My Review of Batman: Knightfall - Part 1: Knightfall (2026)

 

Written by Jeremy Adams

Directed by Jeff Wamester

Bane (to Batman): "You are always hiding from the people closest to you but you can't hide from destiny."

I gotta be honest, I'm actually surprised it took DC this long to have done an animated version of the classic Knightfall storyline. However, I'm not shocked that they've made this into a three part saga. It's wise of them to do such a thing.

Anyways, we open with a gang trafficking vulnerable people only for Jean Paul Valley/Azrael (Pablo Schrieber) to pop up and kill the majority of them while fighting Batman (Anson Mount). Then we had Jean Paul break down, being horrified by his powers and Batman taking him in to harness his powers for good.

Then there's our villain of the piece - Bane (Michael Mando). A good portion of the movie was dedicated to his origin story. We had the death of his mother (Adriana Isabel) and the sadistic prison warden (Bayardo de Murgula). The latter wouldn't live to regret his monstrous creation and his death was very much deserved.

Bane's a character that has had mixed results in both live action and animation. I can say that this might be one of the more successful takes on the character. You can sympathise with him as a child for the harsh treatment he was subjected to. You can also understand the envy he had towards the Wayne family and Gotham City and you can definitely be horrified by his actions upon arriving in Gotham.

Bane being both a towering force and an excellent strategic mind was where this first part was an undeniable. Freeing various baddies from Gotham to overwhelm both the GCPD and Batman was a success. Bane almost came close to killing the Tim Drake (Jack Griffo) version of Robin twice in this film. Even Alfred Pennyworth (Simon Temple man) wasn't safe from Bane.

The actual confrontation between Batman and Bane was absolutely brilliant. The way Bane deconstructed Batman's character and the sheer brutality of that back snap and public humiliation at the very end. This absolutely raised the bar for this animated adaptation. I really hope they can maintain this quality for the next two films.

- Villains we saw in this film were Scarecrow, Firefly, Mr Freeze (no voice actors), Riddler (David Dastamalchian), Ventriloquist/Scarface (Jeff Bennett), Mad Hatter (Jason Flemyng), Victor Zsasz (Andrew Morgado) and Catman (Luis Bermudez).

- Allies in this movie included Dr. Shonda Kinsolving (Toks Olagundoye), Commissioner Gordon (Bruce Boxleitner), Harvey Bullock (Mick Wingert) and Renee Montoya (Jessica Camacho). Dick Grayson (no voice actor) and Jason Todd (Max Mittelman) in flashbacks.

- Some of Jean Paul's backstory was referenced but not fully fleshed out. I really liked his scenes with Tim.

- Chronology: Unspecified timeline but we did see a lot of Bane's life in Santa Prisca before he appeared in Gotham.

The first part of this Knightfall saga might be one of the best adaptations of a DC animated movie. Easily one of the best uses of Bane as a character, an exhausted Batman, an inspired Robin/Azrael team up and a brilliant cliffhanger ending.

Rating: 8 out of 10 

DCU Blog - August 2026 Edition: MOT Completes Filming, TBII Films And Jimmy Olsen Goes To HBO Max

Well, this has certainly been a month for DC, hasn't it? There's filming news galore and much more.

Man Of Tomorrow (July 9th 2027) has completed filming. A trailer will likely surface in December.

The Deathstroke And Bane movie is getting closer to getting greenlit, according to ViewerAnon. Alan Ritchson was in talks for a role.

The Brave And The Bold is supposedly further along and might start filming next year. I'm a bit sceptical on that one tbh.

Is Adria Arjona playing Maxima or Wonder Woman? We're still none the wiser but I know which one I think it is.

The Batman Part II (February 18th 2028) has been filming in the UK for nearly two months. Some scenes have involved a wintry setting and one scene where Bruce Wayne (Robert Pattinson) was rescued by Alfred Pennyworth (Andy Serkis).

Cristin Milioti has confirmed that she won't be back for The Batman Part II in a recent interview.

