My Review of The Death And Life Of John F. Donovan (2018)

 

Written by Xavier Dolan And Jacob Tierney 

Directed by Xavier Dolan

Audrey: "This last letter suggests he was full of hope..."

Rupert: "Which is why I am sure you will understand that, for obvious reasons, that is the version that I chose to believe."

After having watching six movies in French and predominantly set in Canada, I was interested to see what Xavier Dolan would be like out of his comfort zone. This movie felt like it was an adaptation but it's actually an original idea, co-written with Heated Rivalry creator/executive producer Jacob Tierney.

Focusing on an interview with Times journalist Audrey Newhouse (Thandiwe Newton) and an actor turned author named Rupert Turner (Ben Schnetzer), this film would also focus on the titular John F. Donovan (Kit Harington). In particular, the relationship between John and Rupert, which certainly impacted both of them.

In his younger years, Rupert (Jacob Tremblay) was enamoured with John's role in a show called Hellsome High. It's an undeniably cheesy show and it made Rupert the source of ridicule from his more mean spirited classmates. I got my own secondary school flashbacks when I was obsessed with Buffy The Vampire Slayer and I remember reading a similar essay about the show itself, so a certain scene made me want the ground to swallow me up. I hadn't thought about that in a very long time.

Anyways, while Rupert had a sympathetic teacher in Miss Kureshi (Amara Karan), he had a more turbulent relationship with his mother, Sam (Natalie Portman). Sam was furious about Rupert's writing to John and her resentment over her acting dreams never taking off was something she projected onto Rupert. However both mother and son did make amends and Sam encouraged Rupert's acting aspirations.

Going back to John - although it did hurt Rupert's feelings, it's not hard to see why he chose to deny the correspondence between them. John was a closeted gay man that the press were constantly trying to out. His relationships with his wife Amy (Emily Hampshire), mother Grace (Susan Sarandon), agent Barbara (Kathy Bates) and lover Will (Chris Zylka) all suffered for it as did John's career.

It wasn't so shocking to learn that John's life went down the pan and that he died shortly after being fired from the show that made his career. It's tragic and there's a gorgeously written scene between John and an elderly man (Michael Gambon) that was easily the best part of the movie. There's a lot of great scenes in a partly uneven movie.

Audrey started the film being scornful over the idea of having to interview Rupert and the latter seemed to take a delight in challenging her snobbery. By the end of the movie, I got the impression that maybe a friendship between the two had developed. 

- Rupert did turn out to be gay. He even had a boyfriend played by Gijs Blom. The latter popped up briefly at the end.

- Jessica Chastain had a role as an antagonistic journalist but her scenes were cut.

- Standout music: Adele's Rolling In The Deep, Lifehouse's Hanging By A Moment and Green Day's Jesus Of Suburbia.

- Chronology: Set in 2017 in Prague. Flashbacks in mid 2000s England and America.

The Death And Life Of John F. Donovan isn't Xavier Dolan's strongest movie and there's a few scenes that I did find a little cringe (and one that gave me secondary school flashbacks). Saying that, there's strong performances throughout.

Rating: 7 out of 10 

My Review of Blue Film (2025)

 

Written And Directed by Elliot Tuttle

Aaron (to Hank): "Maybe I'm a pervert too but at least I'm not criminally horny."

I've been wanting to see this film for quite some time. I was aware it was a movie that had a very grim subject matter and I was curious to see how exactly the topic at hand would be handled.

This movie should also be a test in just how good people's media literacy skills are because if you're one of those who thinks that a certain character's actions are condoned, I don't know what to say to you. I do actually - go back and watch the film again.

The movie opened with a webcam guy named Aaron Eagle (Kieron Moore) doing a live show and taking delight in draining his paypigs. If you're aware of findom, let's just say this felt a little too well researched. It's accuracy on another level. Let's also just say that opening scene didn't feel like a parody or half assed.

Anyways, Aaron's story involved him making a house call for $50,000 to a mystery man (Reed Birney) wearing a balaclava. The mystery man was keen on getting to know Aaron, which annoyed the latter. Then there was the big reveal itself and that's where this movie began to take a darker turn.

The mystery man was a former teacher of Aaron's named, Hank Grant and getting to the grim subject matter itself, Hank had a history of inappropriate behaviour towards boys. There's repeated talk of Hank being sent to prison for attempting to assault a former classmate of Aaron's and Hank admitted that he had an attraction to a younger Aaron.

While Hank definitely tried to provide context for the way he was as well as expressing some awareness into his depravity, that didn't stop him from acting out one of his fantasies with Aaron. It's one of the most disturbing scenes in the entire film and one of several moments that also shook Aaron's own bravado.

There's frank discussions on Aaron's sexuality and whether or not being into findom empowered or weakened him. Aaron claimed it didn't weaken him while also opening up to Hank about a past lover he regretted losing. Hank also talked about renewing his faith in religion, which Aaron did seem sceptical about.

The morning after everything that transpired in the movie served a cold light on both men. Is someone like Hank capable of keeping himself in check? I doubt it. Did that night change Aaron for the better or for the worst? I think him singing in the shower was meant to show some sort of catharsis.

- Aaron's real name was Alex McConnell. He lied to Hank about his aunt being inappropriate towards him. Raphael was the guy he let slip away.

- Hank mentioned having his grandfather's name, being an abuse victim of his grandfather with his mother sacrificing him to protect Hank's siblings.

- Aaron smoked, drank, did pot but also labelled himself "California Sober". Hank had given up drinking but chugged beers when told to. Both men ate pizza.

- Hank gave Aaron the $50,000 as well as school photos of both himself and Aaron. Hank originally intended to record their encounter but changed his mind. He also talked about pederasts.

- Standout music: Isaac Eiger did a great score as well as that song Aaron was singing at the end in the shower.

- Chronology: Present day Los Angeles. Both Aaron and Hank were from Bedford. Hank now worked at the Stop N Save.

