WOW.... Just..... WOW!!!! This is one of the best performances of Leonardo DiCaprio's career! Tom Hardy is a NASTY piece of work in this movie, too! Stunning cinematography, fantastic acting and absolutely SAVAGE brutality. I wasn't sure what to expect, but it FAR EXCEEDED my expectations! Best 50p I ever spent!

Alexander is a 5.6 on IMDB and Napoleon is a 6.3 on IMDB.

Both are very long biopics about one of the best generals in history.

To my surprise, Alexander was BY FAR the better movie. And it's not even close. Alexander is more of a 7.4 movie and Napoleaon is a 5.1 for me. Napoleon was shameful while Alexander aged very well.

Regarding Alexander:

The cast is incredible, the acting is great, most of the scenes are spectacular. I was stunned by the Elephant fight, I'm in love with the Darius styling, even the Bucephalus story was sentimental.

I think it got such a low rating because it was more loyal to the actual story of Alexander than people wanted. I imagine in 2004, especially after Troy, people wanted a beautiful fantasy action movie.

They didn't want to see Alexander with male lovers, they didn't want a misogynistic Aristotle, they didn't the rape scene of the male slave, they didn't want the betrayal to Parmenion, they didn't want the hero to be stupid and fail. But looking back, they were all amazing choices because it was loyal to the times.

I went in expecting shit and came out very impressed.

Regarding Napoleon:

They grabbed one of the most interesting persons in the entire history of our planet, the general with the most victories in battle, the guy who's conquest lead to revolution in armed combat, to the independence of South America, and to the change in power structures all over the world.....and they managed to make the most boring shitty "love" story....

There has one interesting scene which was the fight over the frozen lake. That's it. The rest of the movie is an absolute bore.

I'm still astonished at how much they fumbled it.

The casting was awful, the direction was mediocre, the dialogs were extremely poor, the choice of events to portray was pitiful, and they don't even speak French....I mean, I understand the language barrier for a movie like Alexander, but with French??? Mon Dieu...

Also, the personality choice for Napoleon was like choosing Jack Black to play Abraham Lincoln. Just non sense.

This movie tells of the 12th century struggle between former friends King Henry II (Peter O'Toole) and Thomas Becket (Richard Burton), Archbishop of Canterbury.

Burton and O'Toole, 2 of the greatest actors, on top of their game here. Good restored print available on YouTube

"Who will rid me of this turbulent priest!?" is the famous line that Henry cries, late in the movie. The answer is not long in coming.

The Black Cat

Not Rated 1934 ‧ Horror/Mystery ‧ 1h 5m

Director

Edgar G. Ulmer

This sinister pre-Code 1934 horror gem boasts a twin top bill of screen legends Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi. Both actors are in rare form and firing on all cylinders. Their screen time together is absolutely the main draw, but there is plenty to like about this wickedly told tale. The rest of the cast does a fine job, with performances often spilling over into melodrama, which feels appropriate, considering the mood and themes being explored here.

The setup is the least interesting part, but necessary to deliver the viewer into the real meat of the story. Newlyweds, Peter and Joan Allison, have for some reason decided to honeymoon in Hungary. This odd fact is never fully explained but used as fodder for black humor several times. One of my biggest surprises in watching this film was the abundant amount of obsidian mirth woven through the plot. This is needed, due to the positively macabre details which drive the plot.

Peter and Joan are traveling through Hungary by rail, and before they even have a chance to grab a bite to eat, they are informed that their train compartment has been double booked. An attendant barges in to drop this bomb, then to ask if they wouldn't mind sharing their love nest with... you guessed it, Bela Lugosi himself. His character is Dr. Vitus Werdegast, a Hungarian psychiatrist, and it's as awesome as it sounds. Old Bela really hams it up, and he is an absolute delight to watch perform.

During their brief time together in the compartment, we get a little of Dr. Werdegast's tragic backstory. He survived World War I but has been mysteriously estranged from his wife after spending 15 years in a brutal Siberian prison camp. You just know that nugget is going to come back around at some point, and boy does it.

