Toy Story 5

 

This review may contain spoilers!

Toy Story 5 is Pixar's latest return to Andy, now Bonnie's collection of toys and their wild adventures. In this feature, when Bonnie receives a new device called Lilypad, the toys have to work out how to fit into a world where technology is everywhere kids play.

The story here is absolutely wonderful; it's always this warm moment returning to these familiar characters and the type of adventures they find themselves getting into. This particular story tackles what play looks like these days. On the surface, it could be a story that just blindingly states technology is bad, and it's bad for your kids! But it manages to be a little more nuanced than that. After all, we already saw toys transition from Woody to Buzz Lightyear in the first feature. This is a film that points out that play can now look like a child sitting upon a tablet, playing repetitive games with friends and messaging in group chats. It can be watching videos and taking silly photos. Toy Story 5 is clever because it tells us the impact playing with devices can have on children versus the effect of a treasured toy.

Jessie takes charge in this movie. With Woody off rescuing forgotten toys out in the wider world, Jessie is now the Sheriff of Bonnie's toys. She and the usual crew do all they can to keep Bonnie entertained and spark her imagination. Yet, Bonnie is quite alone, and she struggles to make friends with others. When her parents buy her a new device, Lilypad, to support this problem, Bonnie can't put Lilypad down. Suddenly, she's in a group chat, she has a circle of friends, and she gets invited to her first sleepover. But Bonnie's attention is held by her device; she struggles to detach from it. She also winds up becoming dependent on Lilypad to keep her newfound friends. It's a really clever way of exploring the themes of technology and children, making it clear the ways these devices can be disruptive at a young age. At the same time, Jessie meets another child's old toys, early devices that bridged the gap between toy and tech. She learns that these toys do care about their kid, too, and that they're capable of sparking imagination and being involved in play. It becomes a film that gets to the conversation about play, imagination, and joy, and about knowing how devices can be part of that at a young age.

Having this film led by Jessie was a great move by the creatives behind 5. Jessie is voiced wonderfully by Joan Cusack, who really puts that resolute mettle into the animated sheriff. Jessie is like the audience at first; she sees technology in a black-and-white way. Devices aren't as good as toys, so they merely become a 'bad thing'. But after Jessie accidentally winds up at Blaze's house, she is greeted by Smarty Pants (Conan O'Brien), an old school device who meant a lot to his kid. Jessie's assumptions are challenged while she also teaches those devices to understand what play is for a kid. Jessie also has to face the feeling of being unwanted by her kid, a feeling that stings more as a third-generation kid toy. The moment in which Jessie is confronted by the impact she left upon her first kid is the best aspect of this film. It's a real heartwarming tear-jerker that gets to the heart of what Toy Story has always done best.

When this film opened up, a shipwrecked island full of advanced Buzz Lightyear toys, my jaw dropped. Not because the idea of so many Buzz Lightyears was a crazy thing to me, but because of the animation. If you want to look at the journey of an animation studio, watch the Toy Story films in release order. This film is Pixar at its very best right now. There is incredible attention to detail, the colours are dazzling, and the character designs are all unique. The small posse of Buzz Lightyears yielded a lot for this film in more ways than one. The score for the feature pulls out every stop when those guys are onscreen, resulting in some epic moments and some absolute hilarity. Toy Story 5 manages to do it all, even bring Taylor Swift back to her country roots a little with 'I Knew It, I Knew You'.

Even the moments of the familiar feel well-earned, like the audience gets to come home again. You have Tim Allen's Buzz continuing to play head over heels for Jessie while Tom Hanks' Woody strides in looking to save the day. This duo isn't leading this time, and yet it works fine without; having their friendly rivalry is all that's required. I enjoyed some of the new voices that have found their way into the Toy Story world; the obvious one is Greta Lee's Lilypad. Lilypad walks a fine line between antagonist and misguided new toy in a way that reminded me of Buzz. There are lots of neat new moments, like Ernie Hudson's hysterical take on the Combat Carl toy.

