Don't look like a reckless snacker

Read negative reviews about this. Shitty actors with horrible dialogue, product placement, and disrespectful treatment of the original work (Colleen Hoover's novel). When you were already pessimistic about the film, it was actually quite a gripping watch. 

The world gets bigger

A widowed mother finds herself caught in the crossfire of Jordanian bureaucracy. Even custody of her daughter is at risk! Inshallah a Boy is an educational story about how things and laws that you consider to be everyday and safe can be the exact opposite somewhere else. A surprisingly engaging film all the same. Directed by Amjad Al Rasheed.  

Be a goldfish

Season # 1 of Ted Lasso. It's the best entertainment. We always tread dangerous waters when sports are the center of movies or TV series. Sports performances tend to look so awkward in fiction. Same here too, but Ted Lasso’s strength is everything else outside of the sports activity itself. And Jason Sudeikis’s character is one of the funniest and most loveable ever. Such a treat the whole thing. 

Suffering is love

A nunnery somewhere in the Italian countryside is not a haven of peace and quiet. American girl Cecilia soon discovers that the facility harbors some truly creepy things. This horror movie isn't bad at all, there are similar ones around every corner, but it's still quite fun to watch. Even pleasantly grotesque in places. 

Falling snow drowning in the flood

The year is 2021, people fleeing cruelty and war in their homelands and seeking refuge in Europe. Some of them get stuck in the forests on the border of Belarus and Poland because neither country wants them and treats them inhumanely. These poor people are being bounched from one side of the border to the other like in some cruel game. Polish director Agnieszka Holland's Green Border (2023) also humanizes border guards and activists who watch inconsolably as suffering and evil unfold. 

Fresh as a rose

For some important people - Akira Kurosawa, Sam Peckinpah, Bob Dylan, Kris Kristofferson and Pope Francis - this is (or was) one of best movies of all time. There's not much to say about it. Not even if you don't like it that much. For some reason, classic films are often beyond criticism. 

Hunting at the graveyard

The first hour and testosterone was oozing from every corner. The main heist of the movie was quite exciting even though there was no logic to it. Plotholes everywhere else as well. And the movie was absolutely packed with crappy acting. 

Imaginary war

The topic couldn't be less interesting. The Pope has died and a successor is being sought. But somehow Edward Berger has turned the boring subject into something interesting, even thriller-like. Written, directed and acted so well that you feel like you were involved in the election of the Pope. 

Where all hope and sorrow reside

This has gotten absolutely horrible reviews. Partly for a good reason. Perhaps the hardest thing here is to understand that this is Ethan Coen's work. Because he has been, together with his brother Joel Coen, creating so many masterpieces. Drive-Away Dolls is far from a masterpiece and doesn't even qualify as a cult film. It has a lot of Coenesque themes, but a lot of worryingly cheap and artificial humor. A lot of good stuff too, not worthy of a crushing critique, but a miss nonetheless. The only great things about this is that it looks like a great movie, technically. 

A cosmic betrayal

When a couple of Sri Lankan immigrants come to a small Romanian village, xenophobia rears its head. In other narrative, a local lad Matthias returns to the village where he meets his mistress, his distant wife, and his emotionally withdrawn child. Transylvania is full of inner tension. The film is directed by Cristian Mungiu. 

Connect the old bones

This is one of those movies where you wish there was background laughter, so you could at least pretend to laugh at the right moment. Because there's nothing really funny about this. Maybe the only trick to Minor Leaguer is to bring in two former NHL players to "act" and laugh at themselves a little. Unfortunately there's only twinge of shame if you could only care. 

Shoveling coal

Medical students bully one of their own. And three years later, the mistreated person takes revenge in a cruel way. The students have a costume party on the train and, to everyone's horror, they're being stalked in this moving capsule with no escape route. Standard 80s horror slasher by Roger Spottiswoode, starring Jamie Lee Curtis, Ben Johnson and David Copperfield (his only action role in fictional movie). 

Long lost light

I expected much more of Sergio Cattellitto's A Bookshop in Paris (Il materiale emotivo). It's a romance film, but its romanticism isn't emphatized that much, and neither are the books. The content of the film remains worryingly empty. 

Anonymous tombstones

Somewhere in the backwoods, five young friends find themselves at the mercy of a mysterious flesh-eating bacteria. It's a painful and relentless killer. These young people, in their stupidity, have absolutely no chance with this horrible thing. Travis Zariwny's Cabin Fever (2016) is a remake of Eli Roth's movie (2002) of the same name. It's a completely useless film.

