Never operate from fear

Heroic deeds and intense action—what else would you expect from a Jason Statham movie? His character lives as a recluse on a remote lighthouse island off the coast of Scotland, hiding away from his past and his shadowy assignments as an MI6 agent. And everyone wants him dead. The action is so breathless it almost puts you to sleep.

You're paid to win

A film directed by Sidney Lumet, starring Paul Newman and written by David Mamet—that alone writes it into history. The Verdict (1982) is a superb courtroom drama—one of the best of its kind. While the story itself is quite simple, the filmmakers have crafted it into a suspenseful, engrossing, and thoroughly entertaining film.

Satan controls everything

This completely replicates the concept and plot arc of the first film, Ready or Not (2019). But let's not let that bother us. For this, too, is a fun story—tinged with dark humor—about a twisted game where you must hide or die.

Died upon the gallows

The most cringe-inducing aspects of this film adaptation of the Finnish national epic, Kalevala, are its heavy-handed pathos, the over-dramatic music that drowns out the dialogue, and the performance of Elias Salonen as Kullervo. What makes the film a chore to watch, however, is that it is excruciatingly dull. Naturally, the director (Antti J. Jokinen) must bear the blame for this; while the visuals work at times, the storytelling falters. This film simply should not have been made. Around the one-hour mark, a white car can be seen driving along the opposite shore of the lake—a detail that inevitably undermines the credibility of a story set in ancient times.

What it takes to live

A heartwarming and very pleasant story. An English teacher goes to work in a politically divided Argentina in 1976 and happens to run into—and befriend—a penguin! And this penguin brings plenty of joy to the grey everyday lives of other people, too. The Penguin Lessons (2024), by Peter Cattaneo, is an incredibly beautifully crafted movie based on true events. 

Once in a lifetime alone

Film critics don't like these. Or they won't admit that they do. The general public doesn't necessarily like them either, but they're almost guaranteed to enjoy them. Renny Harlin has quite captivatingly combined a plane crash disaster with a struggle to survive with sharks. The plane crash part in particular is done so well that it is second to none! As a whole the movie is silly, but very entertaining silly. When Renny Harlin is given a suitable script, he and his wealth of ideas are unstoppable.

Nocturnal rendezvous

It's a boring thriller. A psychiatrist investigates the death of his patient who committed suicide, but there's still nothing exciting about this French film. The narrative is tinged with subtle humor, which further reduces the suspense. And the mystery of the story doesn't really hold up. Jodie Foster, who studied in an elite French-speaking school, does get to show off her French skills though. 

In the pocket of silence

Kes (1969) is one of Ken Loach's masterpieces. It's a coming-of-age drama in which a young schoolboy, Billy (David Bradley), finds immense joy in raising a kestrel named Ken in a bleak working-class town. A film with emotional weight that lingers long after viewing. These absolute classics of the film world.

Born to ramble

Cattle are being stolen and no one is eager to intervene. One man then has to fight off the heavily armed evil thieves! Thieves Highway (2025) is pure B movie entertainment. An action movie with a bit of an old-fashioned feel.

Paradox man

The second season of Bad Thoughts, which also features short, very cinematic sketches. This series, created by Tom Segura, is at its best a really funny and grotesque comedy, but then counterbalanced by really worn-out fart humor. The second season is more of the latter.

Night falls like an ambush

A plane carrying people - mostly young rugby players - crashes somewhere in the Andes. A large group survives the crash. But how do you survive in a region where there are only giant snow-capped rock mountains as far as the eye can see? And even the search for possible survivors is abandoned without any results! This true-to-life story from 1972 has been previously adapted into a film, at least by Frank Marshall in Alive (1993). But this 2023 J.A. Bayona piece is considerably more gruesomely detailed. One of the best survival films where despair and anxiety and extreme distress and hunger are beautifully depicted on the screen.

Stupidity has saved many a man from going mad

If you have to die and you are ordered to die, but you don't, who is responsible? Like the British soldier who jumps out of a burning plane without a parachute and survives without a scratch! This is something that needs to be resolved in a celestial trial! A Matter of Life and Death, by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, is quite a masterpiece. For a 40s film, the technical execution is brilliant. The visuals are absolutely stunning.  And the story itself is gorgeous. A love story set in a wild cosmic setting. A timeless classic.

Close to the emptiness of existence

A dog kennel worker is a bit lonely. He desperately needs female company. He runs into a woman he knows from his college days and develops a morbid obsessive interest in her. And because she couldn't be less interested, he stalks her and finds a way to get her. And there are other reasons than simple passion. This woman needs to be caged! And tamed! A thriller built on one great twist that should be compelling but is just unspeakably boring and ridden with plotholes. 

Angels eat shit

Roman Polanski's quirky comedy about the super-rich in a Swiss Alpine hotel, where they celebrate the turn of the century in 1999, or even the end of the world in their Y2K frenzy. The film has a very farcical feel as Russian mafiosi, an aging porn star, a world-famous plastic surgeon, a penguin, and other eccentric characters feed their own desires and the hotel employees try to fulfill their wishes. Unfortunately, except for the very beginning, there isn't really anything very funny about the film's story. The cast includes John Cleese, Mickey Rourke, Oliver Masucci and Fanny Ardant. 

Beginners guide to anarchism

A beautifully created time period of the somewhat hipster Brasilia of the 70s, which was fundamentally a very politically and dangerously tense time. The left and the right clashed bloodily, the police force and political power were rotten to the core, dictatorship and paranoia prevailed, and dissidents were simply killed. But samba was playing even then, people enjoyed life as long as they stayed outside the political turmoil. For some, however, the fight for justice became a life mission. It's a shame that the film's story is told in a somewhat confusing and rushed manner, with characters scattered carelessly and only moments of thriller-like action and suspense.