Character Spotlight- Skye Riley-Smile 2

 **This post contains spoilers**

Skye Riley (Naomi Scott) is back! The comeback tour is in full swing, after a successful and positive interview on The Drew Barrymore Show. The wildly popular pop star is almost ready to start a highly anticipated world tour, but there’s one big problem: Skye is the next target for the tortuous curse that already claimed the lives of Dr. Rose Cotter (Sosie Bacon) and Joel (Kyle Gallner).

Rose and Joel didn’t have the luxury of a solid support system around them to help fight the curse. Skye? Yes, you could say she’s surrounded by people, who actually care about her, including her mother, Elizabeth (Rosemarie DeWitt), her assistant, Joshua (Miles Gutierrez-Riley), and Darius (Raul Castillo), the head of Skye’s record label. But everyone in Skye’s circle has one main goal in common: they’re all there to keep the machine known as Skye Riley running smoothly, at full speed, and Skye is a machine that prints a lot of money. 

Is Skye a diva and a brat sometimes? Yeah, she’ll throw her tantrums and she can be demanding, but we’re also talking about a young woman, who’s clearly burnt out. Skye is cracking under the pressure in real time. Keeping up with appearances, photo shoots, dance rehearsals, autograph signings, and Skye having to give a speech at a disastrous banquet dinner. 

The life of a world famous pop star is exhausting. Always on move, constantly surrounded by people, and you’re always expected to present the absolute best version of yourself, whether it’s on stage during a performance, or if you’re just going out to do normal things that normal people do. No time to rest, breathe, or relax. It’s full speed ahead, move on to the next task, rinse and repeat, and maybe you can have some peace, when you’re sleeping. 

Labeling those closest to Skye as vultures is taking things too far. But there’s a fine line for pushing someone, when they need to be pushed, and pushing someone too hard to the point, where said person can’t take it anymore. They’re going to crack at some point, but you can sense more genuine compassion from Skye’s dance instructor/choreographer, Anton (Jon Rua). Anton is quick to suggest a break for Skye, when she shows signs of back pain. When Skye freaks out during a rehearsal after a gory mind trick from the curse, Skye berates her dancers. Anton? He’s quick to make an effort to help Skye calm down. He doesn’t get angry, or raise his voice, because he’s genuinely concerned.

The curse feeds off of trauma, and Skye can’t escape the demons from her past, a past filled with drug abuse, and a troubled relationship with her deceased boyfriend, Paul Hudson (Ray Nicholson). Skye is still carrying around the guilt for causing the accident that killed Paul. Skye also didn’t leave the accident unscathed, because she’s still dealing with chronic pain and nagging injuries. And Skye torpedoed her friendship with Gemma (Dylan Gelula).

Is Skye perfect? No, far from it, and there’s no denying she’s a flawed human being. But she’s also someone, who was clearly not ready for the spotlight at such a young age. She turned to drugs and a turbulent unhealthy lifestyle, because the pressure was just too much for her. Towards the end, you could see Skye was just sick and tired of being an icon, or in her own words, “a fucking wind-up doll.”

Skye truly suffered. She didn’t have one true moment of relief, when the curse entered her life. Eventually, it’s revealed the reunion with Gemma was just one long and elaborate mind trick from the entity, and Skye was devastated. Still, Skye tried to push forward, determined to break the curse’s chain, with some help from Morris (Peter Jacobson), a nurse, who lost his brother to the curse. The big problem with Morris’ plan to end the curse and stop The Monstrosity? Morris wasn’t real, just more mind games from the entity.

Skye pours her heart out in the freezer of an abandoned Pizza Hut, and we finally get to the root of her problems: Skye hates herself. You’ll hear bits and pieces of it, when Skye is urging Gemma to stay away from her, after Skye leaves the clinic. But Skye lets it all out in the freezer. She basically believes she’s a cancer, poisoning and ruining anything that she touches. 

Skye is a disappointment, because she couldn’t live up to the high expectations that everyone else set for her. This is what she believes, and of course the entity feasts off of Skye’s tortured soul. To make matters worse, Skye can’t forgive herself for causing the accident that killed Paul. 

Naomi Scott deserves a round of applause for her performance in the sequel. You can see and feel everything Skye is going through, including the stress, the anxiety, and the fear of not knowing what’s coming next. Scott delivers an energetic and appropriately frazzled performance. You would think Scott pounded energy drinks, or chugged a pot of coffee, because she never slows down or takes her foot off of the gas pedal, after the curse grabs a hold of Skye.

Rose Cotter was unknowingly targeted by the curse after Laura Weaver (Caitlin Stasey) committed suicide in front of her. Joel died, because he tried to help Rose. Skye? While it’s true there’s no way she could’ve known about the curse, or how truly dangerous it is, all of her troubles could’ve been avoided, if she wasn’t sneaking around to buy Vicodin from Lewis Fregoli (Lukas Gage).

You’re lead to believe Skye ALMOST defeated the curse. But in reality, Skye wasn’t seconds away from getting the better of the entity. She was trapped in an illusion. And Skye came face to face with a final boss, who was just too much to overcome: Herself. The entity took the form of the old Skye, bloody and battered, fresh off of the tragic car accident that acted as an anchor in her mind for so many years. 

There’s a lot of irony for Skye Riley’s gory and cruel ending. Under the influence of the curse, she bludgeoned herself to death with a microphone in front of thousands of her fans, while her mother, Joshua, and Darius watched in the audience. You can’t say Skye died doing what she loved, because her gas tank was empty for a number of reasons. She needed a breather, but Skye lost her life during a concert. 

Skye was trying to get away from the bright lights, the big stage, and all the fame, but doing whatever she had to do to (e.g. popping pain pills) keep her career going killed her. A screaming arena full of fans, and her loved ones watching her first concert after a hiatus wasn’t enough to break the entity’s tight grip. Instead, a shell-shocked Skye was frozen as she watched the entity, taking on the form of her current self, smiling at her seconds before The Monstrosity made its grand entrance to devour another victim. 

Character Spotlight- Joel- Smile & Smile 2

 

*This post contains spoilers**

Dr. Rose Cotter (Sosie Bacon) is cursed. She needs help, fast. Can she rely on her sister, Holly (Gillian Zinser)? Too much tension, bad blood, and bitterness on Rose’s side. And you can put the final nail in the coffin for the duo of two sisters working together after Holly’s son, Jackson (Matthew Lamb) receives the gory surprise of Rose’s dead cat, Mustache in a box for his birthday present.

Rose’s fiancé, Trevor (Jessie T. Usher)? He doesn’t believe Rose’s stories about “ghosts,” and he’s quick to remind Rose about the realistic possibility of suffering through a psychotic episode, and a history of mental illness in the family going all the way back to Rose’s mother.

What about Rose’s ex-boyfriend, Joel (Kyle Gallner)? Joel steps in and steps up, when everyone else in Rose’s circle shuns her, or questions her sanity. And luckily for Rose, Joel is also a detective!

You can see Joel is hesitant to believe Rose’s story about a curse, but he also realizes Rose is clearly struggling. She’s losing it, so Joel does anything he can do to help. Joel reluctantly allows Rose to look at graphic crime scene photos, surveillance footage showing a curse related death at a gas station, and Joel sets up a meeting with Robert Talley (Rob Morgan), a former victim of the curse, so Rose can find the answers she’s looking for.

Is there a chance Joel was hoping for a second shot at a relationship with Rose? Remember, Joel returned to the hospital to check on Rose, and he wasn’t interested in Nurse Wanda’s (Ura Yoana Sanchez) direct advances. Joel cared about Rose. He realized she needed help, someone to lean on, and he never turned his back on her. 

Rose believed she finally defeated The Monstrosity. She needed to feel safe, and Joel’s apartment was her first stop, after a long car ride. Why? Because Rose trusted Joel. But the reunion with Joel turned out to be another one of the entity’s clever tricks. Rose, after putting up a tough fight, finally cracked. She needed Joel, and the entity used her emotions against her one last time, while Joel (as the entity) laughed and slowly flashed a devious smile.

Fast forward to Smile 2, and Joel is a complete mess. The curse drains its current target. You can see the desperation and exhaustion on Joel’s face during the opening shot of the movie. He’s struggling to escape the curse, so Joel comes up with a plan to pass the curse to a gang of drug dealers.

It’s strange, but you have to admire Joel trying to hold on to some integrity during his final moments. Joel was desperate. He witnessed first hand what happened to Rose, dumping gasoline on herself and lighting the match to commit suicide. But Joel wanted to make sure he found the worst of the worst, so he wouldn’t feel bad about passing the curse. Find a bunch of lowlifes, who deserve a death sentence. Make sure they’re harshly punished for their crimes, and maybe Joel will have a shot at a normal life, when it’s over. Sounds simple enough, right? 

Of course, Joel’s plan horribly backfires. He unknowingly passes the curse to a petrified Lewis Fregoli (Lukas Gage), a small-time drug dealer, who obviously just stopped by to pick up his merchandise. To make matters worse, Joel is killed trying to escape a shootout, when a pick-up truck runs him over. 

Kyle Gallner easily delivers one of the best performances in both Smile films. Playing a somewhat timid, shy, and awkward guy, Gallner’s sympathetic performance adds another emotional layer to Smile and Smile 2. Also, Joel adds a few good laughs to the original Smile film, a movie that’s heavy on the drama and a handful of serious moments. 

