Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026) Movie Review- Spidey Loneliness Epidemic

AdamLeave a comment

Oh, boy! This movie is gonna be a hard one to review in spoiler-free fashion! Not necessarily because it’s hard to describe my feeling towards the latest cinematic adventure with your favorite web swinger without revealing all the nooks and crannies in it but more that it’s near impossible to talk about the film in it’s entirety without address the GIANT elephant in the room! An elephant in the room that was solely created by the marketing (which has done a surprisingly superb job of not giving too much away and saving the fun surprises for the theatrical experience) that COMPLETELY glosses over a certain character that is meant to act as the film’s central main antagonist (or at least the closest thing this film has to an actual antagonist). For whatever reason, Marvel and Sony has decided to keep that character’s identity a complete secret and went through a great deal in the trailers to show as LITTLE of this character as possible.

Granted, about 99% of Marvel fans probably knows EXACTLY who I’m talking about and what character this certain actor or actress is playing (and I believe there’s already been certain folks at the premiere who basically already revealed the identity of that character) but in case you are the 1% of folks out there who don’t have a clue who or what I’m talking about, I won’t spoil it in this review. I do plan to post a spoiler filled piece after the movie releases worldwide to give a deep dive into that character and how I felt about their role in the film. But for know, I will try to keep this review as vague as possible. Here we go!

It’s crazy how we are actually getting a fourth film with a cinematic version of Spider-Man for once. Tobey Maguire wasn’t able to get his fourth film up and running after the commercially successful but poorly received, Spider-Man 3. Andrew Garfield couldn’t even get a third one after the commercially unsuccessful AND poorly received, The Amazing Spider-Man 2. But yet, it’s Tom Holland of all webheads that was able to get his fourth entry, something which not even his old pal Tony Stark could say (at least for now). However, with the emotionally fulfilling way the last one ended, it left PLENTY of free realm to take this series in a completely new direction.

Sure, No Way Home did make for a bittersweet ending to a somewhat uneven “home” trilogy of our friendly neighborhood NYC hero and it would’ve been fine if that was the last we ever saw of Tom Holland as Spider-Man in the MCU. However, with the way the first three films operated themselves as a slow burn origin story of our (Spider) boy learning to become a (Spider) man (unintentionally or otherwise), it paves a way to FINALLY have a Spider-Man movie in the MCU that legit feels like the “prime” Spider-Man we all know and love. And for the most part, Brand New Day is able to deliver just that and then some.

Premise: Following Dr. Strange’s spell at the end of No Way Home, the world has forgotten that Peter Parker exists. Four years later, Peter (Tom Holland) anonymously protects New York City as the hero Spider-Man and investigates a powerful new threat while his superpowers undergo a surprising and potentially dangerous evolution.

Brand New Day is the first MCU Spider-Man film that is unafraid in giving us the Spider-Man doing his friendly neighborhood duty of protecting the city he’s sworn to protect and doing what’s best for those that he loves. Yes, we get to see Spider-Man at his absolute HIGH points as being the answer to The Big Apple. Yes, we get to see Spider-Man interacting with plenty of faces old and new in this cinematic universe in ways that feel organic, natural, and welcoming every time they are screen. Yes, the action scenes and web swinging sequences are cranked up to 11 in ways that hasn’t been done before in live-action, including a very impressive comic run-like scroll in the film’s opening 20 minutes. But what makes Brand New Day stand out as well as it does is the overall arc that Peter Parker goes through.

Everyone always know that the best Spider-Man stories are ALWAYS the ones where the worlds of Peter Parker and Spider-Man collides among his friends, rivals, and responsibilities. Although, the ones that tend to stand out among the VERY best are the ones that raises the questions of what happen when one side of the personal life/hero persona get abandoned in favor of the other side. In Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 2, we see a Peter Parker who gives up being Spider-Man so he can focus on being Peter Parker. In Destin Daniel Cretton’s Spider-Man: Brand New Day, we see a Peter Parker who gives up being Peter Parker so he can focus on being Spider-Man. This is an arc that not only feels perfectly in line with the titled character and the aftermath of No Way Home (while also making for some interesting metaphors on the new powers he develops out of thin air) but also making Holland’s version of Peter Parker standing out as perhaps the most relatable of his generation.

While this Spider-Man has had plenty of Ws in the four years that have passed since the last movie, this Peter Parker has taken nothing but Ls since then. By feeling he has no choice but to put his superhero life over his personal life, we see Peter being forced to adjust into a world that has forgotten about him and moved forward with their lives. He has no friends, no family, no stable job, and no career ahead of him. He has nothing left…..except Spider-Man. To put it simply, Brand New Day is a Spider-Man movie made for Gen Z, the generation that grew up during the height of covid, a loneliness epidemic, and an economy that is about as depression that Peter is throughout the entirety of this film.

And it’s not just Peter himself that has a massive black hole needing to be filled within himself, we get to see that sentiment shared with other characters as well. The Punisher is still operating as his own independent vigilante after losing his family all those years ago, there’s Bruce Banner who still has that battle within with the green monster that can always break out at any moment, which causes him to keep his distance from those he loves, and MJ and Ned pursuing the lives and career choices they’ve desired, they still feel like they are missing something which just so happens to be Spider related. And of course, there is also the film’s antagonist/mystery character which will NOT be mentioned in this review that serves the best parallel out of all of this to Peter Parker. While plenty will be said about the film’s overabundance on characters and subplots, there’s no denying that the film’s overall themes surrounding loneliness, isolation, and the needing to reconnect with one another is fairly consistent throughout the entire film.

And speaking of which, Brand New Day certainly does try to juggle a lot throughout it’s entire 145-minute long runtime. It aims to be that perfect mix of being a proper sequel to No Way Home with it’s smaller-scaled, street level ambitions while also laying the groundwork for a newly introduced character that is clearly going to play a big role in future Marvel endeavors. Thankfully, writers Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers prove they are up to the task with making both of these major storylines intertwine in a way that feels consist with the overall narrative of the film that doesn’t forget that this is a Spider-Man movie, even more so with how they juggled the Far From Home aftermath of Mysterio spilling the beans of who Spidey is and just making a live-action version of Into the Spider-Verse last time around.

There is a slight detour towards the beginning of the third act that nearly takes a noise dive and makes it seem like all of the thematic plates spinning in the air are about to come crashing down. But then, the film remembers what it’s about by cleverly taking a page from the climax of a recent MCU film, properly expanding upon that film’s and this one’s relatable dilemma, and everything’s good again. I can’t properly answer whether or not this character needed to be introduced in THIS movie but they work rather well for what I imagine was forced upon them by Kevin and company since the 2025 MCU entries couldn’t move the needle on getting audiences enthused on what comes next after the multiverse shenanigans is over. Like the very best MCU movies, it’s able to have it’s cake and eat it too in the ways that are even more delicious than what you ordered.

While Jon Watts did a fine job overall with the “Home” trilogy, Destin Daniel Cretton proves himself to be more than worthy of continuing this version of Spider-Man on his own with no extreme guidance necessary. He’s able to bring so much energy with the film’s action sequences and web swinging moments that makes them all exhilarating to watch, while also able to embrace it’s comic-booky feel without it feeling too jarring or far stretched to the casual movie goer. I’m sure there’s a shot or two that Film Twitter will nitpick to death for the next three years until the next Spider-Man movie comes along but the same proper care and treatment that Cretton gave to his other (underrated/overlooked) MCU projects in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and Wonder Man are properly shown here. Looks like Mr. Feige has ANOTHER director he can take under his wing.

The entire cast gives everything they got here. Tom Holland still shows great passion and vulnerability as perhaps the most relatable version of Peter Parker we have seen to date, shockingly still able to explore hidden depth and intrigue despite being four movies in, while also being more jokey and confident than ever before as Spider-Man. Jon Bernthal is able to fit perfectly in movie form as Frank Castle as he does in streaming service form. Zendaya and Jacob Batalon are given more depth to MJ and Ned than you might’ve expected. Liza Colón-Zayas and Tramell Tillman are fun in their brief roles as totally NOT Commissioner Gordon and totally NOT Head of ICE! Mark Ruffalo is given a lesser role than you would probably expect as Bruce Banner/Hulk but he’s still here (even if he’s no where to be seen at the premiere).

And without getting into spoilers, Sadie Sink is absolutely great as her “mysterious” character. While it does take a while to actually get to her on screen, she is able to perfectly match the presence of Holland and all those she shares screentime with. If the rest of the cast of the series that she will be attached to from hear on out is as pitch perfect as this, then there might indeed be some hope for the MCU yet.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day is that rare fourth installment in a franchise that not only works strongly in it’s own right but is able to greatly justify it’s own existence with no financial apology needed whatsoever. It’s able to act well as being a proper follow-up to the last movie while also setting things up for what could be a even more promising second trilogy with a more “proper” Spider-Man this time around. There are characters that I would’ve like to have seen more of and there’s one resolution towards the end that does feel like a complete copout but any potential narrative shortcoming here is completely washed away with the film’s overall sense of wonder and awareness.

It’s no secret that superhero films aren’t the box office juggernauts they used to be but films like Spider-Man: Brand New Day prove that there is still a dire need for them in this day and age. Even if the quality is in shorter supplies these days, there is just nothing like seeing a cast and crew using their great powers to take on great responsibilities when tackling these popular superheroes. It might’ve taken a film of Tom Holland being sad and lonely to give this genre the potential two billion dollar booster shot it needed but hey, there’s no superhero that does it quite like Spider-Man.

Just please let him be happy once this is all over, okay?!

Other thoughts:

  • Don’t bother staying for the end credits scene because….it sucked. It just sucks!

  • Also, don’t expect much out of the Spidey villains shown off in the marketing because they don’t really matter that much, outside of MAYBE Scorpion. (There’s a reason why there’s only been ONE leaked shot of Tombstone!)

  • Michael Giacchino deserves more credit for the scores in this series. It’s able to stand out gloriously well as it’s own distinct Spider-Man score without much reliance on prior Spider-Man scores to make it stand out. This man in general might be the legit saving grace when it comes to the score in the MCU.

  • I can definitely see why Mark Ruffalo hasn’t join the press tour for this movie. Taking away his political persuasions and being busy shooting another tv show, Bruce Banner and Hulk aren’t in the movie that much.

  • It still is cool to see an unhinged Hulk that we have NOT seen since the beginning of Infinity War.

  • I REALLY need more of The Punisher and Jean DeWolff in the future. They work off of Tom Holland’s Spider-Man PERFECTLY!

  • Now, please just bring in Kingpin for the next time and have Daredevil join along for the ride. We can’t have a complete Devil’s Reign adaption WITHOUT Spider-Man playing a big role in it.

  • Oh, and that ONE character that shows up is a lot of fun to. Try to guess which one I’m talking about when you see them!

Ranking Christopher Nolan’s Films (w/The Odyssey)

AdamLeave a comment

This weekend saw the release of The Odyssey, the newest entry to come from the great mind of Christopher Nolan. Despite all the controversy and outrage over the internet, it looks as though it’s set to have a strong opening weekend in spite of it being three hours long and clearly NOT PG-13. As a result, time to rank every film in Christopher Nolan’s filmography thus far and see how it fares from worst to best.