Toy Story 5 fails in a way that made me think of Toy Story 4 a lot. It forgets how to be an ensemble animated feature. The other toys are still here, but they're afterthoughts and don't get to stand for themselves. Those first three movies made me really love characters like Slinky, the Potato Heads, Rex, Hamm and Bo Peep; even more recent additions like Forky and Duke Caboom are pushed to the back. All of the toys make the room come to life; they just needed a little more voice to remind the audience of that.

I have never watched a Toy Story that doesn't have a great story to tell, nor fails to connect with my inner child. I would give Toy Story 5 a 9/10.

The Death Of Robin Hood

 

This review may contain spoilers!

The Death of Robin Hood follows the infamous outlaw at the tail end of his life. Robin is a wilder, meaner figure than the stories ever told: a true, ruthless outlaw. After a raid on a farmstead goes wrong, Robin embarks on a healing journey that forces him to reflect on his identity and the myth built up around him.

The story of Robin Hood, like many myths and pieces of folklore, is a story I have always found really fascinating. In Death of I found myself really believing the idea that Robin was this figure who had been made larger than life by gossip and word of mouth. The dishevelled Robin presented to us is wretched and played wonderfully by Hugh Jackman. This is an outlaw who lives comfortably with conducting murder and violence. He fights for scraps; in a way, he fights to kill because that's all that he has left. It's a very different direction to take the character, and I enjoyed this darker concept and the way Jackman falls into the harder edge of the role. 

Michael Sarnoski crafts something here that is a feast for the senses. The Irish landscapes standing for ancient England are vast, primal and breathtaking. This film is littered with visual vistas that lend a powerful, rugged edge to the feature. I also found the way this film is captured to have a mysterious, yet intimate tone that cuts right to the character study element of Sarnoski's feature. Jim Ghedi crafts the musical score for this feature, and it has this sense of history to it. The echoing and mournful notes of the pipes, paired with the choral moments of Middle English song, are something to behold. In sharp contrast, I felt the editing often played around with odd transitions too much; the excessive fades really didn't suit the style of the movie.

There's an ambling, slow pace to The Death of Robin Hood. It's not here to be your action hero blockbuster Robin Hood story, no matter how much the trailers tried to sell the audience on it. After the first act, the film is a pensive reflection on Robin as a character. There are some interesting points in all of that, particularly when Robin passes a moment off as a story only to discover there was truth in it after all. But this is a depressing bender of a feature showing us a man who has compromised himself, who is rotten to the core. In his final days, he gets a mirror up to his bad actions while also finding a sense of peace. But even when being offered redemption, he scorns it. This film almost feels like a one-note attempt to do something different with Robin Hood; to make him old and foul-tempered. A man who seeks death throughout and finds it unconventionally. This is a film that doesn't really deconstruct the myth of Robin Hood; it rejects it and sculpts a hollow, hardened shell in its place.

I think Bill Skarsgård's turn as Edward/Little John was a bit of a surprise letdown for him. It's a moment that feels like Skarsgård is here to try out another bit of voice work, as opposed to tunnelling into the character. Jodie Comer is more of the moral conscience of the film. Comer has this resolute sensibility to her, and I loved her latter moral conflict over killing Robin. Younger performers in the film are often overlooked until it is too late. Noah Jupe being in this at all is a great example, given how little he contributes. But it's Murray Bartlett's turn as The Leper that really stood out for me. Bartlett has been on a real rise currently with The White Lotus and The Last of Us, but I adored his performance in this. The Leper is a guardian, a man who feels like he has known a world of violence and now gives protection to a sanctuary of peace. The final scene between Bartlett and Jackman is one of the best character exchanges of the film, and it does a phenomenal job of cutting to the theme at hand.

A funeral dirge of a film. I would give The Death of Robin Hood a 4.5/10.

