They Will Kill You (2026)

As anyone who has been keeping track of my movie viewings will know, this is the reason I recently revisited Why Don't You Just Die! I had enjoyed the trailer for this movie, and wanted to see how director Kirill Sokolov would do with macabre fare that seemed to be aimed at a more mainstream audience (aka his English-language debut). The verdict? He doesn't do a bad job. I wouldn't call They Will Kill You great, but it certainly has one or two moments of greatness in it.

It's a familiar tale, at least on the surface. A group of rich and powerful people need to kill someone in order to retain their status. They're all inhabitants of one large building, and Asia Reaves (Zazie Beetz) is the new housekeeper who ends up being their new target. Asia has a hidden agenda though, and she's also very good at staying alive while dealing savagely with anyone silly enough to attack her.

Co-written by Sokolov and Alex Litvak, this may have underperformed at the box office, perhaps due to how close it was released to what seemed a very similar film (Ready Or Not 2: Here I Come), but I hope people will give it their time at home. There are a couple of twists and turns that make it much more fun than expected, and the violence on display is often as entertaining and inventive as it is savage and bloody.

Beetz is a very good lead, easy to root for and easy to believe as someone capable and deadly. It helps that the ensemble cast also includes Patricia Arquette (dubious accent choice and all), Paterson Joseph, Heather Graham, Tom Felton, Angus Sampson, and the voice of James Remar. There are many others too, including Myha'la, playing a character who provides the main motivation for the leading lady. Not everyone is at the same standard when it comes to the performances being delivered, but those who add to the fun far outweigh the few who don't.

I admit to not being won over by this from the very beginning. It seemed like it was a half-baked idea that would barely hold my interest for half an hour, let alone a full 94 minutes. The first couple of twists and turns were executed well enough to perk me up though, and then I was delighted by some superb gore gags and wonderfully-choreographed fight scenes until the curtain was pulled back for a final act that keeps delivering more of the same, but also adds even more insanity to the mix.

Sokolov proves himself as someone to absolutely keep an eye on. He has a great sense of the cinematic, is able to create stylish mayhem on a relatively low budget, and accompanies his visuals with some appropriately driving soundtrack choices. I may have been keen to see this, but I'm just as keen to see whatever he ends up doing next. And I wouldn't be disappointed if it was some contrived sequel to this. Maybe titled They Will Still Kill You. 

7/10

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Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (2024)

It may seem like a long time since we had Mad Max: Fury Road, but at least we have known that this movie was coming along at some point. There was a time when we didn't expect to spend more time in this world after Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome. But the most important thing to remember before sitting down to watch Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is that this isn’t Mad Max: Fury Road. Every Mad Max movie has been surprisingly different from the one preceding it, with the action and characters allowing George Miller to continue his exploration of heroes, storytelling, and how reality is hammered into shape by those living in it long enough. This film has some great action, but it’s mostly concerned with showing us a world in which a good person is forced to become stronger and smarter as they are passed from one villain to another.

We first meet Furiosa as a child here, played brilliantly by Alyla Browne. She is snatched by bad men, ending up in the care of Dementus (Chris Hemsworth). Dementus thinks he is a grand warlord, but his perspective is changed when he comes face to face with Immortan Joe (Lachy Hulme) and his dedicated army of warboys. Furiosa is handed over to Joe, Dementus becomes the ruler of Gastown, and time ticks merrily along for all involved. Eventually getting herself a job working alongside a talented “road warrior” named Praetorian Jack (Tom Burke), Furiosa (played as an adult by Anya Taylor-Joy) develops instincts and skills that will make her a valuable asset when Dementus decides that he wants to rule over more than just the denizens of Gastown. There could be a war brewing, but Furiosa still has a personal score to settle anyway.

