Plot: The new epic chapter in the battle for Castle Grayskull!. The newly mechanized Skeletor, armed with Motherboard’s might, attacks Eternia’s heart while Prince Adam grapples with a new responsibility and what that means for him as He-Man!

Review: Back in 2021, I gave a glowing review to Kevin Smith’s revival of He-Man. Titled Masters of the Universe: Revelation, the Netflix original was released in two five-episode drops, both of which I loved. A blend of modern animation techniques coupled with a throwback to the Filmation style of the 1980s cartoon, Revelation was blasted online by a vocal minority who disliked Smith’s decision to “kill off” Prince Adam in the first episode and make the series centered on Teela and many of the female characters. By the end of the full series, Smith’s vision came to fruition, even though many fans were not swayed. The second chapter in the revival is here in a half-length season known as Masters of the Universe: Revolution. With Kevin Smith back in charge, this new season has some starling updates to the He-Man mythology and connections you will not see coming. If you were not a fan of Revelation, odds are Revolution will not change your mind, but that does not detract from it being a fun blast from the past.

Masters of the Universe: Revolution picks up shortly after the conclusion of Revelation. With Scare-Glow (Tony Todd) ruling the underworld of Subternia, Prince Adam (Chris Wood) and Orko (Griffin Newman), along with all of our favorite heroes, jump into battle. It is an epic opening sequence that sets the tone and pace for the entire series. Immediately after the battle, King Randor (Diedrich Bader) falls ill, sending Adam and Teela on their new quest. This also contrasts with Skeletor (Mark Hamill), now a servant of Motherboard, and the new big bad, Hordak (Keith David). Hordak, introduced in Netflix’s revival of She-Ra: Princess of Power, is a unique villain whose introduction takes even more time away from the already truncated season. There is a lot of talking in this run that strives to combine the elements of technology and magic, two competing forces on Eternia combined to less effect in Netflix’s CGI series He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. Instead, this approach serves as a way to combine the various arcs and storylines across all of the Masters of the Universe properties.

Speaking of throwbacks, Kevin Smith has also taken it upon himself to bring the cult classic 1987 live-action Masters of the Universe to the franchise canon with the reintroduction of Gwildor. Played by Billy Barty in the movie and voiced here by Ted Biaselli, Gwildor was created as a replacement on screen since Orko would have been cost-prohibitive to realize in live action. The jokes about Gwildor and Orko’s similarities made my six-year-old happy. They supported that this series is Kevin Smith’s attempt to tell a He-Man story for fans who are now adults rather than reinvent it as a new cartoon for grade-schoolers. This also works with the inclusion of so many genre favorites, including Meg Foster, who played Evil-Lyn in the 1987 film, returning here as the voice of Motherboard. This season also includes Star Trek icons John De Lancie (aka Q) as Granamyr and Captain Kirk himself, William Shatner, in a substantial role that I will not spoil for you here. The fact that we have Star Wars and Star Trek veterans in this cast is a blend of fanboy dreams that should excite everyone for this series.

This season has some recast characters, including Supergirl actress Melissa Benoist taking over as Teela from Sarah Michelle Gellar and Star Trek: The Next Generation actress Gates McFadden stepping in for Alicia Silverstone as Queen Marlena. Everyone else from Revelation is back, including Liam Cunningham, Lena Headey, Stephen Root, and Susan Eisenberg, giving this series a season-two vibe rather than a standalone series. From the title graphics to the music, this new season is a solid addition to the franchise that furthers the story from Revelation while giving us much more focus on He-Man. The animation has continued to grow on me from the first season and manages to look less polished than some other animated properties, which puts me back into the mood and style of the classic cartoon. There is just enough CGI in this series to accentuate the look without being a distraction from the series itself.