It shouldn’t be unpopular to say that Christopher Nolan is one of the greatest filmmakers working today! He’s one of the few directors out there that everyone is aware of and his name attached to a film alone is enough to get people’s butts in theater seats. And coming in a post-covid and post-2023 strikers timeline and in the middle of summer filled with underperforming/underwhelming big movies, leave it to Nolan to be the one big name this weekend helping to turn the tide on the narrative that people don’t go to theaters anymore. I’m sure this isn’t what the Dark Knight himself had in mind when he made it his quest to save theaters back in 2020 with Tenet, but hey, I still think he consider it an absolute win regardless.

Keep in mind that for this list, there’s really only one of these movies that I’m not the biggest fan off. Just about every other one I either like or absolutely LOVE! Heck, over half of the movies on this list were some of my absolute favorite films in the year they came out with some of them being on my list of favorite films every year. That’s why this list was INCREDIBLY hard to make! Regardless, I’m up to the challenge and let’s rank the great work coming from the Nolan mind himself.

13.) Tenet

If there is one Christopher Nolan film that I would unfortunately have to declare to being a complete and total dud, it’s Tenet. While it’s well acted and looks amazing, this feels more like an intimation of a Christopher Nolan film than an actual Christopher Nolan film. The plot is a convoluted mess, the characters are completely one-note and half of the time nameless, the sound mixing is ungodly atrocious, and while it’s central time travel/espionage premise is a very interesting one, the execution of it could not have missed the mark as much as it did.. The fact you have a film where the main protagonist name is literally referred to as “The Protagonist” and you are expected to take it all seriously is literally all you need to know about the experience of watching Tenet. Little did we know that this would be the end of the road between the partnership of Nolan and Warner Bros, with the latter getting another chance of “saving” cinema but with a total different studio.

12.) Following

Here is the one that started it all. Christopher Nolan is able to make his first length directorial debut with Following, an INCREDIBLY low budget and small scale flick about a young writer who follows strangers for a living in the hopes of being able to write something interesting for his novels. For a film that basically involves it’s main character trying to find an identity, this is where Nolan enters the realm of cinema and secures an identity of it’s own. It’s beer money-level budget does hold it back from being a truly great film with the stellar production you would come to expect from Nolan and the 70 minute long running makes many elements feels rushed and sloppy. For a directorial film debut, you can certainly do much worse but can also do much better as well.

11.) Dunkirk

Nolan has always been a filmmaker that remained a loyalist on the experience of watching films in a theater. I don’t think there has been a film he has made to date that didn’t put as much emphasis on theater experience than with Dunkirk, a tense, tightly paced war epic about the battle that took place in the beaches of Dunkirk between Germany and France. While this definitely was an event worth seeing on the biggest screen in pure IMAX back in July 2017, it’s lack of compelling characters, questionable sound mixing, and a needlessly complicated narrative really hinders the rewatch value, making it fall short of being an all-time war movie classic. Plenty will argue that this is the intention on the part of Nolan but that still doesn’t make for a very engaging watch for me. If Tenet was an example of a Nolan film that had great ideas but bad execution, then Dunkirk is an example of a Nolan film with bad ideas but ultimately great execution. I guess if you have a massive 4K TV with a stellar sound system, you might get HALF of that theatrical experience that I got back in 2017. But take all of that away, all you get with Dunkirk is a basic war film that feels more like akin to your Ken Burns PBS documentary rather than it’s own film.

10.) Insomnia

The first film Nolan made that was disturbed by Warner Bros might just be his most overlooked feature to date, even if this is ranked in the lower half of Nolan’s filmography. We have a solid and engaging thriller about one man’s descent into madness and another man that is driven solely by madness. Al Pacino and Robin Williams turn in great performances and make for a perfect duology of the hero and villain of the picture. The film does a great job of showing the effect that constant daylight has on a character along with the passage of time that is scattered across the film. Tbh, the fact that this film is this low on the list says more about how good Nolan is at making films than the overall quality of Insomnia. It might be mid-tier on the Nolan scale but this is still a pretty good film all things considered.

9.) Interstellar

What might be Nolan’s most ambitious film and largest in scope to date, Interstellar makes for one of the most interesting and intriguing sci-fi films of the 21st century. The film goes into great lengths about mankind’s place in the universe and what we are willing to achieve for the survival of the human race. The effects are a feast for the eyes, it’s superbly acted, the emotional core between Cooper and his daughter is very well done, and the first two acts is able to execute it’s themes to near perfection, acting as an engaging race against time to preserve what’s left of humanity on Earth. Unfortunately, the third act then comes along where all logic gets thrown out of the window, a certain subplot that the film has been building to gets completely handwave, and everything is tied up into the cheapest little bow imaginable. There’s PLENTY to love about Interstellar and there are many moments where it becomes SO CLOSE to being up there with Nolan’s absolute best, but then the last 20 minutes happens that just doesn’t feel satisfying. Even if it’s not able to stick the landing as well as it could have, Interstellar makes for one engaging ride that is worth experiencing at least one time.

8.) Batman Begins

Batman Begins was an absolute revolutionary when it came out back in 2005. Not only did it revived the Batman franchise that seemed long dead for eight years, but it help set the foundation that properties surrounding superheroes and comic books can in fact be taken more seriously and still be really good. It gives us an incredibly engaging Bruce Wayne in Christian Bale’s iconic turn as this iconic character along with providing a satisfying origin story that stands as one of the best ever put to screen, being able to revolutionized superhero films for DC the way Richard Donner’s Superman and Michael Keaton’s Batman did back in the days. While it’s impact didn’t feel all the way felt until around the arrival of it’s sequel The Dark Knight three years later, this film’s importance to the Caped Crusader along with the sub-genre should not go unnoticed. Even before Marvel got their universe with Iron Man, it was this terrific first entry from Christopher Nolan that got the ball rolling with just how good a modern superhero movie can be. Only shaky camera action sequences and the second half not being quite as engaging as the first half prevents this from being even higher on the list!

7.) The Prestige

Fresh off a year after reviving the Batman franchise, here we have an absolute mind bender of a film with a strong emotional core, twists and turns that are not just surprising but makes complete sense, and a film that overall doesn’t have a clear protagonist or antagonist. The Prestige offers Nolan’s most packed film in terms of themes, craftsmanship and it’s twisty as hell narrative. With the way everything unfolds through the entire picture, the whole experience plays like a manifesto itself. Making you wonder if one day Christopher Nolan will acts as a professional magician himself once he retires from making films. Even if I feel like there’s one twist too many and the re-watches don’t quite match the experience of seeing everything unfold for the first time, The Prestige is still awesome and a film that should be talked about more when it comes to Nolan’s greatest achievements.

6.) The Dark Knight Rises

That’s right, I have The Dark Knight Rises THIS high on the list! Nolan’s final entry in his largely successful Dark Knight trilogy is his most daring movie of the lot. This is the one Batman film that actually dares to question the entire idea around the character of Batman: that perhaps Bruce Wayne becoming Batman was a mistake. Aided by a intimating villain in Tom Hardy’s Bane, a welcome supporting turn in Anne Hathaway’s Catwoman, fist bumping action sequences and a ending that brings the full themes of the trilogy together, The Dark Knight Rises made for an ending that is imperfect but yet FELT perfect at the exact same time. And especially in a age where superhero and movie franchises that constantly refuse to end, it’s certainly refreshing to have a series that was able to get a proper finale and stick to it, with NO sequel or follow-ups of any kind coming after it. While this is FAR from other flawless masterpieces that Nolan has created, I do think there is a strong argument that this is his most FLAWED masterpiece. In the sense, that despite all the glaring issues from a technical and script side of things along with some underwhelming death scenes, everything here just feels…..right. Even if this film does have it’s detractors, I’m still a believer in The Dark Knight Rises…even if you’re not.

5.) Memento

If you want to see a textbook example of how to make a film within a film, look no further than Memento. This is the kind of mind f**k that very few directors could pull off but Nolan is somehow able to do it and make it look complete easy. Guy Pearce is at his absolute best here as a man suffering from a rare memory loss and is trying to find the man who raped and killed his wife. The score is great, the mystery is able to build perfectly with each previous scene building perfectly to the next, and it’s just one of those rare films that will reward you every time you watch it regardless of what way you prefer to watch it. There’s not many films that constantly wants to keep me coming back for more after each viewing but Memento is one of those rare films. This is a film that might give you a headache when first watching it but it’s certainly the best headache you will ever have. Some might argue this is a bit too high on the list but this film just rules and deserves a spot in the top 5!

4.) Oppenheimer

With this being the first film that Nolan made with Universal Pictures after his departure from WB, Oppenheimer is yet another masterfully made and directed film by the great Christopher Nolan himself. It’s able to tell exactly the kind of sprawling epic story that it aspires to be by making sure to act as a character study first and a biopic second. Every single member of it’s highly recognizable cast is able to completely disappear into their roles and captured their performances perfectly, it does a good job of exploring the man of J. Robert Oppenheimer (played perfectly by Cillian Murphy) as not just “the destroyer of worlds” but as an impactful man himself, the three hour runtime is put to good use without feeling bloated in the slightest, and is able to deliver fully on the theater experience in ways that no other filmmaker could pull off. While may not quite be my very favorite from Nolan himself, this is certainly one of his most impressive works to date and one that I wouldn’t fault anyone who declares it as their new favorite.

3.) The Odyssey

The Odyssey is cinema at its absolute finest! The cast from top to bottom is absolutely outstanding, the unconventional storytelling of this adapted classic tale works without any hesitation whatsoever, the action and set pieces are extremely thrilling and make paying the extra few dollars for the “special” screenings all the more worth it, there’s not a single minute of it’s near three hour running time that feels wasted, and while I can’t say that I agree with every single creative choice that Nolan makes along the way, the way everything comes full circle by the very end makes any potential glaring issue up to that point feel like a complete dust in the wind. Regardless if this is the best Christopher Nolan film or not, I don’t there is a film in his filmography that showcases the grand mindset that this man has had as a filmmaker for the past 30+ years. By constantly trying to find ways to outdo himself and providing you with even grander adventures with grander scales than before, this is Nolan yet again achieving a new level of high quality and a new meaning of absolute cinema! I can’t possibly know how he plans to top himself next time out but man, I will be the first in line for whatever he’s got next!

2.) The Dark Knight

I know it’s become cliché to claim that The Dark Knight is one of the best superhero movies ever, but many people said that for a reason, it is just that damn good. It just works flawlessly at being an unique, distinct story about Batman being challenged mentally, emotionally, physically, thematically, and symbolically. Joker and Harvey Dent acts as perfect parallels to the hero that Bruce so desperately wants to be as Batman along with the villain that he fears that he will one day become. It’s a Batman movie that perfectly mirrors itself with out it tells this identical tale of crime, corruption, and vengeance in the most complex and fascinating way imaginable. There have definitely been PLENTY of superhero movies out that have come out since 2008 that people have liked/disliked more than others but I don’t think anyone can argue that there hasn’t been a superhero movie that has a much of an impact on the genre or cinema as a whole than The Dark Knight. From it’s mind blowing twists and turns to it’s rapid fire pace to gripping action sequences to it’s resonate themes to Heath Ledger’s amazing turn as Heath Ledger and to even Christian’s Bale Batman voice, The Dark Knight, even 18 years later, still stands strong! Even if it is quite an eye roller to keep glazing this film all these years later, it deserves ALL the glazing that it gets because it’s THAT f**king awesome!