Through a weird twist of fate, Joel reconnected with his ex-girlfriend under some bizarre circumstances. He could’ve walked away after Rose told him about the curse. Rose didn’t have anyone else to turn to. But Joel was willing to stand by her side, no matter how ludicrous the story of a curse that causes people to smile and kill themselves sounded. 

Joel paid the ultimate price in the end. Assuming Joel was just living quietly and peacefully, without too much stress, helping Rose cost him his life. The stunned and horrified look on Gallner’s face during Smile’s finale, when Rose’s body is engulfed in flames is just perfect. It’s a startling confirmation for Joel, because he realizes Rose was always telling the truth. 

Did Joel have any regrets about helping Rose? Yeah, you could say Joel’s response would be a resounding no, if he had to go back and do it all over again, knowing what’s coming once the curse grabs a hold of you. Or, you could lean in the direction for Joel and Rose being more prepared to fight together, to find a way to save themselves, possibly preventing the curse and The Monstrosity from claiming another victim. Joel and Rose clearly trusted each other, and that’s the kind of bond you’re going to need to stop a curse that feeds off of emotional pain and a dark past. 

Love Lies Bleeding (Minor Spoilers)(2024)

 

**This post contains MINOR spoilers**

The Story- Working as the manager at a local gym in New Mexico, Lou (Kristen Stewart) meets Jackie (Katy O’Brian), an aspiring bodybuilder. Lou finds happiness with Jackie during a rocky romantic relationship, but the sudden appearance of FBI agent O’Riley (Orion C. Carrington) disrupts Lou’s quiet lifestyle. Lou struggles to juggle murder, dead bodies, and tumultuous relationships with her father, Lou Sr. (Ed Harris), her sister Beth (Jena Malone), her husband, JJ (Dave Franco), and a kooky woman named Daisy (Anna Baryshinkov).

My Thoughts- Kristen Stewart believably plays a quirky and awkward young woman, who’s dealing with a lot. You can tell she wants to distance herself from her family, but she loves Beth too much to ignore her abusive relationship with JJ. Stewart also brings an emotional side to Lou. The weight of working a dead end job in a small and hopeless town is clearly crushing Lou’s spirit. But Lou is still willing to help others, while she navigates a lot of tricky paths in her own life. The big test? Lou has to choose between her family, standing up to her father, and her relationship with Jackie. 

Jackie appears, and we’re not exactly sure what’s going on with her. Is she just a drifter and a shameless opportunist? Does she actually love Jackie? All the questions surrounding Jackie are definitively answered as the story progresses. Jackie is tough, she’s strong, and she doesn’t put up with bullshit. But you can also see someone, who’s hurting inside, because Jackie has a few vulnerable and emotional moments.

Katy O’Brian does an excellent job of portraying Jackie. She starts out as this happy and positive lady, who’s determined to chase her dreams. But she gets sucked into a whirlwind of chaos, as she struggles to hold herself together before she completely cracks. 

Jackie and Lou together? Well, there’s no denying it’s a toxic relationship. Jackie ran away from her hometown, chasing a new life. Lou is miserable. She hates her father, she misses her mother, and Lou knows there’s a low ceiling for her future, if she doesn’t leave New Mexico.

It’s love at first sight, when Jackie walks into the gym, but things go downhill quickly, when Lou gives Jackie steroids. Jackie quickly spirals out of control, but Lou NEVER gives up on her. The romance between Lou and Jackie is truly one of Love Lies Bleeding’s greatest strengths, filled with turbulent ups and downs. And kudos to Katy O’Brian for shifting gears to a more frazzled and angry version of Jackie during the ‘roid rage fits.

Ed Harris does it again with another good performance. Lou Sr. is a mean and crusty old bastard, a devious manipulator, who won’t stop until he gets what he wants. On top of all that, Lou Sr. is oddly fascinated with bugs. Harris plays a powerful man, but it’s hard to ignore the truth: Lou Sr. is a relic of the past. He’s an old man, who’s desperately clinging on to the power of being a big fish in a small pond, because without his status as a scary big shot, his life is empty. It’s kind of sad and pathetic, when you step back and look at the big picture.

Hats off to Dave Franco for his performance. JJ is scum. He’s a cheater, he beats his wife, and JJ is a sniveling coward. Franco does a fantastic job with JJ’s body language, his demeanor, and some good facial expressions. You can take one look at JJ, and you’ll instantly know this guy is a bad dude, with a cold and nasty mean streak.

It’s almost impossible to not feel any sympathy for Jena Malone’s Beth, a caring mother and a dedicated wife. She takes care of everything around the house, but she’s married to a monster. They don’t actually show JJ beating Beth, but the aftermath is equally horrifying. The scars, the bumps, the bruises, and Beth lying in a hospital bed with that huge knot on her face is an unpleasant sight. Also, the dinner date scene with JJ, Beth, Lou, and Jackie is genuinely uncomfortable to watch. You can feel the awkward tension at the table, and the situation reaches a boiling point, when JJ overreacts after Beth accidentally drops food on his lap.

Anna Baryshinkov could’ve stole the show here with more screen time. Daisy is a nutty and obsessive stalker. The lovey-dovey feelings she has for Lou are not reciprocated. She loves Lou, she’s willing to do anything to have a relationship with her, but Lou can’t stand Daisy. The mere sight of Daisy annoys Lou to the point, where it’s easy to believe she disgusts Lou. To top it off, Daisy’s story has an unfortunate ending before the credits start rolling.

Rose Glass’ work behind the camera is just phenomenal. Love Lies Bleeding looks and feels like a hypnotic fever dream. So many shots with great details, and the small New Mexico town is a perfect setting for this one. Lou’s hometown is a desolate and quiet hellhole out in the middle of nowhere. It’s a dreary and depressing place that kills any hopes and dreams. Escape is the only way to make it, because it’s a town that’s populated by too many people, who are stubbornly stuck in their own ways, and the bad guys hold too much power.

I’m also glad they didn’t lean into 80’s nostalgia too much. It’s a more subtle approach with the wardrobes, the hairstyles, the cars, and the phones. I can clearly see the movie is set in the 80’s, without constant in-your-face reminders in every scene, or every other scene. That’s enough for me.

Love Lies Bleeding fires on all cylinders. It works as a crime drama, it works as a thriller, and there’s some good black humor during the final moments of the movie. The overall cast is excellent. Kristen Stewart and Katy O’Brian share great chemistry as two people, who are willing to do anything for each other, no matter how risky the consequences are after the smoke clears. 

A bloody and strange fairy tale filled with violence and some gruesome gore, Love Lies Bleeding lives up to its title by delivering a wild and chaotic love story. Lots of bumpy ups and downs for Lou and Jackie, setbacks that should’ve marked the point of no return for both women. 

Going with the happy ending was the right move. Why? Because after all the bloodshed, the betrayals, and dealing with messy family drama, it’s safe to say Lou and Jackie truly earned their freedom from Lou Sr., a man who’s clearly hell-bent on being a tyrant and a nasty control freak. And there’s always a chance Jackie will get another shot at entering a different bodybuilding competition! 

Rating- 9/10

Love Lies Bleeding (2024)

 

**This post contains spoilers**

The Story- Working as the manager at a local gym in New Mexico, Lou (Kristen Stewart) meets Jackie (Katy O’Brian), an aspiring bodybuilder. Lou finds happiness with Jackie during a rocky romantic relationship, but the sudden appearance of FBI agent O’Riley (Orion C. Carrington) disrupts Lou’s quiet lifestyle. Lou struggles to juggle murder, dead bodies, and tumultuous relationships with her father, Lou Sr. (Ed Harris), her sister Beth (Jena Malone), her husband, JJ (Dave Franco), and a kooky woman named Daisy (Anna Baryshinkov).

My Thoughts- Kristen Stewart believably plays a quirky and awkward young woman, who’s dealing with a lot. You can tell she wants to distance herself from her family, but she loves Beth too much to ignore her abusive relationship with JJ. Stewart also brings an emotional side to Lou. The weight of working a dead end job in a small and hopeless town is clearly crushing Lou’s spirit. But Lou is still willing to help others, while she navigates a lot of tricky paths in her own life. The big test? Lou has to choose between her family, standing up to her father, and her relationship with Jackie. 

Jackie appears, and we’re not exactly sure what’s going on with her. Is she just a drifter and a shameless opportunist? Does she actually love Jackie? All the questions surrounding Jackie are definitively answered as the story progresses. Jackie is tough, she’s strong, and she doesn’t put up with bullshit. But you can also see someone, who’s hurting inside, because Jackie has a few vulnerable and emotional moments.

Katy O’Brian does an excellent job of portraying Jackie. She starts out as this happy and positive lady, who’s determined to chase her dreams. But she gets sucked into a whirlwind of chaos, as she struggles to hold herself together before she completely cracks. 

Jackie and Lou together? Well, there’s no denying it’s a toxic relationship. Jackie ran away from her hometown, chasing a new life. Lou is miserable. She hates her father, she misses her mother, and Lou knows there’s a low ceiling for her future, if she doesn’t leave New Mexico.

It’s love at first sight, when Jackie walks into the gym, but things go downhill quickly, when Lou gives Jackie steroids. Jackie quickly spirals out of control, but Lou NEVER gives up on her. The romance between Lou and Jackie is truly one of Love Lies Bleeding’s greatest strengths, filled with turbulent ups and downs. And kudos to Katy O’Brian for shifting gears to a more frazzled and angry version of Jackie during the ‘roid rage fits.