The trouble I had with this season primarily comes from the truncated season. Clocking in at just five half-hour episodes, Masters of the Universe: Revolution has to cram the same amount of exposition as Revelation but in half the time. The introduction of Hordak requires a lot of explanation for those unfamiliar with his role in She-Ra; this is both a blessing and a curse. Yes, this season is chock full of action, but it all feels rushed towards an ending that sets the He-Man mythos in a new direction but one that will certainly be divisive for fans. I am a little concerned with where the season leaves off, even though there is a cliffhanger that could set up a cool third entry in this revival. Kevin Smith, who wrote and ran the show this season, kept much of the writing and directing team from Revelation on board for this season, which allows this to feel like a continuation rather than a standalone series. As it is, this was a quick and fun watch that left me wanting more. That may be a good thing in the grand scheme of things, but if I wait years to get another entry, assuming Netflix greenlights it, that will surely be disappointing.

True to its title, Masters of the Universe: Revolution does try to upend the way warring factions exist on Eternia by resolving some conflicts, enhancing the powers and abilities of the heroes and villains, and resetting the board for a new battle in the expected third chapter of this saga. I had fun with Revolution, thanks to its blend of callbacks, homages, and connections to various He-Man properties over the years. The refocus on Prince Adam as the primary protagonist was a smart move, but I cannot help but feel that this short season feels like twice the amount of story that could fit in half the time. I am still a fan of what Kevin Smith has done with this series, and I am ready for more, but I wish this season had satisfied me the way the first series did.

Masters of the Universe: Revolution is now streaming on Netflix.

Masters of the Universe

GOOD

7

The post Masters of the Universe: Revolution TV Review appeared first on JoBlo.

James Mangold’s Bob Dylan film, A Complete Unknown, is switching bandmates as Edward Norton (Death to Smoochy, Fight Club) replaces Benedict Cumberbatch (The Imitation Game, Star Trek Into Darkness) as the American folk singer and social activist Pete Seeger. Cumberbatch must exit the project because of scheduling issues. The biography stars Timothée Chalamet (Wonka, Dune, Call Me By Your Name) as Bob Dylan, with Monica Barbaro (Top Gun: Maverick, Fubar) playing Joan Baez, Elle Fanning (The Neon Demon, Maleficent) as Sylvie Russo, Boyd Holbrook (Logan, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny) as Johnny Cash, and Nick Offerman (The Last of Us, Parks and Recreation) as Alan Lomax.

James Mangold directs from a script written by Jay Cocks (Gangs of New York), with Mangold making revisions. A Complete Unknown focuses on a young Bob Dylan (Chalamet) who rocks the music world in 1965 by performing with an electric guitar for the first time, alerting people to a new sound for his signature brand. Meanwhile, Sylvie Russo (Fanning) enters the story as a university student, artist, and Dylan’s early-’60s love interest. Production for A Complete Unknown is gearing up for a New York production.

Pete Seeger is a legend in his own right. The singer, songwriter, and activist is known for hits like “Where Have All the Flowers Gone?,” “If I Had a Hammer,” “Kisses Sweeter Than Wine,” and more.

The film’s title takes inspiration from Dylan’s iconic song “Like a Rolling Stone.” According to reports, Chalamet will do his own singing in the biopic, begging the question: What does Chalamet’s Bob Dylan impression sound like? Dylan’s twang and whine are unique, and if Chalamet isn’t careful, he could venture into parody as he tries to emulate the rock and roll legend.

“It’s such an amazing time in American culture and the story of…you know, a 19-year-old Bob Dylan coming to New York with like two dollars in his pocket and becoming…a worldwide sensation within three years, first, being embraced…into the family of folk music in New York and then of course kind of outrunning them at a certain point as his star rises beyond belief,” Mangold said last year about Dylan’s storied roots. “It’s such an interesting true story and about such an interesting moment in the American scene.”

What do you think about Edward Norton replacing Benedict Cumberbatch as Pete Seeger for A Complete Unknown? Let us know in the comments section below.

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PLOT: A creative writing assignment yields complex results between a teacher and his talented student.

