Hoppers (2026) Film Review

A 19-year-old animal lover uses technology that places her consciousness into a robotic beaver to uncover mysteries within the animal world beyond her imagination.

Hoppers is directed by David Chong director of We Bare Bears: The Movie (2020).

On the surface Hoppers may not seem like much, however once you get into the film there is a whole lot of heart as well as so much to love here. Between the animation immediately attracting the viewer’s eyes, to the well written characters that you instantly invest in and to the film’s familiar yet strong pro-environmental message. There is so much to really explore and appreciate here with Hoppers.

The voice cast all do a fantastic job and really bring out the character’s personalities. Our protagonist Mabel Tanaka especially, she has a heart of gold who much like her deceased grandmother had this beautiful appreciation for nature and animals. Piper Curda does such a fantastic job adding so much detail to Mabel Tanaka, she brings the right amount of comedy and dramatic moments to make Mabel memorable as a character. Jon Hamm does a solid job at voicing Jerry Generazzo a greedy neighbor, Dave Franco gives a hilarious supporting performance as Titus and Bobby Moynihan gives a surprisingly nuanced performance as King George the Mammal King.

The animation is where Hoppers really shines, it’s the type of animation that instantly brings you into the film’s world. You feel like you are sitting on a park bench watching the animals interact with one another, or when Mabel transfers her mind into a lifelike robotic beaver you can feel the scale change. The world gets even bigger and the animation just seems to really keep pushing with the detail.

The writing is also quite strong, you can very easily tell the writers and the voice cast had a blast with this film. That’s all you really need sometimes to create something special, the film has some bizarre ideas that actually work in the film’s favor. But what it does deliver on the most is being able to communicate its central thesis that bringing back this focus onto ourselves in this wider community while also connecting to nature will help us become closer, it’s quite a beautiful message that combines both humor and more sad moments to effectively tell its story.

Overall Hoppers is a very solid film that has this fun and heartfelt energy that brings the film together. Some ideas might be familiar however in the end the film is worth the watch.

Hoppers is available on all VOD platforms.

8/10 B+

Affection (2026) Film Review

Ellie confronts a disturbing condition resetting her memory, unable to recognize her husband and daughter. Each reset disorients her, leaving haunting recollections of an unfamiliar life.

Affection is directed by BT Meza which is his directorial debut.

Affection is one of those movies where it throws you right into things, in some cases this can be a good thing and in others it can be messy. Affection it’s this strange middle ground that as it goes on it starts to hurt the movie.

The main reason to watch this movie is for the performance from Jessica Rothe, she once again shows how exciting of an actress she really is. When the atmosphere requires her to bring in this raw direction she’s able to bring it to the table almost immediately, she brings a lot of layers to her character Ellie and works with the script as well as she can. Even with the writing’s weaker points, Rothe is able to turn in a genuinely great performance that leaves the viewer with some sort of impact.

The movie’s atmosphere is also quite effective, right from the beginning you get this Black Mirror like atmosphere and it does bring a lot of intrigue to it all while also complimenting the characters. The gross out visuals are inspired and have this unnerving feel to them, they bring some sort of focus to the movie’s more bizarre moments. Cinematographer Jason Hafer does a great job of giving the movie some great detail in during the gross out moments.

What does hold Affection back however is the writing and pacing, for a 90 minute movie this feels 2 hours long. The first bit of the movie takes an incredibly long time to get going, it’s not until the tip of the end of the second act is where things finally start to speed up. The writing is a bit too predictable for its own good, once you grasp what is exactly going on here. You can very easily figure out what’s going to happen next, the simplicity of the movie’s ideas also really stop the movie from exploring them to their full potential.

Overall Affection has its moments of greatness, but it does not quite come together as a full picture. Had this been a 30-50 minute short I think the results would have been far better and much more fitting.

Affection releases tomorrow in theaters.

5/10 C

Michael (2026) Film Review

The early life of the famous musician Michael Jackson, known as the King of Pop.

