‘Hamnet’ review: delightfully painful
Chloe Zhao’s Hamnet surprised—delighted, actually—me at its final act. At the start of the movie, I thought that it would be an adaptation of William Shakespeare’s longest play, Hamlet. Although it’s been ages since we studied the tragedy, I was quite certain during the first thirty minutes that what’s unfolding on the screen isn’t like […]
‘Wuthering Heights’ review: a cautionary tale
I think it’s clever that Wuthering Heights features actors who have some of the most beautiful faces in the industry today. Superficial as it sounds, their looks are most probably the only thing that will keep you from disliking the movie. Or I could be wrong. Because the movie is delightfully indulgent. I haven’t finished […]
‘Send Help’ review: Who will outwit, outplay, and outlast?
If Survivor would become a movie, this is probably it. In Send Help, director Sam Raimi returned to form by bringing together survival horror, dark comedy, and character study by putting two characters who are polar opposites in an environment where they are forced to, just like in the reality TV behemoth, outlast the elements […]
‘Mercy’ review: Edge-of-your-seat thrill makes up for its shortcomings
There are times when movies don’t need to say or do too much to be interesting, or even entertaining. A movie just needs to be enjoyable to watch. Such is the case in Timur Bekmambetov’s Mercy. Starring Chris Pratt and Rebecca Ferguson, the movie centers on a futuristic AI-powered judicial program that uses an evidence-based […]
‘Primate’ review: no monkey business here
Johannes Roberts’ creature suspense-horror film Primate means serious business. It’s full-on gore and violence. It gets too brutal it can be hard to watch at certain times. There’s a lot of blood and ripping of flesh (and other body parts) it can make anyone with a weak stomach want to leave the cinema—or, at least, […]
‘Avatar: Fire and Ash’ review: It 𝑰𝑺 bigger and better
James Cameron’s Avatar: Fire and Ash is simply a cinematic spectacle. With Avatar: Fire and Ash, Cameron delivers a film that feels both massive in scale and intimate in its emotional pull. The third chapter in the Avatar saga isn’t just a revisit to Pandora. It’s a deeper look at a world that’s become harsher, […]
‘Zootopia 2’ review: Familiar footprints in a bigger, busier world
Nearly a decade after the Oscar-winning Zootopia delighted audiences of all ages with its remarkable animation, cute characters, and sharp social commentaries wrapped in an entertaining buddy-cop comedy, Disney brings back Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin) and Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman) in Zootopia 2. We are brought back to the bustling and beautiful world of animals […]
‘Quezon’ movie review: Unveiling a hero’s persona
Jerrold Tarog’s Quezon couldn’t have come at a better time. The final film in the highly relevant and crowd-pleaser Bayaniverse series tackles the rise to power of the country’s first Commonwealth President and a key figure in the country’s fight for independence from the United States. It’s not common for some to think most historical […]
KinoFest 2025: Experience the best of German cinema once again
Prepare to experience some of Germany’s best films at KinoFest 2025. The annual German film festival will happen from October 16 to 19 at the Shangri-La Plaza Red Carpet Cinemas. This year boasts of a diverse line-up of films that showcases drama, animation, thriller, comedy, adventure, and documentary. There are eight (8) contemporary German films […]
‘One Battle After Another’ review: one of this year’s best
One good indicator of a great movie is if it flies by despite its lengthy runtime (2 hours and 43 minutes). Such is the case for Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another, one of this year’s best (and most entertaining) films. Written and directed by Anderson, the movie blends action, drama, comedy, and suspense […]