FILM REVIEWS:
10DANCE (Japan 2025) **
Directed by Keishi Otomo
The recent 2025 film KOKUBO directed by Lee Sang-il is a gripping tale of friendship and rivalry in the world of Kamigata kabuki. The film 10DANCE bears a close resemblance to the film. The story of KOKUBO opens in Nagasaki in 1964, when kabuki is so controlled that all the female roles are played by males. As such, the two male actors are extremely good-looking, with the film bearing lots of homo-eroticism. The film bears a close resemblance to the film 10Dance as it also features two good-looking Japanese actors, this time set in the world of dance (ballroom and Latino) where homo-eroticism runs high.
Netflix’s new 10DANCE is about two talented but very different dancers who push each other to become better on and off the dance floor — ultimately discovering a deep emotional and romantic bond through their shared pursuit of excellence.
The two males include Shinya Suzuki, who is Japan’s Latin dance champion, known for his fiery competitiveness. The other is Shinya Sugiki, a top Standard ballroom dancer, precise and composed — and often compared to Suzuki because their names are so similar, which irritates Suzuki.
Sugiki proposes they team up to compete in the 10-Dance Competition, a prestigious contest where dancers must master five Latin and five Standard ballroom styles. Metacritic
Suzuki initially refuses, but Sugiki’s provocative challenge sparks his competitive spirit, and he reluctantly agrees to train together. As they practice intensely, their opposite personalities and styles lead to clashes, but over time, they develop mutual respect, understanding, and emotional intimacy.
The homo-eroticism is first observed when the two males dance together. Shinya pulls away coming that Sugiki has rubbed his coach against his. But after, when he shows the other the Latino moves, he pulls off his shirt and puts Sugiki’s hands on his toned and muscled body.
The two films share the common trait of the disciple who goes into the art. But 10DANCE plus too much with the love connection between the two males - a case of too much teasing and too little to show for it. The film, though displaying a lot of cool dance moves, does not really succeed as a dance movie either
10DANCE is adapted from a popular Boys’ Love (BL) manga by Satō Inoue. It is a Netflix original film opening for streaming this week.
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ANACONDA (USA 2025)
(to be posted)
AVATAR FIRE AND ASH (USA 2025) ***
Directed by James Cameron
The third film in the AVATAR film franchise, this 3-hour and 15-minute saga is quite a chore to sit through for reasons of pure length, despite some awesome visuals, courtesy of the James Cameron crew. AVATAR FIRE AND ASH is meant to be a standalone film, though it would be useful to at least know a bit of the background of the blue creatures on display.
What is more important is just the history as shown in the first AVATAR film released in 2009. The story focuses on an epic conflict on Pandora, an inhabited Earth-sized moon of Polyphemus, one of three gas giants orbiting Alpha Centauri A. On Pandora, human colonists and the sentient humanoid indigenous inhabitants of Pandora, the Na'vi, engage in a war over the planet's resources (such as unobtanium) and the latter's continued existence. The film's title refers to the remotely controlled, genetically engineered human-Na'vi bodies used by the film's human characters to interact with the natives. The protagonist, Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), is a paraplegic young man who travels to Pandora from Earth. Assisting the corporate monolith known as the Resources Development Administration (RDA), he is given an avatar which he uses to interact with the story's heroine, Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña, as well as her clan, known as the Omatikaya.
In FIRE AND ASH, it is a year after settling in with the Metkayina lan, Jake and Neytiri's family grapples with grief after Neteyam's death. (This occurs in the second film and is mentioned in this one.) They encounter a new, aggressive Na'vi tribe, the Mangkwan clan, also called the Ash People, led by the fiery tribe leader, Varang, who has allied with Jake's enemy, Quaritch, as the conflict on Pandora escalates to devastating consequences.
The AVATAR franchise is the most expensive of all the Hollywood film franchises, and so far, more than $1 billion has been spent. But the first holds the record of the highest-grossing film of all time, and the films have more than made their costs in terms of profit.