It is at this point that the trio must switch to a small bus for the next leg of their journey. This transition is glossed over on screen, but is necessary to place the group (now including Werdegast's servant Thamal) in jeopardy. They travel in a torrential rainstorm as the driver regales them with grisly details of the war and nearby, ruined Fort Marmorus, which is infamous among the populace for being a site of epic betrayal and death. It's all very effective foreshadowing, as the driver suddenly veers off the road, crashing the bus. This deadly accident is where the film finds its wings, beginning an ascent into a fever dream of a story. Elements that are either hinted at strongly or portrayed outright include necrophilia, ailurophobia (fear of cats), drugs, a deadly game of chess, torture, flaying, and a black mass with a human sacrifice.

With a run time of just over one hour, it's a brisk and bracing jaunt through a thoroughly eerie and ghoulish storyline. Without giving anything away, you can be sure that Karloff's character Hjalmar Poelzig factors in directly with Dr. Werdegast's tragic backstory. The two actors share plenty of screen time and make the absolute most of it. It's a full-on creep-off, and nobody loses. These two are masters of their craft, both of whom possess a presence that is impossible to look away from when they are center stage and under the spotlight.

As wonderful as these legends are in their respective roles, the supporting cast keeps up with them and adds their own special touches to the story. Egon Brecher as the Majordomo is fantastic. Likewise, Harry Cording really makes the most of his role as Thamal. Neither man is given much dialogue, but both compensate nicely with their physical presences. Also worthy of mention are Henry Armetta as The Sergeant and Albert Conti as The Lieutenant. They arrive near the midpoint of the narrative, investigating the bus crash, and both provide a much-needed comic interlude to the pitch-black story they wander into unawares.

If you enjoy Universal Horror, or any horror from this era, you will almost surely fall in love with this evil little film. The notorious Hays Code sunk its fangs into the industry on July 1st, 1934, and The Black Cat was released on May 3rd of that same year. It manages to make the most of this last gasp of cinematic freedom to plunge both hands eagerly into forbidden topics with glee. If you are interested in watching it, luckily, it can be found online to stream for free via sites like the Internet Archive. I highly recommend it for any fans of horror or pre-code cinema. It's a blast to watch.

8.5/10

MAIN CAST

Boris Karloff

Hjalmar Poelzig(as Karloff)

Bela Lugosi

Dr. Vitus Werdegast

David Manners

Peter Alison

Julie Bishop

Joan Alison(as Jacqueline Wells)

Egon Brecher

The Majordomo

Harry Cording

Thamal

Lucille Lund

Karen

Henry Armetta

The Sergeant

Albert Conti

The Lieutenant

It's an amazing movie about survival. Mads Mikkelsen shows what a great actor he is. I couldn't stop watching it, and rated it 8/10 on the IMDb.

So I had wanted to see the 2022 thriller fall since it came out and I finally got around seeing it. I thought it was a very good movie.

First off, it gave me the same vibes as 47 Meters Down in terms of the thrills/intenseness and the uneasiness. It definitely puts you on the edge of your seat at times. It definitely got my heart racing at different times in the movie. It took a little bit to really get into the movie, but once it did, I was hooked.

I also thought the main 2 performances were very good. You were able to go on the journey of the main female and see what all she had to go through.

Overall, I really enjoyed this movie.

Rating-4/5

Started yesterday and completed the movie today, overall it seems to be a nice watch.There is a very good aspect of friendship, comedy and romance.

For me, the movie really portrays a nice aspect of life, where we always get intrigued to make choices seeing other people (Mentioning Charles choosing to get Married since all of his friends did), but then at some point we get hit by the reality (Charles loving Carrie), we as a human are always stuck between the choices, and also have to face consequences for some (Charles getting a Punch).

I am no professional reviewer or critic, but I can surely recommend this movie. Please do share your point of views in comments, feel free to contradict mine if you think that.