REVIEW: I wasn’t sure what to make of Miller’s Girl when I first heard of it. The idea of a teacher falling for a student isn’t exactly new, but there was a mystery present that I appreciated. And it’s honestly, given that subject matter, a very tough film to talk about. The topic is taboo and won’t be for everyone, and the filmmakers really take advantage of that uncomfortably. On a technical side, the film is gorgeously shot and takes advantage of its beautiful sets. Plus, I have a soft spot for erotic thrillers. But this one has very few teeth and is as obvious as they come.

There’s clearly something not quite right about Jenna Ortega’s Cairo right from the start. She exhibits an intellectual way of dissecting the world and is wise beyond her years. So when dejected teacher Jonathan Miller (Freeman) sees she’s a fan of his writing, the start of a complicated relationship begins. Given his dour relationship with his wife, they do a good job of setting up why he would even entertain the idea. The two leads of Miller’s Girl are both writers, so the dialogue properly represents people with a large vocabulary. I could see this turning some people off, but I quite enjoyed it. Often, these films can be the same rinse-and-repeat process of characters conversing in the same basic style. This brought a little more to the table.

But not much works about the execution past the first act. I appreciated how much care was put into how the relationship started. But everything else is so sloppy once things start crumbling that it feels like the screenwriter just trying to rush their story. It doesn’t help that there’s no single character to root for. Every one of these people display despicable traits and are unworthy of pity. Something interesting happens with Gideon Adlon’s Winnie, Cairo’s best friend and confidant, but it clashes with the version we’ve seen of her earlier on. If anything, there’s an interesting film told from her perspective, but instead, she’s just an ancillary character.

Ortega is fantastic in the role of Cairo Sweet, but she almost feels miscast. There are some moments where she absolutely feasts, but the character is inconsistent in her motivations. It feels like they’re letting Ortega be Ortega during the first half, and then they were reminded of the type of film they were making and completely shifted her tone. It didn’t work for me in any way. And it doesn’t help that the accents can be a bit all over the place. Sometimes, Ortega has a very intense southern accent and other times, it is simply her natural speaking voice. Same with Martin Freeman, who constantly sways between a more Middle American accent versus full Southern. Pretty sure his natural British voice snuck through a few times as well. I’m sure some of this comes from both being huge stars directed by a first-timer, but it’s very distracting.

I’m sure most can judge this by the trailer, but the film is constantly “on the nose” in its approach. High schoolers give monologues full of wisdom while being emotional timebombs the next moment. It makes for a very inconsistent experience. Then there’s the friendship between Cairo and Winnie, which is about as toxic as you can imagine. It’s hard to even call these people friends, and sets the film in a strange hyperreality. Bashir Salahuddin appears as one of Mr. Miller’s friends and coworkers, and while I like the actor, his subplot is a waste. They wanted a parallel of what happens when you don’t cross the line, but the message still appears weird.

In the end, Miller’s Girl didn’t have much to say. It comes across like a writer who had a crush on a teacher and wrote a revenge fantasy about him. The conclusion isn’t particularly satisfying, and it really feels like they have some kind of gross teenage fantasy. But there are some great performances, and the film absolutely relishes in drawn-out sexual tension. This will likely be remembered as the film where Jenna Ortega makes out with a girl. But hey, it’s better than not being remembered at all.

Miller’s Girl

BELOW AVERAGE

5

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Adam Cooper has made his feature directorial debut with the thriller Sleeping Dogs, working from a screenplay he wrote with his writing partner Bill Collage. Starring Russell Crowe (The Pope’s Exorcist) and Karen Gillan (Guardians of the Galaxy), the film is set to reach theatres on March 22nd – and with that date swiftly approaching a trailer for Sleeping Dogs has arrived online! You can watch it in the embed above.

Cooper and Collage’s previous collaborations include New York Minute, Accepted, Tower Heist, The Transporter Refueled, Exodus: Gods and Kings, Allegiant, and Assassin’s Creed. The script they wrote for Sleeping Dogs is based on the novel The Book of Mirrors by E. O. Chirovici. The film has the following synopsis: In the wake of a cutting-edge Alzheimer’s treatment, former homicide detective Roy Freeman is tasked with re-examining a brutal murder case from his past – the grisly murder of a college professor. Intrigued and fighting to regain his memory, Roy enlists his former partner to help him revive the investigation. This time though, things unfold very differently when they encounter a magnetic and mysterious woman: as he uncovers a tangled web of contradictions and secrets, Roy is forced to face a horrific reality that changes his world forever in the blink of an eye.