An official trailer has been released for upcoming DC animated show, Get Jiro.

Paramount executives intend to keep both James Gunn and Peter Safran running DC Studios if the merger goes ahead.

The first episode of Lanterns has been viewed by over nine million across platforms. It's already a hit for HBO.

Dynamic Duo (June 30th 2028) has a reported $90 million budget.

Nathan Fillion will reprise his role of Guy Gardner in both Man Of Tomorrow and the Mister Miracle animated show. He'll also appear in Lanterns.

Entertainment Weekly have confirmed that both Waller and Paradise Lost are no longer a priority. Booster Gold may be revived with a new creative team.

Skyler Gisondo will reprise his role of Jimmy Olsen in upcoming HBO Max show, The People V. Gorilla Grodd. The Daily Planet staff actors will reprise their roles along with Jimmy Tatro, Arian Moayed, Mary Holland, Eduardo Franco, Dan Perrault and Andrew Leeds. Filming is about to start.

My Adventures With Superman has yet to be renewed for a fourth season but the producers seem confident it will be.

The WB-Paramount right now is also stalling some future DC projects. The sooner it's resolved, the better.

Supergirl has completed it's box office with $125.8 million, making it the lowest grossing DC movie since 2004's Catwoman.

And that's a wrap up for this month for DC news. 

My Review of Lanterns: "OutKast"

 

Written by Vanessa Baden Kelly 

Directed by Stephen Williams 

Lianna (to John): "This is when most candidates ask 'why me?'"

Ooh, this episode certainly has provoked discussion this morning. Certain comic book fans didn't love and others saw it as a much needed character piece with a pointed commentary on lived in black experiences. I would veer more into the latter way of thinking.

We knew from the opening episode that John was being trained to be a Green Lantern. His trainers being his parents and their methods were freaking extreme. John getting a rifle and a Green Lantern costume for his fifth birthday, walking a dangerous street at night when he's not even a teenager and the whole William Tell bit as well. His parents went too hard on the preparation for him.

If anything John's mother, Bernadette (Jasmine Cephas Jones) really pushed John. John was more artistically inclined than military focused but that didn't stop him joining the military, making some mistakes before the inevitable happened. He got the calling.

I liked that the episode was somewhat framed as an interview between John and Guardian Lianna (Laura Linney). Lianna got John to reveal some uncomfortable truths as the discussion of succeeding Hal Jordan factored into things. Hal was a source of frustration for the Stewart family and the Guardians themselves.

It was also Lianna who had put the idea of John becoming a Green Lantern into Bernadette's head. Lianna had tried to amend for John Sr being rejected as a potential Lantern. Giving the family a diamond didn't exactly help matters and it seemed Hal became the target of frustration while John was being primed for the role.

The first meeting between John and Hal in the former's childhood home was expertly done. Hal was sweet as pie to Bernadette and John Sr but made it clear to John that he had no intention of being replaced. I did like that John essentially just laughed it off. What else could he have done in that scenario?

- John's thing for birds was explained by Bernadette using them as a way to motivate him into training harder. John also hates cheeseburgers.

- John did get into an art school and that was where his interview ended up happening. His brothers are Marcus and Aaron.

- Hal's interfering with human affairs wasn't seen as a good thing with the Guardians. The Guardians also didn't understand race issues.

- The show is definitely being strategic with it's CGI. We don't see Lianna from the front when she shifted into her true form.

- Standout music: OutKast's Gasoline Dreams at the end of the episode.

- Chronology: Mostly 2016 but a lot of glimpses into John's past. 

OutKast proved to be a thought provoking origin story for John Stewart. I can sort of see why it might not appeal to everyone but I liked it. For the DCU, it's an interesting way to go with the character and it added another layer to the John and Hal relationship.

Rating: 8 out of 10 

My Review of The Love Witch (2016)

 

Written And Directed by Anna Biller

Richard: "Who are you? What are you doing to me?"

Elaine: "I'm the love witch! I'm your ultimate fantasy!"

