Frankenstein (2025) Film Review

A brilliant but egotistical scientist brings a monstrous creature to life in a daring experiment that ultimately leads to the undoing of both the creator and his tragic creation.

Frankenstein is directed by Guillermo del Toro director of The Devil’s Backbone (2001), Hellboy (2004), Pan’s Labyrinth (2006), Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008), Crimson Peak (2015), The Shape Of Water (2017), Nightmare Alley (2021), Pinocchio (2022) and a few others.

Guillermo del Toro and Frankenstein was a match made in heaven that was bound to happen at one point. There was talk for a long time about Guillermo del Toro wanting to make this passion project come to life and I’m glad we were able to see it do so because he absolutely hits it out of the park. From the performances, del Toro’s style fitting like a glove, the many beautiful technical aspects of the film and this deep understanding of Frankenstein’s monster how he sees the world plus finding beauty around him. Leads to such a beautifully done film that ends up being one of the year’s greatest.

Oscar Isaac as Baron Victor Frankenstein is fantastic, he captures the determined nature of the character to create the creature, over the course of the film we see this power get to his head and even treats the creature who saw Victor as a friend or this father figure. That’s especially the case with the final moments of the film, in which the creature ultimately sees Victor as this tragic flawed father figure. It’s a truly fascinating scene that really shares a lot about Victor as a character. Oscar Isaac does such a fantastic job of exploring Victor’s character, he especially shines when sharing the screen with Jacob Elordi (who plays the creature.)

Mia Goth plays a dual performance, this time as Lady Elizabeth Harlander and Baroness Claire Frankenstein. The latter performance we only get a few minutes of but it’s still a solid one from what’s presented. However Lady Elizabeth Harlander is where we get to see Goth’s talent really shine, while she is a bit absent during the film’s middle portion. She makes up for that with tons of memorable scenes, the love story going on here with the Creature is genuinely beautiful and has this tragic human feel that may actually make the viewer shed a tear. Mia Goth brings this beautiful and gothic like fairytale like performance that fits like a glove with Guillermo del Toro’s style and atmosphere, her chemistry with Jacob Elordi is phenomenal and the final moments of her character are devastating, even when she was absent for parts of the film. There is still this devastating and tragic nature that Goth nails down and is truly memorable.

Jacob Elordi as the Creature is a truly unbelievable performance, not only is this performance completely different from anything Elordi has ever done before. But it’s also one of those performances that leaves you in amazement, Elordi was already a strong actor but his performance as the Creature proves he can go even further with his talent. The Creature has this beautiful human theme going on here that Elordi perfectly captures, the Creature’s entry into the film with him being scared for a split second from water or him being fascinated by a leaf is truly beautiful, the body language that Elordi constantly displays as the Creature tells a story of its own. The Creature finding beauty all around him whether it’s intentional or not is heartwarming, Elordi’s dialogue is subtle and done in this beautiful way that makes the viewer see the film in the eyes of the Creature. It’s moments like these that truly bring out Elordi’s unbelievable talent, which ultimately leads to him delivering one of the best performances of the year.

The writing is phenomenal and only gets better over the course of the film. These themes of human connection, how the Creature sees the world, evolving as people, do not give into cruelness are all fantastic and explored perfectly. Some of which are done in a few short sentences, which tells the viewer everything they need to know as to what the film is tackling. The direction and screenplay from Guillermo del Toro brings the human element to the Creature in such a beautiful and touching way that captures the heart of the film. The attention to detail during the film’s quiet moments of the Creature just admiring the outdoors is fascinating and is quite honestly breathtaking.

The cinematography from Dan Laustsen is wonderful, it has the gothic look that immediately blends well with Guillermo del Toro’s style and brings the atmosphere front and center. The atmosphere starts out as this rich and building block like feel and slowly but surely evolved into something thrilling yet beautiful at the same time, it captures this new life feel that the Creature is going through, this whimsical and wonder touch that brings out the film’s strength which leads to the more emotional moments to pack more of a punch. Lastly there’s the passion of the subject matter, to say there is so much love poured into Frankenstein would be an understatement, Guillermo del Toro makes it known he is a huge fan of the subject matter and brings so much passion into the mix that helps create so many memorable moments that compliment the film.