Disclosure Day

 

This review may contain spoilers!

Disclosure Day is a sci-fi thriller following a collection of people trying to bring out the truth about aliens and their first contact with humanity.

Steven Spielberg has found himself pretty synonymous with science fiction over the years; he has built a career on revolutionising the genre historically. His particular fascination with humanity having first contact with alien life translates directly into the material that he has worked with. E.T., Close Encounters of the Third Kind, War of the Worlds... even Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull bears his love for the traditional folklore of alien life interacting with humanity. Disclosure Day feels like a culmination of Spielberg's musings, or perhaps a final declaration of his personal fascination. This is a feature brimming with references to all the key ideas: abductions, psychic abilities, teleportation, crop circles, Roswell, UFOs and of course, little bug-eyed extraterrestrials. It's going to tick all the boxes for your everyday UFO sighting conspiracy theorist, which really should be a delight.

This is a film that works best when it's playing into the mystery and more clandestine elements of the feature. When Spielberg's blockbuster visuals pair with a high-speed chase sequence, or the impressive visual effects see our characters spring onto a train with moments to spare, that is when this film is sailing. It's when you are left with the question of who these characters are, how they're going to come together and if the information about aliens is going to come out. Spielberg and Koepp's most impressive feat of writing here is crafting a shadowy organisation antagonist that feels fresh. It's easy enough to have the secretive 'men in black', but positioning Firth's Scanlon as this sinister figure who can invade people's minds for interrogation and control took matters to another level. I genuinely think Colin Firth's turn as an extremely possessive and manic adversary, who looks to lose his fight across the feature, is the strongest performance we get.

While I have loved Spielberg all of my cinema-going life, I'm pretty clear he's far from immune to a misstep. As mentioned above, not all first contact stories he designs land (Crystal Skull). In a lot of ways, Disclosure Day struggles to work. The entire feature neither twists nor turns; it's exactly what it says on the box. People want to tell the world about aliens, and they do. Rarely are our characters particularly challenged to get to this end result. In fact, the protagonists are probably the weak aspect of this feature. Their journey often unfolds confusingly, littered with entertaining action sequences, possession scenes or humour. This film has a bizarre dual 'chosen ones' thing that plays out and gets relatively ridiculous. Watching Emily Blunt walk through a scene spouting streams of different languages, lines indicating telepathy, strange alien noises and gasping breaths as she 'snaps out of it' gets pretty goofy at times. In fact, it's Blunt's character that really takes all the nuance out of the feature for me. She seems to be a vessel for the pro-alien movement to find its voice. Yet her role is never challenged; there's no conflict here. Her powers open every door available to her.

This film also takes a bit of time out to have the 'Does alien life existing mean God isn't real?' debate. Which might work in a script that had the ability to discuss weightier themes. Eve Hewson plays Jane, a former nun initiate in the film, and her character seems primarily here to do two things: be possessed by Colin Firth and to ignite the aforementioned aliens = no God debate. The depth of this discussion doesn't really find its way past aliens existing doesn't necessarily mean God doesn't exist, and it only lands there due to some simple reassurances from Elizabeth Marvel's turn as a remarkably chill Catholic nun.

I like the idea of the truth being told; it's a principle that works very well as a theme. But the final act, folding one of the two protagonists, Kellner (O'Connor), squarely into a more diminished role, was an interesting choice. Josh O'Connor is one of the more interesting upcoming actors currently, but this is a role in which he really stumbles. I loved his initial mysterious hacker rebel, but as his character becomes enthralled in the psychic chosen one element, he loses his bearings. Colman Domingo, by comparison, is having a great turn as the leader of this underground movement. He plays a calm and measured guiding hand. I also adored Wyatt Russell as Emily Blunt's misguided musician boyfriend; he's a bit hapless but well-meaning. 

