Mile End Kicks (2026) Film Review

A 24-year-old music critic gets romantically involved with members of an indie band in Montreal.

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

Mile End Kicks on the surface may just seem like another coming of age film and while it does share some common traits, what Levack does here with the coming of age template is what makes this one stand on its own. Combine that with charm, fun, charisma, very well written characters and strong acting you then have yourself something quite special.

Barbie Ferreira as Grace Pine a music critic who is trying to accomplish her goals feels all too real, Ferreira’s performance has this natural tone of meeting a handful of people while also having this feel of loneliness. Grace Pine is trying to find her voice in the world and figure out what she really wants, Ferreira portrays this so beautifully and captures the different emotions the film goes for. Whether it’s humorous moments, heartfelt moments or moments of loneliness, Ferreira is able to quickly adapt to the change and go all out.

Devon Bostick and Stanley Simons are both fantastic here as well, Bonstick shows off how great of a comedic actor he really is. Plus much like Ferreira, he is able to quickly adapt to the film’s atmosphere. Simons also has some quite humorous moments as well and brings this sort of raw presence to the story. Ferreira’s chemistry with Bonstick and Simons is also quite great as well, the back and forth dialogue between them is grounded and has this charm that really draws you into the film.

What really sells Mile End Kicks is the film’s writing, I mentioned it before but there is this sense of loneliness to the film that anyone can really relate to. In particular this film is capturing this time in your late 20s where you feel alone in the world and have to find your voice and what you really want in the world. The natural dialogue between the characters really amplifies this, especially when this theme of feeling like there is something new that you are missing. This theme of old experience vs new experience that brings you on this road that has two completely different paths, it’s something everyone has experienced at least once in their life. The film really does a fascinating job of capturing this, showing it through the eyes of Grace and her experiences.

The humor and charm of the writing is just as satisfying, there is this beautiful tone that really captures the heartfelt moments and brings the experience front and center, the relationships that Grace forms feel complete as well as feeling like a much larger community in the film’s world. The slow burn aspect really brings the focus on building bonds and only brings the film’s desire to form these characters in such a beautiful light.

Overall Mile End Kicks is a beautiful film that Chandler Levack truly hit out of the park, it’s a coming of age story that hits all the right notes and does a lot more to make the film stand on its own. If you are a fan of the genre this is one that is absolutely worth seeking out.

Mile End Kicks is currently in theaters and expands to more theaters tomorrow.

8/10 B+

Eternity (2025) Film Review

In an afterlife where souls have one week to decide where to spend eternity, Joan is faced with the impossible choice between the man she spent her life with, and her first love, who died young and has waited decades for her to arrive.

Eternity is directed by David Freyne director of The Cured (2017) and Dating Amber (2020).

Eternity is one of those rare modern romantic comedies that strikes that sweet spot when it comes to making both its romance and comedy work so incredibly well with one another. While it is a bit on the predictable side and may have some extra padding here and there. The film works wonderfully due to its fun cast, creativity and the dreamlike atmosphere and filming.

Each of the performances are quite excellent and bring something to the table. Elizabeth Olsen, Miles Teller and Callum Turner all bring their own special charm to the film. Olsen going back and forth of who she wants to spend eternity with feels very real and at times even gets the viewer to participate by making decisions with her. It helps that Olsen in general is a fantastic actress and here is no exception, Teller and Turner are both very fun here and the constant back and forth they have with each other is always entertaining. Their chemistry with Olsen is beautiful and with Olsen delivering a lot of the emotional moments, Teller and Turner do a great job of supporting said moments.

Da’Vine Joy Randolph and John Early are also quite great, they are definitely the film’s comedic weapons but serve that role perfectly. Randolph is a stand out among the cast, she steals each and every single scene she’s in as well as bringing the fun and creative energy to the atmosphere whenever possible. Randolph has an undeniable amount of charm here that really blends well with the rest of the cast, her moments with Miles Teller are some of the film’s absolute best.

I have always been interested in films that have different ideas of what happens after life and Eternity is no exception. In fact this is by far one of the most interesting ideas in quite a while, the writing brings this creative, heartfelt and humorous feel to the film that truly captures its playful mindset. There’s this realness to the dialogue and even some strong character moments, the whole memory archive idea leads to some genuinely beautiful scenes that help build Larry, Joan and Luke as characters. There is the perfect balance of comedy and romance, they don’t outweigh one another to a degree where it becomes distracting.

