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Beyond Fest · 2025

Beyond Fest 2025

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Programme

47 films · 34 reviews

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After The Hunt

Review preview for After The Hunt

Guadagnino is tilting at windmills and there isn’t even any wind.

Jennie Kermode · 2.5 out of 5
A college professor finds herself at a personal and professional crossroads when a star pupil levels an accusation against one of her colleagues and a dark secret from her own past threatens to come to light.

(Country: US, Italy; Year: 2025; Director: Luca Guadagnino; Writer: Nora Garrett; Stars: Julia Roberts, Andrew Garfield, Ayo Edebiri, Chloë Sevigny, Michael Stuhlbarg)

Full review

Angel's Egg (Tenshi No Tamago)

Review preview for Angel's Egg

Unutterably beautiful.

Jennie Kermode · 5 out of 5
A mysterious young girl wanders a desolate, otherworldly landscape, carrying a large egg.

(Country: Japan; Year: 1985; Director: Mamoru Oshii; Writer: Mamoru Oshii, Yoshitaka Amano; Stars: Mako Hyôdô, Jinpachi Nezu, Keiichi Noda)

Full review

Black Phone 2

As the teenager kidnapped in the original film struggles with life after captivity, his sister begins receiving calls in her dreams from the black phone and seeing disturbing visions of three boys being stalked at a winter camp known as Alpine Lake.

(Country: US; Year: 2025; Director: Scott Derrickson; Writer: C Robert Cargill, Scott Derrickson, Joe Hill; Stars: Mason Thames, Ethan Hawke, Anna Lore, Jeremy Davies, Madeleine McGraw, Demián Bichir, Miguel Mora, Arianna Rivas)

Blade II (Blade 2)

Wesley Snipes returns as the half human, half vampire destroyer of evil.

(Country: US; Year: 2002; Director: Guillermo del Toro; Writer: David S Goyer; Stars: Wesley Snipes, Kris Kristofferson, Ron Perlman, Leonor Varela, Norman Reedus, Thomas Kretschmann, Luke Goss, Matt Schulze, Danny John-Jules, Donnie Yen, Karel Roden, Tony Curran)

Full review

Bugonia

Review preview for Bugonia

While some directors spend their lives crafting love letters to the worlds they create, Yorgos Lanthimos has developed a fine line in cinematic hate mail to humanity.

Amber Wilkinson · 3 out of 5
Two conspiracy-obsessed young men kidnap the high-powered CEO of a major company, convinced that she is an alien intent on destroying planet Earth.

(Country: Ireland, South Korea, Canada, United States; Year: 2025; Director: Yorgos Lanthimos; Writer: Jang Joon-hwan, Will Tracy; Stars: Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons, Alicia Silverstone, Stavros Halkios)

Full review

Bulk

Review preview for Bulk

It's not a map, it's a blueprint, a means of telling fortunes and a handsome puzzle to boot.

Andrew Robertson · 4 out of 5
Sci-fi nightmare fusing head scrambling multiverse and a conspiracy of global proportions that might mean the end of the world as we know it.

(Country: UK; Year: 2025; Director: Ben Wheatley; Stars: Alexandra Maria Lara, Sam Riley, Noah Taylor, Mark Monero)

Full review

Bury Your Dead

A man embarks on an odyssey to save his girlfriend from a religious cult.

(Country: Brazil; Year: 2024; Director: Marco Dutra; Writer: Marco Dutra, Ana Paula Maia; Stars: Selton Mello, Marjorie Estiano, Danilo Grangheia, Betty Faria, Maria Manoella, Chao Chen, Vittória Seixas, Magali Biff, Carlos Francisco, Gustavo Coelho, Everson Anderson, Ricardo Gelli, Gilda Nomacce, Majeca Angelucci, Clarissa Kiste)

Big Trouble In Little China

A trucker gets drawn into an ancient mystical battle in Chinatown.

