Category Archives: 2026 Movie Reviews

Hokum

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Ahhhhhhhhh

This was one of the creepiest movies of the year. I legitimately had chills as the movie progressed.

I missed this one in the theater because of schedule so when it popped up on Fandango at Home today for rental, I was ready to watch it. Then, I was scared throughout it.

Typically, I am not scared by movies, but there was no denying that this one hit just right for me.

According to IMDB, “A horror writer visits an Irish inn to scatter his parents’ ashes, unaware the property is said to be haunted by a witch.”

Adam Scott starred as writer Ohm Bauman, a bad-tempered man who came to the area to spread the ashes of his recently deceased parents. He was really an unlikable character at the beginning of this movie, but you get past that very quick after a shocking event at the hotel.

This film falls into the sub-genre of haunted house films, and it does it in a magnificent way. The jump scares were kept at a minimum and when they happen, they are so well executed that it fit into the story.

Everything looked great, the music really worked well, and I was engaged in this film. I was rooting for Bauman to get out of the hotel and the story did not disappoint me.

I was so happy that I got to see this one.

4.5 stars

Pressure

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When I saw the trailer for this movie, it felt like a silly idea. How the meteorologists helped save D-Day? Apparently it was a true story, but it really seemed ridiculous. However, this movie rocked.

According to IMDB, “In the tense 72 hours before D-Day, General Dwight D. Eisenhower and Captain James Stagg face an impossible choice–launch the most dangerous seaborne invasion in history or risk losing the war altogether.“

This movie was fascinating and full of intensity. I was very impressed with both Andrew Scott and Brendan Fraser. Fraser was Dwight D. Eisenhower and Scott was James Stagg, the meteorologist. The tension between the characters is absolutely sharp and fills the screen. Scott has some great performances with the stuff that he got to play was amazing.

I had no idea that weather could be as exciting as it was. The differing ideas behind the way to predict the weather from Stagg and Col. Krick (played by Chris Messina) was interesting. It showed how two different meteorologists can look at the same thing and come up with different points of view.

There was not much war scenes in this war movie, as it was more in the vein of Darkest Hour, but the scenes that they did include was very tough to watch.

Another actor who I thought did great job was Kerry Condon, who played Eisenhower’s associate Kay Summersby. She was one of the most empathic characters I have seen in a long time in a movie like this. She felt like she was holding everything together.

I never thought I was going to like this movie, and it turned out to be sensational. It goes to show that you should not make up your mind on a trailer before you actually see the product.

4.4 stars

Backrooms

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So far this year, we have had several YouTubers taking a step into the world of big theatrical movies. Mark “Markiplier” Fischbach’s film Iron Lung, which made $51 million on a three million dollar budget, and Curry Barker’s film Obsession was hugely successful over the last couple of weekends.

This week, 20-year-old Kane Parsons entered the world of big screen films with this adaptation of his own web series, Backrooms.

Backrooms has been anticipated by a lot of the movie audience as they have done a great job of promoting the creepiness of the film.

Starring Chiwetel Ejiofor, Renate Reinsve, Mark Duplass, Finn Bennett, and Lukita Maxwell, this film was a crazy, weird, creepy film, using techniques of found footage movies, to build the suspense and anxiety of the situation.

According to IMDB, “After a therapist’s patient disappears into a dimension beyond reality, she must venture into the unknown to save him.“

The film was great. The mystery of what was going on was very psychologically scary and unsettling. The found footage camera work showed the strength of that technique. I found it thrilling and there was great acting involved in it.

This does a great job of using the concept of liminal space, which is one of those internet memes/deep dives that many are intrigued by.

I am not sure how I felt about the ending of the film. I was not as satisfied by the ending as I was the rest of the film. Obviously, I can not spoil it, but I just did not love the end.

I found this creative film fun and engaging, keeping the audience unsettled and anxious.

4.1 stars

Swapped

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The final movie I got a chance to see today in an animated movie on Netflix called Swapped from Skydance. The main character of the show was voiced by Michael B. Jordan.