Keep on hammering the anvil

An ancient demon kills people in their sleep. Criminal psychologist Kate Fuller (Olga Kurylenko) is absolutely fucking petrified. Mara, by Clive Tonge, is a long-winded film about this sleep demon. It's such a boring, poorly acted and executed piece that the viewer has a hard time staying awake.

Taking the vow of silence

The fifth season of Seinfeld. The series keeps feeding viewers with better and wittier episodes. Some of them - The Puffy Shirt, The Barber, The Conversion, The Marine Biologist, The Raincoats, The Hamptons, The Opposite - are elites in the whole thing. Even after 30 years, Seinfeld is still the best sitcom ever released.

Insecure people are very dangerous

Gracie was involved in an unsavory scandal and a tabloid romance that gripped the nation years ago. And now they want to make a movie about her and, as a preparation, the lead actress wants to meet Gracie so she can play her. May December, by Todd Haynes, is a film based on true events with a serious subject, but it tackles the taboos of the case quite gently.  

Nothing to live for except the next mission

Fun sci-fi fantasy horror entertainment. And there's a little bit of romance here too. Two highly-trained operatives are appointed to posts in guard towers of a gorge, protecting the world from mysterious evil that lurks within. They are like the gatekeepers of hell. This film, with its own madness and genius, represents escapism in cinema at its best. Directed by Scott Derrickson. 

Bump and grind the home to hell

This just won't ignite. The story about the infamous motorcycle gang, the fictional Chicago Vandals, has its exciting moments, but is mostly just idle chatter. The roles are filled with quite competent actors like Austin Butler, Tom Hardy, Boyd Holbrook, Damon Herriman, Michael Shannon and Norman Reedus, some of whom fit their roles quite well, while others don't. Furthermore, there are no characters in the film that you can relate to or like, so it's quite frustrating to watch. 

Through the blackest edge and forward

Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman travel on electric Harley-Davidsons 13,000 miles from Ushuaia to Los Angeles. That means several hundred kilometers across Central and South America. These motorcycle adventures of Ewan and Charley and the entire filming and production crew are absolutely amazing. A real treat. The episodes are funny, heartfelt and, in many ways, eye-opening. 

Smuggling donkeys

The portion of a whisky's volume that is lost to evaporation during the ageing process is called the Angel's Share. In Ken Loach's film of the same name, petty criminals doing community service smell the potential of exploiting the whisky business. A nice dramatic comedy, but I remembered it better. 

A scandal as a wedding present

This is Alfred Hitchcock's 1940 spy thriller. An American reporter John Jones (Joel McCrea) - using the penname "Huntley Haverstock" - tries to expose enemy spies in Britain. In the midst of international espionage, he witnesses the murder of a diplomat but also falls passionately in love. Not one of Hitchcock's most famous works, nor should it necessarily be, but gripping suspense nonetheless. 

Meander the road of death

Bride kidnapping is a practice in which a man abducts the woman he wishes to marry. Apparently this is still practised in Caucasus and Central Asia. Everywhere else, it's a sex crime. This Kyrgyz film, by Mirlan Abdykalykov, shows how cruel and repulsively inhuman it really is.

Life is not doing its job

A nice drama-comedy, but this is one of those movies that you enjoy watching but don't take anything away from. An art gallery owner Goodrich (Michael Keaton) is having difficulties with both his family and his job, but he is fundamentally a kind man and things work out well for kind people. The film's syrupy ending underscores all too emphatically how family values are more important than material things and wealth, but this wasn't that bad at all.  

Feel the heat around the corner

The hardest and best action movie of all time. Easily. No weak moments. Absolute excellence from start to finish. Outstanding flick where pulse never stops and tension never lets up. An epic piece.

Love is everywhere

Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman and the entire production team, including cinematographers, have made altogether four Long Way series over the past 20 years. Namely Long Way Round (2004), Long Way Down (2007), Long Way Up (2020) and, the latest, Long Way Home (2025). All these are incredibly enjoyable to watch. Several times even. In Long Way Home, with refurbished vintage bikes (a 1974 Moto Guzzi Eldorado police bike and a BMW R75/5), they take a route from Scotland to Northern Europe and it's a nice travelogue and a fantastic adventure. The ending had a little rushed feel to it, not the usual emotional and sentimental finale they had in the past shows. Since you are already disappointed with the show ending, you need something awesome to make up for it.

