The Advent Calendar film review by UK film critic Hope Madden. Starring Eugenie Derouand, Honorine Magnier directed by Patrick Ridremont. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS The Advent Calendar Film Review average rating is 3 out of 5 Critic: Hope Madden | Posted on: Nov 30, 2021 Directed by: Patrick Ridremont Written by: Patrick Ridremont Starring: Eugenie Derouand, Honorine Magnier Who needs a new Christmas horror story? I do. Y’all can have your Hallmark romances but give me a little yuletide carnage and I’m filled with holiday cheer. This Christmas season, writer/director Patrick Ridremont comes through with the Belgian horror The Advent Calendar . It’s been three years since the accident that put Eva (Eugénie Derouand) in a wheelchair, but it’s still sometimes tough for her to tolerate the ableism and ignorance of those around her. Luckily her bestie Sophie (Honorine Magnier) cheers her with a visit and a gift — an antique wooden advent calendar she picked up in Germany. There are rules. There is candy. There will be blood. (But there is candy, so how bad can it be?) The “be careful what you wish for” storyline is as vintage as the ornate and impressive prop, but cursed object horror can be powerful when done well. Ridremont does it well, allowing time for his ensemble to develop their characters. And though the film skirts cliché, Ridremont respects his audience’s ability to keep up. We’re not spoonfed. Better still, Eva has depth enough as a character that when she finally moves willingly toward doing the wrong thing, you feel her resignation more than her selfishness. Derouand portrays Eva’s bitterness and longing so clearly that the film never has to bow to montage or flashback. And when the time comes to get spooky, The Advent Calendar delivers. There’s plenty of blood, but it’s the way it’s meted out that ramps up tensions. We start off with people we’re trained to want to see picked off, but viewer beware: there’s a beautiful mutt in danger here as the cursed object worms its way into Eva’s life. The FX are not as impressive as the performances, unfortunately, but the creature itself is creepy as hell. Better still, his existence and the origin of the Advent Calendar are left a bit to the imagination. It’s a clever sleight of hand, Ridremont taking advantage of our familiarity with his subgenre when he needs to, while still leaving behind the tangy taste of mystery. Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic Hope Madden Digital / DVD Release, World Cinema < All Reviews Next Film Review >

Watch Moving Parts at the 2022 UK Film Review Festival. See the UKFRF 2022 lineup and buy your festival pass. Moving Parts Listen to our review on the film podcast What our film review said: READ FULL REVIEW Will Forget’s performance as his name-sake is suitably aloof, yet human enough to allow the audience to connect to his interior vulnerability. Whilst Tom Knoblauch plays the straight man, searching for an angle whilst slowly gaining an understanding of his strange celebrity subject. The chemistry the pair share is the film’s bloodline, and allows the philosophical debates and Seinfeldian conversations that feature prominently to sustain themselves without coming across as pretentious or pointless. Proudly supporting MediCinema for our 2022 film festival.