The synopsis of this movie says that two creatures swap bodies, hence the title, but to be honest, that is not accurate. They do not actually swap bodies like in Freaky Friday or any other number of movies. Instead, there is a magic plant that changes them into a different species. It is only coincidental that they change into the species of each other.

This movie started real slowly for me. I was having a hard time getting into the film and it was not grabbing my attention. However, the movie picked up and by the middle of the film, and by the end, I was fully engaged with the story and the results.

The animation was lovely and the character designs were very impressive. The kids will love the look of this movie.

Along with Michael B. Jordan, the voice cast included Juno Temple, Tracy Morgan, Cedric the Entertainer, Justina Machado, Ambika Mod, John Ratzenberger, and Nate Torrence.

It did feel a little long, but the last half of the film flied along with a better pace. I think this eventually found its voice and turned out well.

3.4 stars

The Crash

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Next up came a documentary on Netflix that looked at the story of a crash that cost the life of two boys and the trial of the driver, a teenage girl suspected of crashing her car intentionally in an attempt to murder her boyfriend.

The Netflix doc focused on Mackenzie Shirilla, an Ohio teenager who was behind the wheel of the car crashed into a brick house, killing her boyfriend Dominic Russo and friend, Davion Flanagan.

We got to hear from all of the family members of the three kids, including Shirilla’s father, who was wearing a tee-shirt with the word “BOOM” on it, in what had to be one of the dumbest wardrobe choices in the history of TV.

The doc laid out the case against Mackenzie Shirilla, giving info from both sides of the case, however it did feel as if the prosecution side was given more compelling moments.

There are several questions that were brushed aside that may have been significant. Mackenzie was not a very likable girl, at least from what we saw. Her persona may have been why she chose to forego a jury trial, which I think was a big mistake. The defense attorney did not seem to be remarkably competent in his defense as there were things that could have/should have been brought up that were not. Of course, we did not see the full defense and only see what the documentarians chose t include.

It is a fascinating story and I am not sure what side I fall on. I can absolutely say that, as the driver, Mackenzie Shirilla was responsible, but was she attempting to kill Dominic in the process? I am not sure.

3.75 stars

Exit 8

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Exit 8 was another film that I could have seen in the theater, but could not make it fit the schedule. So I rented it today on Fandango at Home. The Japanese sci-fi/thriller is one of the best movies that I have seen in 2026.

According to IMDB, “A man trapped in a endless sterile subway passageway sets out to find Exit 8. The rules of his quest are simple: do not overlook anything out of the ordinary. If you discover an anomaly, turn back immediately. If you don’t, carry on. Then leave from Exit 8. But even a single oversight will send him back to the beginning. Will he ever reach his goal and escape this infinite corridor?“

This movie engaged me so much, I was literally yelling at my computer screen, wanting the characters to follow my instructions. It was a simple set up with a complex morality tale. I absolutely loved this film and the experience of watching it.

The film was in Japanese, but the dialogue was limited, which made it a breeze to follow along with the subtitles.

Kazunari Ninomiya was our main protagonist whose point of view we start with in the very beginning of the movie. His eyes were literally the camera to the scenes we were watching. However, that does not last long as the POV switched once he was inside the subway corridor.

There was also the “Walking Man,” played by Yamato Kochi and the Boy, played by Naru Asanuma. The young actor does a sensational job with nearly zero dialogue. To be honest, I am not sure I understood the Walking Man’s role in this narrative, but that did not stop me from being invested in the characer.

Based on a video game, Exit 8 had me looking for every little detail and found me frustrated when the characters did not see the same.

The ending of the film had me screaming out loud, first in desperation and then in joyousness. It was beautifully shot and made me extremely happy.

I loved this movie. I did not expect that this was going to be one of the best movies I would see in 2026, but I am so pleased that I took the chance with a Japanese film.

