Apple knocks it out of the circuit with an F1 biopic that gets the basics right.
Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning — Needs A Bigger Bang
One of the great feats and franchises of modern American cinema, Mission: Impossible prides itself on pushing boundaries. The Final Reckoning is too occupied with its complexity to provide a suitably tangible villain. Spending time with this team and Crusie’s most enduring hero is still a thrill, but they and the audience could have done with a bigger bang.
Thunderbolts* — Old School AntiHeroics
A roaring and sure-footed success that demonstrates that the MCU can still perform when it recognises its strengths. It’s a promising start to this saga’s home stretch, and combined with what appears in the long post-credit sequence, it’s a strong sign that Marvel can get its mojo back.
Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith — Rising Stock
Sing Sing presents a world of greys in bright colours, where even in the staid prison rehearsal rooms, the fleck, dust and grain popping on the screen gives us one beautiful frame after another. What’s even more stunning is seeing Colman Domingo in a troupe that proves the RTA’s value.
Sinners — Genre-Bending Cool With A Bite
Sing Sing presents a world of greys in bright colours, where even in the staid prison rehearsal rooms, the fleck, dust and grain popping on the screen gives us one beautiful frame after another. What’s even more stunning is seeing Colman Domingo in a troupe that proves the RTA’s value.
Sing Sing — The Play Isn’t The Only Thing
Sing Sing presents a world of greys in bright colours, where even in the staid prison rehearsal rooms, the fleck, dust and grain popping on the screen gives us one beautiful frame after another. What’s even more stunning is seeing Colman Domingo in a troupe that proves the RTA’s value.
Fight of Flight — A Mile-High Concept
Fight or Flight is a popcorn-powered trip back to 90s action movies. Hartnett could have a new franchise on his hands as he hands in another likeable character with a darker side. While it’s not John Wick, it is dedicated to having a good time punching us all in the head. Be prepared to be hit repeatedly, and be thankful you’re not Lucas Reyes.
The Brutalist Review — An Incredibly Satisfying Build
The Brutalist’s title works on so many levels they are likely to be peeled back for decades. It’s divided like its buildings, and characters, but makes an incredibly satisfying whole, and a sweeping tribute to an age long gone, as much as a comment on the present and the future.
I’m Still Here — An Unorthodox Biopic
Heart-wrenching but hopeful, I’m Still Here is an asymmetrical film that defies convention to keep the focus on the family at its heart. Compellingly off-kilter, it’s a master class in inviting an audience into a family and a country’s trauma while keeping us a crucial arm’s length of objectivity away.
The Substance — A Repellent Shot In The Arm
The Substance is a sickening and vivid update of horror staples with added resonance for the 21st century. The film’s title refers to the central MacGuffin as much as the film itself. But while it’s likely to repel audiences as much as it attracts, it’s timeless, timely, and carries its strong message with confidence. The Ozempic craze was made for it.
The Gorge — April Is The Cruellest Month
The twists and end destination for the central pair are well sign-posted, but it’s all about a journey, and Teller and Taylor-Joy are hugely watchable companions. But The Gorge gleefully draws on so many influences, including films like Annihilation to Inception, while not hitting their heights, that the result can’t help but feel a little hollow by comparison.
Captain America: Brave New World — A Waste Of A Hulk
Like the Red Hulk popcorn container unleashed with film, Brave New World takes up a lot of shelf space but is pretty hollow. Avid fans may enjoy seeing a couple of big characters finally make it to the screen, but given its determination to tie up some hanging MCU strands, Brave New World is disappointingly weak. It struggles as a thriller, can’t capitalise on the satirical timing of its release in the first month of a certain new POTUS, and doesn’t stretch the franchise’s action credentials.