Overall Frankenstein is another masterful film from Guillermo del Toro, it’s incredible that we got to see this passion project come to life. The cast are phenomenal, the story is masterfully told and the film itself is this beautiful exploration that you never want to leave.

Frankenstein is available on Netflix.

10/10 A+

The Long Walk (2025) Film Review

Teens participate in a gruelling high-stakes contest where they must continuously walk or be shot by a member of their military escort.

The Long Walk is directed by Francis Lawrence director of Constantine (2005), I Am Legend (2007), Water For Elephants (2011), Red Sparrow (2018), Slumberland (2022) and The Hunger Games franchise (2012-Present.)

The Long Walk was a huge surprise, while yes Francis Lawrence has shown that he’s a great director. Making a whole film about the characters constantly walking and never stopping seemed like a bit of a challenge (which hey that’s always a good thing), due to the film’s excellent cast, beautifully done direction and really meaningful moments. The Long Walk ends up being one of this year’s best.

The main praise you hear when this film is talked about is how excellent both the performances of Cooper Hoffman and David Jonsson really are and that is very well deserved. The two give the best duo performance of the year, from the moment their character’s Ray (played by Hoffman) and Pete (played by Jonsson) interact the film focuses on these two’s conversations, the people around them and their stories. The two deliver compelling, nuanced and actually quite astonishing performances that really leave viewer stunned and heartbroken. Jonsson serves as the film’s emotional core, he gives such a heartbreaking performance that especially works during the film’s final moments. Hoffman gives a vulnerable yet powerful performance that sticks with the viewer.

The supporting cast are just as fantastic, Ben Wang, Tut Nyuot and Charlie Plummer in particular. The three give their characters depth that would otherwise be absent from the film, sure they might not be given as much as Hoffman or Jonsson but they are still participating in the story and interact with Ray and Pete. There is story arcs here with these characters that are truly compelling and it helps that the performances themselves are all fantastic, each of them bring this natural energy to the mix of the film that completely brings the viewer into the experience.

The writing is incredibly well done, the natural dialogue is so well done here. As we learn about Ray, Pete and the others backstories we really get to see so much depth in them, the film’s atmosphere has this bleakness but at the same time this beautiful humanist feel. There are glimpses of hope in the dialogue that everything can change, which I might be a bit biased here but is a sort of theme I have always loved. The theme of wanting the future to change and seeing a path forward is so well executed here and brings you to tears. Ray, Pete and the rest of the characters just talking about why they are here, what they are going to do after all of this is truly devastating.

The film’s death scenes are all the more disturbing given the film’s story and how much we grow attached to these characters. These are not just random death scenes, these are scenes where the stakes feel incredibly real. It’s showing that the Major (played by Mark Hamill) and his men are not playing around, there is danger at every corner since if you stop walking and the count goes down to zero you die. It’s filled to the brim with thrilling atmosphere that all of the characters must go through. Which ultimately leads to the film’s brutality in its death scenes, the kills are nothing incredibly flashy but the film does not need that at all. It gets the point across with simple gunshots, we see the fear in the characters eyes and body language.

The film’s final moments brings this sense of hope, the journey we went on was bleak and seemed like there was no path to a better future. However the film does such a beautiful and emotional job of showing there is a chance for change, it’s an absolute beautiful way to end this tense ride.

Overall The Long Walk is very well acted, written and directed. It’s an atmospheric ride that has very beautiful human moments. The performances from Hoffman and Jonsson are some of the absolute best of the year.

The Long Walk is available on all VOD platforms.

10/10 A+

The Black Phone 2 (2025) Film Review

Bad dreams haunt 15-year-old Gwen as she receives calls from the black phone and sees disturbing visions of three boys being stalked at a winter camp. Accompanied by her brother, Finn, they head to the camp to solve the mystery, only to confront the Grabber — a killer who’s grown even more powerful in death.

