Thoughts on 5 Films

1. I Swear - I really liked this! It's currently in my Top 10 of 2026, but I don't think it will still be there by the end of the year. I *DO* think Richard Aramayo should be in the Oscar conversation though! He won the BAFTA (because it was released over there last year) and he was listed as an Oscar snub last year by many outlets, but he wasn't qualified! I really wish people would do their research! Anyway, he should be a frontrunner this year (*spoiler* he won't be)! Although, I will likely be rooting for Jack O'Connell (I haven't seen Ink yet - I might get the chance in a few weeks at a festival in NJ, but I've seen a lot of people predict him getting a nomination and YES PLEASE! He deserves it for being screwed out of the Sinners nominations. I would also argue he should be getting a Supporting nomination for The Bone Temple, but I don't think that's likely). But Aramayo gives a stunning performance in a very difficult role to get right. It can easily sway to cliched, borderline offensive, and overdone, but he keeps this feeling very authentic and grounded. I also think that the film is very funny, which is necessary because it is funny to hear someone cursing and saying inappropriate things at inappropriate times!! It's a natural human reaction to laugh at awkward moments like this, so I appreciate that the film is open to that discussion while also showing how much this condition effects someone's life. I think it allows for empathy instead of judgement. It's kind of insane that life became film became life with the whole BAFTA controversary - the film is literally explaining this condition and how he can't control the things he says, and then the real-life person it is based on shouted racist slurs while Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo were on stage. I think the only person in the wrong were the BBC for not editing the slurs out the aired version (they were somehow able to edit out a "free Palestine" shout, though?). Anyway, this has a terrific supporting cast - Maxine Peake, Shirley Henderson, and Peter Mullan (legend!). Like I said, I liked this! But it also is in the same category as the film Coda in which the story is good, the writing is good, the acting is good but I don't think it should be in awards conversations like Coda was, because like Coda, there is nothing significant about the actual film in terms of filmmaking. It doesn't challenge the viewer or do anything new. I still can't believe Coda is a Best Picture winner. WILD. 

2. Disclosure Day - Okay...this is bad. It's not, like, the worst movie ever or even in my worst films of this year, but for the talent involved...it's bad. I think the biggest problem is that it feels extremely dated. And while I love all of these actors separately, together they all feel very bland. Admittedly, I haven't really loved a Steven Spielberg film in a LONG time (I did *like* Ready Player One, but before that....it's been a solid 20 years since I've loved one of his films). But I was excited by some of the reviews that described this film as a return to what Spielberg does well - and that is alien invasion/sci-fi films. I saw a lot of reviews calling it "bold" too, so I went in with the highest of expectations and those certainly were not met. It's all been done before and in way better films. The whole religious part feels shoe-horned in, and I just really don't think anyone in 2026 would give a fuck about seeing alien footage??? The world wouldn't stop - it would just be trending for a few hours and then we'd move on because that's today's world. I just don't think Spielberg has a pulse on that, unfortunately. And, the ending kept building and building to this point that had me thinking something really *interesting* was going to happen. I even thought for a minute of a REALLY CRAZY ending because I imagined the ending was going to be "bold" like some critics suggested (I definitely thought it was going to be a low-key E.T sequel reveal at the end, but then I realized that the internet definitely would have ruined that spoiler). But the end...is just...the end? Nothing about the world has really changed, right? Anyway, I usually praise Emily Blunt in everything, but she's gone way too far on the face fillers. She's SO beautiful, but films like this rely on facial expressions and her face does not move for the entire movie. It's really jarring and depressing. One of my favorite actresses can no longer *act* because of dumb societal standards for aging women in the media. 

3. Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu - Wow this is so fucking boring! It's like a really, really, really long stretched out episode of the series and it's....rough. I like the show! It's cute! I'm also a fan of Solo and Rogue One, so I'm not a spin-off hater. But over 2 hours of this is insane and so unnecessary. Baby Yoda aka Grogu is adorable, as expected. Pedro is fine in a largely voice role. But stunt casting Martin Scorsese is dumb, and JEREMY ALLEN WHITE as a RIPPED HUTT??? LOL. What the fuck is even happening anymore? I have no words. The whole Gladiator scene is so dumb, as is the entire the entire Rotta the Hutt storyline. I completely stopped paying attention after about an hour and would look up anytime my husband pointed out Baby Yoda being cute. He's a big Star Wars nerd, and even he said this was boring so it must be true! I think we're just stuck in this big franchise world of trying to keep the industry alive, and I just don't think it's the answer. People don't necessarily want to see continuations of these franchises - they just want GOOD stories and QUALITY productions. This was clearly a cash grab, and not a good one. 

4. Deep Water - Oh my God, I watched this 3 weeks ago and I don't remember a *single* thing about it??? I keep thinking of the Ben Affleck/Ana de Armas movie with the same title from a few years ago (which was bad but at least I remember a few things about it!). So, in checking my notes I realize this is the shark movie! I rated it 2.5 stars, but I'm tempted to lower it since I don't even remember it. I do sort of remember it now, and I do think I actually liked the start of the film. There's an excellent plane crash sequence that is terrifying (that is caused by a power bank catching on fire LOL). I think Renny Harlin got a bad rap after Cutthroat Island (one of the biggest flops in history), but he's made some great action movies (Cliffhanger, Die Hard 2 - which isn't my favorite Die Hard, but it's got its moments!). On a side note: (especially since I don't remember the movie) I'm fully convinced that this is how I'm going to die: In a plane crash that hits the ocean. The impact of the plane hitting the water kills me instantly. I had a premonition about it. And yet, I'm not really scared of planes. They're a necessity for someone who wants to travel the world, unfortunately, so I will still go on them until *IT* happens. What's even weirder is that my premonition happened a long time ago - I think I was a teenager/early 20s when I was broke, and I thought that maybe it wasn't a premonition because I was in Business Class in my premonition. I was definitely towards the front of the plane. And that's just not how I traveled for most of my life. But now I'm married and my husband refuses to travel unless it's in First or Business. He's very frugal and smart with this money, but when it comes to travelling he goes all out and splurges. So now I sit up in Business Class and go..."huh...maybe it will happen this time?" and then I put a movie on and hope for the best. ANYWAY!! The film really falls apart with the whole shark part, though. I love a good shark movie, but this just really isn't it. I actually didn't write anything about the shark part in my notes, so that tells you everything. I did write down that it moves very quickly, so that's something, I guess! 

5. Mayday - I was hoping this was going to be a fun action/comedy (sometimes Reynolds is good at those!), but it's far too serious to be fun. It's...fine. Another 2.5 star movie (actually aside from I Swear, the other four of these films are 2.5 stars! What a rough run...I think the next post is full of the same 2.5 or UNDER! I need to cleanse my film watching with some 4 to 5 star bangers! Good thing we're going into awards season). I think the roughest part of this is Kenneth Branagh's thick Russian accent - just hilariously bad. And Ryan Reynolds just does the same thing he always does, this just has less jokes. I will say that some of the action sequences are cool - I looked up to see who the DP was because it felt very Kingsman-like, but it's actually the same DP who did Game Night (same directors too), and that makes sense because that's a very funny movie, but also a SURPRISINGLY well-made film. And in my IMDB rabbit-hole I also learned that one of the directors is THE KID FROM FREAKS AND GEEKS?!! Holy shit! There's also a GREAT soundtrack (filled with Bruce songs including "I'm on Fire", which is my second favorite* Bruce song ever. *Ask me in a year and it will probably be a different song). I just wish there were more fun moments, a little bit of funnier dialogue & banter, just *something* to make it stand out from every other film just like this.