1.) Inception

I always go back and forth on #1 and #2 depending on my mood but for right now, I’m gonna go with Inception. There is not one Christopher Nolan film that perfectly demonstrates the man had his finest in terms of craft, narrative, novelty, and ideas. This is easily one of the very best sci films every made and one of the rare films where it’s brilliant ideas is able to be brilliantly executed in every way. The creativity on display is astonishing, the premise involving Inception is put to perfect use and feels wholly original, the dream scenes and world building is some of the very best I’ve seen in any film, the action is top notch and thrilling, the effects are breathtaking, the characters are all compelling and engaging, every actor is perfect in their roles, the score is among the most mesmerizing I’ve ever in any film, and it has one of the most satisfying endings I’ve seen in any film that it NEVER fails to tear me up. This is one of the films where no matter how many times I watch it, I still get that same fresh, unique, and intriguing experience I got when I watched it in the cinema back in 2010. Inception is the best film by Christopher Nolan to date and is one I can recommend to anyone that is a lover of films and cinema.

The Odyssey (2026) Movie Review- Absolute Cinema

AdamLeave a comment

I don’t think there is a director in Hollywood that always seems so eager to top himself the way that Christopher Nolan does! And I don’t just mean in terms of trying to green mushroom himself in terms of the size, scale, and scope that he chooses to shoot his films with or how grand, epic, and unconventional he wants to go with telling his stories (Although, that should DEFINITELY be noted!) but more in how he goes about it through the actual motivations of his main characters. I could go on talking about how The Odyssey is yet another cautionary tale in Nolan’s filmography about a man who wants nothing more but to get back to his family he abandoned (Inception, Interstellar) or another story where his main character who is forced to rebuild and rediscover himself to remember his true purpose (Memento, Batman Begins, & The Dark Knight Rises) but what is always so fascinating and even inspiring is how much the main protagonist in those films will go through in order to accomplish these goals that Nolan clearly has behind the camera or in the writer’s room.

The Dark Knight sees a “non-limited” Batman going through hoops and ladders to stopping the Joker while realizing that even he must have a breaking point or else he will lose himself. Inception has a professional thief that is given the chance of a lifetime to have his criminal record clean if he is successful in literally going into someone’s dream and planting another person’s idea into one’s own target subconscious. The Dark Knight Rises gives us a broken Bruce Wayne that is given no choice but to tear himself apart and start over from scratch in order to defeat Bane and save Gotham City one last time as the Batman. Interstellar has Matthew McConaughey traveling to infinity and beyond in the hopes of finding a new home for his own children before it’s too late. Dunkirk has soldiers well…..doing everything in their power to save themselves in an actual war! Tenet follows someone literally named THE PROTAGONIST trying to do their job as being the film’s literal protagonist by messing with time before it messes back! And lastly, Oppenheimer, sees an infamous physicist nearly destroying the world once and for all to make himself go down in history as the man who invented the very first nuclear bomb.

I bring all this up because you really get the feeling that ever since The Dark Knight, Nolan has consistently have a strong desire to make his films as big, ambitious, and personal as they can possibly be. Not strictly because for the sake of the audience’s own entertainment but with Nolan’s own grand ambition as a filmmaker. Even if he is the last man in the world that needs to prove and justify himself with each new film he makes, he will still go through the great lengths and means to do so anyway, with the complete mindset that each new film he makes could be the very last one. These aren’t just stories about flawed protagonists pushing themselves beyond unrealistic measures to see the light at the end of the tunnel but also about how Nolan himself is willing to push himself beyond unrealistic measures to achieve an even bigger level of peak that nobody think is even possible anymore.

And with The Odyssey, Nolan is here to tell us his biggest and most daring tale yet. Not only with adapting one of the most epic poems in history with Homer’s The Odyssey, developed by the Greeks (We’ll get to that in a moment!) but with crafting his most layered and human story yet, centered around a man being forced to go through hell and back to return to his family and home, no matter how long it takes or what methods he has to use to get there. This is Nolan with his biggest cast, grandest scale, most nonlinear storytelling, and the most personal stakes of any film he has released to date. And the results is nothing short of magnificent!

The Odyssey is cinema at its absolute finest! The cast from top to bottom is absolutely outstanding, the unconventional storytelling of this adapted classic tale works without any hesitation whatsoever, the action and set pieces are extremely thrilling and make paying the extra few dollars for the “special” screenings all the more worth it, there’s not a single minute of it’s near three hour running time that feels wasted, and while I can’t say that I agree with every single creative choice that Nolan makes along the way, the way everything comes full circle by the very end makes any potential glaring issue up to that point feel like a complete dust in the wind. Although it might take me another rewatch or two to declare this my absolute favorite film from the great Christopher Nolan, The Odyssey is prove that the king of modern cinema still has plenty of days remaining on his throne!

Premise: It follows the Greek King Odysseus (Matt Damon) attempting to return home to Ithaca after the Trojan War. While he faces a treacherous voyage and is held captive by the nymph Calypso (Charlize Theron), his wife Penelope (Anne Hathaway) and son Telemachus (Tom Holland) struggle to fend off aggressive suitors trying to claim his throne.

At this point, you have probably already read or at least strongly familiar with the story of Homer’s The Odyssey. It’s a epic tale that has been told for many generations with many different iterations of this beloved/infamous story that have been made. Through every single moment of it’s 173 minute runtime, Nolan is in the mindset that you know the ins and outs of this story but is still wanting to tell it in the freshest and newest way possible, almost like you are seeing this countlessly told story being told before your eyes for the very first time. There’s clear inspiration on display between many translations of The Odyssey, including those from Emily Wilson, E.V. Rieu, and Robert Fagles, AND even other great epic historical films such as Andrei Rublev, Ran, Gladiator, and yes, even Troy. While I can’t imagine the 2026 version is exactly what Homer had pictured when he first made this story, there is a strong sense of confidence here of being able to perfectly capture the spirit of Homer’s tale, translating itself with the best possible update of the story that one can imagine.

And while we are on the subject, yes I would be lying if I claim that Nolan’s take on The Odyssey is as historically accurate as it gets. From the silver armors in Bronze Age to the “modernized” dialogue to the character of Simon basically replacing the character of Achillies to there being little to no Greeks in this overall Greek tale, this is definitely an adaption that you can tell was made in the year 2026 and NOT 1926!

If this was your typical adaption made by your typical filmmaker, these kind of bizarre changes would make the whole thing feel dead on arrival! However, just like with Odysseus himself, Nolan is clearly up to the challenge and is willing to go through any sort of controversy and pre-release PR disaster to craft the best possible version of his grand vision.

And the main thematic throughline that helps Nolan’s The Odyssey be up to par with the very best adaptions of it’s source material is that it never forgets that at it’s heart, The Odyssey is about a man learning the humanity within himself and using that as strength to pull off the biggest comeback of all time. Each character from the film’s extremely stacked cast plays a role that ties back to Odysseus’ overwhelming journey, with trying to get home after the Trojan War and the encounter of mythical beings along the way in order to reunite with his wife, Penelope, and a son that he may or may not know about.

It’s through these first two hours of the film that do their damnest of carrying the weight of the complete damning picture. Big important sequences are told out of order and through the perspectives of other characters played by the most talented actors and actresses you can think of, it has a balanced tone that knows when to take it’s material seriously and when to have some completed messed up fun with it (That “pig” scene will live rent free in my head for a long time!), and it never forgets for one moment that is a story about Odysseus first and everyone else second. While this is all well and done for the first two hours, there are definitely some moments along the way where you can’t help but hear the gears turned out a little too loudly, wondering how much of this narrative plate spinning is Nolan showing confidence with himself and Nolan just being forced to grind through certain moments of backstory in order to show off the most important set pieces of the story.

Thankfully, the final hour of this film completely makes up for any prior shortcoming. Not only is it able to make nearly every questionable creative choice and casting decision beforehand seem completely justified but it all culminates to one of the most satisfying climaxes in recent memory, with Matt Damon being able to relive his “good old days” in about the best way possible (I imagine Universal will be on the phone with him Monday morning to discuss resurrecting a certain franchise that made him what he is). It’s hard to go into details without major spoilers but the way everything is paid off in the final 30 minutes is so damn good, making a man’s journey come full circle and taking back everything that he lost along the way.

The cast, as you would expect given how much AURA is on screen here, are all excellent. Matt Damon as Odysseus is able to perfectly sell himself as a believable warrior king in his middle age and able to carry himself as well as among the best featured films with him. Tom Holland excels as the son, Telemachus, clearly comfortable in stepping out of the shadow of Spider-Man and into the shoes of a young man waiting for his father to return. Anne Hathaway as Penelope should be the current frontrunner for Best Actress come the Academy Awards next spring, giving an amazing and vulnerable performance as a troubled mother, wife, and queen of a kingdom that she is forced to rule by herself.

Robert Pattinson is entertaining playing the complete asshole that is Antinous, Himesh Patel makes for a solid second-in-command of Eurylochus, Charlize Theron is great as always as Calypso, the woman that takes care of Odysseus and wants him for herself, Zendaya is given a similar role as she did in Dune: Part One as Athena but she makes it play, Jon Bernthal as Menelaus acts as the right guide for Telemachus, a man who represents the version of a father that he might want, and John Leguizamo is completely unrecognizable in the best way as Eumaeus, given more focus and depth than I was expecting. I would’ve liked to have seen more from Mia Goth and Logan Marshall-Green as twin siblings in Melantho and Melanthius and Benny Safdie as Agamemnon but they are able to fit in alongside everyone else. Oh, and although Samantha Morton’s Circe is only in one major sequence in the film, nailed it just……nailed it!

And of course, you have to address the GIANT elephant in the room in regards to the controversy surrounding the casting. Yes, Travis Knight, Lupita Nyong’o, and Elliot Page are all in this film as their roles of Phemius, Helen of Troy/Clytemnestra, and Sinon (A.K.A. NOT Achilles) respectively but their roles are about as minor as they come and don’t hog the spotlight as majority of the cast members already mentioned that it’s baffling it attached as much backlash as it did. Sure, I can question if it was the wisest choice for Nolan to cast a rapper in a Greek tale (Even if Travis’s newest song in the end credits is catchy as hell!) or I would buy Elliot Page as being the bravest warrior that Odysseus has ever seen (To be fair, it’s NOT implied he is the best or strongest warrior of them all and the film is clearly aware of that!) but for anyone that is familiar with The Odyssey, they are all given the same extended cameo roles they did in the books, given a combined screentime of five to seven minutes at best. So, even if you are among the unhinged folks that are outraged of these castings, they are not in it nearly as much for them to hold you back on your enjoyment of the film, especially since all three of them are great in the film with their limited screentime (And yes, I do indeed buy Lupita Nyong’o as the most beautiful woman in the world! Don’t @ me!).

However, despite having nearly everyone but the kitchen sink as part of the cast, the real MVP of the film is no one other than Christopher Nolan. His craftsmanship is yet again on complete full display, making sure that regardless of what way you chose to see this film in theaters, it will make for the very best possible viewing experience that anyone could have imagine. With completely sharp direction, gorgeous cinematography from Hoyte van Hoytema, surprisingly consistent editing from Jennifer Lame, and a haunting/riveting musical score from Ludwig Göransson, Nolan yet again deliver the complete full package of a theatrically released film, making sure that every single penny that was spent from it’s $250+ million budget was justified. Heck, even the sound mixing worked for me this time! It’s THAT good!