The film should be seen in 3D iMax, which is how this reviewer saw the film. The film takes a half hour to re-familiarize the audience with the Na'vi tribe, as the audience is spared no less wonder than to glide through the waters and air of the tribe, often riding different forms of creatures. Jack Sully is seen with his family, and nothing much else happens. The first action set piece occurs only at the half-hour mark of the film when the tribe is attacked. Director Cameron resorts to old-fashioned action, with an ending involving a one-on-one climactic fight to the death between the main hero and villain, which is between Jake and Quaritch. There is a twist in the ending, which is neat. creating a spin to the normal climactic fight. Other than that, there is nothing particularly new in terms of action and emotions of family conflict and bonding.
AVATAR FIRE AND ASH is the weakest of the three films, though it is still quite an amazing science fiction flick in terms of visuals and special effects. Future films? Avatar 4 (2029): The fourth film. and Avatar 5 (2031): The fifth and final one.
AVATAR FIRE AND ASH is a Christmas movie opening on the 19th.
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DJ AHMET (North Macedonia, Czech Republic/Serbia, Croatia 2025) ***
Directed by Georgi M. Unkovski
DJ AHMET (North Macedonia, Czech Republic/Serbia, Croatia 2025) ***
Directed by Georgi M. Unkovski
Ahmet, a 15-year-old boy from a remote Yuruk village in North Macedonia, finds refuge in music while navigating his father’s expectations, a conservative community, and his first experience with love — a girl already promised to someone else.
In the classic Taviani Brothers 1977 film PADRE, PADRONE, there is the unforgettable scene in which the father removes his son Gavino from the classroom to force him to work as a shepherd. The act is driven by the father’s authoritarian control and belief that education is useless for their rural, traditional life in Sardinia.
In the film DJ AHMET, the protagonist faces the same dilemma; even though the father does not physically remove his son from the classroom, there is a message to Ahmet that his father is there to fetch him. His father later tells him that he has spoken to the headmaster to stop his schooling,
In the same way as in PADRE PADRONE, where the father needs Gavino’s labour and wants to assert dominance, cutting him off from schooling so he will grow up obedient and bound to the land. Ahmet is also to tend sheep as well as to look after his younger brother, who is unable to speak. This moment is crucial in the film because it marks the beginning of Ahmet’s isolation, illiteracy, and psychological oppression, which the story later contrasts with his struggle for independence in the area of music.
All things considered, the film is a coming-of-age drama that centres on Ahmet, a 15-year-old boy living in a remote Yörük/Turkic village in rural North Macedonia. Caught between his family duties, conservative community expectations, and personal dreams, Ahmet finds refuge and identity in music, particularly electronic beats, which offer him an escape from the strict, tradition-bound world he’s grown up in. At its core, the story explores youthful rebellion, cultural tradition vs modernity, and first love. Ahmet dreams of being a DJ while tending sheep and helping his family, and his passion for music deepens when he falls for Aya, a girl who shares his love of rhythm but is already promised to someone else. Their connection and Ahmet’s pursuit of music become a symbol of self-expression and liberation amidst societal pressures
The comedy in the film is sincere and honest in form, as seen when Ahemt tastes his girl’s baklava for the first time, and they both giggle; she tells him that he does not know how to lie.
In DJ AHMET, director Unkovski explores the delicate balance between tradition and self-expression, particularly within a small, close-knit community. The tension that ariseswhen individual desires clash with the expectations of the collective. is captured. There is also a nod to Mike Nichols’ THE GRADUATE in the way Ahmet hicks Aya’s arranged wedding. Though the two films are highly different, the scene of the bus pulling away reminds the film of the ending of THE GRADUATE. But there are twists in the plot regarding the father’s change of heart, which makes a nice conclusion to the film.
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THE GREAT FLOOD (South Korea 2925) ***
Directed by Kim Byung-woo
In the new sci-fi disaster Korean film THE GREAT FLOOD, it is the end of the world that arrives as a great flood. The question in movies like this is whether credibility can be held.
