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THE LITTLE MERMAID Starring: Halle Bailey, Jonah Hauer-King, Melissa McCarthy, Javier Bardem, Daveed Diggs, Jacob Tremblay, and Awkwafina Director: Rob Marshall NICK I've long been adamant that The Little Mermaid was the film with the best shot to shed the “soulless” criticism many Disney live-action adaptations have faced. But even in saying that, I wasn’t expecting it to feel so magical. I have some minor quibbles: the VFX has its challenges, and the reliance on lifelike creatures makes Sebastian a little scary looking. Otherwise, this film is fantastic. It shines in its musical numbers, and Halle Bailey is a revelation as Ariel. Ignore any outside noise about her casting, she’s pitch perfect. I can’t think of a better way to introduce a new generation to this story. ADRIANO Colour me surprised! As someone who has been very against Disney’s live-action remakes, The Little Mermaid stands above them all as being able to retain the magic of the original. Did we need it? Maybe not, but it did give us a magnificent performance from Halle Bailey. I don’t think they could have picked someone better for Ariel. Admittedly, the visuals are rough, especially in the underwater scenes and the horrifying design of Sebastian, but there actually is a soul here. That’s not something I can say about the other live-action remakes. A delightful trip under the sea that I’m glad I went on. AMARÚ Something’s always missing from these live-action Disney remakes, and director Rob Marshall’s lack of cohesion is what holds back The Little Mermaid . The film begins like one big music video, with interludes of dialogue bloating the first hour. Luckily, once we hit land, he uses Halle Bailey’s star-making performance as Ariel, her chemistry with Jonah Hauer-King (Prince Eric), and great voice-over work from Daveed Diggs (Sebastian) and Awkwafina (Scuttle) to tell a story with musical accompaniments instead of the other way round. The Little Mermaid doesn’t justify these live-action adaptations, but it found enough footing to avoid being another disappointment. JACOB While noticeably imperfect in most of the ways these things usually are, The Little Mermaid is easily the best Disney live-action remake in years (and probably since Pete’s Dragon ). Although it’s visually uninteresting to look at with direction that is fairly bland, the characters and their motivations are somewhat evolved in the translation. Everyone seems to be genuinely trying here, but no one can quite compare to Halle Bailey’s star-sounding turn as Ariel. Admittedly, the new Lin-Manuel Miranda songs are occasionally more distracting than pleasant, but what worked before pretty much works again. Kids are sure to have a great time. PAIGE While this live-action rendition of The Little Mermaid is swimmingly cute and charming, it lacks the magic touch of the 1989 animated classic. At times, director Rob Marshall’s remake is bogged down with pacing issues and filled with mediocre visual effects. The story also lacks added lore to allow it to stand on its own two feet. However, don’t let that take away from Halle Bailey’s portrayal of Ariel because this girl is a star in the making with a voice of an angel. Bailey’s and Daveed Diggs’(Sebastian) performances are what keep this film from drowning.

