My Review of Peacemaker: "The Ties That Grind"

 

Written And Directed by James Gunn 

Peacemaker (Other): "Who the fuck are you?"

Peacemaker: "I can explain."

Can you believe it's been a month since Superman (2025) debuted in theatres and now we're on to our third DCU entry in less than a year? Where the hell does the time actually go, huh?

My initial plan for the second season of Peacemaker was to watch the whole season and then do one blog on it like I did with the first season. As you can tell I changed my mind about that one. As for this opening episode, it certainly had a lot to go on.

From the rather brisk way it chose to tackle the DCEU/DCU canon debate, it just swapped out the Justice League for the Justice Gang. Peacemaker aka Christopher Smith (John Cena) wanted to join up but Maxwell Lord (Sean Gunn), Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced) and Guy Gardner (Nathan Fillion) were more interested in making fun of Peacemaker than signing him up as an applicant.

You'd think saving the world from the Butterflies and exposing Task Force X would've made things better but the exact opposite happened. Leota Adebayo (Danielle Brooks) has become unemployed and dumped by her wife. On the other hand, she did seem happy to be around both Peacemaker and John Economos (Steve Agee) in the few scenes they share together.

Someone arguably having a shitter time though would be Emilia Harcourt (Jennifer Holland). She's been blacklisted from every government job going and she's going a worse dose of toxic masculinity. On the other hand, she got into a rather bloody barfight and there's a lingering "will they/won't they" arc with Peacemaker that I'm indifferent to for now.

Getting back to Peacemaker, he's been messing around his father's portals and attracting the attention of Rick Flag Sr (Frank Grillo) and Sasha Bordeaux (Sol Rodriguez). More concerning was stepping into a world where Chris inadvertently killed the heroic version of himself after spending time with heroic versions of Auggie (Robert Patrick) and Keith (David Denman) also known as the Top Trio. Safe to say that Christopher fucked up real good this time around.

- The scene with the Justice League last season got replaced in the recap with the Justice Gang, plus Superman and Supergirl. David Corenswet, Milly Alcock and Edi Gathegi didn't physically appear though.

- Maxwell Lord was really rude about White Rabbit (Brey Noelle) and Guy Gardner was a tad biphobic about Peacemaker. Rick Flag Sr has replaced Amanda Waller at ARGUS.

- Peacemaker in the other world did date Harcourt but she's with a "jar head" right about now. Peacemaker in our world hosted an orgy where one male licked his face.

- Vigilante (Freddie Stroma) and Eagly had the least amount to do and the credit scene was an extended diss about a former DCEU actor's band.

- Standout music: Foxy Shazam's Oh Lord made up the new title sequence song. It's gonna take a while to get used to it. 

- Chronology: Six months since the events of the previous season. Events from both Creature Commandos and Superman (2025) are referenced too.

The Ties That Grind certainly got things off to a heck of a start. It's a chaotic opener with a few reflective moments and James Gunn at his most signature if that makes any sense. If you liked the first season, then you'll like this.

Rating: 8 out of 10 

The Future Of The Whoniverse: Actual Details To Discuss

Yes, it's been months since I've posted anything in relation to Doctor Who and given how there's been very little to talk about, can you blame me? Today however changed that. Let's dive in.

So, what exactly is going on with Doctor Who itself? Well, according to BBC Chief Content Officer Kate Phillips "the TARDIS is going absolutely nowhere" and I quote. Whether the show will remain in partnership with Disney+ however does continue to be the unanswered question but Phillips has reassured that the show will continue on BBC regardless of the outcome with the streamer. This was mentioned at the Edinburgh Television Festival today.

It's not an entirely satisfying answer of sorts. Right now, we had an extremely divisive finale back in May that saw Ncuti Gatwa regenerate into Billie Piper and we're still none the wiser as to whether the latter will be playing the 16th Doctor and in what capacity. Looks like we're going to wait longer for that answer.

However in news that likely won't shock anyone, the indecision regarding the main show's Disney+ future has likely impacted upcoming spin off, The War Between The Land And The Sea. First of all, this had a trailer premiere back in May that got eclipsed by the reaction to the recent finale of the main show itself.

It's been now confirmed that this spin off won't air this year as originally thought. Instead, it'll go to 2026, so for those who were looking forward to UNIT versus the Sea Devils or a potential interspecies romance between main characters Barclay (Russell Tovey) and Salt (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), you'll be waiting a bit longer for that. Sadly, I did suspect this show was going to be delayed.

As for current showrunner, Russell T. Davies, he has been doing recent interviews but not really providing anything concrete in regards to the future of Doctor Who. A few weeks ago, he did talk about having the scripts completed for his upcoming Channel 4 show, TipToe. 

Speaking of Channel 4, it was confirmed this week that Steven Moffat would be writing a drama for them called Number10, based on a certain famous British house that's due to start filming soon. Casting announcements will be imminent.

What of Chris Chibnall though? He's got upcoming Agatha Christie adaptation, The Seven Dials Mystery for Netflix and an ITV adaptation of his book, Death At The White Hart.

Doctor Who fans, we're in for a long wait for some proper answers regarding the show's future.

My Review of Stonewall (2015)

 

Written by Jon Robin Baitz

Directed by Roland Emmerich 

Bob Kohler (to Danny): "Every guy has to get over falling in love with someone who can't love him back."

It's coming up to the tenth anniversary of this particular movie. It's a movie that has such a bad reputation and after watching it for the first time, it's more than justified. Yikes.

I get that history pieces can often play around with the truth but when you have a movie that so shamelessly distorted it like this one, it's not hard to see why it's so loathed. This movie literally chose to whitewash a vital part of gay history.

With this movie, a lot of the focus was on a young white man named Danny Winters (Jeremy Irvine). Coming from a small town, he was an outcast. A sexual liaison with football star, Joe (Karl Glusman) saw him at odds with his father (David Cubitt) with his mother (Andrea Frankle) and sister (Joey King) bring unable to help him.