Firstly get floods have been believed as in the Bible as in Noah and the ark that God cleansed the world with a big flood with a rainbow promising that He will never do that again, A flood myth or a deluge myth is a myth in which a great flood, usually sent by a deity or deities, destroys civilization, often in an act of divine retribution. Parallels are often drawn between the flood waters of these myths and the primeval cosmic ocean, which appears in certain creation myths, as the flood waters are described as a measure for the cleansing of humanity, for example, in preparation for rebirth.
In THE GREAT FLOOD, the premise is an asteroid that hits Antarctica, causing massive flooding.
A great flood engulfs the world. In the midst of a massive catastrophe, water rises inside an apartment building. With no hope in sight, the one person, An-na, needed to enact a plan to help the remnants of humanity evolve and return to Earth, but instead fights desperately to save her child from the rising waters. Amid the chaos and shrinking hope for survival, An-na faces a dilemma: she is also uniquely linked to a crucial mission that might hold the key to humanity’s future, forcing her to choose between saving her child and fulfilling a larger purpose. Though the film can be described as an action, drama, science fiction, and disaster storytelling, it is this theme that stretches the film towards some emotional storytelling. Whether this tactic works is up to the individual viewer, as some might find the dream takes away the spectacle that is on display. But the special effects of the flood distaste is very impressive, nonetheless, which makes the movie, despite some flaws.
Co-written and directed by Kim Byung-woo and starring Kim Da-mi and Park Hae-soo, the film depicts and thus concentrates on the desperate struggle of those who have pinned their hopes on humanity's last days in a flooded apartment building.
THE GREAT FLOOD had its world premiere at the 30th Busan International Film Festival in the Korean Cinema Today - Special Premiere section on September 18, 2025. The film will be available for global streaming on Netflix on December 19, 2025, following its festival release.
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IS THIS THING ON? (USA 2025) ***
Directed by Bradley Cooper
IS THIS THING ON? plays like the opposite kind of romance, a kind of story of a falling out of love, as Bradley Cooper’s most successful hit, A STAR IS BORN, which starred the director opposite Lady Gaga. IS THIS THING ON? The phrase often used by comics on stage, wondering if the microphone is switched on so that he or she can be heard, looks like, even from the trailer, like a comedy, but the film is more a relationship drama with a few bouts of humour dished in.
The film is impressive in its creation of atmosphere, especially in the way stand-up comics hang out, react and basically interact with each other. There is more camaraderie than competition, as they all share the same fear of being on stage performing, especially if, even worse, they have a bad day, and the audience does not laugh. It is the New York City scene and the standups are all real stand-ups, according to actor Will Arnett who was present at the Q&A after the promo screening of the film in Toronto, Ontario.
Will Arnett and Laura Dern are both excellent in their performances as the troubled couple. Arnett looks hassled, tired and stressed most of the time, just like one who suffered from a marriage breakdown. When the film opens, Alex Kovacs is already separated from his wife, Tess. He lives in a different residence, in his own apartment, sharing custody with his two sons, Irish twins, from his wife. ("Irish twins" is a term for two siblings born to the same mother within 12 months of each other. The phrase originated in the 1800s as a derogatory stereotype of large Irish Catholic families but has become a more casual term for siblings with a very close age gap, even though they are from separate pregnancies and not actual twins.) They share the same group of friends, one of which is played by a bearded, almost unrecognisable Bradley Cooper. Alex happens upon an open mike at a local bar, and because he does not wish to pay the $15 cover, he signs on as a performer. And loves the gig. All he does is add a bit of humour as he talks about his problems in marriage.
The film is meticulous in its details. One can see Alex as he grows more interested in stand-up comedy. Alex starts to prepare material and even looks more nervous than usual. He keeps the stand-up acts secret from his wife. The standup routines work to help Alex rebuild and process his pain. In the meantime, Tess has not gotten over what she has given up in sacrifice for her marriage,
All hell breaks loose when his wife shows up unannounced and unknowingly at one bar where Alex is performing. She is aghast that their personal life is on display in Alex’s material, though some sensitive parts move her. This is the point where the film gets more serious, and one realises that what has occurred before is just the set-up.