(Country: US; Year: 1986; Director: John Carpenter; Writer: Gary Goldman, David Z. Weinstein, W.D. Richter; Stars: Kurt Russell, Kim Cattrall, Dennis Dun, James Hong, Victor Wong, Kate Burton, Donald Li, Carter Wong, Peter Kwong, James Pax, Suzee Pai, Chao Li Chi, Jeff Imada, Rummel Mor, Craig Ng)

Cannibal Holocaust

Review preview for Cannibal Holocaust

Cannibal Holocaust is perhaps the ultimate example of a film that eats itself; it will be debated and misunderstood for years to come.

David Graham · 4 out of 5
A rescue team recovers found footage shot by a documentary team that set out to investigate lost cannibal tribes.

(Country: Italy; Year: 1980; Director: Ruggero Deodato; Writer: Gianfranco Clerici; Stars: Robert Kerman, Francesca Ciardi, Perry Pirkanen, Salvatore Basile, Carl Gabriel Yorke)

Full review See: Interview with Ruggero Deodato about Cannibal Holocaust and Cut And Run

Crimson Gold (Talaye Sorgh)

Review preview for Crimson Gold

Unobtrusive direction, naturalistic performances and humanist sentiment are de rigeur, along with sequences of guys driving around, as well as, more often than not, impenetrable night-for-night visuals.

Keith Hennessey Brown · 3.5 out of 5
Anatomy of a murder, Iranian style.

(Country: Iran; Year: 2003; Director: Jafar Panahi; Writer: Jafar Panahi; Stars: Hussein Emadeddin, Kamya Sheissi, Azita Rayeji, Shahram Vaziri, Ehsan Amani, Pourang Nakhayi)

Full review

Deathstalker

Review preview for Deathstalker

Cinema in its most metal form.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
When a ruthless warrior named Deathstalker steals a mysterious amulet from a dying man, he’s unwillingly thrust into a quest to stop the dark sorcerer Necromemnon and save the world from destruction.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2025; Director: Steven Kostanski; Writer: Steven Kostanski; Stars: Daniel Bernhardt, Christina Orjalo, Nina Bergman, Paul Lazenby, John Ambrose, Conor Sweeney, Laurie Field, John Clifford Talbot)

Full review See: Interview with Daniel Bernhardt about Deathstalker

Dracula

Review preview for Dracula

Somewhere between the low brow cock jokes and the high stakes – by which, I mean the sharp wooden pointy ones – Radu Jude serves up a sharp edged critique of populism, capitalism and the modern world.

Amber Wilkinson · 4 out of 5
Gonzo exploration of the Vlad the Impaler mythos.

(Country: Romania, Austria, Luxembourg; Year: 2025; Director: Radu Jude; Writer: Radu Jude; Stars: Adonis Tanța, Oana Maria Zaharia, Gabriel Spahiu, Ilinca Manolache, Alexandru Dabija, Andrada Balea, Doru Talos, Serban Pavlu, Lukas Miko, Neil Young. Alexandra .Harapu.)

Full review

Dr Strangelove Or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Bomb (Doctor Strangelove, Dr Strangelove)

Review preview for Dr Strangelove Or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Bomb

This film's sharp political observations are as relevant now as they ever were.

Jennie Kermode · 5 out of 5
Classic black comedy about frantic politicians trying to avert a nuclear war.

(Country: UK; Year: 1964; Director: Stanley Kubrick; Writer: Stanley Kubrick, based on the book by Peter George.; Stars: Peter Sellers, George C. Scott, Sterling Hayden, Keenan Wynn, Slim Pickens, Peter Bull, James Earl Jones, Tracy Reed) , Trailer

Full review

Dick Tracy

The detective battles Big Boy Caprice.

(Country: US; Year: 1990; Director: Warren Beatty; Writer: Chester Gould, Jim Cash, Jack Epps Jr; Stars: Warren Beatty, Charlie Korsmo, Michael Donovan O'Donnell, Jim Wilkey, Stig Eldred, Neil Summers, Chuck Hicks, Lawrence Steven Meyers, William Forsythe, Ed O'Ross, Glenne Headly, Marvellee Cariaga, Michael Gallup, Seymour Cassel, James Keane)

Every Heavy Thing

Review preview for Every Heavy Thing

Most of Reece’s works are first and foremost character studies, so it’s not surprising that his adherence to plot doesn’t last; the film is better for it.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
An unassuming office worker at an online periodical becomes entangled in a conspiracy after witnessing a murder.

