Caught Stealing (2025)

In 1998, a bartender gets involved with the Russian mafia, Jewish hit men, a narcotics detective and other colorful characters in a hunt across the streets of New York City for a mysterious key. It's an occasionally gritty and frenetic crime thriller, but my enthusiasm is muted because the plot feels so familiar in every way. This is probably the most "conventional" movie Darren Aronofsky has ever directed, and I don't necessarily intend that as a compliment.

3 black and white cookies out of 5

LOST RIVER [2014]

Actor Ryan Gosling tries his hand at writing & directing with the surreal neo-noir piece Lost River.
It tells the tale of a small family, living in a fantastical poverty stricken midwestern neighborhood, that the rest of the world has forgotten.
The average movie-goer will be quick to compare Gosling's style to David Lynch but that'd make it apparent the viewer doesn't know Lynch.  Gosling's more akin to Nicolas Winding Refn, Harmony Korine, Derek Cianfrance and David Gordon Green, with just a few minuscule hints of Lynch surrealism.  I make these comparisons because, although it's obvious Gosling has a promising knack for film-making in the future, here he has yet to discover a distinct voice of his own.  Criticisms aside, it's actually quite an interesting film that is haunting as it is beautiful in all the right places.

3 dino-heads out of 5

TERMINATOR GENISYS [2015]

After two shitty sequels, the fifth Terminator film, Genisys, attempts to reboot the series a second time with mildly better results than it's predecessors.
It starts out in the future with Kyle Reese going back to 1984, like in the first film, to protect Sarah Connor from the T-800 only to find the timeline's been altered (or in this case rebooted) to pave the way for an entirely different adventure with Arnie & Friends.  Director Alan Taylor does a fine job at sticking to the tones of the James Cameron films while updating the feel for audiences of today.  Arnie, Jason Clarke & Lee Byung-hun do a wonderful job as the three different Terminator models, however Emilia Clarke & Jai Courtney are painfully dull as the human characters and that's like shooting the whole heart of the film in the foot.  As far as pointless reboots/sequels go, Genisys isn't a bad film but it still leaves much to be desired.

3 different Arnies out of 5

Womb (2010)

aka Clone (in the UK)

Films that elicit powerful emotions without needing words linger in my mind longer than ones that use dialogue. Mostly because dialogue is a mechanical process that can be as alienating as it is beautiful, whereas silence can break a heart more effectively than a callous word.
The language of Womb is the language of loss. It’s the story of Rebecca and Thomas. When left alone, the emptiness in which Rebecca exists isn't a void; it’s a birthplace waiting for life to happen. Until then, the heavy silences and recurring symbolism that drive the narrative forward will require your complete attention.

5 patterns out of 5