Feminist witch themed movie, anyone? This was my second choice for a movie yesterday and it was a rather interesting experience. I've seen much acclaim for this movie over the years but this was a first time watch for me.

Set in the present day but paying tribute to 60s horror, you've got the titular witch herself. She's a woman named Elaine Parks (Samantha Robinson) and she's recently widowed. Actually, it's obvious from the start that she murdered her husband, Jerry (Stephen Wozniak). There's no ambiguity about that whatsoever.

Anyways, Elaine relocated to California and moved into a nice big house while working as an artist. She quickly befriended Trish Manning (Laura Waddle), a woman who had very different views on romance and was happily married to Richard (Robert Seeley). Trish wouldn't end the movie that way.

Elaine on the other hand was desperate to meet her mate and used love spells to attract both Richard and another guy named Wayne Peters (Jeffrey Vincent Parise). Richard and Wayne having big feelings for Elaine was a turn off and her rejection of both men (coupled with her not actually being good at casting love spells) saw both of them die rather horribly.

Richard's death in particular was somewhat of a beginning of the end for Elaine. Not only did she have to deal with Trish's wrath but her romance with Detective Griff Meadows (Gian Keys) ended up falling to pieces and she had actual feelings for him.

Elaine and Griff's romance was definitely the most intense part of the film but when he became wise to her, there was no going back. Even rescuing her from an angry mob didn't soften Griff and he ended up being brutally killed. The ending was definitely something to behold. 

- Elaine used a witch's bottle frequently in the movie. She even supplied them to a local store.

- There was some focus on Elaine's mentor, Barbara (Jennifer Ingrum) and the rather lecherous Gahan (Jared Sanford). We also saw a handfasting ritual and learned witches were barely tolerated.

- Standout music: Giselle DaMier's Fairy Lady.

- Chronology: Present day in Arcata, California.

The Love Witch (2016) definitely deserved it's acclaim. It's a beautiful nod to a bygone era of horror with a feminist twist that worked well. Samantha Robinson was incredible here.

Rating: 8 out of 10 

My Review of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie (1995)

 

Written by John Kamps And Arne Olsen

Directed by Bryan Spicer

Ivan Ooze: "Taking over the world is one thing. Finding good help to run it for you, that's the killer."

What can I say? I fancied a nostalgia trip and this was something that I've not watched in a long time. I forgot how unbelievably cheesy this movie was and nope, that's not a criticism.

I was obsessed with this show as a kid, specifically the first few seasons. I'm not necessarily sure when I dipped out of it but this era in particular still had two of my favourite characters as Rangers and I did like the others who replaced some of the original cast.

Let's look at the Rangers - there's Tommy Oliver/White Ranger (Jason David Frank), Billy Cranston/Blue Ranger (David Yost), Kimberly Hart/Pink Ranger (Amy Jo Johnson), Rocky DeSantos/Red Ranger (Steve Cardenas), Aisha Campbell/Yellow Ranger (Karan Ashley) and Adam Park/Black Ranger (Johnny Yong Bosch). Theyre a likable bunch of friends and current heroes of Angel Grove.

The movie opened with our heroes taking s skydive with bullies Bulk (Paul Schrier) and Skull (Jason Narvy). Needless to say, the latter two didn't stick the landing and ended up on a construction site. The same site that would attract show villains Rita Repulsa (Julia Cortez) and Lord Zedd (Mark Gitner).

However if you were expecting Rita and Zedd to be the main baddies of this one, you might be disappointed. Instead they're trapped in a snow globe when they foolishly released and underestimated Ivan Ooze (Paul Freeman). It didn't take much for Ivan to literally steal the show from those two or to get both Goldar (Kerry Casey) and Mordant (Jean Paul Bell) in line.

I'll give Ooze his dues. He moved very fast as a villain. He gave the Rangers a run for their money and he quickly neutralised both Alpha 5 (Peta-Marie Rixon) and Zordon (Nicholas Bell). This also meant cutting the Rangers off their power source as well.

