Sundance Review: Big Girls Don’t Cry (2026)

A 14-year-old girl named Sid navigates identity, desire, and the internet during a transformative summer, imitating older peers to fit in

Big Girls Don’t Cry is directed by Paloma Schneiderman which is her directorial debut.

Big Girls Don’t Cry is yet another pretty solid coming of age film, that does have some familiar beats as other films in the genre. But expands upon them as the film goes on, we quickly get some incredibly done chemistry, exploration of the characters and the daily lives of them. All of this combined together paints a quite raw picture that in some way connect with the viewer.

The performances are what hold this film together. Ani Palmer plays Sid a 14 year old girl who is trying to find who she is and wants to desperately fit in with her old peers. Palmer gives a phenomenal performance as Sid due to her long pauses and facial acting that are both striking and capture that of a teenager growing up. It’s truly a fascinating performance that really sticks with you after viewing. Rain Spencer is just as fantastic here, Spencer has plenty of moments where she completely steals the scene she’s in. I was unfamiliar with Rain Spencer (I have not seen The Summer I Turned Pretty) prior to watching this film, so I’m quite impressed with her performance here.

Which does lead me to one of my favorite parts of this film…the chemistry. Every single one of the cast feels connected and has natural dialogue touch that makes the film all the more real. That’s especially the case with Ani Palmer and Rain Spencer, every single moment the two share the screen it feels like we are listening to a raw conversation between two individuals.

The writing is quite strong here as well, while there are some moments that are a bit on the weaker side. The rest of the film really brings the viewer into Sid’s experience and presents it in this very grounded way. Throughout the film we see Sid trying to figure out who she is and the more important moments that lead up to her to figure out the final conclusion.

Overall Big Girls Don’t Cry can definitely feel a bit familiar at times and it may not bring anything new to the coming of age film genre. However I do think this film is undoubtedly going to connect with a lot of people simply due to how it’s presented and how well written the characters really are and sometimes with films like this that’s all that really matters.

Big Girls Don’t Cry currently has no release date.

7/10 B

The Dreadful (2026) Film Review

The Dreadful follows Anne and her mother-in-law Morwen who live a solitary, harsh life on the outskirts of society – but when a man from their past returns, he will set off a sequence of events that become a turning point for Anne.

The Dreadful is directed by Natasha Kermani director of Shattered (2017), Imitation Girl (2017), Lucky (2020) and Abraham’s Boys (2025).

The Dreadful is one of those movies where soon as the movie ends you almost immediately forget what you watched. Outside of the atmosphere and the actually quite beautiful cinematography, there is just not a whole lot going on here making the whole experience feel empty and dreadful (I had to throw in at least one joke here) to sit through.

Kit Harington and Sophie Turner are not horrible here, but they aren’t exactly great either. Their performances just aren’t strong enough to overcome the movie’s terrible script that feels like a slog to get through. Their characters Jago (Harington) and Anne (Turner) are not interesting enough to make the viewer care for the story. What adds fuel to the fire is the two just don’t have very good chemistry, individually the performances aren’t horrible but together there is a ton of awkwardness that starts to rub onto the viewer and never goes away.

The atmosphere tries to do some heavy lifting and bring some scenes to life, which at times it does feel like I’m in this movie’s world especially when you combine it with the cinematography from cinematographer Julia Swain. Swain really tries to make everything work, she brings some beauty to certain scenes with the gorgeous cinematography that is quite detailed. Unfortunately the rest of the movie fails to compliment or take advantage of this, it’s frustrating because the ideas that the camera presents is far more interesting than the ones written in the script.

The pacing is painful, despite the movie only being 94 minutes long. It feels more like a 2 hour long movie that is purposely going as slow as possible, nothing invests the viewer throughout the movie. It’s a very dull and forgettable experience that the viewer will almost certainly check themselves out of by the time the movie is over.

Overall The Dreadful is terrible and there is just not a whole lot to comment on here. At the very least it’s forgettable so it won’t stick with you for that long when it’s over.