Blue Film (2025) easily will terrify more than any horror film you'll watch this year. It's easily one of the most unsettling movies I've ever watched and it's grim subject matter didn't make for easy viewing. Saying that, there needs be a conversation about Kieron Moore and Reed Birney because both men give the most compelling performances I've seen this year. They should be getting included into awards conversation but I do think the subject matter will likely derail that. This movie will definitely stay in your mind.

Rating: 8 out of 10 

My Review of Blue (1993)

 

Written And Directed by Derek Jarman

Derek Jarman: "Hell on Earth is a waiting room."

I'm hoping to watch all of Jarman's filmography before this year ends but for Pride, I thought I'd take a look into his final film. Well, it's more or a documentary and a rather unconventional one to boot.

Towards the end of his life, Derek Jarman had HIV and passed away from it. This film meets documentary was a Frank discussion of the very topic of HIV and AIDS. There's a bold description of Jarman losing his sight, which also explained the chosen format for this movie.

Blue wasn't just the title of the movie. It was a character within the film itself. It's a character that fights with other colours like yellow for example. It's both character and colour throughout the movie.

It's also a look into Jarman's life (naturally) as it depicted how he would talk about the war in Sarajevo with friends while coming to grips with being a gay man living with AIDS in 1990s London. There's talk of the amount of tablets he needed to take per day and the taste of them. It's very frank in it's handling of the subject matter. Unapologetically so.

A recurring factor in the film was Jarman's discussion of certain men - David. Howard. Graham. Terry. Paul. They're friends and former lovers and men who profoundly impacted Jarman, hence the fact that they're mentioned so frequently throughout proceedings.

- Derek Jarman narrated this film but there was also narration from Tilda Swinton, John Quentin and Nigel Terry.

- The movie's entirely a blue screen. At this point, Jarman was physically and visually impaired.

- Standout music: The use of Tibetan bells are frequent but effective.

- Chronology: 1990s London of course.

Blue (1993) made for a poignant final film from Derek Jarman. It's shorter than some of his previous efforts and the use of a blue screen throughout certainly had the desire effect. It's frank take on the director's ending days definitely struck a chord. 

Rating: 8 out of 10 

My Review of Lizzie (2018)

 

Written by Bryce Kass

Directed by Craig William Macneill

Lizzie: "Men don't have to know things, Bridget. Women do."

Later on this year, I intend to cover Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story but before I do such a thing, I thought I'd cover this movie. Funnily enough, two of Ryan Murphy's alumni are in this one.

First up would be Chloë Sevigny herself. She got to play Lizzie Borden herself and it's a take that's relatively sympathetic to the infamous axe murderer. Prior to the murders themselves, time was spent getting to know Lizzie as a person.

As a person, Lizzie was something of a social oddity. Her father, Andrew (Jamey Sheridan) saw her as nothing more than an embarrassment and the two of them had an openly combative relationship. Andrew didn't exactly endear himself by killing her pigeons and serving them as dinner either.

Lizzie's relationships with other family members weren't as great either. Lizzie might have been more cordial with her older sister, Emma (Kim Dickens) but she was openly hostile to stepmother, Abby (Fiona Shaw). There was also a rather venomous hatred between Lizzie and her uncle John Morse (Denis O'Hare). The latter in particular was rather misogynistic towards Lizzie.

As for the most complicated relationship of the piece - there was Lizzie's relationship with Irish maid Bridget Sullivan (Kristen Stewart). The movie did explore a romance between the two that eventually devolved in light of events. 

The movie depicted both Lizzie and Bridget being responsible for the deaths of Abby and Andrew. The latter had also been abusing Bridget, which did give her a motive to assist Lizzie. Of course both women got away with the crime before going their separate ways.

- The movie made it clear that Emma suspected Lizzie and Bridget of the crime but that she didn't want her sister punished. John was also considered a suspect.

- The photograph of Lizzie's mother, Sarah was actually a photo of the real life person. 

- Standout music: Alfredo Catalani's Ebben? Ne Andrò Lontana From 'La Wally', Act I.

- Chronology: Six months beforehand and then the murder itself on August 4th 1892. Lizzie died at the age of 66.

Lizzie (2018) turned out to be a decent portrayal of the infamous axe murderer. Solid script, direction and performances overall helped with this one.

Rating: 7 out of 10 

My Review of My Adventures With Superman: "Into The New World"

 

Written by Serena Wu

Directed by Jen Bennett 

Superman (to Bizarro): "Your choice will change the future in ways you and I can't imagine."

It's been two years since the second season finale and with the possibility that the show might not get a fourth season, this opening episode certainly kicked off a bit of a mission statement.

First of all, we've got a really lovely Core Four with Superman, Supergirl, Lois Lane and Jimmy Olsen. I mean we had that since last season but it's very apparent in this opening episode and it was a nice way of freshening up the show's dynamic. 

Throw in a nice Halloween subplot and the return of Sam Lane, the crux of this episode focused on Project Calliban. It brought our Core Four together to investigate and it also introduced us to Bizarro. 

As a character, Bizarro has been tackled a lot in recent years with each version going for the sympathetic route. This show will be no different in that regard with Superman and Bizarro even teaming up against other baddies during the big scuffle.

Now what about Lex Luthor? Last time he threw his lot in with Amanda Waller and Slade Wilson. During the final scene of this episode we were getting the origin of Cyborg Superman as Lex found a use for the badly wounded and barely alive Hank Henshaw.

- Supergirl got taunted by Brainiac over her new perspective and there was the use of Dr George Otto Binder who raised Brainiac with love.

- Both Jimmy and Kara dressed as characters from Challengers Of The Unknown. Clark really liked Halloween.

- Both Superman and Supergirl got costume upgraded and the opening credits were also upgraded.

- Chronology: A while since the events of the second season.

Into The New World was a good opening episode. The Core Four dynamic worked very well and I really liked the use of Bizarro and set up for Cyborg Superman.

Rating: 7 out of 10 

My Review of It's Only The End Of The World (2016)

Written And Directed by Xavier Dolan 

Martine (to Louis): "I don't understand you. But I love you. I love you. No one will take that away from me."

Six movies into this director and I've encountered one that didn't quite click as it should've. It's a bit of a shame but I guess it was inevitable. On paper, the idea was good. The execution just didn't come together as well as previous efforts have done.

