Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026)

I haven't been a fan of the Tom Holland Spider-Man movies. That's not due to the actor. I think he makes a great Spider-Man. It's that the movies have constantly had to dance around the rest of the MCU and these often leads to overstuffed films with plots that feel packaged around other ideas tied to other characters and movies. They mostly feel like they are trying to tell a Spider-Man story but keep getting derailed. I had hoped that Brand New Day, a film that purports to reset Peter Parker's life, might be a straight up Spider-Man story. It's not. It is at its best when his story is what is being focused on, but it ends up being just another Marvel team up film this time with *redacted* (I don't want to spoil that yet. So like his other films, there is a lot being worked through here and it doesn't all come together cohesively. 

What I liked? Well Holland is a great, charismatic everyman which is just who Parker should be. I felt his pull towards his old life and how isolated he felt. I liked the film had him "evolving" or "mutating" (oops! sssshhhhhhh) and dealing with becoming something new. I didn't really appreciate how they packed in The Punisher, The Hulk, the new Black Widow, and... others cause all those little bits felt like they got short shrift due to the sheer amount of the appearances that needed to be packed in. 

Spider-Man may be the only movie character (other than Batman) who can carry a film just on his name alone. People want to see Spider-Man and will see him in pretty much anything. The film isn't bad and it has enough going for it to really satisfy audiences. So if you desire to see it, go for it, and more power to you. You'll likely enjoy it. If you aren't in a hurry waiting for it's inevitable streaming release wouldn't be a bad choice. 

But for me to really get into my thoughts I do have to spoil the film's big reveal so stop reading here if you don't want to know...

*Spoilers*

Since Disney bought Fox, they have been itching to bring us the X-Men and they have been working towards that in numerous ways through their various movies and series. Some of the Fox cast have been appearing here and there in MCU movies and Deadpoool and Wolverine made a spectacle of bringing that world around for another go. But this may be (I could be wrong) the first time that a major X-Men character has been introduced into this MCU's main universe in the MCU version. And they started with Jean Grey, the character the Fox universe never seemed to be able to get right. That's a bold move, starting with one of the most challenging areas, and if it pays off for them that will be a big win. 

I'll give Sink credit, she does a great job with the character. Like this version of Spider-Man, the MCU version will have significant variations on her origin to help fit her (and I assume the other Mutants) into this world. I also liked how this tied into Peter's own "mutating" making the classic X-Men analogies for discrimination. Peter's attempts to shrink who he is out of fear is a good "in" for the concepts and that part mostly works. 

But I felt the script sort of fumbles her intro. She is brought to us as an "antagonist" at first so they can do a switcheroo and have her become an anti-hero later. But they lean into this a little too much making her more evil than she needs to be. I'm not sure the redemption arc they then require her to go through works, especially after the film goes to great lengths to make her seem evil (even having Peter describe her actions as unforgivable at one point) before they reveal who she is. 

So for me the intro feels a little forced and also complicated by all the other baggage these films tend to have as I discussed above. Also it leaves a lot of questions which may or may not be answered later. Is she the only mutant? If not how come another powerful mutant isn't also attempting to address her as she is making herself known (you know who I mean)? The film takes a lot of short cuts dealing with Spider-Man's secret identity issues in the plot and it kinds does the same with Jean. 

So while I know Brand New Day will be a huge movie I still find it an awkward watch. It has a lot of pros and cons and didn't resolve it all for me. But for me Marvel's best characters by far are the X-Men and if this means we're getting new versions, and not just the legacy actors coming back to play alternate universe visitors, than that is promising. 

Spider-Man: Brand New Day

Starring: Tom Holland, Zendaya, Sadie Sink, Jacob Batalon, Jon Bernthal, Liza Colón-Zayas, Tramell Tillman, Michael Mando, Mark Ruffalo, Florence Pugh, Keith David, Michael Mando, Naomi Watts, Marisa Tomei 

Director:  Destin Daniel Cretton

Writers: Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers

I Want Your Sex (2026)

After more than 12 years away from making a feature film, legendary New Queer Cinema Movement director Gregg Araki has come back with what turns out to be a somewhat mainstream Hollywood film that plays with our expectations about where desires meet comfortable limits. It is a fairly funny and rather accessible comedy about a boss who begins a BDSM relationship with her awkward young employee but underneath there is a lot of things the film asks us to think about which remain uncomfortable despite the film's rather candy coated aesthetic. 

Araki appears to be wrestling with the tension between being a sexual rebel in a time which has shifted the goalposts around puritanism. Remember he began making underground films in the late 80s and early 90s pushing back against the AIDS panic and Lavender Scare in the age of the Regan/Thatcher social control. Jump forward to the 2020s and the western world sees itself as having been liberated through mainstream LGTBQIA+ and feminist movements. What Araki seems to be suggesting here is how little has changed, how much puritanism remains embedded in our cultures, and how we continue to embrace the shame and social control of sexual repression. 

I Want Your Sex centres a straight relationship and heavily critiques the two involved, often making both of them the butt of the joke while also making you like them both, albeit in different ways. Hoffman's everyman doofusness is deliciously relatable while Wilde's manufactured confidence is appealing in its own way whether we want to admit it or not. But they are both making terrible choices and the film appears to be sympathetic to them, showing us just how much the constraints of our so-called modern sensibilities keep them from having the connections and the fucking that they both want without paying a price for it. Hoffman's girlfriend and his best friend are both unhealthily unable to connect with sex in a meaningful way and the cops interviewing Hoffman in the film's framing sequence can't focus on anything but the inappropriateness of what turns out to be a big nothing-burger. Araki is showing just how modern values on sexuality have simply found new ways of limiting and controlling us no matter how far we think we've come. Araki juxtaposes this with the Gooding's queer character who appears to be the only character living their best life who is constantly having sex exactly how we wants without any hang ups or limits. 

And that what makes I Want Your Sex so fascinating. Araki remains a sexual liberator, arguing for the necessity of carnality in our lives while exposing and laughing at how fumbling mainstream culture can be with it. He sugarcoats this by making a fairly mainstream comedy about it but that might just be a little Trojan Horse. He plays with it. His sex scenes are fun and silly and yet oddly compelling. He doesn't make his characters pay a real price for their "deviance". If anything the movie suggests they are both better off for what went down. I'd argue both had fairly pathetic lives, relationships, friendships prior to their relationship. And yet they both remain weirdly obsessed and transfixed on that connection.