Even if you are someone that don’t care for Christopher Nolan as a filmmaker, you can’t deny the man is doing everything in his integrity to keep the cinematic theatrical experience alive. With so many achievements underneath his belt, he has every excuse in the book to just play it safe with each new film he now releases and not feel the end to top himself every chance he gets. But thank the Greek gods he REFUSES to do that because man, I can’t think of a bleaker cinematic future in the 2020s if Oppenheimer and The Odyssey never became a thing. For as long as that man is making films, he will always act like a man on a mission, constantly aiming to reach a higher bar with each new film that he makes. I mean, can you name me ONE other director working in Hollywood that is able to CONSISTENTLY deliver films that always end up being in the top 10 highest grossing films of the year because of their name ALONE?! I bet you can’t and that what makes Christopher Nolan such a gift to cinema.

The Odyssey makes for yet another grand triumph from Christopher Nolan along with one of the best grand epics in recent memory, managing to defy all expectations and find new unforeseen boundaries to push. The story centering on Odysseus is captivating, the action sequences whether it involves the Trojan War, cyclops, or Matt Damon going full Jason Bourne are all brilliant, the cast is among the greatest ensembles of all time, and everything about the final hour of the film is so perfectly executed that it literally washed any gripes I had beforehand completely away. I can’t say I would have made every single creative and artistic decision that Nolan makes here but nearly every single one of those decisions is justified and is perfectly shown why onscreen.

Regardless if this is the best Christopher Nolan film or not, I don’t there is a film in his filmography that showcases the grand mindset that this man has had as a filmmaker for the past 30+ years. By constantly trying to find ways to outdo himself and providing you with even grander adventures with grander scales than before, this is Nolan yet again achieving a new level of high quality and a new meaning of absolute cinema! I can’t possibly know how he plans to top himself next time out but man, I will be the first in line for whatever he’s got next!

Although if the cave and “pig” scene is any indication and how ANOTHER certain big someone in Hollywood has reacted to The Odyssey, I think we have a certain genre that Nolan hasn’t tackled yet and a certain actor that Nolan hasn’t collaborated with yet could be a match made in heaven!

Please make it happen!

Ranking The Billion Dollar Club Movies (Updated w/Michael & Toy Story 5)

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Michael and Toy Story 5 are about to cross the billion dollar mark at the box office. With that, there are now a total of 64 movies to have made it into the one billion dollar club. Regardless if inflation or re-releases also helps with that (which they both do), a movie has made a total of over seven bills at least 64 times throughout cinema history. Because of that, I decided to go ahead and do a ranking of every single one of these since I’ve actually seen all of these movies at least one time.

This will make for a rather complicated list, even more so than other lists I make on here. This will be a fine mix between what I believe is the best movie from an objective standpoint, what I believe is the best from a subjective standpoint, and the impact each one has had on pop culture for better and worse. I’ve thought about this for quite awhile now so it’s time for me to rank them.

If you disagree with this list, then by all means disagree but please don’t be a jerk about it. We have enough of those on the internet. I really don’t take much pride in these lists and rankings other than to have some fun. Opinions change everyday and this ranking is just how I feel at the exact moment that I’m publishing this list.

Also, since it’s going to be 64 movies, I’m not gonna go into detail on any one of those and just show the number I have ranked for each movie. I’ll just say which movie is ranked where and show off a trailer for it because why not? I might even update the list once another movie comes around that makes a billion dollars and see how much of my opinion on this list has changed since then.

Let’s not waste anymore time and get right down to it.

64.) Transformers: Age of Extinction

63.) The Lion King (2019)

62.) Jurassic World: Dominion

61.) Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

60.) Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom

59.) Minions

58.) Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

57.) Alice In Wonderland (2010)

56.) Beauty and the Beast (2017)

55.) Despicable Me 3

54.) Lilo & Stitch (2025)

53.) Moana II

52.) Aladdin (2019)

51.) The Fate of the Furious

50.) Jurassic World

49.) Captain Marvel

48.) Frozen II

47.) Incredibles 2

46.) Toy Story 4

45.) The Super Mario Galaxy Movie

44.) Star Wars: Episode 1- The Phantom Menace

43.) The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

42.) Spider-Man: Far From Home

41.) Avatar: Fire & Ash

40.) Transformers: Dark of the Moon

39.) Avengers: Age of Ultron

38.) Joker

37.) The Super Mario Bros Movie

36.) Aquaman

35.) Michael

34.) Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone

33.) Finding Dory

32.) Toy Story 5

31.) Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead’s Man Chest

30.) Star Wars: The Force Awakens

29.) Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

28.) Deadpool & Wolverine

27.) Furious 7

26.) Avatar: The Way of Water

25.) Avatar

24.) Zootopia 2

23.) Frozen

22.) Iron Man 3

21.) Captain America: Civil War

20.) Ne Zha 2

19.) Barbie

18.) Harry Potter & The Deadly Hallows Part II

17.) Spider-Man: No Way Home

16.) Inside Out 2

15.) Avengers: Infinity War

14.) Zootopia

13.) Star Wars: The Last Jedi

12.) Black Panther

11.) Skyfall

10.) The Dark Knight Rises

9.) The Avengers

8.) Titanic

7.) Top Gun: Maverick

6.) Avengers: Endgame

5.) The Lion King

4.) Jurassic Park

3.) The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King

2.) Toy Story 3

1.) The Dark Knight

Top 10 Best Movies of 2026 (So Far)

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Hey, everyone! I hope you all are enjoying your 4th of July weekend! As we exit June and enter July, that means we are already halfway through 2026! Because of that, I might as well give you all my pick for the top 10 best movies of the year so far!

Keep in mind, I have not seen every single movie that has released in 2026 and there might just be a critically praised movie that you love that I have just not gotten around to yet. Also, these rankings are NOT set in stone and are subject to change as the year goes on. For all I know, my #10 on the list could possibly end up being my #1 favorite movie of the year.

Although there is still PLENTY of films to come out for the remainder of the year, these are the ten films that has affected me in the best ways for the first six months of 2026!

10.) Backrooms

While I’m not quite on the love boat with this one, I’m sure as hell on the respect boat. I love the original atmosphere and unique setting that Kane Parsons has created here, making the backrooms itself a fascinating place to explore whenever we are able to get to it. I did wish the overall narrative had more meat to it and Parsons didn’t have to keep coming up with contrived excuses for his characters to keep showing up to the backrooms. And I’m still scratching my head on the resolution to the whole thing. However, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Renate Reinsve are great here and there are still plenty of seeds that have yet to be grown in the world that is Backrooms that I’m curious to visit yet again in the future. I can see this being a series of films that only gets better from here on out. 

9.) The Sheep Detectives

Well, what do you know. Who would’ve guessed that a film about a literal talking sheep in live-action could end up being this heartwarming and cozy?! Even if it can be a bit too silly at times, The Sheep Detectives just tugs at your heartstrings in the best of ways and Hugh Jackman is as much as a welcome presence as he always has been on the big screen. If you are someone that adores the new Paddington movies, this might just well in your wheel house.

8.) 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple

It made have taken a second try but 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple is able to deliver the complete full package I wanted from the previous 28 Years Later film from last year, while standing as perhaps the best installment in this franchise since the original. The acting is terrific, the horror and gore will disgust you in the most delightful ways imaginable, and it is still able to follow the franchise’s overall themes by continuing to offer fresh, new, and different perspectives about a world that has plunged into total chaos without taking you out of it or even inviting comparisons to the world that we are currently live in. I sure hope this is able to find it’s audience through digital and streaming because if not, then MAN are they missing out!

7.) Hoppers

Hoppers is a showcase of what happens with Pixar allows themselves to let loose and forge their own path to creativity. The film has it’s own distinct animation style that compliments the storytelling without it being too overbearing or “in your face”, the characters are all likeable with their own relatable goals that anyone can get behind, it’s easily among the funniest Pixar movie in years, and despite prior reports of Disney’s efforts to downplay the themes of environmentalism, it’s able to get that exact message across in as much of a profound way as Pixar was able to in 2008 with Wall-E. It may take it’s time in getting to that exact point in the ways that it was intend and does have one or two cringeworthy lines about how “aware” it is of it’s own premise but the pay-offs by the latter half of Hopper makes it the whole experience feel worth it! While there are those out there that claim Toy Story 5 or Minions & Monsters as their animated film of the year, I’m still sticking by this one.

6.) Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die

After coming out of the closet making the criminally underrated A Cure For Wellness, Gore Verbinski is back to take a stance on the biggest global crisis at the moment, Artificial Intelligence. Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die sees Sam Rockwell from the future to give us all a warning on how the robots and machines are taking over and it’s up to choices that we make now that can set the course to a much brighter path forward. The cast is greats, the visuals are aces, the ending is as poignant it comes, and it’s super refreshing for a movie to not have any subtly whatsoever to get it’s message across. Although Verbinski’s direction won’t be suitable for anyone, this is a solid watch.

5.) Send Help

Can we point out how much of a miracle that a film like Send Help exists? In an age of sequels, reboots, remakes, and legacy-quels conquering the film landscape and sucking up the remaining creative energy that Hollywood might still have, films like these are becoming more diamonds in the rough in the film industry. Thankfully, someone at 20th Century Fox or Disney was wise enough to give a blank check to the godfather of horror and superhero movies in Sam Raimi, his first original horror film since 2009’s Drag Me To Hell! Send Help is yet another worthy addition to Raimi’s Hall of Fame of Horror! It’s able to capitalize on it’s simple yet effective premise thanks to it’s two charismatic leads, it’s incredibly visionary direction, unapologetically excessive gore, and a script that will keep audiences on their toes the whole way through. Even if the ending leaves out a bit too many unanswered questions, it’s still an absolute blast of a motion picture that is definitely worth seeing on the big screen.

4.) Disclosure Day

Despite it’s polarizing reception, Disclosure Day is a very entertaining and engaging ride that makes for another fine addition to the “NOT a Marvel/Star Wars/IP movie” collection of the 2026 summer movie season. The cast is terrific, Spielberg is clearly having a blast making a movie about aliens again, and the screenplay is able to have it’s cake-and-eat-it-too, operating as both a solid thriller and a layer filled character study that will have plenty of delightful “explain” videos made for it. Not every single question the audience have will be answered but the ones that does is given a proper answer while the ones it choses to leave in the balance might just be for the better. It may not be quite S-Tier Steven Spielberg but Disclosure Day is more than enough proof that the godfather of blockbuster cinema still got plenty in the tank left in him and should still be treated with grace and dignity with each new film he releases. Even if not everybody will buy what Disclosure Day has to say about humanity and how the truth can lead to unity, it is bittersweet to see Steven actually try and perhaps that is what matters more than anything.

3.) The Furious

Have you been wanting to see a spiritual successor to The Raid 2 for the past 12 years?! Have you been anxious to see a balls-to-the-wall non-stop action thrill ride in the 2020s that is NOT John Wick?! Did you want to see a movie that takes the same plot and premise surrounding stopping human traffickers as Supergirl (2026) but done right?! Well, look no further than The Furious! An action packed masterwork that has no agenda other than delivering on over-the-top fight scenes, performing some of the greatest stunts and practical set pieces you have seen in years, and give you simplistic characters with human goals that you want to root for! Sometimes, there is nothing better for a film than riding with pure simplicity, without a care in the world of what lengths and leaps of logic it is willing to go to deliver the goods. Regardless of what way you chose to watch it, please check out The Furious ASAP!