PRESENCE Starring: Callina Liang, Eddy Maday, Lucy Liu, Chris Sullivan, and West Mulholland Director: Steven Soderbergh NICK Presence is one of Steven Soderbergh's most ambitious films in years. Relying on a first-person shooting approach and continuous single shots could have felt gimmicky, but the director deserves credit for making sure it never does. Unfortunately, for a film this style to work best, you need crisp dialogue, and what we get ranges from natural (almost exclusively Chris Sullivan's lines) to inadvertently laughable. It certainly hurts the film, but if you can get past it, there IS an interesting story to be found. I respect what Soderbergh attempted, but it’s not without its challenges. That said, it will stick with me for a while. ADRIANO There is a lot of fun to be had with Presence despite its many obvious shortcomings. I thought the POV gimmick might quickly become annoying, but it wound up being surprisingly effective. That said, the horror is just a weak backdrop to a poorly written family drama with M. Night-level dialogue that only Chris Sullivan is able to make sound believable. As the movie reaches its conclusion, the established rules start to make less and less sense. It genuinely made me wanna scream "WHAT?!" But... I kinda enjoyed that, despite it being utter nonsense. PRESTON Presence is a unique “thriller” from director Steven Soderbergh, but it should have been categorized as strictly a psychological drama (it’s so not a thriller). The compilation of one-shots from the first-person POV is laudable and pretty cool, but the story is lacking and inconsistent with the emotional connection that the conclusion intends. One-note character development and an over-the-top monologue detract from what should have been an impactful and satisfying conclusion. The camerawork is nice to witness on the big screen, but waiting for a streaming release and a re-calibration of your genre expectations should improve your chances of enjoyment. KATIE Presence was one of my most anticipated films this year thanks to the enigmatic teaser that piqued my interest without revealing anything apart from the unique point-of-view camerawork. First, it's not scary, at least not in a traditional horror sense, but that didn’t negate my enjoyment. It focuses on morality and personal responsibility, and the first-person approach is very effective at drip-feeding information about the mysterious motivations of the titular presence. The dialogue is sometimes flat, and I wish it dug deeper into the family drama, but overall, it's a very interesting genre experiment that I’d recommend checking out. QUENTIN Truth be told, I haven’t liked a Steven Soderbergh offering since 2017’s Logan Lucky (eight movies and three series ago), and I was worried the first-person aspect of Presence was going to be too gimmicky. However, I was blown away. To be clear, this isn’t a horror movie at all. It’s a heavy family drama, and I was immediately immersed in the familial dynamics at play on screen (most of the credit goes to Chris Sullivan’s performance). It’s very similar to David Lowery’s A Ghost Story (which also blew me away), and I suspect that, much like Story , Presence won’t leave my mind for some time. This film was reviewed by Nick and Adriano as part of Bitesize Breakdown's coverage of the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival.

MEG 2: THE TRENCH Starring: Jason Statham, Able Wanamakok, Li Bingbing, Sienna Guillory, Sophia Cai, Jing Wu, Cliff Curtis, Skyler Samuels, Page Kennedy, Melissanthi Mahut, and Sergio Peris-Mencheta Director: Ben Wheatley PHILL Meg 2: The Trench takes a deliberate bite at trying to be a nonsense-filled schlockfest, but never quite succeeds as well as its predecessor, The Meg. The disjointed sequel flows with breakneck pacing, but somehow still spends too long on a very dull interhuman confrontation instead of the interspecies one. Jason Statham does what Statham does best, and if you’re a fan, you know what you’re getting. But with weak performances aplenty and a very mixed bag of visual effects that range from quite lovely to purely abhorrent, this franchise sadly sinks further in quality the second time around. ADRIANO A good sequel should expand upon its predecessor while also giving fans of the original more of what they loved about the first one. Meg 2: The Trench does neither. I could’ve forgiven the asinine writing and the embarrassing performances because I assumed this movie was going for a fun B-movie but with more money, but it’s not fun enough for me to give it that kind of pass. With one momentary exception, the big shark is just chilling for the most part, and instead, we are left with a dull action plot with nothing to care about. PRESTON If you loved The Meg , you will probably love Meg 2: The Trench , which is by no means a glowing endorsement. B-movie is 100% the intention here, where a plotless adventure ensues with Sharknado -esque improbability. The corybantic camerawork keeps you in the confused chaos, first established by the inexplicable James Bond-like qualifications of its protagonist, Jonas Taylor (Jason Statham). Plus, oddly, the story doesn’t even feature Megs throughout the film. This is the type of production that you bring your young children to with unapologetic abandon, as loud insiders to my particular viewing ventured to do…and I didn’t really care. KATIE Were the effects shonky? Absolutely. Did the plot make sense? Barely. Were the performances convincing? Definitely not. Did the action scenes have so many cuts and shaky camera movements I found myself unable to make out what was going on? Unfortunately, yes. But did I care? Not really! Despite all of this, I sat back and mostly enjoyed nearly two hours of pointless, ridiculous, and cheesy fun featuring Jason Statham and various supersized aquatic threats. Although its run time is too long and I was not at all emotionally invested in a single character, I, begrudgingly, had a good time. CALEB I was hoping The Trench would embrace the absurdity of its premise and deliver some cheesy B-movie fun, but it never does. Instead, I was treated to an excruciating two hours of lifeless direction, mediocre effects, and writing dumb enough to make the first one look like Jaws . The most painful thing about this sequel is its astounding lack of sharks. The Megs themselves play a secondary role in the narrative, taking a back seat to the film’s dull human conflict. Jason Statham brings his usual charisma, but even he can’t save this Megalodon-sized flop.

