The Sheep Detectives (2026), Hugh Jackman, Amazon MGM Studios
In new comedy/mystery, The Sheep Detectives, A shepherd who reads a murder mystery aloud to his flock of sheep every night is found dead. And it’s up to his flock to find out what happened.
Directed by Kyle Balda, Emma Thompson, Hugh Jackman, Regina Hall and Nicholas Galitzine are among the key cast.
I love the surprise turn this trailer takes. I’m in for the silliness and cute talking detective sheep. My only wish right now is that Hugh Jackman had more screen time.
Bryan Cranston, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Molly Gordon, Patrick Stewart, Rhys Darby, Nicholas Braun, Chris O’Dowd, Hong Chau, Conleth Hill and Tosin Cole also star.
Good Luck to You, Leo Grande (2022), Daryl McCormack, Searchlight Pictures
Good Luck to You, Leo Grande is as delightful as its charming trailer suggested.
You’ll not be surprised to learn that the film’s main highlight is Emma Thompson, whose turn as Nancy Stokes, a 55-year-old widow seeking a sexual adventure and human connection is beyond fun to watch.
Prepare yourself for a well-balanced script that features plenty of funny and perfectly awkward happenings to keep you engaged. And as invested as you’ll undoubtedly become in Nancy’s journey, you’ll also learn about the film’s namesake Leo Grande; whether through his interactions with Nancy, the hints in his quiet moments, or how he changes as the story progresses.
It’s certainly not difficult to like Daryl McCormack’s portrayal of Leo, especially once you see the care and empathy Leo displays in his dealings with Nancy.
In addition to making you laugh, Good Luck to You, Leo Grande will leave you with a handful of things to ponder on post-viewing. For example, the place that sex work currently has in society and the place it might have. There’s also the topic of the representation of female bodies in film, to name just one other.
Why not let yourself enjoy writer/director Sophie Hyde’s well-written hour and thirty minutes of engaging fun? After all, of all the movies filmed during the Covid-19 pandemic, Good Luck to You, Leo Grande is arguably among the best, if not the very best.
Cruella, the movie about the rebellious earlier years of one of Disney’s favourite and most stylish villains, Cruella De Vil is quite far from the movie I’d hoped for.
I enjoyed some well-executed set pieces, visually stunning cinematic moments, and director Craig Gillespie’s film gets a tad better towards the end. Yet, my overall feeling through to the end was one of disappointment.
For me, Cruella has a certain air of silliness that I wish it didn’t. A quality that I imagine isn’t helped by Emma Stone and Paul Walter Hauser’s over-the-top British accents. Walter Hauser and Stone are sadly not the only accent offenders. Estella/Cruella’s boss at Liberty of London also did his part to bring home my realisation that so many of the people in the film play like caricatures.
Given that the ‘this is so disappointing’ reality of the movie hit me soon after the film started, I couldn’t wait for Emma Thompson’s The Baroness character to show up and help proceedings. Thompson did a superb job, as she always does. Yet, unfortunately, my growing distaste for Gillespie’s film remained.
The story edit felt rushed throughout. The early camera work inside Liberty of London proved unnecessarily dizzying. The way the movie deals with mental illness leaves plenty to be desired. And, what nonsense to expect the audience to believe that for a very long time, thanks to different clothes and makeup, none of the characters could see that Cruella is clearly Estella. I know, I know… a very similar thing happens in the Superman/Clark Kent movies. But those movies are actually good.
I’m sure it’s crystal clear by now, but I did not enjoy Cruella. My disappointment led to the very whiny thought: ‘But when will another Disney movie delight and move me the way Kenneth Branagh’s Cinderella did? WHEN?!’
I wanted Cruella to be more grounded than it is. A big part of the issue is that the film never decided whether it was going to be for kids or adults. It went for both in a way that resulted in a movie that I feel failed more than it succeeded.
Have you seen Cruella yet? What did you think? Let me know in the comments.
Set in 1970s London, England, amidst the punk rock revolution; Cruella is the latest Disney animated film to become a live-action movie.
Starring Emma Stone, Paul Walter Hauser, Emma Thompson and Mark Strong; director Craig Gillespie’s comedy/crime story focuses on the rebellious early days of the notoriously fashionable villain, Cruella de Vil.
I’ve missed seeing Stone in a leading role, and based on this impressive trailer, Cruella looks like a great way to make her presence felt, once more.
Glenn Close is the Cruella that comes to mind when I think of de Vil, thanks to 101 Dalmatians (1996). Now, I can’t wait for this new version of the story to take us back to the earlier years of the devilish de Vil.
Emily Beecham, Joel Fry, Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Jamie Demetriou, Gianni Calchetti, Michelle Greenidge, John McCrea, Tony McCarthy, Chloé Booyens, Haruka Abe and Niamh Lynch also star.
Missing Link, the story of Mr Link (a Big-Foot-like character) and his adventures with explorer Sir Lionel Frost (Hugh Jackman), plus adventurer Adelina Fortnight is an animated movie I found to be fun in parts and watchable.
The reason I’m not more enthused by writer/director Chris Butler’s film is that story-wise, it felt oddly superficial and more basic than I expected.
What I did enjoy are the interactions between Lionel and Link, plus the moments of heart, most of which happen in the more engaging last quarter. Emma Thompson’s character is another welcome highlight, and it proved quite satisfying to see Lionel’s growth/evolution as the story continued.
I watched Missing Link because the cast which also includes Zoe Saldana and Zack Galifianakis intrigued me. Yet, overall, I wish I could include Butler’s film on my list of favourite animated movies I’ve seen in recent years, but I cannot. Nevertheless, I say give Missing Link a chance if you’re particularly curious. It may just be what you need when you’re after an easy-viewing animated film experience.