Michael is directed by Antoine Fuqua director of Training Day (2001), Olympus Has Fallen (2013), The Equalizer trilogy (2014-2023), Southpaw (2015), The Guilty (2021), Emancipation (2022) and many others. Michael follows the early life of Michael Jackson, covering the period from his involvement in the Jackson 5 up until to the Bad tour.

Michael is something that I like to call a “textbook biopic” in short this basically means biopics that feel like you are reading straight out of a textbook or Wikipedia page. They don’t say anything or do anything interesting they just simply tell you information that you already know, in cases where the subject of the biopic is lesser known that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. There has been cases in the past where biopics about far lesser known figures have done this and succeeded. However when you tackle figures like Michael Jackson who was one of if not arguably the most famous person on the planet and your biopic is very textbook like there comes a lot of issues.

Before that however, I’ll jump into what made the movie work because there are a few elements here that worked. Jaafar Jackson who is Michael Jackson’s nephew plays Michael and does such a fantastic job as him. He sounds like him, he acts like him and he even has the spark of what made Michael such an entertaining performer. It’s especially impressive considering this is Jaafar Jackson’s first acting role, even when the script is incredibly lacking in depth. Jaafar Jackson is able to make the material work simply due to his body language and how much charisma he has. I’m not exactly sure what Jaafar Jackson has planned next, whether he’s going to act in different films. But I would love to see that happen if he decides to go forward.

The music is of course excellent, this goes without saying but Michael Jackson’s music is some of the most celebrated pieces of music of all time and the set pieces during the music moments do a good job of explaining why that’s the case. From Beat It to Thriller to Bad it’s all well done and admittedly I was tapping my foot, it really does capture of what Michael such a great singer and performer.

Then the rest of the movie happens and unfortunately this is where Michael completely falls on its face, the rest of the performances while not particularly bad just don’t end up landing effectively. None of Jackson’s brothers are given any time to really shine, Nia Long does have a couple of sweet moments but is ultimately not given a lot to work with in the writing department.

Colman Domingo as Joe Jackson has his effective moments, but ultimately comes off as this mustache twirling villain. The abusive nature of Joe Jackson is captured (and those moments are genuinely uncomfortable) but the rest of his personality really does feel very exaggerated. Also quick fun fact, Michael is the second biopic within the last couple months to include Don King (the first one being Christy.) Finally there is Miles Teller who feels out of place, it’s not his worst performance as there is one sort of great moment towards the end. However you can’t help but feel like he’s in a completely separate movie.

The dialogue is the equivalent of those motivational posters you see in a classroom which to be fair to Michael, a lot of other music biopics are guilty of this it’s a common trope at this point to expect. Michael just so happens to be a prime example of it, almost every scene ends in this “believe in yourself” or “you can do this” sort of vibe. Which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but when you end so many scenes like this it does start to become incredibly grating.

Finally the movie itself almost feels like a montage of Michael’s greatest moments, it’s nice to see these moments on the big screen. But without any sort of strong writing in between said moments it ultimately leaves the question of “why bother?” The movie fails to really paint the whole picture of what made Michael such an interesting person, as I said before. It does capture what made him a great performer and singer, but as a person? There is a whole lot missing here even when the movie is split into two parts.

Overall Michael is entertaining at times and has a fantastic performance from Jaafar Jackson, but that’s as far as the movie goes. It’s very unfortunate because there are a ton of hints to a great movie here, a lot of it is just stuck in this generic realm.

Michael is currently in theaters.

5/10 C

How To Make A Killing (2026) Film Review

A disinherited man, Becket Redfellow, systematically murders his way up the line of succession to claim his family’s fortune.

How To Make A Killing is directed by John Patton Ford director of Emily The Criminal (2022).

How To Make A Killing has its flaws, but it’s an overall entertaining ride with a solid cast that does lift the material in entertaining ways.