THE PASSENGER Starring: Kyle Gallner, Johnny Berchtold, and Liza Weil Director: Carter Smith KATIE The Passenger immediately intrigued and unsettled me with its chilling opening scene, establishing a sense of unease and tension that never subsides. This gripping and strangely intimate thriller features amazing performances by Johnny Berchtold (Randy) and Kyle Gallner (Benson, his shotgun-wielding co-worker). The pair have an unlikely chemistry, and their relationship is multi-faceted and almost moving, to the point that, despite Randy’s flaws and Benson’s violent outbursts, I was still rooting for them. The plot is simple yet effective, creating space for Gallner’s incredibly powerful and nuanced performance, which allows the relationship to be the beating heart of the film. QUENTIN Though not incredibly original…seriously, it’s like someone said, “what if we remade A Perfect World with a few slight tweaks?…The Passenger remains surprisingly effective for such a simple, under-the-radar suspense movie. Kyle Gallner once again crushes a performance that will come and go without much fanfare, while well-trodden themes of trauma and its long-lasting impact are well-explored from multiple angles. It’s admittedly a very short list, but this is easily the best original movie released by MGM+ so far, and it shows that the relatively new streamer could have some potential in the small-scale film game. PAIGE With no expectations going in, The Passenger is a lean, mean, and gory machine. This Blumhouse-produced film is a slow-burn thriller turned therapy session that is an insane and wild ride from start to finish. It’s mainly a two-man show that is carried by the superb acting from its two leads, Johnny Berchtold and Kyle Gallner, the latter of which keeps delivering stellar performance after stellar performance. The thing is, though… there’s no real climax to the story to leave you completely satisfied. NICK Following up his impressive turn in What Comes Around (which I had the pleasure of seeing at TIFF last year under the title Roost ), Kyle Gallner once again steals The Passenger with a magnetic performance. Whether he’s inconspicuously lurking in the background or standing front-and-center, my focus was on his character. That's not a knock on co-star Johnny Berchtold either, who also has a solid showing. It’s the story where the hiccups come. What starts as an intriguing character study becomes too ambiguous for its own good, and its lack of answers ends things on a sour note. It's good, but these performances deserved great.

QUIZ LADY Starring: Sandra Oh, Awkwafina, Will Ferrell, Holland Taylor, Jason Schwartzman, and Jon 'Dumbfoundead' Park Director: Jessica Yu KATIE Quiz Lady is an uneven yet entertaining comedy, rescued by the wholehearted performances of Sandra Oh and Awkwafina as estranged sisters who couldn’t be more different. Despite a bumpy script, the pair have an undeniable chemistry and seem to be having a lot of fun with their wacky roles. The film sharply pivots from slapstick and lowbrow comedy to tender moments of sisterly bonding, but I cannot deny that some scenes are laugh-out-loud funny. Plus, the opposing dynamic paired with the familiar chemistry between the sisters is hilarious. PAIGE Despite a somewhat conventional, ridiculous story and an uneven script, Quiz Lady is surprisingly effective in the laughs department. Both Sandra Oh and Awkwafina are outrageously hilarious playing against type, and their fantastic dynamic alone makes this cheesy but charming comedy worth watching. They compliment each other effortlessly, making this film such a fun, wild ride. With that said, the movie works better when it focuses on its sweeter, more intimate scenes between these two estranged sisters rather than its bombastic comedic scenes.