Ed Harris does it again with another good performance. Lou Sr. is a mean and crusty old bastard, a devious manipulator, who won’t stop until he gets what he wants. On top of all that, Lou Sr. is oddly fascinated with bugs. Harris plays a powerful man, but it’s hard to ignore the truth: Lou Sr. is a relic of the past. He’s an old man, who’s desperately clinging on to the power of being a big fish in a small pond, because without his status as a scary big shot, his life is empty. It’s kind of sad and pathetic, when you step back and look at the big picture.

Hats off to Dave Franco for his performance. JJ is scum. He’s a cheater, he beats his wife, JJ is a sniveling coward, AND it’s revealed he’s an informant for the FBI. Franco does a fantastic job with JJ’s body language, his demeanor, and some good facial expressions. You can take one look at JJ, and you’ll instantly know this guy is a bad dude, with a cold and nasty mean streak.

It’s almost impossible to not feel any sympathy for Jena Malone’s Beth, a caring mother and a dedicated wife. She takes care of everything around the house, but she’s married to a monster. They don’t actually show JJ beating Beth, but the aftermath is equally horrifying. The scars, the bumps, the bruises, and Beth lying in a hospital bed with that huge knot on her face is an unpleasant sight. Also, the dinner date scene with JJ, Beth, Lou, and Jackie is genuinely uncomfortable to watch. You can feel the awkward tension at the table, and the situation reaches a boiling point, when JJ overreacts after Beth accidentally drops food on his lap.

Anna Baryshinkov could’ve stole the show here with more screen time. Daisy is a nutty and obsessive stalker. The lovey-dovey feelings she has for Lou are not reciprocated. She loves Lou, she’s willing to do anything to have a relationship with her, but Lou can’t stand Daisy. The mere sight of Daisy annoys Lou to the point, where it’s easy to believe she disgusts Lou. To top it off, Daisy’s story has an unfortunate ending before the credits start rolling.

Jackie, as a GIANT, pulverizes Lou Sr.! It’s a bizarre ending. Yes, Lou Sr. got what he deserved, and I’m glad Lou didn’t pull the trigger. She obviously wanted her father to rot in prison, because killing him would’ve been too easy. A small part of me was hoping for a more serious tone during Lou Sr.’s beat down. Lou Sr. was truly an evil man. He deserved to suffer, but Giant Jackie playing around with Lou Sr., while Lou watches with a smile on her face crossed the line for being too silly for me. 

Although, I guess you have to look at the ending through Lou’s eyes. She deeply loves Jackie, and it’s obvious Lou admires her. For Lou, Jackie is someone, who’s larger than life itself, so it makes sense that she sees Jackie as a giant, who’s beating the crap out of her father, a man, who’s directly responsible for a lot of heartache in Lou’s life. 

To add to that, I have to believe steroids played a big part in Jackie’s hallucinogenic transformations. Going back to the scene, where Jackie brutally murders JJ, you’ll notice Jackie is taller, towering over JJ’s mangled corpse.

Rose Glass’ work behind the camera is just phenomenal. Love Lies Bleeding looks and feels like a hypnotic fever dream. So many shots with great details, and the small New Mexico town is a perfect setting for this one. Lou’s hometown is a desolate and quiet hellhole out in the middle of nowhere. It’s a dreary and depressing place that kills any hopes and dreams. Escape is the only way to make it, because it’s a town that’s populated by too many people, who are stubbornly stuck in their own ways, and the bad guys hold too much power.

I’m also glad they didn’t lean into 80’s nostalgia too much. It’s a more subtle approach with the wardrobes, the hairstyles, the cars, and the phones. I can clearly see the movie is set in the 80’s, without constant in-your-face reminders in every scene, or every other scene. That’s enough for me.

Love Lies Bleeding fires on all cylinders. It works as a crime drama, it works as a thriller, and there’s some good black humor during the final moments of the movie. The overall cast is excellent. Kristen Stewart and Katy O’Brian share great chemistry as two people, who are willing to do anything for each other, no matter how risky the consequences are after the smoke clears. 

A bloody and strange fairy tale filled with violence and some gruesome gore, Love Lies Bleeding lives up to its title by delivering a wild and chaotic love story. Lots of bumpy ups and downs for Lou and Jackie, setbacks that should’ve marked the point of no return for both women. 

Going with the happy ending was the right move. Why? Because after all the bloodshed, the betrayals, and dealing with messy family drama, it’s safe to say Lou and Jackie truly earned their freedom from Lou Sr., a man who’s clearly hell-bent on being a tyrant and a nasty control freak. And there’s always a chance Jackie will get another shot at entering a different bodybuilding competition! 

Rating- 9/10

Y2K (2024)(Minor Spoilers)

 

**This post contains MINOR spoilers**

The Story- On December 31, 1999, Eli (Jaeden Martell) and Danny’s (Julian Dennison) planned night of fun turns into a disaster, when the Y2K bug hits at a New Year’s Eve party. Eli teams up with Laura (Rachel Zegler), Ash (Lachlan Watson), Garrett (Kyle Mooney), and CJ (Daniel Zolghadri) to fight back against Amalgamation, a sinister algorithm, and a violent horde of sentient machines. A plan is in place to stop Amalgamation and the machines from enslaving humanity, but the group runs into a series of setbacks during the last stand to save the world….

My Thoughts- Eli is the shy and socially awkward nerd, who’s chasing Laura, the girl of his dreams. Danny? Well, he’s a geek, but he’s far more outgoing and confident, if we’re comparing him to Eli. Ash, and her group friends, including Farkas (Eduardo Franco), proudly fill the roles of the “rejects,” or the “freaks.” And Chris (The Kid Laroi) is the douchey big man on campus, a jock, who arrogantly sticks his chest out as king of the cool kids. 

Y2K is loaded with the usual archetypes for high schoolers, but Rachel Zegler’s Laura slightly breaks the mold to stand out a little bit. Yes, Laura is popular, but she’s not cocky, selfish, or conceited, and she’s not a mean girl. Laura is genuinely surprised by any negative reactions, or assumptions about her character. She never went out of her way to become popular. She didn’t cut anyone down, or step on anyone, who she might’ve believed was beneath her. In her own words, Laura’s rise in the social hierarchy “just happened” without her putting in any real effort to be on top. That’s right, she got there by just being herself, no matter how much her personality rubbed certain people the wrong way.

If you’re looking for 90’s nostalgia, Y2K has just about everything that you could possibly think of and more. The music (The Thong Song takes center stage here), dial-up internet, AOL (you’ve got mail!), Tae Bo, a Men In Black reference, Limp Bizkit, and Fred Durst! The grainy POVs from Ash’s treasured video recorder adds to the nostalgia to give you the feeling you’re watching something straight out of the 90’s. On top of that, Garrett works in a video rental store, and a VHS recording of Varsity Blues is used a deadly weapon in one scene. I’m a 90’s/early 2000’s kid, so it was easy to spot numerous “I remember that!” moments and callbacks throughout the movie.

Outside of one big and surprising death, Y2K goes through the motions. It’s not hard to predict how the story of the nerd (Eli), who’s pursuing the girl (Laura), who’s supposed to be out of his league will end. But Y2K is still an enjoyable post-apocalyptic horror comedy. It’s a silly and harmless coming-of-age movie, with a satisfying conclusion and a happy ending. Also, the kills and the death scenes are hilarious, including the microwave, a blender attacking someone’s private parts, and a can of hairspray being used as a flamethrower.

The casting is excellent, because everyone is a perfect fit for their characters. The dynamic between Eli’s parents provides a few laughs. Howard (Tim Heidecker), Eli’s father, is clearly more uptight, nerdy, and proper. On the flip side of that, Robin (Alicia Silverstone) is a free spirit, but she’s still a kind and loving mother.

A big thumbs up for Kyle Mooney playing the eccentric hippie stoner, and Mason Gooding’s Jonas is basically cut from the same cloth. The big difference between Garrett and Jonas is, Garrett is bold and kind of reckless. Jonas takes a safer and more laid back approach to dealing with the machines. He helps out on crowd control to give Eli a chance to deliver his big rah-rah speech at the school. Garrett? Well, let’s just say running towards a machine for a one on one fight is not a good idea, if you want to stop the global uprising. 

Lachlan Watson easily delivers one of the best performances as Ash. Watson plays a conflicted teenager. Ash is an outsider, but you can also see she’s angry. She’s confused, and Ash is hesitant to let her guard down around certain people, so she clings to the trash-talking punk kid side of her personality. Truly a good performance from Watson, especially during the scenes, when Ash shows the vulnerable and emotional side of her personality.

The story of a group of unlikely heroes (including Fred Durst) teaming up to stop a seemingly unstoppable and powerful force? It’s a formula that’s almost impossible to screw up. You’re going to get something out of it, and Y2K mostly gets it right. The core group of characters change in different ways after the big showdown at the high school. Everyone’s journey comes full circle after a bloody and gory humans vs machines battle with high stakes, proving the fighting human spirit will always have an advantage over crafty technology and machines. 

Rating- 6/10

Y2K (2024)

 

**This post contains spoilers**

The Story- On December 31, 1999, Eli (Jaeden Martell) and Danny’s (Julian Dennison) planned night of fun turns into a disaster, when the Y2K bug hits at a New Year’s Eve party. Eli teams up with Laura (Rachel Zegler), Ash (Lachlan Watson), Garrett (Kyle Mooney), and CJ (Daniel Zolghadri) to fight back against Amalgamation, a sinister algorithm, and a violent horde of sentient machines. A plan is in place to stop Amalgamation and the machines from enslaving humanity, but the group runs into a series of setbacks during the last stand to save the world….

