It's nice to pass the time with a stranger

This is oppressive and crazy, but the atmosphere is hidden under the long-windedness and unnecessary mania. The story of a lonely hermit living in a trailer park who gets an uninvited guest during a fierce storm, started well and excitingly, but when the whole plot of it began to dawn, the film was already infuriatingly burdensome. Australian indie horror by Josiah Allen and Indianna Bell. 

Bodies in the basement

A bank teller who feels no physical pain falls head over heels in love and gets involved in a robbery. His rare condition only helps when he gets mixed up in a showdown between cops and criminals. Novocaine is a nicely over-the-top dark comedy, but not particularly well-acted and, frankly, easily forgettable and cheap entertainment.

Methods won't be questioned

A slightly too self-aware agent thriller. It tries to be too cunning and secretive, and because of that, the film's watchability, and at the same time its credibility, suffers. It's a shame, because outwardly everything is great here. The acting and cinematography are of high quality. Directed by Steven Soderbergh.

Dreams growing darker

Given the huge expectations, a slight disappointment. But the value and true impact of Robert Eggers's Nosferatu on the world of cinema will only be weighed years from now. A bit like what happened in his 2015 masterpiece VVitch: A New-England Folktale. It's not necessarily scary, but Nosferatu has an ominous and haunting feel, drawing heavily on classic horror themes. A visually stunning piece, almost in a class of its own.

The edge of the world

Basically, this should be a really emotionally touching film. A sob story where the other person ends their earthly journey prematurely. Maybe there's something wrong with the chemistry between the actors - Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield - because the impact of the story is a bit weak. In addition to this, the narrative jumps from one time period to another throughout the film, which is functional and quite fun, but annoying in the long run. And on the other hand, if it has been presented in linear form, the film would be infinitely ordinary.  

Done with death

They say Until Dawn, by David F. Sandberg, is based on a console game. And just like in the game world, characters in this film can respawn. They are trapped in a pretty scary time loop that requires multiple deaths to escape. Clever reasoning skills too. The film's few rather brutal scenes are worth watching, but overall it's pretty standard horror. 

A societal leech

An ambitious fucking thing. A Hungarian Jewish arcitect flees the horrors of World War II Europe to the United States, only to discover that the world on the other side of the Atlantic, even when there is no war, is very torturous. Brady Corbet's The Brutalist is very memorable, and quite arresting at times, but perhaps not as impressive as you read everywhere. 

Apparitions in the dust

When a Korean diplomat is kidnapped and hidden in Lebanon for over a year, Korean authorities decide to send another diplomat to the war-torn country to pay the ransom and bring the victim home safely. Of course, it doesn't work that easily. Ransomed, by Kim Seong-hun, is a delightfully exciting and captivating film. One car chase scene is downright magnificent. 

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).