Wannabe: All Washed Up film review by UK film critic William Hemingway. Starring Craig Robert Young, Adam Huss, Susan Duerden, Anna Becker directed by Richard Keith. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Wannabe: All Washed Up Film Review average rating is 2 out of 5 Critic: William Hemingway | Posted on: May 19, 2026 Directed by: Richard Keith Written by: Richard Keith and Craig Robert Young Starring: Craig Robert Young, Adam Huss, Susan Duerden, Anna Becker A past-his-prime actor, who never really had a prime to begin with, tries to make a comeback in a film about his life, while a documentary is made about the filming of that film, with him as the star. Makes perfect sense, right? So, Steve Williams (Young) started his celebrity career way back in the 90’s in a British boy band called, The Bus Boyz. Tragically, their tour bus crashed, killing three members of the band and leaving only Steve and his best friend Paul (Huss) alive to keep on kicking. In the mid-naughties, Steve’s star rose again as a documentary was made about him trying to get a new life in LA as an actor, where he was reintroduced to Paul, and anyone watching(!) got introduced to a roster of new characters who inhabited Steve’s life. Now, in the post-covid era, Steve is at it again, with another documentary somehow getting made about him as he still bumbles about trying to get acting gigs in Hollywood. The idea is that we’re watching a mockumentary of the behind-the-scenes scenarios that happen in the backrooms of LA, where dodgy deals are made, shaky funding is promised, vacuous conversations replace real words, and smoke is blown up a plethora of asses. We see the bottom of the pile in empty theatres and questionable productions, and sit with big-wig producers as talking heads, as they tell us about the industry and Steve’s potential within it. The previous documentary made about Steve Williams was called Wannabe (2005) and so here we are catching up with him twenty years later in the sequel, Wannabe: All Washed Up . Sold as ‘The Disaster Artist without the artist’, and coming from an idea about ‘how funny it might be to make a sequel to a film that nobody has ever seen’, it’s amazing that writer/director, Richard Keith, and writer/star, Craig Robert Young, are so aware of their creations and their non-success and yet still decided to make this film. They are right, in that nobody has seen Wannabe , and so anybody walking into this one has no idea about the characters and the backstory that are being presented to us and that we’re supposed to be invested in for an hour-and-a-half. The natural style of the documentary doesn’t do them any favours either as everything just runs quickly and easily for everyone in the frame, as though it’s their everyday lives, but for us in the audience we’re left with a bunch of people we don’t know talking crap over one another. A quick ten-minutes of the first film helps lead us into this one, but it’s all a little mix-ed up in terms of narrative and what we get to see, with there being callbacks later on to these particular incidents for those who are paying attention. The rest of the comedy is bare and overly obvious, with hardly a smile to be raised at any point as we’re supposed to laugh at people who don’t know they’re saying stupid things, in true rockumentary style. Mostly it’s easy to see where the jokes are, but they never land, with a lot of the humour coming from continuously mixed metaphors and inanely banal aphorisms spouted by the characters, or alternatively, from shock-value embarrassments which paint the characters in a bad light. It’s all very derivative and tedious. However, in the end, in the final twenty-minutes, things do come together, and the characters do all find their arcs, and we see the lives and relationships they have been living along the way, and the humour does improve, almost to the point of laughing, and it seems there was a point and a vision all along – which is nice, for them. It’s the fact that Wannabe: All Washed Up will mean something to some people that stops it from being an out and out ‘disaster’, and that your time isn’t entirely wasted with these characters when there’s an investment from the filmmakers that they truly feel is strong enough to share, even if it is ninety-minutes of our lives that we’ll never get back. It’s a shame that you have to go through the first seventy minutes of Wannabe: All Washed Up to get to anything good, and I can’t imagine what it’s like to have watched the first one, too, but if you’re a fan, I guess what you’re getting is more of the same, just with what I suspect is a more grown-up outlook. You can’t fault the effort and commitment that’s gone into the Wannabe franchise, but it seems that the answer to whether it’s funny to have a sequel to a film that nobody saw, is that you’ll just end up with two films that nobody will see. Wannabe: All Washed Up releases in the UK on June 19th 2026. Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic William Hemingway Digital / DVD Release, Indie Feature Film < All Reviews Next Film Review >