Crowe and Flanagan are joined in the cast by Tommy Flanagan (Alien vs. Predator), Marton Csokas (the Lord of the Rings trilogy), Harry Greenwood (The Nightingale), and Thomas M. Wright (Everest).

Mark Fasano of Nickel City Pictures produced Sleeping Dogs with Cooper, Collage, Deborah Glover, and Pouya Shabazian of New Leaf Literary. Matthew Goldberg, Cliff Roberts, Highland Film Group’s Arianne Fraser and Delphine Perrier, and Ford Corbett serve as executive producers.

The description of Chirovici’s novel (pick up a copy HERE) is much more complicated than the synopsis provided for the movie. It goes like this: When literary agent Peter Katz receives a partial book submission entitled The Book of Mirrors, he is intrigued by its promise and original voice. The author, Richard Flynn, has written a memoir about his time as an English student at Princeton in the late 1980s, documenting his relationship with the protégée of the famous Professor Joseph Wieder. One night just before Christmas 1987, Wieder was brutally murdered in his home. The case was never solved. Now, twenty-five years later, Katz suspects that Richard Flynn is either using his book to confess to the murder, or to finally reveal who committed the violent crime. But the manuscript ends abruptly—and its author is dying in the hospital with the missing pages nowhere to be found. Hell-bent on getting to the bottom of the story, Katz hires investigative journalist John Keller to research the murder and reconstruct the events for a true crime version of the memoir. Keller tracks down several of the mysterious key players, including retired police detective Roy Freeman, one of the original investigators assigned to the murder case, but he has just been diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s. Inspired by John Keller’s investigation, he decides to try and solve the case once and for all, before he starts losing control of his mind. A trip to the Potosi Correctional Centre in Missouri, several interviews, and some ingenious police work finally lead him to a truth that has been buried for over two decades… or has it?

What did you think of the Sleeping Dogs trailer? Does this look like a movie you’ll be watching in March? Let us know by leaving a comment below – and take a look at the poster while you’re scrolling down:

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A new episode of the Real Slashers video series has just been released, and with this one we’re looking back at a movie that gave us two iconic slashers for the price of one: the 2003 monster mash Freddy vs. Jason (watch it HERE)! Somehow it’s been over twenty years since that long-awaited match-up reached theatres screens, and you can hear all about what happened when Freddy Krueger crossed paths with Jason Voorhees in the video embedded above.

Directed by Ronny Yu (who previously worked with another iconic slasher on Bride of Chucky) from a screenplay by Damian Shannon and Mark J. Swift (with an uncredited polish by David S. Goyer), Freddy vs. Jason has the following synopsis: Get ready for the ultimate showdown! It’s been nearly ten years since Freddy, from the Nightmare on Elm Street series, invaded people’s dreams to exact his deadly form of revenge and murder. But now, his memory has been systematically erased by a town determined to put an end to Freddy once and for all. Until, that is, Freddy resurrects Jason, the equally iconic madman from the Friday the 13th series. Jason is the perfect means for Freddy to once again instill fear on Elm Street and start a new reign of terror. But as the bodies begin to pile up, he discovers that Jason isn’t willing to cease his murderous ways and step aside so easily. Now, with a terrified town in the middle, the two titans of terror enter into a horrifying showdown of epic proportions.

The film stars Monica Keena, Jason Ritter, Kelly Rowland, Chris Marquette, Brendan Fletcher, Katharine Isabelle, Lochlyn Munro, Kyle Labine, Tom Butler, Paula Shaw, David Kopp, Jesse Hutch, Zack Ward, Garry Chalk, Chris Gauthier, and Odessa Munroe, with Robert Englund as Freddy Krueger and, in a shocking move, since everyone expected the role to remain with Kane Hodder, Ken Kirzinger as Jason Voorhees.