Focusing on a playwright named Louis (Gaspard Ulliel), we got to see him return home to his family after twelve years and it's a very tension filled reunion. Along with the distance of time since last seeing them, Louis's also hiding the fact that he's got a terminal illness.

Louis's family included his mother, Martine (Nathalie Baye), younger sister Suzanne (Léa Seydoux) as well as older brother, Antoine (Vincent Cassel) and thd latter's wife, Catherine (Marion Cotillard). Louis got to have moments where he would have individual conversations with each of them.

Catherine made the effort to try and fill Louis in on her family life with Antoine but the latter was convinced that Louis had no interest in their lives. Throughout the entire, Antoine was completely hostile towards his younger brother.

There's fraught moments with Suzanne and Martine as Louis tried to reconcile with both of them. An entire family lunch started off well but descended into chaos. Wanting to see an old family home brought up a lot of bad feelings for everyone.

The last few moments are brutal and frustrating. Louis never came clean to his family about having a terminal illness and his last memory of them was Antoine trying to physically assault him. It's a very nihilistic ending to the movie that didn't sit well with me.

- The movie's based on the 1990 play by Jean-Luc Lagarce. It had a French only cast this time around. Louis had a lover named Pierre, who had died.

- Since the movie's release, both Gaspard Ulliel and Nathalie Baye have sadly passed away.

- Standout music: Camille's Home Is Where It Hurts.

- Chronology: Takes place known only as "Somewhere" but was filmed where Dolan films his movies in general.

It's Only The End Of The World had a great idea and I'll credit Xavier Dolan for trying to adapt a complex play. It's just his weakest film so far, in spite of a great lead performance from Gaspard Ulliel.

Rating: 6 out of 10 

My Review of Mommy (2014)

 

Written And Directed by Xavier Dolan 

Steve: "We still love each other, right?"

Die: "That's what we're best at, buddy."

I'm back on my Xavier Dolan catch up and oh look, it's another movie that delved into the theme of mother's and sons. After I Killed My Mother, what else could he possibly say on the matter?

If this movie was anything to go, apparently a lot. In this film you've got Diane "Die" Després (Anne Dorval), an advice columnist and widow with a volatile son named Steve (Antoine Olivier Pilon). Let's just say their whole relationship was dysfunctional as fuck to watch.

Steve's got a history of violent outbursts and Die's no better as she physically lashed out at him during one particularly heated confrontation early in the movie. In a lot of ways, it did feel like she was enabling her son's worst impulses.

Then there's the neighbour, Kyla (Suzanne Clément). She had a husband and daughter of her own but she lost a son and she ended up being pulled into Die and Steve's orbit. There's a moment in the movie where I thought her interactions with Steve were going to seriously cross a certain line but it didn't. I was a bit relieved about that.

As the movie went along, Kyla seemed to be like a second mother (or substitute father) for Steve. That was something that Die almost seemed to encourage given the time the three were all spending with one another. Then there was Steve's attempts to take his life during a trip to the supermarket.

The movie did a good job of showing Die running out of options in order to help her son. Having him committed was the only one she had left. There's something devastating about her being all alone with Steve incarcerated and Kyla opting to move to Toronto. As for the final scene with Steve, that was certainly a way to end things.

- S-14 allowed low income families to have loved ones placed in hospitals without regard for fundamental justice. Steve has ADHD and an attachment disorder.

- There's a rather aspect ratio used for this film that took a little getting used to.

- Standout music: Counting Crows Colorblind, Ludovico Einaudi's Experience and Lana Del Rey's Born To Die.

- Chronology: Set in 2015, depicting a fictional outcome of the Canadian federal election.

Mommy (2014) continued a popular theme in Xavier Dolan's work and arguably in a darker manner than his debut film. It's a very strong film with three very compelling central performances and no easy answers given to the volatile mother/son relationship at the heart of it.

Rating: 8 out of 10 

My Review of Thirteen Ghosts (2001)

 

Written by Neal Marshall Stevens And Richard D'Ovidio And Robb White

Directed by Steve Beck

Dennis: "Did I say there's a petting zoo downstairs? No! There are ghosts downstairs, Arthur!"

Yesterday I reviewed the much better 13 Ghosts (1960), so today it's the turn of the much inferior remake from 2001. Make no mistake, this one verged on being a right stinker.

Opening with the seeming death of ghost hunter Cyrus Kriticos (F. Murray Abraham) during a junkyard mission gone wrong. For Cyrus's assistant, Dennis Rafkin (Matthew Lillard), his mission went awry and most of his team were killed.

That was the opening scene. From that point onwards, there was a focus on Cyrus's nephew, Arthur (Tony Shalhoub), his children Kathy (Shannon Elizabeth) and Bobby (Alec Roberts) and the housekeeper, Maggie Bess (Rah Digga). Arthur's a widower and the loss was still pretty raw for him.

Inheriting his uncle's house from the lawyer, Ben Moss (JR Bourne) put him in a position where he'd be confronted by the exact number of ghosts as the movie's title. There's a machine that needed thirteen ghosts and it turned out that someone wasn't dead after all.

Uncle Cyrus and his partner, Kalina Oretzia (Embeth Davidtz) were determined to get a family sacrifice in order to activate the machine and access a powerful device and it almost worked as well. If only Arthur hadn't figured out how to be a better father and thus foiling Cyrus's great scheme.

Unlike the 1960 version where some of the characters were a bit more likable, this version had characters who were either bland or annoying or both. I can't think of a single I liked in this one at all.

- The ghosts varied from a First Born Son, a Torso, a Bound Woman, Withered Lover (Jean), an Angry Princess and a Torned Prince to name a few.

- James Gunn apparently did some uncredited rewrites on this film. It's definitely not his best work.

- Standout music: Tricky's Excess.

- Chronology: Arthur had been a widower for a while. Jean had died in a house fire.

This was a largely dire remake from the early 2000s. Thirteen Ghosts straight up just sucks when you compare it to the 1960 version. I almost regret bothering with this one. It's not worth your time.