Hangover Food: Vampire Influencer film review by UK film critic Chris Buick. Starring Craig McDonald-Kelly, David Hepburn directed by Ross McGowan. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Hangover Food: Vampire Influencer Film Review average rating is 5 out of 5 Critic: Chris Buick | Posted on: Jul 8, 2023 Directed by: Ross McGowan Written by: Craig McDonald-Kelly Starring: Craig McDonald-Kelly, David Hepburn If you haven’t seen Deadline Films 2019 short Hangover Food , the comedic brainchild of filmmakers and performers Ross McGowan, David Hepburn and Craig McDonald-Kelly, you absolutely should. In it, Lee (Hepburn) wakes up with the mother of all hangovers, which might be related to the fact that he was made a vampire the night before. Luckily, he has the support of best friend Bruce (McDonald-Kelly), fully equipped with Guatemalan cave coffee and pizza to see him through. But now, the Hangover Food Cinematic Universe is expanding. While a feature length adaptation of the aforementioned short is currently in production (did I mention you should see it?), Deadline Films now brings us Hangover Food: Vampire Influencer , a five-part series of shorts that, frankly not soon enough, brings us back to the HFCU which is thankfully still full of the same joyous ridiculousness, quick-pans and quick-wits that made the original so great. In episode one, we are given a succinct recap of the original short for both returning viewers and the uninitiated before then settling us back in with how Bruce and Lee have been getting on for the last few months since that fateful day. Answer, not great. Lee is lonely, unable to enjoy the sun or any of the other daytime delights he used to. In an effort to make something of his situation, Lee asks Bruce to help him embrace the world of social media and become the world’s first vampire influencer. What follows over the subsequent four episodes is a hilarious yet touching journey of two best mates traversing the infinite pitfalls of the internet, trolls and non-believers, while also trying to redefine their own relationship under these crazy new circumstances. Four years on from the original short, everything here is now a bit bigger and a bit bolder, as can be expected when time, experience and presumably bigger budgets take hold. One might fear that this would result in a loss of the charm, the ‘lighting in a bottle’ magic that the original managed to capture. But no, they’ve still got it. Not only is everything bigger and bolder, but it’s tighter and sharper too. It looks great, it plays great, this sickeningly talented bunch of filmmakers have simply upped their game, somehow managing to find that follow-up holy grail of same but different that audiences crave and all without ever really wavering across all five episodes. And that’s no mean feat, especially when you are swimming in the waters of vampire comedy, a genre that most would immediately look to What We Do in the Shadows for as their main reference. But these guys are adamant to make their own mark on it and doing a damn good job as well, only ever interested in telling a complete story, not just aiming for low hanging for laughs but also trying to hit all the emotional ebbs and flows that come from a unique bromance story such as this. All this before we even get to the dream duo of Hepburn and MacDonald-Kelly, two fine actors giving performances that you not only believe in, but root for. Award-winning production house Deadline Films just can’t seem to make bad films, it’s almost annoying. If you like comedy horror mixed with absurdity, look no further. There is a lot more that could have been explored here, but all that means is that these guys have no excuse but to come back and give it to us. We’ll be waiting. You can enjoy Hangover Food and Hangover Food: Vampire Influence now over on Klipist. Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic Chris Buick Short Film, Web Series < All Reviews Next Film Review >

Rwd Fwd film review by UK film critic Swati Verma . Starring Percelle Ascott, Joivan Wade, Mandeep Gill directed by Teddy Nygh. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Rwd Fwd Film Review average rating is 5 out of 5 Critic: Swati Verma | Posted on: Apr 1, 2024 Directed by: Teddy Nygh Written by: Stephen Laughton Starring: Percelle Ascott, Joivan Wade, Mandeep Gill The director Teddy Nygh and the writer Stephen Laughton showcase the complex situations in life that one has to deal with in the intricate storytelling. Percelle Ascott as well as Joivan Wade fit perfectly into the mould of Alex and Jay respectively to effectively communicate important messages the film wants to deliver to its audience. The plot of Rwd Fwd revolves around the involvement of love that leads to an argument between two old friends that can further escalate quickly with painful consequences. The short film begins with a long shot of the street followed by a combination of mid-closeup shots to lead up to some flashback shots of the incident the two male protagonists are trying hard to move forward from. Rwd Fwd follows a nonlinear technique for the narrative to progress and is a good way to