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Wow. So Prey wasn’t a fluke. Trachtenburg and team seem to understand how to write and craft something as thrilling (and gruesome) as you want a Predator film to be. Let him play in this universe as long as he wants.

If they had decided to focus one specific direction, this really could have worked. One moment it's (not really) funny, the other it's brutal, and next it resembles an A-team episode. And just don't give Affleck these roles.

Watched on Thursday June 5, 2025.

It has a richer narrative than From Dusk Till Dawn, and is able to blend multiple genres into the story, but the pacing, jeez, they could've learned a thing or two from Rodriguez..

The final chapter is not even trying to be smart or surprising; it's just a bloated script without any of the interesting bits from earlier films. What remains is an excuse to let Cruise do his beloved stunts, which leave little impression, even on the big screen.

Watched on Sunday May 25, 2025.

Watched on Friday May 23, 2025.

I liked the first half. After that it loses all pace, structure, and tonal consistency as it goes along. The worst thing however, is watching Ruffalo and Collette mush through two of the most tiring roles imaginable.

Watched on Thursday April 24, 2025.

Watched on Monday April 28, 2025.

Someone tell these people to put their budget in steady-cams and some actual cars to do chases in. Violence, sure, by all means, but I can't think of many other good reasons for this movie to exist.

Season 2

Wow. This really wanted to be another Taken, and it fails ridiculously at every single aspect.

Cheerfully nasty and violent, but funny.

A little self-indulgent, but still an intelligent, well-executed film that respects its audience. More please.

The only watchable parts are every time Ridley gets to kick a**, which happens too few, and long since after we've stopped giving a damn. Somebody get her a new agent.

This review may contain spoilers.

I don't know where to start. The script, the casting, the cinematography, the meticulous recreation of an era... everything works. You could also choose to draw some parallels to the contemporary struggles in this world. As it's a true story, I tried to imagine - to an extend - this happening to my own family, and I wonder if I would've recovered as brilliant as Eunice did.

My knowledge of today’s Iran is minimal, but through a single family, Mr. Rasoulof has created a vivid portrait of the dilemmas people face. And, as I understood, completely shot in secret, which is amazing.

Not the most spectacular of stories, but it’s actually a small, approachable, actor-led drama we all complain Hollywood doesn’t produce any more. Solid performances all around.

Watched on Friday February 28, 2025.

If you've seen all related movies and tv series, Brave New World will not be able to reward you in any way. It lacks any fresh ideas, and if this is a sign of things to come, the MCU is in more trouble than we already thought.

You love Dylan or you don't. Either way, the only question that comes to mind after watching this, is why a film about a self-absorbed narcissist would work at all, if he's portrayed as one-dimensional as in this script. Having said that, it's a well-crafted period piece, with some committed performances by Chalamet, Norton, and Barbaro.

I fail to understand all the praise it's receiving, as it is overly theatrical, weighed down by a miscasted Felicity Jones, and way to long for what it needs to tell us.

Does that make it a bad movie? Not completely. The first half is intriguing and most acting is solid, but for a film that started as an epic narrative that didn’t talk down to its audience, The Brutalist ends in such a pedantic way, that it almost feels like a massive betrayal after 215 minutes.

An other thing that didn't help: I hardly ever like movies with unlikable main characters, and on that note, there wasn't much to make it worth the journey.

This review may contain spoilers.

Apart from being a spoiler itself, the trailer had me thinking this would be totally over-the-top, but for a film about advanced technology, it’s all a bit simple.

A messy script, ridiculous character choices and 'meh' performances bring down what could have been a decent thriller.

Repetitive, meandering and dull, this film keeps steering attention to the way it is filmed at the expense of narrative. It didn't resonate with me at all.

Because we care about the leads, everything works, for a solid first hour or so. Until, suddenly, it kind of doesn't. But it keeps you on board.

I just rewatched the original, but I should've known; the contemporary experienced filmmaker Tim Burton as we know him now, has replaced the young and pioneering version a long time ago. Also, with more than 30 years between films, it’s difficult to pick up where they left off. Yet, it retains a similar aesthetic, and it really helps that the (returning) lead characters are played by terrific actors.

Watched on Thursday February 6, 2025.

Watched on Tuesday February 4, 2025.