(Country: US; Year: 2025; Director: Mickey Reece; Writer: Mickey Reece; Stars: Josh Fadem, Vera Drew, Tipper Newton, John Ennis, Barbara Crampton)

Full review See: Interview with Mickey Reece about Every Heavy Thing

Female Prisoner #701: Scorpion (Joshuu 701-gô: Sasori, Female Convict Scorpion)

Review preview for Female Prisoner #701: Scorpion

As much an arthouse as a grindhouse film.

Keith Hennessey Brown · 4 out of 5
After a failed escape a female convict is thrown into solitary, only for her ex to take out a hit on her.

(Country: Japan; Year: 1972; Director: Shunya Ito; Writer: Fumio Konami, Hiro Matsuda; Stars: Meiko Kaji, Rie Yokoyama, Isao Natsuyagi, Fumio Watanabe, Yayoi Watanabe, Yôko Mihara)

Full review See: Japanese cinema of the 1960s and 70s showing as part of Wild Japan touring festival

Fuck My Son!

A desperate mother drags an innocent stranger into an absurd, filthy nightmare beyond comprehension (it says here).

(Country: US; Year: 2025; Director: Todd Rohal; Writer: Todd Rohal, Johnny Ryan; Stars: Tipper Newton, Steve Little, Robert Longstreet, Kynzie Colmery)

The Furious

A father fights fiercely against ruthless kidnappers to save his abducted daughter.

(Country: Hong Kong, China; Year: 2025; Director: Kenji Tanigaki; Writer: Frank Hui, Zhilong Lei, Tin Shu Mak; Stars: Joe Taslim, Sahajak Boonthanakit, Yayan Ruhian, JeeJa Yanin, Miao Xe, Brian Le, Enyou Yang)

Frankenstein

Classic rendering of the story of the mad scientist who wants to create life.

(Country: US; Year: 1931; Director: James Whale; Writer: Mary Shelley, Peggy Webling, John L Balderston, Francis Edward Faragoh, Garrett Fort, Robert Florey, John Russell; Stars: Colin Clive, Mae Clarke, John Boles, Boris Karloff, Edward Van Sloan, Frederick Kerr, Dwight Frye, Lionel Belmore, Marilyn Harris, Ted Billings)

Good Boy

Review preview for Good Boy

In Good Boy, Indy the dog delivers not only a great animal performance, but one of the best performances by anyone this year.

Jennie Kermode · 5 out of 5
Indy is a good boy; a faithful dog, he is always by his human Todd’s side. When Todd seeks quiet in an empty family home in the countryside, Indy finds there is a strange, malevolent presence lurking in the shadows — an evil that only he can sense.

(Country: US; Year: 2024; Director: Ben Leonberg; Stars: Indy, Shane Jensen, Larry Fessenden, Arielle Friedman, Stuart Rudin, Anya Krawcheck, Hunter Goetz, Max)

Full review

Hellcat

Review preview for Hellcat

Hellcat is an unforgettable ride.

Jennie Kermode · 5 out of 5
A woman wakes in the back of a moving camper trailer with a badly infected wound. A voice from the truck towing it tells her they must reach a doctor within the hour or she'll suffer a horrific fate.

(Country: US; Year: 2025; Director: Brock Bodell; Writer: Brock Bodell; Stars: Dakota Gorman, Todd Terry, Jordan Mullins, Elise Horn, Liz Atwater)

Full review See: Interview with Dakota Gorman about Hellcat

A Hidden Life

Review preview for A Hidden Life

One of the flaws of Malick’s film is that the main character goes into introspective mode, thereby depriving us of any real insight in to his thoughts.