My Thoughts- Eli is the shy and socially awkward nerd, who’s chasing Laura, the girl of his dreams. Danny? Well, he’s a geek, but he’s far more outgoing and confident, if we’re comparing him to Eli. Ash, and her group friends, including Farkas (Eduardo Franco), proudly fill the roles of the “rejects,” or the “freaks.” And Chris (The Kid Laroi) is the douchey big man on campus, a jock, who arrogantly sticks his chest out as king of the cool kids. 

Y2K is loaded with the usual archetypes for high schoolers, but Rachel Zegler’s Laura slightly breaks the mold to stand out a little bit. Yes, Laura is popular, but she’s not cocky, selfish, or conceited, and she’s not a mean girl. Laura is genuinely surprised by any negative reactions, or assumptions about her character. She never went out of her way to become popular. She didn’t cut anyone down, or step on anyone, who she might’ve believed was beneath her. In her own words, Laura’s rise in the social hierarchy “just happened” without her putting in any real effort to be on top. That’s right, she got there by just being herself, no matter how much her personality rubbed certain people the wrong way.

Danny’s death at Chris’ house did catch me off guard. The best friends have to make out alive in the end, right? That’s what I believed early on, because Y2K is a film that largely plays it safe, but Danny’s death adds a good emotional layer for this one. Eli, without his one true friend, is forced to push forward with a heavy heart, so he can stop the attack before it’s too late.

Eli uses the one condom gifted to him by Danny, allowing Laura to safely upload the kill code without being electrocuted? Hilariously clever. It’s a nutty ending, when you realize Eli and Laura needed protection to safely penetrate a giant computer, using one of Danny’s condoms, a condom that Danny was saving for Eli to use for his first time with Laura.

If you’re looking for 90’s nostalgia, Y2K has just about everything that you could possibly think of and more. The music (The Thong Song takes center stage here), dial-up internet, AOL (you’ve got mail!), Tae Bo, a Men In Black reference, Limp Bizkit, and Fred Durst! The grainy POVs from Ash’s treasured video recorder adds to the nostalgia to give you the feeling you’re watching something straight out of the 90’s. On top of that, Garrett works in a video rental store, and a VHS recording of Varsity Blues is used a deadly weapon in one scene. I’m a 90’s/early 2000’s kid, so it was easy to spot numerous “I remember that!” moments and callbacks throughout the movie.

Outside of one big and surprising death, Y2K goes through the motions. It’s not hard to predict how the story of the nerd (Eli), who’s pursuing the girl (Laura), who’s supposed to be out of his league will end. But Y2K is still an enjoyable post-apocalyptic horror comedy. It’s a silly and harmless coming-of-age movie, with a satisfying conclusion and a happy ending. Also, the kills and the death scenes are hilarious, including the microwave, a blender attacking someone’s private parts, and a can of hairspray being used as a flamethrower.

The casting is excellent, because everyone is a perfect fit for their characters. The dynamic between Eli’s parents provides a few laughs. Howard (Tim Heidecker), Eli’s father, is clearly more uptight, nerdy, and proper. On the flip side of that, Robin (Alicia Silverstone) is a free spirit, but she’s still a kind and loving mother. 

A big thumbs up for Kyle Mooney playing the eccentric hippie stoner, and Mason Gooding’s Jonas is basically cut from the same cloth. The big difference between Garrett and Jonas is, Garrett is bold and kind of reckless. Jonas takes a safer and more laid back approach to dealing with the machines. He helps out on crowd control to give Eli a chance to deliver his big rah-rah speech at the school. Garrett? Well, let’s just say running towards a machine for a one on one fight is not a good idea, if you want to stop the global uprising. 

Lachlan Watson easily delivers one of the best performances as Ash. Watson plays a conflicted teenager. Ash is an outsider, but you can also see she’s angry. She’s confused, and Ash is hesitant to let her guard down around certain people, so she clings to the trash-talking punk kid side of her personality. Truly a good performance from Watson, especially during the scenes, when Ash shows the vulnerable and emotional side of her personality.

The story of a group of unlikely heroes (including Fred Durst) teaming up to stop a seemingly unstoppable and powerful force? It’s a formula that’s almost impossible to screw up. You’re going to get something out of it, and Y2K mostly gets it right. The core group of characters change in different ways after the big showdown at the high school. Everyone’s journey comes full circle after a bloody and gory humans vs machines battle with high stakes, proving the fighting human spirit will always have an advantage over crafty technology and machines. 

Rating- 6/10

The Watchers (2024)(Minor Spoilers)

 

**This review contains MINOR spoilers**

The Story- Tasked with delivering a rare Golden Conure parrot, a pet shop employee named Mina (Dakota Fanning) runs into trouble, when her car mysteriously shuts off in a desolate forest. After hearing a series of strange noises, Madeline (Olwen Fouere) urges Mina to run to The Coop, a fortified shelter in the middle of the forest. 

Mina joins Madeline, Ciara (Georgina Campbell), and Daniel (Oliver Finnegan) inside The Coop. Madeline tells Mina about The Watchers, a supernatural species. The Watchers closely observe anyone inside The Coop through a large two-way mirror, and Madeline warns Mina about the dangers of breaking a set of strict rules fiercely enforced by The Watchers. The group learns more about The Watchers through a series of video recordings from Professor Kilmartin (John Lynch), a man who voluntarily secluded himself in the forest to study The Watchers (aka fairies). Determined to escape, Mina sets out to find answers, but a handful of mishaps threatens the safety of the survivors. 

My Thoughts- I was almost sure I could easily predict where the story was going, who would survive, and how The Watchers would end, but I was wrong, more than once. Writer/director Ishana Night Shyamalan throws a decent amount of curveballs at you. During the early stages of the movie, I was ready to dismiss this one as an ordinary post-apocalyptic movie. 

Mina, the rebel and the rule-breaker, shows up and she disrupts the tight bond between Madeline, Ciara, and Daniel. After living in fear of The Watchers, with survival in one single room (and some free time in the forest during daylight hours) as the daily objective, Mina will be the reason group escapes. That, or Mina will be directly responsible for everyone suffering horrible deaths at the hands of The Watchers. 

But The Watchers slowly unravels an intriguing mystery, full of good surprises, and the story is loaded with fine details. Also, the forest really works as a good spooky and quiet setting, a place that eerily attracts lost souls. 

The history of The Watchers/fairies, and their bloody conflict with humans, adds a lot of emotional depth to the story. Forced underground to live in darkness, a peaceful and harmonious relationship ended, because the humans reached a point, where they feared The Watchers’ supernatural abilities. And Mina naming the parrot Darwin is a clever little nugget, because you could say Darwinism plays a role in the story here.

 There’s a lot of good in The Watchers, but the CGI just looks so bad. The shape-shifting transformations are decent enough. Still, The Watchers are supposed to be fearsome monsters, but the CGI makes them look kind of goofy in certain scenes. And I rolled my eyes during that one scene, where Daniel is tricked by “John,”  Ciara’s husband. They already established The Watchers have shape-shifting abilities, so Daniel should’ve known better.

A few chinks in the armor, but overall The Watchers is a damn good sci-fi horror film. The casting is top notch, because everyone perfectly fits their characters. Dakota Fanning nails Mina, a lost and broken young woman, who doesn’t want to deal with a tragedy from her past. Mina playing dress-up to go out to a bar is a scene that sticks out for me, because she’s either not confident enough to be herself, or she doesn’t want to open up to anyone about the car accident. 

Olwen Fouere delivered a superb performance as Madeline. Madeline is believable as the stern mother figure, who wants to protect Mina, Daniel, and Ciara. But on the other side of her role as a guardian, you could also say Madeline is the only person, who’s holding the group back, killing any real chances for an escape and freedom, because locking yourself in one room day in and day out will surely drive anyone crazy.

The Watchers is not limited to horror elements, including creepy nighttime scenes, scares, and some good tense close calls. You can point to Mina, Madeline, Professor Kilmartin, and Ciara (to a certain extent), and you’ll see stories about regret, loss, revenge, guilt, and the need for closure. 

The Watchers ends with a peaceful resolution, emotional reunions, and full circle moments. Ishana Shyamalan could’ve taken the easy way out, ending the movie with brutal deaths and violence. But you have to listen closely to Mina’s words during the fiasco at Ciara’s house: life, and being a human being is a tricky and sometimes complicated journey. Giving in to bad thoughts and emotions is not the best option, because you’re blindly taking a chance of plunging yourself into more disastrous setbacks.

Rating- 9/10 

The Watchers (2024)

 

**This post contains spoilers**

The Story- Tasked with delivering a rare Golden Conure parrot, a pet shop employee named Mina (Dakota Fanning) runs into trouble, when her car mysteriously shuts off in a desolate forest. After hearing a series of strange noises, Madeline (Olwen Fouere) urges Mina to run to The Coop, a fortified shelter in the middle of the forest. 

Mina joins Madeline, Ciara (Georgina Campbell), and Daniel (Oliver Finnegan) inside The Coop. Madeline tells Mina about The Watchers, a supernatural species. The Watchers closely observe anyone inside The Coop through a large two-way mirror, and Madeline warns Mina about the dangers of breaking a set of strict rules fiercely enforced by The Watchers. The group learns more about The Watchers through a series of video recordings from Professor Kilmartin (John Lynch), a man who voluntarily secluded himself in the forest to study The Watchers (aka fairies). Determined to escape, Mina sets out to find answers, but a handful of mishaps threatens the safety of the survivors. 