Rating: 4 out of 10 

My Review of 13 Ghosts (1960)

 

Written by Robb White

Directed by William Castle 

Buck: "You really are a witch, aren't you?"

Elaine: "Ask me no questions, and I'll tell you no lies."

I opted for some 1960s horror last night and went for this one. It was something of an interesting choice. A family inherit a house and some of the former occupants still linger around the place. As they do.

The family in question are Cyrus Zorba (Donald Woods), his wife Hilda (Rosemary DeCamp) as well as their children Medea (Jo Morrow) and Buck aka Arthur (Charles Herbert). The house was bequeathed to them by Cyrus's deceased uncle, Dr. Plato Zorba and came with a maid named Elaine Zacharides (Margaret Hamilton).

For most of this movie, Buck assumed that Elaine was a witch and she did nothing to correct him on the matter. In fact, she went out of her way to confirm his assumptions. At the very least, she was involved in occult activities with Plato and lawyer Benjamin Rush (Martin Milner). Yup, this was a house full of ghosts.

The one who seemed the most perceptive to the ghosts was Buck himself and he took great delight in telling his parents about the ghosts in question. There's also a subplot involving missing money that Plato had, which had Benjamin working with Buck to try and find the money. There's also a rather half baked romantic subplot with Benjamin and Medea that added little to proceedings.

Anyways the ghosts themselves are a lively enough lot. There's thirteen of them as the title promised and it's up to Elaine to try and keep them in line. Of course, it was the deceitful Benjamin that became the thirteenth ghost after his treachery and attempts to kill Buck came about. 

As for the ghosts, I liked that the ending implied they weren't gone and that only Buck and Elaine were aware of that. Buck in particular seemed rather gleeful about the idea of them sticking around. The last scene with Elaine ended it on a suitable note.

- William Castle provided the opening and closing moments trying to convince audiences that ghosts were real. He convinced me.

- There's a 2001 remake of this movie that I intend to watch later this month.

- I liked the use of the blue and red filters at different points in the film to confirm the ghosts.

- Chronology: Set during a few days upon Cyrus and his family moving into that house.

Not the spookiest ghost story I've seen but 13 Ghosts certainly made for a strong supernatural horror fest. If William Castle can't convince you of the existence of ghosts, then no one will. 

Rating: 7 out of 10 

My Review of The Sheep Detectives (2026)

 

Written by Craig Mazin

Directed by Kyle Balda

Lily (to the flock): "Our shepherd was murdered! And we shall solve the crime!"

What would happen if you traded Babe for sheep and threw them into a Knives Out style adventure? You'd get this absolute delight of a movie and be happy for it.

Hugh Jackman has played many an interesting role in his career but we can add shepherd George Hardy to that list. He's a simple who had testy relationships with various people in his village but enjoyed nothing more than reading detective stories to his sheep. Then he's murdered and it's up to his flock to solve his murder

Yup, that's the premise of this movie. What about George's flock then? They're sort of led by Shetland sheep Lily (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) but there also Cloud (Regina Hall), Sebastian (Bryan Cranston), Sir Richfield (Patrick Stewart), Mopple (Chris O'Dowd), Zora (Bella Ramsay), twins Reggie and Ronnie (Brett Goldstein) and Wool Eyes (Rhys Darby). There was also young lambs such as Daisy (Aroop Shergill), Oliver (Jasper Ambrose) and Pickle (Ishi Agrawal). Not to mention a winter lamb (Tommy Birchall) that was the outside of the group.

What about the actual humans of the movie? Well, you have got a somewhat well meaning but bumbling local police officer named Tim Derry (Nicholas Braun). It was up to him to solve George's murder but he really needed assistance of the woolly kind and I mean he needed it a lot. It did take him a while to get a clue.

Looking at the suspects, it was kind of obvious that journalist Elliot Matthews (Nicholas Galitzine) would turn out to be the killer as well as George's long lost son. Even I knew that long lost daughter Rebecca Hampstead (Molly Gordon) would be innocent in spite of the evidence initially against her along with Lily not believing her at first. The winter lamb on the other hand believed in Rebecca's innocence from the get go.

The rest of the human characters took fun turns. Fellow shepherd Caleb Merrow (Tosin Cole) initially seemed like a nice guy but was in cahoots with local butcher Ham Gilyard (Conleith Hill). The Reverend Hillcoate (Kobna Holdbrook-Smith) had a guilty conscience but helped George for a price while standoffish innkeeper Beth Pennock (Hong Chau) harboured feelings for George he didn't reciprocate.

It's a good mix of of fun but flawed characters. All of whom did present as reasonable upon the reveal that George had sold a patent for curing sheep that was worth millions. Throw in a fun supporting role from Emma Thompson as George's lawyer, Lydia Harbottle and a good time was had here.

- The winter lamb was eventually named George by Lily. Lily was named after the human George's dead wife.

- Rebecca not only kept her father's land and sheep but she also bought Caleb's sheep as well. The Sheep believed they could turn into clouds.

- Standout music: The Proclaimers I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles).

- Chronology: Set in the English village of Denbrook. Rebecca was in America and Elliot had been in South Africa before they arrived in Denbrook.

I really enjoyed this one. The Sheep Detectives was so much fun with a great voice cast and a great human cast to boot. It's genuinely funny, it's genuinely good natured and sweet and while I figured out who the killer was early on, building to the reveal was expertly handled.

Rating: 8 out of 10 

Doctor Who - Christmas Cancelled + Show Tendered

This was not the blog post I wanted to be writing today but alas, here we are.

The moment has been kinda prepared for.

The BBC confirmed several important things today in relation to the show's future.

• Christmas special has been officially cancelled and there was no script in place. 
• Russell T. Davies and Bad Wolf Productions have exited the show.
• The show will be put out to tender with further details to be confirmed in due course.
• The animated show for CBBC will still be going ahead.

Where do I begin with this one? I hate to admit it, but I sort of saw it coming. The last few weeks were giving no progress on the Christmas special and RTD seemed reticent to talk about the show at all. I had hoped that maybe the special would be delayed until Easter 2027 but being cancelled, I'm not gonna lie - it's a genuine disappointment and the first time in very long time, it does feel like the show could be danger of not coming back for a long time. I'm not sure if RTD's Instagram post offered much reassurance either.