Anyways Danny headed to New York and while his college dreams were dying, it didn't take long for him to find a gay community to befriend. The community did have a diverse enough group with Ray (Jonny Beauchamp), Little Orphan Annie (Caleb Landry Jones), Queen Ong (Vladimir Alexis) and Quiet Paul (Ben Sullivan) and of course, Marsha P. Johnson (Otoja Abit) herself.

Danny stood out for being white and not into drag or genderfluid. However he did get to first hand witness the abuse that his new family had to experience underneath the cops. It also didn't help that Stonewall bar owner, Ed Murphy (Ron Perlman) was running a prostitutiion ring or that older boyfriend Trevor (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) was an ineffectual activist. Oh and then Danny had his own white privilege to deal with.

Where this movie fell apart was universally horrible creative decision to have Danny be the instigator of the Stonewall Riots by throwing the first brick and yelling "Gay Power". It's a genuinely embarrassing scene, right down from acting and directing that it soured what was already a bad movie.

If this movie had stuck to being a coming of age story where Danny befriended a queer community and got closure with his family and Joe, it would've been passable. It's inclusion of the riots and rewriting of history completed annihilated any good will that could've been bestowed on it.

- Roland Emmerich hired Jon Robin Baitz after seeing his play, Other Desert Cities to write the script for this.

- The epilogue did provide updates for Marsha P. Johnson, Bob Kohler, Seymour Pine, Ed Murphy, Frank Kameny and the Mattachine Society.

- Standout music: Stingray Music I Say A Little Prayer.

- Chronology: 1960s Indiana and New York for this movie. The riots took place in 1969.

Stonewall is a genuine embarrassment of a movie. I try to be fair with reviews but I cannot in good conscience give this anything other than a negative review. The fact the talent involved knew better but doubled down on the justified criticism only made it worse.

Rating: 4 out of 10

My Review of Benediction (2021)

 

Written And Directed by Terence Davies

Siegfried Sassoon: "Pain is not the only terror. There are many more."

Dr. Rivers: "Can you name them?"

Siegfried Sassoon: "If I could name them, they would cease to be terrors."

As the summer concludes and there's still some Pride events happening, there's a few more LGBT themed movies I wanted to get in before the month came to an end. This was one of them of course.

Focusing on British poet and World War I combat veteran, Siegfried Sassoon, this movie split it's time between the younger and older versions of Sassoon as played by Jack Lowden and Peter Capaldi respectively. Basically, twice the great acting.

Focusing on the younger version first, Sassoon was committed to a hospital having suffered trauma from his involvement in World War I. Being vocally opposed to the war's continuation also put something of a target on his back as well.

During the younger years, three of Siegfried's most significant relationships are put into focus. There's his romance with actor and musician, Ivor Novello (Jeremy Irvine). It's not a relationship that brought out the best in either man, but at least we're treated to one sex scene between the two. I'll say that Jeremy Irvine camped it up quite a bit with his portrayal of Novello.

Then there's the relationship with socialite Stephen Tennant (Calam Lynch). Lynch himself also camped it up playing Tennant but there's a delightful back and forth with the pairing that made their scenes a delight to watch. However, there's also no getting away from the fact that both Siegfried and Stephen screwed each other over.

Then Siegfried did that thing that a lot of gay men did at the time - he married a woman named Hester Gatty (Kate Phillips) and had a son with her. This was after scoffing over another gay man for doing similar earlier into the movie. On the other hand, Hester was well aware of Siegfried's sexuality but chose to marry him anyways.

There's not as much focus on his older self but with the screen time given to him, Peter Capaldi did a great job talking about Siegfried's resentment and regrets. There's some nice performances as well from Gemma Jones and Anton Lesser as the older versions of Hester and Stephen respectively. Not to mention a rather bittersweet final scene between Siegfriens and his son, George (Richard Goulding).

- Other actors who appear in this movie include Simon Russell Beale, Ben Daniels, Julian Sands, Matthew Tennyson, Tom Blyth and Harry Lawtey. Some get more scenes than others.

- The movie spaces out the references to some of Sassoon's most known work in between WW1 clips.

- Siegfried mentioned not being a fan of The Beatles. He's pretty critical about music in general.

- Chronology: World War I and 1920s and 1950s England.

Benediction was a rather nice movie that didn't overstay it's welcome. The split narrative worked and there's equally compelling performances from Jack Lowden and Peter Capaldi as Sassoon in the different stages of his life.

Rating: 8 out of 10 

My Review of Opus (2025)

 

Written And Directed by Mark Anthony Green

Moretti: "The back row is asleep but the front row is ready."

Sometimes you watch a movie because the premise is so batshit crazy that you think it's going to be right up your alley. Add some incredibly talented actors and you think you're on to a winner. Then you watch the movie itself and reality kicked in.

That's the sentiment for this off-kilter writer/director from former GQ Editor and journalist, Mark Anthony Green.. On paper, this was a great idea for an elevated horror. On screen, it completely fell apart.

The movie revolved around a reclusive 90s popstar named Alfred Moretti (John Malkovich). After decades of obscurity, he decided to release some new music. He also had a compound in Utah and invited a select few for a listening party.

The unlucky few turned out to be young journalist Ariel Ecton (Ayo Edibri), her editor Stan Sullivan (Murray Bartlett), TV host Clara Armstrong (Juliette Lewis), influencer Emily Katz (Stephanie Suganami), radio shock jock Bill Lotto (Mark Sivertsen) and paparazza, Bianca Tyson (Melissa Chambers). A reasonably eclectic group, all of whom were going to get the story of a lifetime.

It turned out that in between Moretti giving a performance and a rather creepy puppet show, the compound was filled with fans called Levellists and each of the guest had a chaperone. Ariel in particular had Belle (Amber Midthunder). Oh and people started to die, one by one.

The closest to a protagonist in this movie was Ariel and she was the only one of the group that Moretti and his cult followers were unable to kill. The ending also took a turn as even prison and a telly all expose couldn't quell Moretti's influence.

- There's a voice over role for Rosario Dawson, a cool supporting role for Tony Hale and cameos from Lil Nas X and Lenny Kravitz.

- Moretti was served a blue lobster during the meal. Only one in every two million exist.

