#FF24 My Old Ass is a bit shapeless, and takes a long time to go nowhere.

I didn't care about anything that happened and it all seemed a bit obvious - and dull. The central romance didn't work for me, which is probably why I didn't enjoy this much.

Skip.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) December 8, 2024

#FF24 Heretic is a fine piece of psychological horror.

Grant is clearly having a great time as the antagonist, and is delightful in the role. Keeps the tension up.

It nearly fumbles in the end (and in a handful of shots of a maze), but I think it just about pulls it off.

Good.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) December 8, 2024

#FF24 Caddo Lake is one to see cold.

Ostensbily about a young girl missing in a swampy lake, it quickly becomes clear something else is happening. Slow, methodical, and does a great job of slowly revealing the back half.

Very good.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) December 8, 2024

#FF24 Time Cut is a somewhat generic time-travel/killer film, very similar to one from last year.

A girl tries to prevent her sister's murder but in doing so causes ripples. You'll see basically everything coming and won't really care about what happens.

It's fine, not terrible

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) December 8, 2024

#FF24 Conclave is about a Papal conclave frought with drama.

Fantastic performances throughout, and each of the main threads keeps things twisting nicely - if a little melodramatically. The final twist is silly and heavy-handed, but I can't say I minded much.

Good.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) December 8, 2024

#FF24 Gladiator 2 is a bit too much of a retread.

Mezcal is great as the lead, but his journey follows pretty much the same arc as the original. Washington is fantastic - but is the only fresh injection of energy. Everything else is stale.

Okay, as an imitation.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) December 8, 2024

#FF24 Kneecap was surprisingly great.

About a hip-hop trio who rap in Irish, it's silly and fun, visually inventive, and well-paced throughout. I didn't expect much and it massively overdelivered - even if the Fassbender plot was a bit much.

Very good.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) December 8, 2024

#FF24 The Platform 2 is similar to the (very good) original but with some twists.

Here the focus is more on doctine, belief, and zeal, than the slightly more random chaos of the original. I wouldn't watch them back to back, but both are worth seeing.

Solid.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) October 13, 2024

#FF24 Speak No Evil is a secluded horror about a family who go somewhere they shouldn't.

McAvoy's shifting accent aside, it keeps the tension high, constantly letting you know that things aren't right, but not stepping back. The ending is a little weak, but doesn't spoil.

Good.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) October 13, 2024

#FF24 It's What's Inside mixes a simple sci-fi/horror premise with the jealousy of influencer culture.

You can very quickly see the possibilities, and the movie has a lot of fun with the what-ifs. It overcomplicates the ending, with too many expositional twists.

Fun.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) October 13, 2024

#FF24 Brothers is proof a great cast can make a bad film.

Ostensibily a comedy, I don't think I laughed once. The plot is forgettable and the characters are flat - nothing that happened was particularly interesting.

Avoid.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) December 8, 2024

#FF24 Woman Of The Hour is a bit of a mixed bag.

It's a weird framing (killer on a dating show) of what would have been a better film if told in a more straightforward way. There are moments of levity and moments of well-earned tension, but it's all a bit odd.

Okay.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) December 8, 2024

#FF24 Strange Darling is a strange but well structured movie.

We start in the middle, and jump backwards and forwards through multiple chapters - that couldn't really be told in any other order. It doesn't quite know when to end, but the journey is well worth it.

Good.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) December 8, 2024

#FF24 Rebel Ridge is another classic by Saulnier.

From start to finish, the story and action are both shocking and fantastically executed. Aaron Pierre is a star in the making - absolutely electric in this role.

Go into it blind for a good time.

Great.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) October 13, 2024

#FF24 Uglies is a waste of good streaming bandwidth.

If you told me the script was AI generated with the prompt, "generic young adult dystopian fiction" I would not be shocked. There's not a new idea in here, and plenty that is well-trodden.

Skip.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) October 13, 2024

#FF24 The Substance is a delightful and slightly deranged look at ageing, beauty, and societal pressure.

Moore and Qualley are both fantastic in their respective roles, with Quaid coming in big too. Body horror and satire hits a particularly sweet spot. Again, one to watch cold.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) October 13, 2024

#FF24 Wolfs is a dry, dark comedy about lone fixers forced to work together.

Pitt and Clooney have good banter together, and the plot has enough layers and threads to keep you going. There's a standout monologue by Austin Abrams too. Runs out of steam towards the end.