Araki is embracing sexuality, with all its joyous absurdity, especially when it doesn't fit into a neat box or acceptable standards, and offering a charming little olive branch to those convinced they need to feel ashamed to experience what they want in this life. 

I Want Your Sex

Starring: Olivia Wilde, Cooper Hoffman, Mason Gooding, Chase Sui Wonders, Johnny Knoxville, Margaret Cho, Roxane Mesquida, Charli XCX, Daveed Diggs

Director: Gregg Araki

Writers: Karley Sciortino, Gregg Araki

Rosebush Pruning (2026)

If you're going to make a mess of a movie, why not make it a big mess? Rosebush Pruning, inspired by the Italian film Fists in the Pocket, is a darkly comic tragedy featuring a toxic rich family who end up killing each other (oops... spoilers) after sexualizing each other. It is often random in its plotting, rather nonsensical, and thinly drawn. But it is visually and narratively bold, taking big audacious swings that often don't amount to much. I was surprised at how much of it managed to be funny while also finding myself bored a lot. Rosebush Pruning might be the sort of film that you are glad to have seen so you can talk about it but never want to have to sit through again. 

But the film can't be dismissed entirely. The performances by Keough and Anderson are delightful. They seem to be on board with how absurd a story they are telling. None of the characters make sense or act like real human beings. They articulate their inner thoughts in their dialogue and no background is provided which explain their bizarre behaviour. But those two actors really embrace the ludicrisness of what they are doing and just go for it. I wasn't convinced by the rest of the cast but these two were saving graces. 

The movie is blessedly short. Perhaps that leads to some of what makes the film feel so thin, no time to really develop any of what is going on. But it also means less to endure. It also shortens the time between the moments of real hilarity which often come out of nowhere (as does most of the plot points). So while it would not be accurate to say that Rosebush Pruning is a good movie, it certainly is not, I actually had fun watching the nonsense, mostly. 

Rosebush Pruning

Starring: Callum Turner, Riley Keough, Elle Fanning, Jamie Bell, Tracy Letts, Pamela Anderson

Director: Karim Aïnouz

Writer: Efthimis Filippou

Her Private Hell (2026)

Refn makes incredibly beautiful films. Imagine if he ever got his hands on a story that was worth telling. Instead we get this hollow, rather tedious story which he seems to love to tell. Her Private Hell might be one of his most painfully boring stories yet. It's complete lack of emotional investment makes it a tedious slog no matter how gorgeously he crafts his art direction, costumes, cinematography. Movies are very much a visual medium and I love when a director understands this. But they also need to resonate emotionally or intellectually and so far I have seen little evidence Refn gets this part. 

Her Private Hell feels like an AI verson of a David Lynch film. Minimalist yet stunning sets, slow moving pans, lingering shots of the cast being reflective. But it's missing all of the underlying tension, horror, and emotion that Lynch captures. I'd rather have flipped through a photo book of stills from this film than had to sit through its plot. 

I feel for the cast who are doing their best with what they are given. This pretty much falls at Refn's feet for creating something with so little substance. This is reportedly a horror story in a way, yet it evokes no horror of any kind, not even an coldly intellectual existential horror. The only horror is that I sat all the way through it. 

Her Private Hell

Starring: Sophie Thatcher, Charles Melton, Havana Rose Liu, Kristine Froseth, Shioli Kutsuna, Aoi Yamada, Dougray Scott, Diego Calva, Hidetoshi Nishijima

Director: Nicolas Winding Refn

Writers: Esti Giordani, Nicolas Winding Refn

Steal Away (2026)

I’m a big fan of Virgo and his way of telling his stories visually. With Steal Away, he has crafted a hyper-stylized world for his characters which mirrors ours but feels slightly elevated to make his points. The combo of Rice and Johnson really pops off the screen and brings this almost fantastical world into focus. 

The strength here is how his somewhat factionalized narrative exposes the real world and its fantastical story feels grounded in a reality. Visually Steal Away is stunning but its narrative packs a punch as well that is as strong as its look. The story feels a bit forced at points, especially in the second act, but most of this is overcome by the strong performances and emotional resonance. 

Virgo has cemented his status as one of the most exciting film makers working today. 

Steal Away

Starring: Angourie Rice, Mallori Johnson

Director:  Clement Virgo

Writer: Tamara Faith Berger

The Odyssey (2026)

Nolan has pulled off a bit of a miracle with his adaptation of The Odyssey. It is a rollicking adventure that sticks pretty faithfully to the source material while packing in a plethora of narrative threads without making them feel too tangled. For a film with an almost three hour runtime, it is very entertaining and engaging. Audiences won't feel bored or strung along at any point. It is also gorgeous to watch with its massive Imax camera filled set pieces and mostly practical effects. Technically The Odyssey is an impressive achievement. However I didn't find it to be emotionally inspiring and so much of its many threads are so thinly woven in that I didn't find it overly impactful. Even its final message, which it takes its time getting to then sort of hits us over the head with, feels a bit tacked on at the end.

Don't get me wrong. Overall I enjoyed The Odyssey very much and I know I will be able to rewatch it and enjoy it again. I loved how Nolan managed to pack into this film everything he wanted to and did so with both a flare that made it artful but also a practicality which made it accessible. This is one for the masses for sure and it deserves it. I believe The Odyssey is a good film that does what it sets out to do so I am not faulting it. 

What keeps me from loving it is that it is sort of a victim of its success. It does such a good job of putting so much of this story in it that it often feels rushed. I know... it's an almost 3 hour movie. But whether its the cyclops, Circe, the dying dog, or the sirens, these come and go and then sort of get forgotten. Worse I think is the way that few characters get fleshed out into anything more than 2-dimensions. How can you build them all out when there are this many? I was willing to forgive a bunch of this but my biggest disappointment was Pattinson's Antinous who often felt like a moustache twirling villain more than any real threat to anyone. His character was paper thin (as were the characters played by Marshall-Green, Goth, Hawkins, Patel, Lee) but it was his character than needed the heft to truly pull off his role. The film just didn't have the time to truly do him justice. Also completely wasted was Travis Scott whose fleeting moments on screen were some of the most electric. I had hoped we'd see him narrating or scoring the adventure but he was in and out in a blink of an eye. 