- Standout music: John Malkovich going into popstar mode with Dina, Simone, Tomorrow My Love and 35mm.

- Chronology: 2025 in that Utah compound.

Opus made for a frustrating experience. It's premise was so intriguing, it's well cast and there's a few interesting moments but it's largely flat and lifeless as a movie. A shame because I really wanted to like it.

Rating: 5 out of 10 

Opinion Piece: Why I Think The Batman Universe Should Fold Into The DCU

I was so tempted to NOT write this piece and I can already tell the title will have certain people adamantly disagree. I should tell because up until a few weeks ago, I was one of those people. It's funny how things can change, huh?

Below are a list of reasons behind my new stance. Agree, disagree. Just be civil about it either way.

Less Complications: The biggest reason behind my new stance might not be a selfless one but here it is. The less complications DC has moving forward as a cinematic franchise, the better. Whether certain people are willing to admit it or not, having two live action versions of Batman at the same time will both overstretch the general audience and have more infighting among DC fans. Both of these things should be avoided moving with this franchise.

Comic Book Movie Fatigue: Which, according to some fans on social media doesn't exist. Hate to burst your bubble but it flipping does exist and if the way the comic book movies have performed internationally hasn't proved that, then what will? Iconic as Batman is, do you really think international audiences who are showing less interest in the genre want to see two versions of the same character? Not anymore they don't. Robert Pattinson has already proved himself in the role. Another actor, talented as they are might could struggle to win over everyone else.

The Gunn/Reeves Dynamic: I think we can all agree that with James Gunn, regardless of how you feel about him, he's been pretty respectful of Matt Reeves and has even defended the latter when fans accused Reeves of being too slow with the script for The Batman - Part II. Are you seriously telling me that Gunn/Reeves couldn't work something out that benefits both of them as filmmakers and doesn't confuse fans/general audiences? 

The Brave And The Bold: Let's be honest, does anyone genuinely believe this movie will see the light of day? Or that Andy Muschietti will still direct it? Think very long and very hard before answering that question. It's been over two and a half years since this movie has been announced and not a single bit of tangible progress seems to have been made. The idea has always felt like a backup plan and the longer we don't get any progress with it, the less likely it'll happen.

Matt Reeves Other Involvement: Doesn't anyone else find it rather odd that Matt Reeves has become involved in other Batman related projects that are not a part of his Epic Crime Universe? There's his role on Amazon Prime animated show, Batman: Caped Crusader and he's going to be a producer on the upcoming Clayface movie, starring Tom Rhys Harries. Does Reeves really need to be involved in Batman related projects if they're not in the same continuity as his universe with Robert Pattinson? Think about it for a moment.

Not Shutting The Rumour Down: Another thing that's hard not to think about is James Gunn doing very little to properly shut down the idea of a merge. Things like officially casting an actor for the DCU Batman, confirming the writer and director for The Brave And The Bold and giving that movie a potential release date would help put this whole merger idea to bed. The longer that James Gunn avoids doing any of that, the more likely a merging feels. Prove me wrong, James. Prove me wrong.

Moving Forward: Looking at DC for the next while, we've got the second season of Peacemaker, which will be having some Multiverse hijinks, then there's the detective themed HBO show Lanterns as well as a space revenge story with Supergirl. That's before we get to a Superman (2025) follow up that's been confirmed and of course The Batman - Part II, both likely to be released in 2027. Superman and Batman movies in the same year feels right. Sequels too I might add.

David Zaslav: I think people are also forgetting there's a pecking order at play too. Matt Reeves is answerable to James Gunn and Peter Safran but Gunn/Safran are also answerable to David Zaslav. The latter has made it clear that he doesn't want multiple versions of Batman at once and has cancelled multiple DC projects over the years. It's also no coincidence that Wonder Woman has been sped up while things like The Authority are looking less likely to happen. Zaslav wants instant results and very likely could make Gunn/Reeves merge. I certainly wouldn't put it past him to do such a thing.

They Just Look Good Together: Seriously, they do. You put images of Robert Pattinson and David Corenswet together and it feels right. I could genuinely see their versions of Batman and Superman playing off each other so well. Robert Pattinson wouldn't need to appear in multiple DCU projects outside a potential third movie in his own universe and a World's Finest team up and maybe one Justice League event to see out the DCU. That would be it at most.

The DCU Batman Fancasts Suck: Seriously, they really do. No matter how much comic book movie social media tries to convince me of the likes of Jensen Ackles, Alan Ritchson or Brandon Sklenar to name the three most overused fancasts choices, the more I'm reminded those men and other mentioned names are either too old for the part, don't look/give Batman vibes, aren't strong enough actors compared to Robert Pattinson or are even compelling to watch. Why take the risk when you already have a well received live action Batman who could go easily toe to toe with David Corenswet's Superman? And if Deadpool can get around originating in it's own space before being brought into the MCU, why can't the same happen with The Batman and the DCU without compromising Matt Reeves vision or Robert Pattinson's availability? It can be done.

Those are my thoughts on the matter. Should a merge happen? In my opinion, yes and for the stated reasons above. Will it happen? Right now, I'd say it's odds are 50/50. Time will tell though. Thoughts anyone?

My Review of Weapons (2025)

 

Written And Directed by Zach Cregger 

Narrator: "This is a true story that happened in my town. So this one Wednesday is like a normal day for the whole school, but today was different. Every other class had all their kids, but Mrs. Gandy's room was totally empty. And do you know why? Because the night before, at 2:17 in the morning, every kid woke up, got out of bed, walked downstairs, and into the dark... and they never came back."

2025 might be a contender for horror movies and if Barbarian wasn't an impressive showcase of Zach Cregger's credentials, then Weapons really showed what he was capable of.

Focusing on the disappearance of seventeen children, this movie was broken in five segments. The first focused on schoolteacher Justine Gandy (Julia Garner). She bore the brunt of the community who blamed her for the missing kids and yeah, a jealous wife of a former lover to boot.

The second segment focused on Paul Morgan (Alden Ehrenreich). He's a cop that cheated on his wife, Donna (June Diane Raphael) with Justine while also getting into it with a local drug addict. As cops go, he's rather bad at his job and seemed to be no close to solving the case of the missing kids.