Glen Powell shows a lot of charisma here, he plays Becket Redfellow in this humorous and charming way that you can’t help but feel invested into him as a character. He works with the cast quite well particularly with Margaret Qualley and Jessica Henwick. Margaret Qualley brings this charm to the film as well and brings this femme fatale into the mix that is quite effective, Jessica Henwick has great chemistry with the cast. Her story can feel a bit out of place with the chaos happening, but she manages to make it work in the end.

The writing has some very humorous moments and brings this satirical edge to the mix as well. There definitely are moments where the film does get a bit too ridiculous and admittedly the ending does give off the vibe of rushing something together due to not really knowing how to close out the film. But I do think everything that came before the ending does work together decently well.

The pacing can be very inconsistent at times, some sections of the film have this nice atmospheric and fun feel, while others have this rushed feel that doesn’t flow together all that well. The character moments are fine enough and although brief, the flashback scenes do give us a bit more information about Julia Steinfeld (played by Margaret Qualley.)

Overall there really isn’t a whole lot to say here, How To Make A Killing isn’t really saying anything new. But it is admittedly a very entertaining ride that does have a fun cast, great humor and works purely on charm.

How To Make A Killing is available on all VOD platforms.

7/10 B

Quick Review: Apex (2026)

A woman seeking isolation in the Australian wilderness becomes the target of a ritualistic killer, forcing her into a brutal fight for survival.

Apex is directed by Baltasar Kormákur director of 2 Guns (2013), Everest (2015), Adrift (2018), Beast (2022) and many others.

Apex is your very typical cat and mouse thriller, the material is elevated a tiny bit due to the talent of Taron Egerton and Charlize Theron being involved. But outside of that, this is a quite forgettable thriller that doesn’t quite stick the landing.

Charlize Theron gives a solid performance here, it’s not going to go down as one of her greatest but she still has her natural charm here that works effectively. Taron Egerton plays an unhinged maniac and it works perfectly, Egerton is able to take the movie’s more over the top moments and turn them into something genuinely creepy. Plus he captures the atmosphere the movie requires so that’s always a bonus.

What the movie struggles here with the most is just not having a whole lot of meat on the bone. The exploration of grief is very hollow and really is nothing more than a jumping pad to get Sasha (played by Charlize Theron) into the woods, when you take away the movie’s surprisingly decent production value it is just another Netflix thriller that really doesn’t go anywhere that interesting.

Overall Apex is not terrible, you could easily do a whole lot worse and if you are looking for a late night watch or something quick to put on the movie gets the job done. However if you are looking for something with a lot more substance, you are going to be disappointed with this one. Hadn’t been for Theron and Egerton, Apex would have sank far sooner.

Apex is available on Netflix.

5/10 C

Psycho Killer (2026) Film Review

A police officer tracks a serial killer known as “the Satanic Slasher” after he kills her husband.

Psycho Killer is directed by Gavin Polone which is his directorial debut.

Before you ask no Psycho Killer by Talking Heads is not in this movie. Anyways Psycho Killer is such an absolute mess of a movie that it’s almost impressive. This is basically one of those detective tries to catch a serial killer movies but done incredibly poorly. Which is sort of funny since writer Andrew Kevin Walker (writer of Seven (1995)) is involved with this movie.

First and foremost the characters are not interesting at all, outside of a few decent moments from Georgina Campbell who really tries her best to salvage what she can. The rest of the cast just can’t help this movie at all, I’m not exactly sure how they made the antagonist of the movie the Satanic Slasher incredibly boring but they somehow did it. The voice they decided to go with for the character sounds like an edgelord (I hate using this term but it’s truly the best way to describe it) of Bane from The Dark Knight Rises (2012). Which leads to the character not being taken seriously at all from the viewer, especially when you don’t have the suspenseful atmosphere to back it up.

The main problem here is the script, there is no originality here. Every single cliche you can think of that’s in a horror movie about a serial killer is here and each of these cliches are done at their worst, it’s almost impressive to see just how many cliches are packed into this movie. The incredibly clunky dialogue does the movie no favors at all, a lot of the conversations have no depth and fail to invest the viewer. The movie’s characters make observations that the viewer had long since made which in turn makes the whole mystery element irrelevant.

