Immediate Response: Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey (2026)

 Before I see the big Tom Holland Film this Summer, I needed to see...the big Tom Holland Film of the Summer.

Look- I just went to see...

The Good

* The Film is epic is scope and absolutely delivers on what you expect from 'Christopher Nolan does The Odyssey.'  Clearly, they cut NO corners.

* The Acting is really good across the board, from the Leads like Damon and Holland to people in smaller, but integral roles like Page and Nyong'o.

* All of the moments you expect to see are here (in some form or another). 
The Cyclops is a real standout, from the FX to the overall execution.

* Everyone gets a moment to shine here, which is great to see in a Film like this.
* The Score deserves a mention here.  Big, booming and a big highlight.

The Bad

* The Film has some really violent moments in it.  Just a warning for anyone who, you know, doesn't know the Story.

* I don't necessarily know if this one needed to be told somewhat out of order (not to the extent of Oppenheimer).  It's not a huge deal, but the framing is notable.

* This is probably just a 'me' thing, but they built up finally showing us Agamemnon for so long that when we see him, I was expecting some big surprise Star.  Not a knock on the guy, but I was expecting someone else.

* It's a shame that things like them changing how the Gods are represented to who they cast in certain roles.  

Honestly, don't let it keep you from seeing this!

Please don't judge the Film on the many Fake AI Image Generated Trailers either. 
Like...why is this a thing?

Nolan does Nolan stuff with a big Budget and a retelling of a literal Epic.

Is It Bad?: Spider-Man 3 (2007)

Is Raimi's final Spider-Man Film the worst one ever?

Spider-Man 3 is a contentious Film to many people, myself included.

After nearly 20 years, I gave this one another shot.

Pro: We get to see Peter and Mary Jane happy.  They were kept apart in various ways for the last 2 Films.

They are doing well on their own and they are happy.

Enjoy it while you can!

Pro: Harry Osborn's Arc comes to a head, which is a great use of the Film Trilogy format.  He becomes like this Father and tries to kill Peter.

Con: The Plot Point of him getting amnesia is not great for a single Film. 
Like other parts of the Film, having him set up for Spider-Man 4 would have helped.

Pro: The arc of him being Peter's friend is still good though.

Pro: Sandman is a good villain.  I'm glad that technology caught up enough to make him work on screen.

His Arc as a guy who had 'bad luck' and did bad things is good.

Con: Having his Origin tied to a retcon about Uncle Ben's death was a big miss.
There were other ways to make Peter hate him.

Pro: Tobey (as Peter) really commits to the slow, subtle changes to his personality because of the Symbiote.

Pro: Finally introducing Gwen and Captain Stacy is great.
Con: The Film does almost nothing with them, especially Captain Stacy.

If there's a Spider-Man 4 (as there should be for this Plot), they could do more with him.

Pro: I don't hate Emo Peter acting cool.
Con: Every Lead in the Film clearly was auditioning for Musical Theater Roles in this Film.
Dunst sings in the Play and dances with Franco.  Maguire does...jumping?

Con: James Franco.
Do I need to explain this?

Pro: He's honestly decent in this, especially when you're supposed to hate him.  It just feels...natural.

Pro: Venom looks cool and I do like the Arc setting up Eddie Brock as Venom.

Con: This is a great set-up...for Spider-Man 4.

Seriously, set up a villainous Franco and Grace for that Film.  Use another villain- like Mysterio- if you want too.

Just this Arc being rushed is too much.

Pro: The chaotic Final Battle- rushed as the Character Arcs are- is cool.

Con: The aftermath is paced oddly, with a prolonged bit with Sandman and then one with Franco.
It's not quite full Return of the King.

Con: The Film doesn't end with him proposing.  Weird to drop that, no?

What is Good?

The Acting is really good.  Every returning Actor nails their parts here.
J. Jonah even gets some great moments of comeuppance that Simmons plays well.