The third segment focused on drug addict, James (Austin Abrams). He's stealing to fund his habit, barely escaping Paul's wrath in the process, encountering a creepy woman. Then both Paul and James wound up in the house of the only kid not to go missing and things really took quite a turn.

The fourth character to be focused on was Principal Marcus Miller (Benedict Wong) and his husband, Terry (Clayton Farris). Thanks to the main antagonist, one of them died horribly and then the other attacked Justine and grieving parent Archer Graff (Josh Brolin). That person also received a very grisly death.

The last characters to be focused on were Alex Lilly (Cary Christopher) and Aunt Gladys (Amy Madigan). The former was the only student who didn't go missing and the latter wasn't really Alex's aunt. Nope, she was a creepy witch who needed the kids lifespan to sustain herself. 

If there's an award for the most creepy and hate worthy horror villain this year, it might be Gladys. She's genuinely horrifying in parts, delightfully funny and the level of carnage she caused was something. She also got one of the most satisfying deaths seen onscreen this year too.

- Sara Paxton popped up again as a parent of one of the missing kids. She's Zach Cregger's wife in real life.

- Originally, it was Pedro Pascal, Renate Reinsve, Brian Tyree Henry, Austin Abrams, Tom Burke, and June Diane Raphael were cast in the film. Only two of the cast members remained with this production.

- Standout music: George Harrison's Beware Of Darkness and MGMT's Under The Porch.

- Chronology: Maybrook, Pennsylvania. Wednesday at 2.17am, the kids went missing.

Weapons certainly proved that Zach Cregger does have the horror credentials to make name for himself. This was certainly an excellent character piece with a truly compelling antagonist with Gladys. 

Rating: 8 out of 10 

My Review of Barbarian (2022)

 

Written And Directed by Zach Cregger

Tess: "Why is it always the girls who get their hearts ripped out in these things?"

Keith: "Girls can rip. Trust me."

Ah, the joys of the Airbnb business. Well, I'd say joys but seeing as this happened to be a horror movie, the word "terror" would be closer to the mark. Yes, definitely terror.

You had Tess Marshall (Georgina Campbell). She had landed in Brightmoor, Detroit for a job interview and found herself having to share her Airbnb experience with a man named Keith (Bill Skarsgard). Naturally, she's suspicious of Keith.

To be fair, it's hard not to see why she wouldn't be as Keith could potentially be a serial killer underneath his unassuming manner. He's not by the way but in a neighbourhood that's in a state of urban decay, it didn't take Tess long to realise the place she was staying in had a lot wrong with it.

Notably the secret passage that both Tess and Keith discovered and a frightening figure named The Mother (Matthew Patrick Davis). The Mother killed Keith and took a rather maternal fondness to Tess, which was rather unsettling in itself.

The second half of this movie pivoted towards soon to be cancelled actor, AJ (Justin Long). Accused of raping a co-star, AJ was also revealed to be the owner of the Airbnb house and he was in for a shock when he discovered both The Mother and Tess while trying to fight for his survival.

There's a backstory in the second half provided for The Mother involving a man named Frank (Richard Brake) that implied a really grotesque history about the character. The Mother just wanted to be a mother. Tess and AJ just wanted to get away and had to work together. AJ betrayed Tess to save himself and got his just desserts. Tess had to be the one to end The Mother's reign of terror with the only option left to her.

- Zach Cregger, Sara Paxton and Kate Bosworth all have unseen/voice cameos in the movie.

- The non fiction book, The Gift Of Fear by Gavin de Becker somewhat inspired the events of this movie.

- Standout music: Benny Reid's Lonely At The Bar and The Ronettes Be My Baby.

- Chronology: 2022 in Brightmoor, Detroit as well as flashbacks to 1982.

I had watched this movie in preparation for another one I plan to see later today. Barbarian was an impressive movie with a well executed premise, a scary but sympathetic antagonist and a likeable lead in Tess. Worth watching.

Rating: 8 out of 10 

My Review of Freakier Friday (2025)

 

Written by Elyse Hollander And Jordan Weiss

Directed by Nisha Ganatra

Madame Jen (to Anna/Tess): "You two have walked in each other's path. You learned a lesson. A lesson that may serve you again."

Disney and their sequels. A few years ago, Hocus Pocus 2 premiered on Disney+ and an update of Haunted Mansion died a quick death in theatres due to being unwisely released during the summer of Barbenheimer.

Now we've got a sequel to 2003 hit, Freaky Friday and it proved that past mistakes can be repeated and there's actually a solid way of further expanding on the body swapping premise. Why do it with two characters when you can have four characters swap bodies?

Once again, mother and daughter duo, Tess (Jamie Lee Curtis) and Anna Coleman (Lindsay Lohan) are the heart of this switcheroo but this time there's also Anna's tomboyish daughter, Harper (Julia Butters) and soon to be stepdaughter, Lily (Sophia Hammons).

With this movie, it's a fortune teller named Madame Jen (Vanessa Bayer) and the swaps are funnier. This time, both Anna and Harper swap bodies while Tess and Lily also swap bodies. As usual, both groups either dress up or down, try to improve the others while indulging in some sabotage.

In particular, both Harper and Lily are determined for Anna and Eric Reyes (Manny Jacinto) not to get married. There's an immigration interview they attempt to botch and then there's also the return of Anna's ex boyfriend Jake (Chad Michael Murray) but over twenty years, he's more interested in Tess than Anna.

I mean a lot of the same beats are revisited here from the first movie. Anna and Eric's engagement briefly got cancelled, there's a musical moment with the return of Pink Slip and Anna's client, Ella (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan), lessons are learned, bodies restored, family bonds are strengthened and a wedding took place.

- Other returning characters included Harry Coleman, Mr Bates, Pei Pei and Ryan Volvo. All of them played by the same actors.

- Elaine Hendrix also had a small role in this movie, so that was a nice mini reunion for The Parent Trap.

- Standout music: Chapel Roan's HOTTOGO, Spice Girl's Spice Up Your Life and Pink Slip's Take Me Away.