And this is in contrast to other characters who do manage, with little screen time to be truly fascinating. Despite all the controversy around her casting, Nyong'o is brilliant in her duel roles and her characters do so much heavy lifting for how little screen time she gets. I found Theron's Calypso truly interesting as well. But the real standout is Page's Sinon. His scenes were often the ones that managed to pull on my heartstrings and get me feeling. Really its the internet's most hated casting which save this movie. 

And again I want to point out I felt the movie was really good. Good. Goransson's score is lovely and unobtrusive. It takes its time before it comes to anything resembling a "theme" that audiences will associate with the movie (think Lord of the Rings) so we're not overwhelmed by it over what we're experiencing on screen. 

There is so much plot hopping that it isn't until the end that Nolan gets around to his narrative theme. As Odysseus prepares to confront the suiters and "return home" he begins to wrestle with all that he has done. His story is less about surviving the wrath of the Gods and more about the Gods' punishments being his own wrestling with his acts. He has to confront what he has done before he can be the King, the Husband, the Father, that he wants to be. His return is less about cosmic intervention and more about personal demons. There is a moment where we see Athena's form is taken from one of her priestesses for whose death Odysseus is responsible. I connected to Nolan's perspective here. While I recognize that he builds this on the foundation of so much of what has come before in his film it also feels like a bit of an afterthought perhaps less organically tied to what we have seen but stitched overtop. 

Still, once again, the film is very good. And I recommend it. And I will rewatch it and continue to enjoy it. In many ways, what Nolan does here is remarkable, tackling something this gargantuan at all and pulling it off. So there are thin spots and weaknesses. They aren't bad and it didn't ruin the movie for me. I recognize that if one is going to attempt to make this movie this is a pretty amazing achievement just in itself. 

The Odyssey

Starring: Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong'o, Samantha Morton, Zendaya, Charlize Theron, Bennie Safdie, John Lequizamo, Bill Irwin, Himesh Patel, Will Yun Lee, Corey Hawkins, Mia Goth, Logan Marshall-Green, Travis Scott, Elliot Page, James Remar

Writer/Director: Christopher Nolan 

Heartstopper Forever (2026)

Ending a series, especially one that has a strong following and means so much to its fans, can be an herculean challenge. Add to that the choice to do so in a 2 hour movie instead of a final season, limiting the time available to wrap up story lines and develop characters. But perhaps the biggest challenge is how to end the story of the romance of a young queer (fictional) couple which has come to be an emotional support story for both young queers and older ones that didn't live in a time when this sort of relationship tended to happen. How do you wrap all of this up in a way that is honest both narratively and emotionally for those who have invested so much into this story and these characters? 

Writing at a time when gay love stories just didn't exist, gay writer EM Forster talked about the importance of having a happy ending for his gay love story Maurice, how gay men like him deserved the happily ever after so much straight literature offers its audiences. Today is a very different time, but is the need for the promise of love enduring still as relevant for modern audiences, both the young and those who remember being young? Alternatively how you do realistically deal with the likelihood of teenage relationships lasting. Life after highschool pulls people in different directions and burgeoning adults grow into different people. Is it honest to have the multitude of couples who formed over the course of this story ride off happily into the sunset together?

Okay so I've asked a lot of this little movie... but I think it mostly found its way through this quagmire to deliver for both fans and those who may have come into this film fresh alike. It is about teens in love, and all the hyper drama that comes with that. It is about queer and trans kids not only existing but finding love and community, and all the drama that comes with that. It wrestles with some of these questions and delivers a fairly satisfying set of resolutions. Yes you can watch this as someone unfamiliar with the Heartstopper series and walk away with a positive movie experience. And for those fans who have followed these characters through all the seasons, Forever will offer you the closure that you need. And will likely illicit a few tears. 

Heartstopper Forever finds a lovely way to being affirming for its audiences while also feeling honest and true. There is a scene in the middle with Derek Jacobi which is short and very quiet in what it is doing, but profound in so many ways. Time and again this film reinforces that love stories aren't rote, aren't about destiny or soul mates, but are about finding connection in whatever ways those come, healthy connections that make people happy. 

Forever is easily the most secure chapter in the Heartstopper saga. It tackles the characters growing up. From their being more sex (although still fairly PG-13) to some drinking, it is more about how the film treats its subjects as coming of age finally. They get to start having the sort of agency that only adults get to start to have. Yes they are just starting out on this journey but they are finally taking it on. 

Heartstopper Forever

Starring: Kit Connor, Joe Locke, Yasmin Finney, William Gao, Tobie Donovan, Corinna Brown, Kizzy Edgell, Rhea Norwood, Derek Jacobi

Director: Wash Westmoreland

Writer: Alice Oseman 

The Invite (2026)

I knew how much I was enjoying The Invite by how uncomfortable it was making me. The way the characters spoke to each other, injuring themselves and each other made me cringe and react. It treated its characters a flawed human beings in imperfect relationships and it did it all with a sense of humour and heart. 

Wilde is an exciting film maker who makes films that are fascinating. Some have worked better than others but The Invite is especially interesting. It has to walk a fairly challenging line. It could have easily fallen into farce or become too heavy. But Wilde and her cast keep just the right balance of humour and pathos to make this story of one eventful evening work. 

I appreciated how much the film treated its characters with respect. While recognizing the inherent humour in their humanness, The Invite still gives each character the space and integrity to be real people with all their flaws and strengths. The smart and funny script by McCormack and Jones has been compared to Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolfe and that's not much hyperbole. There is sensitivity and insight going on here and it hits more than most films do. It's characters are awkward and sometimes cruel; they are vulnerable and sometimes petty. But they are honest.

The Invite is the sort of film that gets you thinking about relationships, both through asking some challenging questions but also through evoking real emotional stakes. I appreciated that its ambigous ending doesn't attempt to necessarily solve anything but reminds us of the love that we have even when things may be falling apart. 

The Invite

Starring: Seth Rogen, Olivia Wilde, Penélope Cruz, Edward Norton

Director: Olivia Wilde

Writers: Will McCormack, Rashida Jones

Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass (2026)

This film is ridiculously silly and clearly no one involved is taking it seriously in the slightest. Unlike a lot of comedies, it's not trying to say much about anything (relationships, agency, whatever) it's just a group of people getting together to have a fun silly time. And in that it works. Deutch's charisma and the connection she has with her cast-mates carries this little wacko exercise and makes it funny most of the time and at least charming when the jokes are a bit much. 

It becomes clear part way through this is a bit of a retelling of The Wizard of Oz, in an odd way, from plot beats to direct references. Dorothy Gale and Gail Daughtry... 