Over the last few years, Doctor Who has undeniably divided audiences with many creative choices. Whether it's things like bigeneration, the Timeless Child or the show's hit and miss handling of societal topics, for a good portion of the audience, the show has simply stopped being fun. I've liked some stuff in recent years but even I can't defend a lot of the more controversial choices that have negatively impacted the show and driven away casual audiences.

When the show comes back, it needs to strike a good balance between being educational but also entertaining and accessible to a wider audience. Everything is going to be key - a new streaming partner, a new show runner as well as casting and so on. Either the show will come back in a blaze of glory or it really will be the end for now.

I'll always talk about the show on here whenever I can. That's not gonna change. Allonsy.

My Review of Tip Toe: "Episode 5"

 

Written by Russell T. Davies

Directed by Peter Hoar 

Leo (to Stephanie): "I think something bigger is coming."

I was dreading watching this episode and for good reason. I knew it was the one where Leo was going to die and I knew that it was going to be Clive's fault and make no mistake here, it's 100% Clive's fault. Not Leo's and not Zee's as I've seen some online say.

Yes, it was a bad idea for Leo to step into Clive's house when tensions were still there and there were inebriated football hooligans in the mix. Zee's heart was in the right place but she shouldn't have pressured Leo to go into that house.

Again, the blame solely should be on Clive and those hooligans, including the absolutely deplorable Roddy. The latter outed George to everyone, outed Saul as a sex worker and even tried to humiliate Clive for the latter helping Regime. Roddy instigated everything and brought out the absolute worst in Clive.

Prior to Leo's death, there was a point exchange between him and Stephanie. The latter pointed out Leo's habit of treating others like they're idiots and she wasn't entirely wrong. Leo overestimated Clive and those hooligans and everything went to shit so badly.

I had to turn away when the actual murder took place itself. I've seen enough depictions like that in movies and television but this was certainly brutal to watch. The hate from Clive, Roddy and those lads. The horror in Leo's final moments. The devastation that Saul, Zee and Stephanie had. Even Marie, George and that neighbour's reaction as well. That moment floored me.

I will say that RTD's angrier political leanings were handled brilliantly with this show. He's not wrong about the growing sentiment of homophobia, transphobia and so on and even that final flashback with Leo and Stephanie reinforced what Melba has said in the first episode.

- Clive and Roddy got life sentences, the other lads got shorter sentences. Marie moved away with Saul and George.

- Saul eventually married and had three kids while George got hooked on drugs. Zee became a teacher and named herself Sarah.

- Curtis sold Spit & Polish, which became a pizzeria while Stephanie travelled and Melba was grief stricken by Leo's death.

- We didn't find out what happened to Mikey, Hanna and Judy and we didn't get to see their reactions to Leo's death.

- Standout music: M83's Solitude.

- Chronology: The day of Leo's death along with the flashback being set two years beforehand.

What an incredible finale. Absolutely devastating piece of television with utterly sublime performances from everyone involved. Give it all the awards.

Rating: 9 out of 10 

My Review of Tip Toe: "Episode 4"

 

Written by Russell T. Davies

Directed by Peter Hoar 

Leo (to Clive): "If I have to live next door to you, I am scared. If that's what you think of me, I am so scared. You ... You terrify me."

That overwhelming sense of dread I've been feeling with this show. Not helped with that opening scene with a terrified Leo, Stephanie and Zee/Flo trying to protect themselves from a bunch of football louts before thr inevitable happened.

Going back to recent events though, there was the issue of Clive being in Leo's house and wanting answers about both George and Saul but mainly the former. It took Clive almost an eternity to realise that Leo had done nothing inappropriate towards George and even then, Clive still had that trace of doubt in his mind.

I loved watching Leo challenge Clive's idiotic prejudices at every turn throughout the episode. I especially Leo berating Clive for making him and every gay man having to tip toe around straight men. Once again, there was moments where it felt like Clive could've maybe had his mind opened.

He listened to Leo's story about how gay men can't change back to being straight and the gay lads who took their own lives during COVID. Clive being a denier of that and HIV wasn't a shock to me but I loved Leo raking him over the coals for it. It felt like he was almost getting through to Clive.

Clive didn't blow up on George for being gay or Saul webcamming. He even went to Spit & Polish to try and understand the gay world. He even stepped up to defend Regime/Martin after the latter was attacked. Leo's many outbursts even seemed to get through to him. Then that one social media message likely set everything back.

It was risky of Zee/Flo to contact George the way she did but the upside was the latter getting to interact with queer people closer to his own age and getting a chance to be himself. George even got to help Zee in picking a name for herself. She chose Flo by the way. It's just too bad that Beryl sent that image when she did. That was such a misguided thing for her to do.

- I liked that Saul doesn't care that Mikey shamelessly flirts with him. It was kind of sweet that he invited Mikey to hang out with his friends.

- Both Judy and Stephanie warned Leo to move house. Leo didn't listen to them. We also met Stephanie's daughter.

- Leo talked about meeting Curtis when he was 44. I hated that Clive tried to use Curtis to make a point to Leo.

- Clive almost got off to one of Regime's videos before stopping himself. Marie spotted the word "Flo" on George's back.

- Standout music: Madison Beer's yes baby and Livin' Joy's Dreamer.

- Chronology: A day before the events of that scene and then the day itself.

This was one hell of a penultimate episode and I'm almost hesitant to watch the finale, knowing what's going to happen to Leo. Saying that, I got to see this one through.

Rating: 8 out of 10 

My Review of Tip Toe: "Episode 3"

 

Written by Russell T. Davies

Directed by Peter Hoar 

Clive (to police officers): "This isn't a murder, it's an execution."

Opening with a line as chilling as that certainly put Clive under a more intense spotlight. Leo died and Clive surrendered himself to the police while showing no remorse for his neighbour's death. This episode really was David Morrissey's from start to finish.