Here’s what Real Slashers is all about: Ahhh the ’80s. A simpler time where the blood ran red, the boobies swung freely, and the weed was copiously smoked. A time where rampant killers were simply excuses for excessive sex and over the top murder. Yes, we’re looking at an era where the slasher movie ran wild over cinemas everywhere. Today, we’re looking at “Real Slashers.”

The show is Written, Narrated, and Edited by Tyler Nichols, Produced by John Fallon, and Executive Produced by Berge Garabedian.

What do you think of Freddy vs. Jason, and how did you like this episode of Real Slashers? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

A couple of the previous episodes of Real Slashers can be seen below. To see more, and to check out some of our other shows, head over to the JoBlo Horror Originals channel – and subscribe while you’re at it!

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The Dream Team is back! Ben Affleck and Matt Damon are teaming up again for Animals, a kidnapping thriller for Netflix. Affleck will direct Animals from a script written by Connor McIntyre with revisions by Billy Ray. In addition to his directorial duties, Affleck will produce alongside Damon, Dani Bernfeld of Artists Equity, Brad Weston, and Collin Creighton of MakeReady, who set the project up with Fifth Season.

Plot details remain a mystery, though we know it focuses on a kidnapping. Michael Joe of Artists Equity and Kevin Halloran executive produce with Fifth Season.

Last year, Affleck and Damon delighted audiences with Air, a sports drama following the history of sports marketing executive Sonny Vaccaro and how he led Nike in its pursuit of the greatest athlete in the history of basketball, Michael Jordan. The emotionally charged film performed like gangbusters for Amazon and banked $90 million at the global box office.

Here’s the official synopsis for Air:

From award-winning director Ben Affleck, AIR reveals the unbelievable game-changing partnership between a then-rookie Michael Jordan and Nike’s fledgling basketball division, which revolutionized the world of sports and contemporary culture with the Air Jordan brand. This moving story follows the career-defining gamble of an unconventional team with everything on the line, the uncompromising vision of a mother who knows the worth of her son’s immense talent, and the basketball phenom who would become the greatest of all time.

Air stars Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Jason Bateman, Chris Messina, Matthew Maher, Marlon Wayans, Jay Mohr, and Julius Tennon, with Chris Tucker and Viola Davis.

As the streaming wars continue to rage into 2024, Animals significantly boosts Netflix’s library of original feature-length entertainment. Audiences enjoy watching projects from Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, as the duo has entertained the movie-going public for decades. If Animals is nearly as popular as Amazon’s Air, Netflix will laugh on its way to the bank.

Are you excited about Affleck and Damon teaming up for Animals? What do you think the tone of the project will be? Let us know in the comments section below.

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We’ve previously seen a sneak peek teaser trailer (you can watch it in the embed above) and a first look trailer for AMC’s upcoming limited series The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live, a show that will be catching up with The Walking Dead characters Rick, played by Andrew Lincoln, and Michonne, played by Danai Gurira. The series is scheduled to begin airing on February 25th, and with exactly one month to go until that date arrives, the final trailer has been released online. You can watch that one in the embed at the bottom of this article.

The Walking Dead wrapped up its eleven season run on AMC last year, and now we are in the era of spin-off follow-ups. The first season of The Walking Dead: Dead City, focusing on the Maggie and Negan characters, played out early last year. The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon recently reached the end of its first season run (and will adding the Carol character into the mix for season 2). The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live is the next in line.

Gurira co-created the mini-series and is also one of the writers on the show. Consisting of six episodes, The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live will present an “epic love story of two characters changed by a changed world. Kept apart by distance. By an unstoppable power. By the ghosts of who they were. Rick and Michonne are thrown into another world, built on a war against the dead… And ultimately, a war against the living. Can they find each other and who they were in a place and situation unlike any they’ve ever known before? Are they enemies? Lovers? Victims? Victors? Without each other, are they even alive — or will they find that they, too, are the Walking Dead?“

Gurira worked on the mini-series with Scott M. Gimple, Chief Content Officer of the Walking Dead Universe. Lincoln, and Gurira are joined in the cast by Lesley-Ann Brandt (Lucifer) as a character named Pearl Thorne, Terry O’Quinn (Lost) as Beale, newcomer Matt Jeffries as Nat, and Pollyanna McIntosh, reprising her The Walking Dead and The Walking Dead: World Beyond role of Jadis.