Mostly this feels like a group of actors and film makers got stoned one night at a party and laughed themselves silly over this idea and this is what we got. But who's complaining when it's as delightful as this. 

Probably best to watch it stoned. 

Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass

Starring: Zoey Deutch, John Slattery, Ken Marino, Miles Gutierrez-Riley, Ben Wang, Sabrina Impacciatore, Jon Hamm, Michael Ian Black, Richard Kind, Thomas Lennon, Jennifer Anniston, Henry Winkler, Elizabeth Banks, Weird Al Yankovitc, Paul Rudd, Penn Jillette, Elizabeth Perkins 

Director: David Wain

Writers: Ken Marino, David Wain 

The Mysterious Gaze of the Flamingo (2026)

There is a simple beauty to this story and how it is brought to the screen. The Mysterious Gaze of the Flamingo is told from the point of view of a young girl raised in a community of trans/queer sex workers in a remote part of Chile during the AIDS crisis. It explores very heavy issues through the perspective of youth and love. It is a beautiful film that finds joy in the creation of family. 

Chosen family stories are nothing new in queer worlds but they are also not exhaustive. New film maker Céspedes has crafted a new take on this trope that is inspiring and moving. It comes together with its beautiful cast who play a mix of complicated and honest feeling characters. Throughout we are transported to a time and place that evokes so much which has changed but remains relevant to who we are today. Céspedes has made something powerfully surprising in his first film. 

The Mysterious Gaze of the Flamingo

Starring: Tamara Cortés, Matías Catalán

Writer/Director: Diego Céspedes

In the Hand of Dante (2026)

I'm all for big swings. I like it when a film really tries for something bold. But sometimes those swings miss and In the Hand of Dante is a pretty big miss. I admire it for trying but I'm sorry to say it does not land this plane. 

In the Hand of Dante is a mystery mixed with mob film, mixed with historical epic, mixed with romance, and none of it really works. Most of the time you are just reminded of much better films that do what it is trying to do much better. Its attempts at witty, audacious banter feel cringey instead of clever. Its gratuitous violence is missing the sort of playfulness to make it cartoony and missing the sort of gravitas to make it impactful. It is lacking the connectivity to make its two timelines work together to create something bigger than the two halves. 

Again I'll give credit to the cast for trying. No one phones it in here. It is just that what they are working with doesn't give them the chance to shine. There is an overall sense that there is a big, consequantial movie somewhere in this story and this just isn't it.

In the Hand of Dante

Starring: Oscar Isaac, Gal Gadot, Gerard Butler, John Malkovich, Louis Cancelmi, Sabrina Impacciatore, Benjamin Clementine, Martin Scorsese, Al Pacino, Jason Momoa

Director: Julian Schnabel

Writers: Louise Kugelberg, Julian Schnabel

Wasteman (2026)

First time director McMau has shot out of the gate with this impressive and visceral debut that is raw with emotional vulnerability and manages difficult violence without exploiting it. Wasteman keeps its story tight, hits all the necessary beats, and focuses mostly on the interiority of its characters in a way that makes it a powerful gut punch of a film that will leave its audience with a lot of feelings. 

The cast is great and Blyth really shines here but I'm here to talk about Jonsson who has become one of the most exciting young actors to come along in a very long time. Every time I see him in something he not only stands out but he surprises me. Wasteman is a new high for him, giving a complicated and rich performance that really takes it all to the next level. He has become the kind of actor I will be excited to see a movie just because he is in it. 

Wasteman isn't an easy film despite its short runtime and rather straightforward plot. Its focus on people who are complicated at best and often quite despicable, its refusal to sugarcoat the realities of prison life and (at the same time) refusal to exploit that into melodrama, and its attention to the details of its sad story make it a bitter pill but well worth it. 

Wasteman

Starring: David Jonsson, Tom Blyth

Director: Cal McMau

Writers: Hunter Andrews, Eoin Doran

Supergirl (2026)

The makers of Supergirl have done it right. Making a movie about a character that isn’t the top tier of comic book icons (and is *gasp* a woman) can have its challenge in this era when competition is high for butts in cinema seats. But Supergirl is a tight, entertaining movie with a fully realized character that sticks to its story which both entertains and gives audience less familiar with her all they need to know. 

Instead of doing an “origin” story, they instead took the story from a popular recent graphic novel, a story that helped redefine the character in comics to give her more of her own identity. Derivative comic characters (“spin off” characters of other popular ones - in this case Superman) can sometimes feel like copies but the Woman of Tomorrow story line set up Kara as her own person. It also gives in-world opportunities for her origin to be explained in backstory. 

And the story is straight forward but emotionally powerful. Best of all Alcock delivers a truly centred performance that brings the movie to life. It’s relatively short runtime and a strong story featuring a good performance at its centre… that makes for a good movie and Supergirl is a good movie that shouldn’t be slept on. 

Supergirl

Starring: Milly Alcock, Matthias Schoenaerts, Eve Ridley, Jason Momoa, David Krumholtz, Emily Beecham, David Corenswet

Director: Craig Gillespie

Writter: Ana Nogueira

 

Toy Story 5 (2026)

It very much feels like the Toy Story movies are repeating themselves. After the original trilogy which very effectively made the case for a story about kids growing past the influences of their youth and the need to move on, we are now ironically stuck in a pattern of that message being recycled over and over. 5 adds something fresh with a slightly nuanced take on tech's influence on children, but doesn't go any further beyond this point than 4 did. Still Toy Story 5 still have the mojo to be entertaining enough for fans and general audiences alike to have a good time. I'm just not sure it's kept all the mojo for these films to be as iconic as they used to be. 

So while the rather saccharine story of children needing to find connection mixed with the standard they-can't-stay-kids-forever theme played out there were a few things that stood out for me as why Pixar still does Hollywood animated features better than the competitors generally. For one I want to shout out to Cusack who's voice performance truly stood out. She remains a talented actor and her Jesse is one of her most iconic rolls. Here she is not only given a lot to work with but she truly steps up and gives a heart-wrenching turn in what may be her best work yet. It's easy to dismiss voiceover performances but when they are good they can be really good and I'd argue her work here is tremendous. 

I also appreciated that the film didn't just do the easy thing of jumping on the screen-time-is-bad-for-kids bandwagon and tried to present a somewhat more complex presentation of how technology is integrating into children's lives. Sure a major media company has an interest in not telling too negative a tech story but still, it could has just pandered to the suburban moms a bit more and doesn't quite fall into that trap. 