I went through various emotions watching Clive in this one. There was a flashback to his teenage years in a garage band showing that Clive had creative aspirations at one point in his life. Then the episode moved back into recent events.

It turned out that Clive bullied a former co-worker and made himself unemployable on a site. Clive's way of dealing with that was needlessly vindictive. That was one of a few things that made me dislike him throughout the episode.

Back in the first episode, we learned that Clive cheated on Marie with a woman named Patricia. This episode revealed that he never did when he almost cheated on Marie with a woman named Diane (Denise Welch). Diane seemed to share similar world views to Clive but ultimately she has the sense not to go there with him.

Clive and Marie's miserable state of limbo led to some great scenes in the episode but once things circled back to Clive and Leo catching George in Leo's house, we saw a rather ugly side to Marie. The way she spoke about Leo was genuinely sickening, even when George clarified that Leo did nothing to him. Marie was just as bad as Clive, maybe a tiny bit worse.

Things came to a head in the worst possible way. If ever there was a good case to delete your group chats, this episode demonstrated it. Not only did Clive find the texts between Leo and George (along with that voice note) but snooping on the Spit & Polish group chat, he's also aware of Saul's OnlyFans activities. That last scene between Leo and Clive left me with a sense of dread.

- I thought Stephanie might have been dead with Leo but Zee was comforting her at the start of the episode.

- I did find it daft that everyone assumed Leo called them "perverts" when he was right there. It took them a bit to realise the obvious.

- Mikey is cute but it was really stupid of him to post Saul's video to the group chat. Saul did have sex with a woman in one of his videos.

- Stephanie made some sensible points during her scenes with Leo, Melba, Zee, Mikey and Hanna. 

- Standout music: Buzzcocks Ever Fallen In Love.

- Chronology: 43 years in Clive's past and then picking up from the previous episode cliffhanger.

The third episode was certainly tense as fuck during those final ten minutes. I could feel the dread throughout with the more time Clive spent in Leo's house. This was definitely David Morrissey's episode and I had so many conflicting feelings for Clive.

Rating: 8 out of 10 

My Review of Scary Movie (2026)

 

Written by Marlon Wayans And Shawn Wayans And Keenen Ivory Wayans And Craig Wayans And Rick Alvarez

Directed by Michael Tiddes

Shorty: "We back!"

It's been thirteen years since the spectacular misfire that was Scary Movie 5 and twenty five years since the Wayans Brothwea had a hand in thr franchise they created. That's plenty of time to mine new material or recycle old jokes.

This franchise has never been politically correct and never will be. That often has been a mixed bag for the franchise as a whole. A few jokes here are funny enough. The majority of them however fail to stick the landing or feel a bit too try hard to be edgy in a way that doesn't work for 2026.

Anyways, the OGs - Cindy Campbell (Anna Faris), Brenda Meeks (Regina Hall), Shorty (Marlon Wayans) and Ray Wilkins (Shawn Wayans) are back. In unsurprising news, none of these characters have matured for the better.

Shorty's still weed obsessed but into cryptocurrency while Ray has been trying to literally pray the gay away. The latter led to a Sinners spoof. Cindy and Brenda have become mothers. Cindy had two daughters named Sara (Olivia Rose Keegan) and Tuesday (Savannah Lee Nassif). Brenda had twins named Brad (Gregg Wayans) and Dei (Sydney Park).

Throw in the likes of Jack (Cameron Scott Roberts), Val (Ruby Snowber) and Jess (Benny Zielke) and the groundwork for the movie would be to spoof Scream (2022) and Scream VI respectively. They were the obvious ones to do but let's add in a Ma version of Brenda and Halloween (2018) version of Cindy for shits and giggles as well.

Keeping with the returns both Ghostface/Officer Doofy (Dave Sheridan), Gail Hailstorm (Cheri Oteri) and Gregg (Lochlyn Munro) were also brought back. Three of them got killed off while one of them got The Substance (or the Stuff) and didn't live to enjoy the benefits of it. Oh and don't expect White Chicks 2 or do. Could go either way.

As for Act 3, yes it's a very biting commentary on the nature of succession and ultimately the rejection of it. It doesn't quite stick the landing and it's not as funny as it wanted to be either. So much for a new Core Four, huh?

- Other spoofs included Kpop Demon Hunters, Nosferatu (2024), Longlegs, Weapons, Smile, etc to name a few.

- I did find the Wayans getting their anger out on being removed from their own franchise rather pointed. Teyana Taylor and Carmen Electra popped up in the opening scene. There's a lot of cameos from previous movies in this one.

- Standout music: Lizzo and Sexy Redd's Messy and Redd's Hoes.

- Chronology: Over twenty years since we've last seen Cindy, Brenda, Shorty and Ray.

Scary Movie (2026) on one hand kind of proved to me that perhaps some things should be left in the past. On the other hand, the box office numbers have already guaranteed we're getting a seventh entry. It needed a lot more of Cindy and Brenda and a less of Shorty. 

Rating: 5 out of 10 

My Review of Masters Of The Universe (2026)

 

Written by Chris Butler And Aaron Nee And Adam Nee And David Callaham And Alex Litvak And Michael Finch

Directed by Travis Knight

Adam/He-Man: "By the power of Grayskull, I have the power."

Like a lot of people born in the 1980s, I did grow up with He-Man as a kid and when this movie was announced, I made the effort to go back and watch the 1987 movie, which wss something of a mixed bag. Would it be controversial to say this 2026 version might be better?

I'm not going to pretend that this will be the best blockbuster you'll see this summer but it's become in a long line of having an unfair campaign waged against it. At the bare minimum, it's a pretty serviceable fare that respected and had fun with the source material in equal measures.

Our protagonist Adam Glenn (Nicholas Galitzine) has lived an ordinary but not content life on Earth. He's also aware of the fact that he's a prince from Eternia and he's pretty assertive in trying to get back there. He doesn't care too much that a potential date, a romcom obsessed flatmate or his uptight boss disbelieve his stories. I liked that aspect of Adam.

