Hamnet (2025): Chloe Zhao returns to more familiar terrain after the failed venture into superheroland and she signs off on one of the most acclaimed movies of the year. Telling the story of Shakespeare and his wife Agnes (or Anne), it focuses on beginnings: their first meet, their union, their children. The movie then shifts gears after their son, Hamnet, dies of the plague and climaxes in a rendition of Hamlet set to Max Richter’s famous(ly overused) On the Nature of Daylight. As you might have gathered, I wasn’t completely taken by it. At no point did I get a sense that the drama that befalls this family is far more than a tragic montage of moments. But this doesn’t mean there isn’t beauty to Chole Zhao’s imagery or to the committed performance of Jessie Buckley. It’s emotionally legible, but narratively obtuse. Hah, I like the sound of that. 7
Marty Supreme (2025): I’ve been shying away from MS, because I knew what a Safdie flick would entail. Even though Marty Supreme is not as hardcore as Good Time (2017) or Uncut Gems (2019), it’s somehow more unpleasant in an irksome way. This made me do something I have never done before: enter Wikipedia and read the plot. Knowing that every situation ends badly until a mildly satisfactory finale allowed me to have some peace of mind and just watch the movie. In it, Marty Supreme, a man obsessed to win big in the emerging world of competitive ping-pong, goes through hell and back to make it happen. It doesn’t matter who gets used and hurt along the way. Timothée Chalamet is an effectively annoying lead, but the vibes right now are that he might not get his Academy Award. Maybe deservedly so, after Chalametgate. Like with Hamnet, it’s easy to appreciate the art that goes into making this kind of movie. It’s not as easy to enjoy the end result. 7
Villeneuve Pironi (2022): With the start of the new F1 season, I thought I would look at this one, that’s been waiting on my to-watch for a good old time. And as soon as Colapinto almost drove into Lawson at the start, I had flashbacks of Pironi driving into Riccardo Paletti and causing his death in 1982. About the documentary, it gives some background on Gilles Villeneuve and Didier Pironi, with input from their families, before honing in on their dispute the San Marino GP of 1982. Pironi “stole” Villeneuve’s win at Imola and before the air between the two could be cleared, Villeneuve died in a fatal crash the following race. There are less than indirect accusations that there is some causality between the two, which was also something felt at the time. And in many ways I think this could have been dug into a lot deeper than just the dramatic, but shallow, surface level the movie touches upon. I don’t know if there’s an objective truth in everything, with so much time gone by, but the fact that the documentary takes great pains to not take sides doesn’t always work. There is tragedy in the fact that Villeneuve is remembered to this day as a legendary figure, whereas Pironi has faded, which is something that’s summarily pointed out. To all intents and purposes, he should have been a world champion, but bad luck and bravado cost him this chance. Keke Rosberg says thanks. I did enjoy watching this bit of F1 history detailed, it’s just a shame it doesn’t do more with the level of access it had. 7
Mad Props (2024): Watching this, I kept thinking back on one of my father’s favourite sayings – the difference between man and boy is the price of the toy. Tom Biolchini has some expensive toys: a collection of movie props gathered over the years. Before joining him on a trip to meet likeminded and financially able men who share his hobby, we witness a bidding war for Indiana Jones’s holy grail that easily goes into the six figures. This hints at the fact that for all the talk we’ll get about the magic of movies and the joy of owning a piece of nostalgia, the adventure is closer to the capitalism of movie making than it is to the democracy of watching them. Some people might be put off by this, but I was only ever truly irked by an inclusion at the end pandering to the idea that collecting movie props is anything else than what we had been shown before: a story about rich people often gatekeeping treasured memorabilia for their own diverse reasons. There is a disingenuous streak that flows through Mad Props, but there’s also a level of excitement that does evoke a semblance of happiness and fulfilment. The movie is at its best at depicting the various ways in which props are housed and themed and when it bestows some of its attention to the people who took part in creating them. Overall, probably ok for those interested in the topic. 6
O Solo Mio (2026): It’s tough for me to have any serious expectations of a Kevin James movie and that’s alright. In this one, he gets left at the altar in Italy and has to deal with the immediate logistical aftermath of enjoying a solo honeymoon. But don’t fret, there’s a gorgeous age-appropriate barista downstairs who takes an immediate liking to him for no reason whatsoever. The movie then indulges in trips around the Italian cityside and countryside, which is deftly executed, so a pleasant watch. A guest appearance by Andrea Bocelli and the general leaning on Italian music elevate what would otherwise have been just a silly and senseless romcom into…an enjoyable silly and senseless romcom. 6
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