This is a film that has all of Spielberg's late-career brushstrokes, for better or for worse. It's a visual feast for the eyes; prepared to play the past of an epic blockbuster, while also holding the audience with some really masterful frames. The psychic interrogation scene between Firth and Hewson might be the most visually inspired moment in the movie. I think the visual effects are often a treat too, though the CGI animals looked too animated to serve purpose. It's a rarity that I'm disappointed by a John Williams score, but here we are. When your film feels like a conspiracy thriller, and you have music that feels like it's from a 'kids on bikes' sci-fi feature from the 90s, you really feel the tonal disparity.

An impressive cast, a legendary filmmaker, all uniting around one of the weakest sci-fi scripts of the year. I would give Disclosure Day a 4/10.

Masters Of The Universe

 

This review may contain spoilers!

Masters of the Universe is the latest adaptation of the Masters of the Universe media franchise, made famous by the early-80s animated series. In this feature, Adam works to return to his home, Eternia, and free it from the villainous Skeletor.

When I arrived to buy my tickets for the Masters of the Universe film, I watched a couple of guys, ten or fifteen years my elder, pick up the novelty holographic He-Man and Skeletor popcorn bucket. Another group dressed in retro t-shirts with some of the classic cartoon characters. The draw for Masters of the Universe is undeniably that call back to the past, when the Saturday morning cartoons promised adventure and the latest action figures inspired imagination. Across this film, the action was really zany, with a ricocheting Ram Man propelling his way into a man with a mechanical cyclops eye. It's a very colourful adventure that isn't afraid to be camp at times, with Adam throwing the sword above his head, declaring he has the power and becoming He-Man as that classic fixture of the Masters of the Universe adventure. 

Nicholas Galitzine does a phenomenal job leading this feature; he's worked out how to play Adam as this awkward, cocky himbo. His physical transformation is impressive, but he doesn't lose himself in just flexing his larger muscles. Galitzine makes sure his He-Man is a fighter who can be compassionate and even a bit comedic. He can only be paired with a great adversary, which is well captured by Jared Leto as Skeletor. His sinister skull-headed antagonist is completely cruel, yet capable of the camp silliness associated with the famous animated villain. Camila Mendes and Idris Elba give a good turn as a distant father-daughter duo, even if Elba isn't giving Masters his all. One cameo I particularly loved was the 'passing of the torch' scene between Dolph Lundgren and Galitzine; it was one of the better examples of one I've seen.

It's a colourful film, with the visual effects team working overtime to craft a wide range of designs. From the landscapes of Eternia, spaceships through to some of the unique character designs propelled into the heat of battle, this is a film that works hard to give the viewer everything they expect from the animated show. The film score by Daniel Pemberton is a remarkable example of what a sword and sorcery musical suite should be. Having a bit of Queen lifting up the soundtrack took me back to my childhood of watching Flash Gordon with my Dad.

Yet, while there are a lot of good ingredients in this blockbuster, Masters of the Universe rarely manages to come together coherently. We run through multiple chunks of exposition-heavy world-building that take up laborious chunks before returning us to a story. The introduction is a fun action sequence sandwiched between poor child acting and James Purefoy giving one of the worst performances of his career. This is a movie that wants to do things by the power of friendship at times, with an overbearing joke that Adam worked in Human Resources back on Earth. There are times when a camp tone works, but as the feature goes on, we descend into every action scene being undercut by a gag or one-liner. Sometimes it wanted to be a bit of a hero's journey that harkened back to its roots, but too often it fell into familiar traps of a modern blockbuster. Easter eggs, cheap fan service, performative humour and too many characters. The film ending in a 'the power was in you all along' moment didn't feel especially earned, particularly with Morena Baccarin giving an impressionless turn as the Sorceress. Alison Brie has a go at trying to find that classic sound of Evil-Lyn, but she becomes one of the chinks in the main cast.