The Visual Effects are really good here, mostly.  They attempted to blend the Live-Action and CGI Models together.  They *mostly* hold up in HD.

The Character Designs and overall Production Values are great.  Even the new Score is good.

*

What is Bad?

Too much Plot for one Film.  It's the obvious answer.

Pick Sandman and keep the Franco opening bit and return- just save the blow-off for Part 4.  Same with the Venom set-up.

The Film can also come off a bit melodramatic at times.  Raimi and Company have moments of that in other Films, but this one is especially notable.

There are not a million bad things- just a few big ones that define the Film.

So...

Is It Bad?

NO.

The Film is disappointing and certainly a victim of Studio overreach.  Raimi has made it clear that Venom was a Studio mandate.
I just wish that they could have worked things out Plot-wise, because so much of the Film is good!

Like X-Men 3: The Last Stand, enough time has passed for me to look at this with a broader, less emotional viewpoint.  It's still disappointing in the wake of just how great Spider-Man 2 is.

Shudder Day: Exit 8 (2025/6)

Liminal Horror.
Do you need to Google what that means?

When you're done, check out the one that is NOT Backrooms.

This, instead, is...

An unnamed man rides the Tokyo Subway, ignoring bad behavior by those along the way.

He goes to meet his Girlfriend at the Hospital and just needs to take Exit 8.

A simple task.

One long hallway.
A Corner.
Exit...1?

As he soon figures out, he's stuck in a Loop known as Exit 8.

He has to go back if there are anomalies (like a sign changed) or keep going if things are normal.

Easier said than done though.

Things get creepier as time goes on.

The Film also sometimes switches focus to the other people we sometimes see like The Walking Man.

As things get worse and quite strange, can the Unknown Man learn more about himself and why he ended up in this place.

With a kid in peril, can he rise to the occasion?

Can he regain his future?

To find out, stream it now.

A Film that has a thin premise and tries to make the most of it.

If you don't know and didn't Google it first, Liminal Horror is about people being trapped in spaces with no end, usually in the form of a loop.

This one is shiny and not yellow, which is a plus.

The early parts of the Film are going to be what hopefully hook you.  As things go on, the sense of familiarity works with and against the Film.

There are occasional glimpses of other locations- for reasons I won't SPOIL- so they clearly knew that this was a potential issue.

If you stick with the middle parts, the Ending will definitely hook you and feel satisfying.
Just be on the lookout for moments that make you react like this...

A Film with a great premise that is, admittedly, difficult to adapt into a Film.  I think that it mostly succeeds and will live on in my memory for a while.

Forgotten TV: The Outer Limits - 'Afterlife'

 We continue to look at the BEST Episodes of the 1990s Series, at least as far as User Ratings are concerned.

This time, a familiar Character Actor + The Military + Aliens = Excitement?

This is...

A man- Clancy Brown- is sentenced to death for the Murder of 11 People.

He says that he's innocent...and then suddenly he's offered a new lease on life!

There's a catch, of course.

To live, he must submit to an experiment for the Military.

Sadly, he does not become Captain America.

Instead, he's being injected with Alien DNA to see how his body reacts to it.

'Not well' is the answer.

He continues to state his innocence and outright blames the Military for framing him.

His higher ups (including the Hippie Dad from Dharma and Greg) don't believe him or care.

Brown continues to transform.

He eventually seems to become a brand new, hybrid life form and escapes from his cell.
Aliens were big at this time, with Species and all that.

He escapes, but that was the plan.
He also KNEW it was the plan and went along with it.

However, there's still one more twist...that I won't SPOIL for once.

To find out, stream the Episode now.

Is this truly the best non-Time Travel Episode?  I'd argue 'yes,' but it is a close one.

The Plot is pretty good here, with Brown's Character and his transformation getting the right focus.  We get a hint of the other stuff going on, but he's the main attraction.

He's really good here too.  You really believe him and feel for his plight.  
Clancy Brown 100% makes this work.

