These are quick impressions of some newly released films that I watched over the past month that I wasn’t able to write more in-depth reviews for. Please note that these are just some of the many movies I will have watched each year, and my initial grade for these films may change over time, for better or worse. To stay up to date on my thoughts about other movies and any potential changes in my opinion on these ones, follow me on Letterboxd.
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CRIME 101
Plot, Via Letterboxd: When an elusive thief whose high-stakes heists unfold along the iconic 101 freeway in Los Angeles eyes the score of a lifetime, with hopes of this being his final job, his path collides with a disillusioned insurance broker who is facing her own crossroads, forcing the two to collaborate. Determined to crack the case, a relentless detective closes in on the operation, raising the stakes even higher.
Quick Impressions: This plays very much in the same vein as classic crime thrillers like Heat, leaning into that deliberate, character-first pacing with an ensemble cast that helps smooth over some of the film’s weaker links. It’s a tad overlong and occasionally feels like it’s plotting rather than propelling, but when it locks in, it really locks in.
What ultimately carries it is the chemistry and commitment from the cast, who treat the material with just enough gravitas to elevate what could’ve easily been a disposable genre exercise. There’s a sturdy, old-school craftsmanship to it, the kind of mid-budget adult thriller that doesn’t get made as often anymore, and that alone makes it feel refreshing.
In the end, it’s a very enjoyable “dad flick” thriller in the best sense of the term - serious, muscular, a little indulgent, but genuinely engaging. For me, it’s the first major pleasant surprise of the year.
Initial Grading: B+
GOAT
Plot, Via Letterboxd: Will, a small goat with big dreams, gets a once-in-a-lifetime shot to join the pros and play roarball – a high-intensity, co-ed, full-contact sport dominated by the fastest, fiercest animals in the world. Will’s new teammates aren’t thrilled about having a little goat on their roster, but Will is determined to revolutionize the sport and prove once and for all that ‘smalls can ball’!
Quick Impressions: The animation here is flat-out superb; honestly, on a pure technical level, it outclasses even some animated films that are overall superior movies. The textures, the movement, the way the action sequences are staged, it all has a fluidity and confidence that makes the whole thing pop off the screen.
What caught me off guard, though, is how much heart the movie actually has. Beneath the bright colors and broad humor, there’s a sincere examination of not just chasing your dreams, but what it takes to build something with other people. It leans into themes of community, teamwork, and learning how to trust those around you instead of trying to lone-wolf your way to greatness. That element gives the story a little more weight than you might expect going in.
Now, make no mistake, this is still a pretty predictable, paint-by-the-numbers underdog story. You can see most of the emotional beats coming from a mile away. But it’s executed with enough charm, energy, and visual flair that it stays engaging throughout. It never quite transcends the formula, but it works the formula well.
And maybe most importantly, it’s paced and constructed in a way that parents won’t find their eyes glazing over while sitting through it at the local theater. There’s enough craft and sincerity here to make it a genuinely pleasant family outing rather than just something you endure for the kids.
Initial Grading: B-
GOOD LUCK, HAVE FUN, DON’T DIE
Plot, Via Letterboxd: A man from the future arrives at a diner in Los Angeles where he must recruit the precise combination of disgruntled patrons to join him on a one-night-six-block quest to save the world from the terminal threat of a rogue artificial intelligence.
Quick Impressions: I’m in the minority on this one in the same way I was with last month’s Send Help. While a lot of people seem to be vibing with it, I found it to be a pretty grating experience. The heart is clearly in the right place, especially with its attempts to grapple with the dangers and pitfalls of AI, but it never quite figures out how to execute those themes in a way that feels sharp or cohesive. It gestures at big ideas without ever fully committing to them.
To his credit, Sam Rockwell does his damnest to elevate the material. He goes all-in with a zany, go-for-broke performance that at least injects some chaotic energy into the proceedings. You can feel him trying to will the movie into something more memorable. Unfortunately, even that commitment can’t paper over a weak script.
The film’s greatest sin, though, is its finale. Without getting into specifics, it completely lost me in the homestretch, to the point where I was actively cursing at the screen for what felt like a waste of time and potential. It’s one thing to miss the mark; it’s another to fumble the landing that badly.
The only reason my final grade isn’t harsher is because there are flashes of real genius sprinkled throughout, moments where you can see the smarter, sharper movie it could have been. But those moments are too few and far between to salvage the whole. As it stands, this might very well be my least favorite project from Gore Verbinski, which is a real disappointment given his decent track record.
Initial Grading: C+
“WUTHERING HEIGHTS”
Plot, Via Letterboxd: Tragedy strikes when Heathcliff falls in love with Catherine Earnshaw, a woman from a wealthy family in eighteenth century England.
Quick Impressions: The early frontrunner for Most Divisive Film of the Year, which, let’s be honest, is exactly the kind of space Emerald Fennell seems to relish operating in. I respected more than loved Promising Young Woman, but Saltburn ended up being one of my top favorites of 2023, so I genuinely had no idea where I’d land on this one.
On a pure craft level, this thing is breathtaking. The production design, costumes, cinematography, all of it feels meticulously curated and borderline immaculate. It’s the kind of below-the-line work that practically begs to show up on a year-end personal ballot. Fennell and her team know how to build a world, and they build the hell out of this one.