More points to them for finding generally organic ways to fit in the franchise's growing cast of characters. The film centres Jesse even more than before giving Woody and Buzz a more backseat role which is also brave in this age of internet rage at anything that doesn't centre white males. 

So for me Toy Story 5 was a bit of a mixed bag that was mostly enjoyable if still on the rather sleight side. I'd argue 1-3 of this series truly hold up and hold a special place in cinema's canon so perhaps it is just too much to expect that level of film making to continue long term. At least the films haven't yet become intolerably reductive or, worst of all, unenjoyable. This is still a fun movie. It just won't have the hold that previous instalments have managed to.

Toy Story 5

Starring: Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Joan Cusack, Greta Lee, Conan O'Brien, Tony Hale, Craig Robinson, Shelby Rabara, Scarlett Spears, Mykal-Michelle Harris, Matty Matheson, John Ratzenberger, Wallace Shawn, Blake Clark, Jeff Bergman, Anna Vocino, Annie Potts, Bonnie Hunt, Melissa Villaseñor, John Hopkins, Kristen Schaal, Ernie Hudson, Bad Bunny, Keanu Reeves, Ally Maki, Alan Cumming

Director: Andrew Stanton

Writers: Kenna Harris, Andrew Stanton

Leviticus (2026)

"They want us to be afraid."

This line from the clever and frightening Leviticus captures a concept that queer people know inherently. The heterosexist world wants queer people to be afraid to be themselves and to experience the joy of love and sex as we experience it. This is what is behind the story of Leviticus, where a monster of some sort (which remains ever present but invisible - just like homophobia) is designed to make us terrified of the thing that brings us joy and fulfillment. We are to be constantly in fear. 

Leviticus makes good use of this simple yet brilliant idea to craft a film that is scary, both in moments and in its overall haunting aura, but also moving in how this terror affects the peope it inflicts. Perhaps it is one of the most salient attempts on screen to communicate the way homophobia feels to those who don't personally experience it. 

Unlike some other recent horror films which perhaps stray from their clever conceits to pack in more traditional scary monster movie moments, Leviticus sticks to its script and lets the horror come from its situation instead of from being demonic. There are some "scary" scenes with a jump scare or physical attack, but the film mostly stays away from them or puts them off screen so that we are left with more of an aching sense of dread, wondering when the shoe will drop. The more I reflect on this, the more I see just how much this feels like living gay in a mandatory-straight world. 

Bird and Clausen are wonderful together, both playing the loves and the terrors of the other. And there is a quiet beauty to the ending which finds the way to defeat this horror is to come together, to be together. The very thing this monster is trying to stop us from doing. 

Leviticus 

Starring: Joe Bird, Stacy Clausen, Mia Wasikowska 

Writer/Director: Adrian Chiarella

The Death of Robin Hood (2026)

Sarnoski has made a contemplative Robin Hood movie that is without action set pieces, eschews glorifying righteous violence, and questions our ideas of heroism. This isn't what were used to in a film about famous action heroes. But it is a gorgeous film that is full of weight and power and continues Jackman's recent streak of picking quite interesting projects. 

The marketing has leaned into what this film is. From the outset the film tells us (like the trailers and posters) that Robin Hood isn't a hero. We are given a lot of violence in the first act and most of it is brutal and isn't something we're rooting for. It isn't framed in the way these stories usually frame it with the good guy overcoming the bad guy. It is presented as morally ambiguous and Jackman's character is taking little to no pleasure in it, making it hard for us to 

Then the rest of the move settles into a story of regret and atonement. It asks us to think about how legends are told and how little fact there is behind what we tell ourselves. Much of The Death of Robin Hood is rooted in how we convince ourselves to do the terrible things we do, or to cheer for those terrible things, and then how we must reckon with that. I found this fascinating even when the story took a little too long. The pacing struggled but the film remained powerfully engaging.

Jackman is good here, not overdoing it, but embodying the character well. Overall the cast is strong overcoming the challenges of an action movie with no action, and delivering a story that will give its audience something to sit with. 

The Death of Robin Hood

Starring: Hugh Jackman, Jodie Comer, Faith Delanye, Bill Skarsgård, Murray Bartlett, Noah Jupe

Writer/Director: Michael Sarnoski

Disclosure Day (2026)

Much has been made of legendary director Steven Spielberg's so-called return-to-form with Disclosure Day. Most of us associate him with his biggest films, tentpole genre films like Jaws, Jurassic Park, Indiana Jones, and of coarse E.T., films which remain some of the best genre films of all time. But his filmography is honestly far more diverse with the last 20 years seeing him tackle Lincoln, The BFG, a remake of West Side Story, The Fabelmans, and The Post. While these films are very well regarded, they don't really hold the popular imagination in the way his genre films do. You have to go back to Savings Private Ryan or Schindler's List to find one of his drama films that captured the zeitgeist in the way his fantastic films have. But it really hasn't been that long since he made Ready Player One. He's always experimented with different forms. He is a story teller after all... and a very good one. 

But there is something about Disclosure Day that feels more "Spielbergian" (if I can call it that) than a lot of his more recent work. There is a hopeful energy and a sense of wonder thrown in amongst a timeless sense of adventure. There are characters we latch on to, seeing ourselves in them. And there is a magic that few others are able to convey in the way he does. Disclosure Day does all that but perhaps in a different way than in his other famous "flying saucer" movie, Close Encounters of the Third Kind. His look here feels far more like someone looking through eyes of deep experience than with a new sense of awe. 

Like that film, Disclosure Day is actually far more about humanity than it is about aliens. It asks us to reflect on who we are and what we are hopeful for. It asks us about our obligations to each other. The aliens are just a catalyst for us to look at who we are as human beings. Spielberg doesn't give us answers as much as he lets us sit with questions. Similarly he doesn't hold our hands as he tells us his story. He drops us into the events and lets those events unfold gradually giving us more of an awakening to what is happening. He lets us sit with the mystery a bit. He has always thread religion and spirituality through his films and never does so in a preachy way. Instead it is that question of mystery which is so fascinating to him. Here it is more than just subtext. It is full on text. He is letting us wrestle with robust and complicated questions and lets his story play out without giving us a play by play. 