2.) Project Hail Mary

Project Hail Mary is an incredibly well made, extremely well acted, and very well paced sci-fi thriller that works not just as a faithful adaption of the critically acclaimed book from Andy Weir (The Martian) but it also stands strongly as it’s own cinematic experience and a thematically moving think tank surrounding art and science . There is not a single second that is boring or uninteresting, Ryan Gosling is pitch perfect in the lead role as Grace and has great chemistry with his so-called co-star, it has a perfectly controlled tone that knows when to be funny, serious, and moving when it’s absolutely required, and even if you can see the inspiration from your favorite sci-fi flick from the 2010s (Gravity, Interstellar, The Martian, Arrival, Mr. Gosling’s own First Man! Take your pick!), it is able to have it’s own unique identity while telling a distinct story about the importance of loyalty, friendship, unity, and sacrifice. While it’s certainly not the most flawless film I’ve ever seen and I’m sure there will be nits to be picked from fans of the book, I can’t imagine Project Hail Mary being a better version of itself than what Mr. Lord and Mr. Miller was able to deliver here.

1.) Obsession

The most talked about film of 2026 is my absolute favorite thus far! I don’t think I’ve seen a film where the whole message of “Be careful what you wish for!” has been executed this well and scary! The directing by Curry Barker is top notch, the performances are all great, it has a nice blend of horror thrills and laughter that I don’t any other director would be able to combine brilliantly, and the ending still haunts me weeks after seeing the movie. It’s also makes for a perfect subversion to have the main protagonist practically being the villain of the film, being forced to face the consequences of the choice he made strictly for his own pleasure. Inde Navarrette deserves a damn Oscar for her performance and it’s yet another brilliant original horror film to go with all of the other brilliant horror films we have gotten so far this decade! If this is the future for not just original horror but original films in general, there might just be a light at the end of the tunnel for future cinema.

Happy 250th Day everybody! Enjoy with prosper!

Supergirl (2026) Spoilers- About That Ending

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*Warning! This article contains MAJOR spoilers for Supergirl (2026)! If you haven’t seen the movie yet and don’t want anything spoilers, then you might want to click off the article right now! You have been warned!*

So, uh…..the new Supergirl movie came out this weekend. And just like with every other estrogen-fueled superhero movie that is not about Princess Diana of Themyscira (and even that eventually fell flat on it’s face a few years later with it’s sequel), it has had it’s wide share of controversy. I would go over exactly what *some* of this controversy stirs from but literally just think of any woman-lead ANYTHING that has come out post-GamerGate and you will know exactly what I’m talking about. And as much as folks would love to rally behind this film’s defense, Supergirl (2026) is just not good or interesting enough of a movie to die on it’s hill.

It has received a 54% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the first project in the DC Universe to receive that rating (The MCU didn’t have a single rotten rated film until Eternals in 2021 btw!), it got a very poor B- rating on CinemaScore (With Superman 4‘s C and Joker: Folie A Deux‘s D being the only two DC films that have received worse ratings), and even the audience ratings on Rotten Tomatoes have been just decent at best (ranged around 75 to 76%). Because of these mixed reviews and poor word of mouth, Supergirl (2026) underperformed in even it’s slimest of expectations this weekend, grossing a dreadful $37 million domestically and only $62 million worldwide, that’s lower than the opening weekends of Morbius, The Marvels, & Joker: Folie A Deux. To put it simply, things are not looking good for Supes’ cousin at all.

So, what exactly happened here? While the stirred controversy I mentioned earlier before is nothing out of the ordinary, not even hardcore DC fans, moviegoers, or actual sane people not brainwashed by Fox News are coming to their (Super)girl’s support! Was it with Supergirl (2026) that is not connecting with anyone? The character has had her success in comics and television but can’t seem to translate that onto to the big screen, with both the 1984 version with Helen Slater and the 2026 version with Milly Alcock being financial bombs.

While I can go into things I pointed on in my review such as the barebone storytelling, uninspired direction, subpar looking visuals, and the main villain with somehow even less charisma and memorability than whatever the hell Christopher Eccleston was suppose to be playing in Thor: The Dark World, the moment that really sealed this movie’s faith for me was with Kara Zor-El’s final decision she makes at the end. It’s a decision that not only contradicts the source material it’s based off of but also contradicts the entire point to Supergirl’s arc in the movie.

In case anyone is unaware, Supergirl (2026) is based off Tom King’s 2021-2022 comic run of Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow. In that version, we seen a young Kara being striped down from what would you expect from young blooded female superheroes. Instead of being portrayed as the biggest piece of eye candy you have ever seen or the ultimate girl power fantasy, Supergirl is just a girl who lost everything in her life at such a young age. She was raised on Krypton, watched everyone she loved perish away, and now has no one but herself and her lovable dog Krypto. It made for an interesting portrayal that you usual see from older, male superheroes.

Instead of using her superpowers to save as many people as she can and do pure good like her cousin, Superman, she instead uses it to go to red sunned planets to get drunk, party like a punk rockstar, and kick whoever ass gets in her way. That is until she has a come to Jesus moment and is offered a journey with another young girl named Ruthye, to take vengeance against the man who killed her parents, Krem. Kara refuses at first until Krem comes along the way to crash the party and puts a needle right through everyone’s favorite alien dog, Krypto. And just like that, the two go on a quest for revenge, to not only find Krem to put him out of commission but also to uncover the secrets behind this group known as Brigands, a group of space pirates and human traffickers.

It’s throughout the course of the film where you get to see just how Supergirl differs than Superman. Instead of finding family and love like her cousin did, she found only pain and lost. Instead of using her powers for the means of helping others, she uses her powers for the means of helping herself. And as the movie claims, instead of finding the good in everyone, she only she’s the truth. It’s loneliness that trumps togetherness, selfishness that trumps selfness, and being a realist that trumps being a optimist. Regardless of whether or not you think the film and/or comic goes too far with it’s “edgy” portrayal of Supergirl, you can’t deny it does help separate Kara than just being a gender-swapped version of Superman (something which CW’s Supergirl got bluntly excused off as that show went on).

However, the real dealbreaker that seems like was the one element that both super siblings could agree on is to NOT be a killer. While Superman (2025) certainly had a body count of some sort, you never got the sense that Clark Kent would go out of his way to kill someone out of the lime, even his worst enemy. And that is the one element that Kara wants to portray herself has to. Throughout the entire film, she tells Ruthye that killing is not the answer. No matter what Krem could’ve possibly done to take everything away from her, killing him would not bring ANYTHING back for her. Instead of leaving filling out that black hole inside of her, it will only just make that hole bigger forever and consume what good is left in her.

We then come to the final confrontation where Ruthye has Krem exactly where he wants him, he’s on his knees and vulnerable. If there is a more open time to kill him, it’s this one. However, once again, Kara arrives and tells her to spare his life, reminded her again that this won’t change anything and will basically just gives him exactly what he wants. After immense hesitation, Ruthye agrees and spares his life.

It’s that this moment where you expect a slight change from the ending of Woman of Tomorrow. While doing a notable time jump is perhaps out of the question, you can still have Supergirl make a move that leaves a big mark on Krem’s face, a scar that will remind himself of what he did to earn that mark. Whether it’s a cane or not, you can still have Supergirl acts as a mean of revenge that doesn’t take away her arc. However, director Craig Gillespie and writer Ana Nogueira decided to go in a complete different direction have Kara flat out kill Krem herself. Yes, you heard that correctly!

SUPERGIRL KILLS KREM!!!

That’s right! Instead of just giving him a ding to the head while getting the antidote to cure Krypto, Supergirl picks up her sword and kills Krem. Despite the fact that Kara has spent the whole movie preaching to Ruthye about how you can’t kill people because of how wrong it is, she does the dirty deed herself. Not only is that a complete betrayal of the Woman of Tomorrow comic itself, it’s a betrayal of Supergirl’s arc in the movie itself.

Despite what some might claim, NO, Krem is NOT killed in the comic run. Not only was this confirmed by comic writer Tom King himself in 2024, it’s made obvious in the final few pages where Krem is laying on the ground and covering his face after he just got wacked by an older Ruthye’s cane. He didn’t die there nor was he killed by Kara. It was actually Ruthye letting out years of vengeance inside of her and dumping it all over Krem right after he spent 300 years in prison, while Kara watches. Whether you think that’s tacked on or not, it still keeps Supergirl’s characterization consistent by her being as an edgy anti-hero that doesn’t feel the urge or teaches to kill. And the fact that writer Ana Nogueira interpreted that sequence as something different and didn’t even bother to check in with Tom King himself or do a quick google search is baffling to me.

But it hurts Supergirl even more in the movie itself. While Kara doesn’t see herself as being a Mr. (or Mrs.) Goody Two Shoes hero like her cous, Supes, she still draws the line at killing because that is what separates her from being an anti-hero to a straight up villain. That’s why she keeps telling Ruthye to NOT kill Krem, once you start down that dark path, you will never come back from it. It’s what keeps her from being Supergirl to just being Homelander with a vagina (or basically Stormfront). However, in the case of Supergirl (2026), it almost seems like a decision that would be more in line with what Zack Snyder’s version of Supergirl would be like instead of James Gunn.

Now, this is not me trying to defend the actions of Krem himself. He was objectively a terrible person who is the caught of tracking children and young girls alike. He deserved the most cruel and unusable punishment imaginable but I don’t think Supergirl killing him is exactly that. It almost feels like he got exactly what he wanted. Instead of living out the rest of his days in a jail cell, possibly turning into the same depressed and jaded individual that Supergirl herself became at such a young age, he now is left off the hook scott-free. And our main heroine let him do just that.

The only way this could’ve possibly work if we saw a certain change in Kara in the aftermath of her killing Krem. However, instead of seeing a sense of doubt or her being mentally scarred by this decision, she kinda just carries on like normal. She reunites with Ruthye one last time, letting her join along in celebrating the rest of her birth week, and then reunites with Superman on Earth. She doesn’t have a conversation about what transpires or get a hint of how she changed or grew from that experience. It’s back to stage one except she is slightly less depressed and angsty now.

Say what you will about Superman killing Zod at the end of Man of Steel, but at least we were able to get an IMMEDIATE reaction out of him after he did the dirty deed. Literally just SECONDS after he killed one of his own, he screamed in utter pain and agony, almost as if he just killed someone he loved deep down inside. It was then Clark was able to help heal the mental wound inside of him by being closer to his adoptive mother, Martha, and his new girlfriend/partner at the Daily Planet, Lois Lane. I still can’t say I was in love with that decision from Mr. Snyder and Mr. Goyer but you could at least see somewhat of a justification for it given Superman was trying to save literal human lives.

When it comes to Supergirl (2026), Kara killing Krem just seems like a decision that just comes out of nowhere. I don’t know if it’s because they wanted to make that change from the comic to catch people off guard. I don’t know if it’s because they wanted to subvert our expectations by showing how this Supergirl is much different than Superman. I don’t know if it’s because they wanted to show us how Krem basically won because he got Supergirl to break her unwritten rule. And I certainly don’t know if it’s because that’s what Ana Nogueira ACTUALLY thought happened at the end of Woman of Tomorrow so she decides to do the sequence just like that. The fact that I can’t tell you why that decision was made speaks volume to the film’s overall aimless writing and direction.