Richard Mowe · 3 out of 5
The Austrian Franz Jägerstätter, a conscientious objector, refuses to fight for the Nazis in World War II.

(Country: US, Germany; Year: 2019; Director: Terrence Malick; Writer: Terrence Malick; Stars: August Diehl, Valerie Pachner, Michael Nyqvist, Matthias Shoenaerts, Jürgen Prochnow, Bruno Ganz)

Full review

Hold The Fort

Review preview for Hold The Fort

It’s a bit of lightweight fluff, but it has no pretensions, and its heroes are easy to like.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
After moving to the suburbs, a young couple are trapped in an epic battle between their new HOA and an onslaught of monsters from hell.

(Country: US; Year: 2025; Director: William Bagley; Writer: William Bagley, Scott Hawkins; Stars: Mark Ashworth, George Quinones, Chris Mayers, Julian Smith, Michelle I Lamb, Ryan Monolopolus)

Full review See: Interview with William Bagley, Chris Mayers and Levi Burdick about Hold The Fort

The Ice Tower (La Tour De Glace)

Review preview for The Ice Tower

Cotillard is at her very best as a character we see only from the sidelines – earthy and opinionated in flashes, yet frozen by her art.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
Colder than ice, her kiss pierces the heart ... The 1970s. Jeanne, a young runaway, falls under the spell of Cristina, the enigmatic star of The Snow Queen, a film which is being shot in the studio where Jeanne has taken refuge.

(Country: France, Germany, Italy; Year: 2025; Director: Lucile Hadzihalilovic; Writer: Geoff Cox, Lucile Hadzihalilovic; Stars: Marion Cotillard, Gaspar Noé, August Diehl, Clara Pacini, Lila-Rose Gilberti, Carmen Haidacher, Wilhelm Bonnelle, Raphael Reboul, Marine Gesbert)

Full review

If I Had Legs I'd Kick You

Review preview for If I Had Legs I'd Kick You

Rose Byrne anchors the whole damn thing with a performance that gives the sense of wobbling for eternity on a tightrope without ever quite falling off.

Jeremy Mathews · 4 out of 5
With her life crashing down around her, Linda attempts to navigate her child’s mysterious illness, her absent husband, a missing person, and an increasingly hostile relationship with her therapist.

(Country: US; Year: 2025; Director: Mary Bronstein; Writer: Mary Bronstein; Stars: Rose Byrne, Danielle Macdonald, Josh Pais, Daniel Zolghadri, Ivy Wolk, Conan O'Brien, A$AP Rocky, Helen Hong, Ella Beatty, Delaney Quinn, Mark Stolzenberg, Lark White, Eva Kornet)

Full review

In A Cold Vein

After escaping an attempted assassination, a professional criminal will stop at nothing to find who is behind his attempted murder, and to make sure his beloved family is safe.

(Country: US; Year: 2025; Director: Eric Owen; Stars: Evan Gamble, Brian Villalobos, P Michael Hayes, Mor Cohen)

It Was Just an Accident (Un Simple Accident)

Review preview for It Was Just an Accident

The takes are usually long and static, but every cut and move is justified for the purpose of dramaturgy.

Marko Stojiljkovic · 4 out of 5
What begins as a minor accident sets in motion a series of escalating consequences.

(Country: Iran, France, Luxembourg; Year: 2025; Director: Jafar Panahi; Writer: Jafar Panahi; Stars: Madjid Panahi, Ebrahim Azizi, Vahid Mobasseri, Mariam Afshari)

Full review See: Jafar Panahi on inspiration for It Was Just An Accident

I Live Here Now

Review preview for I Live Here Now

While the film's ambition should be saluted it falls short in ways that frustrate.

Andrew Robertson · 2 out of 5
A woman finds herself trapped in a remote hotel where the violent echoes of her past come alive, blurring the lines between her darkest nightmares and the waking world.

