Genre: Crime, Documentary
Actor: Alan Cooke, Bill Courtice, Deborah Gladding, Fernando Baldassini, Samantha Chang
Director: Jenny Popplewell
Genre: Crime, Documentary
Actor: Alan Cooke, Bill Courtice, Deborah Gladding, Fernando Baldassini, Samantha Chang
Director: Jenny Popplewell
Yet another drama designed to be emotional without actually doing the heavy lifting to get us invested, Prisoner's Daughter takes the easy way out at every turn, mistaking its use of capital-I Issues and dramatic plot points for substantial writing. This doesn't mean that the film itself isn't still watchable and competently performed (by a typically strong Brian Cox, but especially by Kate Beckinsale); it just fails to make a statement about any of its disparate parts mashed together. At the end of the day, it feels as if the film doesn't have enough faith in the already complex and difficult relationship at its center, so it attempts to dress it up with prison, cancer, drug addicts, and epilepsy—which only cheapens what's already there.
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Actor: Brian Cox, Christopher Convery, Chuti Tiu, Cinthia Moura, Ernie Hudson, Jon Huertas, Kate Beckinsale, Mark Kubr, Mark Oliver Everett, Steven Littles, Tyson Ritter, Yonel Dorelis
Director: Catherine Hardwicke
The latest installment of Ly Hai’s Face Off franchise has an entertaining premise with some terrible plot twists. With this premise, it’s almost expected to see the worst of the worst of people when given a jackpot, and it’s easy to feel distraught when this happens, because the initial dynamic between the six friends feels genuine. However, the fun and wacky hijinks devolve into seriously messed up plot twists. Some of these work, but certain scenes feel like it was just added for shock value at the expense of other characters. The film couldn’t choose between vilifying some characters and celebrating their friendship. Because of this, Face Off 6 feels like it missed its mark.
Genre: Action, Drama, Thriller
Actor: Huy Khánh, Huỳnh Thi, Lý Hải, Quốc Cường, Tiết Cương, Trung Dũng
Director: Lý Hải
Genre: Drama, Mystery
Actor: Asavapatr Ponpiboon, Chartchai Ketnust, Chertsak Pratumsrisakhon, Duangjai Hiransri, Gandhi Wasuvitchayagit, Nattawin Wattanagitiphat, Nonthakorn Chalermnai, Nutthasid Panyangarm, Ornanong Panyawong, Phakphum Romsaithong, Pongsakorn Ponsantigul, Pradit Prasartthong, Saifah Tanthana, Sornchai Chatwiriyachai, Sumontha Suanpholaat, Teerawat Mulvilai, Thanayut Thakoonauttaya
Director: Bhanbhassa Dhubthien, Chartchai Ketnust, Krisda Witthayakhajorndet
Genre: Comedy, Fantasy, Romance
Actor: Alexander Vlahos, Ayesha Curry, Carl Shaaban, Dakota Lohan, Dawn Bradfield, Ed Speleers, Elizabeth Tan, Ella Cannon, Jacinta Mulcahy, James Rottger, Jane Seymour, Lindsay Lohan, Matty McCabe, Maurice Byrne, Steve Hartland, Tim Landers
Director: Janeen Damian
You can tell that Blaze director Del Kathryn Barton is an award-winning visual artist first and foremost. The images that she puts together in this film are frequently stunning—making use of the camera in fascinating, freeing ways, and with lots of practical and computer-generated/animated effects that paint her young protagonist Blaze's world in glitter and feathers and lush colors. The imaginary dragon, which acts as a shorthand to symbolize Blaze's complex psychological response to her trauma, is a wonderfully tactile life-size puppet that lead actress Julia Savage responds to in an entirely convincing way.
But you can also tell that this is Barton's debut feature. Ultimately her visuals don't do enough to shake off or give meaning to the graphic scene of rape and murder that occurs at the beginning of the film. And the way she structures the movie threatens to make it feel like a series of music videos or video art pieces. Despite its originality and the level of commitment displayed by both Savage and Simon Baker, Blaze has difficulty communicating a coherent message about trauma—the film strung together by heavy-handed scenes that spell out various ideas and lead to the most obvious conclusions.
Genre: Crime, Drama, Fantasy
Actor: Bernie Van Tiel, Heather Mitchell, John Waters, Josh Lawson, Julia Savage, Kristy Wordsworth, Morgan Davies, Neal Horton, Rebecca Massey, Remy Hii, Simon Baker, Stephen James King, Will McDonald, Yael Stone
Director: Del Kathryn Barton
Genre: Comedy, Romance, TV Movie
Actor: Bert Seymour, Calypso Cragg, Catherine Hannay, Charlotte Wakefield, Dominic Andersen, Eliza Bennett, Erica Ford, Grace Hogg-Robinson, J.R. Esposito, JR Esposito, Kate Nichols, Nell Barlow, Nicholas Bishop, Olivia Benjamin, Richard Gibson, Robert Portal, Robin Weaver, Sarah Ferguson, Shin-Fei Chen
Director: Clare Niederpruem
Genre: Crime, Documentary, Mystery
Director: Patricia E. Gillespie
The Perfect Find follows Jenna (Gabrielle Union), a fashion editor trying to make a comeback after a public breakup and a high-profile firing. She lands a job at a new fashion magazine, but this is complicated when she falls for her charming and much younger coworker, Eric (Keith Powers), who just so happens to be the son of her boss. Admittedly, the plot is as cliche as can be, with a few shenanigans, quirky best friends, and an ex or two popping up in the third act. But it's also easy to fall for, especially with Union as the charismatic lead. The jokes about her character and Eric's age gap land well most times, and many parts of the film are beautiful enough, most notably: the talent, the color grading, and the eye-catching New York landscape.