Let us know what you think of the final trailer for The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live – and whether or not you’ll be watching this show when it starts airing on AMC – by leaving a comment below. (If the video below is blocked in your area, you can also find it on YouTube.)

I stuck with The Walking Dead for all eleven seasons, and I’m still on board to watch the spin-offs to see what the characters are up to these days.

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Grab your hard hat and a can-do attitude because an animated Bob the Builder film is under construction! Hammering away at the silver-screen adaptation are Mattel Films, ShadowMachine (Little Demon, Tuca & Bertie, Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio), Jennifer Lopez’s Nuyorican Productions, and Anthony Ramos. The team plans to reimagine Bob the Builder for international appeal with a story that resonates with multicultural audiences.

Anthony Ramos will star in Bob the Builder in addition to his producer status. Alex Bulkley and Corey Campodonico of ShadowMachine join Ramos for the high-profile animated project, with Jennifer Lopez, Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas, and Benny Medina for Nuyorican Productions co-producing. The movie boasts a script written by Felipe Vargas (Afterimages, Distant, Vessel), with Kevin McKeon, Ivan Sanchez, and Arturo Thur De Koós of Mattel Films and Natalie Haack Flores of Nuyorican overseeing production.

The story follows Roberto, aka Bob, who picks up his toolbox and ventures to Puerto Rico for a substantial construction gig. While hammering away on his latest project, Bob encounters challenges around the island and gains a new appreciation for the art of fashioning new constructs. Aspects of Bob’s story include highlighting the Caribbean Latin nations, including the people and their inspiring heritage.

Bob the Builder began as an animated 12-season series from 1997 to 2011. The animated show focuses on Bob, a building contractor, and his enthusiasm for creating exciting new places to explore and live. Bob’s machine team joins him on his mission to build impressive constructs. They demonstrate the power of positive thinking, problem-solving, and teamwork. The show also breaks the fourth wall by inviting the audience to become “little builders” alongside Bob and his team. The show features colorful characters, gorgeous and fluid animation, and creativity that nurtures young viewer’s imaginations.

Did you or your kids watch Bob the Builder when it was on the air? What do you think about Ramos and Lopez bringing Roberto to the silver screen for a larger-than-life adventure set on the sunny and festive island of Puerto Rico? One assumes this could be a franchise starter if audiences fall in love with Bob again. “Can we fix it? Yes, we can!”

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A year and a half ago, it was announced that Sydney Sweeney – whose credits include Euphoria, the recent romantic comedy release Anyone but You, and the upcoming Sony Marvel movie Madame Web – was going to re-team with Michael Mohan, who directed her in the erotic thriller The Voyeurs, for the psychological horror film Immaculate. Last month, NEON acquired the U.S. distribution rights to the film and let it be known they’re planning to give it a theatrical release. Yesterday, a poster was unveiled (you can see it at the bottom of this article), and with it came the promise that a trailer for Immaculate would be arriving online today. Sure enough, the trailer is now available, and you can check it out in the embed above to help you figure out whether or not this is a movie you’ll want to see on the big screen when it reaches theatres on March 22nd. 

Scripted by Andrew Lobel, Immaculate sees Sweeney taking on the role of Cecilia, a woman of devout faith who is offered a fulfilling new role at an illustrious Italian convent. Her warm welcome to the picture-perfect Italian countryside is soon interrupted as it becomes clearer to Cecilia that her new home harbors some dark and horrifying secrets.

Simona Tabasco (The White Lotus), Alvaro Morte (Money Heist), Benedetta Porcaroli (Baby), and Dora Romano (The Hand of God) are also in the cast.