The unexpected arrival of the wife at Alex’s performance is cliched territory in relationship films. But according to Arnett, this actually happened, though it seems so unlikely. Arnett also talked about how he pursued the material for the film finally made.
The couple needs to figure out how to live apart, raise their two boys, and maintain friendships and identities.
IS THIS THING ON? is marked as a Christmas movie that opens in theatres on December 19th.
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MARTY SUPREME (USA 2025) ***** Top 10
Directed by Josh Safdie
A table tennis (aka ping pong) drama set in New York City during the 1950s, where table tennis star Marty goes to hell and back in pursuit of greatness.
MARTY SUPREME looks and feels like a biopic of a real sports champion. But the film is touted as a fictionalised original. But the real reason the film feels like a documentary biopic is that the script, written by director Safdie and Ronald Bronstein, is based on professional table tennis player Marty Reisman. For that obvious reason, the film has the name MARTY in the title.
The film feels very real and gritty. Director Safdie knows his material for the main reason that he was a table tennis fanatic in his youth. Safdie's interest in table tennis began in his youth, as his grandparents often had "eccentric Jewish immigrant Lower East Side characters", playing the sport at their house. The film project began this way. In 2018, his wife and executive producer on the film, Sara Rossein, bought a copy of Marty Reisman's 1974 autobiography The Money Player, thinking Safdie would enjoy it. Safdie was in conversation with Timothée Chalamet at the time, as they had recently become friends, and presented him with the project by focusing on Reisman's physical similarities to the actor. Chalamet accepted the role and began taking ping pong lessons that same year.
The film’s Marty is the kind of character that it's all mouth, promising the world to himself and his girl, but running into shit trouble most of the time. Marty can be considered a loser with dreams too high to achieve, but not for want of trying. His character is also ‘kind of’ disgusting, getting his already married to someone else, girl pregnant, and not admitting to her that the baby is his, while sweet-talking his best friend to lend him money to help him on. He also woos a famous theatrical actress, Kay Stone (Gwyneth Paltrow), into sex, while conning her husband, Rockwell (Kevin O’Leary), to sponsor his table tennis. This is one rare film where the director succeeds in getting the audience to dislike the protagonist and then root for him after.
Three main factors propel this film to the top 10 best films list of 2025. These are: the excitement of the table tennis matches, the expert casting of its characters, and the impressive build-up of momentum and pacing of the film, which includes two climaxes in the film at the end.
Chamalet took ping pong lessons, and it shows. The matches are well executed and totally believable, not to say exciting to watch. The casting of Kevin O’Leary as Rockwell is nothing more than inspirational casting, as is director Abel Fererra as the mobster who owns the black dog. But the casting of the Indian actor (could not find his name even using AI) playing the British ping pong organiser who looks like an exact replica of French actor Louis De Funes (the Jacob Rabbi and FANTOMAS) movies is phenomenal. De Funes always plays characters who are pompous, full of themselves, but nothing less than a bumbling idiot. The two climaxes are the ping pong showdown at the end and the action set piece where the mobster and Marty close down on the kidnapper of the black dog.
MARTY SUPREME opens on Christmas Day.
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NO OTHER CHOICE )South Korea 2025) ***½
Directed by Park Chan-wook
The film starts with a family group hug, and Man-soo has it all: a loving wife, two talented children, and two happy dogs. He even bought the beautiful forest-enclosed house where he grew up. Then, after 25 years of dedicated work for Solar Paper — where he was awarded Pulp Man of the Year in 2019 — Man-soo is suddenly given the axe. Soon, he is falling behind on his mortgage payments, and his wife Mi-ri insists they put the house up for sale. Man-soo is desperate to scoop a coveted position with Moon Paper, but he knows other job seekers match his pedigree. So he hatches a plan: invent a phoney paper company, reach out to each of his rivals, lure them into a meeting… and, one by one, dispatch the competition. It is a wicked and occasionally hilarious satire based on the novel THE AX by Donald Werstlake. Director Chan’s film takes its time to establish the plot, but it is all worth it in this deliciously wicked thriller.