The make-up work is well done, as you get a nice hint of in this piece.  We see the change gradually happen and they do it with no morphing effects.
Was it even legal to NOT use morphing effects in the 1990s?!?

Joking aside, this one is really, really good.  The Acting across the board makes it work, the intrigue as it plays out is nice and the resolution works very well.

It's also a thrifty Episode, as we see the cryogenic container from 'The Heist' make a reappearance!

Next time, we go on Air Force One for a 'Bottle Episode' of sorts.  Do you risk your life or trust a stranger?  Stay tuned...

Tubi Thursday: Don't Be Afraid of the Dark (2010)

Guillermo Del Toro was apparently a big fan of the 1973 TV Movie.

As such, we got a Remake in Theaters in 2010.

Let's see if it was necessary...

In a Flashback Scene, a guy named Lord Blackwood makes a sacrifice to some unseen creatures to free his Son.

It goes poorly.

In the Present, a divorced Dad (Guy Pearce) and his new Girlfriend (Katie Holmes) move into the same House.

His Daughter is forced to move in with him too.

She's not happy.
Not about any of this.

She uncovers the hidden entrance to the Basement, in spite of the Groundskeeper's protests.

She opens the grate and the unseen creatures try to bring her comfort.

When she finally sees them, however, they are far less friendly.

Their lashing out against the Parents makes her look guilty as well, which doesn't help.

Holmes believes the girl- as much as she can- and gives her a polaroid camera, knowing that whatever she sees is afraid of light.

Can she finally convince people that the creatures are real?
Can Holmes find out what is going on?

Do I kind of miss the furry guys with almond shaped heads?

To find out the answers to (most of) those questions, stream it now.

A Remake that does its own thing most of the time.

That said, this one feels familiar in many ways.

Del Toro is one of the 3 Writers (counting the 1973 Film's Writer) and boy, does it show!

It takes place at a Gothic Mansion, has a kid experiencing fairy tale trauma, the creatures are a form of fairies and the Dad is not a lot of help.

I'll just say this too- making the Heroine into a kid is a Cheat Code for mining sympathy.

If you don't know the Original, you won't see the story beats from it (the groundskeeper being attacked, tripping people with the rope).

Again- this Film is much more than just the same Film again.

Even so, I feel like if we just got someone like Del Toro to make an updated version of the original in its essence, it would be better.

As it is, I feel pulled between two divergent opinions- this is different and should it be?

A Film that is thankfully more than just a shinier, CGI-filled Remake.  That said, it is too familiar in about every other way.

Rare Flix: Don't Be Afraid of the Dark (1973)

 Is it possible to scare lots of people with a simple TV Movie?

Don't Be Afraid of the Dark was, you guessed it, a TV Movie from 1973.  It was made as part of a TV Movie Series for ABC.

Back before VHS, DVD and later Streaming, Movies of the Week were a big deal.  Think of them like Netflix Originals, but for the bunny ears on TVs Generation.

The Plot involves a young Couple who move into a House and the Wife is drawn to a bricked up fireplace.  This didn't end well for the Amityville bunch, but will it here?

She eventually learns that something was living down there and now its free.  As a liberated '70s woman, however, everyone thinks that she's just nuts!

Can she solve the mystery and save, well, herself?

To find out, read on...

A young couple settle on an old House to live in while the Husband works towards a promotion.

Something about this locked room with a bricked off fireplace draws the Wife to it.

The Handyman tells her to leave things alone and that it is impossible to mess with it.

These two facts seem contradictory.

He also doesn't just explain things, so the Movie can happen.

The Movie happens, naturally, and she does open the fireplace.

After she leaves, we see a green glow and strange voices talking.

Weird stuff happens around the House, but only around her.

Her Husband thinks that she's just stressed and imagining things.

'70s Husbands were the worst!

As it turns out, she was right.

There are weird little...whatever they are that escaped.

They want her.  But why?!?

They plan to go after her while the Husband is away meeting with a client.