My Thoughts- Madeline is one of The Watchers AND she’s a hybrid! A genuinely surprising twist, but it’s the kind of twist that also makes sense. Madeline was supposed to just be another survivor. But she knew a lot about The Watchers/fairies, their way of life, their weaknesses (Watchers only come out at night, because they’re vulnerable to sunlight), and the rich history behind the existence of their species. Going further with the big twist, Madeline should’ve been dead, because we’re lead to believe Professor Kilmartin murdered the fairy version of Madeline years ago. To add another eerie layer to the story, The Watchers are also shapeshifters, so Madeline chose the form of Kilmartin’s dead wife after being held captive by the Professor.  

Wait, so you’re telling me the movie doesn’t end in bloodshed after Madeline (assuming the form of Ciara) was determined to kill Mina and Ciara? The Watchers ends with a conversation and desperate pleas from Mina, urging Madeline to not give in to her feelings of hatred for humans. Madeline had every justifiable reason that you could possibly think of to hold some deep grudges. As a “daywalker,” she was an outcast amongst her own people, and the one human (Kilmartin), who she believed was trustworthy tried to kill her. 

But Mina reminds Madeline that anger, jealousy, hatred, and working through those emotions to transform yourself into a better person is what the human experience is all about. In The Coop, Madeline genuinely cares about Mina, Daniel, and Ciara. And there’s no denying Madeline was a good person. She risked her life to protect all three of them, no matter how much Madeline tried to cling to her selfish motivations for living in the outside world. 

The Watchers concludes with Mina reconciling with her twin sister Lucy (also played by Dakota Fanning). Mina stayed away from Lucy and her children for years, because she carried a heavy burden of guilt for causing a car accident that killed their mother, when they were both kids.

I was almost sure I could easily predict where the story was going, who would survive, and how The Watchers would end, but I was wrong, more than once. Writer/director Ishana Night Shyamalan throws a decent amount of curveballs at you. During the early stages of the movie, I was ready to dismiss this one as an ordinary post-apocalyptic movie. 

Mina, the rebel and the rule-breaker, shows up and she disrupts the tight bond between Madeline, Ciara, and Daniel. After living in fear of The Watchers, with survival in one single room (and some free time in the forest during daylight hours) as the daily objective, Mina will be the reason group escapes. That, or Mina will be directly responsible for everyone suffering horrible deaths at the hands of The Watchers. 

But The Watchers slowly unravels an intriguing mystery, full of good surprises, and the story is loaded with fine details. Also, the forest really works as a good spooky and quiet setting, a place that eerily attracts lost souls. 

The history of The Watchers/fairies, and their bloody conflict with humans, adds a lot of emotional depth to the story. Forced underground to live in darkness, a peaceful and harmonious relationship ended, because the humans reached a point, where they feared The Watchers’ supernatural abilities. And Mina naming the parrot Darwin is a clever little nugget, because you could say Darwinism plays a role in the story here. 

There’s a lot of good in The Watchers, but the CGI just looks so bad. The shape-shifting transformations are decent enough. Still, The Watchers are supposed to be fearsome monsters, but the CGI makes them look kind of goofy in certain scenes. And I rolled my eyes during that one scene, where Daniel is tricked by “John,”  Ciara’s husband. They already established The Watchers have shape-shifting abilities, so Daniel should’ve known better.

A few chinks in the armor, but overall The Watchers is a damn good sci-fi horror film. The casting is top notch, because everyone perfectly fits their characters. Dakota Fanning nails Mina, a lost and broken young woman, who doesn’t want to deal with a tragedy from her past. Mina playing dress-up to go out to a bar is a scene that sticks out for me, because she’s either not confident enough to be herself, or she doesn’t want to open up to anyone about the car accident. 

Olwen Fouere delivered a superb performance as Madeline. Madeline is believable as the stern mother figure, who wants to protect Mina, Daniel, and Ciara. But on the other side of her role as a guardian, you could also say Madeline is the only person, who’s holding the group back, killing any real chances for an escape and freedom, because locking yourself in one room day in and day out will surely drive anyone crazy.

The Watchers is not limited to horror elements, including creepy nighttime scenes, scares, and some good tense close calls. You can point to Mina, Madeline, Professor Kilmartin, and Ciara (to a certain extent), and you’ll see stories about regret, loss, revenge, guilt, and the need for closure. 

The Watchers ends with a peaceful resolution, emotional reunions, and full circle moments. Ishana Shyamalan could’ve taken the easy way out, ending the movie with brutal deaths and violence. But you have to listen closely to Mina’s words during the fiasco at Ciara’s house: life, and being a human being is a tricky and sometimes complicated journey. Giving in to bad thoughts and emotions is not the best option, because you’re blindly taking a chance of plunging yourself into more disastrous setbacks.

Rating- 9/10 

Smile 2 (2024)(Minor Spoilers)

 

**This post contains MINOR spoilers**

The Story- A drug dealer named Lewis (Lukas Gage) violently commits suicide in his apartment, passing the curse to troubled pop star Skye Riley (Naomi Scott). Skye, preparing for a comeback tour, slowly unravels, while fighting her inner demons, as the curse tightens its grip.

Supported and monitored by her mother, Elizabeth (Rosemarie DeWitt), her assistant, Joshua (Miles-Gutierrez Riley), and the head of Skye’s record label, Darius (Raul Castillo), Skye tries to hold it together before the tour starts. But she’s haunted by memories of a turbulent past with her boyfriend, Paul (Ray Nicholson), and physically, Skye is struggling to adjust to life after a brutal car accident. 

Skye reaches out to Gemma (Dylan  Gelula) in an attempt to repair their broken friendship. Meanwhile, Morris (Peter Jacobson), a nurse with a personal connection to the curse, cooks up a risky plan to stop the entity.

My Thoughts- Skye Riley is a diva, she’s kind of a brat, and Skye has some anger issues. But she’s feeling the pressure of making a big comeback, one last chance to get it right, and almost everyone in her circle is depending on her. Oh, and she’s the new target for the curse. 

Naomi Scott is truly fantastic here. She cranks it up to eleven for an energetic all gas, no brakes performance. Whether it’s chugging Voss water, the hysterical fits, or the scenes, where Skye is clearly hitting her breaking point, you’ll always know Scott is the center of attention in all of her scenes, because she brings a spark to Skye’s quirks and her tantrums. 

Three films in, and by now, we already know the curse is something that’s capable of driving you insane, with constant mind games. Scott never lets up, when the curse takes a hold of Skye, not once. 

Where is she getting all of this energy from! It’s a question I constantly asked myself throughout the movie. The outbursts (“FUCK the tour!”), repeatedly slapping her own face with a bloody hand, and the emotional breakdowns. So far, Naomi Scott’s performance is the measuring stick that shows how the curse will destroy your life, and it’ll completely break you, no matter how hard you try and fight back. 

Skye has her problems, and she’s not perfect. There’s no denying it, but she’s also someone, who hit a rough patch in her life. The pressures of being a big mainstream pop star, abusing drugs before the car accident, and she’s currently dealing with an addiction to painkillers. 

The flashback to the accident with Paul works to show just how bad Skye’s issues were before she hit rock bottom. She was a complete mess before her attempted redemption tour. You can see it in the scene with Paul, and the brief flashback, with Skye sobbing and tearing off pieces of her hair. All in all, Skye Riley is a complicated character, but Naomi Scott effortlessly nails each layer of the problematic pop star, who’s reluctantly chasing a second chance.

The majority of the mind games from the entity are more cruel in the sequel. The charity banquet, where Skye has a meltdown is one scene that sticks out. Paul slowly walks towards the stage, with that creepy smile on his face, and Skye completely freaks out. Paul is a ghost from Skye’s past. She’s not ready to deal with him, because Skye clearly feels responsible for what happened to Paul. Awesome scene, with Ray Nicholson’s sinister smiling facial expressions, and Scott’s reaction (“STOP SMILING AT ME!!”) to him. 

Something that’s easy to notice, is Skye and Rose’s different paths in their attempts to stop the curse. With the exception of Joel, Rose from the previous film was shunned and abandoned by her fiancé and her family, when she reached out for help with the curse. Skye? You get the feeling she actually had a more solid and caring support system around her, including her dance choreographer, Anton (Jon Rua). 

Yeah, maybe you could say Skye’s inner circle pushed her too her hard, and the big expectations played a part in Skye’s downward spiral. Maybe Elizabeth was too demanding? Having to deal with your mother, who’s also your manager is a tricky conundrum. 

Skye’s team genuinely cared about her. Skye also didn’t make things easy by sneaking around to buy Vicodin, and hiding her addiction to painkillers. Was there a chance for Skye to have a happy ending, if she just told someone about Lewis’ suicide and the curse? A small possibility for a positive outcome, but on the other side of that, Skye’s secrecy and bottling up too much works to add the essential layer for a tragic character, who just can’t catch a break. 

Smile looks and feels more established in the sequel. Parker Finn sticks with some of the dizzying and inverted shots from the previous film. Just taking a stab at this, but the topsy-turvy shots are used as a visual representation for the current cursed victim’s world being turned upside down, and there’s no way to escape it.

Rose was put on a bumpy road, but Parker Finn raises the stakes with Skye as a victim for the curse. Remember, the entity (or The Monstrosity) feeds off of trauma, and there’s one particular traumatic event that Skye just couldn’t let go of. 