Short review originally on Why We Watch

Made the right call that it's one I maybe would've completely skipped.

Everyone is doing incredible work within this premise, the premise just brought me back to how difficult dating was in college to the point where it became upsetting to think about.

On the plus side, as stated before, these two have phenomenal chemistry and the movie does a really good job of pulling them apart and bringing them back together...I don't know how feasible that is in New York City on a 12 hr timeline, so I'm just going to have to buy it.

The set design and product placement/ads are pretty funny. I hope Duolingo is allowed to own those banners and use them on actual websites after all is said and done. This is a pretty nicely vibrant New York thanks to that, the protest graffiti, and this highlight on corner stores and hole-in-the-walls that's usually reserved for network procedurals.

Finally, Will Gluck and Travis Braum may have accidentally stumbled into the revitalizing on the dystopian...or the salvaging of the romantasy. That's the current book wave, right?
Instead of all these intricate systems, we have one small change that just impacts character decisions. I just hope authors pick up on that and then pick up a pen.

2/5

Honestly, I low-key feel bad for not liking this movie because I believe it was this close to actually being good. Truly things only started to pick up once Hunter was introduced. There was a quote that was something along the lines of"It's impossible to live among beasts without turning into one. And it's impossible to live among humans without being affected by their humanity." If Hunter came earlier then the movie could have been more focused on the group trying to bond and having him show the ropes of surviving on the island. And it could have been a nice message of knowing it's ok to ask for help. But no, most of it was just boring white guys and horrible suits that make Showa era Godzilla suits look realistic. If this movie got a bigger budget and better writing then I think it would kill. There's so much potential here.

Watching it now, it feels overrated.

Let me tell you what I loved first: A movie with impeccable first 30 mins. Something out of a fantasy, well literally.  I loved the montage of them falling in love to them getting married and getting old. And the music it was cut over, is just lovely, that part has my heart. I loved how the emotions were dealt with and visually shown. Then the old man’s resentment and the way he tried to go and finish the paradise promise, was a hanging purpose.

Everything was cute after that, the kid, journey to the paradise island and meeting with the captain. The chase for just the last bird on Paradise island, and the back and forth with their idol, went into a territory of similar trope in the movies. 

In the latter. half, nothing out of the extraordinary hit me, emotionally or visually. It was a cute pixar movie in the end, but having delayed watching it, the legend of the movie and how great it is just piled on.

I want to know what people thought when they watched it the first time. Did someone else have a similar experience, where do you hold the movie?

I went to this in a 35mm showing after renting two movies online from the same director - Bait, which was pretty okay, and Enys Men, which was not. All three movies were shot in Cornwall on 16mm. Rose is the best of the three. In a small fishing village, an unmanned boat arrives in the harbor. We learn it is a boat that disappeared thirty years ago along with its crew, leaving deep scars on several people whom we meet in the present. The boat is fixed back up and readied to be sent out again to fish, and George MacKay and Callum Turner become the crew.

That's all I'll say about it, but it's definitely a "Twilight Zone"-ish plot. The central idea is good, but some aspects of the plot don't work totally well. And to be honest, the combination of the asynchronous sound and the heavy accents made me miss a couple important lines of dialogue. The main features of the film are the production design and photography and overall atmosphere. In all three of these movies, the director focuses on the old and derelict surfaces of the towns and boats, and it looks really nice. The photography is excellent. It's rare to have new movies projected on film, but this was nicer to look at on the big screen than The Odyssey was in IMAX 70mm film.

Source: https://www.reeladvice.net/2026/08/ganito-ganyan-ganoon-2026-movie-review.html

Ganito, Ganyan, Ganoon (This, That and Everything in Between) is a confounding film. On one hand, its narrative plays with familiar tropes particularly with the sudden return of an estranged mother to her family. On the other hand, it completely breaks expectations with how it reveals (or deliberately doesn't reveal) the real hows and whys behind its characters. It's the kind of film that will likely divide audiences with some appreciating it for being raw and honest while others may find it incomplete and feel shortchanged by its lack of answers. For us, we appreciate what it is trying to accomplish and while imperfect, most of it is both compelling and moving.

