Alan Ng

Dark Money does succeed in presenting a strong case for campaign finance reform.

Ultimately, I walked away wishing the story would leap out of the good category into greatness. But grab your young kids, lower expectations a bit, and you’ll have a good time with the animated antics.

It’s a good film…a better version of the Coen Brother’s Hail Caesar! A film that kept popping up in my head.

As an indie thriller, American Siege does what it needs to accomplish in building tension as the filmmakers bring us into a town where everyone is compromised one way or the other and these compromises cause the town to implode.

This cast keeps the story grounded as each man is tested throughout the film.

Well Groomed serves more to alert you that creative grooming is a thing, but most likely will find it hard to win over those uninterested in the subject.

The best cure for a bland movie is quality ingredients, and in this case, it’s Manville and Neeson’s performances.

I like Mr. Jimmy solely because of its fascinating character study of an obsessed fan, Akio Surakai.

Documentarian Patrick Gramm manages to weave a fascinating tale.

It’s missing a nice, tidy resolution that would greenlight this in Hollywood. I’ll say there’s a sweetness and sadness to the film’s final moments.

It’s hard to watch StarDog and TurboCat and not think that Disney and Pixar can do this better. The animation is pretty good with standard cartoon movement and character design. It only lacks the photorealistic details and textures associated with Pixar.

I found McColm’s film intriguing to watch and fascinated by her satirical take on her subject. If you open yourself to the movie just a little, you’ll find yourself identifying with them in times of great personal and emotional failure.

I love the fact that they told a straightforward, insightful story that doesn’t feel the need to push the “message.” At the same time, Inside Out 2 misses that quest for excellence and instead goes for good enough.

The Vandevere plot effectively turns the film from a cute animated story of talking animals into a thriller with corporate intrigue.

Thrasher Road is a fantastic story of family and forgiveness.

As far as its storytelling, it’s good but rarely rises to the level of inspiring. Fans of Tolkien are going to find a nice, comfortable place in this film, but walk away feeling like they could have dug deeper into this life.

A Sloth Story delivers a message with warmth, charm, and just enough energy for its younger audiences. The film’s heart is in the right place, balancing a gentle cultural exploration with the universal challenge of growing up and finding one’s own way.

The problem with the film is although we walk away from the theater with a good feeling inside, the film lacks an edge…particularly a dark one. Everyone in the movie is good, wholesome people. No one’s really the villain. Bernadette’s problem is not all that surprising.

Tom Mercier’s performance is brilliant and engaging.

Diving into Sam Harris’ life was fun, and you will have fun too… unless you hate musicals.

What makes it enjoyable is that it’s a relatively grounded action film…relatively.

If you like action, then you’re going to have fun, but this is by no means a perfect movie and doesn’t stack well against old-school MCU (everything up to phase three). Its weakness lies in the by-the-book story and does nothing to overcome the superhero fatigue we’ve been feeling for a while.

There are enough facts and inspiration to make Tiger worth watching. Mickey Rourke always gives a good performance, and he still fits in the boxing setting. The downside is the story’s structure is unoriginal insuring Tiger will never leap beyond being just a good film.

The best thing I can say about A Dog’s Way Home is that it’s an exceptional film, that you’d find on the Hallmark Channel. Science has yet to count just how many strings the human heart has, but A Dog’s Way Home tries to pull every damn one of them.

Ultimately, it’s a heartfelt coming-of-age tale that honors the past while forging a path forward.

Hell On The Border tells a unique western-style story.

In the wake of unimaginable devastation, Asog gently yet boldly celebrates resilience—not just through the intimate journey of Jaya and Arnel but also through the countless survivors bravely rebuilding their lives from ruin.

Yes, stories like this have been told before, but there’s an earnest, sweet charm to it all that really works.