increase audience engagement with the content as it depicts the point of view of all the characters in the film. The set design, the white, grey, red, and black colours for the colour pallet, lighting, sound, dialogues, costume, hair, makeup, and props have been carefully designed to elevate the intensity of the story as well as to pick up the pace when required so that the viewers can enjoy it and also learn lessons and try incorporating the same in their lives. In terms of performance, Percelle Ascott plays Alex a protective and caring boyfriend and faithful friend but a certain misunderstanding creeps up between him and his friend Jay that needs to be sorted out. Ascott brilliantly balances between portraying a range of emotions Alex feels starting with trauma, anger, love, care, grief, remorse, and repentance. Joivan Wade plays the role of Jay who is an emotional and possessive friend of Alex, he is unable to deal with the thought of losing a friend like Alex, especially in the trying time he is going through. Wade beautifully utilises anger, and frustration to express his love, fear, and guilt as per the situation in the screenplay. Mandeep Gill as Charlie (Alex’s girlfriend) is a treat to watch. She is a strong and independent girl who makes decisions by being more practical and also protects her loved ones no matter what the scenario. Gill portrays various shades of Charlie’s character arc through body language, voice modulation, facial expressions, and eyes. Charlie proves to be a true inspiration for every female in the audience watching the movie and they can learn from her to include the same into their lives in the long run. Rwd Fwd talks about the freedom of every individual to choose a suitable partner when it comes to romantic relationships because love happens naturally it should not be forced on someone. The short film reiterates anger and many more negative emotions throwing one into deeper problems coming out of which seem nearly impossible. The best option is to avoid such situations and be surrounded by people who can help one grow as well as prosper in every way. The cinematic piece highlights that sometimes the only way to move forward from a tragic incident in life is to face it heal and restart the same for a better future with their family and friends. The creative piece also advises its audience that people shouldn’t shy away from seeking help rather than suffering alone. Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic Swati Verma Short Film < All Reviews Next Film Review >

Ebony Grace - Lucy film review by UK film critic Jason Knight. Starring Ebony Grace directed by Tamas Levardi. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Ebony Grace - Lucy Film Review average rating is 4 out of 5 Critic: Jason Knight | Posted on: Dec 18, 2021 Directed by: Tamas Levardi Written by: Ebony Grace Starring: Ebony Grace A beautiful and mesmerising music video that depicts an isolated woman and a world moving backwards in slow motion. Musical artist Ebony Grace collaborated with Tamas Levardi, record engineer and producer Oliver Baldwin and mastering engineer Pete Maher and the result is a three-and-a-half-minute video that is a joy to watch and listen to. The video keeps cutting between a young woman who is by herself in what appears to be an underpass and various locations that include neighbourhoods, trains, buildings, beaches, the ocean and boats in a harbour. All of the shots take place in slow motion and in the ones that the woman is not present, time is moving backwards, with all the movements smoothly and gradually going back in time. Therefore, the audience sees people walking, cycling and running backwards, birds flying backwards and vehicles such as cars, motorbikes and a small plane travelling backwards as well. All these are seen in terrific establishing shots, that also capture beautiful skies. Going to the scenes that show the woman now, she is seen either walking or dancing in slow motion. She never says a word and there are occasional closeups of her face. She seems to be rather thoughtful and serious. Regarding the title song, it consists of wonderful instrumental sounds and Grace's gentle and spellbinding vocals. The combination of these two produces a listening experience that is calming, peaceful and magical. What is the video about? This could be open to interpretation. It focuses on an individual who appears to be isolated and stand out from the rest of the world, which could be because she sees things from an unusual perspective and this perspective might be that she wishes that time could be turned back and the scenes that present time flowing in reverse could be her wish becoming true. Generally, this music video is quite tender, thanks to the use of slow motion from start to finish and the soothing song. The combination of the visuals and the music almost take the viewer on a journey into a world where time can be reversed and there is nothing but peace and beauty. The visuals are beautiful, the song is beautiful and to summarise, it is a beautiful viewing experience. Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic Jason Knight Short Film < All Reviews Next Film Review >