With Miller comfortably in the director’s chair yet again, having also co-written the script with Nick Lathouris, this is a film that fans of the franchise should be happy to support. Few people are as good at somehow both meeting and subverting expectations as Miller, and he does exactly that once again. I would say there are three action sequences here that are astonishingly good, up there with the best you will ever see on the big screen, but they are deliberately couched within a movie that spends most of the runtime showing us the harsh and crazy world that leads to the creation of such harsh and crazy characters. It laughs at the people unprepared to do whatever needs to be done for the sake of survival and prosperity, and then shows how painful the process of adaption and transition can be. What is the point of being a big fish in a small pond when that small pond is actually a barren desert?

The more I think about Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga the more I am inclined to absolutely love it. I think a rewatch or two will see me bump up my rating slightly, but it’s hard to be so unreservedly effusive about it right now. First, it does inevitably suffer slightly when compared to the non-stop juggernaut of the film that preceded it. Second, there’s so much to take in, in terms of the detailing of the world and the connective tissue throughout the franchise, that one viewing just isn’t enough to fully appreciate it. I would advise everyone, if possible, to see it on the big screen though. This is cinema.

The cast are generally great. Alyla Browne is absolutely superb as the young Furiosa, a ball of resentment and unnerving patience. As much as I like Taylor-Joy, she is the one slightly weak link here. Not bad, and she certainly doesn’t unbalance the film, but her performance just feels slightly less convincing when she isn’t ensconced within the supporting armour of a powerful vehicle. Thankfully, she is surrounded by some other people on top form. Hemsworth steals the show, the facial prosthetics somehow helping to define his character as equal parts braggart warrior and sniveling politician, and Hulme takes on the role of Joe (previously played by the late Hugh Keays-Burn) with an admirable dedication to the physicality and eye-acting required. As for Burke, he proves himself to be a surprisingly great fit for this kind of gruff hero role, and I could easily imagine a spin-off movie showing us his adventures (Praetorian Jack: A Furiosa Saga From A Mad Max Saga, or something like that). There are others worth mentioning, but I would worry about starting a list of names that would go on and on for ages. Needless to say, almost every supporting cast member does a brilliant job of playing someone who feels like a part of this world.

Despite the CGI here, despite the prosthetics, and despite the confident plotting, the major achievement here is the consistent continuation of Miller’s vision that has spanned almost five decades now. This is more than just a movie. You will feel the dry heat, smell the engines, and tense up as vehicles cause the expected amounts of carnage. This is the closest you will get to a full immersive experience without adding any gimmickry to the process. It’s long, it can be a bit tiring by the time you get to the end credits, but it’s definitely worth it. There’s a point in this film when Hemsworth asks “do you have it in you to make it epic?” I would argue that Miller can’t give us Mad Max movies any other way. And we should all be thankful for that.

9/10

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Insidious: The Last Key (2018)

Look, even if you're a huge fan of Insidious (as I am), it's hard to argue against the idea that it wasn't a horror movie that felt designed to kick off a long-running series. The second film was good, although already felt at times as if it was repeating a few of the tricks that the original had done so well, and the third film, while enjoyable enough, was too far removed from the previous events to really win over fans.

So now we're at the fourth (and final?) instalment, and where does it sit in comparison to the other entries? Well, it's not bad. It's still a step removed from the first films, yet it feels closer to them than that third chapter.

Lin Shaye returns as Elise Rainier, the psychic who can battle ghosts and demonic forces most people cannot see. She's once again joined by Specs (played by writer Leigh Whannell) and Tucker (Angus Sampson), but she would much rather enjoy a quiet life than put herself through any more strain and horribly perilous "adventures". That looks unlikely, however, when she gets a call from someone (Ted, played by Kirk Acevedo) who believes that his house is haunted. It happens to be the house that Elise lived in when she was a young girl, and she knows how bad it is there. So she sets off to help Ted, perhaps looking for some closure at the same time.