REBUILDING (USA 2025) ****
Directed by Max Walker-Silverman
After a wildfire, Dusty (a sombre Josh O’Connor), a reserved divorced rancher, is relocated to a temporary trailer park alongside other displaced locals. Through his daughter’s determined optimism and a newfound sense of community, Dusty learns to accept help and open up to the possibility of starting over. REBUILDING is about rebuilding,
Rebuilding is a 2025 American drama film written and directed by Max Walker-Silverman, starring Josh O’Connor as Dusty, Callie Rose LaTorre as the daughter, CallienRose, Meghann Fahy, Kali Reis and Amy Madigan as the grandmother.
After wildfires take his ranch, cowboy Dusty winds up in a FEMA camp, finding community with others who lost homes, after reuniting with his daughter and ex-wife.
The film illustrates that not only are performances crucial to a film telling its story, but the director’s camera captures the most appropriate moments, like Callie Rose’s quiet smile, or the grandmother plucking a kiss on Callie Rose’s forehead.
It is the little things that matter most. When the two old lady neighbours are required to fill out forms online, they tell Dusty, “But we don’t have a computer. Dusty looks at her daughter, Callie Rose, who is computer savvy. The silence and quiet say it all. It is a very emotional moment created with much thought and cue, without much shouting or dialogue. This is what makes REBUILDING such an endearing and emotional film.
REBUILDING had its world premiere at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival on January 26, 2025, and will be released at the TIFF Lightbox in Toronto, Canada December 19th.
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SERIOUS PEOPLE (USA 2025) **
Directed by Pasqual Gutierrez anBen Mullinkosson
SERIOUS PEOPLE, the new indie film opening just before the Christmas movies and going straight to VOD (hard to compete with the major films and studios) is a satirical film about a busy music video director, Pasqual, who is expecting his first child and hires a lookalike named Miguel to stand in for him at work to manage his work-life balance, leading to chaos as Miguel's inexperience clashes with the demanding industry, exploring themes of identity, parenthood, and the absurdities of LA culture.
The film follows a group of emotionally guarded, intellectually driven adults whose carefully constructed lives begin to unravel when personal crises force them to confront feelings they’ve long suppressed. The film centres on characters who pride themselves on being rational, successful, and “put-together,” yet struggle with intimacy, vulnerability, and moral compromise. It takes a while for the audience to connect with these people, if they ever do.. As their relationships intersect—through work, friendship, or family—their sense of control is tested by unexpected events that expose insecurity, regret, and longing beneath their serious façades.
It is supposed to be a faux-documentary, "fly-on-the-wall" comedy that pokes fun at creative egos and the struggle to be present in both personal and professional lives, featuring a cast playing exaggerated versions of themselves.
The film is a very personal one and perhaps too personal for everyone’s tastes. It looks in detail at Pasqual’s life. He assumes that his audience will take to and understand all his problems and difficulties, but this may very much not be the case. If one is not connected to the filming industry, all that takes place may all seem too far-fetched, irrelevant, and an utter bore. Would one really care if an unknown filmmaker’s shooting schedule clashes with the delivery ofnhis first born. Let him sort out his own problems, and let the audience be the other way.
The film’s restrained and introspective tone, focusing more on psychological depth and subtle tension than on plot twists or spectacle, caters to the more indie art-house than the commercial crowd.
SERIOUS PEOPLE has a VOD releaseon December 12th.
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SONG SUNG BLUE (USA 2025) ***½
Directed by Craig Brewer
SONG SUNG BLUE is the beloved Neil Diamond song that everyone knows the tune of. Song Sung Blue is also a 2025 American biographical musical drama film written, co-produced, and directed by Craig Brewer. It is based on the 2008 documentary film of the same name by Greg Kohs. The film stars Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson (nominated for a deserved Golden Globe nomination this year) as Mike and Claire Sardina, who performed as the Neil Diamond tribute band Lightning & Thunder.