I’m not gonna act like Supergirl (2026) is the worst comic book movie of all time or even the worst one that has come out recently but it’s this one decision made at the ending with Kara that brings this movie down from being just a simply mid movie to a kinda crappy one. I also believe that is the one decision that is keeping even the most diehard of comic book fans from defending it from the corrupt mainstream media. It showed a fatal understanding of the comic it’s based on and even what the whole film itself stands for.

I’m not saying you have to stay faithful to every comic you adapt to an absolute T or can’t make required changes but you need to at least capture the full hearted spirit of it and why that story has resonated with comic readers all around the world. While Supergirl (2026) can claim it’s honoring it by incorporating certain story elements and characters from the book and bringing in Jason Momoa’s Lobo to steal the show, Kara’s ending actions and the way it’s executed proves that it doesn’t understand the point it’s source material was trying to make nor it’s own point. I don’t think I’ve seen an ending of a comic book movie misunderstood the point of it’s source material THIS hard since The Amazing Spider-Man 2.

I sure do hope that Supergirl (2026) only amounts to a slight bump in the road to whatever DC Studios has planned with their current cinematic universe and beyond. However, if this really is the quality we can expect for projects which James Gunn himself is NOT writing or directing, then we might be back in the same well hole we were in around this time a decade ago with the LAST DC cinematic universe and the ones before that.

Jackass: Best & Last (2026) Movie Review- Saving The Worst For Last

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This is gonna be a review where the subtitle of the movie is gonna make it sound much worse than it actually is. If you are someone that goes into one of these movies looking for nothing but laughs, stunts, and your favorite MTV cast and crew putting each other up with extraordinary pain for sh*s and giggles, you will get plenty of that with Jackass: Best & Last. However, if you are someone that is looking for brand NEW stunts, brand NEW laughs, and brand NEW ways of your favorite MTV cast and crew putting up with extraordinary pain for sh*s and giggles, you will likely be disappointed here.

Jackass: Best & Last is not so much it’s own complete Jackass movie as much as it is a full presentation special for Paramount Plus with a bunch of deleted scenes from the other Jackass movies shoehorned in. Whether this became a theatrical release because Johnny Knoxville and company couldn’t bear the thought of saying goodbye to his franchise on a streaming service or to follow through on David Ellison’s ill-conceived promise of releasing 30 films a year once it snatches up Warner Bros Discovery is beyond me, but you will find yourself with just as much laughs and giggles looking up Jackass YouTube videos or watching any other Jackass film on Paramount Plus than you would watching Jackass: Best & Last in theaters.

I have no doubt Jackass means much to this cast and crew, especially if putting up with over 25 years of taking shots to the nuts and getting a million different concussions until you’re 50 is anything to go by (which, YES that infamous part of the Jackass Forever trailer DOES get brought back here). And to the film’s credit, the opening sequence with Johnny performing his very first stunt and the end credits that acts as a tribute to the history of Jackass is very well done, making for the only times where bringing back certain scenes from the other movies is justified (Other than that one bit taken out of Bad Grandpa of course! A.K.A. Easily the best of the Jackass franchise).

The rest of the film is either a compilation of cut out stunts from the other Jackass movies that never should’ve been cut out in the first place, member-barries that references other jokes and sequences in this franchise that you’ve already seen before, and new stunts and sequences that don’t feel as fresh because it involves our cast and crew who are clearly growing out their roles of taking so much hurt to their bodies. I certainly did get some laughs along the way but I could have easily gotten as much by just watching other Jackass videos or popping up any other Jackass movie.

I’m not gonna act like every Jackass movie is a masterpiece, except for Bad Grandpa (That is as much of a comedic masterpiece as it gets, but at least each one offers fresh perspectives while unlocking new, creative, and downright STUPID ways of making you belly chuckle and get tears out of you from laughter. Jackass: Best & Last seems to just exist to get one last nostalgic dollar out of you before Johnny, Steve-0, Chris, and Wee-Man become too crippled to even imaging doing dangerous stunts out of a wheel chair.

I get that these guys are getting old and have their limits now but if that was the case, this could’ve easily worked wonders as either a tv special on MTV and/or a streaming special for Paramount Plus. It would given these guys the right amount of length to do their stunts without going too overlong over it and would have easily killed it in the ratings. But because these flicks are as cheap as they come, squeezing in a few extra bucks wouldn’t hurt. Which, hey, in this day and age, I ain’t complaining about theaters getting more movies to play that people want to see but it certainly doesn’t help in the case of Jackass: Best & Last.

Although this is ultimate a negative review for me, I don’t have any strong emotions or ill will to Jackass that this mid final installment will have a lasting impact on me for the near future. Johnny and friends clearly have had the time of their lives putting through pain and scrutiny just for our own amusement. Even if that is incredibly dumb, I tip my caps to them for having the literal balls to go through all of that. However for me, when it comes to Jackass, I’ll just pop in Bad Grandpa and call it a day!

How Rockstar Boxed GTA VI

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The pre-orders for GTA VI are FINALLY here! After what has seemed like the better part of forever, players and gamers all around globe can at long last pre-order their copy of the most anticipated video game in well over a decade, if not of all time! With all this momentum and hype that has been building since GTA V came out in 2013, you would think that the release of GTA VI could redefine pop culture in a way that hasn’t been seen since at least Avengers: Endgame in 2019. Even with all the chaos and mayhem that is going on in the world in the year 2026, you would expect that Rockstar Games would be doing everything in their power to make GTA VI the biggest and most unifying moment in gaming history. And now that we have pre-order sales that is well underway, what could POSSIBLY go wrong?! Well, quite a lot actually!

Earlier this week, Rockstar announced that GTA VI would be getting two separate additions: the standard edition for $79.99 & the ultimate edition for $99.99. It was also stated that the game would received both digital and “physical” editions (there’s a reason I put the latter with parenthesis. You’ll find out why in just a moment!). The digital edition gives you the option between the main standard edition, which unlocks the main campaign of the game, and the ultimate edition, which gives you access to in-game clothing, hairstyles, locations, missions, tattoos, vehicles, and weapons, while all preorders receive the Vintage Vice City Pack, featuring in-game items inspired by GTA: Vice City. Both versions you can begin downloading on November 12th, in preparation for the game’s full release on November 19th. However, the physical edition doesn’t include a separate ultimate edition of the game but only the standard edition+ a few pre-order bonuses that come with it.

Oh, and although it comes with it’s own case that includes the box art on the cover, you only get a downloadable code in it and NOT a disc!

In case you need that last part read out loud to you, here you go again! The physical edition will NOT include a disc of the game, ONLY a downloadable code for it! You just heard me right there, right?!

Once again, the most anticipated video game of all time will NOT have a disc of what is suppose to be part of the PHYSICAL edition of the game, ONLY a mere code you can start downloading a week in advance but have to wait seven days to actually being able to play the damn game. And if recent reports by The Hollywood Reporter are anything to go by, this is how Rockstar Games is choosing to release GTA VI, with NO plans on releasing a full disc version of the game at launch or even after it once the hype dies down.

To repeat that one more time, GTA VI will NOT have an actual physical disc! Despite this being one of the most hyped games of all time, despite this being in production for God knows how long, and despite all of the goodwill and momentum from the people at Rockstar, there will not be an actual disc that will come with GTA VI!

And keep in mind, this is NOT a game that is from an unknown property or that nobody knows if it’s going to be a big hit or not. EVERYONE is going to get this game! It will sell like HOT CAKES! It’s already making hundred to millions or even billions in pre-order sales ALONE! (It’s said to have already made over $3 billion dollars in pre-sales, with over 39 million copies already pre-ordered!)

No matter how much money Rockstar threw at this game, it is almost CERTAINLY going to make all it’s revenue back in the first week ALONE! You seriously mean to tell me you couldn’t afford to or have the human decency to release a REAL physical edition of a game that will likely go down as the most successful video game release of all time?! I’m calling bull and I’m calling s**t!

And I’m sure someone is gonna come at me with the two main excuses I keep seeing everywhere in regards to this dreadful business decision. Firstly, NO, this is NOT because there won’t be enough spaces on the discs. You can EASILY make MULTIPLE discs to give many different modes of the game the extra spaces that it needs. You can have one disc for the campaign, one disc for the bonus/DLC missions of the game, and one disc for GTA online ALONE! You can certainly use three discs to cover ALL of that and more while making the game function just fine. While updating each one would be a mild annoyance and a bit of patience, it would be worth it just as long as the game still plays strongly.

And secondly, NO, this is NOT done in order to prevent early leaks of the game. Even taking into the fact that game has been facing leaks for over the past FIVE years, everyone is going to get this game regardless of what gets spoiled online. While I’m sure there are plenty of people that will be invested in the main campaign and what happens to our two main leads in Lucia and Jason, there’s MANY that play GTA for two other main reasons: to interact with their friends through the online mode and to just f**k s**t up whenever they feel like it (I can’t tell you how many hours I wasted on GTA V just blowing stuff up and shooting people just to get to five stars!). You really expect me to believe that a game THIS massive could lose all that money in pre-sales just because a couple of spoilers got leaked online early?! Of course not!

The real reason for this cynical move is yet again modern gaming developers wanting to take ownership out of the hands of gamers everywhere and making it to where THEY can control the new games that you play. All you have to do is look at all of the unlockable content that you can only get at launch if you chose to buy the $100 version and NOT the $80 version and the fact that you will not be able to own a proper disc of the game, only a mere downloadable code. Do you really think this move was made in regards to just preventing leaks and reduce reselling? I think you know the answer to that question and so do I!

This all leads to a dark and haunting road that the gaming industry is headed in, where physical media is on it’s way out and that the only way to purchase a game is through digital. And I’m sure those out there that are not a physical media collector and prefers to buy their games through online shops and services such as PlayStation Plus, Xbox Gaming Pass, and Nintendo E-shop, you might wonder what the big deal is? After all, the majority of games nowadays are purchased through digital media and NOT physical. It’s just a change in the times we’re living in and is the industry evolving in ways that we just can’t go back to. Well, to those people, I should also share a story that broke out about Sony deleting over 500+ movies from PlayStation service through customer accounts.

That’s right! Just a few days ago, Sony had deleted over 551 movies from player accounts and they are all gone from their services forever. Regardless of if you paid full prices for it or not, those movies you purchased through PlayStation are gone and there’s NOTHING you can do about. You can’t get a refund for it or some version of that movie back. That is just 20 to 30 bucks or however much you purchase on digital movies flushed down the drain and you have nothing. And if you think gaming companies won’t fall into those footsteps and decide to take digital games off their services whenever they want to, I got a bridge to sell to you.

Granted, there have been MANY different occasions in the past where a company would respond to backlash of consumers whenever they pull a very cynical move that’s all for business and greed and they would eventually change course to satisfy their consumers. For example, when the Xbox One originally was showcased in 2013 and promised baffling stuff like online check-ups, DRM restrictions, and preventing you from actually fully owning their games or sharing them with your friends and family, the players lashed out and demanded better from Xbox. And guess what? They GOT it! Microsoft eventually caved and removed all of that crap they were trying to forced down everybody’s throats with the Xbox One. If a company feels like controversy is so overwhelming that it’s gonna tank their brand, they will pull a complete 180 and changed what they can to avoid any potential major losses.