I also liked that the movie didn't waste any time in justifying his beliefs when he actually managed to track down his misplaced sword. Adam also quickly reunited with former childhood friend and love interest, Teela (Camila Mendes) and her adopted father, Man-At-Arms (Idris Elba). The latter embodied the alcoholic warrior/comic relief trope.

The movie was smart to keep the majority of screen time in Eternia. It started with the Sorceress (Morena Baccarin) sending Adam to Earth with the sword while his parents King Randor (James Purefoy) and Marlena Glenn (Charlotte Riley) were killed by villain of the piece, Skeletor (Jared Leto). The next thing I'm about to say shocked even me but here goes.

For a while Jared Leto has been a low point in any major IP that's cast him but he's surprisingly decent as Skeletor. In fact, he's almost enjoyable in certain scenes he had with both Adam and right hand woman, Evil-Lyn (Alison Brie). The latter herself also being a rather competent secondary villain and foil for Teela.

The second half of the movie might have overplayed a joke at the expense of Fisto (Johannes Haukur Johannesson) but the immature part of me did laugh at said joke. There was also a delight in seeing characters like Trap Jaw (Sam C. Wilson), Ram-Man (Jon Xhue Zhang) as well as Skeletor's allies also in the mix.

I also liked the fact that Adam was willing to extend some mercy towards Skeletor, which the latter rejected and paid the price for. The remaining few minutes of the movie set up things for a sequel that might not happen and that's a shame.

- The credit scenes saw Evil-Lyn grabbing Skeletor's skull as well as the introduction of Adam's half-sister, Adora/She-Ra (Lauren Saliu).

- I was hoping and expecting a cameo from Dolph Lundgren and I wasn't disappointed when he popped up for one scene.

- On top of some adult jokes that will likely go over younger audiences, Evil-Lyn seemed to be thirsting for both Adam and Teela in this movie.

- There's some voice talent from the likes of Kristen Wiig, Christopher Ragland and Gary Martin to name a few.

- Standout music: The Darkness Masters Of The Universe, Queen's Princes Of The Universe, 4 Non Blondes What's Up?, The Cure's Boys Don't Cry and The Killers The Man.

- Chronology: Adam was in Oklahoma City for fifteen years before Teela came to get him. 

Masters Of The Universe (2026) does suffer from being a dated IP that modern audiences clearly have no interest in and being released during a ridiculously competitive summer. As a movie, it's an entertaining blockbuster with a good lead performance from Nicholas Galitzine, some decent actions scenes, a surprisingly effective villain and funny moments. 

Rating: 7 out of 10

My Review of The Little Mermaid (1989)

 

Written And Directed by John Musker And Ron Clements

Ariel: "But without my voice, how can I..."

Ursula: "You'll have your looks, your pretty face. And don't underestimate the importance of body language!"

A few years ago, I reviewed the live action version of this beloved Disney classic and I was always meant to get back to reviewing this one. I guess better late than never.

Anyways, let's look at this story. It's based on the Hans Christian Anderson story and it naturally took some creative difference, seeing as it's a Disney classic. Those differences of course actually worked in this adaptation's favour.

Under the sea, specifically the Atlantic Ocean and in the kingdom of Atlantica, there was a mermaid named Ariel (Jodi Benson). She's the youngest of seven sisters and clearly the favourite of her father, King Triton (Kenneth Mars). Ariel might love being a mermaid but she's also tempted by the land.

Her desire for the land was there to begin with but rescuing a handsome prince name Eric (Christopher Daniel Barnes) had her clashing with Triton and he easy to manipulate by vengeful sea witch (and all around icon herself), Ursula (Pat Carroll). Of course Ariel would give up her voice to become human and win her man's heart.

In fact, Ariel's goal was actually going swimmingly, even with disapproving from her friends such as Sebastian (Samuel E. Wright) and Flounder (Jason Marin). She didn't have to do much to get Eric to fall in love with her, so of course Ursula had to make herself into Vanessa to try and ruin things.

As a protagonist, Ariel's likeable and sympathetic but as a villain, it's Ursula who stole the show. She's so gloriously over the top, got one of the best villain songs and on top of that, her grudge towards Triton had some merit. Of course shed defeated and both Ariel and Eric get their happy ever after but she's such a memorable presence throughout.

- Prior to the live action remake, this spawned a sequel, prequel and animated show.

- All of Ariel's sisters had names beginning with the letter A and had different coloured tails. 

- Standout music: Part Of Your World, Poor Unfortunate Souls and Kiss The Girl.

- Chronology: It does seem to be set in the same era as the original story itself.

The Little Mermaid might have removed the bittersweet ending of the original story but it's a gorgeous adaptation from the best era of Disney movies. Absolutely one of my favourites.

Rating: 9 out of 10 

My Review of Tom At The Farm (2013)

 

Written by Xavier Dolan And Michel Marc Bouchard

Directed by Xavier Dolan 

Tom: "Today a part of me has died and I cannot cry. For I've forgotten all synonyms for "sadness". Now all I can do without you is replace you."

So far I've seen with this director movies about complicated relationships with mothers, friends competing for the same guy and a man coming to terms with being trans. Now, it's time for something a bit close to a horror movie.

The titular Tom Podowski, played by Xavier Dolan (who sat out acting in the previous movie) opened this movie by grieving the loss of his boyfriend, Guillaume Longchamp (Caleb Landry Jones). He's got a nice speech and he's about to meet his deceased boyfriend's family for the first time.

On the plus side, while she's either genuinely unaware or in denial about her dead son's sexuality, I do think Agathe (Lise Roy) was presented as a sympathetic character. She was genuinely grief stricken about Guillaume's death, though often abusive towards older son, Francis (Pierre-Yves Cardinal).

Francis was a fascinating character to watch. He's introduced by terrorising Tom into keeping quiet about the extent of his relationship with Guillaume and seemed to take a rather sadistic delight in terrorising Tom throughout the movie. He also came across as rather possessive of Tom too.

Francis definitely envied the freedom that Guillaume had and wanted nothing more to sell the farm and be rid of his mother. Then there was the addition of Tom's co-worker, Sarah Thibault (Evelyne Brochu), who Agathe believed was Guillaume's girlfriend. That certainly complicated matters with Sarah giving Tom some harsh truths about Guillaume.