There's a fun journey with the powerless rangers on Phaedos as they met with Dulcea (Gabrielle Fitzpatrick). During that time, they fought off bird creatures, got cool ninja costumes, were assigned new animals and got their powers back. Those scenes are the best within the movie itself.

Of course there was also returning to Earth and defeating Ivan Ooze. It's the usual fun, bombastic way that you'd have seen per episode and it's rather fitting defeat. There's also a nice subplot with a young boy named Fred (Jamie Croft) that added a further human element as his teaming up with Bulk and Skull also saved lives.

- The animals assigned were ape (Rocky), wolf (Billy), crane (Kimberly), frog (Adam), bear (Aisha) and falcon (Tommy). Dulcea turned into an owl at one point.

-  There's a mid credit where Rita and Zedd got out of their snow globe prison.

- Standout music: Red Hot Chilli Peppers Higher Ground.

- Chronology: Ivan Ooze was trapped for 6000 years. Not as long as Rita once was but still a rather long time.

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie, it's certainly as cheesy as I remember it to be and I wouldn't have it any other way. A fun nostalgia trip with a very fun and very purple themed baddie.

Rating: 7 out of 10 

My Review of The End Of Oak Street (2026)

 

Written And Directed by David Robert Mitchell

Greg: "Is that a fucking dinosaur?"

Denise: "It is."

Catching up with a few of the remaining summer blockbusters, I caught up with this one yesterday afternoon. Was this a rejected pitch for a one off Jurassic World film? It certainly felt like it.

Anne Hathaway has had an interesting 2026. There was Mother Mary, which ended up being hit and miss but she came back swinging with both The Devil Wears Prada 2 and The Odyssey. This movie however would fall back into the hit and miss category.

In this movie, she's a writer named Denise Platt and she's on the brink of divorcing her husband, Greg (Ewan McGregor). They've also got two children named Audrey (Maisy Stella) and Brian (Christian Convery) and a dog named Starbuck. They live on Oak Street. That's the basics of this particular family unit.

Add in an irate named Mel (P.J. Byrne), a local event and a missing dog and it was from then onwards that things actually got a bit weird in this movie. I should say prehistoric as dinosaurs suddenly started showing up and then there was some time travelling antics to boot.

I should admire this movie's ambition. The idea was good and when the Platt family weren't being separated and fighting for their lives from dinosaurs, Denise realised that she didn't want to get a divorce after all. There's a bit where it looked like Greg had been killed off until he wasn't.

Another point I'll give the movie would be that it didn't neatly try to resolve things. While Denise and Greg worked things out and the former got herself a book out of the events, Oak Street itself was still stuck between prehistoric times and wormholes. I guess it would suggest a follow up.

- The movie's title ended up being the title of Denise's book. Greg was delivering pizzas upon losing his job.

- Originally, this was called Flowervale Street before the title change.

- Standout music: Pat Benatar's Hit Me With Your Best Shot and Roxy Music's More Than This.

- Chronology: 1982 on Oak Street in Flowervale, Michigan. Then a time jump to two years later.

I'm really not sure about The End Of Oak Street. I kind of liked it but I also kind of didn't. It's a diverting summer blockbuster but it also felt like a parody in parts. I'll probably revisit it at some point and have a clearer view on it.

Rating: 6 out of 10 

My Review of The Crucible (1996)

 

Written by Arthur Miller

Directed by Nicholas Hytner 

John Proctor: "Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them you have hanged! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name!"

As we head into autumn, more horror themed film of old will crop up on this blog. Also, historical ones like this movie for example. 

It's been on my list of films to watch for a while. Well, it's a second viewing as I saw it over twenty years ago when I was younger. Anyways, let's take a trip to Salem, shall we?

There's a group of young girls, with the emphasis being on the chicken blood drinking Abigail Williams (Winona Ryder) and possible witch herself, Tituba (Charlayne Woodard). The dancing of the young girls would be spotted by Reverend Samuel Parris (Bruce Davison) that all hell would break loose.