To make matters worse, Skye is someone, who’s constantly surrounded by people, making it nearly impossible to avoid the demonic smiling faces. The scene, where Skye is cornered by her dancers in her apartment? Freaky stuff, especially the unified and choreographed slinking movements before the group corners Skye. 

Skye dealing with extreme amounts of stress for being a young pop star undeniably made things worse. So many people pulling you in different directions, the expectations, and the exhausting grind that never seems to end. She’s also dealing with a curse! Yeah, too much.

Morris’ plan to stop the entity was a bit too loopy. I get it. Skye needed a miracle to survive, but her chances were always too slim, especially when you know what happened to Rose.  

But there’s no denying Smile 2 is still an outstanding follow up to the 2022 film. This is you want from a sequel, a film that lets you know the original wasn’t just a flash in the pan or a fluke, and it’s one of the rare cases, where the sequel surpasses the original. And a nice effort to add some realism with Skye appearing on Drew Barrymore’s show for the first big interview before the tour.

After the first film, you know what to expect for the fake-outs and the illusions, but a few of them still managed  to catch me off guard. The argument between Skye and Elizabeth at the wellness center is easily my top pick. And the Gemma twist is a good shocker. 

The curse turns into a worldwide epidemic in the next film? Think about an arena filled to the brim with thousands of people, fans recording, and the chances for live streaming the concert. Lots of possibilities!

Similar to its predecessor, Smile 2 is consistently tense, delivering stronger thrills, while the story moves at a much faster pace. Some nice spooky moments, the right amount of bloody gore, and a handful of unnerving moments. 

The scene with the creepy stalker fan at Skye’s autograph signing is a wild one. Ivan Carlo’s Alfredo is someone, who’ll make your skin crawl. The angry screeching voice, his disgusting poor hygiene (e.g. the skid marks in his underwear), and his unhealthy obsession with Skye. A real weirdo, and Carlo is pretty damn good during his brief appearances.

Smile 2 gets an extra bump over the original for Naomi Scott’s excellent performance. Third or fourth time rewatching this one, because Smile 2 is one of my personal favorites for 2024 horror films. 

A truly bonkers horror flick from start to finish, including Joel’s (Kyle Gallner) botched attempt to pass the curse, complete with a vision of Rose engulfed in flames to maintain the continuity between both films. A frazzled Gallner makes the most of his short screen time, starting the movie off with a real bang for a smooth transition into Skye’s story. Solid emotional depth, and a balanced supporting cast for the story about a controversial celebrity, who could’ve avoided a lot of problems, if she didn’t secretly go to a drug dealer’s apartment in the middle of the night to score Vicodin. 

Rating- 9/10

Smile 2 (2024)

 

**This post contains spoilers**

The Story- A drug dealer named Lewis (Lukas Gage) violently commits suicide in his apartment, passing the curse to troubled pop star Skye Riley (Naomi Scott). Skye, preparing for a comeback tour, slowly unravels, while fighting her inner demons, as the curse tightens its grip.

Supported and monitored by her mother, Elizabeth (Rosemarie DeWitt), her assistant, Joshua (Miles-Gutierrez Riley), and the head of Skye’s record label, Darius (Raul Castillo), Skye tries to hold it together before the tour starts. But she’s haunted by memories of a turbulent past with her boyfriend, Paul (Ray Nicholson), and physically, Skye is struggling to adjust to life after a brutal car accident. 

Skye reaches out to Gemma (Dylan  Gelula) in an attempt to repair their broken friendship. Meanwhile, Morris (Peter Jacobson), a nurse with a personal connection to the curse, cooks up a risky plan to stop the entity.

My Thoughts- Skye Riley is a diva, she’s kind of a brat, and Skye has some anger issues. But she’s feeling the pressure of making a big comeback, one last chance to get it right, and almost everyone in her circle is depending on her. Oh, and she’s the new target for the curse. 

Naomi Scott is truly fantastic here. She cranks it up to eleven for an energetic all gas, no brakes performance. Whether it’s chugging Voss water, the hysterical fits, or the scenes, where Skye is clearly hitting her breaking point, you’ll always know Scott is the center of attention in all of her scenes, because she brings a spark to Skye’s quirks and her tantrums. 

Three films in, and by now, we already know the curse is something that’s capable of driving you insane, with constant mind games. Scott never lets up, when the curse takes a hold of Skye, not once. 

Where is she getting all of this energy from! It’s a question I constantly asked myself throughout the movie. The outbursts (“FUCK the tour!”), repeatedly slapping her own face with a bloody hand, and the emotional breakdowns. So far, Naomi Scott’s performance is the measuring stick that shows how the curse will destroy your life, and it’ll completely break you, no matter how hard you try and fight back. 

Skye has her problems, and she’s not perfect. There’s no denying it, but she’s also someone, who hit a rough patch in her life. The pressures of being a big mainstream pop star, abusing drugs before the car accident, and she’s currently dealing with an addiction to painkillers. 

The flashback to the accident with Paul works to show just how bad Skye’s issues were before she hit rock bottom. She was a complete mess before her attempted redemption tour. You can see it in the scene with Paul, and the brief flashback, with Skye sobbing and tearing off pieces of her hair. All in all, Skye Riley is a complicated character, but Naomi Scott effortlessly nails each layer of the problematic pop star, who’s reluctantly chasing a second chance.

The majority of the mind games from the entity are more cruel in the sequel. The charity banquet, where Skye has a meltdown is one scene that sticks out. Paul slowly walks towards the stage, with that creepy smile on his face, and Skye completely freaks out. Paul is a ghost from Skye’s past. She’s not ready to deal with him, because Skye clearly feels responsible for what happened to Paul. Awesome scene, with Ray Nicholson’s sinister smiling facial expressions, and Scott’s reaction (“STOP SMILING AT ME!!”) to him. 

Something that’s easy to notice, is Skye and Rose’s different paths in their attempts to stop the curse. With the exception of Joel, Rose from the previous film was shunned and abandoned by her fiancé and her family, when she reached out for help with the curse. Skye? You get the feeling she actually had a more solid and caring support system around her, including her dance choreographer, Anton (Jon Rua). 

Yeah, maybe you could say Skye’s inner circle pushed her too her hard, and the big expectations played a part in Skye’s downward spiral. Maybe Elizabeth was too demanding? Having to deal with your mother, who’s also your manager is a tricky conundrum. 

Skye’s team genuinely cared about her. Skye also didn’t make things easy by sneaking around to buy Vicodin, and hiding her addiction to painkillers. Was there a chance for Skye to have a happy ending, if she just told someone about Lewis’ suicide and the curse? A small possibility for a positive outcome, but on the other side of that, Skye’s secrecy and bottling up too much works to add the essential layer for a tragic character, who just can’t catch a break. 

Hold on a minute. Gemma was never with Skye in the beginning or towards the end? Skye didn’t bury the hatchet with her? Yep. More mind games and illusions from the entity. To take things further, Skye imagined a good seventy to eighty percent of the events in the movie! The reunion with Gemma, meeting Morris at the bar, and the fight with Elizabeth at the wellness center. None of it happened. 

Take a good look at the blue/turquoise costume Skye is wearing during the early stages of the movie, the same costume she was afraid to wear, because you could see her scar from the surgery? That’s the same costume Skye is wearing, when she snaps back into reality. 

I have mixed feelings for how the ending played out. I never believed for one second that Skye realistically had a chance to beat the entity. It would’ve been a great shocker if she did survive, but I had too many doubts. Yes, Skye, stuck in the entity’s web of tricks and mind games, survived one close call after another, but that’s the problem. After a while, it’s clear the entity is just throwing too many haymakers at her, and at some point, Skye was inevitably going to end up on the losing end of the struggle. 

Morris’ solution? Eh, it was too far-fetched to work. I get the idea of “killing” Skye, or brining her to the brink of death to break the chain for the curse. But the chances for a successful attempt were too slim, a big long shot in the realm of miraculous last-ditch efforts.

Still, Smile 2 manages to deliver a thrilling and emotional finale. Skye’s devastated reaction, when she realizes Gemma was just an illusion is terrific. Skye was clinging to the renewed friendship with Gemma for support. Gemma was supposed to be one of her anchors, and the entity used that against her.

The final moments, where Skye, now fully consumed by the curse, jams the microphone into her head to commit suicide? Nasty stuff. And some good gross out moments, when the entity appears, tearing and ripping through the smiling version of Skye’s body before stretching the real Skye’s mouth wide open. 

Parker Finn choosing to focus on the crowd’s horrified reactions to Skye killing herself, instead of showing Skye actually doing it, was a nice touch. You just see the aftermath of Skye’s corpse lying on the ground, with the microphone stuck in her head. Give the viewers a chance to imagine how horrible Skye’s demise truly is, without showing everything step by step. 

Also, taking a few steps backwards, the ending manages to deliver another good emotional blow, when you realize Skye was defeated by the entity in the form of Skye after the car accident. All the bad memories, the drugs, and her rocky relationship with Paul. She was the final demon, who Skye couldn’t overcome, the absolute worst version of herself. In the end, Skye couldn’t forgive herself for causing the car accident with Paul. The regret completely consumed her, so that was the catalyst for her undoing.

Smile looks and feels more established in the sequel. Parker Finn sticks with some of the dizzying and inverted shots from the previous film. Just taking a stab at this, but the topsy-turvy shots are used as a visual representation for the current cursed victim’s world being turned upside down, and there’s no way to escape it.