The cinematography from Ruairí O’Brien is done in this dreamlike state that perfectly captures what you would imagine what the afterlife would look and feel like if it was a film itself. The atmosphere shines perfectly with its soft yet beautiful presence, there is times where the atmosphere almost feels like it’s trying to give you a big warm hug and you can’t help but accept it. There’s so much attention to detail with the different eternities or “worlds” that we see, the use of color and light is always quite beautiful to explore with your eyes.

Overall Eternity is a beautifully done film that really shines through, it might be simple at times and as I said it can feel like it’s padding a bit. However the positives absolutely shine and are truly a blast.

Eternity is currently in theaters.

8/10 B+

Hedda (2025) Film Review

HEDDA (Tessa Thompson) finds herself torn between the lingering ache of a past love and the quiet suffocation of her present life. Over the course of one charged night, long-repressed desires and hidden tensions erupt–pulling her and everyone around her into a spiral of manipulation, passion, and betrayal.

Hedda is directed by Nia DaCosta director of Little Woods (2018), Candyman (2021) and The Marvels (2023).

Nia DaCosta knocks it out of the park with Hedda, a very confidently directed film that displays tons of fantastic performances, visually stunning, and some clever build up that captures the atmosphere that is needed to make the film work in the end.

The performances are a delightful to watch, Tessa Thompson gives a career best worthy performance that fills the screen with passion for her character Hedda. Thompson is able to show her acting power here which leads to a complex and layered performance, she brings Hedda to life as this character who is a agent of chaos who will sit back and enjoy the show. Thompson’s subtle acting with her eyes, breathing or even just standing completely still make the film all the more effective. One of the best performances of the year as well as one of the most passionate ones.

Nina Hoss and Imogen Poots are both incredibly strong here as well, Hoss definitely gets the bigger part as she gives a volcanic performance that shows great deal of strength and range. Her chemistry with Thompson oozes with passion and immediately hits you with this electric type of feel. Much like Thompson, she’s able to portray a complex character brilliantly and in this way that will keep the viewer invested throughout the film.

The cinematography from Sean Bobbitt is absolutely wonderful here, what makes this a very interesting and clever case is the camerawork and how well the stories and emotions of the characters are told through the camera movements. Even when there are some scenes that do not have the writing to back them up, you have the clever use of the camera to back the film up and the results are genuinely beautiful. Due to this we get to see the performances shine front and center, with tons of attention to detail with the costumes and the many conversations that take place throughout the film.

The writing is sharp, very well blended together and has a lot of passion going on here. While it does take a bit to get going, the setup of the film is worth it and ultimately builds to a final act that is very worthy and fits the film like a glove. The atmosphere that is attached to the writing as well as the film’s world is rich and perfectly captures the “whodunnit” genre, it has this classic Hollywood feel that Tessa Thompson and Nina Hoss radiate throughout the film with each and every scene.

Overall Nia DaCosta lands her best film to date, it’s a confidently directed film with clever camerawork and excellent performances. It might have a slow start but once it gets going there is so much to absolutely fall in love with.

Hedda is available on Amazon Prime Video.

9/10 A

Plainclothes (2025) Film Review

In the 1990s, an undercover officer is told to entrap and apprehend gay men only to find himself drawn to one of his targets.

Plainclothes is directed by Carmen Emmi which is his directorial debut.

Plainclothes is one of the most underrated films of the year as well as being one of most surprising. A very strong thriller with tense and powerful performances mixed with rich atmosphere makes this one feel all the more real especially with its themes.

Tom Blyth and Russell Tovey are both phenomenal here, the chemistry between the two is wonderful and they perfectly capture the film’s theme of romance being hopeless and dead thing from the start. Having to hide everything of what you are until it fills you up and destroys you, that’s something Blyth and Tovey depict masterfully, devastating performances that capture the film’s atmosphere and emotion. There is this physical passion between them but when you are only allowed to be shells of human beings, that gets to you incredibly quickly.

The film’s VHS-style is quite wonderful and really captures 1990s New York incredibly well, the cinematography from Ethan Palmer allows the viewer to explore New York in this classical way that is filled to the brim with atmosphere. The style also gives the film a more authentic feel that quickly brings the viewer into the film. The direction from Carmen Emmi is confident, raw and has this tenseness to it that helps both Blyth and Tovey’s performances stand incredibly tall.

