Saipan (2025): I generally don’t have high expectations of sports movies, so Saipan proved to be a pleasant surprise. Éanna Hardwicke is Roy Keane, former Man United player and Ireland legend and the story is set on the eve of the 2002 World Cup, where tensions flared between Keane and Ireland manager Mick McCarthy. On one level, this is a movie about football management which captures the atmosphere of a training camp with great panache. On the other, it’s a clash of egos and styles, that ended up proving that no man is greater than the team in a conclusive way. Whereas Hardwicke doesn’t quite capture Keane beyond his dry bluntness, Steve Coogan is a treat in the role of McCarthy, in a generally well-cast flick. What’s even more impressive about it, is that it doesn’t obsess about showing the football, which gives it the leeway it needs to focus on what’s important. 8
Rafa (2026): They could make a 20-part mini-series about Rafael Nadal and I would probably still feel like it’s incomplete. This 4-part Netflix series tracks two timelines, Rafa’s rise and career on the one hand and his attempt to make a comeback in 2024 on the other. Spoiler alert, he doesn’t. As a die-hard fan who couldn’t even watch his matches because of how emotionally taxing an investment they were (still coping with some of ’em), I was still surprised by how pervasive his health struggles were as presented in the series. Naturally, especially since Rafa got an unjustified bad rep for “never losing when healthy”, he always tried to downplay and shift focus from his chronic ills. They became better known in the last few years of his career, but it was still painful to see what he was going through on a day to day basis. You often wish that your favourite sportspeople will make a comeback, yet Rafa somehow manages to dissuade you of such thoughts wholeheartedly. The documentary doesn’t focus on what I would have focused on, trying to stay fairly clean and simple, which didn’t diminish its impact on me. What struck me most was how relatable Rafa appeared, with his family and team closely knit around him, still living on their home island of Mallorca, a safes space from the glitz and chaos of global fame. It’s on some level part of the illusion, that you could well imagine playing a game of FIFA with him and chilling on his multi-million dollar yacht (not featured). It will be interesting to see what his post-tennis future holds. 7
The Smashing Machine (2025): Many have argued that Josh Safdie substantially outdid Benny in their solo debuts. With not that wildly dissimilar themes (sportsmen trying to make it big in Asia), Benny’s Smashing Machine has a lot more love for its lead than Josh’s Marty Supreme. You might remember I found the latter intolerable, but accomplished, whereas this one is substantially more tolerable (substance abuse included), yet it amounts to a patchwork of stories that never really come together. Dwayne Johnson is a presence as Mark Kerr and Emily Blunt plays his nitroglycerine girlfriend Dawn. The gang is rounded out with Ryan Bader’s Mark Coleman who somehow gets promoted from support to lead by the end of it all, at least in terms of the emotional demands made on the viewer. While the romantic situation is not particularly fleshed out and we’re supposed to just go along with the drama, it’s the camaraderie between the fighters that gives TSM some good vibes to work with. 6
Ready or Not 2: Here I Come (2026): Does this sequel deliver? Yes and no. Yes, in that it delivers more of the same. No, in that it delivers more of the same. Samara Weaving reprises her role as Grace and is put through pretty much the same motions, at a different management level. Her task is easier/more difficult as she has to protect her estranged sister. Naturally, throughout the movie the two grow closer and bitterness makes room for familial roots. As for the rest of our would-be antagonists, The Pitt’s Shawn Hatosy struggles to be the maniacal villain; fortunately, his goofier counterparts make for easier pairings. Having a scene with David Cronenberg was a surprise, even if it doesn’t add much to the proceedings. I guess the movie falls short on both ambition and pacing, taking a while to set up the obvious, then rushing through slicings and explosions at a tempo. It’s all okay for a lazy Saturday, not much else. 6
The Thing (2011): It’s always a pleasant surprise to watch something you think you haven’t (a Mary Elizabeth Winstead movie to have missed? highly sus) and then you actually do find the rating and it’s the same one you would give now. This prequel to the iconic John Carpenter movie features a solid cast, but plays very much by the numbers and is hampered by less than consistent special effects. The plot is pretty much what you would imagine: discover alien ship, breach containment of unknown entity and it all goes south really quickly. In spite of its enticing “who is compromised” game, when you have to rely on the dental hygiene of your characters, you know you’re pulling at straws. The movie never finds a rhythm, never tries to subvert expectations and then just ends abruptly and unsatisfactorily. Which is all a shame, because I did get the sense that there was something there that could have been explored. 5
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