FILM REVIEWS:
BALLAD OF A SMALL PLAYER (Germany/UK 2025) ***
Directed by Edward Berger
German director Edward Berger's last two recent films, ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT and CONCLAVE, have not only won loads of accolades but have been nominated for the Best Picture Oscar. His newest entry tackles a more depressing subject, and it would be a surprise if the Academy voters would pick this one again for a Best Picture nomination. For one, BALLAD OF A SMALL PLAYER is not a very easily likable film, and neither i its central character, a loser who is down on his luck. He is not actually a small player, as he does bet everything he has at one point on one single bet. The ‘small’, of course, could refer to something else.
The film opens with a shot of a city filled with bright lights and casinos. No, it is not Las Vegas. The audience is told that it is M<acau. The city is most famous for gambling in the universe.
There are differences between Macau and Vegas, of course, and the audience's shoulders have some fun observing the difference on screen, like they serve tea instead of drinks in Macau.
The film follows Lord Doyle (Colin Farrell), a high-stakes gambler who is trying to lie low in Macau after his past misdeeds and mounting debts begin to catch up with him. Doyle lives under a veneer of sophistication and confidence, spending his days and nights on casino floors, drinking heavily, gambling, and trying to maintain control of both his finances and his identity. As his debt burden grows (he is banned from the hotel that he is initially residing at, and moves to another, less strict one that would advance him loans) and his world starts to unravel, he encounters Dao Ming (Fala Chen), a mysterious casino employee/moneylender with her own secrets. Also tracking him is Cynthia Blithe (Tilda Swinton), a private investigator/outsider who confronts him with what he’s been hiding and the consequences of his actions.
As Doyle tries to claw his way toward redemption (or at least survival), boundaries between reality and illusion begin to blur; the narrative often leans into metaphor, psychological disintegration, and hints of the supernatural.
Berger is a great stager of scenes, as can be observed in his previous films. In this film, the glamour and spectacle of the casinos are all on display. His best filmed segment is actually the one after the closing credits role, an elaborate dance sequence between Colin Farrell and Tilda Swinton.
Farrell excels in his role as the loser/gambler. If Nicholas Cage won an Oscar for a similar role in Mike Figgis’ LEAVING LAS VEGAS, Farrell might have a good chance here.
The film is based on Lawrence Osborne’s 2014 novel The Ballad of a Small Player. The film had its world premiere at the 52nd Telluride Film Festival on 29 August 2025, and was released in select cinemas in the United States on 15 October 2025, before being released in the United Kingdom on 17 October 2025, before its streaming debut on Netflix on 29 October 2025.
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EVERYBODY LOVES ME WHEN I’MDEAD (Thailand 2025) **½
Directed by Nithiwat Tharatorn
The title of the new Thai crime drama EVERYBODY LOVES ME WHEN I’M DEAD comes about because once dead, one could have a dormant bank account, which means the ‘everybody’ has a chance to draw out the money, without any notice if done cleverly enough.
This is the premise of the film. The everybody are two friends and workers at a Thai bank, Toh and Petch, The story centres on Toh, a vice-manager at a bank, who is under financial pressure—he is trying to afford his daughter’s schooling in a prestigious school that demands donations in oder for admission, as well as maintain his family’s lifestyle, while also fearing his job may become obsolete. The obsolescence is explained as the result of AI, a theme common in many films currently. Toh’s junior colleague, Petch, discovers that a long-dormant bank account, belonging to a deceased woman named Jit, contains 30 million baht. This translates to around 1.3 million Canadian dollars, a hefty sum. Because nobody is claiming it, Petch persuades Toh that the money is essentially “unowned.” Tech is under pressure from gangsters as his recently deceased father owed them a whole load of money.
Initially reluctant, Toh eventually gives in. They begin withdrawing small amounts, rationalizing that it's “no one’s money.” Both represent relatively innocent men forced away, as well as tempted to step on the money. But once the heist is underway, they attract dangerous attention from gangsters and criminals who want the same funds.