(Country: US; Year: 2025; Director: Julie Pacino; Writer: Julie Pacino; Stars: Madeline Brewer, Lucy Fry, Sheryl Lee, Matt Rife, Cara Seymour, Alex Gaumond, Sarah Rich)

Full review See: Interview with Julie Pacino and Lucy Fry about I Live Here now

Manhunter

Review preview for Manhunter

Cox's Hannibal is a masterclass in moderation.

Amber Wilkinson · 4.5 out of 5
A scarred FBI agent tracks a serial killer.

(Country: US; Year: 1986; Director: Michael Mann; Writer: Thomas Harris, Michael Mann; Stars: William Petersen, Kim Greist, Joan Allen, Brian Cox, Dennis Farina, Tom Noonan, Stephen Lang, David Seaman, Benjamin Hendrickson, Michael Talbott, Dan Butler, Michele Shay, Robin Moseley, Paul Perri, Patricia Charbonneau)

Full review See: Article about journalism in film , Article about Blindness and blind people in cinema

Ms .45

A timid woman, who is violently raped, starts to exact vengeance on the streets of New York.

(Country: US; Year: 1981; Director: Abel Ferrara; Writer: Nicholas St John; Stars: Zoë Lund, Bogey, Albert Sinkys, Darlene Stuto, Helen McGara, Nike Zachmanoglou, Abel Ferrara, Peter Yellen, Editta Sherman, Vincent Gruppi, Stanley Timms, Faith Peters, Lawrence Zavaglia, Alex Jachno, Jack Thibeau)

New Group

A high school student sees her world collapse when a strange cult-like mentality gradually turns people around her into mindless followers who can transform simple gymnastics routines into a nightmarish dance of death.

(Country: Japan; Year: 2025; Director: Yûta Shimotsu; Writer: Yûta Shimotsu; Stars: Anna Yamada)

Night Patrol

An LA cop discovers a local task force is hiding a secret that puts the residents of his childhood neighbourhood in danger.

(Country: US; Year: 2025; Director: Ryan Prows; Writer: Tim Cairo, Jake Gibson, Shaye Ogbonna; Stars: Dermot Mulroney, Justin Long, CM Punk, Nicki Micheaux)

Nirvanna The Band The Show The Movie

Review preview for Nirvanna The Band The Show The Movie

The underlying formula is a simple one but the chaos around it is managed magnificently so that you can never be sure what will happen next.

Jennie Kermode · 5 out of 5
When their plan to book a show at the Rivoli goes horribly wrong, Matt and Jay accidentally travel back to the year 2008.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2025; Director: Matt Johnson; Writer: Matt Johnson, Jay McCarrol; Stars: Matt Johnson, Jay McCarrol, Ben Petrie, Luke Lalonde, Ethan Eng, Anthony Fantano, Michael Scott)

Full review

No Other Choice (Eojjeol suga eopda)

Review preview for No Other Choice

Park keeps inviting us to laugh, then forcing us to confront what, exactly, we’re laughing at.

Edin Custo · 4 out of 5
When a man loses his job he finds himself drifting before deciding to take things into his own hands...

(Country: South Korea; Year: 2025; Director: Park Chan-wook; Writer: Park Chan-wook, Lee Kyoung-mi, Don McKellar, Jahye Lee; Stars: Lee Byung-hun, Son Yej-in, Park Hee-soon, Lee Sung-min, Yeom Hye-ran, Cha Seung-won)

Full review

Primate

Review preview for Primate

I didn't go in with high expectations but I was thrilled.

Andrew Robertson · 3.5 out of 5
Home from college, Lucy reunites with family including pet chimp Ben. Ben contracts rabies during a pool party and turns aggressive. Lucy and her friends barricade themselves in the pool, devising ways to survive the vicious chimp.

(Country: US; Year: 2026; Director: Johannes Roberts; Writer: Ernest Riera, Johannes Roberts; Stars: Kevin McNally, Johnny Sequoyah, Troy Kotsur, Jessica Alexander, Kae Alexander, Gia Hunter)

Full review

Queens Of The Dead

Review preview for Queens Of The Dead

Tina Romero is in her element.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
On what should be a fun night at a Brooklyn warehouse party, an outbreak of flesh-eating zombies forces a ragtag group of drag queens, partygoers and party-throwers to band together and somehow survive the night.

