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DAYDREAMERS Starring: Tran Ngoc Vang, Thuan Nguyen, Chi Pu, and Trinh Thao Director: Timothy Linh Bui KATIE Daydreamers is a refreshingly bold, stylish take on the vampire genre. It uses the loneliness and angst of vampirism to explore the protagonist Nhat’s (Trang Ngoc Vang) struggle to find a sense of belonging and freedom, blending rural aesthetics with the urban neon-lit city. The CGI effects are the film's weakest aspect, but that doesn’t overshadow the stylish cinematography, vibrant colours, gorgeous lighting, and fantastic performances. At times, it almost looks like a pastiche of 1960s technicolour melodrama. I don’t think I’ve seen any Vietnamese films, but Daydreamers has inspired me to seek them out. NICK Although Daydreamers isn’t going to be the vampire film people are most talking about this month, it’s not without its charms. The biggest charm being the vibrancy of the dynamic colour palette, which really gives the film a style that stands out. Besides its appearance, however, there’s just not much here. The effects are subpar while the story (though conceptually interesting) struggles to stay engaging. The latter especially is a shame because it's a take on vampires we haven’t really seen before. Unfortunately, the poor story structure, as well as the dialogue heavy subtitles, hindered my ability to fully get sucked into this world.

THE ELECTRIC STATE Starring: Millie Bobby Brown, Chris Pratt, Ke Huy Quan, Jason Alexander, Woody Harrelson, Anthony Mackie, Brian Cox, Jenny Slate, Giancarlo Esposito and Stanley Tucci Directors: Joe and Anthony Russo BODE Since helming some of the most successful films of all time under the MCU banner, the Russo Brothers have mostly spent their capital on over-budgeted streaming fodder that you can half-watch while doing other activities. The Electric State is their latest project to serve this purpose. They take the basic premise of Simon Stålenhag’s illustrated novel and make an utterly soulless Amblin homage out of it, complete with hollow observations regarding our reliance on technology, bland Marvel-style humour, and performances that are either doing too much (Chris Pratt) or too little (Millie Bobby Brown). At least the effects are decent, hackery be damned. ROBERT Given recent announcements for future projects, The Electric State seems like the Russo Brothers spinning their directorial wheels until they are fully engrossed in Avengers movies again. Overall, this gives off vibes of Wall-E and Ready Player One , mixed with some Terminator : cautionary tales about how human laziness will lead to technology reliance and potential destruction (or, at the very least, aversion to reality). The difference is that those movies are mostly more enjoyable since they are managed with more direction and emotional pathos. When the robots have more heart than the humans, you’ve got problems. ADRIANO For a directing duo that can't seem to stick the landing while also saying pretty stupid things about cinema (ok, really just Joe Russo, in fairness), The Electric State is, unsurprisingly, just unwatchable. The whole movie is essentially the Russo Brothers advocating for AI on a thematic level, and to make their point, they deliver a movie with a terrible script that lacks good ideas and cohesion to an otherwise straight-forward story, not to mention flat direction emphasized by horrible editing and a robotic performance from Millie Bobby Brown. These are your Avengers: Doomsday directors. Yeah, good luck with that. BRYAN There was a time when a new Russo Brothers outing was exciting, yet post-Endgame , the results have been repeatedly chunky. The Electric State may have even reached new levels of unwatchable in every possible way. If you wanted a guide to Lazy Filmmaking 101, this meets the criteria. Any ounce of emotional heft presented in the illustrated novel is nowhere to be found throughout this $320 million soulless snoozer. Even with a talented cast at the forefront, everything feels off. There was promise here, but maybe it'd be best for the Russos to hang it up.