The theme of performing different versions of yourself to navigate the world is powerfully done, in this case hiding sexuality which the film brings this heartbreak and tense atmosphere to compliment it all. While there is not exactly anything new discussed or explored here, the way that Emmi explores these themes and topics is what keeps the viewer intrigued.

Finally there is the writing which is done very well here, the build up from the start of the film to the complete turmoil at the end is worth the wait and results in a final act that does a splendid job of bringing its themes together. There is a ton of character moments here that Emmi throws in to make each and every scene all the more important and powerful.

Overall Plainclothes is quite great, it’s an intense and emotional thriller filled with strong performances and just being a cleverly put together film.

Plainclothes is available on all VOD platforms.

8/10 B+

Splitsville (2025) Film Review

When his wife asks for a divorce, a man runs to his friends for support, only to learn that the secret to their happiness is an open marriage.

Splitsville is directed by Michael Angelo Covino director of The Climb (2019).

Splitsville is a decent little comedy that has just enough meat on its bones to make it to the finish line, the performances, humor and the exploration of its themes such as the struggle for honesty openness within marriages and this whole honesty vs deception angle is able to make the film more interesting.

The performances are all quite great here, Dakota Johnson, Adria Arjona, Kyle Marvin and Michael Angelo Covino all turn in very solid performances and work well together. The discussions the characters have are both decently funny and have this layer meaning that brings the film’s themes such as exploring open marriage front and center. It gives these characters personality especially when you combine the witty banter.

Dakota Johnson brings the necessary depth to Julie as a character, Adria Arjona gives a memorable performance due to one particular scene, plus she’s just fantastic here and works incredibly well with the rest of the cast. Michael Angelo Covino and Kyle Marvin both have strong chemistry, their real life friendship translates well here and at times it feels like we are given some personal moments, which can be felt due to both Covino and Marvin being the writers. It’s especially felt when we get scenes of both Carey (played by Marvin) and Paul (played Covino).

The humor for the most part works very well, there’s this nice balance of exploration in the film’s themes and the humor itself. While not every single joke lands, there is just the right amount to get some laughs from the viewer, the sharp direction from Covino really puts in the work here as well. The intimate moments help bring the characters closer to the viewer combined with the film’s cinematography from cinematographer Adam Newport-Berra.

While Splitsville does suffer being from a bit too long and has some pacing issues. It’s a nice balance entertainment and meaning that gives the film more to stand on.

Splitsville is available on all VOD platforms.

6/10 C+

A Big Bold Beautiful Journey (2025) Film Review

Through a surprising twist of fate, single strangers Sarah and David get to relive important moments from their respective pasts, illuminating how they got to where they are in the present.

A Big Bold Beautiful Journey is directed by Kogonada director of Columbus (2017) and After Yang (2021).

Coming off of two quite fantastic films, I was pretty excited to see what Kogonada had in store with A Big Bold Beautiful Journey and unfortunately this was a huge step down from his previous work. A Big Bold Beautiful Journey has a lot of great ideas and ingredients to make a great film is here, but unfortunately none of it is mixing all that well and creates this messy and forgettable experience that leaves the viewer disappointed.

Colin Farrell and Margot Robbie are both solid here, there’s a few moments in particular where they easily make scenes that otherwise would be drawn out and dull into something genuinely sweet and somewhat powerful. There’s some moments that show vulnerability that mixes well with Joe Hisaishi’s score, there’s a track called “To Her Mother’s Side” that in particular is genuinely moving and creates one of the movie’s most memorable moments. It’s one of the movie’s longer moments but unlike other moments where they feel drawn out, this one feels a lot more earned.

Unfortunately the rest of the movie does not have the strength and firepower it needs to leave an impression on the viewer, the characters just do not have much in common which in turn makes the whole love story element seem incredibly forced and is not worth investing in. The chemistry between Farrell and Robbie is just not there at all, a large part of it is due to just how shallow the script really is. The two are excellent individually but romantically there is not anything here that feels striking or to really care about them as a couple.