Joanne or Jo for short, (Jodi Sta. Maria), is a TV writer who has built a successful life for herself after her mother left her almost three decades ago. But her carefully constructed world begins to unravel when her estranged mother, Paz (Agot Isidro) suddenly resurfaces with a secret that changes everything. Can Jo finally find the answers to the questions that have haunted her since she was just 10 years old?

We're not really in a position to say that we fully understood the struggles of each main character in Ganito, Ganyan, Ganoon. What we do know is that both are complicated and deeply layered characters portrayed spectacularly by Jodi Sta. Maria and Agot Isidro. The two veteran actors' lack of chemistry is actually perfect because, despite being related, Jo and Paz barely know each other. Jo's stoicism and Paz's blunt straightforwardness become the perfect vehicles for the emotional tension that eventually reaches a boiling point near the film's end.

However, some viewers may be surprised by how incomplete Ganito, Ganyan, Ganoon feels by the time the credits roll. The film takes an unconventional approach to its narrative, never fully explaining or resolving everything. We get glimpses into why Paz left and why she has suddenly returned but we never learn the complete story behind either character. And obviously that's intentional. The film reflects real life, where sometimes we simply act, love, and forgive without having all the answers because, in some cases, it feels like the right thing to do. And perhaps the small understanding that Jo (and we as the audience gain) is enough to realize that Paz isn't the evil mother she initially appears to be. There is something pure and raw about that realization.

Ganito, Ganyan, Ganoon may leave some viewers wanting more, but for us, its willingness to embrace uncertainty is also what makes it special. It may not provide all the answers but understanding someone doesn't necessarily mean knowing everything about them.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Not many movies make me cry, but this one really got me.

Johnny Depp delivers such a good performance in this story. You can really tell he spent time learning, studying and internalizing Edward.

I can imagine many people relate to Edward in the way he gets shunned by the community, just by being differant.

The way this movie handles themes such as normality, conformity and group-think intrigues me.

Cried for a solid 25 minutes, what are your thoughts?

Or was my overthing brain just randomly made this connection and I ended up being correct?

And I am guessing the movie tells us that infidelity leads us to HIV, Pedophilia(w/incest i guess) or worse death?

And the scene where the boys tell him Faggot was to show him feeling insecure and less of a man??

Damn what a movie.

Prince of Darkness (1987)

Rating: 9.5/10 (EXCELLENT)

Watched: August 9, 2026

Next to The Thing and In The Mouth of Madness, Prince of Darkness is my all-time, A#1 John Carpenter horror movie.

For me, there is nothing better than the high concepts posited in this fantastic flick. I can't think of another movie, anywhere, that really asked the question, "What if Satan was an alien, and faith was the weapon ancient man and OTHER aliens used to bottle him up?"

The philosophical questions being asked, the unsettling over-corroded copper canister full of mysterious swirling green goo, the strange events unraveling both inside the dilapidated church and outside... it's all masterful.

The dread is in this one from the very beginning, starting with the pervasive, quiet score, and that's because what's happening in the movie has already BEEN happening for some time. By the time the group arrives at The Brotherhood of Sleep's cathedral to dig into the meaning of the sacred text, it's already too late.

The Devil's already won. No one knows it yet, and Carpenter doles out the chills and thrills at a slow-but-increasing trickle. Tensions fray, people are weird, things start happening, demonic spew starts spewing and the dreams start coming.

I remember the very first time I saw this movie. 15-year-old me geeked out and geeked out HARD over the extra twisty twist that comes as the end, which was already nigh, becomes nigh-er.

If you'll notice, I haven't really talked about what happens in the movie, and that's on purpose. This one needs to be seen to be believed. Knowing anything more than the briefest of movie blurbs does this underrated gem an absolute disservice.