5 stars

They Will Kill You

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Happy Memorial Day. With the day off school, I am using today to catch up on a bunch of films, now on streaming, that I have not yet seen in 2026. The first film up today is a horror/action/comedy movie called They Will Kill You starring Zazie Beetz.

I had seen the trailer for this film in the theaters, but it only lasted like a week or so in the theaters and I did not get to see it. Honestly, I did not think I would miss it much. It did not seem to be my cup of tea. However, after watching the film this morning, I have to say that I was wrong. This was a heck of a good time.

According to IMDB, “A woman takes a job as a housekeeper in a NYC high-rise, unaware of the building’s history of disappearances. She soon realizes the community is shrouded in mystery.”

That synopsis does not do justice to this story, which, admittedly, is rather thin and coincidental. Still, this is not one of those films where you go in expecting a deep and fully developed story. There was just enough background in the film to make the action and brutality to come understandable.

Zazie Beetz is sensational in her violent, bad ass way. After her first scene in her room inside the building, the shocking reveal of what was going on was out of nowhere and I was here for it.

The rest of the cast was fun, featuring some reasonably big names including Patricia Arquette, Tom Felton, Heather Graham, Myha’la, James Remar, and Paterson Joseph.

I found much of the film very funny. Again, this movie does an admirable job of blending tones through the film. It has comedic beats that feel like they work well with the gory horror moments and the action/adventure moments. It is not easy to blend tones and more movies that try to do it fail than succeed. They Will Kill You is one that makes it look easy.

I wish I had seen this on the big screen. I think the violence would have popped all the more. Still, I enjoyed renting this on Fandango at Home and it kicked off today’s binge in a exciting and dramatic manner.

3.8 stars

Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu

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It has been seven years since we got a new Star Wars film on the big screen. That last film was the much maligned Rise of Skywalker, which most of the fanbase either disliked it or outright hated.

However, the Disney + show, The Mandalorian, has been popular over the first three seasons, and the announcement of the next movie being a continuation of the show received mixed responses. The character of Grogu, who was known first as Baby Yoda, was a phenomenon in pop culture and was suddenly everywhere.

With the new film, starring Pedro Pascal as The Mandalorian, we get a mixed bag of a movie with some positives and some negatives that does not feel like a return to the big screen for Star Wars. It really does feel like a TV season crammed into two hours of a film.

Start with the positives. I love these two titular characters and I love the idea of spending more time with them. However, if I had not already watched three seasons of TV, I might not understand what was going on. The film does not spend much time setting up the relationship between Mando and Grogu. It just feels as if they are expected to know it.

The action sequences are mostly excellent. The beginning sequence, in particular, was exceptional. I did enjoy much of the action of the film.

The CGI had its moments, but there were also moments of CGI that were not well done. Some of the green screen (or is it The Volume?) was painfully apparent and below what one would expect from this franchise.

The story feels stitched together among the different moments of the script. There are things that happen in the film that show up out of nowhere and does not play much of a part in the film. There was a scene with a creature in the woods that helps out Grogu that feels like the character was going to be more significant than it turned out to be. It is possible that this character is known in the Star Wars universe and I am not recognizing the Easter egg.

The middle of this film was pretty boring and repetitive. There is only so many times that I need to see Grogu steal some food to eat.

Interestingly enough, they never once call the Mandalorian by his name Din Djarin, referring to him as Mando instead.

Sigourney Weaver is in the film, doing little. Jeremy Allen White voiced Rotta the Hutt, a character that debuted in the animated programs. Much of the dialogue of this film was not great and fairly surface level at best.

The best part of the film was the score by Ludwig Göransson, who has won an Academy Award. The score was very engaging.

The Mandalorian and Grogu is an okay movie. I liked much of the film, but I do not think that it elevated my enjoyment of any of the characters or the franchise. It was okay. I did not come out of this hating it, but there just is not anything that I feel needed to be on the big screen.

3 stars

Remarkably Bright Creatures

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It has been a good couple of weeks for talking animal movies.