The Insidious series certainly benefits from having Leigh Whannell writing each instalment. He's okay in front of the camera, but it's the writing that is clearly his forte. Like the best of these slick, modern, mainstream horrors, Insidious: The Last Key lays out plenty of details in the earlier scenes to pick them up again later, when the scares are being delivered. Learning more about Elise, how she was as a youngster when discovering her "gift", works very well, thanks to it being a character that viewers have now journeyed with for some time, and also thanks to the third act developments.

Adam Robitel is the director this time, and he does a perfectly acceptable job. This relies more on jump scares than the first couple of movies (I know they were accused by many of having no atmosphere, I disagree) but they're done very well, with one or two moments of impressively creepy imagery that may well stay in your mind long after the end credits have rolled.

As for the cast, forget about everyone else onscreen and enjoy Lin Shaye, a woman who has been in many horror movies over the years and has now been the unexpected lynchpin of this successful series. She never gives less than 100% in her portrayal of Elise, even in scenes that try to let Whannell and Sampson lighten things up a bit with some awkward comedy. Bruce Davison is also as good as ever, but is onscreen for about one or two minutes, and you get decent enough performances from Acevedo, Caitlin Gerard, Spencer Locke, Josh Stewart, and Tessa Ferrer, among others.

If you've seen the other films then you should give this one a watch. It's completely unnecessary, and could have been improved by removing a couple of the characters, but it's still solid entertainment.

6/10

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Insidious: Chapter 2 (2013)

After an interesting, and spooky, prologue, Insidious: Chapter 2 gets straight down to business by continuing on from the events at the end of the first movie. Josh (Patrick Wilson) and Renai Lambert (Rose Byrne) have their son back, after rescuing him from supernatural entities, and everyone hopes that things will get back to normal. But that's just not going to happen. There's a murder to be investigated, and there are also some strange things still happening to the family. Renai is at the end of her rope, Josh doesn't want to believe that anything else will try to harm them, and granny Lambert (Lorraine, played by Barbara Hershey) eventually pieces enough together to re-enlist the paranormal investigators, Specs (Leigh Whannell) and Tucker (Angus Sampson).

James Wan returns to direct, and Whannell once again multi-tasks as he acts onscreen after completing his duty as the writer of the screenplay. The two work well together, creating horrors that mix atmospheric moments with jump scares and unnerving imagery. Still, if you didn't like the first movie then you're not going to like this sequel. It's more of the same, and even reworks a few scenes in a nice wrinkle added to the standard paranormal activity.

The cast do what's asked of them, but the acting on display here isn't really the best that you'll see. Mind you, it's pretty good stuff compared to what viewers CAN be made to endure within the horror genre. Wilson has some fun, Byrne does well while not being allowed to relax for a minute (spending the entire movie with frayed nerves, bless her), and Hershey is good enough to help make the weaker moments work. Whannell and Sampson will annoy everyone who was annoyed by them the first time around, but I enjoyed the comic relief that they provided. Lin Shaye gets to return, playing Elise Rainier, albeit a changed version of her. Although she's not onscreen for that long, her character is shown to be, arguably, the most important one caught up in the whole situation. Steve Coulter is a new addition to the team, playing another paranormal investigator named Carl, and he does well with his role, particularly in a tense scene that sees him challenged over his method of divining results.

Perhaps not quite good, or intense, enough for more experienced horror fans, the Insidious movies definitely contain enough thrills and chills to scare plenty of money out of mainstream audiences. While I can see flaws in both movies, I must admit that I'm happier to see a film like this succeed than yet another remake of some '80s movie that someone erroneously thinks needs a big dollop of CGI to improve it. There are some big plot points here that will either please or turn off viewers, but you have to give the film-makers some credit for trying to twist the material into something a bit more interesting and unique. Okay, you don't HAVE to give them credit. But I do.

7/10

http://www.amazon.com/Insidious-2-Blu-ray/dp/B00FG5L2OC/ref=tmm_blu_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1405227344&sr=8-2