In the first half of the film, the interaction of the characters and the story’s premise is established to little fanfare. All goes according to what one might expect without any surprises, meaning a little slow and boring initial half of the film. The film runs over 2 hours, so an hour takes its time to pass before director Tharatorn ups the ante with some violence that includes a gangster stomping on his hand and cursing the upper half of his arm with a sharp knife. The latter is enough to make anyone cringe.
As the stakes rise, alliances break, betrayals occur, violence escalates, and the plan unravels, turning the lives of all involved into a tragic downward spiral. The film has a depressing tone with little hope for the two hard-up-for-money bank employees. The message of greed and desperation is all too common, but one that needs to be emphasized in the film.
The film offers little redemption for both Toh and Petch. Though director Tharatorn brings this film logically to its conclusion, one might complain of the overall bleak nature of the film. The film also highlights the sleaze of city life, as in one scene when TYoh drives past a massage parlour with young girls posing through a window.
EVERYBODY LOVES ME WHEN I’M DEAD opens for streaming this week on Netflix, Tuesday, October 14th. It makes a change from all the Thai horror films and martial-arts action flicks.
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GOOD FORTUNE (USA 2025) **
Directed by Aziz Ansari
A combination of body swapping and angel earning wings genre that avoids strong messages but results in amusing at most missed comedy.
(Review to be posted weekend)
INSIDE FURIOZA (Poland 2025) **½
Directed by Cyprian T. Olencki
INSIDE FURIOZA is the sequel to the 2021 FURIOZA, each film running close to a little over 2 hours. INSIDE FURIOZA is very confusing if one is unfamiliar with the first film or its characters, despite a 2 and a two-minute intro to the film.
For FURIOZA, an event from the past separates the fate of three friends. Unexpectedly, in the life of David (Mateusz Banasiuk), she appears again. Dzika (Weronika Ksiazkiewicz) - once the love of his life, now an experienced policewoman, makes him an offer that cannot be rejected. Either he becomes a police informant, or his brother (Wojciech Zielinski) will go to prison with a long-term sentence. Pressed against the wall, David finally succumbs, and his main goal becomes to infiltrate in an organized criminal group. Hitting the middle of a war for influence and money, he will have to face constant suspicion from Golden's old friend (Mateusz Damiecki). He will soon discover that the world from which he tried to free himself draws him in with redoubled strength.
In INSIDE FURIOZA, also called FURIOZA 2 and also called FURIOZA AGAIN, the story picks up in the wake of a murder; a new leader named Golden takes control of the Furioza hooligan gang and steers it toward expanded criminal activity across borders. After a plan to overthrow the gang’s ultras leader goes horribly wrong, Golden seizes power and unleashes violence and chaos in the city.
With respect to the original, the stakes escalate in the underworld with organized crime, gang wars, and moral conflict.
The film is ultra-violent, and on the positive side, the performances are convincing, the action chase sequences, particularly the opening car chase on the highway well executed. On the negative side, the film is too long, and it is hard to follow the story unless one is familiar with the plot prior to watching the film.
FURIOZA has nothing to do wth the MAD MAX films, though they share the gang violence and action.
INSIDE FURIOZA opens for streaming on Netflix this week. The film should satisfy action fans.
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KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN (USA 2025) ***½
Directed by Bill Condon
The setting is Argentina, 1983, where the military dictatorship has killed and imprisoned some 30,000 political opponents. The first act introduces the two prisoners sharing the same cell. Usually, the introductory phase of any story could be laboured, but in this film, the introductions are spirited and ultra-dramatic. The first screen adaptation, however, is set in a Brazilian prison during the 1970s military dictatorship.
Argentina, 1983. With the country’s military dictatorship waging a brutal war against its political opponents, prisoners Molina (Tonatiuh) and Valentin (Diego Luna) are cellmates in a prison where fear runs rampant. Molina is a window dresser, incarcerated for public indecency with a male. He likes to chit-chat and decorate the walls with movie posters. Valentin is different, a leftist activist who likes to read political books and ponder. He doesn’t know that Molina has been tasked to spy on him, in return for favours like roast chicken and chocolate. Meanwhile, Molina provides escapism for both of them by recounting the plot of a Hollywood musical starring his favourite screen diva (Jennifer Lopez).
