My experience of Elio (2025), the animated adventure about a young space fanatic who desperately wants to be abducted by aliens, didn’t exactly go well.
The visuals are as rich and engaging as I’d hoped. I was honestly locked in right away, and things were fun enough once Elio finally got to Space. Yet, seemingly out of nowhere, I lost interest at the point when Elio was left to take on the space bullies.
Something inside decided that that specific hero’s journey, with those characters, wasn’t for me at that time. I suspected where the story was going to go and chose to leave it to those who are more enthused by Elio’s upcoming face-off.
I may return to Elio another time, but I’m choosing to look forward to Zootopia 2 (2025) instead, which I hope will have me fully locked in, especially since I absolutely loved Zootopia (2016).
I’m curious, did you watch Elio and have a good time?
I’m fully claiming it. I enjoyed Wednesday Season 2 even more than the first. I don’t want to say that it feels bigger and better, but it is bigger and better. Just not in a way that reads as forced.
In this new season, Young Wednesday’s shenanigans remain at the centre of things, as expected. But the extra magic comes from a great story, Wednesday’s growing confidence, and how her family members are included in this season to great effect. For example, Catherine Zeta Jones really comes into her own as Morticia Addams, and Joanna Lumley is brilliant as Grandmama Hesta Frump.
Other memorable characters include Evie Templeton’s Agnes Demille, a.k.a. Wednesday’s stalker, and Lady Gaga as Rosaline Rotwood.
Typical of films/shows that involve Tim Burton, the production design and costumes are beautiful, along with the cinematography and dialogue.
The worst thing I can say about Wednesday Season 2 is that Wednesday’s little brother, Pugsley Addams is annoying. However, even that failed to stick. Because when I turned to Google to see if others agreed, my displeasure dissipated when someone said that Pugsley is simply awkward… which is still arguably annoying, but perhaps more easily forgiven.
Make time for Wednesday Season 2. It really is well-executed and fun.
David Freyne is the director of Miles Teller, Elizabeth Olsen and Callum Turner’s latest fantasy/romance/drama, Eternity. A film set in an afterlife where souls have a week to decide where to spend eternity.
Imagine being Joan (Olsen), who has to choose between her first love, who died young, and the man she spent her life with.
I love this premise! After all, it’s not often that a movie gets made about a topic you find so interesting that you’re both excited and surprised the subject was covered quite in this way before.
Of course, immediately, I thought of Kristen Bell, William Jackson Harper and Jameela Jamil’s The Good Place (2016 – 2020), a well-executed series about the afterlife, which I highly recommend.
The likelihood that this will turn out great is promising, considering the talented cast. I just hope that there’s a good resolution for Joan, who now seems to be in a version of hell she hadn’t quite anticipated.
Are you also looking forward to Eternity?
Da’Vine Joy Randolph, John Early, Betty Buckley, Jeff Sanca, Panta Mosleh, Noah Bromley, Lucy Turnbull, David Z. Cohen, Barry Primus, Jeanie Cloutier and Panta Mosleh also star.
Mortal Kombat II (2025), Jessica McNamee, Karl Urban, Warner Bros.
In adventure/fantasy Mortal Kombat 2, the Mortal Kombat fan-favourite champions, now joined by Johnny Cage (Karl Urban), are pitted against one another in the ultimate battle to defeat the dark rule of Shao Kahn. A rule that threatens the very existence of the Earthrealm and its defenders.
Directed by Simon McQuoid, additional key cast includes Mehcad Brooks, Karl Urban, Ludi Lin, Jessica McNamee and Joe Taslim.
This new trailer doesn’t look all bad. However, I find myself missing Sub-Zero a little bit. Especially because what we saw him do in the 2021 trailer and film was impressive and cool, no pun intended.
I’ll likely give this a chance because a key reason I enjoyed the first movie was the fight choreography. May it still be great for this second instalment, seemingly without sSub-Zero.
Are you also drawn to this one? Where does Mortal Kombat sit in your ranking of movies based on video games?
Ludi Lin, Jessica McNamee, Joe Taslim, Hiroyuki Sanada, Adeline Rudolph, Tati Gabrielle, Josh Lawson, Martyn Ford, Tadanobu Asano, CJ Bloomfield and Steven Cragg also star.
I had high hopes for the latest Superman film. I was looking forward to the kind of hopefulness and warm feeling Christopher Reeve’s Superman films represented and inspired. A Superman whose admirable qualities and, specifically, words about what humanity meant to him read as true rather than contrived.
Director James Gunn’s version of the Superman story is not a terrible film, because I did enjoy the special effects and Lex Luthor’s wardrobe. However, I cringed more than I expected to at moments that were supposed to be moving. For example, that all-important speech when Superman speaks about ‘being human,’ I honestly don’t recall the last time I heard something that sounded that forced.
I did not buy the Lois Lane and Clark Kent romantic pairing. It felt off to me. The necessary chemistry seemed to be missing. And, as wonderful an actor as Rachel Brosnahan is, she’s unfortunately, simply not ‘my Lois.’
Superman (2025), Nicholas Hoult, DC
David Corenswet was okay as Superman. Nevertheless, I’m starting to believe that no Superman will ever come close to Christopher Reeve, the first one I ever watched. Similar to how Christian Bale is my Forever Batman.
As for Nicholas Hoult as Luthor, he didn’t do badly. Yet, it still wasn’t the stand-out performance I’d hoped for. I mean, I do have high expectations. Perhaps the script is to blame, or my high expectations.
James Gunn brought a kind of silliness to Superman that I don’t feel it needed, and that silliness includes Superman’s ‘teammates’, who, I may or may not have eventually warmed to, just a little by the end.’
Also, I could have sworn I saw the Game of Thrones Night King/Whitewalker character show up, which threw me.
The Movie My Life 