This is a film about the Neil Diamond tribute husband and wife duo who call themselves Lightning and Thunder. They performed to great acclaim until they had to take a break owing to unforeseen circumstances, which the film mainly highlights. On the afternoon of May 10, 1999, the then-37-year-old was gardening in front of her South Side home when, out of nowhere, a car bulldozed into her, pinned her up against her house, and severed her left foot. Lighting & Thunder's performance schedule is finally heating up again after years of suffering from the accident that took Thunder's leg and the devastation of September 11, which greatly reduced bookings. Luckily, it was only a matter of time before fans said "Hello Again" to this quirky, talented twosome. But Lightning passed away from a head injury in 2006, which forms the conclusion of the film.
“I believe in you, Mike. I always have,” says his dentist and manager.
The down following the accident is shown in all its intensity. Claire does not want to continue the duo. “What is the duo supposed to do if the other one doesn’t want to sing?” says Mike. Claire is all drugged up, grouchy, and refuses to go for her therapy. She makes jokes like “….. to get back on your feet,” etc. The frustration reached its peak in one heated argument between Claire and Mike in the living room, a scene that will bring tears to one’s eyes.
“People don’t get it. I love her, and I am losing her,” Mike confidentially talks to his daughter, who is watching to ensure her father stays off the wagon.
The film contains a scene directly lifted out of Charlie Chaplin’s masterpiece. LIMELIGHT It is the one in which Claire Bloom, crippled suddenly,y gets up from her wheelchair and, for the first time, walks towards Charles Chaplin, both facing the camera. In this movie, Kate Hudson gets up from her chair and walks with Jackson, both facing the camera. It is still a touching one and also a great homage paid to Chaplin. Both women are offering encouraging words to their distraught companion.
SONG SUNG BLUE is a first-class Hollywood dramatisation of the duo’s story. It allows audiences to see and feel as the documentary can only achieve so much. Performances are extraordinary, from both Jackson and Hudson. The film shows both the highs (the performances of the Neil Diamond songs) and the lows (coming to terms with the hardships fate dealt them).
SONG SUNG BLUE had its premiere at the AFI Film Festival on October 26, 2025, and will be released in the United States and Canada by Focus Features on Christmas Day.
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THE SPONGEBOB MOVIE: SEARCH FOR SQUAREPANTS (USA 2025) ***
Directed by Derek Drymon
The SpongeBob SquarePants franchise is an American animated comedy television series created by marine science educator and animator Stephen Hillenburg for Nickelodeon. They are a household name in countries the world over. Their new Christmas movie is bound to be a great hit, so hopes are very high.
It should be noted that SpongeBob SquarePants received widespread critical acclaim in its early years, with praise given to its characters, surreal humour, writing, visuals, animation, and Hawaiian-influenced soundtrack, with the show's first three seasons often referred to as its "golden era". However, the series has also received criticism for a perceived decline in quality, particularly after Hillenburg departed from the series starting with its fourth season onward. Since its debut, the series has also had five theatrical feature films (starting with The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie in 2004), two feature films for streaming, a Broadway musical, a comic book series, and numerous video games.
The premise of this film, not that it matters, since all the audience likely wants is a goofy laugh-out loud good time, goes like this: Desperate to become a "big guy", SpongeBob (Tom Kenny), SpongeBob, setting out to prove his bravery to Mr. Krabs (veteran Clancy Brown), travels to the deepest depths of the ocean to follow the Flying Dutchman (voiced by STAR WARS Mark Hamill).
The film was written by Pam Brady and Matt Lieberman, from a story by Brady and series creatives Marc Ceccarelli and Kaz. It was first developed as a direct-to-streaming film, but the project was retooled into a theatrical feature by February 2022. The rest is history,
Determined to find him, SpongeBob teams up with Patrick Star and ventures far beyond Bikini Bottom into strange and dangerous new realms. Along the way, the journey tests SpongeBob’s courage and optimism, forcing him to confront his fears while proving how deep his loyalty and love for Gary truly run.