(Country: US; Year: 2025; Director: Tina Romero; Writer: Erin Judge, Tina Romero; Stars: Katy O'Brian, Riki Lindhome, Margaret Cho, Jack Haven, Shaunette Renée Wilson, Cheyenne Jackson, Tom Savini, Eve Lindley, Danielle Vasinova, Dominique Jackson, Quincy Dunn-Baker, Kimball Farley, Becca Blackwell, Quentin Nguyen-Duy, Jaquel Spivey)

Full review See: Interview with Tina Romero about Queens Of The Dead

The Ring

Review preview for The Ring

The performances by Naomi Watts and Martin Henderson are intense and charming.

Angus Wolfe Murray · 3.5 out of 5
Remake of Japanese horror film of a killer video tape and a demonic ghost child.

(Country: US/Japan; Year: 2002; Director: Gore Verbinski; Writer: Ehren Kruger, based on the film, Ringu, directed by Hideo Nakata; Stars: Naomi Watts, Martin Henderson, David Dorfman, Brian Cox, Jane Alexander, Lindsay Frost, Amber Tamblyn, Rachael Bella, Daveigh Chase, Shannon Cochran)

Full review

Reflection In A Dead Diamond (Reflet Dans Un Diamant Mort)

Review preview for Reflection In A Dead Diamond

For something so lovely, it is hard-edged, and it sparkles with visual wit.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
When the mysterious woman in the room next door disappears, a debonair 70-year-old ex-spy living in a luxury hotel on the Côte d’Azur is confronted by the demons and darlings of a lurid past in which moviemaking, memories and madness collide.

(Country: Belgium, Luxembourg, Italy, France; Year: 2025; Director: Hélène Cattet, Bruno Forzani; Stars: Maria de Medeiros, Koen De Bouw, Fabio Testi, Yannick Renier, Barbara Hellemans, Thi Mai Nguyen, Céline Camara, Kezia Quintal)

Full review See: Interview with Hélène Cattet and Bruno Forzani about Reflection In A Dead Diamond

Resurrection (Kuang Ye Shi Dai)

In a world where humanity has lost the ability to dream, one creature remains entranced by the fading illusions of the dreamworld. This monster, adrift in reverie, clings to visions no one else can see - until a woman appears. Gifted with the rare power to perceive these illusions for what they truly are, she chooses to enter the monster’s dreams, determined to uncover the truth that lies hidden within.

(Country: China, France; Year: 2025; Director: Bi Gan; Writer: Bi Gan; Stars: Shu Qi, Jackson Yee, Mark Chao, Chloe Maayan, Jue Huang, Gengxi Li, Zhijian Zhang, Yongzhong Chen, Mucheng Guo)

The Secret Agent (O Agente Secreto)

Review preview for The Secret Agent

Marcelo is at home in the fine tradition of flicks where the fact that they are an agent is mainly a secret to them.

Anne-Katrin Titze · 4.5 out of 5
Brazil, 1977. Marcelo, a technology expert in his early 40s, is on the run. He arrives in Recife during carnival week, hoping to reunite with his son but soon realises that the city is far from being the non-violent refuge he seeks.

(Country: Brazil, France, Netherlands, Germany; Year: 2025; Director: Kleber Mendonça Filho; Writer: Kleber Mendonça Filho; Stars: Wagner Moura, Udo Kier, Gabriel Leone, Maria Fernanda Cândido, Hermila Guedes, Alice Carvalho, Thomás Aquino, Isabél Zuaa, Suzy Lopes, João Vitor Silva, Roney Villela, Rubens Santos, Luciano Chirolli, Buda Lira, Jimmy Astley)

Full review

The Serpent's Skin

Review preview for The Serpent's Skin

Alice Maio Mackay’s...most accessible film to date.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
A young woman leaves her transphobic small-town, and develops a romance with tattoo artist Gen with whom she shares a paranormal connection. But their deep-rooted insecurities unknowingly release a demon, which possesses one of their ex-lovers and begins feeding on their friends by sucking out their lifeforce.