Rose was put on a bumpy road, but Parker Finn raises the stakes with Skye as a victim for the curse. Remember, the entity (or The Monstrosity) feeds off of trauma, and there’s one particular traumatic event that Skye just couldn’t let go of. 

To make matters worse, Skye is someone, who’s constantly surrounded by people, making it nearly impossible to avoid the demonic smiling faces. The scene, where Skye is cornered by her dancers in her apartment? Freaky stuff, especially the unified and choreographed slinking movements before the group corners Skye. 

Skye dealing with extreme amounts of stress for being a young pop star undeniably made things worse. So many people pulling you in different directions, the expectations, and the exhausting grind that never seems to end. She’s also dealing with a curse! Yeah, too much.

Morris’ plan to stop the entity was a bit too loopy. I get it. Skye needed a miracle to survive, but her chances were always too slim, especially when you know what happened to Rose.  

But there’s no denying Smile 2 is still an outstanding follow up to the 2022 film. This is you want from a sequel, a film that lets you know the original wasn’t just a flash in the pan or a fluke, and it’s one of the rare cases, where the sequel surpasses the original. And a nice effort to add some realism with Skye appearing on Drew Barrymore’s show for the first big interview before the tour.

After the first film, you know what to expect for the fake-outs and the illusions, but a few of them still managed  to catch me off guard. The argument between Skye and Elizabeth at the wellness center is easily my top pick. And the Gemma twist is a good shocker. 

The curse turns into a worldwide epidemic in the next film? Think about an arena filled to the brim with thousands of people, fans recording, and the chances for live streaming the concert. Lots of possibilities!

Similar to its predecessor, Smile 2 is consistently tense, delivering stronger thrills, while the story moves at a much faster pace. Some nice spooky moments, the right amount of bloody gore, and a handful of unnerving moments. 

The scene with the creepy stalker fan at Skye’s autograph signing is a wild one. Ivan Carlo’s Alfredo is someone, who’ll make your skin crawl. The angry screeching voice, his disgusting poor hygiene (e.g. the skid marks in his underwear), and his unhealthy obsession with Skye. A real weirdo, and Carlo is pretty damn good during his brief appearances.

Smile 2 gets an extra bump over the original for Naomi Scott’s excellent performance. Third or fourth time rewatching this one, because Smile 2 is one of my personal favorites for 2024 horror films. 

A truly bonkers horror flick from start to finish, including Joel’s (Kyle Gallner) botched attempt to pass the curse, complete with a vision of Rose engulfed in flames to maintain the continuity between both films. A frazzled Gallner makes the most of his short screen time, starting the movie off with a real bang for a smooth transition into Skye’s story. Solid emotional depth, and a balanced supporting cast for the story about a controversial celebrity, who could’ve avoided a lot of problems, if she didn’t secretly go to a drug dealer’s apartment in the middle of the night to score Vicodin. 

Rating- 9/10

Cinderella’s Curse (2024)

 **This post contains spoilers**

The Story- Stuck in an abusive life of servitude, Cinderella (Kelly Rian Sanson) finds some hope for happiness, when Prince Levin (Sam Barrett) invites her to the ball. On a daily basis, Cinderella is harassed, bullied, and tormented by her stepmother, Lady Dyer (Danielle Scott), and her stepsisters, Ingrid (Lauren Budd) and Hannah (Natasha Tosini). The maid, Anja (Helen Fullerton) and a boy named Moritz (Frederick Dallaway) are Cinderella’s only two friends and allies, a lifeline for Cinderella’s hellish reality. But Anja and Moritz are forced to deal with severe punishments from Lady Dyer.

Cinderella is humiliated during the ball, the victim of a cruel prank orchestrated by Prince Levin, Ingrid, and Hannah. Unbeknownst to her perpetrators, Cinderella is preparing to unleash a violent form of vengeance, with some help from a magical flesh-bound book, the final third wish, and her Fairy Godmother (Chrissie Wunna). 

My Thoughts- The lowly servant girl turns into a bloodthirsty maniac out for revenge? I really enjoyed Kelly Rian Sanson’s performance as Cinderella, because it’s easy to root for her before and after the third wish. Sanson is believably sympathetic, playing an innocent and earnest woman, who deals with cruelty from her family. You can see Cinderella is just physically and mentally worn out through Sanson’s body language and her demeanor. She just wants a loving family and to be treated like a human being. And there’s that cool rah-rah moment at the ball, when Cinderella refuses to back down to her stepmother.

When the carnage starts? Cinderella’s out for blood! Throughout the movie, she’s physically abused, literally spit on, and there’s a disgusted and irritated reaction to Cinderella simply existing. She’s dog shit on the bottom of their shoes. Smarmy and elitist psychopaths step on her and start the cycle over again, so you could say Cinderella’s brutal response is justified, when she decides to strike back. Sanson shifts into another gear during Cinderella’s rampage. She hams it up a bit for the whole angry and vengeful Cinderella routine, and there’s a noticeable shift from Sanson for a more confident and arrogant persona, because the bullies are dealing with a woman, who’s sick and tired of being a punching bag.

Danielle Scott masters the art of scowling and disgruntled, angry facial expressions. Lauren Budd and Natasha Tosini delivering two decent performances, as spoiled and bitchy mean girls, with sadistic dark sides works, because both characters play crucial roles in finally pushing Cinderella over the edge. Sam Barrett? Prince Levin is a narcissistic brat with a god complex. Thumbs up for Barrett’s performance, because Prince Levin easily has a punchable face. 

I’m torn on the ending. Cinderella killing the Fairy Godmother? I get it. After everything she went through with her stepmother and her stepsisters, after everything she just did, all the killing and the bloodshed, Cinderella didn’t want to continue living her life as a slave. Eternal servitude under the Fairy Godmother? Yeah, no thanks. 

Cinderella FINALLY had a chance to live freely and have control over her life, but why was it so easy to kill the Fairy Godmother? She’s a powerful supernatural being, so shouldn’t there have been more of a struggle to taker her out? Maybe you could say Cinderella caught her off guard and confused the Fairy Godmother with her explanation about refusing to serve her and the way she worded it. But I still have a lot of trouble buying into how the Fairy Godmother’s demise played out. No fight, no dramatic back and forth haymakers, and no chances for the Fairy Godmother to defend herself? Come on now.

Cinderella’s Curse flips everything about Cinderella upside down, adding dark twists to the famous fairy tale. First up, the Fairy Godmother! I absolutely loved the look they decided to go with. She looks like a decaying corpse, with the fresh blood, and the thinning clumps of hair. The Fairy Godmother truly resembles a demon sent from hell, the evil force and an ally, who guides Cinderella during her quest for vengeance.

The glass slipper represents a big positive change for Cinderella. A symbol for happiness and a new beginning, completing the transformation from a servant to a princess, but in Cinderella’s Curse, the glass slipper is a weapon? That’s right. Cinderella uses the glass slipper to punish those, who wronged her. The usage of the glass slipper perfectly fits with the direction of the story towards the end, a good choice for some of the twisted ideas they decided to go with here. 

The flesh-bound book was another good addition. The moving eye, strong similarities to a Necronomicon/Book Of The Dead, and there’s a cool trick, where illustrations for future events or prophecies fills the blank pages of the book, as the story progresses. 

Cinderella’s vengeful warpath towards the end? Hard to shake the feeling for the whole fiasco dragging on a bit too long, but I also understand why they needed to milk everything. Cinderella is treated like garbage throughout the movie. At some point, they had to tip the scales to balance things out, because Cinderella’s revenge had to really mean something to justify the nonstop cruelty that inches towards one full hour. No one was spared, and the worst offenders suffered horrible deaths.

I know this a low budget film, but a more creative smoke and mirrors approach could’ve helped. During certain close up shots, you can clearly see how fake everything is, and it just kills whatever shocking reactions they were going for. One scene that really sticks out for me involves a big pair of scissors and someone’s foot. I’ll just leave it there. 

Cinderella’s Curse has a lot of ambitious ideas and changes. A ballsy approach, and the guts everyone involved showed here is something to be admired, because they didn’t pull any punches. The scene with Lady Dyer, Hannah, and Ingrid torturing and beating Anja is NASTY and rough, ending with Dyer forcing Cinderella to deliver the killing blow. But the bad narrowly outweighs the good in Cinderella’s Curse, and overall, the acting is very hit and miss (more misses than hits). 

Still, Cinderella’s Curse is a film that you shouldn’t take too seriously. It’s a zany and very cheesy horror revenge flick. Looking for extreme violence? Buckets and buckets of blood? Graphic gore? Cinderella’s Curse covers all the bases and then some. And there’s no denying the strong Carrie-esque vibes, especially during the ballroom massacre. I did get a kick out of Cinderella’s Curse, but I had high hopes every now and then, because there’s honestly more to Cinderella’s Curse than the shock-factor for making a horror inspired Cinderella film. Tons of potential as a bloody adrenaline rush, but Cinderella’s Curse just falls short in too many areas.

Rating- 4/10

Cinderella’s Curse (2024)(Minor Spoilers)

 

**This post contains MINOR spoilers**

The Story- Stuck in an abusive life of servitude, Cinderella (Kelly Rian Sanson) finds some hope for happiness, when Prince Levin (Sam Barrett) invites her to the ball. On a daily basis, Cinderella is harassed, bullied, and tormented by her stepmother, Lady Dyer (Danielle Scott), and her stepsisters, Ingrid (Lauren Budd) and Hannah (Natasha Tosini). The maid, Anja (Helen Fullerton) and a boy named Moritz (Frederick Dallaway) are Cinderella’s only two friends and allies, a lifeline for Cinderella’s hellish reality. But Anja and Moritz are forced to deal with severe punishments from Lady Dyer.