RUMOURS Starring: Cate Blanchett, Charles Dance, Denis Ménochet, Alicia Vikander, Roy Dupuis, Takehiro Hira, Rolando Ravello, and Zlatko Buric Directors: Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson, and Galen Johnson NICK As far as political satires go, Rumours is among my favourite, conceptually speaking. The directing team of Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson, and Galen Johnson fill the opening hour with clever jokes and visual gags, all of which is brought to life via a very solid ensemble, highlighted by Roy Dupuis (pure coincidence he plays the Canadian Prime Minister). However, after that first hour, things run out of steam as the clever intricacies are replaced by a more ridiculous tone. Although this worked for a film like Triangle of Sadness (which, coincidentally, also features Zlatko Buric), it works against things here. ADRIANO I'll always respect a swing for the fences, but you gotta have something to back those swings up. Rumours doesn't have that. I liked the ensemble, and it got some laughs out of me, but it pretty quickly falls off its central concept. Then, the laughter begins to trickle out, and the movie becomes utter nonsense. Its commentary on world leaders' incompetency is lazy, and for a movie with three directors, one of which is the seasoned Guy Maddin, it feels a lot like a student film. Rumours is just a really bad movie, plain and simple. QUENTIN As a political satire, Rumours is certainly clever, but probably a little too smart for its own good. It requires a certain level of winking, “if you know, you know” awareness, and I’m not sure audiences lacking a general knowledge about geopolitical reputations will get a lot of the jokes present in this surreal sci-fi comedy. That awareness is the difference between a movie worth your time and a movie that is merely a mildly amusing diversion. No complaints about the cast, though, all of whom are game for the B-movie weirdness happening on screen. PAIGE Rumours is an over-the-top satire on global politics that becomes less effective and less funny as it goes along. While it does have some fun with its campy camera work, ominous music, and bombastic performances, the script is a mess, and its stereotypical depictions of these political leaders are very one note. Having three directors helming the project kept the movie from being cohesive, as it veers off course while failing to make any kind of point. This absurd film runs out of steam fairly quickly and is pretty forgettable. This film was reviewed by Quentin, Nick, and Adriano as part of Bitesize Breakdown's coverage of the 2024 Cannes Film Festival and 2024 Toronto International Film Festival, respectively.

MEGALOPOLIS Starring: Adam Driver, Nathalie Emmanuel, Giancarlo Esposito, Jon Voight, Aubrey Plaza, Laurence Fishburne, and Shia LaBeouf Director: Francis Ford Coppola QUENTIN Although a modern world in which ancient Rome never fell is an incredibly fascinating premise, Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis is an unmitigated disaster that vacillates from (presumably unintentional) campiness to overbearing self-seriousness at the drop of a hat. In addition to that, the story is so overstuffed and poorly developed, it’s like Coppola simply gave his stacked cast a hand-wave gesture and basic gist, leaving them to figure everything out on their own, which results in a collection of A-list actors who clearly aren’t working on the same wavelength. It’s not lacking in ambition, but the execution isn’t there. The visuals look sorta nice sometimes, though. ADRIANO After what has probably been one of the most cursed pre-releases maybe ever, I've finally witnessed Megalopolis . And, yeah, it's awful, but almost in an endearing way. Writer/director Francis Ford Coppola has stated that he's been mulling over this since the 70s, and while his passion shines through, it's staggeringly clear that he threw every single idea he had at this. The result is incoherent, empty, poorly-acted, and sadly incompetent. That said, I did enjoy watching a madman's unflinching ambition take shape, even if it's ultimately a mess. I'm giving this a low rating, but it's worth watching at least once. PAIGE It gives me no pleasure to report this, but Megalopolis is an absolute disaster. Honestly, when Francis Ford Coppola wrote this fable, what in the world was he smoking? Though I understand his intentions when it comes to the film’s concepts of time, technology, and politics, this thing, overall, is so incoherent and incompetent that it truly made me want to gouge my eyes out. The screenplay is a hot mess, the runtime is tedious, and it seems as though each actor is acting in a completely different movie. Personally, I think Coppola was better off keeping his vineyard than making this dumpster fire. This film was reviewed by Quentin as part of Bitesize Breakdown's coverage of the 2024 Cannes Film Festival.