The film, while more thoughtful that most "alien contact" movies, still manages to be packed with adventure set pieces, many of which are top notch. They fit organically into the larger narrative he is trying to tell while also giving us a reason for our pulses to race. But for me, honestly, more than the train scene or car chases, it is the film's rather cerebral and emotional climax which really gives the thrills. I was surprised at how moving I found it and much of this had to do with Spielberg's narrative choices.

John Williams is back from retirement with another score for Spielberg, perhaps not as iconic as some of his work, which rank amongst the greatest film scores of all time, but a truely beautiful and accomplished work. If this is his final big screen full score effort it would be a fitting cap on a legendary career. 

Disclosure Day is a strong film in so many ways and a real encapsulation of what makes Spielberg regarded as the film maker he is. Only time will tell how this fits into his filmography but for me it is a reminder of his power as a storyteller who knows how to capture our imagination. 

Disclosure Day

Starring: Emily Blunt, Josh O'Connor, Colin Firth, Eve Hewson, Colman Domingo, Wyatt Russell

Director: Steven Spielberg

Writer: David Koepp 

The Furious (2026)

The Furious is a good old fashioned Hong Kong martial arts action movie. Reminiscent of Indonesian film The Raid (especially because it features Ruhian), The Furious has a solid (if thin) story that has a big heart at its core and is enough to string together the electric set pieces. Perhaps it is guilty of some of the genre's excesses (people who should long be dead or incapacitated get up and keep fighting again and again - the script often feels rather elementary) but it grabs you and doesn't let go for a solid 113 minutes offering a satisfying time.

You got to hand it to these film makers. They know how to leave it all on the screen. The final fight sequences is epic, perhaps a bit excessive, but will be remembered as a core of the genre. The cinematography and choreography are top level. You'll be sweating at the end. 

One of the things I loved about The Furious is how it handles its subject. This is a film about child trafficking but instead of wallowing in the gore porn that it could have it keeps all that off screen, suggested, to instead focus on the action. It helps reminds us that yes these are very bad people our heroes are beating up, but also we aren't going to take any sick pleasure from that. 

The Furious is a damn good action film that reminds you why going to the movies is so damn fun. 

The Furious

Starring:Xie Miao, Joe Taslim, Yayan Ruhian, Yang Enyou

Director: Kenji Tanigaki

Writers: Mak Tin-shu, Lei Zhilong, Shum Kwan-sin, Frank Hui

Power Ballad (2026)

Carney makes movies about loving and making music. With Power Ballad he focuses on the nebulous relationship surrounding the "ownership" of music, in the specific context of what constitutes writing a song? Power Ballad muses on this question in interesting ways, surprisingly not offering us too easy an answer making this a far more intriguing story that I had anticipated. Presented as a simple moral question, the film actually goes in different directions, as we explore how ones relationship to art can affect ones relationship to the people they love.  

I liked how Power Ballad  doesn't go where you think it's going to go. The film is the least interesting when it is following funny hijinx of Rick trying to reach Danny. It is at its most interesting when each is struggling with their relationship to the song in question, the catchy and very digestible titular ballad. 

For me the film doesn't quite have enough juice and feels like it needs to pad its story a bit. The lead up to Rick and Danny's final confrontation errs on the silly side a bit too much for my tastes, but when they do finally talk, really talk, again the film finds its groove. And the final moments worked for me, a rather satisfying conclusion of the thorny issue that finds a realistic way to resolve the plot, even if it doesn't quite answer the central question, a question I feel is more complicated than a simple yes or no. Sure the film gives us what the legal answer may be but its focus on relationships gives the film its emotional centre. 

Power Ballad

Starring: Paul Rudd, Nick Jonas, Peter McDonald, Marcella Plunkett, Beth Fallon, Havana Rose Liu, Jack Reynor

Writer/Director: John Carney

 

Masters of the Universe (2026)

Despite being in the generation that grew up with Masters of the Universe, it was not my thing. I had a couple of the toys as a child, I'd watch the show occasionally, but I was never into it or followed it that closely. I never quite understood the appeal. This is a property that is based on a toy line before it is any narrative or set of characters. Everything is built around the toys being sold. So the attempt to readapt it into something for a modern audience faces specific challenges and now that I've seen it, I'm not sure the new attempt pulls it off. 

Is this as bad as 1987 live action film? Not even close. That was a disastrous mess that wasn't even on a it's-so-bad-it's-good level. But is this a clever, self-acknowledging nostalgic tribute a la Dungeons and Dragons Honor Amongst Thieves? I don't think it gets there. It certainly leans into its self-awareness, mocking itself manytimes throughout, but it pushes past a teasing tone into mockery. 

And the story just isn't the fun, playful romp it needed to be. It's rather on the cliched and rote side. Dare I say it was a little dull? The production is at a high level (especially when we have 1987 to compare it too) but the script feels half-assed. The cast, acts like they are constantly winking at the audience with Leto and Brie being the most scenery chewing of the bunch. I get that it would be incredibly hard to take the premise and characters of Masters of the Universe not feel ridiculous but it could have been done with a tone that wasn't so condescending to itself and perhaps showed a bit more affection for the property. 

Masters of the Universe

Starring: Nicholas Galitzine, Camila Mendes, Idris Elba, Alison Brie, James Purefoy, Morena Baccarin, Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson, Kristen Wiig, Jared Leto, Dolph Lundgren, 

Director: Travis Knight

Writers: Chris Butler, Aaron Nee, Adam Nee, David Callaham

Backrooms (2026)

I am often drawn to films that explore what is unnerving over explicitly "scary" images. Sometimes this difference is more a matter of how we understand the experience than the experience itself. I find the ideas behind the story to be the parts which are the most effecting. Rarely do films which feature a "monster" chasing people scary. The idea of our understanding of reality being challenged is far more impactful for me. Backrooms is the sort of film that draws this out of its audience with its atmospheric unsettling ambiance. 

I understand the film has roots in initial images of subliminal spaces which went viral before being adapted into a web-series which had a following of it's own. Backrooms takes full advantage of the cultivated visual aesthetic from these sources creating a complete world it exists in that is so disquieting in both its familiarity and its uncanniness. The film's power lies in the way it takes the mundane and alters it slightly enough to rattle us. 

Backrooms sometimes feels like there are a few ideas being played with simultaneously but it does so mostly in a way that feels consistent. There are only a few moments where I felt like it was taking some short cuts (like a character explaining a little to much, or another stumbling upon answers a bit to quickly). 