The Contractor film review by UK film critic Hope Madden. Starring Chris Pine, Ben Foster, Kiefer Sutherland directed by Tarik Saleh. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS The Contractor Film Review average rating is 2 out of 5 Critic: Hope Madden | Posted on: Mar 30, 2022 Directed by: Tarik Saleh Written by: J.P. Davis Starring: Chris Pine, Ben Foster, Kiefer Sutherland Chris Pine is Hollywood’s unsung Chris, isn’t he? Under-sung, anyway. Just because he’s not an Avenger. He is a dependable, charismatic presence in any film, though, which is why each of his efforts deserves a little optimism. Even one as seemingly unremarkable as The Contractor . Pine plays James Harper, a Navy Seal with 5 tours under his belt. One shredded knee, one worthless lung and a host of other physical consequences from his time under fire mean that Harper is no longer of use to the US military. Debts at home have him entertaining offers he probably shouldn’t. After too lengthy an Act I, The Contractor pivots to tight action thriller. Pine delivers vulnerability and honor as the damaged service vet, and director Tarik Saleh surrounds him with able support. The great Ben Foster arrives about 20 minutes into the feature, and that’s never a bad sign. The film’s biggest draw is the chance to see Pine and his Hell or High Water co-star reunite. Foster is among the most effortlessly authentic actors working, every character’s backstory hanging on his face and haunting his eyes. He and Pine have a lived-in camaraderie that goes a long way toward deepening the emotional underpinning of what is otherwise a blandly repetitive, unimaginative military action flick. The real surprise is that Saleh — who began his career with the bizarre and amazing dystopian fantasy Metropia — couldn’t produce something a little more intriguing. The by-the-numbers script from J.P. Davis doesn’t help, but aside from a handful of decent fisticuff sequences, Selah does not prove himself as an action director. Gillian Jacobs, Fares Fares, Eddie Marsan and Kiefer Sutherland — all underused — do what they can to bring nuance to underwritten characters, but it’s not enough to salvage the film. Rather than elevate a bland picture, the performances feel wasted in this derivative and formulaic thriller. Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic Hope Madden Digital / DVD Release, Theatrical Release < All Reviews Next Film Review >

Halfpace film review by UK film critic Alasdair MacRae. Starring Shreyesh Atkar, Shivani Jaiswal, Ruturaj Wankhede directed by Kundan Sad. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Halfpace Film Review average rating is 3 out of 5 Critic: Alasdair MacRae | Posted on: May 7, 2022 Directed by: Kundan Sad Written by: Gary Rowlands Starring: Shreyesh Atkar, Shivani Jaiswal, Ruturaj Wankhede Lonely teen Dev (Shreyesh Atkar) is bedbound following a car accident, seeking company he reaches out online and meets Dwiti (Shivani Jaiswal). The two form a relationship, centring around their common love of cinema. This brief happiness is quickly upturned however, when Dev discovers that Dwiti had been murdered by the notorious Full Moon Killer. Desperate to solve the mystery around his beloved, Dev must use his cyber sleuthing skills to hunt down the serial killer. For a murder mystery the most crucial component is the filmmakers’ ability to keep the audience guessing. And Halfpace delivers on that premise. Throughout there are many competing and intriguing possibilities that director Kundan Sad effectively manages like spinning plates. For one, Dev is an unreliable narrator, heavily medicated, suffering from amnesia following his accident, and still struggling with trauma from his father’s suicide. Then there is his step-mother, unable to control her temper, ruthless one minute and apologetic the next. Throw in the usual fixtures: a shady detective, a political conspiracy, and a suspicious figure who appears at Dev’s window, and there is a healthy mix. Not to mention the inclusion of the supernatural. Dev has the inexplicable ability to communicate with Dwiti after her death. Furthermore, he receives phone calls late at night from an unknown medium. And most eerily he hears whispers on the wind, “Sarve Santu Nirayana” – “death to all”. Films that have a heavy reliance on an online component have a tendency to feel gimmicky. Although recently there have been a handful great ones, Rob Savage’s Host, Mamoru Hosoda’s Belle, and Jane Schoenbrun’s We’re All Going to the World’s Fair, to name a few. But how does Halfpace fare as an internet age Rear Window? What is instantly apparent is that Dev’s world bears little to no resemblance of the sweltering soundstage of Hitchcock’s work, in fact he rarely looks out other than through his computer screen. Lacking in the voyeuristic component, it means that the camera lingers mostly on the central character, requiring economical shot choice and editing to keep the tension up, which Sad mostly accomplishes. Part of this owes to a smart narrative decision by having Dev