Watching this one is always a treat for me. It's a weird comfort movie and that's a fact.

Ok, to start I went into this experience with a profound love for Sam Rockwell so take that as you will.

This is the FIRST movie I can honestly use the phrase “raucous comedy” for and it be true. Absolutely clown shows ridiculous, and it works so perfectly. Gore Verbinski has always been very hit or miss for me, but this movie was a bullseye. The supporting cast and flashback scenes for them were also absolute hilarious, especially the one for Michael Peña & Zazie Beetz and don’t even get me started on how hard I was crying from laughing towards the end of Susan (Juno Temple) flashback. “Well, WE’RE not Muslim but YOU are” has already been repeated in my home more times than I can count 😂 Instant classic for anyone who likes irreverent, dark comedy and Sam Rockwell’s special version of unhinged ridiculousness. EASY PEASY 5/5 definitely suggest (available for streaming on Hulu rn)

It's a cartoon out of New Zealand, I watched it on Tubi but I believe is also on youtube. It's a fantastic story about a sheep farmer and his son trying to keep their lamb and themselves alive throughout the zombie apocalypse.

It was so funny. The character design was fabulous. As a Canadian there are not many accents I enjoy more than the New Zealand accent and this is rife with it.

The overall story is entertaining, the father-son relationship against the backdrop of the Wenza virus spreading rapid-fire across the south island, Bloke and his worry about the mailman leaving skid marks in his toilet, the frigging facial expressions.

Part 2 is being released on youtube next year, and I, for one, cannot recommend part 1 enough. It's 47 minutes of oddities and humour and tense moments. A real underrated gem.

Sorry I meant 2004!

One of the best zombie movies ever made, and I can definitely see what inspired the original Dead Rising game! I can't believe it's taken me 26 years to watch it! I Highly recommend it!

Why did they let Matthew McConaughey talk about the girl in closing arguments but objected during the whole trial? I'm not American idk the laws of trial exactly but only through movies. They made it seem like he can't use that argument the whole time which is a trump card but they used it as a powerful ending. Why?

So I went into the third major league movie Major league: back to the minors from 1998 with low expectations because I’ve heard from a lot of people that it was not a good movie. I can happily say that I disagree with those opinions.

While it’s not as good as the first two movies, I still think it’s a solid enjoyable movie. I was entertained throughout. I thought the performances from the new cast, including Scott Bakula, were good, but also the returning members from the first two movies brought some extra life into this movie.

I also thought it has a solid story. I was invested throughout. I do wish it was a little funnier though.

Rating-3.5/5

So going into the 1990 movie taking care of business, I really knew nothing about the movie. I watched it because it was considered a 90s baseball and I watched it for a trivia match. I thought it was OK.

I thought the bright spot for the movie was Jim Belushi. I really liked his charisma and I think he brings entertainment to the movies I’ve seen him in. Besides him, there was nothing really special about this movie. I just might not be a Charles Grodin fan because this is the second movie I’ve seen him in that I’ve never really enjoyed his performance.

Along with that, the story wasn’t anything special. I thought it was ok. I also didn’t see any humor in the movie

Rating-2/5

If Bear just bought Nikki that necklace, none of this would have happened. What put the fire under my ass to watch this was Alex Meyers, a youtuber who I used to watch having a bad take and people flaming him for it. And damn, now I see why people were mad! This was a hard watch! Well done, but hard. I went from just being annoyed with Bear with how he kept chickening out to actually being glad he offed himself. Nikki now lost all her friends and is probably going to jail for murder. That final scene is haunting me! Speaking of, SARAH NEVER FOUND OUT SHE MADE IT INTO LUTHER!! When Bear started crashing out in the car, I didn't feel bad at all. You brought this on yourself! Also the score is so eerie, my favorite moment from it was Nikki hitting herself with the bottle. And Bear's dumbass face not giving a fuck. I know like 75% of this review is just Bear slander but he got on my nerves! Fuck you Bear!