Jeez. I owe an apology to my wife. I'm sorry honey, it seems you're not even close to being the weirdest fan of serial killers and (true) crime.

The acting is horrible, its execution is clumsy, the sound track corny, the denouement silly.. Then again, who said bad taste was easy? It is simply a low-budget morbid special effects masterpiece (for its time), and a rare example of one that's better than its predecessor.

I suppose even in the eighties this wasn't good at all, but they just didn't give a f*ck. Even so, it turned out to be a milestone in low-budget horror; who cares about the premise or its characters.

Small Things Like These is about as honest and accurately titled a film could be, as its story takes place almost entirely on Murphy’s face. Nothing bad, just very low-key.

The screenplay doesn’t seem to ever decide on a direction, so it didn’t resonate with me, but at least the cast looked like they had fun making it. But how on earth is it possible to fire 100 jokes per minute without any of them working?

Nothing particularly scary, but it helps to have a good setting, strong characters and practical effects.

It’s been a long time since I was this clueless about what was going to happen next in a film; it was exhilarating, delightfully silly and stunningly well made. A triumph of big imagination over tiny budget.

Not only an acting and writing disaster, but a rather frustrating experience, designed to be watched in the background while you do other things.

Although I think Eggers is a limited filmmaker; if you're in need for a dark, pretentious, large-scale exercise in visual, tonal, and dramatic language, he'd be your guy. This project should've been a perfect match...

... but then, he decided to made Orlok look like Dr. Robotnik.

The script operates in a morally gray area, and of course there are better extraction movies out there, but considering the 'Butler genre', Kandahar is competently made.

To start of with the positive: there's nothing wrong with the performances, editing and cinematography. But it constantly feels like they tried to fix a messy gangster-drama-screenplay by adding mediocre songs and choreography to it, hoping that it might work as an original and groundbreaking musical.

On a sentimental day, Zemeckis’ latest experiment would've made me rethink the age of my time in life so far. But while pushing the boundaries of filmmaking, he tries to pull off too much at once, failing to save it from feeling gimmicky instead of genuine.

As always, Aardman works wonders, creating a world more magical than anything a computer could generate.

I didn't grow up with the wizard of Oz, I never saw Wicked or any of it's other adaptations, and the only movie musical I really appreciate, is the Sound of Music. In other words; I didn't have the expectations for this 3-hour vehicle that fans or other insiders might have. But honestly, there is much to like. Especially Grande and Erivo pull their weight as performers, both vocally and otherwise. Everything looks great and I even laughed out loud a few times. Having said that, it's a long ride, and once the flying CGI monkeys made their appearance, they lost me. But overall; good job keeping me entertained.

Benji is a gift of a role, and Eisenberg was wise enough to generously hand it to Culkin, who dominates from start to finish.

It's a bit long, but if nothing else, this adaptation serves as a reminder that, on occasion, they still make movies like they used to.

Not sure what this adds to the Quiet Place series, but it seemed a proper watch for this date.

Watched on Monday December 30, 2024.

Perhaps not as memorable as other horror classics, or even as funny as other Landis movies, but a classic nonetheless.

Exactly what the trailer promises: a noisy, witless puddle of CGI puke. But it doesn’t take itself too seriously, so we shouldn't either. At least it stays true to its primary objective: entertainment.

My best first time watches in 2025 (not necessarily released in 2025). Ranked. Used for my 2025 YIR.

1. Predator: Killer of Killers
2. Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl
3. I'm Still Here
4. Hundreds of Beavers
5. The Seed of the Sacred Fig
6. A Real Pain
7. Black Bag
8. The Last Showgirl
9. Wicked

As it turns out, the one title that was missing from my Oscar 2025 watches, was the best. Or at least a tie with Anora and the Substance. Not that anyone cares. But I do, and I like to keep my lists organised :)

1. I'm Still Here
2. Anora
3. The Substance
4. Conclave
5. Dune: Part Two
6. Wicked
7. A Complete Unknown
8. The Brutalist
9. Emilia Pérez
10. Nickel Boys

My best first time watches in 2024 (not necessarily released in 2024). Ranked. Used for my 2024 YIR.

1. Past Lives
2. The Substance
3. Anora
4. Anatomy of a Fall
5. Rebel Ridge
6. Challengers
7. The Taste of Things
8. The Wild Robot
9. Rye Lane
10. Living

...plus 3 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

Favourite film titles containing First names only.