Performance-wise, Jacob Elordi is going all out. He understands the assignment and commits fully to the operatic intensity the film is reaching for. Margot Robbie, though, feels slightly mismatched in comparison. It’s not that she’s bad , but next to Elordi’s heightened energy, her performance feels comparatively restrained in a way that doesn’t always serve the dynamic the story is trying to sell.
Structurally, the first half is the stronger film. It’s focused, atmospheric, and genuinely absorbing. The back half is where things start to get messy, not boring, not incompetent, just less disciplined. The thematic swings get broader, the pacing more uneven, and the emotional tragic payoff doesn’t quite land with the force it’s clearly aiming for.
I ended up really liking it overall, even if I didn’t love it. As an adaptation of Wuthering Heights, it’s one of the weaker takes, especially compared to versions that hewed closer to the source material’s emotional core. Still, it’s ambitious, gorgeously made, and never dull. I’d probably rank it somewhere between Fennell’s previous two films. Really liked this. Didn’t quite love it. But I’ll absolutely be thinking about it for a while.
Initial Grading: B+
HOW TO MAKE A KILLING
Plot, Via Letterboxd: Disowned at birth by his obscenely wealthy family, blue-collar Becket Redfellow will stop at nothing to reclaim his inheritance, no matter how many relatives stand in his way.
Quick Impressions: This is a loose modern remake of the 1949 British classic Kind Hearts And Coronets, and unfortunately it stumbles its way into being a far inferior take on that razor-sharp original. Where the earlier film balanced pitch-perfect black comedy with elegance and restraint, this version feels louder, broader, and far less precise about what it’s trying to say.
Glenn Powell is dynamite, though. He understands the tone the movie should be operating in and brings a slick, charismatic edge that keeps the whole thing from completely derailing. Every time he’s on screen, the movie snaps into focus. The problem is that the film keeps undercutting that momentum by leaning on a string of cheap cameos that feel more like distractions than additions.
The pacing doesn’t help either. It feels oddly rushed, as if it’s sprinting through plot points without trusting the audience to savor the satire. Margaret Qualley, meanwhile, feels underserved here; stuck delivering the same sort of stylized, detached dialogue she’s been handed in some of her lesser projects. It never quite clicks into something memorable.
Most frustrating are the small but significant changes made to the source material. They may seem minor on paper, but they create massive dentations in the story’s thematic core. What was once a sly, darkly comedic meditation on class and ambition now plays meaner and more cynical, losing much of the wit and underlying message that made the original endure.
There’s a ton of potential here,the premise still works, and the right cast is in place, but the final product left me more underwhelmed than entertained.
Initial Grading: C+
NIRVANNA THE BAND THE SHOW THE MOVIE
Plot, Via Letterboxd: When their plan to book a show at the Rivoli goes horribly wrong, Matt and Jay accidentally travel back to the year 2008.
Quick Impressions: I’ve never seen the previous skits this is based on, so I went in pretty much cold. But this darling from last fall’s festival circuit ended up being one of the more outright fun theatrical experiences I’ve had all year.
The plot itself? Nothing groundbreaking. It’s fairly straightforward and doesn’t reinvent the wheel structurally. But that almost doesn’t matter. The dialogue absolutely crackles, and the comedic timing is so sharp that I found myself laughing out loud more than a few times.
What really makes it work is the rhythm. The jokes build on each other, the performances commit fully to the bit, and there’s a loose, infectious energy that keeps the whole thing buoyant even when the story threatens to sag.
This is the kind of movie that plays best with a crowd, ideally in a packed theater, maybe after a couple drinks, or at least with a big tub of popcorn and people ready to lean into the absurdity. It’s not aiming to be profound, but as pure communal entertainment, it absolutely delivers.
Initial Grading: B+
SCREAM 7
Plot, Via Letterboxd: When a new Ghostface killer emerges in the quiet town where Sidney Prescott has built a new life, her darkest fears are realized as her daughter becomes the next target. Determined to protect her family, Sidney must face the horrors of her past to put an end to the bloodshed once and for all.
Quick Impressions: As someone who soured pretty heavily on Scream 5 and Scream 6, I was actually kind of looking forward to a clean slate with Scream 7. Yes, the road getting here involved some truly gross behind-the-scenes decisions by Paramount regarding Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega, and that definitely left a bad taste. But creatively? I wasn’t going to pretend I was heartbroken to see the previous storyline, which never really worked for me, come to an end.
Unfortunately, be careful what you wish for. Scream 7 ends up being a giant waste of time; a messy, nostalgia-baiting entry that feels more desperate than inspired. It leans hard into callbacks and legacy winks instead of building something compelling on its own. Worst of all, there’s a cheap use of AI baked into the plot that feels like a shortcut around what could have been a genuinely bizarre, swing-for-the-fences twist. Instead of elevating the film, it just makes it feel cynical and hollow.
To the movie’s credit, the ultra-meta commentary that dominated the last two installments, and that I personally found exhausting, is dialed back here. That’s about where the positives end. The script’s pacing is all over the place, lurching from set piece to set piece without tension properly building. The new characters introduced this time around are paper-thin and interchangeable, giving you little reason to care who makes it to the third act.
And then there’s the Ghostface reveal.
Without spoiling anything, it’s easily the weakest in the entire franchise, not shocking, not clever, not even particularly fun. Just deflating. For a series that lives and dies on how well it sticks that landing, that’s a fatal flaw.
If this was the grand plan after fucking over Barrera and Ortega, then honestly? It might be time to let the franchise rest. Sometimes the most merciful twist is knowing when to finally hang up the mask.