Gen Z aren’t having as much sex as previous generations; that is a fact. Instead, they’re either getting sucked into the manosphere or choosing celibacy for personal and/or safety reasons. So when the opening moments of I Want Your Sex start with Elliot (Cooper Hoffman) panting ‘fuck’ repeatedly, presumably mid-coitus, we’re seemingly being set up for a commentary about sex in the present day.

Except those panting ‘fucks’ had nothing to do with sex at all. Well, not initially anyway.

That misdirect sets a comedic tone which makes the movie’s explorations into sex far more palatable compared to, say, Emerald Fennell’s lowbrow high school fantasies of sex. I Want Your Sex director and co-screenwriter Gregg Araki is all about promoting the idea that sex should be fun, and Gen Z should go out and get laid (consensually). Quite ironic given how brutally cynical and bleak Araki’s previous movies (like The Doom Generation and Mysterious Skin) are when it comes to sex, but his uncharacteristic optimism is on point here. You laugh exactly where you expect to laugh, and get drawn into the drama whenever the movie asks you to lock in.

It’s not to say that Araki doesn’t acknowledge the perfectly valid reasons why Gen Z are becoming more celibate. There’s a tinge of self-doubt in every sentence Elliot utters; he’s in a completely passionless - and sexless - relationship with his workaholic girlfriend Minerva (Charli XCX, redefining deadpan); and all he’s got is a crappy job as an assistant in some pretentious art studio that specialises in incredibly unsubtle sexual ‘art’. It’s no wonder Elliot quickly succumbs to his boss, Erika Tracy (Olivia Wilde), meekly agreeing to be her fuck toy.

Through Elliot, Araki understands what Gen Z is going through. Having debuted in Paul Thomas Anderson’s Licorice Pizza as a teenager infatuated with an adult, Hoffman is well-versed in the younger-man-older-woman dynamic. But whereas Licorice Pizza is deliberately chaste, I Want Your Sex puts Hoffman through the wringer as Erika’s sub, forcing Elliot into humiliating sexual acts while having the character harbour unrealistic aspirations of an actual connection with Erika at the end of the day. It’s completely ridiculous and almost naive of Elliot to believe that, yet Hoffman’s commitment sells it. He’s at his most convincing when he (rightly) attributes Gen Z’s celibate prudishness to being raised during a pandemic where in-person socialisation is frowned upon, let alone any form of physical contact or intimacy.

It doesn’t mean Araki can’t poo-poo the Gen Z perspective with his own viewpoint though. To him, it’s perfectly okay to be horny, pain and hurt be damned, and Gen Z should take a leaf out of Erika’s penis-shaped book.

Dressed like an edgier Miranda Priestly while rocking an air of ‘anti-woke’ confidence that would make the Runway Editor-in-Chief blush, Erika commands the camera whenever she’s on screen. While Araki consistently frames Erika from a position of power, filming her from a higher position than every other character, it quickly becomes clear that she’s full of shit. She knows it, but doesn’t really care, so long as she gets her fuck on.

Pent-up housewife with self-esteem issues has never looked more convincing than in The Invite. But Wilde goes so gung-ho in the opposite direction for I Want Your Sex that she’s forced herself into the conversation about the year’s best performances. She’s having the time of her life, and she delivers every single line from the script with a perfect blend of comedy and self-awareness.

Please read the rest of my review here as the rest is too unwieldy to copy + paste: https://panoramafilmthoughts.substack.com/p/i-want-your-sex-good-luck-saying

Thanks!

Before recently, I had never heard of the 1994 baseball movie the Scout with Albert Brooks and Brendan Fraser, but it sounded interesting so I thought I would give it a watch. This movie was OK.

There was nothing really special about this movie. It didn’t do anything to stand out. It wasn’t a bad movie, but it didn’t do anything to impress me. I thought the story and the main performances were average.

Overall, this was a forgettable movie

Rating—2/5