Perhaps the worst quality of Master of the Universe is the sound editing. I cannot believe a blockbuster in 2026 is drowning voice-over and dialogue with film score and sound effects. There are moments where the sound is just trampling over itself. While Leto gives a great turn as Skeletor, he can be rendered incoherent at times due to this issue. Travis Knight tries for a lot; it's a special effects feast for the eyes, but that doesn't translate to the cinematography. This is a very blocky film to watch, with many shots placed to serve the CGI elements. It's a movie that does little to immerse the viewer, nor craft a particularly dynamic style.

He-Man might have the power, but he's struggling to find his modern-day audience. I would give Masters of the Universe a 5.5/10.

Power Ballad

 

This review may contain spoilers!

Power Ballad follows Rick, a singer for a wedding band, whose path crosses with a former boy band member, Danny Wilson. After performing together, the pair start jamming together over an evening, and Danny winds up stealing a song Rick has written. The rest of the film is Rick's efforts to get Danny to admit the original author of the song.

This is the sort of movie that if you bear with, you will really be rewarded. When I started with Power Ballad, I thought this might be a comedy about older musicians grumbling about the good old days. But the character of Rick is a great way, a very authentic figure who is entirely passionate about music, but more importantly, he loves his wife and daughter completely. This is someone who chose love in his life over the ambition of music a couple of times. When he collides with Danny Wilson, you get this electric performance that really highlights how impressive our two leads are. They both want different things; Rick feels the lost potential of his life from his label dropping him, while Danny is stressed from the pressure of trying to produce a hit that will enable him to keep the lifestyle he has achieved. When the pair separate, we see Danny's desperation at realising his music isn't taking off. He takes Rick's song, and we follow an incredulous and distraught Rick, who cannot reconcile that the young man he met would take this action against him. Rick's manic obsession sends him into a spiral, which he eventually turns into confrontation. Watching Rick and Sandy embark on a caper to LA to confront Danny is a real moment of hilarity in this feature. Power Ballad often succeeds at being quite witty out of circumstance, landing some very fun sequences. The climactic moment of the film, in which Rick finally confronts Danny, is a powerful piece of acting; these are two people in a deeply flawed situation. Danny knows how wretched his choice is, but can't let go of the decision he has made. Rick, however, hasn't confronted Danny to extort money from him. He simply tells Danny the true meaning of his song, that it's not a romantic song but a dedication to his feelings about his daughter. It flips how you see this film; it's about finding the heart of the song and holding it true. I loved the emotional connection we come to understand about the song, something that is only empowered by the way Rick's daughter believes in him and even discovers the original recording of the song. By the end of the film, we see that Rick has accepted the outcome of the song dispute; he plays it with sincerity and true meaning, while Danny never finds a moment of authenticity. Danny chooses to perform knowing that there is a falsehood at the centre of his performance. It's a really beautiful film about where true musical art comes from and the corrupting influence of fame and wealth.

I cannot stress just how incredible the soundtrack for this feature is. Rudd performs most of the soundtrack, and it is a real display of talent. He and the band cover a range of hits that really evoke the sort of band that you would dish out good money for. Yet, those moments in which Rudd and Jonas collide are something. 'I Wish' is a particularly key turning point in the feature. However, it is all renditions of 'How To Write A Song Without You' that really blew me away. Rudd's final performance of that track is the beating heart of Power Ballad. I could hear him sing it over and over again.

Peter McDonald, who played Sandy, is a real high point of comedy across the film; Rudd and McDonald's unconventional friendship is a key point of levity. Beth Fallon, who played Aja, has some fun moments of playing the cantankerous teen; yet it's the moments she connected with her onscreen Dad that really raised the film up. Marcella Plunkett, who played Rachel, has some really decent chemistry with Rudd; the pair seem completely head over heels for one another. Nick Jonas, who played Danny Wilson, is a very charismatic and likeable figure at first; but I loved how Jonas played the moral desperation his character excuses his actions upon. Jack Reynor, who played Mac, is quite a simple approach to the major music manager; his more cutthroat manner as things went along added a decent conflict. 