- Chronology: 2025 California. Both Eric and Lily were from London.

And just like that .... Freakier Friday actually worked great as a sequel. Yes, it replayed certain things but there was fun in seeing it happen again with Jamie Lee Curtis, Lindsay Lohan, Julia Butters and Sophia Hammons on great form. I really enjoyed this one.

Rating: 8 out of 10 

My Review of Freaky Friday (2003)

 

Written by Heather Hach And Leslie Dixon

Directed by Mark Waters

Anna: "I'm old!"

Tess: "I beg your pardon!"

Anna: "Oh, I'm like the Cryptkeeper!"

With the sequel currently in theatres, it was time to go back and rewatch the original. It's been a long while but I can say that it definitely holds up.

Back in 2003, Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan were in interesting places in their careers. Here, they're a mother and daughter duo - psychologist Tess Coleman and rebellious teen wannabe musician Anna.

Both Tess and Anna would drive each other to distraction with Anna also not being particularly pleased that her mother was getting married to Ryan Volvo (Mark Harmon). Throw in a bratty younger brother, Harry (Ryan Malgarini) and a dotty grandfather, Alan (Harold Gould) and Anna was in bigger rebellion mode.

A trip out in a family restaurant and a refusal to be permitted to attend a music contest for her band, Pink Slip and Anna became even more at odds with Tess. Throw in some fortune cookies, courtesy of Pei Pei's mother (Lucille Soong) and soon enough, both Anna and Tess have swapped bodies. 

The body swap was where the movie had its most fun. Yes, both Tess and Anna freaked out but it didn't long for one to dress up as the other dressed down. It also didn't take long for both of them to sabotage/improve each others lives while Anna's crush on Jake (Chad Michael Murray) took a rather humourous turn.

The rest of the movie hinged on both Anna and Tess having to learn a lesson about the other and while it took them going through a wedding rehearsal and Pink Slip's performance at the Wango Tango, I did love how they eventually regained their bodies. By the end of this movie, both Tess and Anna definitely had a better appreciation for each other.

- Other characters include Anna's bandmates, Maddie (Christina Viddal) and Peg (Harley Hudson), restaurant manager, Pei Pei (Rosalind Chao), teacher Mr Bates (Steve Tobolowsly) and Tess's patient, Evan (Willie Carson).

- This is the fifth movie in the franchise, following a loose trilogy and a standalone movie.

- Standout music: Bowling For Soup's Baby One More Time and Pink Slip's Take Me Away.

- Chronology: 2003 California. Anna's mentioned to be fifteen in the movie.

Freaky Friday is a lot of fun to be had. Both Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan did a wonderful job with the body swap hijinks between Tess and Anna. There's so many genuinely funny moments throughout.

Rating: 8 out of 10 

My Review of Doctor Sleep (2019)

 

Written And Directed by Mike Flanagan 

The Bartender: "I apologize mister Torrance. I don't know where everyone is, but it will pick up."

Danny: "Oh, I know where they are. And you're right... it will pick up."

The lengthy sequel. Both in terms of distance from The Shining and for the fact that it's at least ten minutes longer than said movie. And there's Mike Flanagan.

Has there ever been a writer/director who's been as big a fan of Stephen King as Mike Flanagan? I don't think there is. Now having him take on the sequel to that movie just as his horror credentials were at peak. Talk about good time.

The movie started with Danny Torrance (Roger Dale Floyd) still getting tipsy about his abilities from the recently killed Dick Hallorann (Carl Lumbly), which included a warning of how to trap ghosts in psychic boxes. Then there was an update on his mother, Wendy (Alex Essoe) before getting to the main plots of the movie.

Let's look at Danny. Falling into a King/Flanagan trope, he's become a promiscuous addict (Ewan McGregor) numbing his abilities before eventually signing himself up to rehab in order to sort himself out. He's also found himself placed having to mentor a young psychic named Abra Stone (Kyliegh Curran), who also posed a major threat to the baddies of this sequel.

Now the baddies themselves were a psychic vampiric cult of sorts named True Knot who fed off those with the shining abilities. Their figurehead was Rose the Hat/Rosie (Rebecca Ferguson). When I say she's the highlight of the movie, I mean she's the highlight of the movie. She might be one of the villains in a horror movie from the last decade. The performance she gave was magnetic throughout.

Throughout the film, there's a continuous battle of wills between both Rose and Abra as the pair kept underestimating one another. If anything, it's more their movie than it's actually Danny's but all three of them are somewhat dragged into the Overlook Hotel for a final battle and plenty of returning faces/nods to it's predecessor.

As protagonists, Danny and Avra's relationship did slightly mirror the one Danny had with Dick with the passing of the torch arguably being better handled. Both Ewan McGregor and Kyleigh Curran play off each other well with a connection between them that transcended the death of one of them. After the events of this movie, it did make sense to end things with that character.

- Aside from Carl Lumbly and Alex Essoe, other alumni of Mike Flanagan's that appeared included Violet McGraw, Jacob Tremblay, Robert Longstreet, Bruce Greenwood and Henry Thomas.

- Rebecca Ferguson is Swedish in real life but her Irish accent was really spot on. 

- Henry Thomas's bartender character was meant to be Jack Torrance and the right use of lighting/prosthetic did almost have him capture Jack Nicholson's likeness.

- Emily Alyn Linda and Zahn McClarnon had strong supporting roles as cult members Snakebite and Crow Daddy.

- Standout music: Rebecca Ferguson's My Wild Irish Rose.

- Chronology: 1980 in Florida and near the Overlook Hotel as well as some in 2011 before the main events in 2019 in New Hampshire.

As a sequel, I really didn't expect Doctor Sleep to be so good but it absolutely blew me away as a movie. A fantastic sequel with great performances from Ewan McGregor, Kyliegh Curran and Rebecca Ferguson - especially the latter. Easily one of Flanagan's best movies to boot as well. 

Rating: 8 out of 10 

My Review of The Shining (1980)

 

Written by Stanley Kubrick And Diane Johnson

Jack (to Wendy): "Here's Johnny!"