Unfortunately, I don’t see Rockstar making that exact decision here. The main reason being that you already have millions upon MILLIONS of gamers out there that are going to buy GTA VI no matter what! As I mention, it has already sold over 40 million copies and made over 3 billion dollars in pre-sales ALONE! Unless there is a strong desire for the majority that pre-order game to just cancel all of their pre-orders to make a statement to Rockstar that is not acceptable, I don’t see any major changes happening. Even with the reports of many stores that refuse to sell GTA VI because the physical versions won’t include a disc, they can EASILY make up for any potential lose revenues with the $80-$100 price tags through digital. It’s business, greed, and capitalism at it’s absolute finest and Rockstar can EASILY get away with it.

For those that are digital collectors with their movies, shows, songs, books, and games that they buy, I do hope this is a least one giant WAKE-UP call for you to start taking physical media a little more seriously. Because as it’s been said many times before, you buy something with a full disc, it will 100% belong to you FOREVER! No ifs or buts about it! That’s why I and many others out there act in complete horror at this story. The horror that we are losing our ownership and security over the things we buy. The horror that a company can EASILY take something you already bought away from you whenever they feel like that. The horror that just the mere though of being able to physically own a copy of your favorite movie, show, song, book, and video game is slipping away with every single passing day.

That’s why there has been a stronger push for physical media in recent years. That’s why you are hearing reports about Gen Z beginning to abandon digital and streaming altogether because they actually like to physically own the things they love. Whenever people buy something, they want to be able to own it until the end of time. They don’t want to spend so much money on something with the thought of it getting taking away from them someday. Physical media matters and I don’t think there has been a recent example that showcases that more than with GTA VI.

The only positive I can possibly get out of the way Rockstar has completely BUTCHERED the release of GTA VI is maybe this will finally be a wake-up call for everyone to take physical media seriously. Perhaps this will empower players and gamers all across the world to invest more in physical media than ever before with the video games they buy. If Gen Z is making a statement that they want physical media to still be a thing, the rest of the world should join together with them for that exact same reason.

My advice to everyone is whenever there’s a new game, movie, book, or album that comes out and there’s an option for a physical copy of it, invest in the physical copies more times than not. Send a message to companies that we will no longer tolerate the complete erasure of physical ownership and demand that they give us the full and complete version of what they are selling. If not, then stop buying from them altogether until they can promise not to scam us and gives us everything they are selling.

This might legit be the final stand to preserve whatever future of physical media remains but let’s NOT go out without a fight. Even in the age of physical media is over, let’s preserve what we can so we can lead to some sort of future where physical media still remains a thing and will ALWAYS be an option. Digital media will always have it’s place but physical media will ALWAYS be timeless. And unless Rockstar is able to get that exact memo before November, GTA VI will be dead on arrival for many players out there!

On the plus side, three cheers for Insomniac to actually given Marvel’s Wolverine…..an actual disc!

Supergirl (2026) Movie Review- Punk Slop

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Whenever you watch a movie that is based off of source material you are strongly familiar with, you tend to judge it on two different terms. 1.) Does it work as a faithful adaption of the source material? and 2.) Does it work as it’s own standalone film? Supergirl (2026), directed by Craig Gillespie, acting as the second film installment of the DC Universe, is inspired by Tom King’s comic book run of Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow. At the time the comic released in 2021, it acted as a refreshing change of pace from your typical comic storylines centered around female superheroes. It boldly stripped down Kara Zor-El’s character as we know it, taking away her usual flawless looking girl power superheroine image in favor of turning her into a more relatable and pure messy “girlfailure” that is haunted by her tragic past. While most other Supergirl stories would have her spent her birthday saving the day and defying gender/sexist stereotypes, Woman of Tomorrow just has Kara celebrating her 23rd birthday with some good drinks. She then travels across the galaxy with her lovable dog Krypto where she would meet a young Ruthye Maryne Kroll that will lead her to a quest of revenge! (I basically just gave you the plot synopsis right there!)

While I’m not gonna say that Woman of Tomorrow is my favorite comic run of all time, it did stand strongly on it’s own as not just one of the better female-led superhero stories in recent memory but as a damn good story in it’s own right. And with James Gunn now in charge of the DC wheel, director Craig Gillespie (I, Tonya) at the helm of this project, the casting of Milly Alcock (House of Dragons) as the title character, and great source material to make a movie out of, you think this would be an absolute home run for DC Studios and female superhero movies in general. Right, right?! Well….you would unfortunately be wrong!

Supergirl (2026) is not without it’s own redeemable merits. Milly Alcock makes for a great Supergirl, feeling like the messy version of the character that was ripped straight off the pages of Woman of Tomorrow. Jason Mamoa is as reliable entertaining as Lobo as you would imagine him being. There’s some effective flashback sequences that tie back to Kara’s past that work quite well in their own rights, one of the few instances when the film allows itself to let those effective moments sink in. Also, David Corenswet is just as charming and delightful as Superman as he was last summer in the limited screentime that he has.

However, the film doesn’t so much feel like it’s trying to honor the spirit and heart of Woman of Tomorrow and feels more like it’s skimming through the pages to capture the “big” moments of the story in order to sell tickets. Or as if writer Ana Nogueira used ChatGPT to recite the plot summary of the comic in just three to four paragraphs. The punk rock style that worked very well in Superman (2025) doesn’t translate as hard here, much of the humor and action beats fall flat, the eye popping visuals from the comics are poorly realized here and not amusing to look at, and the villains (Just like in the comics!) are about as interesting as watching paint dry.

To the film’s credit, Supergirl (2026) does NOT play out as the goofy over-the-top Guardians of the Galaxy knock-off that the trailers themselves presented it as. It does takes itself quite seriously and very rarely undercuts any potential emotional beat in favorite of a funny one-liner. If anything, it feels more in line with Mad Max than Guardians of the Galaxy!

No, Supergirl is NOT Starlord! No, Lobo is NOT Drax the Destroyer! No, the main bad guy is NOT Ronan the Accuser (Although, even he was more memorable!) While there are definitely needle drops throw in (One of which is LAUGHABLY bad towards the end!), it’s no different than other needle drops in other superhero movies that doesn’t star Chris Pratt or Margot Robbie! (We can’t just claim that the Just a Girl happened in Captain Marvel all because Hooked on a Feeling happened in Guardians of the Galaxy!)

And it is that grim tone and edgy portrayal of Supergirl that is able to carry the majority of the film. Kara doesn’t strive to be this perfect girl that many Supergirls in the past are presented as. Instead, she’s strives on her imperfection and feels no need to apologize for it. Sometimes heroes can just let themselves loose and still act for the greater good. And it’s with her journey with Ruthye (despite a rather flat performance by Eve Ridley) that she holds similar confliction with her darker self about not letting vengeance consume you and sometimes it’s best to just not give yourself what you want because it will give you the exact opposite of that. This makes for a great reversal of Superman and an interesting way to examine the character without making her come across as strictly a female version of Kal-El.

Just too bad nearly ALL of that character work is thrown out by the time you reached the third act. Only then, we find Kara making decisions that complete contradicts her entire arc up to that point. Not to get too wrapped into spoilers but Supergirl’s decisions in her final confrontation is a COMPLETE 180 from the decisions she makes at the end of the comic. Whether that was intended to act as full circle moment for this edgy Supergirl, a subversion from most other superhero movies or changes to the book so fans wouldn’t be able to second guess everything beforehand is anyone’s guess. However, by the end, it felt incredibly unearned and left the climax feeling very less fulfilling than it otherwise should have been. (The Snyder cult is gonna have a RIOT with the end of this movie!)

From a technical side of things, the film is quite a mixed bag. While there’s some good set designs and the creatures and make-ups that looks incredibly fitting in such a dystopian world, the visuals and green screen are distractingly flat, feeling like it’s getting the very least of it’s $170 million budget that was given into production. Craig Gillespie has made some good movies in the past but between this and Cruella, he seems unqualified in directing high budgeted big feature films and should just stick to narrative-driven dramas like I, Tonya.

The editing between the flashback sequences and present day is quite distracting, the pacing grinds to a screeching hold in the second act, and while there are a handful of good tunes here, the original score by Claudia Sarne is nothing to write home about, failing to achieve even the ounce of the punk rock energy that John Murphy and David Fleming provided with Superman (2025). Even for a film that has a shorter budget than most superhero films nowadays, I was still expecting better.

The question some of you will ask is if Supergirl (2026) will work better for you if you have NOT read the novelization it’s based on?! It’s hard to say but that doesn’t change the shaking feeling of the film rather uneven quality, it’s bizarrely pacing and structure, and like a handful of chunks was cut out to trim the runtime down to an hour and 40 minutes for more theater showings. (I’m more than willing to believe those rumors about 30 minutes being cut directly from this film!)

Sure, you could bring up similar criticism in regards to Superman (2025) but that film was at least able to get it’s consistent message across involving kindness and warmth. It still felt like a complete vision from beginning to end, had plenty of standout moments in regards to character and emotion, and despite it’s rather overstuffed plot, it still was able to find a payoff for nearly every story element it sets up. With Supergirl (2026), you don’t get that vibe whatsoever, almost as if the film was directed by Lobo himself .

Supergirl (2026) is not a movie I hate or even dislike but it is the one that is bluntly shown the cracks of the armor of this new cinematic universe from Mr. Gunn and Mr. Safran this early on. While I am excited to see Alcock’s Supergirl teaming up with Corenswet’s Superman in next year’s Man of Tomorrow, DC Studios better bring their A-game this time next year or else the DCU could be over before it even gets a chance to settle in.

(At least Clayface looks good though.)

Other comments:

  • At my screening, I ran into Dan Murrell, a movie reviewer on YouTube and also previously worked for Screen Junkies, the channel that does the Honest Trailers. I was gonna get a pic of him to prove it but I had to leave immediately after the film ended because I had to go to the bathroom so bad.

  • Fyi, I don’t know if there’s a post credit scene or not. I heard reports that there originally was but it got cut for some reason. Just see for yourselves if you want.

  • This was probably the least packed early screening for a movie that I’ve ever been to. The only other one I can think of that was worse than this was for Night Swim, where the film press didn’t even bother to show up and they just gave us all the “good” seats because of that.

  • It’s very interesting how this makes for the SECOND recent film where the main bad guys are just a bunch of child traffickers. Between this and The Furious, it’s like cinema is trying to send a message to the US government to just release the files of a certain someone.

  • Also, see The Furious if you haven’t already! It’s f**king awesome! Best action film of the decade and best action film of it’s kind since The Raid 2!

Top 10 Favorite Sonic The Hedgehog Games

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Sonic the Hedgehog is now 35 years old! 35 years and counting of some of the very best and very worst that gaming has head to offer! In case you haven’t figured that out with the multiple Sonic pieces that I’ve written on this blog, I’ve always been a big fan of Sonic the Hedgehog since I was a kid. Sonic as a character is someone that always has appeal to me with his cockiness, incredible sense of speed, but also having a big heart for himself and those he cares about. He’s always been so appealing to me that I’ve been following this roller coaster of a franchise for over two full decades now.

To celebrate the 35th anniversary of Sonic the Hedgehog, I’ve decided to do a ranking of my top 10 personal favorite Sonic games to date! Not necessarily what I think its the best from an objective standpoint but the Sonic games that I’ve had the most fond memories of and still do to this very day.