Genre: Comedy, Romance
Actor: Aisha Hinds, D.B. Woodside, Gabrielle Union, Gina Torres, Godfrey, Janet Hubert, Keith Powers, La La Anthony, Leigh Davenport, Numa Perrier, Remy Ma, Shayna McHayle, Sterling 'Steelo' Brim, Ts Madison, Winnie Harlow, Yrsa Daley-Ward
Director: Numa Perrier
Tarot’s biggest success is managing to resemble not just a sterile horror comedy, but bits of an actual feel-good horror film (in hindsight, of course it's possible with Ned from Spider Man). The tarot-reading cold open gives us lovely friend group vibes and makes astrology/tarot feel accessible, though it does become the vehicle for wordy and blatant foreshadowing. Still, the most striking scenes of the film come in generic scenes of isolation, which is a shame for that initial friendship dynamic. As a result, we’re left with a promising and friendly adventure in horror that ultimately drags and peters out into forgettable nothingness.
Genre: Horror
Actor: Adain Bradley, Avantika, Harriet Slater, Humberly González, Jacob Batalon, James Swanton, Larsen Thompson, Olwen Fouéré, Wolfgang Novogratz
Director: Anna Halberg, Spenser Cohen
In the sea of mommy-horror films, Run Rabbit Run would float somewhere in the middle. Despite Sarah Snook's imposing commitment to playing a mother haunted by her past, the story doesn't meet her halfway with a memorable script. The dynamic between mother and daughter gets stuck in an exhausting loop of sudden bursts of anger and angst followed by glaringly quick reconciliation. Twists and scares are present as Snook's character, also named Sarah, confronts the dark and disturbing truths of her past, but it feels more mandatory than useful. The potential for transforming gripping familial tension into horror is lost in a meandering mother/daughter fight.
Genre: Drama, Horror, Thriller
Actor: Damon Herriman, Genevieve Morris, Georgina Naidu, Greta Scacchi, Julia Davis, Katherine Slattery, Lily LaTorre, Michala Banas, Naomi Rukavina, Neil Melville, Sarah Snook, Trevor Jamieson
Director: Daina Reid
Genre: Action, Comedy, Crime
Actor: Alice Taglioni, Antoine Duléry, Baptiste Lecaplain, Benjamin Baroche, Franz Lang, Jess Liaudin, Katrina Durden, Lucien Jean-Baptiste, Noémie Lvovsky, Stefi Celma
Director: Noémie Saglio
Seemingly engineered in a lab to appeal strictly to romantic comedy enthusiasts who are familiar with every trope, Make Me Believe is charming and enjoyable in the moment, but ultimately does little with its ingredients. The things that it gets right are pretty foolproof: beautiful Turkish locales, steamy PG-rated romance, and a good dose of humor from supporting characters who can see the spark of love even before the couple does. Unfortunately this is all window dressing for a story built on flimsy foundations. The protagonist's assignment to book an interview doesn't actually carry that much weight, which makes the risk of pursuing and/or seemingly betraying her childhood neighbor feel inconsequential. And when these two characters inevitably meet in the middle, their connection is unconvincing, draining the excitement out of everything that follows.
Genre: Comedy, Romance
Actor: Ayça Ayşin Turan, Çağrı Çıtanak, Ekin Koç, Naz Çağla Irmak, Yıldız Kültür, Zerrin Sümer
Director: Evren Karabıyık Günaydın, Murat Saraçoğlu
Genre: Drama, Romance
Actor: Adriano Giannini, Bellina Logan, Ben Youcef, Diana Silvers, Guo Tao, Gustav Dyekjær Giese, Heeba Shah, Herbert Russell, Laura Dern, Liam Hemsworth, Michelle Greenidge, Rachida Brakni, Sami Fekkak, Shosha Goren, Sundra Oakley
Director: Susannah Grant
Set in the capital of Peru, How to Deal with a Heartbreak is a follow-up to the mildly successful romantic comedy How to Get Over a Breakup. The titles are pretty self-explanatory, but where the first film is strictly about romance, the sequel experiments with more tender themes like family and friendship. It features everyday characters meant to seem relatable and endearing, but halfway through watching, one can’t help but wonder why any of this matters. The stakes are so low and the premise so ordinary, it feels like a huge effort to simply care about the movie. Some rom-coms are saved by a funny script or a charming cast, but this has none of that. The most rousing part of the film is when one character (I won’t divulge who) dies, and so Maria Fe is forced to grapple with the heaviness of death. It’s the one moment in the movie that feels real, but sadly it’s tossed aside to make way for more generic fare.
Genre: Comedy
Actor: Ana María Orozco, Carlos Carlín, Christopher Von Uckermann, Gisela Ponce de León, Jason Day, Jely Reategui, Karina Jordán, Norma Martínez, Salvador del Solar
Director: Joanna Lombardi