However, the best performance came from Paul Rudd, who played Rick. This is a guy who really still believes in the craft of music; he likes to gripe over new music while declaring his love for the highs of the 70s and 80s. Rudd's ability to actually throw himself into performance here is a nice treat; he really shows a lot of talent with the musical performances. He is someone who can really embody an everyman vibe, you see the easy nature he walks down a street and connects with others in a way you can relate to. Rudd also lends himself nicely to the moments of humour; he's a bit of a veteran there. The way Rick descends into obsessive fixation over proving the song is his is a good moment of conflict. But it is the way Rudd presents the love his character feels that won me over. This is a character who loves his wife and daughter more than anything; he chooses them over his music at every turn. Paul Rudd will tug on your heartstrings here and gives an absolutely inspired performance.

I wasn't sure about Power Ballad when the feature first started. The first act is full of older men trotting around gigs and bemoaning the state of modern music. It felt a bit hazy and out of touch. There were also moments in the film where the dialogue was clunky and the jokes pretty overt. Reynor and Jonas navigating a Trump joke in this film was one of the more ham-fisted moments, regardless of which side of the political aisle you fall upon.

This isn't always the nicest-looking film; it struggles to remain lit well, and the shots aren't always the most interesting. This is a feature that just holds what it needs to in frame and doesn't move for style very often. The editing also lends itself to a slow pace and has some awkward instances of cutting between shots.

Rory Keenan, who played Binzer, is a gruff point of conflict that the film doesn't really need; Keenan's hard edge and threats of removal from the band get a bit worn out. Havana Rose Liu, who played Marcia, really doesn't have a lot of substance to her role; there should've been more interplay between her and Jonas.

Sometimes it's not about who wrote the song. Sometimes it's just why the song was written. I would give Power Ballad a 9/10.

Backrooms

 

This review may contain spoilers!

Backrooms follows Clark, a furniture outlet store owner who discovers a secret entrance into a mysterious liminal space within his store. This unusual space goes on infinitely and holds dark secrets within. Backrooms is directed by Kane Parsons, who developed the Backrooms internet mythology into a famous YouTube web series.

Everything that really works for this horror feature is all on display in that first half. The Backrooms starts off incredibly strong, with some very desolate and desperate characters searching for more than what they are. Clark is a miserable furniture store owner who holds a lot of contempt for the wife who left him and who can't reconcile that he hasn't achieved his dreams. He tries to avail himself through therapy, where the mask of his inner rage occasionally slips. But having no other outlet, Clark desperately staggers through a life spent propping up a failing business. His discovery of this other place, these backrooms, is an absolutely thrilling tilt in the story. Clark's wonder is our own, as he goes further and grows in fascination, the audience becomes more tense. You can't help but wait for that other shoe to drop, for some darker presence to lash out at him. Clark's obsession sees him continuing to risk the backrooms, drawn further and further into this mysterious other place. He risks the lives of his employees and himself; everything is consumed by this newfound purpose. By the end of the feature, we see Clark as a wretched figure, unable to grow from his own narcissism and living in the backrooms to feel a sense of control in this space.

This is a film that is completely dedicated to its design. The way this feature is shot is really powerful. Kane Parsons manages to capture everyday spaces and pieces of urban architecture and make them compelling moments in a frame. I loved the claustrophobia generated in the practical set of the backrooms; that whole environment transported me. The score is a real unsettling piece of ambience; it sinks into you slowly and draws forth a feeling of unease.

Renate Reinsve, who played Mary, is quite good at portraying a stoic, professional therapist; Reinsve's final confrontation with Ejiofor contrasted with their therapy sessions are some excellent examples of great acting.