His daughter Betty (Rachael Bella) became deathly ill and the town was quickly falling into the paranoia of witchcraft. In particular, Ann Putnam (Frances Conroy) assumed the worst and Tituba herself was subjected to harsh cruelty when her involvement in the opening scene was revealed.

Tituba got a small bit of focus before disappearing from the rest of the story. A huge emphasis was on landowner John Proctor (Daniel Day-Lewis) and his wife, Elizabeth (Joan Allen) being accused of witchcraft themselves. Their servant, Mary Warren (Karron Graves) had been one of the afflicted girls and the Proctor accusations stemmed from a vengeful Abigail.

Reverend Hale (Rob Campbell) seemed to be the only one on the Proctors side and there was a moment where it seemed like both John and Elizabeth might have been dealt with excommunication. The ending of this film depicted the hangings of John Proctor, Rebecca Nurse (Elizabeth Lawrence), and Martha Corey (Mary Pat Gleason), ending the movie on a harrowing note.

- Arthur Miller wrote the play in 1953 and adapted the screenplay for this film.

- Daniel Day-Lewis met his wife, Rebecca Miller while making this film.

- Standout music: Shakmah Winddrum's The Yanvalou Chant.

- Chronology: 1692, Salem in Massachusetts. 

The Crucible isn't an easy movie to get through. It's pretty tough in places, highlighting the depths of what paranoia can do to one small town and how quickly townspeople will turn on each other for a myriad of reasons. A great film, tackling this particular subject matter.

Rating: 8 out of 10 

My Review of Joyful Noise (2012)

 

Written And Directed by Todd Graff

G.G. (to Vi): "Who cares if I've had a few little nips and tucks? God didn't make plastic surgeons so they could starve!"

My initial thoughts upon deciding to watch this film last night was this: did I really need or want to watch a Christian Pitch Perfect? It wouldn't be my usual bag but I went with it nonetheless.

You've got a Southern town of Pacashau, Georgia. You've got two very different women who naturally clash and then there's the whole choir themselves. Anyways, back to the women.

Whoever decided to cast Dolly Parton and Queen Latifah as sparring partners deserves a raise. I'm stating the obvious here but they're excellent to watch on-screen. A delightful spiky chemistry between two very different women, but both of whom had their heart in the right place.

Dolly Parton played G.G Sparrow. She was the wife of the choir director, Bernard (Kris Kristofferson). Bernard died at the start of the movie and G.G soon found herself looking after her wayward grandson Randy Garritty (Jeremy Jordan). She also had to accept a new choir director.

This was where Queen Latifah came into things. She played the more prim and proper Vi Rose Hill. Vi had two teenage children named Olivia (Keke Palmer) and Walter (Dexter Darden). Both Olivia and Walter would get involved with Randy. Olivia romantically and Walter in a more social context. Vi also had an estranged husband named Marcus (Jesse L. Martin).

Anyways the main plot of this movie was the choir constantly losing, clashes between both Vi and G.G. before they managed to find some common ground. There's a slew of fun characters like Courtney B. Vance's apathetic Pastor Dale and choir choreographer, Earla Hughes (Angela Grovey). There's a certain plotline with her that's really funny and was resolved with a happy ending.

- Other actors who appeared include Shameik Moore, Chloe Bailey and Karen Peck.

- I'm surprised to learn that this was Dolly Parton's last film. She wrote songs for the film.

- Standout music: Not Enough, Man In The Mirror, I'm In Luv With A Stripper, Higher Medley and He's Everything.

- Chronology: 2010s, Pacashau in Georgia with a trip to Los Angeles.

Joyful Noise doesn't have the best of scripts but it's an engaging enough film with lively performances from both Dolly Parton and Queen Latifah. The music numbers aren't bad either.

Rating: 6 out of 10 

X-Men '97 - Episodes 16-19 Reviews

Yeah, we're down an episode compared to the first season. There's the return of certain characters and the much anticipated conclusion to the Apocalypse storyline.