Last week, I was absolutely taken with Sheep Detectives and this week, I was able to watch the Netflix film starring Sally Field and Louis Pullman called Remarkably Bright Creatures. This featured an octopus, voiced by Alfred Molina (who coincidentally played Doctor Octopus in Spider-Man 2 and No Way Home) as the narrator.

According to IMDB, “Through unlikely bonds formed during night shifts at a local aquarium, Tova, an elderly widow, learns of a life-changing discovery that may bring her joy and wonder once again.“

Sally Field really came to work in this movie. Her portrayal as Tova was just so sweet and touching, but more than just that. She had a real emotional arc for her character and a tragic backstory that was impactful as could be. I was really impressed with her work in this movie.

I did not recognize Louis Pullman at first, but about midway through the movie, I thought to myself… “Hey, that’s Sentry… Bob.” He, as well, was fabulous, giving a depth to a performance with a character that could have been one note, but turned out to be extremely developed.

I also loved seeing Kathy Baker back on my screen. Kathy Baker was one of the stars of Picket Fences, a show that I loved, and it was just a nice surprise seeing her in this.

Alfred Molina’s narration was kind of odd, but it did provide some important relevant details as the movie progressed. Plus, there were some emotionally powerful moments with Marcellus, the name of the octopus that Molina was voicing. It took a little bit of time for me to get used to the idea, but by the end of the movie, this was an important role.

I enjoyed this story. Even though it did feel a bit scattered early on, it came together beautifully. I did enjoy the presence of Colm Meaney as Ethan. His character may have felt kind of unnecessary, but the film took time to actually give him a personality.

This was a lovely film with some solid characters and some excellent performances. It is available for streaming on Netflix and it is a worthwhile time.

4.5 stars

Is God Is

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I saw a horror movie this morning that felt like it was not a typical horror movie. After that, I went to see Is God Is, which is a revenge flick that did not feel like a typical revenge flick. It was a good day for creative filmmaking.

The title made no sense to me at all. Is God Is? What was that? Honestly, I almost did not go to the film, because the title had me confused. However, once I noticed which film this actually was (I have seen trailers for this), I was excited to see it.

According to IMDB, “Two sisters embark on an epic quest for revenge; confronting a charged family history that will push them to extraordinary lengths.”

This was a story not just about two sisters, but specifically about twins. Kara Young played Racine and Mallori Johnson played Anaia, twins who had lifelong scars when their father had attempted to murder their mother by setting her on fire. I don’t know if the actor playing their father is known, so I am going to not mention him by name, but this actor created an amazingly horrific individual.

However, there was more than just the pursuit of their father going on and it made me question whether I should be pulling for Racine during this film. I loved the level of shades of grey in the script, which I feel gets overlooked in a lot of revenge movies.

I loved the way the film showed the “twin mind link” by putting what the twins were thinking, as if they had a telepathic connection between them. They just knew what the other was thinking, but it still ended up with a conflict between the sisters in the movie.

There is a great ensemble of black actors in this movie including Vivica A. Fox, Janelle Monáe, Mykelti Williamson, Erika Alexander, Xavier Mills, Josiah Cross, and Justen Ross.

The flashbacks to the horrible events of the past really worked to keep the motivation of the twins going as it seemed to start off as a road film before changing into a brutal revenge flick.

Kara Young and Mallori Johnson are outstanding together. You buy them as twins who are so tight that they know what the other is thinking, and, because of that, the third act hits even harder. I found the ending very satisfying.

4.2 stars

Obsession

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I looked for the classification for this movie on IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes, and the new movie called Obsession was listed as a horror movie. Certainly, this is a horror movie, but I thought this would be labeled as Horror/comedy and there was no mention of comedy. I found much of this film funny, and so I am surprised that it was not labeled as a Dark or Black Comedy.

Fact is I have never had a movie that I can recall that made me laugh so much only to make me ridiculously uncomfortable and uneasy.