The biggest problem here is the dialogue and how it’s desperately trying in every single scene to come off like it’s saying something profound, rather than going for a more natural direction and letting scenes speak for themselves. The movie opts for this forced dialogue that is the equivalent of those type of quotes you would see on Facebook like pages, the ones about relationships, or ones trying to inspire you. Those are fine in themselves, but when you are writing a script for a movie and that’s how deep your dialogue is then where exactly do you go from here?

Finally there’s the scenes being drawn out, I spoke a bit about this earlier but this is a problem that appears several different times during the movie. It’s repetitive and unfortunately leads to the viewer checking out of the movie early on, there’s just not enough interesting moments for our main characters to explore, their backstories are incredibly cliched and predictable and despite how solid the cinematography looks thanks to cinematographer Benjamin Loeb, the world feels empty and the lacking of detail is incredibly noticeable.

A Big Bold Beautiful Journey is one of the most disappointing movies of the year, the themes of taking risks for connection, embracing vulnerability and overcoming regret do not have the proper writing to make the exploration worthwhile. The lack of chemistry and investing scenes completely stop this movie from being powerful.

A Big Bold Beautiful Journey is available on all VOD platforms.

5/10 C

Quick Review: All Of You (2025)

When a new test matching soulmates together comes between two best friends, they spend the next twelve years trying to resist the urge to disrupt the paths their lives have taken despite the undeniable feeling they belong together.

All Of You is directed by William Bridges which is his directorial debut.

Not a whole lot to report on here, All Of You is a romance movie that starts out promising enough but then quickly runs into a lot of the exact same problems that a lot of modern romance movies do. The main one being that the chemistry between the leads is about the only part going for it.

Brett Goldstein is incredibly charming and Imogen Poots is gives a pretty touching performance that has a lot of beautiful moments. Unfortunately the side characters only serve the story and have very little going on which takes away a lot of the power this movie was building up. The side characters ultimately feel disposable which in turn hurts the movie quite a bit.

The dialogue starts out decent enough but quickly gets tangled in its own web, the idea of time wasted is such a heartbreaking premise that it’s genuinely surprising the movie wastes a lot of time doing way too many time jumps. The sci-fi elements feel incredibly wasted and were begging for a much better script.

All Of You is available on Apple TV+

5/10 C

Oh, Hi (2025) Film Review

Iris is enjoying her first romantic getaway with Isaac, until he tells her he’s not interested in a serious relationship.

Oh, Hi is directed by Sophie Brooks director of The Boy Downstairs (2017).

Oh, Hi is if you took Misery (1990) and Gerald’s Game (2017) then proceeded to make them into a romantic comedy, the film takes a look at modern relationships and communication as a whole especially when it comes to intentions and needs. The film does this quite well especially when it explores our own vulnerabilities, although the film does have a weaker third act. It still manages to stick the landing quite well.

The performances here are easily the film’s best part. Molly Gordon gives this often anxious and very talkative performance that is both striking and humorous at times. She’s able to easily switch in tone with the film’s atmosphere demands it and the script she’s given helps make her character as well. Logan Lerman’s charm as an actor works effectively here he is much more quiet than Gordon but still leaves an impression on the viewer. The two’s personalities clashing is what makes the film all the more interesting, there’s some touching moments between the two as well as moments of arguments all of which strangely feel grounded. That mainly comes from just how great Gordon and Lerman are as actors and how easily the two adapt to the film’s atmosphere.

The writing is solid, there’s definitely some bumps in the road during the third act where things get a little too out there for the film’s own good. With that being said the character writing is genuinely quite great, it’s clear that Sophie Brooks and Molly Gordon (who helped develop the story) have this clear as day interest in exploring these characters. Even with the side characters, while they aren’t given the depth that Iris (played by Molly Gordon) or Isaac (played by Logan Lerman) got, Geraldine Viswanathan (who plays Max) and John Reynolds (who plays Kenny) still feel involved in the story and their performances make up for it as well.

When the film leans into the absurd and ridiculousness that’s where it’s weak point is shown, it takes what was the complexities of a romantic relationship and becomes very exaggerated as well as being a bit too hard to buy. Which is a bit unfortunate because everything else that came before the third act is incredibly solid and well written character exploration.

Despite my feelings towards the third act, I still think Oh, Hi is a solid film that is an interesting watch. There was definitely room for improvement but as it stands this is a nice, easy and fun watch.