ALL OF US STRANGERS Starring: Andrew Scott, Paul Mescal, Jamie Bell, and Claire Foy Director: Andrew Haigh PAIGE All of Us Strangers is an incredibly personal film that is both heartbreaking and extremely powerful. It’s intimate, tender, and everything in between. This work of art touches on themes of loneliness and grief that will resonate with many, and I promise you it will give you all the feels thanks to the stellar and moving direction from director Andrew Haigh. Plus, Andrew Scott, Paul Mescal, Claire Foy, and Jamie Bell all deliver riveting performances. Once the end credits hit, this gem will have you rushing out of the theater to call your loved ones. ADRIANO All of Us Strangers has some real devastation, but sadly, a lot of it fell flat for me. Admittedly, writer/director Andrew Haigh does pull off the heartbreaking drama as it examines how we can sometimes fail to accept grief and how love can set us free, and this movie did make me shed some tears at times, thanks in part to the richly layered performance from Andrew Scott. However, some of the ways in which the film tries to explore its subjects collapse on themselves and the ending feels pointless. So, while this is worthwhile, I wish I got more out of it. AMARÚ All of Us Stranger s has the difficult position of having a ploddingly slow pace be essential to its emotional payoffs. I felt myself getting detached throughout the film whenever Adam’s (Andrew Scott) story paused for more contemplative scenes, but at the same time, that silence and Andrew Haigh’s intense direction made the film’s unique approach to trauma and memories much more powerful. Combine that with Scott, Paul Mescal, Jamie Bell, and Claire Foy all bringing tremendous gravitas to that emotional resonance, and Strangers makes for a moving, if at times sluggish, experience. This film was reviewed by Paige as part of Bitesize Breakdown's coverage of the 2023 New York Film Festival.

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EENIE MEANIE Starring: Samara Weaving, Karl Glusman, Andy Garcia, Mike O’Malley, Jermaine Fowler, Steve Zahn, Randall Park, Marshawn Lynch, and Chris Bauer Director: Shawn Simmons QUENTIN As far as straight-to-streaming distractions go, you could do worse than Eenie Meanie , mostly thanks to Samara Weaving. Her committed performance and take-no-shit charm are further evidence of why she should be a bigger star, especially considering she almost single-handedly saves Meanie ’s confused story. The problem is that writer-director Shawn Simmons doesn’t seem to know what kind of movie he wants to make. There is a bit of a character study at the center, but it’s drowned out by undercooked heist tropes, a wavetop toxic romance, and lackluster car chases. But worst of all? A complete waste of national treasure Marshawn Lynch. PAIGE Eenie Meanie , starring the always watchable Samara Weaving, has some promising elements to it, including cool driving sequences and a clever heist. This action thriller is right in Weaving’s wheelhouse, and she flexes her no-bullshit, badass attitude throughout. Unfortunately, the movie can’t quite get the tone and pacing right, both swerving all over the road. One minute it’s a high-speed chase, next it’s a family/romance drama, and then a crime comedy. Those mashups can work together, but director Shawn Simmons doesn’t blend them smoothly enough. Overall, Eenie Meanie may be rough around the edges, but I still stuck around and didn’t mind the ride. ROBERT It is heartening to see Hollywood generating stories for female actors that were normally reserved for their male counterparts. In Eenie Meanie , centering on Samara Weaving as the most competent wheelperson in the Rust Belt was an inspired choice. However, the ancillary pieces revolving around Weaving’s Edie, including the circumstances of the plot and the visual effects, were lackluster, resembling a Jason Statham B-movie. I couldn’t ride along fully with the film up until the last twenty minutes, when it ramped up to places I didn’t expect and found a deeper well of emotion of which I didn’t think it capable; not enough to salvage it though. KATIE Eenie Meanie is a mostly entertaining, if uneven and confused, thriller that’s driven by Samara Weaving’s performance. Her character is annoyingly one dimensional, but Weaving still manages to make her somewhat compelling. However, overall, I found the film lacking in emotional engagement even though the ensemble is great across the board. The car chases and stunt-driving showcase writer-director Shawn Simmons' ability to create exciting action sequences, but outside of that, the film is full of an array of clichés, giving the odd impression that it was trying to replicate something better rather than being a thing of its own.