(Country: Australia; Year: 2025; Director: Alice Maio Mackay; Writer: Alice Maio Mackay, Benjamin Pahl Robinson; Stars: Alexandra McVicker, Avalon Fast, Jordan Dulieu, Charlotte Grimes)

Full review See: Interview with Alice Maio Mackay, Alexandra McVicker and Avalon Fast about The Serpent’s Skin

Shelby Oaks

Review preview for Shelby Oaks

Stuckmann and co-writer Sam Liz keep it all under tight control, even when the imagery suggests chaos or excess.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
A woman's desperate search for her long-lost sister falls into obsession upon realising that the imaginary demon from their childhood may have been real.

(Country: US; Year: 2024; Director: Chris Stuckmann; Writer: Sam Liz, Chris Stuckmann; Stars: Camille Sullivan, Sarah Durn, Michael Beach, Keith David, Brendan Sexton III)

Full review

Sirât (Sirat)

Review preview for Sirât

The film looks amazing, but it sounds even more incredible.

Richard Mowe · 4 out of 5
A father arrives at a rave deep in the mountains of southern Morocco with his son, looking for his daughter who has been missing for months.

(Country: Spain, France; Year: 2025; Director: Óliver Laxe; Writer: Santiago Fillol, Óliver Laxe; Stars: Sergi López, Bruno Núñez)

Full review See: Interview with Kangding Ray about Sirât

Sisu: Road To Revenge

Review preview for Sisu: Road To Revenge

I was entertained, in much the same way but not to the same extent as the first outing.

Andrew Robertson · 2.5 out of 5
Returning to the house where his family was brutally murdered during the war, “the man who refuses to die” dismantles it, loads it on a truck, and is determined to rebuild it somewhere safe in their honour. When the Red Army commander who killed his family comes back hellbent on finishing the job, a relentless cross-country chase ensues

(Country: Finland; Year: 2025; Director: Jalmari Helander; Writer: Jalmari Helander; Stars: Jorma Tommila, Stephen Lang, Richard Brake, Einar Haraldsson, Jaako Hutchings, Ergo Küppas, Anton Klink)

Full review

Stand By Me

Review preview for Stand By Me

A thoroughly feel-good movie.

Gabriella Trybalska · 4.5 out of 5
Four young friends journey into the woods to investigate a death.

(Country: US; Year: 1986; Director: Rob Reiner; Writer: Raynold Gideon based on the story by Stephen King; Stars: Wil Wheaton, River Phoenix, Corey Feldman, Jerry O'Connell, Kiefer Sutherland, Richard Dreyfuss)

Full review

To Live And Die in LA

Secret Service agents trying to convict a counterfeiter resort to illegal methods. An action-packed thriller with Willem Dafoe countering the machismo of the federal agents with sardonic charm.

(Director: William Friedkin; Stars: William L. Petersen, Willem Dafoe, John Pankow, Debra Feuer, John Turturro)

V/H/S/Halloween

Review preview for V/H/S/Halloween

With a wrap-around story by Scotland’s own short film maestro Bryan M Ferguson, we are guaranteed at least some high quality entertainment.

Jennie Kermode · 2 out of 5
A collection of Halloween-themed videotapes unleashes a series of twisted, blood-soaked tales, turning trick-or-treat into a struggle for survival.

(Country: US; Year: 2025; Director: Bryan M Ferguson, Casper Kelly, Micheline Pitt-Norman & RH Norman, Alex Ross Perry, Paco Plaza, Anna Zlokovic; Writer: Bryan M Ferguson, RH Norman, Micheline Pitt, Anna Zlokovic; Stars: Lawson Greyson, Riley Nottingham, Isabella Feliciana, Jenna Hogan, Samantha Cochran, Juliana Danielle Ferreira, Bianca Thomson, Layton Khan)

Full review