The film blends the franchise’s trademark absurd humour, colourful visuals, and musical energy with a heartfelt story about friendship, responsibility, and growing up, making it accessible to longtime fans and newcomers alike. The need for SpongeBob to be recognised as ‘big’ as many smack kids obviously also wish, is funny. The main reason is actually thistle can actually be tall enough to ride his desired roller coaster. He grows up taller and makes the mark, but discovers he does not have what it takes to ride the roller coaster. In the film’s climax, he has to revisit the roller-coaster fear.
The humour is extremely goofy, so goofy that it often makes no sense, but the kids at the promo screening seem to love it.
It should be noted that the film will be accompanied by an animated short film, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Chrome Alone 2 – Lost in New Jersey. That short was previously scheduled for May 23, 2025. The short tries too hard to prove itself and comes off as a misfire. This paves the way for an improvement, which means the main feature stands a better chance by comparison.
THE SPONGEBOB MOPVIE: SEARCH FOR SQUAREPANTS is a Christmas movie opening a week earlier on December 19th.
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THE VOICE OF HIND RAJAB (Palestine 2025) ***
Directed by Kaouther Ben Hania.
This review contains certain spoilers, which are necessary to understand and provide some insight into the making of this film. The spoilers are indicated in just one paragraph in bold italics, so the paragraph may be skipped.
THE VOICE OF HIND RAJAB (described as a doc-drama) tells the real story of Hind Rajab, a very young Palestinian girl (5 or 6 years old, depending on the source) who was trapped in a car during a military attack in Gaza. During this ordeal, she makes a long phone call to the Palestine Red Crescent Society (the Red Crescent rescue service). The film uses the actual audio recordings of her call — her voice pleading, frightened, begging for help. Alongside that real audio, the film dramatises what was going on in the Red Crescent dispatch centre: rescuers coordinating, trying to get an ambulance in, waiting for permission, in a very tense and bureaucratic setting.
The film is set as recently as January 29, 2024. The Israeli army orders the evacuation of the Tel Al-Hawa Palestinian neighbourhood. The setting is at the Palestinian Red Crescent Emergency Call Centre in the West Bank, 52 miles outside Gaza. A call involving the film’s title involves Ramallah and Nesreen.
At the start of the film, titles indicate that what is about to be seen is based on true events, with dramatisation of the events with real call recordings. Unfortunately, the dramatisation seems too manipulative. The little girl in the car with the tea family around her is talking to the call centre, as the car was shot by tanks. The conflict between Ramallah and his boss is heightened, he telling him that the rescue has first toe coordinated to ensure a safe route to the girl. The two argue. While on the phone with the girl, the call centre asked her a few irrelevant questions like what her name is, who else is in the car, their names and their relations. These prolong the film’s call with the girl, stretching both credibility and patience. One scene has a caller talking to the girl, the caller with a wavering voice and tears in her eyes, a bit of all too obvious over-dramatisation. The caller later says that if she has a daughter, she would call her Hannod. Really???
The overuse of the oscilloscope display to depict voice signals is noticeable. The voice signals also display the film’s opening credits.
Tragically, Hind and the rescue workers who went out for her were later found dead.
The director has said she made the film to make Hind’s voice “resonate across borders” and to ensure her story is not forgotten. Some critics have raised ethical questions about using a child's real trauma in a film, but Ben Hania defends it — she says Hind’s mother supported the project, and that giving her voice a lasting presence was important.
Despite the film’s good intentions of making world audiences aware of the urgency of the situation in the Gaza Strip, the film cannot hide its lack of narrative and material, which is insufficient to hold interest for a mere 90 minutes.
The film premiered at the 82nd Venice Film Festival in September 2025 and was met with a historic 23-minute standing ovation.
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