Well, I had to review this one at point, didn't I? One of the most iconic adaptations of a Stephen King work and one of the most iconic movies in Stanley Kubrick's filmography. Has it held up after all these years? You bet it has.

In this movie, you've got Jack (Jack Nicholson) and Wendy Torrance (Shelley Duvall). They're a couple whose marriage is on the rocks. Jacks also a struggling writer with resentment towards Wendy and their son, Danny (Danny Lloyd) and that resentment boiled throughout the movie.

Being stuck in the Overlook Hotel during a snowstorm in the winter where Jack took a caretaker position also wasn't the best of ideas. Jack's hostility to Wendy intensified and turned violent as he succumbed to madness.

Then there was Danny. He had a gift that was referred to as a "shining". It's a psychic gift of sorts that Danny got a bit of guidance from by the mysterious Dick Hallorann (Scatman Crothers). Halloran shared the same gift as Danny.

As the movie progressed, there was a lot of weird goings on in the Overlook Hotel. There's creepy twin girls (Lisa and Louise Burns), a woman in a bath (Lia Bedlam) and old woman (Billie Gibson) to name a few and things get far more messed up the more Jack descended into madness and Danny became aware of his own powers.

It felt like it didn't take a lot for Jack to completely snap and try to murder both Wendy and Danny. Lloyd (Joe Turkel) did let him out of the freezer and had it not been for Halloran's intervention, Jack would've killed both Wendy and Danny before the final shot hinted at a surprise outcome. 

- Room 237 was a room that Danny was told not to look into but he did. Redrum was mentioned a lot and that cascade of blood was an iconic moment.

- One of the few movies to have a Golden Raspberry rescinded due to the treatment that Shelley Duvall endured.

- Vivian Kubrick and Norman Gay had cameos appearances in the movie.

- There's a 1997 miniseries that's closer to the book and a sequel, Doctor Sleep that was released in 2019.

- Standout music: The Shining (Main Title) by Wendy Carlos and Rachel Elkind and Midnight, the Stars and You by Ray Noble.

- Chronology: The Overlook Hotel in the Colorado Rocky Mountains in 1980. Jack ended up in 1921.

I can't believe The Shining was a movie that was ever disliked. I know Stephen King had issues with this adaptation but it's one of the best with sublime performances from Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall. Incredible movie.

Rating: 9 out of 10 

Justice League Unlimited - Episodes 16-20 Reviews

In this bunch of episodes, we've got the ongoing problem of Cadmus, returning villains and hero clashes.

Episode 16: The Doomsday Sanction 

This batch of episodes really did factor Cadmus almost throughout with Amanda Waller at the forefront of almost everything. However, that didn't stop the likes of Milo from releasing Doomsday and for the latter to immediately go up against Superman in a rather brutal fashion. Superman's method of dealing with Doomsday however seemed to make Batman think that Cadmus might have a point being scared of the Justice League. 7/10

Episode 17: Task Force X

Yes, it's a Suicide Squad episode but that title was never going to make it on to a kids show, so Task Force X it is. Amanda Waller recruited Rick Flag who then recruited Deadshot, Captain Boomerang, Clock King and Plastique. Their mission was to break into the Watchtower and steal the Annihilator. It wasn't an easy task and it certainly put the Watchtower at maximum unease but Task Force X actually won this round. Well, more like Amanda Waller did. 7/10

Episode 18: The Balance

Was anyone looking for a follow up to Paradise Lost from the previous show? Even if you weren't, you've got one. One part of the episode had Tala rescue Felix Faust's soul from Tartarus and the latter trapping her in a mirror while taking over the Annihilator's body. Then you had Wonder Woman and Hawkgirl putting their differences to one side to venture into the Underworld in order to stop the chaos that Faust had bee causing. Throw in some roles for Hippolyta, Ares and the Demons Three and this was a delightful episode. 8/10

Episode 19: Double Date

Slightly breaking away from anything connected to Cadmus, how about a revenge thriller with two clashing superhero couples. Are you Team Green Arrow/Black Canary or are you Team Huntress/The Question? Gotta be honest, I did lean a bit more towards the latter pairing in this episode. Anyways, Huntress was determined to kill mob boss Steven Mandragora with The Question's help and it was up to Black Canary and Green Arrow to stop her. Huntress's reasons were pretty justified but it was the presence of Mandragora's son that made Huntress change her mind. 8/10

Episode 20: Clash 

They say never meet your heroes and sadly for Captain Marvel aka Shazam that sadly turned out to be true. Becoming the latest member of the Justice League should've been the best thing for him but his clashing with Superman over Lex Luthor ended up with him quitting the team. It might have been more interesting if Luthor had genuinely been redemptive but the episode revealed he manipulated events to strengthen his presidency bid and that he was working with Amanda Waller. 7/10

Next blog I'll tackle Hunter's Moon, Question Authority, Flashpoint, Panic In The Sky and Divided We Fall.

My Review of Barbarians (2021)

 

Written And Directed by Charles Dorfman

Adam (to Eva): "It's just you and me against the world and if anyone gets in our way, I'll just shoot them to death."

Went for a British horror flick last night out of boredom. I might not have picked the greatest offering in this one but at least it was one that didn't outstay it's welcome.

Throw in two couples - Adam (Iwan Rheon)/Eva (Catalina Sandino Moreno) and Lucas (Tom Cullen)/Chloe (Inès Spiridonov) and you've got an awkward get together for the birthday of Adam in a countryside house in the middle of nowhere.

Within minutes of this movie, there's a barely concealed mutual loathing between Adam and Lucas that they poorly try to disguise through laddish banter. Lucas's the face of a company named Gateway and Adam's the leaseholder of it. Oh and the property in question is near a sacred site to druids.

As the birthday hinjinks go about, there's tension between both couples, the reveal of a pregnancy and an affair but to get back to the horror side of things, how about some intruders? Well, the birthday party did need to be livened up.

Wearing some animal masks, our intruders - Dan (Connor Swindells), Neil (Tommy McDonnell) and John (Will Kemp) terrorise both couples, including trying to make Lucas film a confession over a past slight. Anyways, things get rather bloody and there's losses on both sides.

