Thoughts on Predator: Badlands (2025): Phenomenally choreographed action, an air-tight script, and immediately engaging performances by Fanning and Schuster-Koloamatangi, this RPG-like roller coaster is undeniably bold and exciting, even amongst familiar themes. Pure fun. (4.5/5)

Thoughts on Predator: Killer of Killers (2025): Some seriously creative and equally risky expansion to existing Predator lore, feeling ultimately experimental as the three extremely linear chapters are weaved with well-animated, brutal, historical, and sci-fi action. (3.5/5)

Thoughts on Marty Supreme (2025): Aside from scenes of sheer shock factor and MacGuffins, this is a monument for every performer, especially Chamalet and A’zion. Every minute is packed with tense naturalistic drama or riveting pings & pongs, assuming suspended disbelief. (3.5/5)

Thoughts on Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989): Biollante has a perfect origin story & design, which pays off in spades during the believable human politics and epic kaiju fights. The 80s campiness is equally entertaining & distracting. Our beloved Heisei G guy does his thing. (3.5/5)

Thoughts on Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964): Excellent grandiose tunes, tons of quote-ables, iconically funny moments, & compassionate & meticulous stop-motion are framed with standard anti-bullying and period-restrictive messaging, but ultimately form a beloved tale. (4/5)

Thoughts on Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984): See Indy at the grossest and darkest in one of Spielberg’s most fearless but engaging decisions for a plot. Constant breakneck action and comedic gags, with Ke Huy Quan carrying the latter. Literally anything goes. (4/5)

Thoughts on Wicked: For Good (2025): While doing much of what the last entry did with enviable production & a few well-performed tunes, there is no excuse for the excruciating liberties taken to meet Oz events & purely set up for numbers. Elphaba good, everyone else bad. (2.5/5)

Thoughts on The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie (2004): A confident epic of remarkable comedic proportions sourcing from a goofy, yet Odyssey-esque premise. Fantastic voice-work, accessible humor, and well-inspired, this is easily the best animated TV-to-film adaptation ever. (4.5/5)

Thoughts on Herbie: Fully Loaded (2005): A paper-thin and innocent screenplay with an invasive “family adventure” score hold back an otherwise deservedly cherished concept. The race scenes and Herbie’s mannerisms are still very entertaining and surprisingly creative. (2.5/5)

Thoughts on X-Men (2000): The silly comic craziness & goofy effects are lost to time, but the over-confidence in the premise also spawns incredibly iconic cinematic characters, punchy & zany action, a grounding sociology background, and unforgettable, seldom rocky moments. (3/5)

Thoughts on X2 (2003): Effectively expounds upon social subtexts, but still not serious enough to deliver them. The mutants here all have something to admire individually in strength & conviction. Stryker is an extremely weak villain. The action is still varied & exciting. (3/5)

Thoughts on X-Men: The Last Stand (2006): The pinnacle of trying to do too much all at once, constantly ping-ponging two solid story lines amongst unearned sacrifices and inconsistencies. Jean Grey and Magneto do deliver here, though, and the added mutants are intriguing. (2/5)

Thoughts on 28 Weeks Later (2007): Based in intriguing continuation, the plot is entirely driven by utterly asinine character decision-making, happenstance, and nonsensical events, even if many of them are filmed with iconically frantic thrills. (2/5)

My take on Dispatch (2025/PC): Inspired by Telltale’s graphic adventures, the game is unbelievably original with creative, punchy writing & magnetic characters. While the QTE moments & short-lived gameplay are jaggedly inserted, just about anyone will be craving Season 2. (4.5/5)

Second Thoughts on The Changeling (1980): The camerawork and sound design charge this film with insane atmosphere and a persistent dizzy dread. The story is straightforward and never really escapes the haunted house set dressing, but Scott delivers a believably shaken man. (3/5)

Thoughts on Gran Torino (2008): Clint is and has always been a class act. What you see is what you get. It is ironically inoffensive in premise, yet follows realistic growth, reflecting American delusion of complex cultural issues become one man’s humility and respect. (3.5/5)

Thoughts on Wicked City (1987): Underneath the irredeemably sleazy eroticism for little discernible reason, is a supremely engaging & horrifying neo-noir thriller, effectively building its own genre. The animation is unceasingly immaculately polished, sadistic, & evocative. (3/5)

Thoughts on Tower of London (1962): As always, Vincent is worth the ticket Price. The dusty gothic production is consistently picturesque, but nearly all freestyle Shakespeare drama and hauntings land totally flat throughout. Royal conflicts in Ghost Hunters International. (2/5)

Thoughts on AGGRO DR1FT (2023): Even for an “anti-film,” the viewer feels pranked from literally the first nonsensical minute to the last, which is unironically funny. The police would find this in a Miami serial killer’s hard drive. At least the score was not half bad. (1/5)

Thoughts on Breaker Morant (1980): Despite a fairly straightforward anti-war punchline, the looming political context, intriguing scapegoating, punchy performances, and legal complexity of geurilla and imperial warfare make for a uniquely restrained courtroom drama. (4/5)