Cinderella is humiliated during the ball, the victim of a cruel prank orchestrated by Prince Levin, Ingrid, and Hannah. Unbeknownst to her perpetrators, Cinderella is preparing to unleash a violent form of vengeance, with some help from a magical flesh-bound book, the final third wish, and her Fairy Godmother (Chrissie Wunna). 

My Thoughts- The lowly servant girl turns into a bloodthirsty maniac out for revenge? I really enjoyed Kelly Rian Sanson’s performance as Cinderella, because it’s easy to root for her before and after the third wish. Sanson is believably sympathetic, playing an innocent and earnest woman, who deals with cruelty from her family. You can see Cinderella is just physically and mentally worn out through Sanson’s body language and her demeanor. She just wants a loving family and to be treated like a human being. And there’s that cool rah-rah moment at the ball, when Cinderella refuses to back down to her stepmother.

When the carnage starts? Cinderella’s out for blood! Throughout the movie, she’s physically abused, literally spit on, and there’s a disgusted and irritated reaction to Cinderella simply existing. She’s dog shit on the bottom of their shoes. Smarmy and elitist psychopaths step on her and start the cycle over again, so you could say Cinderella’s brutal response is justified, when she decides to strike back. Sanson shifts into another gear during Cinderella’s rampage. She hams it up a bit for the whole angry and vengeful Cinderella routine, and there’s a noticeable shift from Sanson for a more confident and arrogant persona, because the bullies are dealing with a woman, who’s sick and tired of being a punching bag.

Danielle Scott masters the art of scowling and disgruntled, angry facial expressions. Lauren Budd and Natasha Tosini delivering two decent performances, as spoiled and bitchy mean girls, with sadistic dark sides works, because both characters play crucial roles in finally pushing Cinderella over the edge. Sam Barrett? Prince Levin is a narcissistic brat with a god complex. Thumbs up for Barrett’s performance, because Prince Levin easily has a punchable face. 

Cinderella’s Curse flips everything about Cinderella upside down, adding dark twists to the famous fairy tale. First up, the Fairy Godmother! I absolutely loved the look they decided to go with. She looks like a decaying corpse, with the fresh blood, and the thinning clumps of hair. The Fairy Godmother truly resembles a demon sent from hell, the evil force and an ally, who guides Cinderella during her quest for vengeance.

The glass slipper represents a big positive change for Cinderella. A symbol for happiness and a new beginning, completing the transformation from a servant to a princess, but in Cinderella’s Curse, the glass slipper is a weapon? That’s right. Cinderella uses the glass slipper to punish those, who wronged her. The usage of the glass slipper perfectly fits with the direction of the story towards the end, a good choice for some of the twisted ideas they decided to go with here.

The flesh-bound book was another good addition. The moving eye, strong similarities to a Necronomicon/Book Of The Dead, and there’s a cool trick, where illustrations for future events or prophecies fills the blank pages of the book, as the story progresses. 

Cinderella’s vengeful warpath towards the end? Hard to shake the feeling for the whole fiasco dragging on a bit too long, but I also understand why they needed to milk everything. Cinderella is treated like garbage throughout the movie. At some point, they had to tip the scales to balance things out, because Cinderella’s revenge had to really mean something to justify the nonstop cruelty that inches towards one full hour. No one was spared, and the worst offenders suffered horrible deaths.

I know this a low budget film, but a more creative smoke and mirrors approach could’ve helped. During certain close up shots, you can clearly see how fake everything is, and it just kills whatever shocking reactions they were going for. One scene that really sticks out for me involves a big pair of scissors and someone’s foot. I’ll just leave it there. 

Cinderella’s Curse has a lot of ambitious ideas and changes. A ballsy approach, and the guts everyone involved showed here is something to be admired, because they didn’t pull any punches. But the bad narrowly outweighs the good in Cinderella’s Curse, and overall, the acting is very hit and miss (more misses than hits). 

Still, Cinderella’s Curse is a film that you shouldn’t take too seriously. It’s a zany and very cheesy horror revenge flick. Looking for extreme violence? Buckets and buckets of blood? Graphic gore? Cinderella’s Curse covers all the bases and then some. And there’s no denying the strong Carrie-esque vibes, especially during the ballroom massacre. I did get a kick out of Cinderella’s Curse, but I had high hopes every now and then, because there’s honestly more to Cinderella’s Curse than the shock-factor for making a horror inspired Cinderella film. Tons of potential as a bloody adrenaline rush, but Cinderella’s Curse just falls short in too many areas.

Rating- 4/10

Arena Wars (2024)(Minor Spoilers)

 

**This post contains MINOR spoilers**

The Story- In the future, death row inmates are selected to compete in Arena Wars, a fight to the death reality show hosted by Samson (Michael Madsen) and Moses (Robert Donavan). Teams of seven prisoners have the chance to win their freedom, if they can outlast and defeat different killers, including Meat Wagon (Wesley Cannon), Cutie Pie (Maria Bova), and Calypso (Allen Woodman).

Perez (Robert LaSardo) leads one team of inmates, but Luke Bender (John Wells) emerges as the new star of Arena Wars. A selfless ex-Marine, who sacrificed his freedom in the name of national security, Bender is determined to lead his team to freedom. 

Belladonna (Kevin Hager), a CEO, and the mastermind behind Arena Wars, is desperate for higher ratings. Supported by his security team and his two cronies Domino (Mercedes Peterson) and Gideon (Michael Beran), Belladonna is determined to see Arena Wars succeed by any means necessary. Can Luke lead his team to victory? Or, has Belladonna stacked the deck too high against him?

My Thoughts- John Wells playing the grizzled tough guy with a conscience balances the story, so it’s not completely limited to blood, guts, and violence. He’s a character, who’s easy to root for, the Marine, who puts his country first, while also wanting to ensure the safety of his fiancée and her father, Admiral Jordan (Eric Roberts). Wells delivers a solid performance as Luke, adding the emotional foundation to Arena Wars. Yes, he’s a bit cheesy with the soft spoken badass routine, but it still works to complement the overall zany tone in Arena Wars.

Kevin Hager’s Belladonna is a decent enough villain. The typical narcissistic rich guy jerk, who probably has some mommy issues going up against the good guy soldier is an easy layup to execute. It’s almost impossible to resist the urge to punch Belladonna in the face. His smugness, his lack of empathy for other people, and his massive ego. All the right ingredients for a slimy antagonist, who’s hopefully headed towards a brutal comeuppance.

The killers are bloodthirsty maniacs! Okay, and what else? It’s true each killer has a different backstory, including wiping out the entire United Nations, or a terrorist attack targeting Yankee Stadium. Maria Bova’s Cutie Pie shows some personality, as a gleeful and demented murderer, who enjoys what she’s doing.

And maybe I’m reaching here, but I’m almost sure there’s a reference to A Nightmare On Elm Street and Freddy Krueger with the boiler room stuff. Personally, I wanted to see a little more depth for the personalities. Creative looks for the costumes and different styles for the killers, and there’s a reason why the killers are seemingly invincible. But there’s really nothing worth mentioning once you get past the “WE’RE GONNA KILL YOU!” mindset.

John Wells does most of the heavy lifting on the acting side of things. Luke’s team is full of colorful characters. Kylie Fulmer’s Billie stands out, and Johnny Huang puts a lot of enthusiasm into Khan, the jokester, who’s reminiscent of a knuckleheaded class clown. Michael Madsen has a good amount of screen time as one of the hosts, and Madsen was seemingly in a comfort zone and having fun playing Samson. Eric Roberts? He’s barely in the movie, but Jordan plays a crucial role in Luke’s story, especially towards the end. 

The irony for a reality show about prisoners killing their way to freedom is a bonkers story that’s good for a few laughs. Also, there’s a noticeable night and day difference between two of the hosts. Holly Daze (Sheri Davis)  represents everything Arena Wars is supposed to be about. She’s wild, has an in-your-face attitude, and her wardrobe reflects her fiery personality. The woman interviewing people in the crowd? She looks and sounds like someone, who doesn’t belong there. Maybe she should focus on reporting legitimate news, or possibly doing something more dignified. Hilarious stuff. 

I didn’t go into Arena Wars with high expectations. It’s the kind of movie, where you should know what you’re getting into before you hit the play button. Arena Wars is set in a city…named The Big F*****g City. Luke’s picture-perfect Superman Punch, and Belladonna calmly eats sushi off of a topless woman, while people are brutally murdered. It’s a silly and over the top action/sci-fi flick, featuring heavy doses of dark comedy. 

Giving credit where credit is due, Arena Wars really nailed the dystopian mood for the movie. The depravity, the sleaziness, and the need for people to consume more violent entertainment. For a movie that’s set in 2045, maybe it’s kind of scary to imagine this is where we’re headed as a society in twenty years? I know Arena Wars is not that deep, but maybe they could’ve focused more on those particular what ifs, because there’s a lot of material to explore. 

The fight scenes were too repetitive for me and kind of dull every now and then. I didn’t get Domino’s storyline, or why they felt the need to put effort into it, if that was the conclusion they were going with. Overall, there’s still more than enough bloody violence and gore in Arena Wars. It’s a really cheesy movie, loaded with corny dialogue, but Arena Wars mostly works, delivering just enough chaos and violence.

Rating-5/10