In fact the way the movie was panning out, it did look like both couples were going to die. One of them did survive and it's the one that was the more sympathetic of the two. It did give the movie a bit of a happy ending.

- The intruders wore bird masks and had very little dialogue. They were the sons of Alan Wakes, who was Lucas's former business partner.

- Lucas had given Adam an unspecified drug as a birthday present. Adam used it to get back at Lucas during the celebrations itself.

- While Neopaganism did factor into the movie, I'm surprised they didn't lean in harder with it.

- Chronology: Present day in the English countryside.

Barbarians in some ways was a nice exploration of two couples who might be friends but also didn't like each other a great deal. The first half is fairly mundane and it's up to the second half for things to get remotely interesting.

Rating: 5 out of 10 

My Review of Together (2025)

 

Written And Directed by Michael Shanks

Jamie (re Tim/Millie): "You know this could be the beginning of something wonderful."

I think an opportunity was missed here. I know Heart Eyes and Companion were released around Valentine's Day but this movie really could've created waves had it been released around the time. Missed opportunity.

Real life married couple Dave Franco and Alison Brie play a couple here named Tim and Millie. These two decide to trade the city life for a country one. Millie's gotten a school job and a friendly co-worker named Jamie (Damon Herriman). Tim's got musical aspirations that are a source of conflict for the couple.

Of course the real fun began when both Tim and Millie did some exploring around the area of their new digs and fell into a hole. It was one they stayed in overnight but the effects were immediate when their legs were briefly attached to each other. 

For the rest of the movie, we saw the consequences of that night in the hole. At first it was Tim accidentally eating Millie's hair in her sleep, visiting her at work and having the most painful bathroom sex but it didn't stop with Tim.

For all the aches he was suffering, Millie was also getting caught in the pull between them. There was a scene where she had to power saw herself and Tim apart that wasn't pleasant to watch. Oh and it turned out her new friend, Jamie went through something similar with his husband.

There's a reveal of symbols in a cursed cave that causes only certain couples to become fused to one another. Both Tim and Millie learned this separately before the conclusion of the movie drew to it's inevitable outcome. I'll never think of a certain song in the same way again.

- There's a potential lawsuit with this movie as Patrick Henry Phelan has a similar movie named Better Half.

- The movie opened with two dogs being merged together. Another couple named Simon and Keri also merged.

- Standout music: Spice Girls 2 Become 1 as well as The Turtles Happy Together.

- Chronology: Washington State, though it was filmed in Australia.

Together was certainly an odd film and maybe one you'd watch with a partner if you wanted to end your relationship. Or if you're single, you'll feel less bad about it after seeing this. Dave Franco and Alison Brie do deliver though.

Rating: 7 out of 10 

My Review of I Know What You Did Last Summer (2025)

 

Written by Sam Lansky And Jennifer Kaytin Robinson And Leah McKendrick

Directed by Jennifer Kaytin Robinson

Ava: "Fuck the 4th of July."

Julie: "Couldn't agree more."

Oh, the legacy sequel. I guess Halloween (2018) and Scream (2022) really set the bar of what to do with them. They're also more iconic franchises than this one.

A few weeks ago, I went back and watched the first two theatrical movies and the straight to DVD third instalment. This movie for obvious reasons only alluded to the theatrical releases in the franchise.

Our group seem to be a little older and things opened with the engagement of queen bee, Danica Richards (Madelyn Cline) and rich boyfriend, Teddy Spencer (Tyriq Withers). Add in former lovers, Ava Brucks (Chase Sui Wonders) and Milo Griffin (Jonah Hauer-King) as well as social outcast, Stevie Ward (Sarah Pidgeon) and you've got a new generation of protagonists.

Anyways, the five go on a drive, bump into another car that goes over the road and instead of going to the police, they decide to cover it up with some help from Teddy's father, Grant (Billy Campbell). Cut to a year later and there's consequences to be had for the fivesome.

First of all, Danica's new fiancée Wyatt (Joshua Orpin) was one of the first people to die at the hands of the Fisherman and it didn't take long for podcaster, Tyler Trevino (Gabbriette Bechtel) to also join with the body count. Anyways, wasn't this supposed to be a legacy sequel?

Well, it was and having original survivors Julie James (Jennifer Love Hewitt) and Ray Bronson (Freddie Prinze Jr) back in the mix did liven things up a bit. In the space of twenty six years, both Julie and Ray have split up and one of them had changed for the absolute worst. Can you guess which one?

Of course, it's Ray who decided to take up the mantle of the Fisherman along with the grief stricken Stevie. The former was pissed at the events of 1997 being forgotten and the latter's boyfriend was the victim at the start of the movie.

As someone who's had mixed feelings about a franchise killing off another long term male protagonist, I'm really disappointed with the way things planned out for Ray too. It definitely felt like character assassination and a misguided creative swing. Julie's screen time isn't much either and there's some hooks for the inevitable sequel that should be announced shortly.

- With the constant references to Helen Shivers, I'm genuinely impressed they got Sarah Michelle Gellar to reprise the role in a dream with Danica. 

- A credit scene had Julie track down Karla Wilson (Brandy Norwood) while this movie had only Ava, Danica and Stevie surviving.

- Ava turned out to be the first bisexual main character. Aside from being exes with Milo, she also hooked up with Tyler.

- Chronology: 2025 Southport for the duration of the film. Julie had left the place to be a professor.

I neither loved or hated this latest instalment of I Know What You Did Last Summer. It had it's moments and I did love that cameo appearance but overall, it's mostly an okay legacy sequel.

Rating: 6 out of 10 

My Review of Monster (2003)

 

Written And Directed by Patty Jenkins 

Aileen: "'All you need is love and to believe in yourself.' Nice idea. It doesn't exactly work out that way. But I guess it was better to hear a flat-out lie than to know the truth at thirteen."

Long before her acclaim and fall with a Wonder Woman duology, there was a time when people remembered Patty Jenkins as an award nominated and winning director. This was the movie that put her on the map.

Focusing on one of America's most famous serial killers, this movie also saw Charlize Theron physically transform herself to play former prostitute turned killer, Aileen Wuornos. This film would depict Wuornos's crime spree but more than that.