The Black Phone 2 is directed by Scott Derrickson director of Hellraiser: Inferno (2000), The Exorcism Of Emily Rose (2005), The Day The Earth Stood Still (2008), Sinister (2012), Deliver Us From Evil (2014), Doctor Strange (2016), The Black Phone (2022) and The Gorge (2025). The film serves as a sequel to The Black Phone (2022).

When The Black Phone 2 was announced a lot of the reactions were something along the lines of “where does it go from here?” The first film was a surprisingly quite strong film that felt raw, it also came out in 2022 the year that was filled to the brim with excellent horror films. Luckily The Black Phone 2 does the smart move of being the complete opposite of it’s predecessor, rather going for more of the same thing the film opts to go for this Nightmare On Elm Street inspired feel. Which in the end works in the film’s favor due to just how well the film is executed.

The performances all around are fantastic, Mason Thames and Madeleine McGraw are both once again fantastic, we get to see their trauma and what has changed since the last film. McGraw especially gets one particular moment during the film’s final moments that I was not expecting to cry at, without spoiling it I will say that it was a very well built up to moment that really does a fantastic job of showing Gwen as a character and just strong McGraw is here. It’s a touching moment that leaves the viewer in tears during the film’s final moments.

Although Ethan Hawk is not in the film as much as one would expect, what makes The Grabber so effective this time around is feeling his presence in the atmosphere itself. Ethan Hawke does deliver a solid performance here and while it is a bit of a shame we do not get to see him as much as we did in the first film, I do think the payoff and what we do end up getting with the atmosphere and dream sequences (I’ll get into that soon) is wonderful and makes up for it.

The supporting cast such as Demián Bichir and Arianna Rivas are both strong here as well, we get to see some genuinely solid moments of the two helping Finney and Gwen, plus a few moments of Bichir’s character Armando showing some vulnerability. It might not be a particularly huge moment but it does show that the film wants everyone to at least be involved in the film’s world.

The Nightmare On Elm Street inspirations become very clear when it comes to the dream sequences, these sequences are filmed using an 8mm camera and they are quite haunting. You can fell the dark atmosphere and The Grabber’s presence throughout these scenes, these moments perfectly capture what it’s like to have very unclear and confused dreams that get you thinking about what exactly happened. The 8mm camera only adds to the blur and confused nature as well as this terrifying painting of trauma, there is this theme of trauma here that is very effectively done. As the dream sequences keep occurring we see more and more build up until the whole film leads to the return of The Grabber making his presence known.

The writing does have its cornball moments, however the film mostly stays on the ball with delivering a ton of genuine moments that are touching. Finney’s bond with his sister Gwen is incredibly charming and the roster of characters all feel involved as I mentioned before, some are definitely more important than others but the film does a great job of giving these characters life.

Overall The Black Phone 2 is a very strong sequel that’s just as great as its predecessor, it was a very smart move to go for a much different direction rather than doing the same thing again. It does interest me where they will go if a Black Phone 3 does happen.

The Black Phone 2 is available on all VOD platforms.

9/10 A

The Toxic Avenger (2025) Film Review

A janitor becomes a social outcast when a freak accident at a chemical factory turns him into a mutant. However, he soon uses his newfound superhuman strength to battle slimy criminals and a corrupt CEO.

The Toxic Avenger is directed by Macon Blair director of I Don’t Feel At Home In This World Anymore (2017). The film serves as the fifth installment and a reboot in The Toxic Avenger series.

While The Toxic Avenger might not have as much gore as its predecessors (I’m not exactly sure why there was talk about this film being “unreleasable”) the film still has a lot of charm and actually is strangely heartfelt in some areas.

The performances are all around pretty great. Peter Dinklage works well as The Toxic Avenger, he does not go incredibly far with it but I guess the reboot wanted to try a different approach which works well here. Kevin Bacon and Elijah Wood make for fun villains even if we do not get a whole lot of character writing for their characters. It ultimately can be ignored due to just how well Bacon and Wood work together and steal each and every scene they share together.

The film does not have the Troma insanity from the previous films, which while unfortunate gives us something that feels much different this time around. For the most part that works quite well, there’s this very heavy Sam Rami’s Spiderman trilogy feel here that works decently well. The film also surprisingly has heart, the bond between Winston/ The Toxic Avenger and Wade (played by Jacob Tremblay) is actually effective here. While the story arc goes the direction you think it’s going to go, it is still incredibly charming and at least adds some character writing.