A MINECRAFT MOVIE Starring: Jason Momoa, Jack Black, Danielle Brooks, Sebastian Hansen, Emma Myers, Jennifer Coolidge, and Rachel House Director: Jared Hess AMARÚ Jason Momoa excels as a hilariously insane tool while Jack Black’s rock awesomeness creates some bops, but I prefer those schticks in Fast X and the new Jumanji movies, respectively, much more than I do in A Minecraft Movie . This is where my “objective movie critic” lens reaches its limit because this movie is trash, fulfilling the real-life prophecy of full-blown, studio-fueled, IP-driven cash grabs that satires like The Studio make fun of. It doesn’t matter, though; it’s going to make a shit-ton of money, and there will be a bunch of sequels. At least I no longer feel obligated to watch them. ADRIANO I mean... It's A Minecraft Movie . I know fans of the film and games will combat my criticisms with "It's just entertainment" or "It's for kids." And if you feel that way, fine. But you can't possibly tell me, even unironically, that this movie is good. Jason Momoa and some of the aesthetics give this movie a leg up, but between Jack Black's directionless performance, the cringe humour, the horrific green screen, the weak character writing, and the abhorrent script full of clichés and inconsistencies, it's obvious nobody behind this cared about what they presented since it was making money anyway.

NEXT GOAL WINS Starring: Michael Fassbender, Oscar Kightley, Kaimana, David Fane, Beulah Koale, Rachel House, Elisabeth Moss, Will Arnett, Uli Layukefu, and Taika Waititi Director: Taika Waititi NICK As someone who loves Jojo Rabbit (also directed by Taika Waititi) and also played soccer for 20+ years, it felt like Next Goal Wins was made for me to love it. Turns out, this wasn’t the case. The childlike humour mostly misses the mark, and Waititi’s treatment of the transgendered Jaiyah Saelua (Kaimana) is mishandled. On top of that, this is a sports film that failed the main objective of the genre: get me invested in the team. I just couldn’t get myself to care. Admittedly, the bar is higher coming from Waititi - it’s not a complete lost cause - but this can only be seen as a disappointment. ADRIANO After years of delays, I've finally seen Next Goal Wins and...it's solid, I guess. If you're not into co-writer/director Taika Watiti's sense of humour, this isn't gonna change your mind; however, as someone who is into his style, I found the film quite funny. As a crowd pleaser, Next Goal Wins works, and the film boasts a funny cast, led by an amazing Michael Fassbender, but the writing is quite weak in terms of characterization and story structure. Plus, its portrayal of American Samoa as careless goofballs is a little reckless. Although it's a good time, it’s not necessary viewing. AMARÚ Since 2017, director Taika Waititi has been largely hit-and-miss with both his acting and directing, and unfortunately with Next Goal Wins , he may have officially tipped the scales in the wrong direction. His brand of slapstick comedy has gotten old, and while there are a few laughs within the film, too many land like a bombed stand-up comedy set. It’s even more blatant when juxtaposed to the heart and care Waititi puts into the film’s dramatic aspects (the storyline surrounding stand-out Kaimana is particularly heartwarming), but those poignant moments are almost always ruined by the next flat joke. PRESTON For better or worse, Next Goal Wins is exactly what you might expect from the directorial style of Taika Waititi. It stumbles off the starting blocks, making me doubt the level of care being taken with the portrayal of the American Samoan people. But once I warmed up to its style and characters, I found the film to be quirky and charming in just enough ways to make it a gratifying experience. Its biggest success is the life-loving message to not take things so damn seriously and just have fun, which I personally took to heart. This film was reviewed by Nick and Adriano as part of Bitesize Breakdown's coverage of the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival.