However, the best performance came from Chiwetel Ejiofor, who played Clark. Ejiofor is really fantastic at finding a character and bringing them right down to Earth. Clark isn't always the most likable figure, nor is he reprehensible at first. This is a deeply flawed individual, with a lot of rage and hurt. He is alone in life and completely dejected over the idea that this is the quality of his life. It's a figure sculpted to be tragic; he can fix himself, but he refuses to do so. Watching Ejiofor play to the wonder and fear of the backrooms was quite thrilling. Yet, it's Clark's final scenes where Ejiofor gets to unmask the darkness at Clark's centre that is most unsettling. It's a difficult character journey to watch, to see Ejiofor grow rotten, but it is masterfully played.

It's hard to tell a good story from beginning to end, especially one overladen with pre-existing lore and expectation. What do you take with you? What will your average movie-going audience relate to? Seeing Osgood Perkins' producing credit tacked onto this was probably warning enough that this would walk off the beaten path at some point. At the halfway point of the feature, we lose sight of Clark, leaving his story behind for his therapist, Mary. This is a character we've gotten glancing pieces of throughout the film. Mary has her own horrific backstory, and we get it randomly littered throughout. It's unusual in delivery and often interrupts the pacing rather than adding to the flow of the narrative. The film doesn't care if Mary works as the new protagonist; she is unceremoniously dumped with a baton to lead the feature. She then proceeds to get to the backrooms in quite a clunky way, all while the audience is left trying to puzzle out the time disparity that has taken place. Clark's descent into madness is well performed by Ejiofor, but it is a massive character leap. His madness feels sudden, not really earned by the story. This is a common issue with Backrooms; it surges forward in pacing all the time. The fact that the final half descends into a creature feature is a disappointment. It renders what was a great piece of horror into a pretty simplistic run-of-the-mill scare that we see from the big studios all the time. The monster, just being a raging, yet pathetic version of Clark's inner demons, felt quite heavy-handed. The clandestine corporation that lurked throughout the feature was like a brick to the structure of the film. A shadowy corporation just sucked the air out of the personal journey of these characters. Ending the film on Mary being interviewed by Phil was the perfect off-note to cut to the credits on.

The pirate Clark monster we get in the final act is a complete shambolic mess. It's only particularly frightening when things descend into jump scares. I cannot begin to describe how hilarious and average the design of this thing is. It kills the potential of Backrooms almost exclusively.

Mark Duplass, who played Phil, really kills the ending of the feature; Duplass' tired interview completely collapses any sensation of excitement remaining. Finn Bennett and Lukita Maxwell, who played Bobby and Kat respectively, don't ever really get to develop into more than two-dimensional characters; these young performers are merely here for a fatality.

Maybe we just leave this one in the back. I would give Backrooms a 4.5/10

Star Wars: The Mandalorian And Grogu

 

This review may contain spoilers!

Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu is the film spinoff from The Mandalorian Disney+ TV show. In this feature, Din Djarin and Grogu embark on a mission to capture ex-Imperial warlords for the New Republic.

Back when The Mandalorian came out, it managed to do something new for Star Wars, providing that wilder spaghetti western feel and really immersing the viewer in the world of Star Wars once again. I think that's what I like most about a Mando and Grogu adventure: the stakes are always high for our characters, but this isn't about the fate of the galaxy balancing on a knife's edge. This is about a couple of smaller figures doing some good within the galaxy. The Mandalorian and Grogu manages to take the material back to its bounty hunter roots, racing our protagonists through some incredible action set pieces as they bring the dregs of the Empire to justice. It's adventurous, filled with good humour and has a central bond that families are going to find very sweet. As a Star Wars fan who has tried his best to consume every little piece of Star Wars media there is, I was also delighted at some of the little details scattered throughout this. There's something a lot more grounded about following Mando around; the stakes are higher because he doesn't have a laser sword and the Force. He's just as likely to die as the bad guy shooting back at him. There is a moment in this film in which Grogu must step up for Din, while the Mandalorian flits between life and death. It's a great moment in the story that shows how Grogu has grown as a character and has even learned from Mando to survive himself.