The Dreadful is available on all VOD platforms.

2/10 F

Bodycam (2026) Film Review

Two officers, trying to cover up a tragic accident, uncover a terrifying supernatural conspiracy, blurring the lines between reality and nightmare.

Bodycam is directed by Brandon Christensen director of Still/Born (2017), Z (2019), Superhost (2021), The Puppetman (2023) and Night of the Reaper (2025).

Right off the bat Bodycam has a good idea going for it, being a found footage movie that uses body cams to tell the story. Unfortunately this movie fumbles the ball almost immediately and never takes advantage of its own ideas. Instead it opts for jump scares, a laughably bad ending and a huge lack of atmosphere that tries to pull from video game franchises such as Resident Evil and Silent Hill which ends up being a complete and total mess.

The only major positive here is the performances from the movie’s two leads Jamie M. Callica and Sean Rogerson, the two do what they can with such a ridiculous and very shallow script. There are moments where they are able to make some of the dialogue salvageable, which ends up being some the only decently thrilling scenes the movie has going on. Unfortunately those don’t last for very long due to the movie’s need to fall in the incredibly ridiculous territory.

What ultimately really hurts this movie is the script, lack of an atmosphere and the ending. The script as I said before is incredibly shallow and has very little going on here. A lot of it is the typical found footage movie cliches and the overall story being incredibly undercooked, it’s a giant mess that hardly ever gives the viewer an idea as to why certain events are happening in the first place.

The lack of an atmosphere becomes apparent when you see that the movie resorts to jump scares…which is basically the entire movie. As I said before the movie tries to pull the atmosphere and feel of Resident Evil and Silent Hill however the movie does not have the psychological touch that the Silent Hill video game franchise has and it doesn’t have the fun and thrills that Resident Evil has. It’s a complete and total mess that tries to be a terrible replica but can’t even do that correctly.

Finally there’s the ending which is laughably bad, we do end up getting the reveal of what exactly is going on here in the end. But what we do get is this CG creature that feels incredibly out of place, it’s one of the most ridiculous endings to a movie I’ve seen so far this year and completely takes the viewer out of a movie that if it hadn’t taken you out of the experience before it sure will now.

Overall Bodycam is terrible, the performances from Callica and Rogerson are decent enough but that is nowhere near enough to save this complete and total mess of a movie.

Bodycam is available on Shudder.

3/10 D-

Quick Review: Shelter (2026)

Michael Mason is a recluse on a remote Scottish island who rescues a girl from the sea, unleashing a perilous sequence of events that culminate in an attack on his home, compelling him to face his turbulent history.

Shelter is directed by Ric Roman Waugh director of Snitch (2013), Angel Has Fallen (2019), Greenland (2020), Kandahar (2023), Greenland 2: Migration (2026) and a few others.

There is only so much you can say about these Jason Statham action thriller movies at this point, some of them such as The Beekeeper (2024) have a lot more going on than others. If you go into Shelter wanting more you are going to be disappointed, with that being said the movie is ultimately very forgettable.

Jason Statham does a decent job once again, there is a classic saying “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” and that absolutely applies to Statham and his performances. He’s good at what he does and he undeniably has the charisma to back it up, although I will say that finding out Michael Mason (played by Statham) was a former government assassin could be seen coming from a mile way especially if you have seen other Statham films. Bodhi Rae Breathnach as Jessie is great here as well, there’s times where it almost feels way too good of a performance for this movie, luckily the movie does take advantage of this and ends up making Jessie somewhat of an interesting character.

The action is pretty standard, there isn’t anything truly exciting going on here. However when you combine it with some of the set pieces (the club scene in particular) you do get something pretty neat every now and then. The cinematography from cinematographer Martin Ahlgren is solid and he manages to capture the movie’s atmosphere and suspense that it’s going for, even said suspense does not always land.

Overall Shelter isn’t terrible, it’s ultimately just another Jason Statham movie that is forgettable but does have a handful of good elements about it.