According to IMDB, “After breaking the mysterious ‘One Wish Willow’ to win his crush’s heart, a hopeless romantic finds himself getting exactly what he asked for but soon discovers that some desires come at a dark, sinister price.“

Michael Johnston played Bear and Inde Navarrette played Nikki, our two main lead protagonists. Navarrette, in particular, really reached the zenith of performances as she seemingly embraced the absolute insanity of this character. She clearly did not hold back anything on this film. She was so unsettling which was remarkable.

Part of the film’s most unsettling elements is the sound design. Nikki’s screams were so unnerving and the music was done so amazingly that I could feel my suspense and anxiety hyping up throughout the movie. It was absolutely noticeable and purposeful, and it worked extremely well.

I was surprised how funny this movie was and how much I felt bad when I was laughing. The situation is a horrible one and it has so many tragic undertones, yet there are scenes played for laughs that underscore the pain and tragedy. I think this is a very difficult balance to maintain, and I think Obsession does it expertly well.

I do think there are some scenes that could be cut down to make the film a little shorter. However, I would not touch the third act of the film, which was just wonderfully put together.

There are some deep characters here doing things that make you see them in different manners. Our protagonist, Bear, does not seem to be a very good person, or at least, his choices seem to outline him as a selfish person.

I thought this was one of the best horror movies of 2026 so far and I look forward to seeing where the career of Inde Navarrette goes from here as this feels like a breakout performance for her.

4.4 stars

The Drama

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I have wanted to watch The Drama for the longest time. The synopsis of the film made me intrigued and I do like the pairing of Zendaya and Robert Pattinson.

But it seemed like every week, something got in the way of me going to the see the fil. There were too many other movies or my schedule changed or just couldn’t fit it into the time frame I had available. It felt like the film was just being snakebit the whole time.

So I had made the determination that once The Drama came out on streaming, I would sit down and watch it, no excuses.

Finally, I watched the movie on Fandango at Home.

It was not what I was expecting.

According to IMDB, “A happily-engaged couple is put to the test when an unexpected turn sends their wedding week off the rails.”

I thought this worked very well as a darker film. I’m not sure I would define it as a dark comedy, but it did have specific parts of the story that was unexpectedly uncomfortable and difficult to process.

I do not want to spoil the main conflict of the film because it was one that I did not see coming and it did create some provocative thoughts.

Both Zendaya and Robert Pattinson do a tremendous job as this pair that were so in love only to have the rug pulled out from under them, leading them to doubt what they feel for each other.

I could see the conflict being triggering for some and that might be even tougher to watch. I am not sure if you want to go in blind or not.

I am glad that I finally got around to The Drama. I thought it was definitely worth the wait.

3.5 stars

The Sheep Detectives

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This has to be a leading candidate for surprise of the year. I had seen the trailers for The Sheep Detectives and it made it look like a cute family film that had a definite chance to be really dumb. However, The Sheep Detectives is one of my favorite movies of the year. I know that sound bizarre, but it is 100% true.

According to IMDB, “Every night a shepherd reads aloud a murder mystery, pretending his sheep can understand. When he is found dead, the sheep realize at once that it was a murder and think they know everything about how to go about solving it.“

Hugh Jackman played the shepherd named George and kicked off this murder mystery with a lot of heart. Jackman was so charming and outstanding that you feel for this character even though you knew coming in that he was going to be the victim of this murder mystery.

The voice cast of the sheep was sensational including Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Brett Goldstein, Patrick Stewart, Chris O’Dowd, Bryan Cranston, Rhys Darby, Regina Hall, and Bella Ramsey.

The story was way more emotional than I ever expected it to be. There were moments of the film where I had tears in my eyes and even a few that rolled down my cheek. It was not only emotional, but it was very funny, clever, charming and had a murder mystery that was actually well designed.

I was not expecting this movie to be as deep as it was. I expected a silly family movie with some dumb talking animals. Instead, this film took the tropes of a murder mystery and broke them down, turning the genre on its ear. All that with talking sheep characters.

I should specify that the sheep are not talking to humans like a Disney film. To the humans, they sound like sheep, but they speak to each other.