Episode 16: Danger.exe

If you liked Polaris earlier in the season, then you'll like this episode. She basically traded X-Factor for the X-Men and helped the latter team against a sentient Danger Room. Storm got to be Headmistress while Professor X travelled back to Genosha with Cyclops, Jean Grey and Beast. Oh and Apocalypse decided to play dirty by resurrecting Gambit. 7/10

Episode 17: Strange Land, Savage Heart 

Keeping with the returns, this one saw Grayden Creed back and on trial by mutants themselves. This put Rogue and Nightcrawler in an awkward position of trying to help someone who doesn't deserve their help while at the same time, it was nice to see Colossus and Illyana. Creed provided some context into his hatred for Mystique and Sabretooth with a suitable comeuppance for him. 6/10

Episode 18: The Dead Man's Hand 

The return of Gambit. Well, a dead looking and possessed by Apocalypse version of the guy. This meant a trip to New Orleans, a team up of X-Men and X-Force and Gambit's past with Candra, which made her the X-Ternal. There's a moment where Cable lost his support from both Jubilee and Sunspot and a proposed alliance for X-Force and X-Factor. 6/10

Episode 19: Survival Of The Fittest 

The second season finale and it ended the second on a solid enough note. There's a super powered up Rogue in a bid to bring Gambit to his normal self after Cable's actions actually brought about Apocalypse rather than preventing. By the end of this episode, there's a return to a status quo, one character sacrifice for two others to be together. Oh and a credit sequence with Mystique. She's going be a bigger problem next season. 7/10

Season 2 of X-Men '97 is currently streaming on Disney+.

X-Men '97 - Episodes 11-15 Reviews

Season 2 recently wrapped up on Disney+ and while I don't think it was an impacting as the first season, of course I'm going to review it. Same format as the first season.

Episode 11: Days Of Future Past

The end of the first season saw our X-Men being scattered over time. The first episode saw Cyclops and Jean Grey being reunited with their son, Nathan. The teenage version, rather the grizzled Cable one. In 3960 AD with Forge, Wolverine, Morph and Storm as well. There's a group that are training Nathan to prevent En Sabah Nur from becoming Apocalypse. Mother Askani was also revealed to be responsible for transporting the group through time. 7/10

Episode 12: A Force To Be Reckoned With 

In the absence of the X-Men, how about X-Factor? Nope, I'm serious and they consist of Havok, Polaris, Multiple Man, Strong Guy, and Wolfsbane. Then there's our grizzled Cable recruiting both Jubilee and Sunspot for his own mission. Of course both teams clash, Jubilee got captured by X-Factor and Polaris helped her escape. 6/10

Episode 13: Rise Of Apocalypse Part 1

To start off this two part adventures, let's take a trip to 3000 B.C. where En Sabah Nur was on the cusp of becoming Apocalypse. It was up to Magneto, Professor X, Beast, Rogue and Nightcrawler to prevent such a thing. It would've worked had Nur not caught them using Rama-Tut's technology. That alone was enough for him to turn on them and kill Logos as well as revert to his survival of the fittest ideology. There's also the return of Bishop towards the end of this first part. 7/10

Episode 14: Rise Of Apocalypse Part 2 

What is it with this show and near mid season deaths? Last time it was Gambit and this time, it's Magneto who ended up getting a death scene in front of a helpless Professor X. It's a genuinely brutal moment, at the behest of a newly transformed Apocalypse himself. There's also a mid credit scene with Wolverine, Captain America and Black Widow. 8/10

Episode 15: Weapon X, Lies And DVDs

The dud of the season, except for that one scene where a disappointed Morph rightfully called Wolverine out for his actions during this episode. The plot revolved around squad Team X. The team included Sabretooth, Lady Deathstrike, Maverick and Garrison Kane, to find a Weapon X facility and assassinate Dr. Abraham Cornelius. Let's just say Logan caused more harm than good in this one. 5/10

Next blog I'll cover Danger.exe, Strange Land, Savage Heart, The Dead Man's Hand and Survival Of The Fittest.

