes. However, the grandmother doesn’t know she’s dying because Chinese culture dictates they don’t tell her. It’s bitter sweet. 

Rating: C+

Black Bag (2025)

 

British espionage with a lot of dialogue. It’s fine. Not exciting enough. 

Rating: C

A Complete Unknown (2024)

 

I’ve never been a fan of Bob Dylan’s music. His voice annoyed me. It’s only been in recent years that my ears have been worn down enough to appreciate his sound. Timothée Chalamet’s renditions of Dylan’s music is impressive. There were a lot of other talented musicians too. It’s the live performances that elevate the film. 

Rating: B-

Cold In July (2014)

 

There was never a real explanation as to why this benign family man who works at a framing shop decides to join a vigilante death squad. And while that sounds like a promising premise for a movie, Cold In July was a let down. Half the film was folks driving around slowly in cars. 

Rating: D