Tom spent a lot of this movie being passive to Francis's erratic whims but the moment he got a history lesson from that barman (Manuel Tadros), he did the sensible thing and actually got the hell away from that farm of the damned. Needless to say that Francis didn't handle it well.

- Sarah told Tom she slept with Guillaume and it seemed like she did the same with Francis before getting her bus. She didn't smoke or seemed to like pasta.

- Agathe definitely had to be aware of Francis being a violent closet case. The barman told Tom about a former lover of Guillaume's that Francis badly assaulted.

- Standout music: Corey Hart's Sunglasses At Night and Rufus Wainwright's Going To A Town.

- Chronology: Set during October on that farm from hell. Tom's from Montreal and the farm was in a rural community in Quebec.

Tom At The Farm delved a little into horror (a point was made twice about corn fields) but was largely psychological. Francis and his fixation on Tom really drove the narrative here. It's a fascinating study of two very different men and the lives they have. 

Rating: 8 out of 10 

My Review of Laurence Anyways (2012)

 

Written And Directed by Xavier Dolan 

Fred Bellair: "You have crossed the borders of my life, of my town, of my street. All that's left is my front door. I think you know where to find me."

I'll admit that this movie took two sittings for me. Mostly down to my unwise choice to watch it late at night but also because I might have rewatched certain moments to fully absorb what I was seeing.

I think it's also safe to say that out of the eight movies that Xavier Dolan has written and directed so far that this one might have been his most ambitious. It's loosely based on a real life person and had two captivating performances from it's lead actors.

Focusing on award winning novelist and literary teacher Laurence Alia (Melvil Poupaud), this movie saw a man with a great life, career and girlfriend in the feisty Fred Bellair (Suzanne Clément). Then on Fred's birthday, Laurence decided to drop the biggest bombshell he could've done.

Laurence has identified with being a woman and the majority of the movie would focus on Laurence making that transition into womanhood. Needless to say, it's a decision that would have a detrimental impact on Fred as her perspective was a driving force.

Fred seemed to assume that Laurence was gay but at no point in the film did Laurence show any attraction to men. In fact, Laurence dated another woman named Charlotte (Magalie Lépine-Blondeau) but the relationship didn't last due to Laurence still having feelings for Fred.

Fred herself had tried to move on and married another man and had a son with him. That didn't stop Fred attempting to reconcile with Laurence but their relationship had changed too much. There's something genuinely bittersweet as in spite of their efforts and love for one another, both Laurence and Fred couldn't make it work. 

- I loved the Rose family that Laurence found. They really were a delightful bunch of characters to watch.

- Both Anne Dorval and Monia Chokri had roles in this film. Xavier really does like working with both of them. Dolan's father also had a small role.

- Standout music: Kim Carnes Bette Davis Eyes, Moderat's A New Error (that particular scene) and Craig Armstrong's Let's Go Out Tonight.

- Chronology: Took place over several years in Montreal, Quebec.

It's a lengthy movie but my God, I think Laurence Anyways really struck a nerve. It's a powerful look into the title character and the impact of their transition with a bittersweet love story spanning years and years. 

Rating: 8 out of 10 

My Review of Euphoria - Season 3 (2026, HBO Series)

Written And Directed by Sam Levinson 

Tagline: "May God have mercy."

Going into this third season, there was a reasonable assumption that this would be the last time we'd be stepping into this world. Some cast members had left, tragically passed away and others seemed absolutely checked out.

Wisely opting for a time jump, it's not too shocking to see that our characters have not grown as people. In fact, nearly all of them were making even worse mistakes than before and suffering the consequences for the reckless behaviour.

Let's start off with Rue. On the plus side, she was predominantly sober for this final season. That's the only plus side with Rue. She was indebted to Laurie and her racist gang before being dragged into the world of pimp and human trafficker, Alamo Brown (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje). There's a lot of focus on Alamo this season and Rue's involvement in his world ended up being his undoing.

Alamo's presence introduced a slew of characters such as Angel (Priscilla Delgado), Magick (Rosalia), Kitty (Anna Van Patten) and Bishop (Darrell Britt-Gibson). They're not greatly developed characters and Bishop's switch up in the finale felt like it came out of nowhere.

Alamo wasn't the only crime element of the season. Nate and Cassie might have made it down the aisle but the former's mounting debts with Armenian gangster, Naz (Jack Topalian) saw the former losing fingers and toes and getting one of the worst deaths on television this season.

I'm also curious as to what Sam Levinson has on Sydney Sweeney because some of the things that Cassie got subjected to this season verged on the ridiculous. The OnlyFans plot took certain liberties at times and Cassie's general idiocy seemed to hit new heights. Her best scenes however where with Maddy but the latter went from being one of the savviest characters on the show to easily placed under Alamo's thumb.

As for Jules and Lexi, I genuinely wonder why Levinson bothered to bring either back. Jules became a sugar baby to plastic surgeon Ellis (Sam Trammell), made middling art and slapped Rue when the latter dared to point out the obvious. Lexi worked on a night time soap opera, judged her friends and inadvertently set up the chain of events leading to Rue's demise.

- Episode titles were Ándale, America My Dream, The Ballad Of Paladin, Kitty Likes To Dance, This Little Piggy, Stand Still And See, Rain Or Shine and In God We Trust.

- Ali got to be the one who avenged Rue. He also connected with the Amish family that Rue was staying with at the start of the season.

- Rue and Jules did hook up at least once before the big fall out they had. Jules was too judgemental on Rue and Lexi's sex lives.

- Other guest actors this season included Sharon Stone, Natasha Lyonne, Danielle Deadwyler, Vinnie Hacker and Gideon Adlon to name a few.

- Standout music: Hans Zimmer replaced Labrinth for the score music this season.

- Chronology: It's been five years since the events of the second season.

I knew this was going to be the final season like everyone else did. It did have it's moments and it could've been a lot worse. Saying that, I'm not sure the spaghetti western approach was the best one from Sam Levinson, especially for this show but like I said, it could've been worse.

Rating: 7 out of 10