My Review of Annie (1982)

 

Written by Carol Sobieski

Directed by John Huston

Miss Hannigan: "Why any kid would want to be an orphan is beyond me."

Over the next few months (but mostly in December), you can expect a slew of musical movies reviewed and due to real life events, I turned to watching this one last night.

I have watched this movie a ridiculous amount of times and it's one of those movies that I absolutely adore. You've got a red headed orphan named Annie (Aileen Quinn). She's living in the Hudson Street Orphanage in New York City and she wants to find her parents.

In the orphanage, she's got friends such as Molly (Toni Ann Gisondi), Pepper (Rosanne Sorrento), Tessie (Lara Berk), Kate (April Lerman), Duffy (Robin Ignico) and July (Lucie Stewart). They're pretty good friends and along with Annie, they often take great delight in terrorising proprietor, Miss Agatha Hannigan (Carol Burnett). Let's talk about Miss Hannigan.

The woman might not be cut out for looking after orphans but as a character, she's a delight from start to finish. Every scene with her was pure gold to watch. A barely functioning alcoholic with a disastrous nonexistent love life and clear resentment of children, she's also got a hell of a singing voice and apparently, there's lines that she had when it came to scamming billionaires.

The inclusion of Hannigan's criminal brother, Rooster (Tim Curry) and the latter's light fingered girlfriend Lily St. Regis (Bernadette Peters) brought about a moment of morality when Rooster was willing to kill Annie over a ripped check. Rooster's a delightfully dastardly villain that gave the second half of the movie a boost.

Getting back to Annie, she befriended a dog named Sandy and then a nice lady named Grace Farrell (Ann Reinking) decided to bring Annie to stay at billionaire Oliver Warbucks (Albert Finney) house. Over the movie, Daddy Warbucks went from being mildly annoyed by Annie's presence to wanting to adopt her to helping her try to find her parents. 

The tragedy being that Annie's parents were already dead and Rooster and Lily almost got away with pretending to be them in order to scam Warbucks. By the end of the movie, Annie had a brand new life and Miss Hannigan managed to avoid being punished for her part in nearly ruining Annie's new life.

- There's some nice supporting roles for Edward Hermann as Franklin D. Roosevelt, Lois de Banzie as Eleanor Roosevelt and Geoffrey Holder as Punjab.

- There's a sequel released in 1995 called Annie: A Royal Adventure with an entirely different cast.

- Annie's parents were killed in a fire when she was a baby. Warbucks mentioned coming from a poor background in Liverpool.

- Annie, Warbucks and Grace went to see Camille in a theatre with the Rockettes performing beforehand.

- Standout music: It's A Hard Knock Life, Dumb Dog, Tomorrow, Little Girls, Sign, You're Never Full Dressed Without A Smile and Finale Reprise of earlier songs.

- Chronology: 1933 New York City during the Great Depression.

Annie (1982) without a doubt is a musical adaptation I'd highly recommend to anyone. I love it so much. The musical numbers are sublime, the main story is brilliant and Miss Hannigan, terrible as she might be, I just think she's a neat character.

Rating: 9 out of 10 

My Review of Our Hero, Balthazar (2026)

 

Written by Oscar Boyson And Ricky Camilleri

Directed by Oscar Boyson

Solomon (to Balthazar): "You might be the first person I met who's weirder than me."

This movie could be filed under "wanted to like it, but didn't." I'd also file it under movies that I'm baffled critics actually. If I'm being honest, I came close to switching off about half an hour into it.

Obviously, I didn't. I powered through it but it wasn't a good time. I know it's a movie that was trying to cover a serious topic and managed to do it in one of the worst ways possible. It's almost offensive in how it dealt with the topic of a school shooting.