First, here’s a couple of games that BARELY made it off this list:

  • Sonic Advance/Sonic Advance 3

These two games are good examples of the perfect formula for Sonic in 2D form. Expanding upon the classic games in respectful ways, adding characters/elements to the gameplay along with a sense of speed and platforming that help make the experience more enjoyable rather than hinder it, and just working as their own unique Sonic games, the Sonic Advance series (minus the middling as hell second one) works wonder as one of the better Sonic experiences. They both have issues (Advance 1 has ridiculous bosses and Advance 3 has ridiculous Chao padding) but as a whole, Sonic Advance & Sonic Advance 3 are two 2D Sonic games that still stand out quite well for the Blue Blur.

  • Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed

This is an example of a kart racing sequel that is better than the original in just about every way. With even smoother controls, more creative racetracks, a more expanded roster of characters, and offering a better sense of challenge than before, Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed is one of the few out there that would give Mario Kart a run for it’s money. It’s only off of the list because of some difficulty spikes with specific challenges, a couple of aggravating glitches I tend to run into, and there is one Sonic kart racer that was able to do what this game did just a little bit better. If you love Sonic and racing games, then this is definitely a must-play!

And also in case you are wondering, SONIC IS DRIVING A CAR TO MAKE IT FAIR TO THE OTHER RACERS!

THAT IS ALL!

  • Sonic Heroes

I’m gonna say straight up front that Sonic Heroes was the first Sonic game I’ve ever played. That lone fact alone makes me want to biased and put on my nostalgic goggles to have this game ranked on the list. There are good chunks of the game that are fast and fun, the level design themselves have plenty of neat gimmicks and designs that stand among the best in the franchise, the soundtrack is stellar with nearly every track being a winner, and the overall message and concept of teamwork is a great and interesting one for the Sonic series. Unfortunately, there are major issues when it comes to controls, physics, and repetition that really tank the experience for a lot of people. The good and bad of Sonic Heroes balance each other throughout the entirety of the game. It will mostly depends on what end you find yourself landing on more when playing it that will determine your overall feelings of the game as a whole.

  • Sonic The Hedgehog 2

A sequel that takes everything that works about the original and expands upon it in every single way. As a result, Sonic The Hedgehog 2 manages to be not just as good as the original but even better. Better controls, level designs, graphics, backgrounds, environments, and especially music! With an even greater sense of speed, more memorable level designs, and the introduction of the cutesy fox known as Tails, this is no doubt a great sequel. The only thing that keeps this one from being on this list is the very final boss. To this day, I still find it incredibly cheap, hard as ball and makes the ending of the game incredibly frustrating every time I replay it. Still a classic without a doubt but the fact the game always ends on a rather sour note prevents it from finding a spot on the list!

Now, here we go to the main top 10! Once again, these are ranked based on being my personal favorites, NOT of objective quality!

10.) The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog

Never in a million years would I think that a visual novel game where you just point and click at things made by the social media group from SEGA would end up being quite good but here you go! This is a game that came out on April 1st, 2023 on the PC, strictly as a April Fools Day prank. To put it simply, it’s Sonic and his friends in a murder mystery party. I would tell you more but that would spoil all the fun to be had with this game. Just know that this is a very well done visual novel and point-and-click adventure made with a lot of love from the SEGA Social team, who clearly loves Sonic as much as the fans do. If that sounds like your jam, then please go download this game right now on your PC if you haven’t already. It’s 100% free!

9.) Sonic Frontiers

That’s right! I actually found a spot for this one! This might be guilty of many of the same flaws that have plagued prior 3D Sonic games but unlike with most recent entries in the series, there is actually plenty of charm hidden within that makes the experience super enjoyable! The overall core formula and open zones work well here and does help set a promising template for future Sonic games. It’s also nice to see more care put into the story and characterization than it has been for quite some time. And Super Sonic has been more badass than he is here! This is a game that has grown on me since it came out and I’ve come to find more things to love and appreciate about it as time goes by. Yes, the pinball level sucks, some of the grinding sucks, and the “true” final boss sucks (The ONE thing that The Final Horizon DLC improved on!), but none of those were enough to ruin the many hours I’ve spend on this game! Sonic Frontiers is about as imperfect as you can expect a Sonic game to be but for the first time in a long while, it did leave me with an actual feeling of optimism for Sonic moving forward. If you ask me, that is more than enough to justify this being at #9!

8.) Sonic Racing CrossWorlds

The newest addition to the Sonic kart racing canon is not only the best Sonic racing game to date but might perhaps be the best kart racing game to date that is NOT Mario Kart! This has more of an expanded roster of characters, more creative and unique race tracks, more vehicles you can choose to race with, whether it’s with cars or hover boards, and more amounts of fan service than any of the Sonic racing games! You also got great online modes, fun character interactions during Rival mode, multiples pathways with each crossworld you enter, tons of unlockables to collect, and plenty of DLC on the horizon to keep you entertained with the game for quite some time (Unfortunately, not free though!). This is just the perfect example of a kart racing game that is the absolute complete package from top to bottom! If Mario Kart 8 didn’t exist, this might legit be my new favorite kart racing game and the one that I see myself playing the most for the foreseeable future! Sonic Racing CrossWorlds checks all the boxes and then some and continues Sonic’s great track record of the 2020s! Eat it, Mario Kart World!

7.) Sonic Colors

Sonic Team followed up Sonic Unleashed by making a game that added more to the well-received aspects of it (the daytime stages) along with removing the not so well-received aspects of it (the nighttime stages). Sonic Colors understands the core appeal of Sonic by featuring top-notch speed, solid platforming, incredibly fun and unique level designs, and some of the best power-ups in the series with the Wisps. And this was also the game that introduced Roger Craig Smith as the blue blur we all know and love, who is still going strong in the role to this very day! There may be a bit too much 2D levels for some and the story/humor is admittedly hit (any scene with Eggman and his robots) or miss (Baldy McNosehair) but this is easily among the best 3D Sonic games to date. And even though the comparisons to Super Mario Galaxy are undeniable, Sonic Colors is still able to provide a fresh and exhilarating experience that certainly feels like Sonic the Hedgehog.

6.) Sonic Rush

Being the game that introduces the boost mechanics that would eventually become a stable for Modern Sonic, Sonic Rush makes for one of the most thoroughly enjoyable and unique Sonic games throughout his history. The main highlight here is seeing the introduction to fan-favorite Blaze the Cat, arguably the best female character in the entire franchise, and getting the perfect sense of speed with Sonic that you never really got with the series up to this point. There’s some repetition of playing the same levels twice and newly introduced villain, Eggman Nega sucks on literally every single level, but this is one I can recommend to those who are not even fans of Sonic. With top notch speed, fast platforming, and a SUPER awesome soundtrack, Sonic Rush is an absolute gem that should not be missed! Just a damn shame this had to come out the same day as Shadow the Hedgehog!

5.) Sonic Unleashed

One of the most divisive installments in the franchise is among my favorites. While opinions certainly vary on the SD port of this game, the HD version of Sonic Unleashed has the thrills and action that I could ever want from a Sonic game. The daytime stages delivers an incredibly sense of speed and fast platforming that I always love replaying through, the story is simplistic but still has that nice mix of light and dark nature that most Sonic stories lack, the graphics still look stunning even over 17 years later, the soundtrack is outstanding and among the very best in the franchise, the variety this game contains in terms of gameplay and unlockables is off the charts, exploring the hub worlds of all the different countries acts greatly to that “world adventure” spirit, and even I’m not shame to admit I even kinda like that silly Werehog (If you don’t at least get some goosebumps during the night boss fights, you are a total loser! Just saying!)! I totally understand the reasons to hate this game but I remain a fan to this very day just like how I was back in 2008. This game has been gaining a cult following over the years and I’m glad to admit that I was a part of that crowd from the very beginning.

4.) Sonic Adventure

While this has certainly shown it’s age in many areas, there is still more than enough about Sonic Adventure, A.K.A. the first official 3D Sonic game, that works very well to this day. The gameplay that still works (namely Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Gamma) remain some of the very best in all of 3D Sonic, the hub world of Station Square is fun to explore and gives you that perfect sense of adventure that makes the title accurate, and it’s neat to have every main character in the story get their own arcs and development throughout, something which didn’t happen in the Sonic series until this game. Even the dated elements like the cheesy animation, dialogue, and voice acting are at least good for a laugh, both intentionally and unintentionally, that you can have a blast with them.. This might’ve been even higher on the list if it wasn’t for those Big the Cat fishing missions but I still rate the original Sonic Adventure very highly to this day. If it wasn’t for this game, who knows where Sonic the Hedgehog would be in the year 2026!

3.) Sonic 3 & Knuckles

To many people, Sonic 3 & Knuckles is the absolute definite Sonic game and it’s easy to see why! Taking the best aspects of all the previous games that has come before it while introducing one of the best characters in the franchise known as Knuckles. The levels are more expanded upon than ever before giving you multiple paths and ways to the goal, every character controls perfectly with not a single one being a chore to play, the story itself takes a few unexpected turns, and even the bosses and special stages (which I weren’t a fan of in the past) are actually quite great here. I just wish I didn’t need to collect all the emeralds TWICE in order to get the full final Super Sonic boss fight! However, masterfully combining speed, platforming, and exploration, this remains a top-tier Sonic experience. While there are many people that considers Sonic 3&K to be the very best Sonic game ever made (and I would definitely not argue that opinion one bit), it’s not quite the full Sonic package for me the way these next three Sonic games are.

2.) Sonic Mania

By being a beautiful and well done remix of the original classic games, along with introducing a handful of wonderful original levels of its own, Christian Whitehead’s Sonic Mania helps craft an entry that feels more of a worthy follow-up to Sonic 3 & Knuckles than both episodes of Sonic 4 combined. There’s more extras, unlockable and playable characters than ever before, the gameplay from the Classic games that everyone knows and love is giving the right upgrade and in some ways, surpasses the original games, and I don’t think Super Sonic has looked, sound, and been more fun to control than he’s done here. And even though many of the levels themselves have been taking from other Sonic games, they’ve been changed and expanded upon well enough to where they feel like completely new levels in their own right, giving that sense you are playing through these levels for the very first time. Even to those that aren’t the biggest fans of Classic Sonic, I would highly recommend this one as I consider Sonic Mania to be the definite Classic Sonic experience.

1.) Sonic X Shadow Generations

My favorite Sonic game to date is the one that features the most Sonic out of all the games thus far……along with a bit of Shadow. When it comes to Sonic Generations, it acts a wonderful celebration of the first two decades of Sonic the Hedgehog, perfecting both the classic 2D style gameplay along with the modern 3D style gameplay by recreating the best levels from previous Sonic games and making them feel new and unique on their own. When it comes to Shadow Generations, this might just be the very best version of 3D Sonic as a whole. With incredibly unique level designs, crazy and out-of-this-world set pieces, a gameplay style that manages to combine the best elements of both the original Sonic Generations and Sonic Frontiers respectively while leaving off any fat, and even quite a touching story about Shadow and the two people he cares about the most in Maria and Gerald Robotnik. Call it cheating if you may but there is not other Sonic (or Shadow) experience that has satisfied me to this day than Sonic X Shadow Generations. . Because of all that and more, Sonic X Shadow Generations is my favorite Sonic game to date!

Happy birthday, Sonic!