Despite critiques that say the film is not traditionally horror, it does have some rather normal horror tropes such as a persistant, mostly unseen monster hunting down its final girl. Thankfully it uses this sparingly focusing more on the way the characters' memories and emotional interiors are fabricated into a confounding "reality". Parsons finds a balance between the stalking monster trope and the more interesting aspects of how we remember who we are and what that makes us into. 

I was worried the film would attempt to "explain" itself, especially in its end scenes which begin to go down that road, but fortunately it pulls back and leaves us with more questions than answers... exactly what it should do. Sometimes the film does attempt to provide us with a helping hand a bit more often than I would have preferred but I appreciated how the ending can be interpreted a few ways. I look forward to all the conversations about what this story.

Backrooms

Starring: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Renate Reinsve, Mark Duplass, Finn Bennett, Lukita Maxwell, Avan Jogia

Director: Kane Parsons

Writer: Will Soodik

Tuner (2026)

Sometimes a movie just comes together completely and Tuner is one of those movies. It has a great premise whose screenplay brings out its best features. The performances are top notch with Woodalll and Liu showing they both have the potential to carry a film. And Roher directs it all so beautifully into a really entertaining film. 

This is the sort of film I can confidently recommend to almost anyone. It gets a little intense at the end so I'd watch for that if you are somewhat sensitive, but it's worth risking that for such a pleasing movie. I really don't want to say too much about it except go see it. 

Turner

Starring: Leo Woodall, Dustin Hoffman, Havana Rose Liu, Lior Raz, Tovah Feldshuh, Jean Reno

Director: Daniel Roher

Writers: Robert Ramsey, Daniel Roher

I Love Boosters (2026)

I'll watch whatever Boots Riley puts out. He knows how to wrap up sharp social commentary into a delicious package that is a gas to watch. I Love Boosters certainly does fall into that category even if it starts to collapse onto its own silliness a bit by the end. Still I had a great time and I appreciate it's heart and soul. 

The film is very funny and visually incredible to watch. Riley has created a dystopic world for his very real world analogy and filled it with dynamic characters and a plot that perhaps cross just into the ridiculous. While I had a great time, I did feel it tipped over to the point where it became too much. But just a bit. I didn't feel it's overly optimistic ending was completely earned. 

 

Still having said that the film is a wonderful watch and it brings to the fore, with little to no nuance, very important issues. The best thing about this is Palmer's rich performance. Despite all the craziness around her she grounds her character so effectively and powerfully breathing a pathos into the film it might not have without her. Yet she remains part of this over-the-top world bridging it to our reality. 

I Love Boosters

Starring: Keke Palmer, Naomi Ackie, Taylour Paige, Poppy Liu, Eiza González, LaKeith Stanfield, Will Poulter, Don Cheadle, Demi Moore

Writer/Director: Boots Riley

The Mandalorian and Grogu (2026)

Reasons I loved The Mandalorian and Grogu:

1. Old fashioned genre adventure movie. This took me way back to the kinds of matinee adventures I'd see as a kid. It had monsters and gun fights and colourful characters. It had me on the edge of my seat and rooting for the good guys. The film offers a lot for fans of the series but is completely accessible to anyone of almost any age no matter how much Star Wars you have seen. You could easily walk in off the street knowing nothing about Star Wars and follow everything. 

2. Space westerns! There is something about this genre that just grabs me. I don't know what it is about the mix of styles and themes that gets me but this is something the Mandalorian series has done so well and this film continues that tradition. 

3. The use of practical effects. The film feels lived in and the richness of the visuals (which contribute back to #1 above) give is such a warmth and joy to watch. There is a lot of CGI as well but it doesn't take me out of it. 

4. Pedro Pascal (enough said).

5. This is an adoption story. I am a sucker for these. Whether it's Superman or The Mandalorian I love films that explore the richness of found family. Star Wars has a lot of this and I find it very moving. 

6. Sigourney. Legend. The Queen of Science Fiction. 

7. This is Star Wars. I am exactly the right to be in love with Star Wars. I was a kid for the original trilogy, in college for the prequels, and a parent taking my child to see the sequel trilogy. This space fantasy means the world to me and getting a new big screen adventure that embraces all that it is (Hutts! fighter battles! Zeb!) slaps a big smile across my face. The film echoes themes and moments from across the franchise (there is always a bigger fish) which is a big part of what makes Star Wars feel like Star Wars. 

8. Grogu is easily one of the most enjoyable characters to come out of Star Wars in a generation and seeing him get to star in this adventure made my little heart happy as all hell. 

The Mandalorian and Grogu is just damn fun with a lovely relationship at its core. It doesn't claim to be very much at all and that makes it just a really great time at the cinema. This is the series that made me fall in love with movies and this film is keeping that love alive!

The Mandalorian and Grogu

Starring: Pedro Pascal, Sigourney Weaver, Jeremy Allen White, Steve Blum, Brendan Wayne, Lateef Crowder

Director: Jon Favreau

Writers: Dave Filoni, Noah Kloor, Jon Favreau

Obsession (2026)

For me Obsession appears to know what it is trying to say but chooses to do something different instead. It takes a rather clever play on the careful-what-you-wish-for/monkey paw trope, an idea that in itself could be horrifyingly creepy and instead turns it into an excuse to lean into standard horror movie creepiness instead. The idea here, that a man chooses for a woman who she should be in love with against her will, would have been enough on its own to make a truly disturbing film. Instead Obsession is obsessed with just having her act creepy, violently, and uses jump scares to scare us. But the worst part is that the film hints at how scary it's actual premise is at moments before falling back into being just another horror movie like all the rest. 

The film starts out great. It sets up its story perfectly; a "nice-guy" is in love with a beautiful and truly lovely young woman who has apparently "friendzoned" him but can't bring himself to let her know how he feels. Instead he snaps a toy wish granter (which to be fair he thinks is just a joke and won't have any real effect) wishing that she would love him more than anyone in the world. From there the story gets going and for me gets off track. 

Imagine the film where she acted like a real person madly in love, perhaps unhealthily obsessed, perhaps acting out against those she sees as threatening to their relationship. He would have to wrestle with her possessiveness and with the reality that he knows this is not what she chose and that her love for him wasn't a choice she made. There is so much potential there. But this film mostly ignores that only taking short glimpses into that world. 