There's an opening narration which set the tone for Aileen's car crash of a life and an encounter with a young lesbian named Selby Wall (Christina Ricci) represented something that Aileen had never felt before - love and Aileen herself insisted she wasn't gay.

However the romance between Aileen and Selby somewhat made the two into outcasts. Selby found herself ostracised by her conservative father and her aunt, Donna (Annie Corley) while Aileen's attempts to go legit ended up being a non starter.

In real life, Aileen murdered at least seven men and her first victim was a john named Vincent Corey (Lee Tergesen). In this case, Aileen did murder him in self defence but following victims would be men who hadn't intended her harm, men she robbed or even one man who actually tried to help her.

Of course as the bodies began to pile up, Aileen was eventually caught, turned on by Selby and ultimately sentenced to death. We don't see the last bit but it's mentioned as the credits closed. 

- Actors who played other victims of Aileen were Pruitt Taylor Vince, Marco St. John, Marc Macauley, Scott Wilson and Tim Ware.

- Wuornos gave Jenkins access to letters to gain an insight into her life.

- Standout music: Duran Duran's All She Wants Is, Blondie's Tide Is High and Journey's Don't Stop Believing.

- Chronology: The movie covered from 1989 to 2002, Daytona Beach in Florida as well as Ohio.

Monster was an incredible directorial debut for Patty Jenkins and it's still holding up incredibly as a movie. Charlize Theron really went above and beyond for her portrayal of Aileen Wuornos and it's such a compelling performance.

Rating: 8 out of 10 

My Review of Byzantium (2012)

 

Written by Moira Buffini

Directed by Neil Jordan

Clara: "I'm never merciful and knowledge is a fatal thing."

I was in the mood for an Irish themed vampire flick of sorts and I stumbled upon this one. Gemma Arterton and Saoirse Ronan as a mother/daughter vampire duo. Why the hell not?

Yes, the movie opened with vampire matriarch Clara Webb killing one of her clients and telling daughter, Eleanor that they had to move again. The latter wasn't particularly pleased about that.

Anyways Clara and Eleanor moved to a coastal resort and both women get love interest. For Clara, that meant the generally shy and grieving Noel (Daniel Mays), who inherited the Byzantium Hotel. Clara didn't take long into turning it into a brothel with Noel passively letting her do what she wanted.

As for Eleanor, she went to school and forged a connection with leukemia patient, Frank (Caleb Landry Jones). She also attracted attention from her teachers, Morag (Maria Doyle Kennedy) and Kevin (Tom Hollander) by telling stories of her mother's past.

There's flashbacks to Clara being made into a vampire, which was where Brethren members, Savella (Uri Gavriel) and Darvill (Sam Riley) factored into things. They didn't approve of Clara being a vampire and they certainly didn't approve of Clara killing a Brethren member and having Eleanor made into a vampire.

The last act had Eleanor and Clara against each other before the Brethren brought back together. Then we had Clara show some growth from the movie by actually letting Eleanor live her own life while she reunited with Darvill.

- Neil Jordan who directed this one previously directed the more famous Interview With The Vampire.

- Although Clara and Eleanor are clearly vampires, they're referred to as soucriants. Johnny Lee Miller appeared as Captain Ruthven, who turned Clara.

- Standout music: Etta James Don't Cry Baby and Girls Love Shoes Flaunt.

- Chronology: 2010 in a coastal town. The movie was filmed in parts of Ireland and the UK. Clara and Eleanor were made into vampires over 200 years ago. Napoleonic Wars.

Byzantium was a delightful feminist take on the vampire genre with great performances from both Gemma Arterton and Saoirse Ronan respectively. It's also a rather underrated film from the acclaimed Neil Jordan.

Rating: 8 out of 10 

Justice League Unlimited - Episodes 11-15 Reviews

The first season ended with some time travelling hijinks and the second season began with a fight club and a trip to Apokolips.

Episode 11: Wake The Dead

This episode began with a bunch of kids playing around with magic in order to protect themselves from being bullied. After that, they're absent from a story that brought back the return of Solomon Grundy. It's also a story that was the building blocks for Hawkgirl getting a very public redemption, one that John Stewart was more than willing to back up as well. Solomon's reduced to a more brutish state than his last appearance. 7/10

Episode 12: The Once And Future Thing, Part One: Weird Western Tales 

The first of a two part finale. In the Watchtower, you had Batman, Wonder Woman and John Stewart somewhat talking to each other before Chronos popped up and then they all got dragged into the Wild West. This meant being paired with characters like Jonah Hex and Bat Lash to defeat Tobias Manning. Then the episode ended with Chronos getting his powers back and a future completely different than expected. 8/10

Episode 13: The Once And Future Thing, Part Two: Time, Warped 

Ending this first season, we've got Batman, Wonder Woman and John Stewart in a far future where Chronos has dominion over everything and the likes of the Jokerz and Ghoul as enforcers. Fortunately there's also Static Shock, Batman Beyond, Bruce Wayne and Warhawk to help out the trio. Warhawk in particular represented a huge spoiler for John. Chronos was at his most vindictive in this episode, making his comeuppance all the more satisfying to watch. 8/10

Episode 14: The Cat And The Canary

The second season got off to a modest start with Green Arrow and Black Canary enjoy some friendly sparring/flirting before Wildcat somewhat came between. Mainly because he was involved in some underground fight club run by Roulette. We got some fight scenes that were fun enough, though Green Arrow was nerfed a lot in the second half of the episode. 6/10

Episode 15: The Ties That Bind/Miracles Happen

With Darkseid indisposed, it turns out that Apokolips has become open to a power grab. Granny Goodness wants it but needs Kalibak but the latter's being held captive by Virman Vundabar. Granny then took Oberon prisoner so Mister Miracle and Barda along with The Flash will aid her cause. There's some nice flashbacks providing context to Mister Miracle's relationship with Granny Goodness before the latter got her just desserts. 7/10

Next blog I'll tackle The Doomsday Sanction, Task Force X, The Balance, Double Date and Clash.