VINCENT MUST DIE Starring: Karim Leklou and Vimala Pons Director: Stéphan Castang This film has been reviewed by Nick and Quentin as part of Bitesize Breakdown's coverage of the 2023 Fantasia International Film Festival. NICK The premise of Vincent Must Die had my attention because of the different directions it could go. Would it be horror? Comedy? Drama? Romance? The answer is a little bit of everything. Following Vincent (Karim Leklou), an unsuspecting man navigating his way through a world trying to kill him, makes for a fun time (especially when children are involved). Unfortunately, it feels like director Stéphan Castang didn’t know how to end the film as it lands a little flat. I enjoyed it, but I’d love to see an English remake with a little more money behind it and a revamped ending. QUENTIN As simple as Vincent Must Die ’s premise is, it could have been a great action horror movie like Mayhem . However, it plays things too slowly to be truly engaging (think a far less creepy and less good It Follows ). It certainly starts strong enough, but it eventually turns into a potentially doomed romance tale, which kills the momentum. Also, and maybe I’m being nitpicky, but it never explains its own rules, so the viewers are often as confused as Vincent (Karim Leklou). Maybe that’s the point? Either way, there is a good movie here somewhere, but this version of it lost me about midway through.

STOCKHOLM BLOODBATH Starring: Sophie Cookson, Alba August, Emily Beecham, Claes Bang, Jakob Oftebro, Mikkel Boe Følsgaard, Ulrich Thomsen, Matias Varela, Thomas Chaanhing, and Wilf Scolding Director: Mikael Håfström PRESTON Director Mikael Håfström uses an aesthetic mash-up of Guy Ritchie and Quentin Tarantino in Stockholm Bloodbath , which is cool, and the historicity of the story is pure gold. I mean, the event is actually called The Stockholm Bloodbath. So, it's by what I can only imagine is a personal attack against me that Håfström bastardizes the hell out of this with a see-sawing dialogue of inappropriate levity and confusing seriousness. Its attempted stylized-mix of Braveheart and A Knight’s Tale results in a confusing and bipolar tone that leaves the viewer “absolutely wanting.” Extreme potential is the only thing that’s spilled upon the roads of Stockholm this time. QUENTIN Given its Guy Ritchie inspirations, brutal true-life story, and bloody Braveheart -esque battles, it’s wild just how flat and tame Stockholm Bloodbath is. Whether it’s the inconsistent tone or the competing stories filled with poorly developed characters, everything feels like it’s just going through the motions. It doesn’t help that the acting is fairly pedestrian (at best), with many of the performers coming across as Poor Man’s versions of better actors. That said, had either of the plotlines been given room to breathe, this may have made for a serviceable action epic. As constructed, though, it simply misses the mark.

ARMAGEDDON TIME Starring: Banks Repeta, Anthony Hopkins, Jeremy Strong, Anne Hathaway, and Jaylin Webb Director: James Gray JACOB James Gray’s Armageddon Time is unlikely to be viewed as a masterwork or a revolutionary act of cinema, but it has more than enough for true cinephiles to enjoy. The film’s messaging is a tad difficult to grasp, but it still mostly works. Gray’s most personal film yet, the semi-autobiographical tale feels like a movie both from its time and of its time, that being 1973 to around 1980. Banks Repeta is great as the lead character, and he gets strong support from the whole ensemble, but it’s Anthony Hopkins who provides the soul of the story. NICK Armageddon Time is a relatively basic coming-of-age story that puts forth many ideas without really committing to one. There are some plot holes that easily could have been filled in, but they are simply glanced over to help move the story along. Also, this film loses a lot of its shine when Anthony Hopkins is not on screen. That's not to say anything of the cast…everyone has a good showing…but Hopkins’ presence ignites something that fades in his absence. This is a film made for awards recognition, and since it’s bound to fall short of that, it must be viewed as a disappointment. ADRIANO Writer/director James Gray’s semi-autobiographical Armageddon Time is unlikely to pull on the heartstrings, but that’s what I liked about it. This film ditches the Oscar-bait sentimentality in exchange for an honest and raw look at Gray’s childhood. While I don’t think all of the political stuff worked, I did like the familial aspects. The entire cast does a great job too, but Banks Repeta does a particularly standup job as the lead while Jeremy Strong and Anthony Hopkins also are fantastic. For many reasons, both good and bad, this film just resonated with me. This film was reviewed by Jacob as part of Bitesize Breakdown's coverage of the 2022 New York Film Festival.