Shelter is available on all VOD platforms.

5/10 C

Crazy Old Lady (2026) Film Review

Pedro (Hendler) is asked to look after his ex’s senile mother, Alicia (Maura), but she traps him in her home, turning a simple favor into a fight for survival

Crazy Old Lady is directed by Martín Mauregui director of Love (Part One) (2005).

Crazy Old Lady automatically hits you with this claustrophobic atmosphere as soon as it begins which is mainly thanks to cinematographer Julián Apezteguía’s camerawork. It’s a film that does meander a bit but it ultimately does reach the finish line with a solid conclusion.

The performances from Daniel Handler and Carmen Maura are what really make the film. Especially Maura who gives a genuinely intimidating performance, she’s able to capture this sense of dread in each scene. She effortlessly switches between personalities that really does make you wonder which one is going to take the front seat in the scenes of Alicia (played by Carmen Maura) and Pedro (played by Daniel Handler) exchanging dialogue. Maura captures the film’s claustrophobic atmosphere immediately when she enters the film and keeps it that way throughout the experience. Daniel Handler does a great job of displaying fear and realizing how insane the situation really is. He compliments Carmen Maura’s performance incredibly well and serves as this stone to build the movie’s haunting atmosphere.

The writing might not exactly be fantastic and there are cases where the movie is lacking a bit of depth, however the performances from Maura and Handler are able to elevate the material and make it a bit more interesting. With that being said the movie does meander a bit which does end up hurting the pacing at times, the pacing can feel breezy or it can feel rough it’s a very strange case of the movie using both.

Finally there are some backstory elements that are introduced but are not fully explored, the movie does make up for it with some symbolic elements such as the decaying house. The house actually does get development when it comes to the cinematography being so well detailed and with the lighting.

Overall Crazy Old Lady is a decent little film that does hold back at times, but it delivers when it comes to performances, cinematography and atmosphere.

Crazy Old Lady is available on Shudder

6/10 C+

Clika (2026) Film Review

After a video of his music goes viral, he starts selling drugs to earn money for his music, leading him into a world of danger and conflict.

Clika is directed by Michael Greene director of Live (2018).

There is not a whole lot to comment on here with Clika it’s a movie that means well, but ultimately ends up becoming such a huge mess when it blends so many genres together and isn’t able to nail any of them down.

The acting in particular is incredibly rough, it’s hard to really blame the actors as they are given such a shoddy script to work with. However a major problem comes in when singing is involved, the problem being that Jay-Dee can’t sing all that well. You could do far worse, but it is all over the place and does take the viewer out of the movie almost immediately. Eric Roberts has his few moments but even then it feels like he just came on set to collect a paycheck and book it out of there.

The over reliance on voice overs that are delivered poorly certainly hurt the movie, however what really breaks this movie is the constant jumping between genres. You have a music biopic, drama and a thriller none of which are done particularly well. The music biopic part is filled to the brim with cliches that it’s almost impressive how many they squeezed in. The dramatic moments aren’t enough to really bring the viewer’s attention, the only thing that’s really keeping the viewer is the lower budget filmmaking having some sort of charm (but even then that can only work for so long.) Finally there is the thriller portion which ends up being a crime plot that does end up being the movie’s strongest part but unfortunately still lacks a ton of development.

I get Clika was loosely based on the true life story of Jay Dee (Jesus Diego), but the way this movie goes about telling this story in this poorly constructed mess is very baffling. It’s frustrating because stories like this deserve to be told properly, it’s ultimately one of those bad movies that are harmless but really makes you leave the movie feeling like there was a missed opportunity here.

Clika is available on all VOD platforms.

3/10 D-

Quick Review: Worldbreaker (2026) Film Review

A father trains his daughter to survive monsters from an alternate dimension that have invaded Earth, but they are eventually found, forcing them to fight for survival.