Sweeney produced the film through her company Fifty-Fifty Films, alongside Jonathan Davino. Also producing are Teddy Schwarzman and Michael Heimler of Black Bear and Middle Child Pictures’ David Bernad, who developed the project with Sweeney after they worked together on the Emmy-winning series The White Lotus. Will Greenfield and Black Bear’s John Friedberg and Christopher Casanova serve as executive producers. Black Bear provided the financing.

What did you think of the Immaculate trailer? Are you a fan of Sydney Sweeney’s work, and are you glad she’s working with the director of The Voyeurs again? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

Religious horror ranks down there as one of my least favorite sub-genres, but I’m willing to give Immaculate a chance.

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PLOT: A man, Fallon (Alex Pettyfer) roams the land as a creature of the night as he comes to terms with tragic loss of his family at the hands of a brutal demagogue, Reynolds (Guy Pearce).

REVIEW: “The Sun Never Sets On Evil” may just be the most generic tagline for a vampire film possible. So I understand if you, like myself, are trepidatious when it comes to Sunrise. The basic vampire formula has been used time and time again but I always appreciate it when someone has an interesting new vision. On the surface, this is a simple story of a vampire helping a family get justice. But it’s so much more than that. I’ve always believed that it doesn’t matter how generic the story is, so long as it executes those ideas. And Sunrise provides a beautiful tragedy with some wonderful performances.

While I know he’s got a bit of a reputation for his behavior, I quite enjoyed Alex Pettyfer as the vampire, Fallon. He has a good presence to him and is quite stoic. It works extremely well. There were elements of his character that I wasn’t expecting. Ultimately, he managed to take a fairly bland role and give it a little intrigue. I also enjoyed Crystal Yu as Yan, the matriarch of the Loi family. Their acceptance of Fallon’s help is believable and how she plays those moments of stillness is really impressive.

Guy Pearce is one of the most underrated actors working today and he’s a standout in Sunrise. Reynolds is a slimy and despicable man, and Pearce seems to revel in it. There’s a reserved wickedness to him that makes him intimidating. It’s clear that he’s known to do some bad stuff with how the townsfolk act around him. They aren’t entirely able to keep the momentum going with his aura and go in an odd direction with his character. I liked where he ended up, but the journey to get there had some strange twists and turns. He’s an obvious highlight.

It’d be hard to talk about Sunrise without mentioning the racial element. Reynolds is a white supremacist and is very comfortable making it known to others. His conflict with the family is entirely based on race, with him not wanting Asian farmers to “pollute the lands.” It adds another layer of evil to Reynolds while commenting on a very real issue. It can be a little on the nose, but I don’t think it ever entered the territory of unbelievability. And I’m not going to delve too deeply into the plot, because I think the mystery is what makes the film work.

I’m not familiar with director Andrew Baird’s prior work, but I was extremely impressed with his command of Sunrise. It’s a beautifully shot film that manages to be grounded while dealing with some fantastical elements. I loved all the little details, like the coat that Fallon wears being absolutely frayed from usage. There was clearly plenty of love and care put into this one, with some truly stunning shots.

It’s not all sunshine, though, there are some subplots that don’t entirely land. I won’t provide context out of fear of spoilers, but it made for a frustrating second half. I get what they were trying to accomplish with the son, but everything involving him slides into convoluted territory. Reynolds’s daughter is introduced, and her entire arc is handled in a very confusing way. I understand trying to raise the stakes, but I wish the film had continued its less-is-more approach. Another draft would have done wonders for this script.

There’s a little bit of sloppiness in the third act that takes away a bit of the shine. I’m not sure why they felt the need to ramp up the story to such a degree, as the more subtle approach was working well in the first half. There are several events that could have been handled better but thankfully, they don’t ruin the overall narrative. Several shots are burned firmly into my mind as the visual language really appeals to me. I quite enjoyed my time with Sunrise and could see this showing up on lists for Underrated Vampire flicks for years to come.

SUNRISE IS OUT IN THEATERS AND ON DEMAND/DIGITAL ON JANUARY 19TH, 2024.

Sunrise

GOOD

7

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