The gore combined with the action scenes are a lot of fun, while you may not get the over the top scenes from the previous films. You will still get a ton of satisfying moments that will be enough to please fans of the series.

Overall The Toxic Avenger is a fun film that does not overstay its welcome, it focuses on its satire and entertaining the viewer. There might not be a whole lot to the film, but in cases like this that really is not a complaint!

The Toxic Avenger is available on all VOD platforms.

7/10 B

Keeper (2025) Film Review

Terrifying visions plague a free-spirited artist when she travels to a secluded cabin with the doctor she’s been dating for one year.

Keeper is directed by Osgood Perkins director of The Blackcoat’s Daughter (2015), I Am The Pretty Thing That Lives In The House (2016), Gretel & Hansel (2020), Longlegs (2024) and The Monkey (2025).

Keeper is the weakest of Osgood Perkins’s work and is a very glaring step down from his last two films Longlegs and The Monkey. Longlegs was a thrilling and terrifying film that effectively used its atmosphere along with the performances to make for some raw moments. The Monkey did a very solid job of balancing comedy and horror together to make for a fun experience. Keeper unfortunately has no idea what it’s trying to accomplish it has some of the right material to make for a great film, but does not fully utilize them and ends up being a misfire.

Tatiana Maslany undeniably gives a fantastic performance who displays the emotion of fear effectively, even when the movie’s script completely falls apart during the later half she still is able to turn in a strong performance that at the very least the viewer walks away remembering. Rossif Sutherland gives a serviceable performance but unlike Maslany the script affects his performance and fails to come off as intimidating, he has a few decent moments here and there but there is just nothing here to really make him stand out.

As always Perkins does a fantastic job with the atmosphere, which combined with the one location setting makes for some thrilling moments that are effective. The cinematography from cinematographer Jeremy Cox has this hauntingly up and close feel that actually does make some of the movie’s jump-scares surprising great.

The script is the movie’s biggest downfall, while there is not anything offensively bad here. A lot of it serves as build up to the movie’s final moments which is unfortunately a huge mess. There is a lot of great ideas that the movie presents and even has this bizarre nature to it, but the movie does not end up exploring these ideas in great detail. Keeper is one of those movies where they throw a ton of ideas at the viewer and do not really explain or explore them, the movie sort of just expects you to know what it’s talking about and go with it.

That is a major problem when character moments are nonexistent up until the movie is almost over, by then the viewer has more than likely checked out and is completely taken out of the movie’s world. The personality of Perkins’s previous work is just not present here, the subtle character writing, the clever techniques with the camera are all absent which makes Keeper a very forgettable experience.

Overall Keeper isn’t a terrible movie, but it’s a very forgettable one that I can’t ever see anyone going back to.

Keeper is currently in theaters.

5/10 C

Queens Of The Dead (2025) Film Review

Brooklyn drag queens put their personal conflicts aside as they battle zombies craving brains.

Queens Of The Dead is directed by Tina Romero which is her directorial debut.

The only thing I really knew about this one going in is that it was directed by George A. Romero’s daughter, Tina Romero goes for a parody approach which works just enough to make for a decently fun film for the zombie genre even if it’s lacking in some areas.

The cast is strong throughout the film, while the script is not anything to write home about due to the cast’s talent they are able to make it work. Katy O’Brian, Jaquel Spivey, Nina Flowers, Margaret Cho and Dominique Jackson are all solid here. As a whole they work together nicely and make for some fun interactions and jokes that are chuckle worthy.

The film is fun on a technical level, the music is a lot of fun and captures the atmosphere the film is going for. I never thought I would see a film use Kesha’s song “Blow” but here it is and it’s done pretty well. The fast paced editing is sharp and electrifying and the cinematography from Shannon Madden has some fun personality going on here.