HELLCAT Starring: Dakota Gorman, Todd Terry, Liz Atwater, and James Austin Johnson Director: Brock Bodell This film has been reviewed by Nick and Quentin as part of Bitesize Breakdown's coverage of the 2025 Fantasia International Film Festival. NICK Although Hellcat is a noticeably lower budget production, it makes up for that with its twisty storytelling. What starts off as an abduction thriller, soon reveals itself as more than meets the eye, especially as you learn these characters’ motivations. For a film so heavily focused on its characters, I would have liked to see some stronger performances (nothing stands out either positively or negatively), but the strength of the story was enough to keep me invested. At times it’s like an extended episode of Are You Afraid of the Dark? or Goosebumps , but for my first film of Fantasia, I can't complain too much. QUENTIN More than any other genre, chamber pieces only go as far as the characters and plotting will take you because those aspects are so front and center. There is no extra fluff to hide behind if those two things don’t work. So, since neither are particularly compelling in Hellcat , the movie falters. It attempts a scenario similar to 10 Cloverfield Lane , in which you don’t know who to believe, but the story isn’t balanced well enough to make the viewer invested in either side, a problem furthered by the bland characterizations. This ultimately results in a final reveal that generates shrugs more than anything else.

THE BIKERIDERS Starring: Jodie Comer, Austin Butler, Tom Hardy, Damon Harriman, Mike Faist, Boyd Holbrook, Michael Shannon, Beau Knapp, Emory Cohen, Norman Reedus, Karl Glusman, and Toby Wallace Director: Jeff Nichols NICK Jeff Nichols is quietly one of the most consistent directors we have working today, and The Bikeriders continues that trend. The story - promoted around Tom Hardy's and Austin Butler's characters - really belongs to Jodie Comer's Kathy, who does a tremendous job telling it. That's not to take anything away from the men. Butler succeeds in yet another era-specific tale (I'm fine if I never see him in anything modern again), while it's nice to see Hardy back playing a real character. If you ignore the misleading promotion (this isn’t a violent, action-packed, gangster film), you’re likely to enjoy it much more. ADRIANO Going into The Bikeriders , I was told this was essentially “Goodfellas on bikes,” and while some elements do give this truth, it's too unfocused for it to be compared to that classic. While Jeff Nichols' direction is pretty great and the visual language of the film is striking, the acting does a lot of the heavy lifting, namely Tom Hardy (that said, Jodie Comer's accent is rough). The character writing is as paper-thin as can be, and the plotting is all over the place, lacking any thematic reason for me to care about anything. A pretty disappointing and forgettable experience, overall. AMARÚ The Bikeriders is unreservedly the Jodie Comer show. Some would say her coming out, but if you’ve followed her career, then you’ve seen this breakout performance on the horizon. She’s the driving force behind this engrossing and surprisingly funny movie about nothing in particular. Like most of these kinds of films, the conflicts don’t get too deep, and one event just happens after another, as is life. However, with Comer’s storytelling enhancing your connection to each character, enthralling you with their everyday lives, The Bikeriders is a page-turner of a biography set to motion that I couldn’t put down. QUENTIN The Bikeriders , while still very good, isn’t exactly what I expected from a story perspective. It’s more about the slow evolution of one motorcycle club from relative harmlessness to full-on gang, not a violent crime movie akin to Sons of Anarchy . I wanted (and anticipated) more of the latter. Still, though…the acting is terrific across the board (even in what amounts to a few glorified cameos), the period details are on point, and I was never not invested. Sure, it could have been 15-20 minutes longer to show the club’s transition less abruptly and to better develop a few characters, but that’s a minor complaint. PAIGE At its core, The Bikeriders shows the camaraderie built from the fumes of a Harley, and is a straightforward yet solid portrayal of a prominent Chicago motorcycle club. The sound design roars, and director Jeff Nichols succeeds in bringing the 1960s to life with rich detail. However, the story's delivery lacks drive and feels a bit scatterbrained. This may have been Nichol's intent, though, as the film is more about the journey than the destination. Overall, the movie required more fuel in its tank to set itself apart from stories like Goodfellas . PRESTON As someone who falls hard for the nonconformist, play-hard camaraderie typical of the “one-percenter” motorcycle clubs, my hopes for The Bikeriders were not entirely met. Tom Hardy and Austin Butler keep the “shiny side up, rubber side down,” but Butler’s stoic nature never lets up enough to allow full connection to his character. Perhaps to eliminate any glorification of the real-life manner in which these guys live, the movie lackadaisically putts along until we learn our lesson in the end. Jodie Comer’s storytelling is on point, but the timelines are muddled. Overall, expectation management is warranted regarding the film’s more muted presentation.