As the cinematic story begins to blend with their real lives, Molina’s and Valentin’s bond grows stronger, first as friends – and then as more. Yet Molina is still being pressured to deliver some intel on Valentin.
The first screen adaptation (same title) before the musical by John Kander and Fred Ebb is a 1985 drama film directed by Héctor Babenco from a screenplay by Leonard Schrader, based on the 1976 novel by Argentine author Manuel Puig. It starred William Hurt, Raúl Julia, Sônia Braga, José Lewgoy, Milton Gonçalves, and Denise Dumon. This film was a huge hit, so this new adaptation by Bill Condon (KINSEY, GODS AND MONSTERS) has tough shoes to fill. Babenco went on to be the first Brazilian director to be nominated for an Academy Award. That film also won Hurt the Best Actor for BFATA and the Golden Globe. The film also featured the hot Brazilian actress Sonia Braga. It is interesting to note that as Babenco’s SPIDERWOMAN is largely Brazilian, his prison is a Brazilian prison, while the book’s and this latest film adaptation is an Argentinian prison. In fact, this film ends with the political prisoners relating in Argentina.
The dances are magnificently choreographed, with Jennifer Lopez doing justice to the Latino dances. The choreography is no Bob Fosse masterpieces as in his CABARET with Ebb and Kander, but the dances are still fantastic. Director Condon directs the dances in one take, which enhances the magnificence as opposed to the dances in Baz Luhrmann’s STRICTLY BALLROOM, MOULIN ROUGE, or his ELVIS films, in which the choreography is broken up into too many cuts, with edits appearing less than every 12 seconds, thus chopping up all the dances.
For Fred and Chita…… These words appear on the screen, indicating the persons the film is dedicated to. The film is dedicated to the memories of Ebb (who died in 2004), McNally (who died in 2020 from COVID-19), and Chita Rivera (who originated the title role on stage and died in 2024).
KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN opens October 17 across Canada! At the time of writing, the film has had he most disastrous opening weekend this year, grossing a domestic less than $1 million domestically at the box office. Another dud for Lionsgate!
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OTHER (France 2025) ***
Directed by David Moreau
David Moreau’s OTHER is a mystery/horror/thriller, pretty much like his previous 2024 film MadS. Less ambitious than MadS, which was done in one long continuous take, director Moreau removes this filming constraint in his latest effort. There are differences. The former was an intense fast fast-paced horror film, while the latter is a slow burn that takes place generally in a big, empty house. (Or is it not empty?) The one similarity of both films is that one can expect the unexpected. The former has a surprise end-of-the-world scenario at the end of the film, and there is a not-to-be-revealed surprise in OTHER as well.
OTHER has a female protagonist compared to the young male one in MadS.
With scenes of the female in a large dilapidated house, director Moteau cannot help himself by having a few scenes with his beautiful actress in scanty clad attire. At least, he does not resort to jump scares, which these days are used too much with annoyance.
The film can be divided into three acts. The first is the setup where the audience is introduced to the female and her beau, Charlie. The second has the setup where the film scares the audience with a masked killer, a wild animal, and other devices. The third act is a violent one, with one scene where the female has her fingers stuck in the spikes of barbed wire as she scales a barbed wire fence. Another scene has her pull out the spikes. Be prepared to cringe a number of times.
The main flaw of the film is the upended conclusion in which the audience is left to interpret what is actually going on. The end is more frustrating than innovative. One does not go watch a horror film to think, but just to be entertained and scared silly. Other than that, Moreau’s film is well shot, well performed, and displays promise.
One thing to note is that OTHER, a French film from France that is shot in English. Like MadS, which was shot in French, both films could be relocated to any part of the world and shot in any language without much difference.
