The Bride! (2026)

A feminist, post-modernist reading on The Bride of Frankenstein, starring Jessie Buckley as the title character and Christian Bale as the monster. Hot off the heels of Jacob Elordi as Frankenstein, I can't stand this recent trend to "beautify" the monster, although I suppose Edward Scissorhands already cornered that market years ago. This feels more like a monster gangster movie like Bonnie & Clyde. It's a bizarre characterization, touched by madness, and Buckley once again demonstrates that she's one of the most dynamic young actresses of her generation. Stylistically, there's much to love in its 1930s aesthetic, but it's a mess of disparate parts, much like its characters.

Maggie Gyllenhaal is the mad scientist behind this experimental creation.

3 short legs out of 5

The Mastermind (2025)

The world's dumbest criminal concocts a half-baked plan to rob an art museum and must deal with the aftermath when things don't go quite as planned. For those familiar with Kelly Reichardt's methodically slow, minimalist style, this ironically serves as an anti-heist movie, focusing more on the banality than the crime itself. I have to admit, this was a very frustrating watch, witnessing its incompetence unfolding at a languishing pace. It gave me a tummy ache.

2½ stolen paintings out of 5

Relay (2024)

An anonymous "fixer" (Riz Ahmed) who only operates through an intermediary relay service, breaks his own rules when he takes a personal interest in one of his clients (Lily James) as she navigates a dangerous situation with several henchman on her tail. It attempts to evoke paranoid thrillers of the 1970s, but unfortunately it only succeeds in breaking the cardinal rule of being boring.

2 "Go Ahead"s out of 5