You've got a spoiled rich kid named Balthazar Malone (Jaaden Martell). He's a part of a school group that's trying to prevent school shootings but hes quickly revealed to be a disingenuous sociopath who exploits messed up online content to get a girl named Eleanor (Pippa Knowles) to like him.

This film was already on a losing streak because Balthazar's such an unlikable asshole of a character that I desperately wanted to spend less time with him. He took a sick delight in falsely accusing his life coach Anthony (Noah Centineo) of being a paedophile and complained about his mother, Nicole (Jennifer Ehle) missing his birthday.

The second half of the movie saw Balthazar going to extreme measures in order to stop disenfranchised loner, Solomon Jackson (Asa Butterfield) from actually shooting up a school. At no point did Balthazar's motives seem like they came from a sincere place but there's a decent time spent in exploring Balthazar's dynamic with Solomon and the latter's own relationship with his father, Beaver (Chris Bauer) and grandmother, Elaine (Becky Ann Baker).

The movie did live up to its title in the sense that Balthazar actually did succeed in stopping Solomon but it's mired by a cynical final scene. It's in that scene that Balthazar's true colours really emerged.

- Avan Jogia had a supporting role as a character named Supes. Beaver was a manosphere speaker.

- Balthazar went by Balty for most of the film. He also used his mother's voice to lure Solomon into meeting him.

- I'm not surprised this film got festival rejection, considering it's mishandling of it's subject matter.

- Chronology: Balthazar was from New York but traveled to Arkansas to get to Solomon.

Our Hero, Balthazar could've been a great film but it's let down by a bad lead performance, an unlikable protagonist and a haphazard handling of an important subject matter. It's probably one of the worst films I've watched this year.

Rating: 4 out of 10 

My Review of Steel Magnolias (1989)

 

Written by Robert Harling

Directed by Herbert Ross

Truvy (to Shelby): "Oh sweetheart don't. Please don't cry or I will too. I have a strict policy that nobody cries alone in my presence."

This film has been on a list of movies that I've wanted to watch for a while and following the unfortunate passing of the iconic Dolly Parton, it was finally time to see it. 

Set in the South and focusing on a tight group of women, this was a beautiful look into motherhood, friendships, rivalries and a community at large. Specifically with six women, all of whom drive the story in a compelling.

A large focus would be on mental health worker, M'Lynn Eatenten (Sally Field) and her daughter, Shelby (Julia Roberts). Shelby's marrying a lawyer named Jackson Latcherie (Dylan McDermott). She's also a nurse, suffers from Type 1 diabetes and as a result, there's complications with her having children.

It's something that did create conflict between M'Lynn and Shelby, especially when the latter ended up having a boy named Jack. Sadly, Shelby ended up dying a year after giving birth and it's a genuinely gutting moment throughout the whole film.

Along with this brilliant mother and daughter duo, there's also bubbly hairdresser Truvy Jones (Dolly Parton) and her trainee, Annelle Dupey (Daryl Hannah). Both are somewhat religious characters without the overtime piety. Anelle ended being a bit more devout as the movie went along and she ended up pregnant and married to Sammy DeSoto (Kevin J. O'Connor).

One of my favourite parts of this movie however was the rivalry between former town first lady Clairee Belcher (Olympia Dukakis) and town grouch Louisa Boudreaux (Shirley MacLaine). Their scenes together are absolutely hysterical to watch. I loved the sheer bitchiness of their scenes together. Clairee's a bit of a terrible friend but her and Louisa are absolute to watch.

- I have to shout out Tom Skerritt as M'Lynn's husband, Drum. His rivalry with Louisa and goading her dog was also very funny.

- Robert Harling wrote this based on his own sister's complications with Type 1 diabetes.

- Standout music: Ry Cooder's I Got Mine.

- Chronology: 1980s, Chinquapin Parish in northwestern Louisiana.

Yes, I feel a little bad that I waited so long to watch Steel Magnolias (1989). This movie was a delight from start to finish. Powerhouse performances from everyone involved. It's funny, it's touching and sad in places. A genuine masterpiece.

Rating: 9 out of 10