Bring Her Back ★★★½ ONE of the best recent Australian horror films was Talk to Me, released in 2022. It was the debut feature from twin brothers Danny and Michael Philippou and made an impact world-wide with its interesting premise, strong tension and legitimate scares. The brothers are back in […]

Aussie twins again deliver goods

8MM ★★★ WHO better to play a private detective investigating the snuff film market than Nicolas Cage. During the ‘Peak Cage’ period, from the late 1980s to late ‘90s, as well as featuring in big action adventures like Con Air and clever comedies ala Moonstruck, he delved into the dark […]

8MM: A twisted tale with peak Cage

The Rule of Jenny Pen ★★★ IN 2021 an excellent horror/drama from New Zealand called Coming Home in the Dark was released. It was writer/director James Ashcroft’s first feature and he has followed up in 2025 with something almost as good. The Rule of Jenny Pen is from the same genre, […]

Kiwis keep the horror coming

Fear Street: Prom Queen ★★½ THE Fear Street horror book series by R. L. Stine started life as a vehicle for young readers. But in the hands of streaming service Netflix it has become a series of gory, adult slashers. Fear Street: Prom Queen is a new spin-off from the Fear […]

Fear Street franchise spins wheels

Monsieur Aznavour ★★½ NO DOUBT there was a deliberate decision made not to include one of Charles Aznavour’s biggest international hits in the 2024 biopic Monsieur Aznavour. The lyrics of ‘Thank Heaven for Little Girls’ just aren’t going to work in this day and age, no matter how innocent the original […]

Aznavour biopic tries to cover too much

Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning ★★★ THE addition of writer/director Christopher McQuarrie has been the best and worst thing for the Mission Impossible film franchise. Best, because he helmed Rogue Nation and Fallout, two of the best instalments, and enabled Tom Cruise to deliver some of the greatest stunts […]

Final mission proves impossible

The Killer Elite ★★ AMERICAN director Sam Peckinpah made some great films while he was alive, but The Killer Elite wasn’t one of them. This action thriller was released in 1975 during a period when the maverick director was at the height of his powers, featured The Godfather alumni James […]

Killer Elite sees Peckinpah run out of steam

Butchers Book Three: Bonesaw ★½ A LOW-budget horror film called Butchers, released in 2020, was successful enough to spawn two sequels. Rather than just call the 2024 sequel Butchers 2, or something basic like that, writer/director Adrian Langley settled on the self-important title of Butchers Book Two: Raghorn. Now in […]

Bonesaw fails to cut through

Hard Truths ★★★½ NEAR the top of the list of actresses who can play any part has to be Marianne Jean-Baptiste. While most at home in tough and uncompromising dramas, Jean-Baptiste has popped up in a myriad of roles and genres over the past three decades. Her recent performance in […]

Hard Truths anchored by emotional performance

Another Simple Favour ★★ NOT every film should have a sequel…but try convincing a Hollywood studio of that. Here’s a good, recent example. A Simple Favour was a clever and engaging comedy/mystery released in 2018 and featuring good chemistry between charismatic leads Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively. Of course, in […]

Sequel sullies original Simple Favour

Shadow Force ★½ SHADOW Force is one of the weakest action thrillers I’ve seen in a while. This 2025 American film has a bunch of derivative action sequences but, worst of all, terribly lame characters with an average script at their disposal. The action is also toned down to the […]

Force should stay in the shadows

Last Bullet ★★★ YOU can’t just start watching the 2025 French action thriller Last Bullet. Well, you can, but it’s the last part of a trilogy so you’ll get more out of it by first watching Lost Bullet (2020) and Lost Bullet 2 (2022). Also, both the earlier films are […]

French action trilogy fires Last Bullet