- As it is a classic, my number one felt wrong not to include. It's technically a second first name, but I figured; it's not his last, so it counts.
- My second entry doesn't have a lastname, neither does number 7, but I guess, if it's their only name, it's also their first.
- Since Leon has a subtitle, I might be bending the rules, but it seems more people are, so I'm keeping it in.

letterboxd.telechargervous.com/showdown/call-me-by-your-name/

1. Amadeus
2. RoboCop
3. Willow
4. Victoria
5. Léon: The Professional
6. Coco
7. WALL·E
8. Rocky
9. Juno
10. Coraline

My best first time watches in 2023 (not necessarily released in 2023). Ranked. Used for my 2023 YIR.

• Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
• Y Tu Mamá También
• The Banshees of Inisherin
• Coraline
• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem
• Tetris
• TÁR
• Causeway
• Killers of the Flower Moon
• The Holdovers

...plus 8 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
• Bone Tomahawk
• Irreversible
• Eden Lake
• Midsommar
• The Fly
• Saw

My first time feature film watches in cinema in 2023. Ranked. Not that many, this year.

1. The Creator
2. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
3. Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning
4. Oppenheimer

My first time feature film watches in cinema in 2022. Ranked.

1. Top Gun: Maverick
2. Avatar: The Way of Water
3. The Batman
4. The Northman

My best first time watches in 2022 (not necessarily released in 2022). Ranked. Used for my 2022 YIR.

1. The Fallout
2. Top Gun: Maverick
3. The Worst Person in the World
4. Everything Everywhere All at Once
5. Spider-Man: No Way Home
6. Marcel the Shell with Shoes On
7. Mass
8. The Outfit
9. Nowhere Special
10. Godless

...plus 15 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

My first time watches on Netflix in 2022 (not necessarily released in 2022). Ranked. Used for my 2022 YIR.

1. Godless
2. Bo Burnham: Inside
3. The Trip
4. Ricky Gervais: SuperNature
5. The Lost Daughter
6. The Summit of the Gods
7. Taylor Tomlinson: Look at You
8. Taylor Tomlinson: Quarter-Life Crisis
9. Bill Burr: Live at Red Rocks
10. The Gray Man

...plus 6 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

It seems every other nerd is making one of these, so I wanted to see how mine turned out. The first two are an endless dilemma; ESB is the better movie, but we wouldn't be talking about it without ANH.

1. Star Wars
2. The Empire Strikes Back
3. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
4. Return of the Jedi
5. Star Wars: The Force Awakens
6. Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith
7. Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace
8. Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones
9. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
10. Solo: A Star Wars Story

...plus 1 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• Willow
• The Name of the Rose
• Wolfwalkers
• The Lord of the Rings
• The Last Samurai
• Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
• Ben-Hur
• The Last Duel
• Gladiator
• Shrek

My best first time watches (feature film or miniseries) in 2021 (not necessarily released in 2021). Used for my 2021 YIR.

• Sound of Metal
• The Father
• Mare of Easttown
• Promising Young Woman
• Once Upon a Time in America
• The Mitchells vs. the Machines
• Raya and the Last Dragon
• Quo Vadis, Aida?
• Sorry We Missed You
• When Harry Met Sally...

...plus 16 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

My first time watches (feature film, miniseries or documentary) on Netflix in 2021 (not necessarily released in 2021). Ranked. Used for my 2021 YIR.

1. The Mitchells vs. the Machines
2. Space Sweepers
3. Da 5 Bloods
4. Beckett
5. The Power of the Dog
6. The Night Comes for Us
7. Cargo
8. tick, tick... BOOM!
9. The Dig
10. Army of the Dead

...plus 11 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• The Name of the Rose
• Dogma
• The Sound of Music
• From Dusk Till Dawn
• The Young Pope
• The Exorcist
• Doubt
• The Blues Brothers
• There Will Be Blood
• The Da Vinci Code

My first time feature film watches in cinema in 2021. Chronological.

• Dune
• No Time to Die

• Darkest Hour
• The Witches
• The Goonies
• Batman Returns
• Monster
• The Fly
• It
• The Mask
• Sin City
• Hannibal

My best films within films.

• Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
• Their Finest
• Get Shorty
• Last Action Hero
• 8MM
• Tropic Thunder
• Boogie Nights
• The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou

Stuff gets blurry if you start thinking about whether you should order your revenge list by the best movie in general, or the on that meets the revenge requirement in the best way. Consider this a compromise.

• Harakiri
• RoboCop
• Léon: The Professional
• Harry Brown
• Dogville
• The Prestige
• The Revenant
• Gangs of New York
• Unforgiven
• Blue Ruin

...plus 9 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

My first time watches (feature film, miniseries or documentary) on Netflix in 2020 (not necessarily released in 2020). Ranked. Used for my 2020 YIR.

1. Mank
2. Private Life
3. The Trial of the Chicago 7
4. #Alive
5. High Score
6. The Social Dilemma
7. Extraction
8. Power of Grayskull: The Definitive History of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe
9. 22 July
10. Miss Americana

...plus 8 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

My first time feature film watches in cinema in 2020. Chronological.

• 1917
• Tenet
• Bad Boys for Life

My best first time watches (feature film or miniseries) in 2020 (not necessarily released in 2020). Used for my 2020 YIR.

1. Never Rarely Sometimes Always
2. Another Round
3. The Iron Giant
4. Little Women
5. 1917
6. Portrait of a Lady on Fire
7. 2001: A Space Odyssey
8. Harakiri
9. Watchmen
10. 45 Years

...plus 25 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

My best first time watches (feature film) in 2019 (not necessarily released in 2019). Used for my 2019 YIR.

1. Free Solo
2. Knives Out
3. Parasite
4. Chernobyl
5. Marriage Story
6. Joker
7. Roma
8. Unbelievable
9. Toy Story 4
10. Stan & Ollie

...plus 10 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

My best first time watches or rewatches, Films that wil never be sured, and belong in my Letterboxd All time film-watching stats.

• Star Wars
• Jaws
• Raiders of the Lost Ark
• Amadeus
• The Godfather
• Die Hard
• Back to the Future
• Top Gun
• Terminator 2: Judgment Day
• The Fifth Element

...plus 15 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

According to this list, I stopped collecting DVD's about ten years ago. Around that time, I decided to skip Blu-rays completely, gradually migrate to digital versions and throw away 2/3 of the hardcopy collection. This is what's left of it. I now realize some questionable items have survived somehow. I'll fix that soon.

• 15 Minutes

  Hardcopy

• 9

  Hardcopy

• Alien

  Hardcopy + Digital

• Alien Resurrection

  Hardcopy + Digital

• Aliens

  Hardcopy + Digital

• Alien³

  Hardcopy + Digital

• Amadeus

  Hardcopy + Digital

• American History X

  Hardcopy

• As Good as It Gets

  Hardcopy + Digital

• As It Is in Heaven

  Hardcopy + Digital

...plus 132 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

1. A Few Good Men
2. Never Rarely Sometimes Always
3. Blue Is the Warmest Color
4. Before Midnight
5. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
6. The Broken Circle Breakdown
7. Marriage Story
8. Gangs of New York
9. Starred Up
10. Amour

...plus 10 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

1. Jaws
2. Raiders of the Lost Ark
3. Jurassic Park
4. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
5. Schindler's List
6. E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
7. Saving Private Ryan
8. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
9. Minority Report
10. The Terminal

...plus 16 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• 12 Angry Men
• Roma
• Raging Bull
• Schindler's List
• Nebraska
• s Ha
• Sin City

• The Florida Project
• The Spectacular Now
• Drinking Buddies
• Tangerine
• Ghost World
• Once
• Before Sunrise
• Columbus
• Blue Ruin
• Call Me by Your Name

...plus 9 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• The Rocketeer
• The Straight Story
• The Empire Strikes Back
• Avatar
• Ready Player One
• The NeverEnding Story
• District 9
• Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory
• Stardust
• Aquaman

The showdown specifically said 'fictional' musicians, so I guess I'll leave Mozart, Cash and other biographical movies out of this list..