THE CAINE MUTINY COURT-MARTIAL Starring: Jason Clarke, Kiefer Sutherland, Jake Lacy, Monica Raymund, Lewis Pullman, Tom Riley, Jay Duplass, Elizabeth Anweis, Gabe Kessler, and Lance Reddick Director: William Friedkin QUENTIN Though not flashy, The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial is a thoroughly engaging courtroom drama. Presented like a single-room stage play, it’s content to simply let its actors do what they do best: act. It asks interesting questions about military rank structure, the uniform code of military justice, and the ramifications of decisions made by those in command only through the various testimonies, which allows viewers to draw their own conclusions about the case at hand. Given that it was directed by the late William Friedkin, it’s no surprise that this stripped-down version of A Few Good Men is old school movie-making at its finest. CALEB The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial is an exceptionally written courtroom drama that deftly explores the unspoken vulnerabilities of men serving in the line of duty. The film’s compelling script is enriched by captivating performances from Kiefer Sutherland, Jason Clarke, and Lance Reddick. Visually, the film employs a calculated, restrained style, dedicating its cinematic language solely to highlighting the multitude of impressive performances on screen. This unpretentious approach is a shining testament to director William Friedkin’s confidence as a storyteller. Court-Martial is a powerful meditation on honour and responsibility that makes for a memorable send-off for both Reddick and Friedkin. PRESTON The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial is the latest adaptation of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, The Caine Mutiny (1952). Despite its abrupt start (and confusing libel with slander at one point), this latest rendition proves that a massive budget filled with expensive visual effects and eccentric camerawork isn’t necessary to make an altogether satisfying and quality production. The script is dialogue rich, featuring a functional style that is 12 Angry Men meets A Few Good Men and a refreshingly accurate and believable portrayal of everyday military shenanigans. Trust me, you won’t regret sitting down to watch this little hidden gem. This film was reviewed by Quentin as part of Bitesize Breakdown's coverage of the 2023 Venice International Film Festival.

THE MARSH KING'S DAUGHTER Starring: Daisy Ridley, Ben Mendelsohn, Brooklynn Prince, Gil Birmingham, Caren Pistorius, Garrett Hedlund, and Joey Carson Director: Neil Burger PRESTON The Marsh King’s Daughter is the ultimate tease as a psychological thriller, taking you right up to the point of exhilaration without actually coming through. The initial act sets things up nicely, but what follows is a boring slog that is further hindered by some confusing choices in flashback- and action-sequence camerawork. Daisy Ridley and Ben Mendelsohn are fantastic, though, and, as a film, this may have been the rare case where taking some creative license from the novel on which it is based might have added some pop to a story with an underlying premise that really had potential. QUENTIN Though it does nothing groundbreaking or anything particularly memorable, The Marsh King’s Daughter remains just engaging enough to function as a nice rainy-day distraction. Honestly, it feels a lot like a movie Ashley Judd would have starred in 20 years ago. That said, after an unexpected twist early on, it doesn’t seem to know what it wants to be, with some scenes feeling like they belong in a slasher movie while others are more family drama. Still, it all mostly comes together decently (even if it is predictable), and the performances are solid, especially Ben Mendelsohn. All in all, it was worth the watch.