It also seems that the creatures change sizes as they were last seen the size of a switchblade.  The next time, they are as tall as trash cans.

The Wife and her Friend are at the House while he's still away.

They take the power out and put some sleeping pills (given to her by a Doctor) in the lady's coffee.

The friend gets locked outside- these guys are fast as hell!- while the Husband leaves to get the information from the Handyman.

The House was built in the 19th Century and the Man who owned it was dragged down the fireplace hole, hence it being boarded up.

Can they get there in time to save the Wife as she's being dragged away by the creatures?

Nope- it's the '70s.
People were really bleak then.

Sorry- I hope you have better luck in the Remake.

A strong, tightly focused tale of terror (with a few silly details).

It should be noted that this one was fast-tracked into Production on account of a looming Writer's Strike.  It was done in just two weeks.

With that in mind, the final product is still pretty darn good.
The Plot works, making you empathize with this poor woman that nobody believes.

The main issue- the creatures.

They look odd and creepy- no question.
The look of them aside, they change in scale, their mouths don't move and we don't really know why they are doing what they are doing.

If you can accept how strange and kind of silly the creatures are, you can have a good, frightful time!

Next up, I check out a Horror Comedy that I've been putting off for ages.  If you like Wolves, you're in luck, right?  Stay tuned...

My Crazy Youth: The X-Men Episode With Charles Darwin!

 The original X-Men Cartoon is a classic.

That said, the final Season was weird for numerous reasons (that are widely available online).
All you need to know here is that a different team of Animators worked on it and whatever leftover Stories there were got used.

That's how we got the penultimate Episode of the Series called 'Descent'

With just one Episode to go before the Series Finale (which is still not great), they decided to do an entire Episode about Mr. Sinister's backstory.

Sure- why not?!?

Jack the Ripper is on the loose in 19th Century England.

On the case is James Xavier (Charles' ancestor) who says that he knows who the killer is.

Nathaniel Essex!

He tells a long flashback tale (inside of a flashback tale) about how he was friends with Essex years ago (he has no muttonchops in these Scenes) and tried to help cure his ailing wife.

Both of them met Charles Darwin as he was promoting The Origin of Species.
Essex looks up to him and wants to show off his work.

Said work turns out to be unlocking the latent powers in Mutants, which is viewed as a parlor trick.

He disappears into his work, beginning to experiment on himself (getting his white skin and powers) and his wife.

Xavier finally investigates his Asylum and finds it to be hellish.

Essex loses his Wife's affection when she sees his condition (like glowing red eyes) and he escapes.

In the Present (of the initial Flashback), we learn that he created Jack as a Mutant and he makes a getaway to America, leaving the signed book from Darwin behind.

In the actual Present, Charles Xavier wakes up (did he just see that?) and puts the book away, possibly hearing his ancestor's words about someone hunting down Sinister.

Sinister appeared in the 2-Part Opener and not again.

A weird attempt to fill in the blanks at a late hour, but I can at least appreciate the flex here.

Saban and Company had made many, many X-Men Episodes at this point.  I don't fault them for wanting to try something new.

The main problems are the same ones that affect this entire Season- Production Values.
The Characters look alright, but feel like the 2nd pass (of at least 3) at the final product.

The timing and placement of this is odd too.  Why do his Origin Story now of all times?
Slip it into Season 3, maybe?

Having an entire Flashback Episode with NO X-Men in it was also strange.  Is there a way to tell this with a better Framing Device than 'Xavier sleeps with the Book next to him?'
There had to be.

Lastly, having a literal appearance by Charles Darwin here is very, VERY on the nose.  Referencing him- sure.  Having him Guest-Star- that's too much.

There's so much weird that I can't even get into the 'Mr. Sinister created Jack the Ripper' Plot!  It's still not as weird as Manimal becoming a Time Traveler to stop him though!

Part of me wonders if this will ever be mentioned in X-Men '97 at some point.  I doubt it!