One-stroke deficit

Inspired by the real events of the biggest heist of all time on Danish soil. But the filmmakers have certainly taken it easy with the facts. And what actually happened. Too much nonsense and breakdown of logic in the script. There are of course freedoms in making art, but thinking that viewers are stupid is irresponsible. No way the robbery was anything like what was described. But if you forget that, this was quite an exciting and fast-paced crime film. 

Just fuck off and sing

Great first minutes. Pete Seeger (Edward Norton) and Woody Guthrie (Scoot McNairy) meet Bob Dylan (Timothée Chalamet), a young musician who has come to New York. The story continues well and interestingly. Until Bob Dylan's diva-like nature starts to rear its head. He doesn't give the impression of a nice person. This is certainly essential and part of his essence and image, but the movie focuses too much on it when he's so damn absolute. And it is in those moments that Timothée Chalamet's weaknesses as an actor become apparent. 

The left behind

Famous French actor cancels appearance in theater production and fucks off to lavish spa in countryside instead. There he meets his old mistress, whom he once met in Paris. All of this is the best medicine and therapy to relieve stress. A fairly traditional French romantic drama, even in its unpredictability. 

A disconsolate tomorrow awaits outside

A film about Dingo, one of the most significant bands in Finnish music history and their frontman Pertti "Nipa" Neumann. The Finnish could not avoid them in the eighties. They were loved and hated. Their absolute peak only lasted a couple of years, then the decline began and it was steep as hell. Mari Rantasila's film is about their highlight years and their unyielding lead singer and songwriter. A nice portrait of the time, even excellent in its authencity and imagery, but things were handled too quickly and in a roundabout way. 

Blood divides in silence

Many Jews fled Hitler's tyranny during World War II. Neutral Finland was considered a haven of peace. Fat chance. The claws of Nazism sank there too because, fearing Russia, they jumped into the embrace of Germany. The Finnish government was fragmented in its own chaos and was leaning in one direction or another. No one had a good time. The Jews least of all, both locals and newcomers. The film is a nice breath of not-so-distant history. Klaus Härö is a masterful film director, his sense of drama is first-class. Ei koskaan yksin is not his best work, but it's impressive nevertheless. 

Unsatisfied voodoo charm

Finnish horror film by Keke Soikkeli. Without a doubt, he is trying to make his dreams come true. Does his best. As I'm sure he did with his previous film Tuomion saari (2023). Unfortunately, that's not quite enough yet. I don't even dare to laugh at this because it's absolutely horrifying. Everything is wrong, everything is messed up and so full of sheer stupidity that words are not enough. Maybe things will go better and more smoothly with the next attempt. Let's give Keke a chance.

The one you will feed wins

In Oregon, USA, a population of werewolves is thriving. You shouldn't normally go there. But something has to be done about the property that has been inherited. Bring the whole family along and forget about the nasty tales about furry monsters. There's almost nothing wrong with this, it's kind of a nice horror story, but the traditional easthetics of werewolf lore aren't paid much attention to. 

Soar like an eagle, sit like a pelican

David Brent is a personification of all the most embarrassing. So is his band Foregone Conclusion. He doesn't notice his own tastelessness. But he's funny and symphathetic and basically just well-meaning. Somewhat unnecessarily and unjustifiably though, he's trampled on and bullied here. However, Ricky Gervais's 2016 film ends on a good note. 

Stumbling around directionless

Groovy bloody fun. A weekend getaway turns into nightmarish and insane chaos. Without giving away too much of the plot, this is one of the coolest horror adventures in recent times. A real treat. Genious in its own way, but wonderfully raw and heartless. Directed by Drew Hancock.

Cursed to believe in something

You want to yell at the characters in the movie and then punch your screen because they can't hear. You are so frustrated with stupidity that it hurts. Michael Pearce's Echo Valley is a depiction of horse trainer who has enough problems of her own, but whose daughter is a drug-addicted bastard and she's just making things worse. A lot worse. 

The last time armed Germans patrolled fences

There was a hostage crisis at the 1972 Munich Olympics. It was called the Munich Massacre. And it was orchestrated by affliates of the Palestinian militant group Black September. And they attacked the Israeli team's accommodations in the Olympic Village. 900 million people were watching because the act of terrorism was broadcasted live around the world by ABC sports crew. This film is a great, vividly detailed, depiction of events. Directed by Tim Fehlbaum. 