OTHER, like MadS, is a Shudder streaming exclusive and opens for streaming on the horror network on October 17th.
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THE PERFECT NEIGHBOUR (USA 2025) ***
Directed by Geeta Gandbhir
The true crime drama documentary is one of moviegoers' favourite genres, and one that has been capitalised on by Netflix. Netflix produced an average of at least two true crime dramas every three weeks, and subscribers highly watch them. THE PERFECT NEIGHBOUR is the latest Netflix true crime drama, and it is a timely one, as it not only covers issues of race and law but also of troubles that neighbours often have with each other. Everyone has a neighbour, which means that everyone could have some trouble at some time or another with their neighbours. This makes THE PERFECT NEIGHBOUR, or rather the imperfect neighbour, a perfect watch.
THE PERFECT NEIGHBOUR involves an incident as recent as last year, 2023. On June 2, 2023, in Ocala, Florida, 35-year-old Ajike "AJ" Shantrell Owens was shot and killed by her neighbour, 58-year-old Susan Lorincz. Owens was knocking on Lorincz's door after altercations occurred between Owens' children and Lorincz in a field nearby. Lorincz shot Owens through the door. Police were already responding to "a trespassing call" when they received another 911 call about a shooting at the same address. They found Owens injured and took her to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
The case garnered national attention and sparked debate surrounding stand-your-ground laws. In August 2024, Lorincz was found guilty of manslaughter, and in November 2024, she was sentenced to 25 years in prison. In 2025, the shooting was the basis for the documentary film
It is important to have knowledge of the stand your ground law, especially when guns are permitted in the United States. This true crime doc utilises this law to defend the attacker. A stand-your-ground law, sometimes called a "line in the sand" or "no duty to retreat" law, provides that people may use deadly force when they reasonably believe it to be necessary to defend against certain violent crimes (right of self-defence). Under such a law, people have no duty to retreat before using deadly force in self-defense, so long as they are in a place where they are lawfully present. It is also good to know the alternative. The alternative to stand your ground is "duty to retreat". In jurisdictions that implement a duty to retreat, even a person who is unlawfully attacked (or who is defending someone who is unlawfully attacked) may not use deadly force if it is possible to instead avoid the danger with complete safety by retreating.
The film reconstructs the conflicts =, beginning with the initial incident of a sign thrown by Ajike at Lorincz, the one that was probably the catalyst of all the incidents that followed. The film offers afirsthand experience feel as the film features through police bodycam footage, 911 calls, and on-scene transcripts — with minimal narration or interview framing — allowing the events to unfold through the raw materials of the case
Through its subject, the effective re-constructed true crime drama raises broader questions about race, power, fear, and how certain legal frameworks may enable violence.
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THE SUMMER BOOK (also called The Summer House)(UK/Finland/USA 2024) ****
Directed by Charlie McDowell
Can a film be too charming? The film’s main character is a summer house set at the edge of an Island by the Coast of Finland. The opening shot shows the partly melted ice on the rocks at the shore where the waves swell toward the rocks. The camera moves to an old house close by. THE SUMMER BOOK is based on the beloved novel with the same name. One scene has the 9-year-old daughter approaching her father in the kitchen of the house. “I know what you hate about the sea,” she says. She then throws a bunch of seaweed and her dad and runs away. Another scene has Sophie’s grandmother leaving the shack, followed by Sophie, who asks what she is doing. Listening is her answer, to which Sophie remains silent, only to have the audience listen to the sounds of nature in the early morning of nature. It is seldom that a film resorts to the beauty of sound to evoke a sense of peace and solitude. Who would not want to live in a house by the sea, where the tide comes in and out daily?
Nine-year-old Sophia (Emily Matthews) spends the summers at her family’s seasonal home on a tranquil isle in the Gulf of Finland, but this will be the first summer without her mother. Her father (Anders Danielsen Lie) remains numbed by grief, while her grandmother (Glenn Close) guides her on a giddy, winding path towards young adulthood. With a sense of infinite possibility and a tender regard for the wonders of the natural world, Sophia and her grandmother explore the terrain, celebrate midsommar, and test the limits of faith in the face of life’s many storms.