THE SEA BEAST Starring: Karl Urban, Zaris-Angel Hator, Jared Harris, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Jim Carter, Doon Mackichan, and Dan Stevens Director: Chris Williams JOSEPH The Sea Beast is a film split in two. The first half is a bit generic, borrowing heavily from other stories, namely How to Train Your Dragon , but the second half is great! It’s so great, in fact, that even the visuals seem to improve with the storytelling. While the color palette is brilliant, some of the textures are lacking; that doesn’t stop some scenes from being truly beautiful, though. The characters are likable, the world is intriguing, and the ultimate message is bold and relevant. I only wish the first half felt more interesting and necessary to the plot. QUENTIN As far as story and vocal performances go, The Sea Beast isn’t anything special. It’s basically a variation of King Kong , with a smidge too much sappiness and a very preachy ending. That said, it’s still a swashbuckling good time, and it’s worth watching if for no other reason than the animation. It looks absolutely incredible, putting Pixar to shame with sequences so realistic that they genuinely look live action. It might be the best animation I’ve seen since Into the Spider-verse , and it’s wild to me that no one is really talking about it. Netflix Animation took a major step forward with this one.

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 2 Starring: James Marsden, Ben Schwartz, Tika Sumpter, Natasha Rothwell, Adam Pally, Shemar Moore, Colleen O’Shaughnessey, Lee Majdoub, Idris Elba and Jim Carrey Director: Jeff Fowler AMARÚ Like the first one, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 delivers something that movie-going parents have always wanted: a light, brightly colored popcorn movie for the kids that won’t make Mom & Dad want to kill themselves. Equal parts silly and charming, each and every performer is committed to the good times, especially Natasha Rothwell and Idris Elba (voice of fan-favorite Knuckles). There are some plot lines that are overdrawn, but adult viewers will feel 10 years old again while watching this film. If you can, try to catch it in a child-filled theater because the cheers will have you thinking you’re watching Avengers: Endgame . ADRIANO If you liked the first one, you’ll like Sonic the Hedgehog 2 . It has a lot of the same charm and fun times that the franchise starter had, yet takes them up a notch. Jim Carrey is, once again, a delight, although he does sometimes go into “How do you do, fellow kids?” territory. Ben Schwartz is still a great voice for Sonic too, but Idris Elba is flat-out hysterical as Knuckles. Some of the human elements are pretty laughable (there’s a plot twist in the movie that’s actually atrocious) and it shouldn’t have been this long, but overall, it’s pure dumb fun. JACOB While I’m still unsure whether I would call it a “good” movie, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is better than the grossly overrated mess that preceded it. The action is more coherent, the last 20 minutes work pretty well for fans, and it’s visually far more interesting. Unfortunately, it’s still plagued by the things that didn’t work last time, and they work even less here. No human characters actually do anything interesting, but the movie insists on spending way too much time on their terrible subplot. And none of the jokes land either. It’s definitely an improvement, but it’s marginal at best.

ZOLA Starring: Taylour Paige, Riley Keough, Nicholas Braun, Colman Domingo and Jason Mitchell Director: Janicza Bravo JACOB As an adaptation, Zola doesn't quite capture its source material wholistically, and, frankly, the story is more entertaining in written form. That said, co-writer/director Janicza Bravo's re-telling of the iconic Twitter saga is engaging enough to keep one's attention thanks to solid performances from Taylour Paige and Riley Keough. Some will inevitably be turned off by the experimental manner in which certain scenes are crafted, but conventionality wouldn't fit the story's essence. I do wish there was more of an ending than what's included, as the film sort of just ends without much in the way of resolution. QUENTIN For better or worse, I wasn't familiar with the Twitter thread that inspired this movie. I knew it existed, but had no idea about the ins-and-outs of the supposedly true story. It's a wild one, to be sure. That said, something just didn't click for me despite fantastic acting and direction. Colman Domingo is especially great, stealing every scene he's in, while director Janicza Bravo announces herself with a style that is perfectly suited for a Twitter-based movie in the TikTok era. It's certainly not bad, but the most exciting thing about it is the introduction to Bravo.