• The Commitments
• The Legend of 1900
• High Fidelity
• Back to the Future
• Mr. Holland's Opus
• Coco
• O Brother, Where Art Thou?
• As It Is in Heaven
• Crazy Heart
• The Broken Circle Breakdown

...plus 3 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• The Empire Strikes Back
• Terminator 2: Judgment Day
• Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
• Before Sunset
• The Godfather Part II
• Mission: Impossible – Fallout
• Back to the Future Part II
• Paddington 2
• The Dark Knight
• Toy Story 3

...plus 7 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• Father and Daughter
• The Legend of 1900
• Blue Is the Warmest Color
• The Broken Circle Breakdown
• Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
• Ghost
• Call Me by Your Name
• Her
• Forrest Gump
• La La Land

...plus 7 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• The Empire Strikes Back
• The Godfather
• The Shining
• Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
• Léon: The Professional
• Call Me by Your Name
• The Sound of Music
• Mr. Holland's Opus
• Finding Nemo
• Train to Busan

...plus 7 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

First time (feature film) watches in 2018 (not necessarily released in 2018). Used for my 2018 YIR.

1. Coco
2. Rear Window
3. Before Midnight
4. Before Sunset
5. Ready Player One
6. The Florida Project
7. Darkest Hour
8. Before Sunrise
9. Only the Brave
10. Avengers: Infinity War

...plus 19 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• Die Hard
• The Muppet Christmas Carol
• Lethal Weapon
• Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
• Home Alone
• Home Alone 2: Lost in New York
• Gremlins
• The Nightmare Before Christmas
• Batman Returns
• Love Actually

...plus 1 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• The Goonies
• Léon: The Professional
• Coco
• Stand by Me
• Eighth Grade
• The Florida Project
• E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
• Super 8
• Billy Elliot
• The Jungle Book

...plus 10 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• Orca
• Jaws
• Star Wars
• The Lion King
• The Legend of 1900
• Amadeus
• Raiders of the Lost Ark
• Back to the Future
• Forrest Gump
• Halloween

...plus 4 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• Victoria
• Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)
• Children of Men
• Thoroughbreds
• The Shining
• Gravity
• Atomic Blonde
• GoodFellas
• Hunger
• Cloverfield

• Her
• The Imitation Game
• Unfriended
• Lion
• The Social Network
• The Net
• Sneakers
• Snowden
• Firewall
• Blackhat

...plus 3 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• The NeverEnding Story
• The Dark Crystal
• Labyrinth
• Pan's Labyrinth
• Ready Player One
• The Fifth Element
• Coco
• Avatar
• The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
• The Nightmare Before Christmas

...plus 13 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• Soldier of Orange
• The Pianist
• Apocalypse Now
• Schindler's List
• Downfall
• Enemy at the Gates
• Band of Brothers
• '71
• Eye in the Sky
• Platoon

...plus 23 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• A Few Good Men
• Top Gun
• Rain Man
• Minority Report
• The Last Samurai
• Jerry Maguire
• Edge of Tomorrow
• Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation
• The Color of Money
• Oblivion

• Only the Brave
• Children of Men
• The Impossible
• Jurassic Park
• Titanic
• Sully
• The World's End
• Source Code
• Twister
• Deepwater Horizon

...plus 15 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• The Hunt for Red October
• The Abyss
• Finding Nemo
• Das Boot
• Crimson Tide
• U-571
• Black Sea
• Men of Honor
• The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
• Down Periscope

...plus 1 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• Dinner Rush
• Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory
• The Founder
• Raw
• Chocolat
• Chef
• Ratatouille
• Le Chef
• The Hundred-Foot Journey
• Burnt

• A Fish Called Wanda
• Heat
• Run Lola Run
• Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
• Hell or High Water
• Dog Day Afternoon
• Point Break
• Inception
• Reservoir Dogs
• Solo: A Star Wars Story

...plus 19 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• 12 Angry Men
• Rocky
• Halloween
• Mad Max
• Coherence
• Tangerine
• Once
• Cashback
• Take Shelter
• The Evil Dead

...plus 1 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• The Blues Brothers
• Grease
• The Muppet Christmas Carol
• The Sound of Music
• La La Land
• Sing Street
• Annie

• Return of the Jedi
• The Matrix
• The Karate Kid
• Lethal Weapon 4
• Willow
• The Bourne Ultimatum
• Raiders of the Lost Ark
• The Dark Knight Rises
• Die Hard
• Total Recall

...plus 15 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.