THE SUMMER BOOK is a Glenn Close movie, the actress who is generous enough to let her co-star, 9-year-old Matthews, shine in the film. This is one of Close’s rare roles in which she does not play nasty. Close is famous for her nasty roles as in HILLBILLY ELEGY, DANGEROUS LIASONS, and most notably FATAL ATTRACTION. She has been nominated 8 times for an Academy Award and was robbed of the prize in her last nomination in HILLBILLY ELEGY to the Korean actress from MANARI. She played really nastily in that film, but apparently the Academy is not in favour of nasty.
The film could be, but certainly does not feel like a slow burn. There is not much plot or story, but there is sometimes more than narrative in a solid movie, THE SUMMER BOOK being one of those rare films. This is a contemplative film filled with mood, imagery, with some stunning shots by cinematographer Sturla Brandth Grøvlen, silence, gestures, and behaviour highlighted by detailed performances by the cast of 3.
Adapted from Tove Jansson’s beloved novel, The Summer Book is a welcome, different, and delicate account of growing up and growing old, beautifully filmed on 16mm in majestic natural light.
THE SUMMER BOOK premieres and is available on digital October 21st.
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THE TIME THAT REMAINS (Philippines 2025) **½
Directed by Adolfo Alix Jr.
THE TIME THAT REMAINS is a Filipino romantic-fantasy combining multiple genres, including drama, romance, fantasy, vampirism, and melodrama.
The premise of the film, according to Netflix, where the film premieres this week, is: “Surrounded by a string of deaths, an older woman relives her romance with a mysterious, ageless lover as an inspector closes in on their dark secret.” Netflix
Please note that this review contains spoilers that are necessary for the review. But the number of spoilers will be kept to a minimum and revealed only when necessary.
The film begins with a mass murder in a house. Everyone is killed except for an old woman, who survives and is taken to the hospital. The cops are puzzled.
The story features three main characters, each with their individual stories and problems, of course. The stories are intertwined and all the stories culminate in a climax that proves a happy ending, or sort of, anyway, for the three and other supporting characters.
One of the main characters is Lilia, the older woman who, after being shot during a break-in at her home, is hospitalized. Lilia is not the woman that she seems. While in the hospital, she forms a bond with a nurse, Isabela, who becomes curious about Lilia’s mysterious past and her relationship with Matias, a man who has not aged in decades. Lilia refuses to tell Isabela her life story. Matias is not an ordinary man: he has supernatural, vampiric traits (he can transform, feed on blood, and possibly shapeshift into a cat). They share a love relationship. They first met during earlier periods in Lilia’s life (including during Japanese occupation), and Matias has followed her through decades. Lilia, at times, resists immortal life; she remains mortal, aging, while he stays the same.
The second main character is the nurse, Isabela. She is a hardworking and kind nurse who is harassed by her ex, who wants money and never stops leaving her alone. In the meantime, Isabela is hoping to immigrate to Toronto, Canada. As Isabela listens to the old lady’s story, she is touched by the love that is missing in her life.
The third character is the cop involved with the mass murder in the house. The inspector is obsessed with this case and has traced the killings down to a serial killer. So obsessed is he that he gets himself fired for overdoing his investigation.
THE TIME THAT REMAINS also covers multiple key Filipino issues. One issue is the colonial one, where in the past, the Philippines was raided by the Spanish. This is considered the root cause of Matias’ problem. The issue of eternity and mortality is also examined. Matias offers Lilia everlasting life with no pain and no death. There is also the issue of relationships that can survive through the ages, and how tragedy never affects true love.
The film is, unfortunately, marred by over-stretched melodrama (a key complaint in Filipino movies) with a soundtrack and a lengthy deathbed scene. Running at 2 hours, the film could’ve been shortened for more bite and effectiveness.