Oh, Hi is available on all VOD platforms.

7/10 B

The Map That Leads To You (2025) Film Review

Heather embarks on a European adventure, her journey taking an unexpected turn when she meets Jack. Their encounter opens up new possibilities which neither had anticipated

The Map That Leads To You is directed by Lasse Hallström director of Casanova (2005), Dear John (2010), Safe Haven (2013), A Dog’s Purpose (2017), The Nutcracker and the Four Realms (2018) and many others.

It’s sort of unfortunate that The Map That Leads To You released the exact same month as My Oxford Year a film where they both follow pretty similarly from one another. I did not give My Oxford Year a full review simply because there was just not a whole lot to say, luckily The Map That Leads To You has a little bit more meat on its bones and is actually executed slightly better. That does not make it a good movie, but it at the very least there’s something a bit more here.

For the most part I truly think this was just an acting showcase for Madelyn Cline because she does a splendid job here and has great chemistry with KJ Apa, unlike My Oxford Year you actually buy that these two in this film really care for one another. It’s the bare minimum but little moments go along with helping the movie move along. KJ Apa is also not bad here as well, I don’t think he’s quite as good as Cline is but he does get a few moments to show he can make the material into something somewhat interesting. Cline and Apa both take material that would otherwise be incredibly familiar and manage to bring the viewer along for the ride. Sure that ride might not be exactly great but their performances are enough to keep some interest.

As I said before the film’s story is almost exactly like My Oxford Year, it’s slightly better written and has acting, but a lot of the same cliches are there and unfortunately that’s what keeps this movie down. If you have seen any straight to streaming romantic drama you probably already have good guess to how the characters are going to act. The scenery is undeniably beautiful combined with the filming that is actually not bad for a straight to streaming film, however beautiful scenery can’t help turn a bland script into something great.

The emotional connection is there but barely, it takes a while to fully get invested simply because of how dull the script really is. It’s mainly thanks to Cline and Apa that this is even possible, had the writing been a lot stronger and the direction been a bit more striking there could have been interesting results here.

What we are left with is a below average romantic drama that has solid acting and scenery but that’s really about it. There isn’t anything downright offensively bad here, it’s just a whole lot of nothing that really fails to bring anything new to the table.

The Map That Leads To You is available on Amazon Prime Video.

5/10 C

Daniela Forever (2025) Film Review

After his girlfriend dies in an accident, a grieving man joins a sleep trial that allows him to rebuild his life with her through the use of lucid dreams.

Daniela Forever is directed by Nacho Vigalondo director of Timecrimes (2007), Extraterrestrial (2011), Open Windows (2014) and Colossal (2016).

Daniela Forever suffers from having some really great ideas but just not executing them all that well, which is quite unfortunate because I do think the movie has some bright spots towards the end.

The acting is a mixed bag, Henry Golding gives a solid performance…during the last 20 minutes before that however is a bit painful to watch. There’s absolutely no subtlety with his performance or how his character Nicholas is feeling, that’s partly due to how messy the script really is. As I said Golding eventually recovers during the last 20 minutes but by then it’s too little and the viewer has more than likely checked out due to how chaotic and sloppy the movie really is. Beatrice Granno’s performance is serviceable but unfortunately the lack of chemistry with Golding is not doing the movie any favors.

There are some admittedly neat shots with some decent use of visual effects, it matches the sci-fi romance feel the movie is going for. The visuals actually do a better job at moving the story along than the writing in this case (which isn’t saying much given that the visuals are just fine.)

The writing has a lot of genuinely interesting ideas, there’s a somewhat intriguing middle portion but that’s really where it ends. The movie focuses way too much on explanations rather than letting a scene sit with the viewer, there’s even more explanations about obvious rules about dreams in general. This takes away a lot of the intrigue the movie might have had previously and instead leaves the viewer more confused as to why this needed to be explained.

The chemistry between Golding and Granno is just not there at all, the dialogue has very little going for it as well. Outside of a few moments that are genuinely sweet, it feels very bare bones with nothing for the viewer to chew on about these characters.

Overall there really is not much else to say about Daniela Forever, but the execution is incredibly lacking and leaves the viewer wanting more.

Daniela Forever releases in theaters Friday and on all VOD platforms July 22nd

4/10 D+