Instead it immediately has her acting "weird" like she's possessed by some evil spirit more like a traditional horror movie. She does a lot of things that no one would do in any realistic context. The film even has moments where it leans into the possession idea. But mostly it leaps from unnatural behaviour to violent act like it's an Exorcist movie. There is no reason she would feed him a cat nor walk around like a crab hiding in the dark. The film just felt off a lot of the time. What I wanted was for him to wrestle with the fact that he has essentially assaulted her and the worsening of this as he continues on but the film barely scratches this surface instead leaning into being creepy in a traditional horror movie sort of way. It's like the film has a very limited understanding of relationships and consent, the very things that this morality tale really need to work. 

As the film ends it finally taps into some of the energy I wanted from this and leaves its very bleak ending in a place that made sense to me. But by then I was already over this version of this story. Perhaps someone else will do a better job of this one day but this isn't that film. 

Obsession

Starring: Michael Johnston, Inde Navarrette, Andy Richter

Writer/Director: Curry Barker

Remarkably Bright Creatures (2026)

I'm not sure the talking octopus (talking as in narrating, not having conversations with his co-stars) bit in Remarkably Bright Creatures worked for me, but generally this charming little tale about two lost people finding themselves through *checks notes* their mutual friendship with an octopus (oh wait a minute) still won me over. Perhaps it's because Sally Field (she's still got it) and Luis Pullman are both strong actors who commit to the bit. Sure the final coinkydink might be a little far fetched and the story is somewhat chicken-soup-for-the-soul-ish, but the production just comes together in a rather enjoyable little film shot in Beautiful British Columbia and I am here for it. 

We get Field working opposite Chen, Baker, and Grant which is a treat just in and of itself. And honestly Octopuses are just cool. So there is little to complain about with Remarkably Bright Creatures even if I could nit-pick the thing to death. 

Watching this I was reminded how Pullman's father once made a run at being a romantic lead but it turned out he was much better in edgier roles. It will be interesting to see how Lewis fares on that front. 

Anyway, for a charming and lovely little watch you can do a lot worse than Remarkably Bright Creatures. And it might just bring a little smiley tear to your eye at the same time. 

Remarkably Bright Creatures

Starring: Sally Field, Lewis Pullman, Joan Chen, Kathy Baker, Beth Grant, Sofia Black-D'Elia, Colm Meaney, Alfred Molina

Director: Olivia Newman

Writers: John Whittington, Olivia Newman

Is God Is (2026)

Bold yet surprisingly emotional, Is God Is inverts the formula made popular by Tarantino types to deliver a nuanced contemplation on revenge and abuse that centres the female experience and perspective. it utilizes much of the genre tropes (elaborately larger than life characters and cartoonish yet shocking violence) to examine the American experience of intimate partner violence and its gendered performance. A talented cast the truly shows up for this story makes it all work so remarkably even if there are some short cuts. Is God Is becomes a gut punch that has a voice.  

I want to shout out Young and Johnson who play the central characters with a sensitivity within the hyper-stylized world of Is God Is. They are under layers of make-up and are playing out a morality play that is less based in the real world, yet they make their characters so wonderfully rich and real. Their quest for revenge against a world that mistreats them and the specific man who is most responsible is something you feel as the audience. 

Is God Is' strength is in how it doesn't let go of its gender critique. It knows the roots of the violence it is exposing and it doesn't let it slip. There are times the film presents characters meant to be morally ambiguous or even redeemable and it pulls that rug from us to highlight how pervasive male on female violence is and how much those on the periphery of the violence support it. Is God Is doesn't blink despite how much we may want it to. We want to be able to turn away but so much of what this film does prevents us from doing so. 

By the time the film reaches its conclusion its audience is shaken and hopefully rethinking a lot of what we want to think about these issues. Writer/director Harris has a powerful vision and voice and I hope we see a lot more of her in the world of cinema. 

Is God Is

Starring: Kara Young, Mallori Johnson, Janelle Monáe, Erika Alexander, Mykelti Williamson, Vivica A. Fox, Sterling K. Brown

Writer/Director: Aleshea Harris

Hamlet (2026)

Proving once again that Shakespeare's plays are endlessly adaptable, director Karia has crafted an energetic, adrenaline fuelled Hamlet, set in modern London's South Asian community. Instead of centred around royal lineages its focus is on corruption in business. Regardless of the setting the film finds the powerful spark of the story and the language and brings it to energetic life. 

At the centre of this is the central intense performance of Ahmed. Him taking on the ultimate starring role is likely enough of a justification for making this film at all and he delivers on the responsibility of that. His Hamlet is no wavering violet. He is a man of action whose central question is how much he will act. Ahmed, deservingly defying all Hollywood expectations of what sort of roles he should take, plays the role boldly crafting a Hamlet unlike those we've seen before. So much of what makes this film work is this central performance. 

The adaptation collapses numerous characters together, reassigns lines to different speakers, and repurposes the narrative elements to tell an evolved story. It is an ostentatious attempt which works to give the play a new urgency. The script is tight, holding just what is necessary and jettisoning the rest so its pace is rapid and kinetic. My only complaint is how sometimes the film feels in too much of a hurry to get through its plot point. Perhaps it could have sat with some of its pathos a bit. 

I was most impressed with how it handles the climax. Perhaps this is where the film does find something more quietly powerful. It is a quite the twist on the famous ending that still captures the play's finale but fitting with this time period and plot. 

Yet even with all this Hamlet remains Hamlet and the film captures what has made this story so compelling for centuries. I felt a bit breathless watching this new take and glad to once again get to see Ahmed play such a vibrant character. 

Hamlet

Starring: Riz Ahmed, Morfydd Clark, Joe Alwyn, Sheeba Chaddha, Avijit Dutt, Art Malik, Timothy Spall

Director: Aneil Karia

Writer: Michael Lesslie

Blue Heron (2026)

Romvari's quiet yet chilling drama is something to behold. She tells her story with a soft power that is undeniable. Blue Heron will leave you with a lot of emotion while also being a beautiful film to watch. 

This is the story of a woman remembering her brother who exhibited disturbing anti-social behaviour as a child. It is told through memory so as we watch we begin to see all the pieces don't quite fit together. It is more like how we remember things than how things happen. But this is a big part of the strength of the film. 

Romvari doesn't do anything shocking or sensational in her film and sometimes we aren't even sure how concerning things truly are. I found this to make it even more powerful. It feels real; the exhaustion, the desperation. 

Romvari issues a strong debut which makes it exciting to think what she will do next. 

Blue Heron

Starring:  Eylul Guven, Amy Zimmer, Ádám Tompa, Iringó Réti

Writer/Director: Sophy Romvari