Good

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) October 13, 2024

#FF24 Trigger Warning is the latest Netflix, low-budget action filler.

The acting is flat, the action dull, the plot non-existent. Nothing really holds together in this box-ticking exercise pretending to be a film. Some decent actors absolutely wasted in this.

Avoid.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) August 18, 2024

#FF24 The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare is a big, glossy, comic-book take on World War 2.

I wasn't shocked when I saw Ritchie had directed it - it has his signature quips and bravado all over it. It's also a little style-over-substance, but as silly action goes, it's decent.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) August 18, 2024

#FF24 The Instigators is an odd miss.

It's got a solid cast, a good director, and a decent premise. It's just incredibly formulaic. You've seen this done a million times before, and better. Sometimes films aren't as good as the sum of their parts.

Meh.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) August 18, 2024

#FF24 The Union is yet another Netflix-backed, formulaic action film.

Wahlberg and Berry make it a bit better than much of the slosh being churned out, and there are some reasonable set pieces. The rest is pretty forgettable.

Meh.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) August 18, 2024

#FF24 Jackpot! is a comedy that combines winning the lottery with the purge.

It surprisingly lives up to the bonkers premise, and never takes its foot off the gas. Awkwafina and Cena work well together, with Liu as a nice, late addition. Some fun action too.

Good.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) August 18, 2024

#FF24 Alien: Romulus takes the franchise back to terror in the dark.

A poor choice to deage one actor aside, it treads the line of nostalgia and fan service well, while providing a solid movie. I didn't care for the final act but it doesn't ruin the movie.

Good.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) October 13, 2024

#FF24 Incoming is a high-school, gross out comedy that doesn't surprise, but doesn't really have to.

Some fun moments, silly gags, and enough pace to not bore.Clearly the kind of movie you need to be in the right mood for - but perfectly fine if you are.

Fine.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) October 13, 2024

#FF24 Bad Boys: Ride Or Die continues the style over substance, buddy action franchise.

Very much fits with the others, which have improved somewhat since Bay stepped away. You're going to get big action, some excellent stunts, and nonsense plot.

Switch your brain off and enjoy

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) October 13, 2024

#FF24 Blink Twice isn't for the faint-hearted - covering some dark grounds.

While you'll likely figure out what's going on long before the very graphic reveal, the performances are strong enough to carry the film - particularly Ackie, Tatum, and Arjona.

Good, but not easy.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) October 13, 2024

#FF24 Trap is silly, Shyamalan nonsense - the cinematic equivalent of buttery popcorn.

The premise makes little sense, but buy into it and go on the ride - it's pretty fun. Hartnett does a great job in the lead role, even if Shyamalan's daughter as the pop star distracts.

Fun.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) October 13, 2024

#FF24 Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes is a mixed bag.

The world that's been built and the tech used to create it is impressive. However, the story doesn't really take us anywhere wildly new. A little too long, too. It has its moments.

Okay.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) October 13, 2024

#FF24 Kinds of Kindness is an interesting triptych of stories of varying quality.

As with all of Lanthimos' work, the stories and their tone are unusual. The middle story the weakest of the three, but a strong cast makes them all work to some degree. Probably a little long

Good

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) August 18, 2024

#FF24 Axel F is another legacy sequel that works to some degree, but misses in others.

There's a little too much "Remember this?" standing in for plot, but Murphy's charm and comic chops help improve some of the otherwise drudging plot. Could do with being a little shorter

Fine

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) August 18, 2024

#FF24 Kill is an exceptionally good action film out of India.

It starts as a fine but weak version of The Raid, but becomes far more gruesome at the midpoint. The plot is barely there, but you won't care as you wince through yet another skull-cracking fight.

Very good.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) August 18, 2024

#FF24 Maxxxine rounds out the X trilogy with its weakest, but still good, entry.

Mia Goth is exceptional as the lead, leaning into sleazy 80s movie tropes. The problem is there's nothing here to really wow us - the plot is forgettable and it lacks memorable moments.

Okay.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) August 18, 2024

#FF24 Deadpool & Wolverine is 80% fan service, some okay action, and not much plot.

As long as you go in expecting a bunch of moments that barely hold together, it's quite entertaining - the mid-film extended cameos are excellent, for example.

Entertaining trash.

— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) August 18, 2024