Jon Favreau and the creative team behind The Mandalorian have grown quite adept at making a very strong visual out of this character and the way he moves through the galaxy. If anything, this film returns us to the showy framing, the grittier action and moments of full-scale awe that the third season lacked somewhat. The special effects only serve to bolster this, with whole alien cultures looking brilliant, paired with droids and alien weapons blasting at one another. I loved that the puppet and effects of Grogu have also grown to be a bit more expressive across this journey; Grogu felt extremely defined in this. However, the best quality of this film is the score. Ludwig Göransson already shook up the game when he first began on The Mandalorian, but what he achieves here is something next level. Rotta the Hutt's character theme is out of this world.

Sigourney Weaver, who played Colonel Ward, is a very dry-humoured figure of authority here; Weaver seems at home helming a Republic X-Wing and barking orders. Jeremy Allen White, who voiced Rotta the Hutt, is a very charismatic and sympathetic take on a Hutt; I enjoyed Allen White's capture of a young character who wanted to step out from his father's dark shadow. Jonny Coyne, who played Lord Janu, is quite good as a seedy antagonist; the way Coyne is always readily spinning the next shady deal in a scene makes him interesting. Martin Scorsese, who voiced Hugo Durant, absolutely stole the show early on for me; Scorsese as this fast-talking street vendor peddling food and information was a real treat.

However, the best performance came from Pedro Pascal, who played The Mandalorian/Din Djarin. This is a role that Pascal has woven between voicing and playing for some time, and it has become a staple in the Star Wars fandom for good reason. Pascal's Mando is a cool and collected figure, with a tremendous sense of justice. The way he breezes through a scene capable of leaning into intimidation or a quip is solid. However, it is the emotional bond worked between Mando and Grogu that Pascal does the best. The way he talks to Grogu is filled with love, the sort of love a parent would hold for their child. The part in this film where we get Pascal full of rage, eyeballing some Hutt crime lords, marks a high point in the film. However, this incredible performance isn't possible without the combined efforts of Brendan Wayne and Lateef Crowder, who do the majority of the physical performance for the Mandalorian.

Films that spin out of shows are always a bit complicated; sometimes, they don't even manage to spin away from the material well. In fact, continuing from that format is often a challenge from such a piece of media, as is wrapping up the events of the show. The Mandalorian and Grogu doesn't really have this problem; the issue here is that this is a film that does not always feel especially cinematic. The story is structured in a way that it feels like three episodes of the TV show smashed together. This creates quite a segmented low-stakes approach that doesn't always translate well to the big screen. In fact, this film really is so contained that it adds nothing major to the wider Star Wars canon, nor even to the journey of Din and Grogu. This is a fun adventure, but a very safe one made for all kinds of audiences who might have shown up for the ride. There are also a few too many moments where the feature lulls and the characters trek around doing very little. The whole sequence where Mando is at his home, having his ship worked on while farewelling Rotta, is a massive dip in the pacing, as an example. Overall, it's a fine film, but it's not the sort of thing Star Wars needs to continue growing as a franchise.

Steve Blum, who voiced Zeb Orrelios, is a nice touch for fans of Star Wars: Rebels, but has little to offer here; Blum's gruff bluster often falls into the backdrop of a scene. Hemky Madera, who played Commander Barro, was quite a dull antagonist for the film to start on; his tough edge often felt a bit two-dimensional. Stephen McKinley Henderson, who voiced Gatori, is quite a late character addition to the film; this swamp-dweller with a heart of gold just felt awkwardly jammed into the film. Shirley Henderson, who voiced The Anzelians, was a set of four that got a bit unbearable at times; a nice piece of comedy that just did not know when to pack it in.

If you've loved the sprawling nature of live-action and animated Star Wars, then you will have a great time with this film. I would give Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu a 7/10.