What’s mainly holding back Queens Of The Dead from being great is mainly the writing and genre cliches. While there are some decent jokes here, as the movie goes on especially during the later half there starts to be a lot more jokes missing than landing. The zombie horror element leaves a lot more to be desired, while it’s not done in a bad way. It’s not done in a very exciting way either, it very much feels like it’s just sort of there.

With that being said Queens Of The Dead still manages to be decently fun, I think Tina Romero has potential as a director this one just needed a stronger script to really make it standout.

Queens Of The Dead is available on all VOD platforms.

6/10 C+

Shelby Oaks (2025) Film Review

A woman’s search for her long-lost sister becomes an obsession when she realizes a demon from their childhood may have been real, not imaginary.

Shelby Oaks is directed by Chris Stuckmann which is his directorial debut.

I absolutely admire Chris Stuckmann for chasing his dream, he started on YouTube as movie reviewer and went on to be a film director. Even if I did end up walking away not really liking Shelby Oaks, Chris Stuckman still does have a lot of promise as a filmmaker as there are still a lot of things to like about this movie. It just falls short when it comes to the writing.

The performances are great especially Camille Sullivan, who gives this raw and frantic performance of a woman who’s desperately trying to find her sister. Unfortunately the character moments are not that strong and fall more in the basic side of things, Sullivan’s performance is strong enough to look past those moments and deliver a genuinely strong performance that the viewer can still connect with.

The cinematography from cinematographer Andrew Scott Braid gives this haunting look to the movie, there’s plenty of moments where you look around the dark environment simply because of how well of a job Braid does and combine that with the surprisingly well done atmosphere from Stuckmann, the result is plenty of thrilling moments. If there is one thing to take away from Shelby Oaks it’s that Stuckmann knows how to build an atmosphere and during certain moments showcases this quite well.

The main problem with Shelby Oaks comes down to the writing, while the first bit of the film is genuinely quite great. Going for this mockumentary like style that really sets the movie up with a well done atmosphere and brings your interest into it all. The rest of the movie opts to go for a very generic experience that is filled with a lot of jump-scares. The worst of the writing shows up during the movie’s final moments, it’s a very messy ending that only leaves you with more questions than answers and not in a good way.

It’s a shame as well because if you take away the terrible writing you are left with something quite decent, the camerawork combined with the atmosphere makes for a solid experience.

Shelby Oaks is available on all VOD platforms.

5/10 C

The Conjuring: The Last Rites (2025) Film Review

In 1986 paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren travel to Pennsylvania to vanquish a demon from a family’s home.

The Conjuring: Last Rites is directed by Michael Chaves director of The Curse Of La Llorona (2019), The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2021) and The Nun II (2023). The film serves as the ninth installment in The Conjuring film series, the film is also the wrap up story of Ed and Lorraine Warren.

I have long since lost any sort of excitement for The Conjuring series, the first two Conjuring films were quite excellent and then you had Annabelle: Creation (2017) that was decent enough. But outside of that, the series has failed to evolve and has been met with varying degrees of terrible quality. That unfortunately has not changed with The Conjuring: Last Rites a movie that is a supposed final goodbye to Ed and Lorraine Warren’s story but ultimately feels like just another one of these movies both in spirit and in the terrible quality that’s been present for a while.

The performances are by far the best part of the movie, Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson are once again very charming as the Warrens. Their scenes together have passion, Mia Tomlinson makes a nice addition to the series and works well with Farmiga and Wilson, she has some decent character moments here and there. But unfortunately there’s just not a whole lot going on here with the characters.

The jump-scares are incredibly lazy this time around, this series has always had jump-scares but at least with the first two films there was build up to them, you felt the atmosphere hitting you in the face during those moments and those first couple of films brought you into the background. You just don’t get that here with The Last Rites there is nothing immersive going on throughout the majority of the movie, even during the final act when something does actually happen that is still not enough to really save this movie.

The writing is just not there at all, while it might not be as bad as some of the spinoffs of the series, it’s about as equal to The Devil Made Me Do It (2021) meaning it’s not interesting and feels very empty, you would think after so much build up for these characters that the writing would at least try to deliver something unique or special into the mix. But unfortunately you just don’t get that here.