Worldbreaker is directed by Brad Anderson director of Session 9 (2001), The Machinist (2004), TransSiberian (2008), The Call (2013), Fractured (2019) and many others.

Not a whole lot to discuss here which is why this one is not getting a full review. The main notes I took during this movie were.

It’s an incredibly formulaic post apocalyptic movie, at times there is decent world building but not nearly enough to save this movie or make it interesting.

Luke Evans gave a solid performance, most of the movie it’s him training a teenage girl how to swing a sword. Yet he somehow squeezes a good performance out of it (whatever it takes to get a good performance I guess.) It might be because Evans is just naturally a great actor but there are some parts of his dialogue that are interesting enough.

Mila Jovovich is barely in this movie, if you are going into this movie as a Jovovich fan you are going to leave incredibly disappointed. Despite the poster making it seem like she’s a huge part of the movie she barely shows up, it’s kind of hilarious but at the same time it’s an incredibly odd choice.

My final note was simply “how did they get Brad Anderson to direct this movie?” Not every single one of Anderson’s films have been great, but Worldbreaker in particular feels very phoned in. At least with some of Anderson’s weaker films you can tell there was some sort of attempt to bring some charm, you simply don’t get that with Worldbreaker. The ending in particular is especially laughably bad, it really does feel like we watched a prologue scene from a bad video game and as soon as you get into the actual game it just ends.

Worldbreaker is available on all VOD platforms.

3/10 D-

Dolly (2026) Film Review

Macy, a young woman, is abducted by a monstrous figure intent on raising her as their own child.

Dolly is directed by Rod Blackhurst director of Here Alone (2016) and Blood For Dust (2023).

Depending on your familiarity with 60s and 70s exploitation films, Dolly could come off as disturbing for some people. It’s very gory, it has a very empty atmosphere that the film automatically throws the viewer in and the film being shot on 16mm only adds to the effect of the film. With all of that being said, there are some very heavy missteps here that while does not make the film bad. It does leave you wanting a lot more and the film being too simple for its own good nearly costs it.

The performances are not bad here, they have this sort of aggressive and rawness to them that really brings the viewer up close to the action. Fabianne Therese is by far the stand out here, she gives a very raw performance that really captures the feel of the viewer during each scene, there is some pretty gross moments that Therese’s character Macy has the look of complete and utter disgust that really do a fantastic job of explaining scene with just facial expressions. Max the Impaler is intimidating as Dolly and does a great job of showing how the character is feeling without saying a word or the need to see Dolly’s face. It’s effective work that is shown throughout the film.

The film has this grimy feel that blends incredibly well with the beautiful 16mm camera, a majority of the film takes place in a single house and that in turn leads to the filming to create tons of claustrophobic moments. Cinematographer Justin Derry does such a fascinating job of creating this “up in your face” sort of style that is quite effective, when you combine that with the film’s genuinely creepy atmosphere you really have yourself a genuinely terrifying film on a technical level.

The gore is quite gnarly and when combined with practical effects really turns things up a notch, the kills are quite brutal and do have the classic grindhouse movie feel. It’s clear the film also takes a lot of inspiration from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) especially when it comes to the kills, grimy feel and the overall look of the film. It’s a nice little love letter to the film mainly atmospherically.

The main flaws of Dolly mainly stem from being way too simple for its own good and running out of steam towards the end. Story wise there is just not a whole lot going on here, there are some hints at character stuff during the film’s final moments but by then the film is wrapping up and it feels very tacked on. The basic plot description is just about what you get story wise, seeing these events unfold are indeed haunting. But there’s no developments or any meat to build these characters.

With that being said, I had a blast with Dolly. If you are a fan of 60s and 70s exploitation films you are definitely going to like this. It’s very well made, has some genuinely solid acting and has the right atmosphere to make for an effective film.

Dolly releases in theaters Friday!

6/10 C+

Cold Storage (2026) Film Review

When a highly dangerous fungus escapes from a secret laboratory, a former bioterrorism agent is called back into action. Alongside two young employees, he must confront an invisible and out-of-control threat.