The only other positive outside of Georgina Campbell’s performance is the movie’s opening. It’s the only time during this 91 minute mess where you can actually feel the atmosphere be thrilling and what does end up happening is genuinely nasty, it gives the movie a nice little boost to hopefully take advantage of but then the rest of the movie happens.

There really isn’t much more to say here, Psycho Killer is by far one of the worst movies of the year so far. It’s baffling how much of a mess and truly awful this one gets as it goes on.

Psycho Killer is available on all VOD platforms.

1/10 F

War Machine (2026) Film Review

During a grueling Army Ranger training exercise, recruits encounter a deadly, otherworldly machine, turning their mission into a fight for survival against an alien threat.

War Machine is directed by Patrick Hughes director of Red Hill (2010), The Expendables 3 (2014), The Hitman’s Bodyguard (2017), Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard (2021) and The Man from Toronto (2022).

War Machine is a very odd duck of a movie and not in an interesting way, the movie tries to take elements from so many other action and sci-fi films such as Predator (1987), The Terminator (1984), Aliens (1986) and Independence Day (1996) all of which it fails to recapture. Also fun fact, this is the second movie to be released by Netflix called War Machine. The two films obviously have nothing to do with another as War Machine (2017) is a satirical film that’s based on real events (although fictionalized), this one however is just a very forgettable action movie.

Unfortunately this movie has its problems from the very beginning…it’s characters. A lot of the characters here are nothing but cannon fodder who get almost no time to get moments to shine. Alan Ritchson is admittedly not bad here and plays his role well enough, but without any sort of great character moments the movie struggles with making any of these characters at least memorable.

The stuntwork here is at the very least decent and somewhat makes up for the dodgy CG work, there’s a few moments that have this decent scale to them where it does feel like you are in this movie’s world. But then there are others where the CG takes you out of the experience simply due to how bad they look.

The biggest problem with War Machine is the lack of originality and director Patrick Hughes not having a distinct directorial voice. As I mentioned earlier, War Machine takes from a lot of different movies within the genre but rather than making the elements its own. It feels like the movie is lifting rather than being inspired, it becomes very apparent during the movie’s action scenes. Which leads into Hughes not having a distinct voice, I did not go into War Machine expecting anything fantastic given Hughes’s previous work, however I do think it is still incredibly lazy to not even attempt to try and find a way to make these elements your own.

Even if you took away the genre cliches, you are still left with incredibly corny dialogue and very strained attempts at emotional depth that by then the viewer has already caught on about how poorly written these characters really are.

Overall War Machine is incredibly forgettable, you could absolutely do a lot worse. If you want to just put something on in the background this gets the job done, but if you are looking for an actual great sci-fi action film you are better off looking elsewhere

War Machine is available on Netflix.

4/10 D+

Touch Me (2026) Film Review

Two friends, homeless and struggling, find a mysterious ex who happens to be an alien. His touch cures their anxiety and depression, leading them to his compound, but they discover he has sinister motives

Touch Me is directed by Addison Heimann director of Hypochondriac (2022).

Touch Me has plenty of good ideas on paper but unfortunately falls short due to it’s incredibly all over the place script which can take the viewer out of the movie incredibly quickly.

The performances from Olivia Taylor Dudley and Jordan Gavaris aren’t bad, they do what they can with an incredibly out there script and manage to have a few moments where you can tell their chemistry is quite great. The dynamic between the two has its humorous moments that are some of the movie’s highlights.

What ultimately hurts the movie is the incredibly messy writing that seems to not have a focus, on one hand I’m all for movies to be as bizarre as possible. There’s plenty of bonkers moments in this movie some of which do lead into some decently funny scenes. But on the other hand this is the end result when a movie tries way too hard to be as bizarre as possible, there is one scene in particular that really reflects this and simply feels like it’s there to be weird for the sake of being weird.

