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28 Years Later (2025) Review

After a dangerous journey with his father to the mainland, witnessing firsthand how the Rage virus has evolved, Jamie and his mother Anna return to a devastated Britain, seeking help and answers they can’t find in the heavily fortified tidal causeway seclusion of Lindisfarne Island – with deadly consequences. Danny Boyle takes back directing duties for this third instalment, retaining the…

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Predator: Killer of Killers (2025) Review

Ursa the Viking (Lindsay LaVanchy), Kenji the ninja (Louis Ozawa), and Torres the WWII pilot (Rick Gonzalez) each face Predator infested arenas in their respective eras, where their journeys collide in a climactic clash on the Predator homeworld. Prey director Dan Trachtenberg returns (this time co-directing with Joshua Wassung) to animate the Predator mythos, teaming up again with writer Micho…

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Ballerina (2025) Review

When Eve Macarro’s assassin father is killed, she sets out to avenge his murder within the deadly underworld of the John Wick universe. Set before John Wick 4 Ballerina slots confidently into the John Wick world, delivering a visually striking, atmospherically rich action thriller. It may not break new ground narratively, but it delivers brutal, balletic action and seamless integration into the…

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The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966) Review

Three gunslingers compete to find a fortune in buried Confederate gold amidst the violent chaos of the American Civil War. One of the greatest Westerns ever made. While Spaghetti Western For a Few Dollars More is debatably the better tale, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly is grander in scale and scope (thanks to director of photography Tonino Delli Colli), with the main characters even getting…

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A Fistful of Dollars (1964) Review

A lone, nameless gunman arrives in a dusty border town torn apart by two warring families. Playing both sides against each other for his own gain, the drifter becomes a catalyst for violence, betrayal, and bloodshed. While not the first spaghetti western, A Fistful of Dollars (1964) is widely regarded as the film that redefined the genre, shattering the influence of traditional American…

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For a Few Dollars More (1965) Review

Two bounty hunters — the enigmatic Man With No Name (Clint Eastwood) and the vengeful Colonel Mortimer (Lee Van Cleef) — cross paths while tracking the sadistic outlaw El Indio (Gian Maria Volonté). Initially at odds, they forge a wary alliance as the hunt spirals into a violent reckoning. Of the three films in Leone’s Dollars Trilogy, For a Few Dollars More arguably boasts the strongest…

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Karate Kid: Legends (2025) Review

Li, a young kung fu prodigy played by Ben Wang, moves to New York City where a confrontation with a local karate champion throws him into a culture clash of martial arts. With the help of his former master Mr. Han and veteran sensei Daniel LaRusso, Li must find his balance in life and combat.Directed by Jonathan Entwistle and written by Rob Lieber, Karate Kid: Legends blends franchise nostalgia…

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Timebomb (1991) Review

After watchmaker Eddy Kay recuses a woman and her baby and is recognised on the News by a shady agent ad then an attempt is made on his life triggers haunted violent visions and latent combat skills and he is caught in a deadly conspiracy. Timebomb feels oddly dated for a 1991 release. Directed by Avi Nesher, known for inventive genre projects, it echoes the tone of an ’80s action-thriller. The…

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Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation (2015) Review

With the IMF shut down, Ethan Hunt becomes a fugitive, uncovering the Syndicate — a secret network of rogue agents sowing global chaos. Teaming with an enigmatic assassin operative, he faces one of his most dangerous missions yet. Christopher McQuarrie steps into the director’s chair for the first time in the series and delivers a streamlined, tension-packed thriller. The film famously opens…

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Universal Soldier: Regeneration (2009) Review

A broken, isolated Luc Deveraux (Jean-Claude Van Damme) forced back into action when terrorists seize Chernobyl, armed with a next-gen UniSol and a familiar ghost from his past. 2009’s Universal Soldier: Regeneration wisely disregards the string of iffy sequels that followed the 1992 original with director John Hyams striping away the glossy sci-fi trappings in favour of a cold, brutalist…

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Rust (2024) Review

A 13-year-old boy, forced to care for his younger brother after their parents’ death, faces the noose for an accidental killing. His only hope — a hardened, estranged grandfather who spirits him away on a dangerous journey into new Mexico. Director Joel Souza crafts tense, understated set pieces and character-driven exchanges, wisely letting his actors carry the film’s emotional heft on the back…

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Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning (2025) Review

Ethan Hunt faces his most personal and perilous mission yet as a powerful rogue AI threatens global security, forcing him and his IMF team into a race against time. As expected, Tom Cruise leads with relentless energy and physicality, delivering white-knuckle set pieces that leave you breathless — notably a vertigo-inducing plane sequence and a nerve-shredding underwater scene with…

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Damaged (2024) — A Cautionary Case Study in IP Infringement and Creative Rights Management

As both the original rights holder, creator, and writer of Shadows of Dismemberment, I’ve spent eight months consulting legal professionals with a background specifically in intellectual property (IP) and copyright law. It’s necessary I address the situation surrounding the 2024 feature film. Following a detailed comparative analysis, it’s apparent the film constitutes an unauthorised derivative…

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The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976) Review

A Missouri farmer Josey Wales, turns outlaw after his family is brutally murdered by pro-Union militants. Pursued by bounty hunters and soldiers alike, Josey gathers a makeshift family of outcasts and survivors on his journey south. Clint Eastwood’s The Outlaw Josey Wales remains one of the finest examples of the revisionist Western – a gritty, mournful tale of revenge, redemption, and reluctant…

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High Plains Drifter (1973) Review

A mysterious gunman arrives in the isolated town of Lago, where the uneasy townsfolk, desperate for protection from a band of returning outlaws, hire him as their reluctant saviour. What unfolds is a grim tale of guilt, violence, and spectral revenge. Clint Eastwood’s High Plains Drifter (1973) – his second directorial feature – remains his most eerie and unsettling Western. Written by Ernest…

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Pale Rider (1985) Review

A mysterious cowboy rides into a struggling 19th-century mining town, where a ruthless land baron terrorises a community of prospectors. Known only as The Preacher, he becomes both protector and avenger. Clint Eastwood’s Pale Rider (1985) is one of his strongest Westerns, a spiritual cousin to High Plains Drifter but with a more grounded, reflective tone. Where Drifter leaned into eerie, almost…

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Andor (2022-2025) Review

Tony Gilroy’s Andor stands apart as the most grounded and character-driven entry in the Star Wars universe since Rogue One. While the first season focused heavily on world-building – establishing the political decay, simmering rebellion, and personal toll of Imperial rule – season two sharpens its focus, delivering a slow-burn thriller that, while painfully predictable to anyone with even a…