Overall The Conjuring: Last Rites is a very empty movie, it’s a forgettable installment and it’s a bad final note for Ed and Lorraine Warren’s story. I wish there was more to talk about here but that’s just how forgettable and bland this movie really is.

The Conjuring: Last Rites is available on all VOD platforms.

5/10 C

The Strangers: Chapter 2 (2025) Film Review!

After learning that one of their victims, Maya, is still alive, three masked maniacs return to finish the job. With nowhere to run and no one to trust, Maya soon finds herself in a brutal fight for survival against psychopaths who are more than willing to kill anyone who stands in their way.

The Strangers: Chapter 2 is directed by Renny Harlin director of A Nightmare On Elm Street 4: The Dream Master (1988), Die Hard 2 (1990), Deep Blue Sea (1999), Devil’s Pass (2013), The Legend Of Hercules (2014), The Strangers: Chapter 1 (2024) and many others. The film serves as the fourth installment of The Strangers series and the second installment of the new trilogy.

The Strangers: Chapter 2 achieves a quite baffling accomplishment….it somehow ends up being WORSE than its predecessor and that is truly saying something considering how much of a mess the last movie was. This movie doubles down on all of the flaws of the previous movie and even introduces a backstory to The Strangers themselves.

The only positive this movie has going for it is Madelaine Petsch who I really admire for carrying these movies, she captures the final girl spirit well enough and even tries to make the atmosphere feel a bit more threatening with her solid performance. But the rest of the movie is just not agreeing with her and diddle-daddles to the point where it takes the viewer right out of the movie.

The writing somehow gets even worse with this movie, whereas the first movie could be written off as a terrible slasher movie that may have some entertaining moments. Chapter Two for some reason decided to give the villains of the movie The Strangers themselves backstories, an element that completely defeats the purpose of this series in general. Isn’t the whole idea of these movies is to know as little about these antagonists as possible? To show the point that sometimes random psychos target people who they have no connections with, why are we suddenly giving these antagonists backstories? The childhood flashback origin stories are not only poorly done but they feel pointless, they take away a lot from the movie and end up resulting in a complete and total mess.

The rest of the movie is a mess, way too many off screen kills that completely take away from the movie’s atmosphere. Dialogue that is not only terrible but has no interesting character moments for Maya (played by Madelaine Petsch) and a movie that is essentially one long chase scene that quickly bores the viewer.

Overall The Strangers: Chapter 2 is one of those bad movies that is not even interesting in a bad way, it’s boring, not investing and a poorly put together mess that has very little personality. I am deathly afraid to find out how terrible the final movie of the trilogy truly is.

The Strangers: Chapter 2 is available on all VOD platforms.

1/10 F

Quick Review: Bone Lake (2025)

Diego and Sage’s romantic vacation at a secluded lakeside estate gets upended when they’re forced to share a mansion with a mysterious and attractive couple. Their dream getaway soon spirals into a nightmarish maze of sex, lies and manipulation as terrifying secrets come to light, triggering a bloody battle for survival.

Bone Lake is directed by Mercedes Bryce Morgan director of Fixation (2022) and Spoonful of Sugar (2022).

Bone Lake has some great ideas at play here, but unfortunately does not quite have the firepower to last very long especially when it comes to its script.

The performances are decent here but there really isn’t any particular moment that stands out. Maddie Hasson definitely gets the bigger end of the stick when it comes to the rest of the cast, but even her performance is left with more of a need to explore.

The movie attempts to touch on modern relationship dynamics and expectations which is all well and good, but the major issue here is the characters lack any sort of development to turn these themes into something investing for the viewer. The characters are very much what you would expect from this type of horror movie and just have very little going on in the development department.

Lastly there’s the writing which plays it very safe, even under the erotica genre this is not as crazy or explicit as much as the movie tries to make itself out to be. There are suggestions and glimpses of more hardcore elements but never anything shocking or daring, there are moments of fun to be had but those are very far and few in between.

Overall Bone Lake is very forgettable, outside of a few decent scenes and some okay performances this is one you will almost immediately forget about after watching.

Bone Lake is available on all VOD Platforms.

4/10 D+