I do like the atmosphere the movie goes for, but without many strong writing moments combined with moments that want to throw as much bizarreness on the table for the sake of it. The experience as a whole feels very empty and does not offer all that much, with that being said the technical aspects aren’t bad and as I said before the acting is decent enough.

Overall Touch Me isn’t terrible, I admire the attempt of making something so bizarre even if this one does fall short.

Touch Me is out now on digital!

5/10 C

Most Anticipated Films Of May 2026!

We are now entering the summer movie season! April was a fantastic month for film, between The Drama, Faces Of Death, Erupcja, Mile End Kicks, Mother Mary and a few others it was a great time to be a movie fan. May is looking to continue that train especially when it comes to the horror genre!

Worth noting that I have already seen Billie Eilish-Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour (Live in 3D) I decided to keep it on this list (this is a new rule I’ll keep going forward, if there is a movie I have already seen I will still keep it on the most anticipated films of the month list!)

May 1st

Hokum (Theaters)

The Devil Wears Prada 2 (Theaters)

May 8th

Billie Eilish – Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour (Live in 3D (Theaters)

Silent Friend (Theaters)

Affection (Theaters)

Mortal Kombat II (Theaters)

May 15th

Obsession (Theaters)

Is God Is (Theaters)

Lifehack (Theaters)

May 22nd

I Love Boosters (Theaters)

Passenger (Theaters)

Saccharine (Theaters)

May 29th

The Backrooms (Theaters)

Pressure (Theaters)

Fucktoys (Theaters)

Roommates (2026) Film Review

A shy freshman, Devon, hopes to reinvent herself in college by becoming best friends with her cool roommate, Celeste, but their bond sours into a passive-aggressive war as Celeste’s behavior becomes increasingly manipulative.

Roommates is directed by Chandler Levack director of We Forgot to Break Up (2017), I Like Movies (2022) and Mile End Kicks (2026).

It’s worth noting that Mile End Kicks and Roommates came out the exact same day which was April 17th 2026 very neat! I also do think it’s kind of interesting due to both films centering someone in different parts of their life, Mile End Kicks focuses on being in your late 20s and trying to figure yourself out in the world with this feel of loneliness. Roommates focuses on freshmen year of college, someone who just graduated high school. They are both done in very different styles but I thought it was neat to point out.

Roommates is a surprisingly decent Netflix comedy, there are some flaws that do unfortunately hold this movie back from reaching “great” territory, but for what the film is and how Chandler Levack is able to tell the story in this sort of focused way (up until the third act) I do think it’s worth it in the end.

Sadie Sandler (daughter of Adam Sandler) does a really great job here, while this isn’t her first role. This is her first performance without Adam Sandler being in the movie. Her performance as Devon has the right amount of charm and character moments that really bring the fun atmosphere to life. She shows off her range in her performance decently well, plus her chemistry with the rest of the cast especially Chloe East is quite fascinating.

Chloe East plays Celeste someone who is truly unlikable and due to some grounded moments from East, the performance ends up delivering quite well. She’s able to switch from being a seemingly sweet person to a pretty nasty one with a flip of a switch, it has this Regina George from Mean Girls (2004) sort of feel that Chloe East captures incredibly well.

The rest of the film is solid, it’s entertaining enough to reach the finish line. But it is admittedly on the basic side of things, luckily there are the technical elements such as the fun music and the speedy editing to back the film up.

It’s very clear that this is a much different film from director Chandler Levack, whereas her last couple films have had more of a grounded approach. Roommates is a much more sillier approach with some grounded moments as well as being larger in scale. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing as the movie manages to stick the landing, but you do start to see the cracks during the third act where things get a bit too chaotic that can potentially take the viewer out of the experience.

Overall Roommates is not bad, it’s decently fun and has great performances. Not everything works here, but if you are looking for a quick watch this will do the job.

Roommates is available on Netflix.

6/10 C+