encase himself in an artificial world of purple and green neon lights. This simple colouring makes all the difference. It makes the frame easy on the eyes, but it also adds to the sense of displacement and detachment from everyday reality. His creation of this ‘other’ space might also go some way to emphasising the friction between Dev and the only frequent physical intruder into his world, not Grace Kelly, but rather his step-mother. Despite this, one of the biggest missteps Sad makes is the over-reliance on using drone footage of the neighbourhood as scene breaks. These shots take the audience out of Dev’s world, and they begin to irritate as scenes become shorter and more intense only to be punctuated by long pauses for aerial photography. Halfpace is an effective murder mystery with many intriguing threads entangled. Smart directing from Kundan Sad keeps the tension up for the one-hundred-and-ten-minute runtime, a significant feat considering the claustrophobic environs. And whilst it may struggle with the stigma of being a film centred around the internet, it ultimately has enough substance to overcome the usual failings of the sub-genre. Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic Alasdair MacRae Indie Feature Film, World Cinema < All Reviews Next Film Review >

The People in the Walls film review by UK film critic Chris Olson. Starring Mckenna Smith, Natalia Santacoloma, Cassi Colvin, Donny Boaz directed by Michael Crum. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS The People in the Walls Film Review average rating is 4 out of 5 Critic: Chris Olson | Posted on: Jun 13, 2024 Directed by: Michael Crum Written by: Gerald Crum Starring: Mckenna Smith, Natalia Santacoloma, Cassi Colvin, Donny Boaz Filmmakers Michael and Gerald Crum deliver a haunting and thrilling movie that fits nicely into the “Stranger Things” era of horror filmmaking. Rachel (Mckenna Smith) is a traumatised teen who witnessed her friend Becca (Aleena Heritage) experience a gruesome death following a viral craze which invites The People in the Walls to come out. After moving home and trying to fit in with a new set of friends (who have also had some run-ins with the wall people), Rachel becomes determined to take these monsters head on. Told with an impressive depth for darkness, The People in the Walls is a horror film that manages to smartly combine the worlds of childhood nightmares with adult horror. Often we see this balance completely missed by filmmakers, with horror films misfiring when attempting to tell stories about bogeymen. The story from Gerald Crum perfectly captures that innate fear all children experience of what’s lurking in their very own home. The creepiness factor turns up to eleven by the final third of the film, with a brilliantly delivered spooky finale. Impressive performances come in the form of Rachel’s parents (played by Cassi Colvin and Danny Boaz) who navigate the world of troubled mum and dad expertly. Mckenna Smith is also terrific in the lead role, especially when in scenes with her mum and dad. Sections where she is with the other child actors so sometimes lack the quality of delivery, with lines coming off a little wooden and theatrical. That being said, there’s a wonderful chemistry between Rachel and her two new friends Nancy (Natalia Santacoloma) and Chris (Cole Crum). The People in the Walls is broken into chapters, perhaps with the idea of a series being part of the original plan, and this gives the movie a sense of horror storytelling. The whole piece feels akin to a Goosebumps book but with a harder edge for the scary bits, with jump scares aplenty. The use of darkness was particularly impressive, such as an earlier scene where a toy gets dragged into the blackness, which happens later on in the movie too. Plaudits are due to Adam Anthis who handled the sound, so essential in horror filmmaking, as this was excellent and made sure the film felt professionally scary. With such enduring themes and a penchant for horror filmmaking, the Crums have excelled in bringing this spooky story to life. Fans of the genre will be able to gorge on the feast of scares and connect with well-drawn characters. Watch the Video Film Review of The People in the Walls by Chris Olson Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic Chris Olson Horror, Indie Feature Film < All Reviews Next Film Review >