Cold Storage is directed by Jonny Campbell director of Alien Autopsy (2006).

Cold Storage is a classic case of stumbling upon a late night B sci-fi horror movie and having a decent time with it. There is plenty of flaws here that you would think would bring the movie down, however there is a lot of charm here that helps keep the movie rolling along at a decent pace and ends up finishing with an expected yet fun outcome.

The cast is mainly what holds the movie together. Georgina Campbell and Joe Keery work very well together, the two’s chemistry is the heart of the film and why everything meshes decently well together. Georgina Campbell’s execution with her dialogue has some great humor and Joe Keery’s charming screen presence works wonders here. Liam Neeson is also quite solid here, while this can feel like he’s doing the same sort of deal with a lot of his action movie roles. There is some more heart put into this performance which I’m still not exactly sure why that is, maybe it’s due to part of Cold Storage being a comedy and Neeson does incredibly well with the genre. Whatever the case may be, Neeson turns in a great performance and works well with Campbell and Keery.

The writing is decent overall, there is some character moments here that are shockingly decently written. There isn’t any groundbreaking character work going on here, but it is nice to see these characters not feel like an afterthought. The self-aware humor can be a little grating at times but a majority of the time it’s used sparingly and the movie mixes it in with some gross out humor that is actually quite fun!

As far as atmosphere goes the film nails it well enough, Cold Storage is going for a much more comedic tone and throws in some sick looking mutations with slime, fungus and such to create some neat creature designs. It’s zombie adjacent but goes about it in its own way. The CG can be questionable but considering this is (assumably) on the lower budget side of things, this isn’t very surprising.

Overall Cold Storage is decent for what it is, it’s a very quick 99 minutes that isn’t trying to reinvent the wheel in the horror genre. It’s a fun little movie that has a good cast, some neat action and makes great use of its location. Give this one a look!

Cold Storage is currently in theaters.

6/10 C+

Operation Taco Gary’s (2026) Film Review

Two brothers embark on a cross-country road trip that quickly goes off the rails when they get mixed up in a global conspiracy.

Operation Taco Gary’s is directed by Michael Kvamme which is his directorial debut.

Operation Taco Gary’s is a very odd duck, what seemingly is a very straightforward getting to point A to point B sort of plot ends up having a ton of absurdist comedy with tons of bizarre moments. This is absolutely not going to be for everyone, however I do think the whole package comes together in the end.

The performances are solid here, the dialogue from Simon Rex and Dustin Milligan bring the hilarious nature of the film from and center. Simon Rex plays Danny a conspiracy theorist who drags several people on this bizarre road trip, Simon Rex dos such a great job of playing a crazed conspiracy theorist who is the butt of the joke during the film’s runtime. Dustin Milligan plays Luke the rightfully skeptical brother of Danny, the arguments between the two alone make the film a worthy watch simply due to it having this internet arguments with conspiracy theorists come to life sort of feel that you can’t help but laugh at.

The supporting cast consisting of Brenda Song, Jason Biggs, Doug Jones and a few others is also a lot of fun as well. Although there characters don’t get a whole lot of development, they serve their purpose and do get to squeeze in some genuinely funny lines here and there.

The film clearly has this early 2000s road trip movie inspiration to it and I would say the film does it quite well. Even if you aren’t really a fan of the genre, the film manages to do its own thing by throwing in some absurdist humor that helps it standout a bit more.

The film’s humor is genuinely great mainly due to its charm, there has definitely been funnier road trip movies in the past. But I do think with what the film was able to come up with and throw the viewer into this bizarre world, there is just a whole lot of charm here that does end up making it genuinely hilarious.

Operation Taco Gary’s is one you should definitely go into knowing as little as possible, it’s solid film that does fall off a bit towards the end due to a bit of repetition. However that isn’t enough to stop the film from being a whole lot of fun.

Operation Taco Gary’s is playing in theaters.

6/10 C+