THE TIME THAT REMAINS is still a worthy piece of storytelling and melodrama for the undemanding moviegoer. It premieres on Netflix this week.
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THE TWITS (UK/USA 2025) **½
Directed by Roald Dahl
THE TWITS is minor Road Dahl.
The film begins with the audience being introduced to THE TWITS, a mean, ugly couple who’ve been married for 47y years and who hate everything and everybody, including themselves. But they are still together because they share the love of the amusement park in their backyard.
Mr. and Mrs. Twit are the meanest, smelliest, nastiest people in the world who also happen to own and operate the most disgusting, most dangerous, most idiotic amusement park in the world, Twitlandia. But when the Twits rise to power in their town, two brave orphans and a family of magical animals are forced to become as tricky as the Twits to save the city. A hysterically funny, wild ride of a film (chock-full of the Twits' beloved tricks--from the Wormy Spaghetti to the Dreaded Shrinks), The Twits is also a story for our times, about the never-ending battle between cruelty and empathy.
If the film or story sounds familiar to the film THE CROODS, it is because the regional script was written by John Cleese and out away before surfacing in the film THE CROODS.
The Americanization of the story, despite the cricket insects at the beginning of the film speaking with a British accent, does not really work, nor does the blend of the theme of cruelty and empathy. The film ends up minor a Roald Dahl work. It is also not that funny!
THE TWITS opens for streaming on Netflix this week.
THE WEEDHACKER MASSACRE (USA 2024) ***
Directed by Jody Stelzig
A "weed hacker" is an informal or incorrect term for a string trimmer, also commonly called a weed whacker, weed eater, or whipper snipper. It is a garden power tool that uses a spinning monofilament line to cut grass and weeds in hard-to-reach areas like the edges of a lawn, around trees, or along fences. In the horror comedy film within a film, the weedhacker ’s string is not seen, but what can be seen are whirring blades. Blades that kill!
The film aims to capitalize on the gruesome murders that polarized the film THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE, as both films are set in Texas, in remote Texas, both have the word massacre, and both have the weapon of a cutting tool. The film notably features Allen Danziger (from THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE) as Sheriff Danzinshoos. The film was co-created by Allen Danziger and Ray Spivey, written and produced by Ray Spivey, executive produced by Allen Danziger, and directed by Jody Stelzig.
How many remakes of a bad horror movie can one make? The cast and crew of THE WEEDHACKER MASSACRE boldly film where gruesome murders occurred 10 years ago, and the masked killer, nicknamed Poker Face, was never found. Bad acting, bounced payroll checks, and the killer's return threaten what is surely to become their worst movie ever.
The film begins with a sudden kill in which one brother kills the other over some marijuana. The killing does not make much sense, but neither does the entire film. Aimed at least to be a silly comedy, that it is, though the film turns out to be amusing at best. - a low-budget derivative horror comedy with a few satirical edges.
Gruesome murders involving a college kid and girls occurred 10 years before the setting of the present. The male student, Wonder Willie, disappears, and it is assumed that he killed all the girls, of which only one survived. 10years later, a crew returns to make another remake of the killings with Wonder Willie present and a reporter who was one of the survivors of the massacre 10 years ago. The killers are the family of the Guters, the family that made the town the marijuana capital of Texas. Everyone in the city is involved with the Guters. Wonder Willie and Candy find themselves new targets for the Gutters' new spree of killings, in which the film crew is done away with one by one.
The killings are executed in a light, violent fashion, mostly with speed and efficiency, and lots of blood. The dialogue is corny as hell, but it is meant to be so. There are a few parodies that work. One is the realization that Wonder Willie and Candy are in a romantic relationship. The music turns romantic-like, but the couple suddenly realizes what is happening, and in embarrassment, turns away, thus killing the cliche.
The performances are all done effectively enough by an all non-star cast. The film could have been funnier or scarier. It seems that this horror comedy compromises both the comedy and the horror elements. The film’s campiness and cheesiness work, though.
THE WEEDHACKER opens on digital platforms on October 17th.
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