Leech film review by UK film critic Swati Verma. Starring Joshua Katembela, Sandra Voe, Graham O Mara directed by George Coley. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Leech Film Review average rating is 4 out of 5 Critic: Swati Verma | Posted on: May 30, 2024 Directed by: George Coley Written by: Anna Armstrong, George Coley Starring: Joshua Katembela, Sandra Voe, Graham O Mara The writer-director George Coley and Anna Armstrong together build up an interesting script to incorporate the horror element effectively while delivering an extremely crucial message that comes with the latter part of life. Joshua Katembela, Graham O Mara, and Sandra Voe play their parts with utmost conviction helping the audience increase the degree of engagement from the very beginning. The plot of Leech revolves around an elderly woman who is unaware of the stranger secretly nested in her home. Her carer thinks she lives alone when he visits the stranger disappears. But as peculiar details reveal themselves around the house, the carer’s suspicions lead him to uncover the disturbing secret hidden within. The short film opens with a black screen coupled with television tuning into various channels. A series of long shots capture the regular lifestyle of an elderly blind woman along with the mysterious presence of a stranger in her house. The set design, black, white; and brown colour palette, combination of natural as well as dim lighting, sound, dialogues, costume, hair, makeup, and props are carefully curated to elevate the sense of fear as well as mystery among the viewers keeping them curious all through 10 minutes of its running time. George Coley along with his crew includes illustrations, conversations, and placements of props that grip the audience from the very beginning adding realism to the way of storytelling. In the performance department, Joshua Katembela plays Callum a carer from Steady Care who comes to help her with the basic chores of the household. Katembela beautifully portrays Callum’s soft side but also showcases that he is well aware of his surroundings at the same time and no one can fool him easily. The young actor builds up an emotional connection with the audience he enters the frame and shares the screen with his Co-stars using body language, voice modulation, facial expressions, and eyes so that the viewers tend to stay with the character for a while after they have finished watching the movie. Sandra Voe plays Mary the elderly blind woman who needs assistance of carers especially after the passing away of her darling husband John. The senior actress brings out how peaceful Mary feels in her house despite the day-to-day life struggles along with the impending danger of a stranger living with her. Voe understands the nuances of her character and makes sure that she portrays it in such a way that it makes the viewers feel proud and they get inspired by Mary instead of pity. Graham O Mara plays the role of the person who lives with this old blind woman for benefits unknown to the viewers. O Mara without even a single dialogue depicts the villain as per what the director wants from him managing to get the desired reaction of fear, thrill, mystery, and expressing dislike towards this stranger. Graham O Mara proved with his acting skills that subtle antagonists can also compliment the narrative to deliver the key messages provided the character arcs are well written. Leech talks about the importance of a sense of belongingness and preserving memories that would help people survive life in general when it becomes monotonous and tedious especially when loneliness hits one harder as an elderly person. The short film reiterates that sometimes even good deeds can put oneself in a situation that can prove detrimental so it is better to make decisions with the mind instead of the heart. The cinematic piece highlights the significance of the role of friends and family is to safeguard someone from the potential dangers hovering over them continuously. Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic Swati Verma Short Film < All Reviews Next Film Review >

Crime 101 film review by UK film critic Kieran Freemantle. Starring Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Halle Berry, Barry Keoghan, Monica Barbaro, Nick Nolte directed by Bart Layton. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Crime 101 Film Review average rating is 4 out of 5 Critic: Kieran Freemantle | Posted on: Feb 20, 2026 Directed by: Bart Layton Written by: Bart Layton, Don Winslow (Novella) Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Halle Berry, Barry Keoghan, Monica Barbaro, Nick Nolte Crime 101 is a crime thriller based on the Don Winslow novella from his collection of short novels, Broken. It’s a wide-ranging film that shows many characters getting involved in jewellery robberies across Los Angeles. Mike (Chris Hemsworth) is a diamond thief who operates on U.S Route 101. His crimes are well planned, and he refuses to use violence. He sets out to do one last job by robbing a billionaire’s wedding, and he plans to get a disgruntled insurance executive, Sharon Combs (Halle Berry), involved. However, a LAPD Detective, Lou Lubesnick (Mark Ruffalo), is on Mike’s trail, and the gentleman thief is being followed by an unhinged rival, Ormon (Barry Keoghan). As a cinematic genre, crime thrillers have been on the decline. They have not been as plentiful as they were in the 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s. Crime 101 aims to rectify this by being a throwback to crime thrillers of old with its ensemble cast, slick direction, and focus on characters and tension. The people who made it saw it as a proper film for grown-ups. Crime 101 was written and directed by Bart Layton, who’s best known for the acclaimed documentary The Imposter. Crime 101 was Layton’s second narrative film. The Michael Mann