The years of manly dreams

It's great that there are series like this. This will surely offend sensitive and ordinary viewers. There's almost everything here that will shock them. And on the other hand, some just enjoy it all. Totally and deeply enjoying it. Bad Thoughts is a disturbed, provocative, almost taboo-breaking and vulgar series. And it's great. Created by Tom Segura.

Walk through fire

Belgian Kamal, a rapper and drug dealer, gets caught, escapes and fucks off to Syria to fight with ISIS. Life there is hard. Brutal, hardly any life at all. And he regrets leaving. It's not nice when people are killed arbitrarily and for ridiculous reasons and women are like cattle for sale. Meanwhile, in Antwerpen, radicalization threatens Kamal's little brother. Quite captivating, however a few musical scenes, probably meant to add artistry and softness, didn't really suit the narrative. But a strong film and a heart-stopping ending. Directed by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah. 

Rotten stomach linings

Joe Moore (Gene Hackman) is a high-level criminal. He loves his job. Although smart and resourseful, he doesn't shy away from nasty tricks to succeed. Perfect at his job. But even he can't no anything about his treacherous partners. David Mamet's Heist (2001) is incredibly gripping and cunning thriller. His writing style is very lively, sometimes even trying to be unnecessarily witty.

An extinguished lantern

It was worth watching, a nice story, well acted and told, but when it was boring, it was really boring. A few times, it got stuck in place for no reason and the story didn't go anywhere. Brother is a 2022 Canadian drama film of two brothers growing up in the Scarborough district of Toronto.

Eternal ghosts

You should probably stay the hell out of a roadside motel run by a crazy scythe-wielding maniac who has a crocodile for a pet. The film is pure B-grade horror, directed by none other than Tobe Hooper. Stupid, but creepy and gruesome. 

The past ain't through with us yet

This is one of the best movies ever.  An ensemble piece directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. It follows different - terminally ill, lovesick, self-absorbed, or just plain sad - people for three days. Still, the film gives a lot of joy, laughter and pleasure. Many actors give the best performances of their lives in Magnolia. Take Tom Cruise for instance. 

Married to desert

Even a bad horror movie can be worth watching. But that's it. For instance, a shitty western is a shitty western. The badness of Brett Bentman's The Bounty Men isn't even funny. Let's be thankful this piece of shit doesn't last more than 75 minutes. 

The Moon fell from the sky

In the hopes of altering tragedic events in the past, a 19th century professor, with a time machine he built, accidentally travels 800,000 years into the future. Up ahead, mankind still exists, but they also have their challenges. Based on the novel by H.G. Wells, one of its many adaptations. Kind of funny, but for the most part the potential of time travel was still largely ignored. Directed by Simon Wells, starring Guy Pearce, Sienna Guillory, Samantha Mumba and Jeremy Irons. 

Burning cotton fields

First thought was what were Pierce Brosnan and Tim Roth thinking? Renny Harlin's film The Misfits is a kind of attempt to make a modern thriller and spice it up with wild humor. And of course it fails at that. And everything else. 

Somebody needs a funeral

Reason to watch at least because of Gene Hackman's performance. But unfortunately, the reasons probably end there. This agent thriller has everything going for it, but the narrative is too sprawling and weak. Interestingly, films that are inspired by Arthur Penn's Target may be a lot better. Take Taken (2008) for example. 

Pedaling towards the sunset

 

The Guro District, Seoul, among the locals it is called Chinatown. There are gang wars between different groups over territory and trade. And the police are trying to keep the area under control. Yunsung Kang's The Outlaws is based on real events that occurred in 2007. It's rare for Korean film to disappoint in its entertainment, and this one is no exception. A slightly distorted and introverted sense of humor only made it better.

Making some kind of fruity juice

Conan O'Brien is an incredibly funny and intelligent person. This year he rightfully won the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. And the show was - rightly so - funny and intelligent. Honor is shown by people like Will Ferrell, Sarah Silverman, Stephen Colbert, Will Forte (as Mark Twain), Tracy Morgan, Adam Sandler and David Letterman. 

Silencing the echoes of the past

Is the sole goal of this film to set new records in the number of bullets fired, punches and deaths? Because there's nothing worth mentioning in the story. They presumably think we applaud and bow in the face of carnage only. Brainless junk.