The film also has a storyline weaved into the story about prejudice/bigotry within the sheep community. Again, it was a story beat that I just did not expect, and it was not just a throwaway beat. It became a major part of the overall plot.

Brett Goldstein was hilarious doing the voices of Ronnie and Reggie, two rams always looking to butt heads.

This was based on a book Three Bags Full by Leonie Swann.

There is no way this movie should be as fabulous as it turned out to be. I am currently placing it right around the same place as Project Hail Mary and that just does not make sense. However, if you see this movie, you will understand why. I had such a great viewing experience with this movie that I came out of it feeling so great.

5 stars (…no really)

Edit: I forgot to mention about the live action actor here. They all do a remarkable job in this film including a small but vital performance by the awesome Emma Thompson. Nicholas Braun, Molly Gordon, Nicholas Galtizine, Conleth Hill, Hong Chau, Tosin Cole, and Kobna Holdbrook-Smith all bring a great energy to the film and help create the fabulous story.

Mortal Kombat II

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I was not a fan of the last Mortal Kombat movie. There was one in 1995 that fell into the category of so bad, it’s good, and there was one in 2021 that I gave 1.7 stars. So to say that the bar was set low for me would not be an understatement.

Mortal Kombat II is much better than those previous movies, though I still did not love the movie. It was definitely entertaining if you are looking for a bunch of fun and exciting fights. The story is not much more than that. The story is about what you would expect in a Mortal Kombat video game.

According to IMBD, “The fan favorite champions — now joined by Johnny Cage himself — are pitted against one another in the ultimate battle to defeat the dark rule of Shao Kahn that threatens the very existence of the Earthrealm and its defenders.”

The fights were fun. The one on one match-up were very much like the video game Mortal Kombat. Even though I did not play the video game much, I recognized the features of the game on the screen.

These fights were wonderfully choreographed and laid out. The CGI looked really good. The kills were creative and, in several cases, brutal and gory. This is absolutely the best part of the film.

I did enjoy having Karl Urban in this film as Johnny Cage. Karl Urban is always fun and he played Johnny Cage awesomely. I have to say I kept seeing him as Butcher from the Boys, and they share several characteristics, albeit without an accent.

The movie does a good job about knowing what kind of movie it is and providing that. This is never going to be a great movie, but it is a stylish, fun flick with some good action. It is not much more than that.

3 stars

The Devil Wears Prada 2

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Twenty years ago, there was a movie released in theaters called The Devil Wears Prada, a film I did not see until the DailyView in 2021. Now, a legacy sequel has been released with most of the important parts returning to the screen. This included four of the main actors as well as the director and writer of the first film.

Director David Frankel and co-writers Aline Brosh McKenna and Lauren Weisberger are back together with actors Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt and Stanley Tucci is The Devil Wears Prada 2.

I liked the first film. I found it to be a fun watch. I went into the sequel with some apprehension. I had heard a couple of down reviews plus sequels over twenty years after the original came out rarely have a high success rate.

However, I found the film to be an entertaining movie with some powerhouse actors elevating what could have been a floundering film. It is far from perfect of a movie. It is overly long and the story itself is a touch iffy at times, but I still found myself engaged by the combo of the actors playing their iconic characters.

Meryl Streep was the best of the quartet in my opinion. She brought more humanity to the “Devil,” Miranda Priestly, the fashion icon who was the basic antagonist of the first film. In the sequel, Miranda was much more like a co-protagonist with Anne Hathaway’s Andy.

Another standout of the cast was Stanley Tucci, as Nigel felt like the heart of the film. Tucci played him with such a kindness and a soft spot that when the film once hinted some anger from him, I was very unhappy. Emily Blunt’s character, Emily, was my least favorite of the four of them as she really seemed to be a caricature of a person and not a real live one, though I did enjoy several of her scenes with Hathaway.

In the end, I liked this sequel. I do not think it was as good as the original, but it was much better than I had anticipated and Meryl Streep is still the best out there.

3.4 stars