classic Heat clearly inspired him. Both were cops-and-robbers films set in LA with a large cast of storylines and characters, and oozing with style. Crime 101 lifted some specific ideas from Heat, like the main thieves starting relationships whilst the cop’s marriage was falling apart. Crime 101 would have fit in any time between the 1990s and 2010s. Tonally, there was a bit of Martin Scorsese’s The Departed during the cop-and-robbers story, broad storyline, and how characters were connected. There were also a bit of Drive and The Place Beyond the Pines in Crime 101 . Mike was a handsome man, but struggled with eye contact and maintaining human connections like Ryan Gosling’s character in Drive, who was coded to be autistic. Barry Keoghan’s Ormon was a biker like Ryan Gosling’s character in The Place Beyond the Pines, and Ormon’s jewellery store felt similar to the bank robberies in the Derek Cianfrance film, particularly when things went wrong. Crime 101 did name-check two Steve McQueen films, Bullitt and The Thomas Crown Affair, and there were visual cues to those films. Crime 101 had a broad scope, and it did rely on a bit of dramatic convenience. Sharon ended up investigating the same robbery as Lou that Mike conducted at the beginning of the film. At the same time, Mike was planning to groom Sharon as an asset in his final job. Even though the film was a lengthy 140 minutes, there were times that characters just disappeared for large portions of the film: Sharon and Ormon were the main victims of this. Some plotlines did not lead anywhere, like when Lou discovers Mike’s past. Crime 101 ended by sharing Heat’s faults as well as its strengths. Crime 101 wasn’t as action-packed as Heat, but it did have a lot of tension. There was a strong opening showing Mike staking out his target and showing all the moving parts from all parties involved. Ormon’s robberies showed how unhinged he could be, especially when stressed, which made him a volatile variable. The most intense sequence in the film was a chase on the streets of LA, where Ormon rode his bike into the traffic as he tried to escape from Mike. It was a mix of The French Connection, The Departed, and The Place Beyond the Pines, whilst also putting its own spin because of the LA night setting. One of the moments wasn’t even a crime sequence: it was Sharon asserting herself and showing that Halle Berry can be a strong-willed presence. For any cinemagoers looking for a serious crime thriller, Crime 101 will provide a fix due to its strong direction and air of seriousness. It’s great to see this type of film getting a theatrical release. Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic Kieran Freemantle Theatrical Release < All Reviews Next Film Review >

Timestalker film review by UK film critic Hope Madden. Starring Alice Lowe, Nick Frost, Jacob Anderson directed by Alice Lowe. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Timestalker Film Review average rating is 3 out of 5 Critic: Hope Madden | Posted on: Feb 13, 2025 Directed by: Alice Lowe Written by: Alice Lowe Starring: Alice Lowe, Nick Frost, Jacob Anderson Back in 2016, Alice Lowe wrote, directed and starred in the charmingly dark horror comedy, Prevenge . It’s been a long wait, but her absurd wit, impeccable timing and delightful attention to sight gag detail return with the dark reincarnation rom-com, Timestalker. Lowe is Agnes. No matter when you catch her—mid-1600s, Napoleonic era, 1980s New York—Agnes is feeling lost. Unmoored. As if something in her very soul is lacking. And then suddenly, over and over and over again throughout the ages, Agnes realizes what she’s missing is Alex (Aneurin Barnard). Alex never seems to agree. A handful of souls orbit the star crossed never actually lovers (Nick Frost, Tanya Reynolds, Kate Dickie, Jacob Anderson), but that never really registers with Agnes. She’s too attuned to her longing, and then eventually, her need to change her fate because, in each life, Agnes dies (pretty horribly) so that Alex can live. What Lowe has penned is a clever subversion of romance tropes—“I have crossed oceans of time to find you”—without entirely mocking that aching sense of longing that fuels an obsession. Lowe’s most clever device is positioning a man as the object of infatuation. Playing that idea off a later introduction of Agnes’s own stalker further pokes holes in a century’s worth of romance cliche. Timestalker is funny, sometimes brutally so. Anderson shines as a mischief-maker and instigator popping in from age to age with very dark suggestions, and an underused Dickie’s priceless deadpan delivery adds value to each of her scenes. The look of the film offers endless enjoyment, and Lowe is a hoot in every situation. Don’t look for much in the way of a plot, though. Where Prevenge unveiled a bit more of its backstory and detail with each new scene, Timestalker feels like a really fun Groundhog Day with no underpinning story. The film is disappointingly slight given the clever points it makes. Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic Hope Madden Digital / DVD Release < All Reviews Next Film Review >